‘The benefits are kind of going away’: Rewards cards rules make it harder to get your money’s worth — how you still can

‘The benefits are kind of going away’: Rewards cards rules make it harder to get your money’s worth — how you still can

Christy Bieber

Thu, September 17, 2026 at 3:30 PM GMT+3 6 min read

Rewards cards can seem like a great deal — until you read the fine print.

Around 16% of credit cards have annual fees, with the average annual one totaling $127. Some cards charge much more than that, though. In fact, the Mastercard Black Card will run you $699 a year to be a cardholder, while the American Express Platinum card charges a whopping $895 annual fee as of August 2026.

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While these fees are very high, these are luxury cards that come with lots of perks, including airline lounge access, points for flights and hotels, global dining deals and statement credits for certain purchases. So the fee may seem worth it for the perks.

But some credit card experts say those perks are actually becoming more difficult to use, even as the cards become costlier. This makes it harder for card issuers to justify charging you a premium for the privilege of having their card in your wallet.

"Cards like the Chase Sapphire Reserve, Chase Sapphire Preferred, Amex Platinum, Amex Gold and even the Bilt program have gone through recent overhauls and refreshes that added more credits and benefits, but also raised the annual fee," Nick Romito, founder of Points Theory, a personal finance and travel site, told Moneywise.

The good news is that experts believe rewards cards can still be valuable. You just need to find the right one and use it wisely.

Managing credit card rewards and perks can be a full-time job

When it comes to credit card benefits, there's good and bad news for consumers.

"The banks and credit card programs are certainly not scaling back in terms of the sheer quantity of benefits and perks," Romito said. "But they do seem to be scaling back on the quality and ease of use of the benefits and perks on offer."

Brian Rooney, founder of Chapter7Reset.com, which helps people rebuild after bankruptcy, told Moneywise, "I think we're seeing less of a simple across-the-board reduction in rewards and more of a shift in how issuers deliver value."

Rooney explained that many perks now require you to meet high minimum spending thresholds, and many cards want you to claim a long list of statement credits to justify the fee.

"A card can look extremely rewarding on paper while requiring much more effort from the cardholder to actually capture all of that value," Rooney warned.

For example, it's common for luxury cards to offer a hotel credit. But to use it, you typically must stay in a participating hotel, and often book travel through the card issuer's portal. And if the credit isn't large enough to cover your entire stay, you'd be paying out of pocket. Plus, you may forget to book through the portal, or the partner hotels may be more expensive, so you don't really save.

"These credits can be worth the advertised amounts, but many require so much attention to detail and specific use cases that the average cardholder likely will not take advantage of all the benefits," Romito said. "Even as a points and miles enthusiast and very frequent traveler, I find some of these credits extremely difficult and frustrating to use."

And if you don't claim these hotel statement credits, or dozens of other credits for items such as Resy purchases, digital entertainment or StubHub tickets, you may not even cover the cost of the annual fee.

"The biggest mistake is looking at the theoretical value of every benefit instead of asking what you would actually pay for without the card," Rooney said. "A $200 credit isn't really worth $200 to you if it causes you to spend money with a company you otherwise wouldn't use."

And sometimes the benefits that were most important to a cardholder are changed or slashed.

A fee increase from $695 to $895 is what made Marietta Williams, a New Jersey-based teaching consultant and literacy coach for teachers, decide to cancel her Amex card. But that wasn't the only reason. She noted that a major factor was a rule change involving bringing guests into airport lounges.

"I feel like the benefits are kind of going away," Williams , who has had the card since 2022, told the Wall Street Journal.

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How rewards credit cards can still work for you

You don't have to just give up on rewards cards, though. You just have to get the right card and develop the right system for using it wisely.

"Before applying for a card, try to match its specific credits to spending you're already doing, rather than chasing a card for its headline perks and hoping your habits adjust to fit it," suggested Romito. "For example, a dining credit only helps if you already eat out regularly at participating restaurants."

Rooney recommends that you calculate the value of the credits you know you'll use, based on your current spending, to make sure those credits cover your annual fee. He also stressed the importance of activating any benefits that require enrollment right away so you don't miss out. And Romito says calendar reminders can help with this.

If you want to use a card with complicated rules, or carry multiple cards to maximize rewards for different kinds of purchases, there are also tools that can help. "You can either use one of many credit card tracker apps that will at least keep a tidy list of all of your credits and benefits per card you use, or you can create your own spreadsheet or even something as simple as an Apple Note as a reference," Dave Grossman, founder of Your Best Credit Cards, told Moneywise.

You should also keep a close eye on whether your current cards make sense. "Before your cards renew, actually add up what you used and compare that real number to the annual fee," Romito advised. "If it's not close, that's a sign to either commit to using the card properly or move to something that fits your actual life better."

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This article originally appeared on Moneywise.com under the title: 'The benefits are kind of going away': Rewards cards rules make it harder to get your money's worth — how you still can

This article provides information only and should not be construed as advice. It is provided without warranty of any kind.