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For 5% cash back:聽Discover it庐-New! Double Cash Back your first year

The聽Discover it庐-New! Double Cash Back your first year earns 5% cash back in rotating quarterly bonus categories (up to $1,500 in purchases per quarter) and聽1% cash back on all other spending. Historically, several聽travel-friendly bonus categories have been offered, including gas and ground transportation, restaurants and retail spending. When you鈥檙e away from home, you鈥檙e bound to spend on聽gas or ground transportation to get around, and this card has the potential to provide big rewards.

Another benefit is access to Discover鈥檚 discount online shopping portal, Discover Deals. This provides a聽helpful聽service to voyagers, often including discounts or bonus cash back with merchants that sell travel necessities聽like聽luggage, clothes, electronics and more.聽Combined with no foreign transaction fees and聽聽protection,聽the Discover it庐-New! Double Cash Back your first year is a strong聽contender as a hybrid cash-back/travel card.

One of the few聽potential downsides with this type of card has to do with聽timing. With rotating reward categories, you need to make sure you鈥檙e spending on the right categories at the right time to maximize your cash back, so be sure to shop smart.

For the most flexibility: Capital One庐 Quicksilver庐 Cash Rewards Credit Card

If you want the same cash back on all spending, at聽all聽times, the聽聽is the way to go. It聽offers unlimited 1.5% cash back on purchases of any type, all year, with no foreign transaction fees. Combined with a $0 annual fee and the widespread acceptance of Visa, you鈥檙e getting one of聽highest-earning, most flexible cash-back cards available.

For travelers, this means no fumbling among聽different cards to figure out which one is best for certain purchases. The EMV-chip-ready Capital One庐 Quicksilver庐 Cash Rewards Credit Card offers across-the-board rewards consistently, and that makes聽earning cash back seamless while you鈥檙e on the go.聽Just spend and earn.

For more on the Capital One庐 Quicksilver庐 Cash Rewards Credit Card click聽

For those who travel by car: Wells Fargo Propel 365 American Express

If you travel mostly by car, the Wells Fargo Propel 365 American Express will offset some of your聽costs. It has聽one of the highest unlimited, year-round rewards rates at U.S. gas stations, where聽you鈥檒l earn 3 points per dollar spent. You鈥檒l also get 2 points per dollar spent at restaurants and聽1 point per dollar spent everywhere else. Points can be redeemed for a statement credit at a 1 cent-per-point ratio, so with the Wells Fargo Propel 365 American Express, you鈥檒l get your money鈥檚 worth. This card charges no foreign transaction fees, so you鈥檒l incur no added costs if your travels take you abroad.

The Wells Fargo Propel 365 American Express isn鈥檛 just about points. You鈥檒l also get up to 20% off at more than 18,000 participating hotels and up to 25% off at all major rental car services, just聽for paying with your card. Plus,聽you鈥檒l get a聽solid sign-up bonus to get you started: 20,000 points when you spend $3,000 in net purchases in the first 3 months.

As with any card that has an annual fee, it鈥檚 important to weigh costs聽vs.聽benefits. The Wells Fargo Propel 365 American Express鈥檚 annual fee is waived the first year and $45 every year thereafter, so聽if you spend $125 per month on gas with this card, you鈥檒l cover the annual fee and break even. (Note: Points can be redeemed at a 1-point-to-1-cent cash-back rate, so: $125 x 12 = $1,500 x 0.03 = $45.)

Whether you travel for work or for pleasure, you should have a card that saves you money away from home. If you don鈥檛 want to be聽bothered with the complexities聽of聽most travel cards, there are plenty of options聽available that benefit travelers while providing the flexibility and simplicity of a cash-back card.

Kevin Cash is a staff writer covering personal finance for聽.