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If there is one thing we've learned over the last few years, it's to ensure that we are protected. Whether it's inclement weather, carriers experiencing meltdowns, or unpredictable situations on the ground in a foreign country, it's clear that travel insurance is a necessity, not a luxury.
Several reputable companies offer solid insurance products at a range of price points. And while the idea of paying for insurance might make anyone shudder, it does provide a comforting safety net. However, you may already have travel insurance coverage included with your credit card.
This isn't an irrelevant benefit to overlook, but a perk that often goes unnoticed. You don't need it until you do, but when you need it, you really need it. With that said, we've reviewed the best credit cards for travel purchases and identified those we believe offer the best options for travel protection and insurance at no additional cost. You get these benefits just by being a cardholder.
Page Contents
- Top Cards For Travel Insurance and Protection
- Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card: Best for Affordable Protection
- Chase Sapphire Reserve®: Best for Comprehensive Coverage
- Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card: Best for Premium Benefits
- Citi Strata Elite℠ Card: Best for Lost Luggage
- Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card: Best Business Card With Travel Insurance
- American Express Cards
- Why Other Cards Didn't Make the List
- Bottom Line
Top Cards For Travel Insurance and Protection
Below are our top picks, including highlights of why these cards stand out. Review the benefits guide and contact your benefits administrator for clarification on any of these benefits.
Related: Our Favorite Unheralded Credit Card Perks
Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card: Best for Affordable Protection
The Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card (Rates & Fees) is an all-around excellent credit card, offering a suite of benefits in exchange for an affordable $95 annual fee. It also happens to offer some of the most comprehensive travel protections on the market:
- Trip Cancellation and Interruption Insurance: In select situations, you can be reimbursed up to $10,000 per traveler and $20,000 per trip for your prepaid, non-refundable travel expenses, including passenger fares, tours, and hotels.
- Baggage Delay Insurance: Reimburses you up to $100 a day for up to 5 days ($500 total) to cover clothes and toiletries if your bag is delayed over 6 hours
- Auto Rental Coverage: This provides primary coverage globally with reimbursement up to $60,000 for theft and collision damage for most rental vehicles with an MSRP of $125,000 or less.
- Trip Delay Reimbursement: Provides up to $500 in reimbursement per traveler if you're delayed for 12+ hours or overnight. This has you covered if you're not otherwise compensated for a hotel, rental car, or meals.
- Lost Luggage Reimbursement: If your bag is lost, damaged, or stolen in transit, you're covered up to $3,000 per traveler per trip for the difference between the cash value of your item and any reimbursement provided by the common carrier. In other words, this kicks in after the airline reimburses you for losing your bag.
- Travel Accident Insurance: You are covered against a loss of life or loss of limb, sight, speech, or hearing up to $500,000 per person.
- Sapphire Preferred Benefits Guide
Note that for this coverage to kick in, you need to pay using the card or with your Ultimate Rewards for all or part of your travel. And coverage is limited to the lesser of the following:
- $10,000 per covered traveler
- $20,000 per trip for all covered travelers — and $40,000 per 12 month period per account
- The actual amount charged to the covered card and/or redeemable rewards used for a covered expense
- Earn 75,000 bonus points after you spend $5,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening.
- Enjoy benefits such as 5x on travel purchased through Chase Travel℠, 3x on dining, select streaming services and online groceries, 2x on all other travel purchases, 1x on all other purchases
- Earn up to $50 in statement credits each account anniversary year for hotel stays through Chase Travel℠
- 10% anniversary points boost - each account anniversary you'll earn bonus points equal to 10% of your total purchases made the previous year.
- Count on Trip Cancellation/Interruption Insurance, Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver, Lost Luggage Insurance and more.
- Complimentary DashPass which unlocks $0 delivery fees & lower service fees for a min. of one year when you activate by 12/31/27. Plus, a $10 promo each month on non-restaurant orders.
- Member FDIC
- Rates & Fees
- 5X points on Lyft rides through September 2027
- 5X points on travel purchased through Chase Travel℠
- 3X points on dining at restaurants worldwide
- 3X points on eligible streaming services
- 3X points on online grocery purchases (excluding Target, Walmart, and wholesale clubs)
- 2X points on all other travel
- 1X point per dollar spent on all other purchases
Related: Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card Full Review
Chase Sapphire Reserve®: Best for Comprehensive Coverage
The Chase Sapphire Reserve® (Rates & Fees) has almost identical coverage to the Sapphire Preferred, with a few enhancements that make coverage even more comprehensive.
