Best Credit Cards for Grocery and Dining Points (That You Can Use for Travel)
Your weekly grocery run and Saturday night dinner are funding your next vacation. Here's how to make sure every dollar counts.
The Spending You're Already Doing
Here's a number that might surprise you: the average American household headed by someone 55–74 spends approximately $9,000 per year on groceries and $4,200 per year on dining out. That's over $13,000 annually flowing through two categories.
If you're putting that spending on a basic 1% cash-back card — or worse, a debit card — you're leaving hundreds, potentially thousands of dollars in travel rewards on the table every single year. Not theoretical dollars. Real ones. Enough for flights. Enough for hotel nights. Enough for, quite possibly, an entire trip.
The beauty of grocery and dining spending is that it's consistent. You don't have to change your behavior to earn these rewards. You're going to buy groceries this week. You're going to eat dinner at that Italian place on Friday. The only question is whether your credit card is rewarding you properly for spending you'd do regardless.
This guide focuses on the cards that earn the most points on food — both at restaurants and at the supermarket — with rewards that translate directly into travel. Not cash back. Not gift cards. Travel.
Let's find the card that turns your groceries into getaways.
Affiliate disclosure: Some links in this article are affiliate links. If you apply through one, WanderWise earns a referral commission at no extra cost to you. Every card on this list is one I'd recommend to someone I care about. If a better option existed that didn't pay us a commission, it would be here instead. Read our full editorial policy →
How We Scored These Cards
We focused specifically on earning power in two categories: groceries and dining. Other factors matter — we didn't ignore them — but the core question is: which card earns the most travel-usable rewards from the money you spend on food?
| Category | Weight | What We're Measuring |
|---|---|---|
| Grocery earning rate | 25% | Points earned per dollar at supermarkets and grocery stores |
| Dining earning rate | 25% | Points earned per dollar at restaurants, cafés, and fast food |
| Redemption for travel | 20% | Can you use these points for flights, hotels, and trips — and how much are they worth? |
| Annual fee vs. food rewards | 15% | Does your grocery and dining earning alone justify whatever annual fee exists? |
| Supplemental benefits | 15% | Travel protections, other bonus categories, credits that offset the fee |
The 5 Best Cards for Grocery and Dining Points
Card #1: American Express Gold — "The Food Lover's Dream Card"
WanderWise Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ (Best Overall for Grocery and Dining)
| Detail | |
|---|---|
| Annual fee | $250 |
| Grocery earning | 4x points at U.S. supermarkets (on up to $25,000/year in purchases, then 1x) |
| Dining earning | 4x points at restaurants worldwide |
| Travel earning | 3x on flights booked directly with airlines |
| Everything else | 1x |
| Redemption value | 1 cent per point (Amex portal) · 1.5–2.5+ cents per point (transfer partners) |
| Annual credits | $120 dining credit · $120 Uber Cash · $84 Dunkin' credit = $324/year in credits |
| Foreign transaction fees | None |
Why it's the undisputed champion:
No card in the country earns more points on food than the American Express Gold. Four points per dollar at supermarkets. Four points per dollar at restaurants. Those aren't promotional rates that expire after a year — that's the standard earning structure, every day, forever.
Let me show you what this means with real numbers for a couple in their early sixties:
| Food spending | Monthly | Annual | Amex Gold points earned |
|---|---|---|---|
| Groceries | $850 | $10,200 | 40,800 (4x) |
| Dining out | $550 | $6,600 | 26,400 (4x) |
| Food total | $1,400 | $16,800 | 67,200 points |
Those 67,200 points are worth a minimum of $672 at the most basic redemption level (1 cent per point through the Amex travel portal). But here's where it gets interesting: Amex Membership Rewards has outstanding airline transfer partners — Delta, Air France-KLM, British Airways, ANA, Singapore Airlines, and others. When you transfer points to book flights through these programs, each point is typically worth 1.5 to 2.5 cents.
At 2 cents per point, your grocery and dining spending alone produces $1,344 in annual travel value. Subtract the annual fee ($250), add back the $324 in automatic credits, and your net position is roughly $1,418 ahead.
From groceries and dinner.
The $25,000 annual cap on 4x grocery earnings sounds limiting, but it's actually quite generous. That's about $2,080 per month in grocery spending before you drop to 1x. Very few households exceed that — and if you do, you might benefit from a second grocery card (more on strategy below).
