💳 What's in My Wallet for 2026

Advertiser Disclosure

Credit card issuers love to say their perks are worth thousands of dollars, but the real question is: what would you actually pay for them? That simple reframe completely changed how I evaluate every card I own. 

For me, every card needs to earn its spot. Either it's pulling its weight on everyday spending, offering perks that are actually worth the annual fee, or earning a big welcome bonus.

In this post, I'm breaking down my entire 2026 credit card lineup including my goals for the year, every card in my wallet, how I decide what to keep or cut, the best card combos I found when I built an algorithm to test every combination against real spending data, and the tools I use to manage it all. Whether you carry two cards or 20+, I hope this gives you a framework to make sure your wallet is working as hard as you are.

P.S. if you're looking at new cards this year, check out our Best Cards Page

🎯 My 2026 Goals

Setting clear goals each year helps me stay focused. Here's what I'm prioritizing for 2026.

• Cancel Cards: I've accumulated too many annual fees and it's time to trim cards that aren't pulling their weight.
• Stop Trying to Maximize Earnings: I realized there's no card I could add where the increased earnings alone would justify adding a new card.
• Keep Transferable Points Alive: I want to maintain at least one card in each major points ecosystem (Chase, Capital One, Amex, Bilt, Citi, and new this year, Wells Fargo) so I don't forfeit any points.
• Good Travel Protections & Rental Car Coverage: This is a non-negotiable. I always want one card I can reach for when renting a car or making a purchase I might need to dispute.
• Earn Some Welcome Bonuses: Last year we opened ~8-10 new cards. This year will depend on the landscape, but surely we'll go for at least a few welcome bonuses.
• Maintain Lounge Access: We use the Amex Centurion Lounge regularly and love the Capital One lounges. I don't need a dozen Priority Pass memberships, but I want to keep the ones that matter.
• Cash Back When It Beats Points: This is a big shift for me. If I'm effectively buying points at more than about 1.2¢ each, I'm leaning toward cash back instead. I've accumulated a lot of points and need to start using them rather than buying more at a premium.

🔎 A Look Inside My Wallet

American Express

• The Business Platinum Card® from American Express (have 3, canceling 2): The annual fee $895/year and I only value the perks at around $360, which is a $535 net cost. The cards were each worth opening for a big welcome bonus, but in year two with no bonus, none of them make sense to keep. 
• American Express® Business Gold Card (have 3, canceling 2): The credits have serious diminishing returns when you hold multiples. I'm keeping one for the 4x on advertising and software spend and canceling the other two.
• The Platinum Card® from American Express (have 2, keeping both): When I add up what I'd actually pay for all the credits, I land well above the $895 annual fee. And the Centurion lounge access is a bonus on top.
• American Express® Gold Card (have 1, undecided): This is my oldest Amex card (2003), but I have other cards covering dining and groceries, and the $325 annual fee only yields about $125 in credits I'll actually use. I'm going to reach out for a retention offer first and if that doesn't pan out, I'll probably downgrade to the Green card or possibly upgrade to a third Platinum.
• Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant® American Express® Card (have 1, likely canceling): I kept this long enough to hit Lifetime Platinum with Marriott. The 85K-point free night certificate should be worth ~$595 , but I haven't found the right use for it yet. If I'm able to get that much value, I'll keep the card, otherwise it's getting canceled.
• Marriott Bonvoy Business® American Express® Card (have 1, canceling): It's a $125 annual fee for a 35K-point free night certificate I rarely use, which now that I've hit Lifetime Platinum isn't worth it.
• Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card (have 1, keeping): It's one of the best value cards in my wallet. The $550 annual fee is more than offset by the free night certificate (we've used it for rooms worth $1,000+), Hilton Resort credit, flight credit, and free Diamond status.
• Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card (have 1, keeping): Lower annual fee than the Aspire, with a Hilton credit and a free night certificate after $15K in spend. There's also an upgrade/downgrade strategy (read this for details) that can yield two or three free night certificates per year.
• Delta SkyMiles® Platinum Business American Express Card (have 1, keeping for now): The 15% discount on Delta award bookings is the reason I'm keeping this. On a trip where I redeem 200K miles, that's 30,000 miles saved, which is more than covering the annual fee. If I go a full year without a Delta redemption, I'll reassess.
• Blue Cash Everyday® Card from American Express (have 1, keeping): There's noannual fee and almost 20 years of credit history on this card, so I put a small transaction on it each year to keep it active.

