🤏🏻 100,000 Points Is the Smallest Bonus on This List

August 4, 2026 | View Online

I’m gonna plug this little survey quite a lot for the next week or two. I don’t have anything exciting to offer you, unfortunately, but I’d love for as many of you as possible to let us know what you’re thinking and tell us a little about why you’re here.

DO IT HERE OR DISAPPOINT ME

The more I find out about you guys, the better these newsletters can be.

It’s hard to imagine them being better, I know. But I’ll try,

Let’s get to the points:

• The biggest bonuses out there right now

• More reader questions answered

• United’s Mileplay is back

Cheers,

Steven

| CARD OF THE WEEK

The Biggest Bonuses You Can Find Right Now

We’re going no frills this week and zoning in solely on massive introductory offers — both business and personal. If it’s over 100,000 points, it’s in here.

Remember, these will have spending thresholds that reflect the points on offer, so don’t let yourself be lured in if you can’t safely spend the required amount. But if you’re in good shape, get stuck into these huge bonuses.

 As High As 300,000 Points - Business Card

At the top of the list is this shiny business card offering as high as 300,000 points after spending $20,000 within three months of opening the card. By my calculations, that could be worth over $6,000 if you get the full amount. Keep an eye on the sneaky terminology “as high as”. That means you’re not guaranteed the largest offer, so check what they’re giving you before you commit. The card also has a hefty annual fee, so keep that in mind, too.

200,000 Points - Business Card

Another business cad with a huge offer of 200,000 points after spending $30,000 within six months of opening an account. That feels higher, but it’s actually a lower monthly spending rate than the first card which could make it more accessible for small business owners. I’d comfortably value that bonus over $4,000 when transferring those points to a valuable partner.

As High As 200,000 Points - Business Card

Another with the annoying “as high as” verbiage, but in theory this card could grab you 200,000 points after spending $15,000 within three months of opening an account. The fee is lower here, and the earning rates are great, so this one might be the sweet spot for most business owners.

As High As 175,000 - Personal Card

The personal version of the first card, this is as big as you can currently go on the personal front. To earn the 175,000 points (or as high as that figure), you’ll need to spend $12,000 within six months of opening the card. Just be aware of the incredibly high fee and the lack of major earning opportunities. You need to be milking the perks to make this worth it.

100,000 Points - Personal Card

Definitely the more useful card on a daily basis, this 100,000 point bonus is earned by spending $6,000 within three months of opening an account. Is the bonus as big and sexy as the others? No, but 100,000 points is still worth over $2,000 in travel if used well, and this card's earning rates will carry it further than the alternative.

150,000 Points - Business Card

This is a solid card, but the 150,000 points you’ll earn after spending $30,000 in three months don’t make for the same level of value as the others. I’m still a huge fan of this product, but if you’re talking sheer bang for your buck, it tumbles down the list.

As High As 100,000 - Personal Card

If it wasn’t for this card’s slightly overpriced annual fee, I’d say it’s possible the best card on the list in terms of flat-out value. As high as 100,000 points after spending $8,000 within six months of opening an account, combined with truly incredible earnings on supermarkets and eating out, make it a points-earning machine. 

The Co-branders

I don’t value these as highly simply because you can only use the bonuses on the specific airlines or hotels they’re branded by, but I reckon most are worth a look. Both these premium and mid-range cards offer more than 100,000 points; this card offers up to the 100,000 point mark after spending $5,000 within six months, and both of these business cards also get above that threshold, too.

| THE BAHAMAS

A Family Vacation Where The Possibilities Never Run Out

At Atlantis Paradise Island, one adventure leads to the next. Every stay includes unlimited access to Aquaventure—the largest water park in The Bahamas, spanning 141 acres of slides, rivers, and pools.

At Dolphin Cay, Playtime with Dolphins pairs hands-on learning with an up-close encounter with rescued bottlenose dolphins. Inside The Dig, the legend of Atlantis unfolds through winding passageways and underwater habitats home to more than 250 species of marine life. By evening, bring everyone back together over family-style Southern Italian favorites at Carmine’s.

Less than an hour by air from Miami, Atlantis feels worlds away. Book by August 15th to save up to 35% + $250 airfare credit, daily breakfast & more.

Plan your trip.

| STEVEN'S TIPS

Small Print Woes With Our Kiwi Readers

Our question this week comes from John in New Zealand!

“Hello, I’m wanting to get the Bank of America Alaska Airlines credit card for my wife and I avoid having to pay for a 3rd bag when flying first class. I live in New Zealand and travel to the U.S. once per year to see family and we do lots of shopping for things we can buy there that we can’t get in NZ. Do you think this is a good credit card for this purpose? Thank you. Love reading your newsletters. Regards John”.

First, thank you, and I love that you love reading my newsletters.

Second, it’s a good question, but you may not like the answer. Alaska, and most other airlines, don’t let you stack benefits and will defer to the largest allowance. If you’re flying first class, you’re likely to get two checked bags as is, and won’t be able to tack another on for free, annoyingly.

That aside, the choice of card is interesting, and I hope you reach out for some help. An Alaska card’s benefits only apply to Alaska-operated flights, not its partners. As far as I knew, Alaska had ditched its seasonal flights to New Zealand, so the benefit wouldn’t even have worked for you when flying in economy.

In short, the best advice in this case is to open a card with the best transfer partners for the airlines you use. If it’s Air New Zealand, home in on cards that transfer to Air Canada or United. You’ll be able to book with them. If you fly with a US airline, you might even be able to grab specific flight credits that could cancel out the extra bag fees.

But please, reach out! I’d love to help more.

Our Personal Finance Homepage

At its core, Smart Points is a finance newsletter. Just a super-specific finance newsletter that technically has no interest in real money and wants to avoid spending it at all costs to live in a make-believe world where we can travel forever with no consequences or financial burden whatsoever as long as we keep drinking the champagne.

Yeah, check out our personal finance homepage.

| TRAVEL HACKING NEWS

United’s Mile Play Offers Have Returned

United sometimes runs a little special offer period called “Mile Play”. I don’t know why, but I find the name unsettling. That’s a problem for me, I suppose.

Basically, United MileagePlus Members are sent different challenges that allow them to earn bonus miles. Everyone seems to get slightly different offers — some good, some pretty useless — and some people don’t recieve any at all. You can log in and check out your specific offer here.

I logged into my own account and found…absolutely nothing. I guess flying across the world with them doesn’t make me valuable enough this time around.

You can see my past offers up top, though to get an idea of the kinda stuff you might see.

Some people are reporting some pretty hectic offers this time, with stuff like 25,000 bonus miles for taking two trips in a premium seat, while other more mundane stuff involves signing up for text notifications for a few hundred miles.

There’s a good chance you’ll have a fairly basic one, but these are the kinda thing you should check in on regularly just in case — they all add up eventually. Just don’t go mad buying United flights thinking 2,000 miles will change your life. Only do it if it makes sense.

If you don't want to faff about with this malarky, just open one of United's cards instead. They're actually pretty solid.

| WHAT ELSE IS HAPPENING

• Are you the market for Amex’s new business card?

• Four United cards that could transform your travels

• You can’t wriggle out of airline credit rules anymore

• 5 cards that will save your ass at the airport

• The big changes to this popular card you need to know