Who should get this card:
- Couples who spend $800 or more per month combined on groceries and dining
- People who want the highest possible earning rate on food, period
- Travelers planning international trips, where Amex's airline transfer partners shine
- Anyone who'll use the dining, Uber, and Dunkin' credits (which reduce the effective fee to -$74)
The one caveat: Amex is not accepted as universally as Visa or Mastercard, particularly at some smaller businesses, farmers' markets, and Costco (which only accepts Visa). If you shop at Costco regularly, you'll need a Visa card for those trips.
See the current Amex Gold offer →
Card #2: Chase Sapphire Preferred — "The All-Rounder That Loves Dinner"
WanderWise Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐½
| Detail | |
|---|---|
| Annual fee | $95 |
| Grocery earning | 3x on online groceries · 1x on in-store groceries |
| Dining earning | 3x on restaurants |
| Travel earning | 2x on travel |
| Everything else | 1x |
| Redemption value | 1.25 cents per point (Chase portal) · 1.5–3+ cents per point (transfer partners) |
| Foreign transaction fees | None |
Why it's a top pick for dining:
The Chase Sapphire Preferred earns 3x on all dining — slightly below the Amex Gold's 4x, but with a significantly lower annual fee ($95 vs. $250) and a more valuable set of travel protections.
The grocery story is more nuanced. The 3x rate applies to online grocery orders — Instacart, Walmart+, Amazon Fresh, and similar delivery services. If you shop in person at your local supermarket, the card earns just 1x. For people who've embraced grocery delivery (and many have, especially since 2020), this is excellent. For people who prefer walking the aisles at Publix or Kroger, the grocery earning is mediocre.
Where Chase pulls ahead is in redemption flexibility and travel protections. Chase Ultimate Rewards transfer partners include United, Southwest, Hyatt, and others that are exceptional for domestic travel. Trip cancellation insurance ($10,000 per person) and primary rental car coverage are included — benefits the Amex Gold doesn't match.
The math for a dining-focused spender:
| Food spending | Monthly | Annual | CSP points earned |
|---|---|---|---|
| Online groceries | $400 | $4,800 | 14,400 (3x) |
| In-store groceries | $400 | $4,800 | 4,800 (1x) |
| Dining out | $550 | $6,600 | 19,800 (3x) |
| Food total | $1,350 | $16,200 | 39,000 points |
At 1.25 cents per point (Chase portal), that's $488 from food spending alone. Through transfer partners, it could reach $600–800. Add the $50 hotel credit and travel protections, minus the $95 fee, and you're well ahead.
Who should get this card:
- People who dine out frequently but do their grocery shopping in physical stores
- Anyone who values travel protections (trip cancellation, rental car insurance) alongside their food earning
- People who want one card that handles both food earning and travel booking well
- Those who prefer the Chase ecosystem and its transfer partners (especially Hyatt and United)
See the current Chase Sapphire Preferred offer →
Card #3: Capital One SavorOne — "Strong Dining, Zero Fees"
WanderWise Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
| Detail | |
|---|---|
| Annual fee | $0 |
| Grocery earning | 3x on grocery stores |
| Dining earning | 3x on restaurants and entertainment |
| Travel earning | Not a bonus category (1x) |
| Everything else | 1x |
| Redemption value | 1 cent per point (statement credit or Capital One portal) |
| Foreign transaction fees | None |
Why it's excellent for fee-averse food spenders:
The Capital One SavorOne is the best no-annual-fee card for earning on both groceries and dining. Three points per dollar at grocery stores — not just online, but in-store as well. Three points per dollar at restaurants. And the entertainment bonus (3x) covers everything from movie theaters to concert tickets to streaming services.
There's no annual fee, no foreign transaction fees, and the sign-up bonus (currently 20,000 points after $500 in spending) has an almost comically low spend requirement. If you buy groceries this week, you've probably met it.
The limitations are straightforward: points are worth a flat 1 cent each with no transfer partners and no way to boost their value for travel. A card like the Amex Gold earns more per dollar and offers much more valuable redemption options. But the Amex Gold costs $250 and the SavorOne costs nothing.
The math for a no-fee food card:
| Food spending | Monthly | Annual | SavorOne points earned |
|---|---|---|---|
| Groceries | $850 | $10,200 | 30,600 (3x) |
| Dining out | $500 | $6,000 | 18,000 (3x) |
| Food total | $1,350 | $16,200 | 48,600 points = $486 |
Nearly $500 per year in travel rewards from a card that costs zero dollars. Add the sign-up bonus and your first year exceeds $680.