In most situations, it would be ranked as the best card for travel insurance; however, it has a significantly higher annual fee of $795 and charges an authorized user fee of $195 per card.
The Sapphire Reserve provides the same trip cancellation and interruption insurance, baggage delay insurance, and lost luggage reimbursement as the Sapphire Preferred. The following benefits are similar to the Sapphire Preferred, but slightly enhanced:
- Auto Rental Coverage covers you up to $75,000 for theft and collision damage for most rental vehicles (compared to $60,000).
- Trip Delay Reimbursement kicks in after 6+ hours of delay (instead of 12).
- Travel Accident Insurance caps out at $1,000,000 (instead of $500,000).
The Sapphire Reserve also provides some unique benefits, including:
- Emergency Evacuation and Transportation: Provides up to $100,000 of coverage if you need to be transported for emergency medical reasons when you are at least 100 miles away from home.
- Emergency Medical & Dental: Provides up to $2,500 if you need to head to a hospital, a clinic, or receive other medical/dental services when you're at least 100 miles away from home (services that wouldn't be already covered by your insurance provider), subject to a $50 deductible.
- Roadside Assistance: You are covered up to $50 per incident, up to four times per year, if you need a tow, battery assistance, tire change, locksmith, or gas during a roadside emergency.
- Sapphire Reserve Guide to Benefits
The Sapphire Reserve offers some of the most comprehensive travel protections out there. If you want to be as insured as possible when you're on the road, this is the card to have. However, those protections and the suite of additional cardholder benefits come at a price point that might not be palatable to some people.
- Earn 125,000 bonus points after you spend $6,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening.
- Get more than $2,700 in annual value with Sapphire Reserve.
- Earn 8x points on all purchases through Chase Travel℠, including The Edit℠ and 4x points on flights and hotels booked direct. Plus, earn 3x points on dining worldwide & 1x points on all other purchases
- $300 annual travel credit as reimbursement for travel purchases charged to your card each account anniversary year.
- Access over 1,300 airport lounges worldwide with a complimentary Priority Pass™ Select membership, plus every Chase Sapphire Lounge® by The Club with two guests. Plus, up to $120 towards Global Entry, NEXUS, or TSA PreCheck® every 4 years
- Get up to $150 in statement credits every six months for a maximum of $300 annually for dining at restaurants that are part of Sapphire Reserve Exclusive Tables.
- Count on Trip Cancellation/Interruption Insurance, Auto Rental Coverage, Lost Luggage Insurance, no foreign transaction fees, and more.
- Get complimentary Apple TV+, the exclusive streaming home of Apple Originals. Plus Apple Music - all the music you love, across all your devices. Subscriptions run through 6/22/27 - a value of $250 annually
- Member FDIC
- Rates & Fees
- 8x points on all purchases through Chase Travel℠
- 4x points on flights and hotels booked directly
- 3x points on dining worldwide
- 1x points on all other purchases
Related: Chase Sapphire Reserve® Full Review
Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card: Best for Premium Benefits
The Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card is one of the best premium credit cards on the market, in no small part thanks to its low (in comparison) $395 annual fee. Although the protections you receive aren't nearly as comprehensive as the ones found on the Sapphire cards, they are still helpful in a pinch.
- Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver (CDW): Coverage is primary and covers you up to $75,000 against theft and collision.
- Trip Interruption/Cancellation: In select situations, you can be reimbursed up to $2,000 for your prepaid, non-refundable travel expenses.
- Trip Delay Reimbursement: Provides up to $500 for a 6+ hour delay or required overnight stay.
- Lost Luggage Reimbursement: Provides up to $3,000 per trip for the difference between the value of the bag and the common carrier's payment.
- Travel Accident Insurance: Provides up to $1,000,000 against accidental loss of life, limb, sight, speech, or hearing while riding as a passenger on a common carrier.
- Capital One Venture X Guide to Benefits
In addition to travel benefits, Capital One offers cell phone protection of up to $800 for a lost or stolen phone when you make your monthly phone payment with your card. Most notably, you won't receive delayed baggage insurance as a Capital One Venture X cardholder.
