Airline Miles

• The best airline mile programs are those offered by the airlines themselves. If you're confident that the best rates will be on certain airlines, you could benefit from the Continental Airlines OnePass Plus card which offers 25,000 bonus miles for joining plus an additional 5,000 bonus miles for adding another user to your card. You can earn two miles for every dollar spent on Continental flights and one bonus point for every dollar spent elsewhere. Southwest has a similar deal with 20,000 bonus miles. But if you're not sure which airline you'll want to use, you might want to pick a broader travel card.
  
  

Other Travel Rewards

• Capital One has long topped the list of travel rewards cards since it has no foreign exchange fees and gives 1.25 points per dollar spent that can be used on any kind of travel. The Chase Sapphire card offers one point for every dollar spent and double the points for airfare booked through the Ultimate Rewards programs, a 7 percent annual points dividend and no blackout dates for flights or hotels.
  
  

Auto Rewards

• The True Earnings card from Costco and American Express offers 3 percent cash back for up to $3,000 worth of gas purchases annually. It also offers 3 percent cash back for all restaurant purchases, up to 2 percent cash back for travel and 2 percent cash back on almost everything else. The Discover Open Road card offers 2 percent cash back for all restaurant and gas purchases up to $250 per billing period. All other purchases qualify for 1 percent cash back.
  
  

Cash Back

• As of March 2011, Consumerism Commentary lists Chase Freedom as having the best cash back program. Once upon a time, cash back of 5 percent on all purchases was common. Now 1 percent is more common. But Chase Freedom also offers up to 5 percent on select items. The list of items changes every few months. It also offers up to 10 percent cash back on items purchased from selected merchants through the company's online mall.