Chase

• Chase Sapphire Reserve® (have 2, keeping both for now): The first is a clear keeper, because the dining credit, $300 travel credit, Peloton, and Apple TV+ credits all deliver real value. My wife's card stays open primarily to keep her Ultimate Rewards balance alive, since it's her only UR-earning card.
• Chase Sapphire Reserve for Business℠ (have 1, canceling): It was worth opening for the welcome bonus, but the Edit credits are hard for me to use and the perks don't come close to the $795 fee. 
• Amazon Prime Visa Card (have 1, keeping): It earns 5% on Amazon, where we spend a lot and has no fee.
• World of Hyatt Business Credit Card (have 1, keeping): Primary love this because it earns elite nights toward Globalist status, but the 10% rebate on Hyatt stays, Instacart credit, and statement credits help offset the fee.
• Southwest® Rapid Rewards® Premier Business Credit Card (have 1, keeping for now): The $150 annual fee is hard to justify while I have A-List status, but if I lose that status next year, priority boarding and free checked bags become meaningful again.
• Chase Freedom Flex® (have 1, keeping): The 5x rotating quarterly categories are great when they align with our spending.
• Chase Freedom Unlimited® (have 1, product changing to Freedom Flex): 1.5x on everything no longer competes with our other cards, so will convert to a second Freedom Flex to double our capacity for the quarterly categories.
• Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card (have 1, keeping): It earns 3x on ads and several of our business expenses. It's also now one of the better all-travel cards since the CSR dropped its 3x-on-all-travel benefit.
• Ink Business Cash® Credit Card (have 1, keeping): 5x on phone and office supplies with no annual fee is enough to keep this no annual fee card around.
• United Gateway℠ Card (have 1, keeping, likely upgrading): It's my wife's oldest card with no annual fee, but will likely upgrade to take advantage of the huge changes to their card program, where cardholders now earn more miles per dollar on flights, get 10–15% off award bookings, and get expanded Polaris Business Class Saver availability.

Capital One

• Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card (have 2, likely dropping 1): The 10K miles anniversary bonus and $300 travel credit make the net annual fee manageable on one card, but the marginal value of a second lounge membership is zero. 
• Capital One Venture X Business (have 2, likely dropping 1): This card unlocked free guest lounge access after some big spend this year, so we'll keep it open. The goal is one Venture X personal and one Venture X Business so we each have Capital One lounge access.

Bank of America

💡 Note: Bank of America is changing the Preferred Rewards program on 5/27, and restructuring its tiers in a way that cuts the rewards multiplier for current Platinum Honors members from 75% to 50%, dropping the effective earn rate from 2.625% on everyday spending to 2.25%. Existing members will keep their elevated earning until sometime between Jan 2027 and 2028 depending on their enrollment anniversary date.

• Bank of America® Premium Rewards® Elite Credit Card (have 1, keeping): Currently earns 3.5% on Travel/Dining and 2.625% on everything else, which is good, but if you redeem your earnings towards flights they go up 25%, which makes this beat a lot of my poitns earning.
• Business Advantage Travel Rewards World Mastercard® (have 1, keeping): No annual fee, earns 2.625% on everything with Platinum Honors. Solid for business spend.
• Business Advantage Customized Cash Rewards credit card (have 1, keeping): 3% on a chosen category up to $50,000/year, which goes up to 5.25% with Platinum Honors (for now), with no annual fee.
• Alaska Airlines Visa® Signature Business Card (have 1, likely canceling or product changing): Now that the Atmos Summit card exists, the annual companion fare is the only real perk and it's hard to use. I'll see if a product change to another Business Customized Cash is possible.
• The Atmos™ Rewards Visa Summit Card (have 1, keeping): One of my favorite cards right now, with a net annual fee that's positive by about $250. Spending also earns elite qualifying points toward Alaska status, partner award booking fees are waived, miles are shareable with my wife at no cost, and spending $60,000 in a calendar year earns a 100K-point companion award. When you factor in all the benefits, it effectively earns like a 4-5x card.