The trip cancellation and interruption insurance provides significantly less coverage than some of the other cards on this list. However, the primary rental car coverage and comprehensive travel accident insurance are great features to have.
- 10X miles per $1 on hotels and rental cars booked via Capital One Travel
- 5X miles per $1 on purchases through Capital One Entertainment
- 5X miles per $1 on flights when booking via Capital One Travel
- 5X miles per $1 on vacation rentals booked via Capital One Travel
- 2X miles per $1 on all other eligible purchases
Related: Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card Full Review
Citi Strata Elite℠ Card: Best for Lost Luggage
One of the newest additions to the premium credit card scene is the Citi Strata Elite℠ Card (Rates & Fees), which offers some solid travel protections and other lucrative benefits in exchange for a $595 annual fee. As a cardholder, you'll enjoy:
- MasterRental Coverage: Provides primary rental car coverage when you rent a car outside your primary country of residence, and secondary coverage inside your primary country of residence.
- Trip Delay Protection: Provides up to $500 for delays of 6 hours or more.
- Trip Cancellation and Interruption: You are covered up to $5,000 per covered trip for prepaid, non-refundable travel expenses.
- Lost or Damaged Luggage: You are covered up to $5,000 per covered trip for the difference between the value of the bag and the common carrier's payment.
It might not be as comprehensive as the other cards on this list, but considering that Citi didn't offer any travel protections until a few years ago, it's a nice list. Plus, the other benefits of being a cardholder easily justify the annual fee, so the travel protections are icing on the cake.
- For a limited time, earn 100,000 bonus Points after spending $6,000 in the first 3 months of account opening.
- Earn 12 Points per $1 spent on Hotels, Car Rentals, and Attractions booked on cititravel.com and 6 Points per $1 spent on Air Travel booked on cititravel.com
- Earn 6 Points per $1 spent at Restaurants including Restaurant Delivery Services on CitiNights℠ purchases, every Friday and Saturday from 6 PM to 6 AM ET. Earn 3 Points per $1 spent any other time
- Earn 1.5 Points per $1 spent on All Other Purchases
- Up to $300 Annual Hotel Benefit: Each calendar year, enjoy up to $300 off a hotel stay of two nights or more when booked through cititravel.com.
- No Foreign Transaction Fees
- 12X – Earn 12 Points per $1 spent on Hotels, Car Rentals, and Attractions booked on cititravel.com.
- 6X – Earn 6 Points per $1 spent on Air Travel booked on cititravel.com.
- 6X – Earn 6 Points per $1 spent at Restaurants including Restaurant Delivery Services on CitiNights℠ purchases, every Friday and Saturday from 6 PM to 6 AM ET. Earn 3 Points per $1 spent any other time.
- 1.5X – Earn 1.5 Points per $1 spent on All Other Purchases.
Related: Citi Strata Elite℠ Card Full Review
Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card: Best Business Card With Travel Insurance
If you're looking for a business credit card with comprehensive travel benefits, the Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card should be on your radar. Here's why:
- Trip Cancellation and Interruption Insurance: You can be reimbursed up to $5,000 per traveler and $10,000 per trip for your prepaid, non-refundable travel expenses, including passenger fares, tours, and hotels.
- Auto Rental Coverage: You will receive primary coverage when renting a car for business purposes and secondary coverage when renting for personal reasons. It provides reimbursement up to $60,000 for theft and collision damage for most rental vehicles with an MSRP of $125,000 or less.
- Ink Preferred Benefits Guide
Benefits may extend to company employees even if they don't have a card. You can also get up to $1,000 in cell phone protection for phones listed on your monthly cell phone bill, with a maximum of three claims in a 12-month period and a $100 deductible per claim.
- 3X points per $1 on the first $150,000 spent in combined purchases on travel, shipping purchases, Internet, cable and phone services, advertising purchases made with social media sites and search engines each account anniversary year
- 1X point per $1 on all other purchases
Related: Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card Full Review
American Express Cards
American Express cards still lag behind those from other issuers in terms of insurance benefits. There's no coverage for delayed baggage, and rental car coverage is secondary; more on that later.