Who should get this card:
- Anyone who wants strong grocery and dining rewards without paying an annual fee
- People who shop for groceries in person (where the SavorOne's in-store 3x beats the Chase Sapphire Preferred's 1x)
- Households with moderate food spending ($800–$1,200/month) where a $250 annual fee would be hard to justify
- Anyone who wants simplicity — no transfer partners to learn, no portal to navigate
See the current Capital One SavorOne offer →
Card #4: Citi Strata Premier — "The Quiet Contender"
WanderWise Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
| Detail | |
|---|---|
| Annual fee | $95 |
| Grocery earning | 3x on supermarkets |
| Dining earning | 3x on restaurants |
| Travel earning | 3x on hotels, air travel, and other travel |
| Gas earning | 3x on gas stations |
| Everything else | 1x |
| Redemption value | 1 cent per point (Citi portal at par) · Transfer to airline and hotel partners |
| Foreign transaction fees | None |
Why it deserves consideration:
The Citi Strata Premier doesn't get the attention of the Chase Sapphire Preferred or the Amex Gold, and that's partly by design — Citi doesn't market as aggressively to our demographic. But on paper, this card is remarkably competitive.
It earns 3x on groceries, dining, travel, and gas — covering essentially every major spending category that matters for people our age. The breadth of 3x categories means you earn bonus rewards more consistently across your entire spending pattern, rather than only on food.
Citi also has a solid transfer partner network including JetBlue, Singapore Airlines (through KrisFlyer), Turkish Airlines, and others. These partners are particularly valuable for flights to Asia and Europe.
The math across all bonus categories:
| Category | Monthly | Annual | Points earned |
|---|---|---|---|
| Groceries | $850 | $10,200 | 30,600 (3x) |
| Dining | $500 | $6,000 | 18,000 (3x) |
| Gas | $250 | $3,000 | 9,000 (3x) |
| Travel | $400 | $4,800 | 14,400 (3x) |
| Other | $1,500 | $18,000 | 18,000 (1x) |
| Total | $3,500 | $42,000 | 90,000 points |
At even 1 cent per point, that's $900 in annual rewards — minus $95 = $805 net. Through transfer partners, the ceiling is higher.
The drawbacks: Citi's customer service reviews are less consistently positive than Chase's, and their travel portal is not as refined. The travel protections, while present, aren't as comprehensive as the Chase Sapphire Preferred's industry-leading coverage.
Who should get this card:
- People who want 3x earning across groceries, dining, travel, and gas — the broadest set of bonus categories at this price point
- Travelers who fly JetBlue or Singapore Airlines, where Citi's transfer partners are particularly strong
- Anyone who wants a single card that earns well across virtually every category without tracking complex rules
See the current Citi Strata Premier offer →
Card #5: Blue Cash Preferred from American Express — "Maximum Groceries, Minimum Complexity"
WanderWise Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
| Detail | |
|---|---|
| Annual fee | $95 |
| Grocery earning | 6% cash back at U.S. supermarkets (on up to $6,000/year, then 1%) |
| Dining earning | Not a bonus category (1%) |
| Streaming earning | 6% on select streaming services |
| Transit earning | 3% on transit (including ride shares) |
| Gas earning | 3% on gas |
| Everything else | 1% |
| Redemption | Statement credit (cash back — not points) |
| Foreign transaction fees | 2.7% |
Why a cash-back card made a travel rewards list:
I can hear the question: "This earns cash back, not travel points. Why is it here?"
Because cash back is perfectly usable for travel. A $360 statement credit from your grocery spending reduces your credit card bill by $360 — money you can redirect straight into your travel fund. Cash back is less exciting than points and miles, but it's also less complicated. A dollar is a dollar. No transfer partners, no cents-per-point calculations, no portals.
The Blue Cash Preferred earns 6% cash back on groceries — the highest grocery earning rate on any card, period. The cap is $6,000 per year in grocery spending (that's $500/month), after which it drops to 1%. For a single person or a couple with moderate grocery spending, that cap might not matter. For larger households or high grocery spenders, it limits the card's utility.
The math at the grocery cap:
| Grocery spending | Annual | Cash back |
|---|---|---|
| First $6,000 | $6,000 | $360 (6%) |
| Next $4,000 (at 1%) | $4,000 | $40 |
| Total grocery cash back | $10,000 | $400 |
Add gas (3%), transit (3%), and streaming (6%) earnings, subtract the $95 annual fee, and you're looking at approximately $550–650 in net annual value — almost all of it from groceries.
The trade-offs are clear: No dining bonus. No travel protections worth mentioning. Foreign transaction fees (don't use this abroad). And cash back doesn't earn the premium multipliers you get from transferring points to airline partners.