U.S. Bank

• U.S. Bank Altitude® Reserve Visa Infinite® Card (have 2, want to cancel): US Bank nerfed this card, brining the Apple Pay earnings from 4.5% to 3%, but at the change they promised transfer partners and still haven't delivered. I'm holding for now to see what happens with transfer partners, but can't wait to cancel both of these. 

Citi

• Citi Strata Premier℠ Card (have 1, keeping): Earns 3x on flights, hotels, gas, groceries, and dining. The $95 annual fee is essentially the cost to keep my ThankYou Points alive and access Citi's unique transfer partners like Eva Air.
• AAdvantage® Business World Elite Mastercard® (have 1, likely canceling): I opened this to chase American status, but now that the Atmos Summit card gives me a better path to Alaska status, I don't need American status. The companion certificate and loyalty points are close to justifying the $99 fee, but not much upside here.

Other Issuers

• Wells Fargo Autograph℠ Card (have 1, keeping): Got this from the Bilt 1.0 conversion. No annual fee, and Wells Fargo lets you transfer points in single-point increments, which is useful for keeping partner loyalty balances alive. I'm not building a strategy around Wells Fargo points, but will earn a few and use this to understand the Wells Fargo ecosystem.
• Bilt Palladium Card (have 1, keeping): My card optimizer tool ranks this as the best single card for anyone with rent or a mortgage. It's a 2x card with what I consider the most valuable transferable points out there, and when you factor the earnings on housing it becomes a 3.33x card for me. The credits don't quite make up for the annual fee for me, but between the welcome bonus and it out-earning every other card on everyday spending, it justifies its place in my wallet. Learn more about rates and fees here.
• Target Circle™️ Card (have 1, keeping): Technically a debit card, but mentioning because it earns 5% back at Target with no fees.

🚫 How I Decide to Keep, Downgrade, or Cancel a Card

When evaluating whether a card is worth keeping, I ask myself three questions: Do I actually use and value the perks? Am I earning more on this card than I would on an alternative? And if I close it, do I lose a points currency I care about? Here's the framework I follow when a card doesn't pass that test:

1. Downgrade first. Many issuers let you product change to a no-fee or low-fee card within the same family. This keeps your credit line open and protects your credit history.
2. Ask for a retention offer. Before canceling, call the issuer. Sometimes they'll offer a waived fee or bonus points for meeting a spend threshold. Always worth asking.
3. Cancel as a last resort. If neither option works, cancel your card, but only after the annual fee posts, within the 30-day refund window if possible. If you're outside that window, consider whether you can still extract value from the remaining credits before you close it.

🤩 The Best Card Combos

I built a tool that runs through every possible combination of cards against your actual spending data to find the optimal setup. Here's what I found. 

• Best single card: Bilt Palladium Card, assuming you have rent or a mortgage. Without that, it's still a very good 2x card with strong point value.
• Best two-card combo: Pair a top "everything" card (Bilt Palladium, Citi® Double Cash Card, Capital One Venture X, etc.) with a category-specific bonus card. The top bonus cards to pair with:
  • American Express® Gold Card: 4x dining and groceries
  • Citi Strata Premier℠ Card: 3x dining, groceries, gas, hotels, flights
  • Chase Sapphire Reserve®: 4x flights and hotels, 3x dining
  • Capital One Savor Cash Rewards Credit Card: 3x grocery, dining, streaming, entertainment
• Best single-issuer combo: Citi Strata Premier℠ Card + Citi® Double Cash Card is beats the single-issuer combos from every other issuer, including Chase and Amex (who lack a consumer 2x everything card).

📇 Tools I Use to Manage It All

With 41 cards (hopefully less at the end of this year), keeping track of everything can be a lot. Here are the tools I rely on.

• CardTool: The tool I built to manage every aspect of my credit card portfolio. Not available to the public yet, but you can join the waitlist here or ATH members get access to the beta version.
• CardPointers Pro: It tracks all your cards, perks and credits. It also shows upcoming annual fee dates, and most importantly, auto-adds card-linked offers from all your connected cards. The browser extension alerts you when you're shopping at a store where you have an active offer, and it can activate the same offer across multiple cards so you can use it more than once. That feature alone has saved me well over $1,000. Get 30% off here or 50% off as an ATH member.
• CardRight and Travel Freely are also other solid options for tracking your cards and points balances, depending on what you need.