For instance, the American Express Platinum Card® comes with the following benefits:
- Trip Cancellation and Interruption Insurance: In select situations, you can be reimbursed up to $10,000 per trip for your prepaid, non-refundable travel expenses.
- Trip Delay Protection: Provides up to $500 for delays of 6 hours or more.
- Lost Luggage: You are covered up to $3,000 per passenger for the difference between the value of the bag and the common carrier's payment.
- You may be eligible for as high as 175,000 Membership Rewards® points after you spend $8,000 in eligible purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership. Welcome offers vary and you may not be eligible for an offer. Apply to know if you're approved and find out your exact welcome offer amount - all with no credit score impact. If you're approved and choose to accept the Card, your score may be impacted.
- Get more for your travels with 5X Membership Rewards® points on all flights and prepaid hotel bookings through American Express Travel®, including Fine Hotels + Resorts® and The Hotel Collection bookings. You earn 5X points on flights purchased directly from airlines or through American Express Travel® on up to $500,000 on these purchases per calendar year.
- More Value! With over 1,550 airport lounges - more than any other credit card company on the market* - enjoy the benefits of the Global Lounge Collection®, over $850 of annual value, with access to Centurion Lounges, 10 complimentary Delta Sky Club® visits when flying on an eligible Delta flight (subject to visit limitations), Priority Pass Select membership (enrollment required), and other select partner lounges. * As of 07/2025.
- More Value! $200 Uber Cash + $120 Uber One Credit: With the Platinum Card® you can receive $15 in Uber Cash each month plus a bonus $20 in December when you add your Platinum Card® to your Uber account to use on rides and orders in the U.S when you select an Amex Card for your transaction. Plus, when you use the Platinum Card® to pay for an auto-renewing Uber One membership, you can get up to $120 in statement credits each calendar year. Terms apply.
- More Value! $300 Digital Entertainment Credit: Get up to $25 in statement credits each month after you pay for eligible purchases with the Platinum Card® at participating partners. Enrollment required.
- More Value! $600 Hotel Credit: Get up to $300 in statement credits semi-annually on prepaid Fine Hotels + Resorts® or The Hotel Collection* bookings through American Express Travel® using the Platinum Card®. *The Hotel Collection requires a minimum two-night stay.
- New! $400 Resy Credit + Platinum Nights by Resy: When you use the Platinum Card® to pay at U.S. Resy restaurants and to make other eligible purchases through Resy, you can get up to $100 in statement credits each quarter with the $400 Resy Credit benefit. Plus, with Platinum Nights by Resy, you can get special access to reservations on select nights at participating in demand Resy restaurants with the Platinum Card®. Simply add your eligible Card to your Resy profile to book and discover Platinum Nights reservations near you, enrollment required.
- More Value! $209 CLEAR® Plus Credit: CLEAR® Plus helps get you to your gate faster by using unique facial attributes to verify you are you at 50+ airports nationwide. You can cover the cost of a CLEAR Plus Membership* with up to $209 in statement credits per calendar year after you pay for CLEAR Plus with the Platinum Card®. *Excluding any applicable taxes and fees. Subject to auto-renewal.
- $200 Airline Fee Credit: Select one qualifying airline and then receive up to $200 in statement credits per calendar year when incidental fees, such as checked bags and in-flight refreshments, are charged by the airline to the Platinum Card® Account*. American Express relies on airlines to submit the correct information on airline transactions to identify incidental fee purchases. If you do not see a credit for a qualifying incidental purchase on your eligible Card after 8 weeks, simply call the number on the back of your Card. Qualifying airlines are subject to change. See terms & conditions for more details.
- Start your vacation sooner, and keep it going longer. When you book Fine Hotels + Resorts® through American Express Travel®, enjoy noon check-in upon arrival, when available, and guaranteed 4PM check-out.
- New! $300 lululemon Credit: Enjoy up to $75 in statement credits each quarter when you use the Platinum Card® for eligible purchases at U.S. lululemon retail stores (excluding outlets) and lululemon.com. That's up to $300 in statement credits each calendar year. Enrollment required.
- $155 Walmart+ Credit: Receive a statement credit* for one monthly Walmart+ membership (subject to auto-renewal) after you pay for Walmart+ each month with the Platinum Card®. *Up to $12.95 plus applicable local sales tax. Plus Ups not eligible.
