The TPG Awards returned with a live event last night for the first time in three years as we recognized the best in travel, loyalty and credit cards from the past year. And, as part of this celebration, we handed out four cards-related editors’ choice awards to the brands that stood tall in 2022.
Our team of content experts considered an array of candidates for these four honors before deciding on the ones that ultimately took home trophies this year.
Here are the credit card winners of the editors’ choice awards at the 2022 TPG Awards.
Best All-Around Credit Card
This award went to the credit card that offers the best overall value if you only want to carry a single card in your wallet. Some cards are best when paired with others, but there was one that our team felt stood tall.
Winner: Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card
The Venture X packs a punch in the world of premium rewards credit cards, perhaps most notably due to its comparatively low $395 annual fee. The card recently celebrated its one-year anniversary, and many TPG staffers plan to keep it for the long term. In addition to a hefty welcome bonus of 75,000 miles when you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first three months from account opening, you’ll earn 2 miles for every dollar you spend — plus bonus miles (and an up to $300 annual statement credit) when booking flights, hotels and rental cars through Capital One Travel.
The Venture X also includes access to Capital One Lounges, Plaza Premium Lounges and a full Priority Pass membership. In fact, these perks extend to not just you but also up to four authorized users at no additional cost — though sadly, the card will be losing non-lounge privileges through Priority Pass as of Jan. 1, 2023.
Other benefits include:
- 10,000 bonus miles on your cardmember anniversary.
- Global Entry or TSA PreCheck reimbursement every four years.
- Complimentary Hertz President’s Circle status.
- No foreign transaction fees.
The issuer also recently announced that cardholders will soon have access to two new perks: The Premier Collection, a series of curated hotels with value-added perks for Venture X customers, and Capital One Landings, a new dining-focused airport lounge concept coming to New York’s LaGuardia Airport (LGA) and Washington, D.C.’s Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA).
While the lower-priced Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card remains a solid option thanks to its $95 annual fee, the array of additional perks on the Venture X pushed it to the top.
Best Credit Card Perk
Around here, we have a real passion for credit card perks. We love getting status, using statement credits and gaining access to unique places and experiences through the cards in our wallets. Of all the credit card perks we love, though, one stands out from all the rest.
Winner: American Express Global Lounge Collection
For the second year in a row, complimentary access to the American Express Global Lounge Collection, a benefit of The Platinum Card® from American Express and The Business Platinum Card® from American Express, is our choice for the best card perk.
The Global Lounge Collection includes American Express Centurion lounges, Delta Sky Clubs and Priority Pass Select lounges, among others, totaling more than 1,400 locations across 140 countries.
In recent years, other issuers have started to join American Express in the lounge space. Capital One opened its first of several planned lounges in 2021, and Chase opened its first Sapphire lounge in Hong Kong this year. Still, the American Express Global Lounge Collection is by far the most extensive and dominates this area of credit card perks.
While many premium cards come with the benefit of airport lounge access, the Amex Global Lounge Collection is the most extensive and beloved by beginner and experienced travelers alike.
Best Transferable Points Program
Transferable points are some of our favorites to earn because of their value and flexibility. Programs like American Express Membership Rewards, Bilt Rewards, Chase Ultimate Rewards, Capital One Miles and Citi ThankYou Rewards offer lucrative transfer partners and a wide range of earning potential. But of course, we could only choose one winner.
Winner: Chase Ultimate Rewards
Chase Ultimate Rewards is our pick as the best transferable points program for yet another year. The flexibility and value of transferring to Chase’s travel partners, such as Hyatt and United, are tough to beat. Additionally, the 1:1 transfer ratio and user-friendly travel portal make this program an excellent choice for those just dipping their toes into the world of transferable points.
We also love that it’s fairly easy to maximize your earning potential to take home even more valuable points. To earn fully transferable Chase Ultimate Rewards points, you’ll need a Chase Sapphire Reserve, Chase Sapphire Preferred Card or Ink Business Preferred Credit Card. But once you have one of these cards, you can effectively convert cash-back rewards from cards like the Chase Freedom Flex, Chase Freedom Unlimited, Ink Business Cash Credit Card or Ink Business Unlimited Credit Card into fully transferable Chase points.
Related: How to transfer Chase Ultimate Rewards points between accounts
With its high value, strong transfer partners, varied options for earning rewards and simple redemption options, Chase Ultimate Rewards is the standout transferable points program in our book.
Best New/Refreshed Credit Card
Each year, we track the new cards on the block, as well as those that undergo significant overhauls. This year, it’s not a new card but a refreshed one that left us impressed.
Winner: Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant® American Express® Card
The Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant got a new look in addition to some big changes to its benefits this fall. The card now comes with higher automatic elite status, additional elite night credits and a more valuable free night certificate.
The card’s most notable changes include:
- Up to a $25 monthly dining credit (previously $300 in annual statement credits for Marriott purchases).
- Automatic Platinum Elite status and 25 elite night credits annually.
- Additional “Annual Earned Choice Award” after spending $60,000 on the card in a calendar year beginning in 2023.
- Increased value of annual free night award (now valid for stays of up to 85,000 points instead of 50,000 points).
These changes did, however, come with an annual fee increase, which now stands at $650 (see rates and fees). Even so, the elevated benefits this card now offers are valuable enough for it to land our title of the best new or refreshed credit card of 2022.
Related: Why I want this Marriott credit card more than ever — even though the annual fee jumped to $650
Bottom line
2022 has been an exciting year for credit cards. While we love our final decisions for these awards, we’re eagerly looking ahead to 2023 to see what we’ll be talking about this time next year.
Until then, you can find us writing from our American Express lounges, swiping our Capital One Venture X cards, transferring our Chase Ultimate Rewards points to our favorite travel partners and maximizing the new benefits on our Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant cards.