But if you spend heavily on groceries and want the absolute highest return on that specific category — and you're fine applying the cash back toward your travel budget rather than converting points — this card is hard to beat for its narrow purpose.
Who should get this card:
- People whose grocery spending dwarfs their dining spending
- Anyone who prefers the straightforward certainty of cash back over points
- Households that stay under or near the $500/month grocery cap
- People who already have a separate dining card (like the Chase Sapphire Preferred) and want to maximize grocery earning
See the current Blue Cash Preferred offer →
The Food Card Comparison
| Amex Gold | Chase Sapphire Preferred | CO SavorOne | Citi Strata Premier | Amex Blue Cash Preferred | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Annual fee | $250 | $95 | $0 | $95 | $95 |
| Grocery rate | 4x ($25K cap) | 3x online / 1x in-store | 3x | 3x | 6% ($6K cap) |
| Dining rate | 4x | 3x | 3x | 3x | 1% |
| Rewards currency | Amex Membership Rewards | Chase Ultimate Rewards | Capital One miles | Citi ThankYou Points | Cash back |
| Transfer partners | ✅ Excellent | ✅ Excellent | ❌ | ✅ Good | ❌ |
| Travel protections | Good | Excellent | Basic | Good | Minimal |
| Foreign transaction fee | None | None | None | None | 2.7% |
| Best for | Maximum food points | Dining + protections | No-fee food earning | Broad 3x categories | Pure grocery earning |
| WanderWise rating | ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ | ⭐⭐⭐⭐½ | ⭐⭐⭐⭐ | ⭐⭐⭐⭐ | ⭐⭐⭐⭐ |
The Two-Card Strategy: Maximize Everything
If you're willing to carry two cards — one for food and one for everything else — you can earn dramatically more than any single card provides. Here are two pairings that work beautifully:
Pairing 1: Amex Gold + Capital One Venture ($345/year combined)
- Amex Gold for all groceries and dining (4x)
- Capital One Venture for everything else (2x)
- Combined earning on $42,000 annual spending: approximately 110,000 points/miles worth $1,100–$2,200+ in travel
- Net after fees: $755–$1,855
Pairing 2: Chase Sapphire Preferred + Chase Freedom Unlimited ($95/year combined)
- Chase Sapphire Preferred for dining and travel (3x and 2x)
- Chase Freedom Unlimited ($0 fee) for groceries, gas, and everything else (1.5x)
- All points pool into Chase Ultimate Rewards, redeemable at 1.25 cents via portal or transferable to partners
- Combined earning on $42,000 annual spending: approximately 78,000 points worth $975–$1,560+ in travel
- Net after fees: $880–$1,465
Both strategies outperform any single card. The first maximizes raw earning power with the Amex Gold's 4x on food. The second keeps everything in the Chase ecosystem with a lower total fee.
Which Food Card Is Right for You?
If money spent on food is your dominant spending category and you want maximum points: → Amex Gold. It's not close. 4x on both groceries and dining, with excellent transfer partners.
If you want strong dining rewards plus travel protections in one card: → Chase Sapphire Preferred. 3x on dining, outstanding travel insurance, and the Chase portal/transfer system.
If you want solid food earning and refuse to pay an annual fee: → Capital One SavorOne. 3x on groceries and dining, $0 per year, no foreign transaction fees.
If you want the broadest set of 3x categories for one annual fee: → Citi Strata Premier. Groceries, dining, gas, and travel all at 3x.
If groceries are your biggest expense and you prefer cash back: → Blue Cash Preferred. 6% on groceries is the highest rate anywhere, and cash is cash.
Your Next Step
Pick the card that matches your food spending. Apply. Set up autopay. Then do exactly what you've been doing — buy groceries, eat dinner, live your life.
The only difference is that now, your weekly grocery run is earning you a trip to somewhere wonderful.
- American Express Gold →
- Chase Sapphire Preferred →
- Capital One SavorOne →
- Citi Strata Premier →
- Blue Cash Preferred →
Related Reading
- Amex Membership Rewards: Complete Guide for Travelers Over 55 →
- How to Earn 100,000 Points in 6 Months →
- Best Credit Cards for Hotel Stays 2026 →
- Greece on Points: Complete Guide →
Last updated: February 2026. Card terms and bonuses are accurate as of publication. We update this guide monthly. Affiliate disclosure: WanderWise earns a commission when you apply through our links. This doesn't affect our rankings or recommendations. Read our full editorial policy →