- $100 Saks Credit: Get up to $100 in statement credits annually for purchases at Saks Fifth Avenue or saks.com on the Platinum Card®. That's up to $50 in statement credits from January through June and up to $50 in statement credits from July through December. No minimum purchase required. Enrollment required.
- Whenever you need us, we're here. Our Member Services team will ensure you are taken care of. From lost Card replacement to statement questions, we are available to help 24/7.
- $895 annual fee.
- Terms Apply.
- Rates & Fees
- Earn 5X points for flights booked directly with airlines or with American Express Travel® (up to $500,000 in purchases per calendar year).
- Earn 5X points on prepaid hotels booked with American Express Travel®.
- Earn 5X points on Fine Hotels + Resorts® and The Hotel Collection bookings.
These are certainly still helpful, but with an annual fee of $895, you'd expect more. For instance, American Express cards like the Platinum Card® come with secondary rental car coverage. However, Amex does offer the option to pay either $19.95 or $24.95 for premium car rental protection (primary), which covers you for up to 42 days. The policy covers you for up to $100,000 in almost any car, including luxury vehicles, SUVs, and pickup trucks.
You can opt in to the program on the Premium Car Rental Protection page. You'll be presented with options when signing up for the Amex coverage — no need to pay anything up front. Instead, the payment is charged automatically after you rent a car and will continue to be charged with each subsequent rental until you unregister your account.
Related: Amex Premium Car Rental Protection: How It Works and When It's Worth It
Why Other Cards Didn't Make the List
You might wonder why other travel-focused credit cards didn't make the list. It's for one or more of these reasons:
- They don't offer primary CDW insurance on rental cars. Almost every travel-related credit card we've looked at offers some form of rental car protection, and most provide secondary coverage. This means the coverage kicks in after your own personal insurance. Ideally, you don't want to involve your insurance at all, which is why primary CDW coverage is such a big deal. If your card doesn't explicitly call out that the coverage is primary, which would be a selling point, it is reasonably safe to assume that it is secondary.
- They don't offer trip and baggage delay. This is a great perk. If your bags don't arrive or your trip is delayed, you'll likely have an expensive shopping trip ahead of you. So, it's a sensible protection to keep in mind.
- They require you to put the total amount of your travel on the card and don't cover if you pay with points. If you've got a diverse set of points and miles, you're likely using points from one or more programs to pay. So, we listed cards that provide coverage when you pay for part of the trip using the card. For example, such as paying for the taxes and fees on an award booking.
- They're just not as good. These cards provide the best-in-class benefits. Others just don't measure up.
Related: The Best Credit Cards for Trip Interruption and Trip Cancellation Insurance
Bottom Line
These benefits are included at no additional charge. Sure, each of these cards has an annual fee. But when calculating the value of these cards, we'd venture a guess that you didn't look at many of these benefits and the value they add to your travel plans. Knowing about these travel protections now, you might reconsider which card to use when you plan your travel. It isn't all about 2x, 3x, or 5x points — even though these cards are some of the best for earning as well.
Is there a card you think belongs on this list that we left out? Let us know in the comments.
- 5X points on Lyft rides through September 2027
- 5X points on travel purchased through Chase Travel℠
- 3X points on dining at restaurants worldwide
- 3X points on eligible streaming services
- 3X points on online grocery purchases (excluding Target, Walmart, and wholesale clubs)
- 2X points on all other travel
- 1X point per dollar spent on all other purchases
- 8x points on all purchases through Chase Travel℠
- 4x points on flights and hotels booked directly
- 3x points on dining worldwide
- 1x points on all other purchases
- 10X miles per $1 on hotels and rental cars booked via Capital One Travel
- 5X miles per $1 on purchases through Capital One Entertainment
- 5X miles per $1 on flights when booking via Capital One Travel
- 5X miles per $1 on vacation rentals booked via Capital One Travel
- 2X miles per $1 on all other eligible purchases
For rates and fees of the cards mentioned in this post, please visit the following links: Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card (Rates & Fees), Chase Sapphire Reserve® (Rates & Fees), Citi Strata Elite℠ Card (Rates & Fees), and American Express Platinum Card® (Rates & Fees)
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