Travel Credit Card Referral Bonuses Compared: 2025 Rankings

Travel credit card referral bonuses vary dramatically by issuer and card, ranging from 10,000 to 30,000 points per successful referral with annual caps between 50,000 and 100,000 points. Understanding which cards offer the best referral value—and how to strategically maximize your earning potential—can generate hundreds of thousands of points annually without increasing your own spending. This comprehensive comparison ranks major travel cards by referral earning power.

American Express: Highest Single-Referral Bonuses

American Express leads the industry with referral bonuses up to 30,000 Membership Rewards points for premium cards like the Platinum and Business Platinum. The 2025 structure allows cardholders to earn up to 100,000 total points per calendar year from referrals. Critically, Amex's cross-card referral capability means you can refer FROM your highest-bonus card while the friend applies for ANY Amex product.

• Amex Platinum: 15,000-30,000 points per referral (varies by promotion; watch for elevated offers)
• Amex Business Platinum: Similar 15,000-30,000 point structure
• Amex Gold: 15,000 points per referral
• Annual cap: 100,000 Membership Rewards points total across all referrals
• Bonus posting: 8-12 weeks after referred person's account opens
• Key strategy: Always generate referral links from your highest-earning Amex card regardless of which product friend wants

Chase Sapphire: Simplified Referral Structure

Chase expanded its Sapphire referral program in 2025, increasing per-referral bonuses from 10,000 to 15,000 Ultimate Rewards points. The simplified structure allows you to share a link for any Sapphire card regardless of which Sapphire product you personally hold, with all referrals earning the same bonus.

• Chase Sapphire Preferred: 15,000 points per referral
• Chase Sapphire Reserve: 15,000 points per referral
• Annual cap: 100,000 Ultimate Rewards points total
• Bonus posting: 6-8 weeks after approval
• Warning: If 10+ people apply using your link, Chase may not award any bonus miles (anti-fraud measure)

When you refer your card to someone else, you can be rewarded with 15,000-30,000 points for each referral. Referring cards to a spouse or adult child—who gets a welcome offer—and combining points into a family pool can exponentially grow your points.

— Travel Rewards Strategy Guide

Capital One Venture: Generous but Restrictive

Capital One Venture X and standard Venture cards offer 25,000 miles per referral—among the highest single-referral bonuses in the industry. However, a critical restriction limits bonuses to new-to-Capital-One customers only. Referring existing cardholders generates no bonus, significantly reducing eligible referral pool.

• Venture X Rewards Card: 25,000 miles per approval
• Venture Rewards Card: 25,000 miles per approval
• Annual cap: 100,000 miles maximum per calendar year
• Restriction: Friend cannot be primary cardholder on any existing Capital One credit card
• Bonus timing: Up to 8 weeks after friend opens account
• Cardholder-specific variability: Referral bonus amounts can vary between cardholders based on account standing

Citi and Other Issuers: Limited Programs

Citi's referral program coverage remains limited compared to Amex, Chase, and Capital One. The Citi Premier and some co-branded cards offer referrals, but bonuses typically range lower (10,000-15,000 points) with varying caps. Bank of America and US Bank offer referral programs on select travel cards but with generally lower bonuses and more restrictive terms.

Maximizing Household Referral Earnings

Couples or households can strategically double referral income. If both partners hold premium travel cards, coordinate who refers new applicants based on whose card offers higher bonuses at any given time. When either partner needs a new card, generate the referral from the account with better bonus structure. This household optimization can push annual referral earnings to 200,000+ points.

Co-Branded Card Restrictions

Airline and hotel co-branded Amex cards (Delta, Hilton, Marriott) operate under different rules—they can only generate referrals for other cards within the same brand family. Your Membership Rewards-earning Platinum card won't produce bonuses for Delta referrals. Similarly, Chase's airline and hotel cards typically have separate referral programs from the Sapphire family.

Where to Share Travel Card Referrals

Target high-intent audiences for travel card referrals. Travel hacking communities on Reddit (r/churning, r/awardtravel), frequent flyer forums and blogs, travel planning Facebook groups, and professional networks (LinkedIn for business cards) all contain qualified prospects. Always compare whether current public signup bonuses exceed referral bonuses—honest disclosure when public offers are better builds trust and long-term credibility.

For organizing multiple travel card referral links alongside hotel, airline, and other travel program codes, create a centralized travel rewards hub on Codiroo. This professional presentation allows prospects to compare your available referrals while giving you one URL to share across platforms.