As the sun sets on 2025, we’ve been thinking about what exciting new changes might be coming to credit cards, points, and miles in 2026. There were enough product launches, credit card updates, and plan changes in the past year to make our heads spin, so we were eager to see if the momentum carried over into the new year.
I reached out to some of my fellow credit card experts at TPG to get their thoughts on how our industry may change in 2026. Here are our thoughts.
Mid-level credit card updates
Three of the most popular premium credit cards on the market are getting updates for 2025: Chase Sapphire Reserve® (See Rates and Fees), American Express Platinum Card® and American Express Business Platinum Card®.
With these issues resolved, TPG credit card writer Augusta Stone and I believe we’ll next see card issuers focus on their midrange products.
I expect Chase will turn his attention to the one he loves Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card (See Rates and Fees). We’ll likely see the annual fee increase to around $150, and at least one or two new statement credits will be needed to account for that.
This is consistent with what we’ve seen Chase do before, such as its refresh United℠Discover Card (see Rates and Fees) and increases the fee from $95 to $150 (after the first cardholder year).
In Augusta’s opinion, the American Express® Green Card definitely “needs to be updated.” She pointed out, American Express Platinum Card and American Express® Gold Card Both have been updated in the past few years, so it makes sense that it’s Amex Green’s turn. The Amex Green lost its LoungeBuddy benefit without replacing it, leading Augusta to think American Express might be ready to give it a new coat of paint.
American Express Green Card information is independently collected by The Points Guy. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.
Loyalty program transfer rates continue to depreciate
Worsening transfer ratios are a relatively new trend this year, albeit an unfortunate one. American Express and Citi have both reduced Emirates Skywards transfer rates. In addition, American Express announced that it will soon reduce the mileage transfer rate for its Cathay Pacific Asia Miles.
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Lead writer Katie Genter and senior writer Ben Smithson (two of TPG’s top points and miles experts) believe this trend will continue into 2026. Ben called it “alarming” and said he feared the trend would become more common.
Katie agrees, but while she suspects some projects will continue to change transfer ratios below 1:1, she also believes Chase will maintain a 1:1 ratio for all of its projects because it is a matter of pride for the issuer.
The development of transfer rate depreciation underscores a point we make often here at TPG: Don’t hoard your points and miles. You never know when they might become worthless, so redeem them now to travel.
Greater emphasis on issuer travel portals
We’ve seen issuers show more vested interest in their travel portals this year, especially Chase. except its refresh Sapphire ReserveChase has launched Points Boost to encourage eligible cardholders to book more through its platform, Chase Travel℠.
Both Augusta and Ben believe we will see this trend shift in 2026. Ben said that as issuers’ travel portals become more sophisticated, he expects to see more incentives, such as high redemption values for booking within the issuer’s ecosystem rather than transferring externally.
However, he warned that cardholders should remember that booking through travel portals can be more expensive.
Augusta National believes that the points increase will inspire issuers to take new initiatives and launch competitive benefits. She highlighted American Express, Capital One and Citigroup as possible contenders to offer benefits that compete with the points boost. I expect American Express to be the first to do something about this since it is Chase’s closest competitor.
Reward prices are more dynamic and the time to obtain rewards is shorter
Currently, most airline loyalty programs use dynamic pricing, but we basically don’t see them using it for tickets that aren’t their own.
Ben believes we’ll see this happen on a larger scale in 2026. He pointed to Air Canada Aeroplan’s use of dynamic pricing for United and Emirates awards as a good example. He sees this as a potentially negative development and warns that long-haul first-class flights on Emirates, for example, could cost up to 400,000 points on a single flight.
Katie believes that, aside from the imminent threat of astronomical rewards, we won’t have enough time to get the redemption we want. She found that the trend of rewarding availability was disappearing quickly, even though she took immediate action after receiving an availability alert. Katie says that as more people invest in points and miles, finding value for money redemptions will only get harder.
Still, she encourages everyone to keep looking for good deals.
Cards launched in abundance
While there are indeed some new credit cards launching in 2025, the news cycle feels like it’s mostly dominated by high-profile credit card updates. 2026 is likely to see the opposite, with high-profile product launches.
I expect Chase’s highly anticipated premium World of Hyatt card to launch in 2026. As someone who primarily stays at Hyatt hotels, I’ll be keeping an eye on any moves here.
Bilt has confirmed a major change to its credit card product line, moving towards a partnership with Cardless. Bilt’s new card product suite is likely to be one of the biggest topics of 2026, given that it plans to launch three new cards as part of its cardless debut.
Bilt Mastercard information is collected independently by The Points Guy. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.
Augusta also believes we may eventually see Chase launch a proper competitor American Express Gold Card. This is something I’ve been asking for for as long as I can remember, as American Express Gold currently lacks real competition from any major issuer.
Related: Why Chase needs an American Express Gold Card competitor
More Welcome Bonus Limitations
We saw Chase make a move this year to limit the ability of current and former cardholders to earn new welcome bonuses through consumer Sapphire and certain Ink products. Capital One has also made it harder for some to earn bonuses on its venture capital products.
Katie believes we will see this unfortunate trend continue, with issuers prioritizing house rules and personalized offers. For example, I believe we could see Chase extend its recent restrictions on Sapphire and Ink welcome bonuses to its co-branded cards.
We may also see other card issuers adopt American Express’s strategy of offering a series of welcome offers for individual cards, rather than a fixed offer.
Additional restrictions on lounge access
Lounge access is one of the most popular perks of credit cards. Recently, we’ve seen card issuers restrict access, such as Capital One’s upcoming rule changes for its lounges. While frustrating for cardholders, the changes are a response to growing complaints about wait times and overcrowding.
Katie believes we will continue to see lounge owners restrict access. She noted that while lounge access is the most popular perk, once you get it, you may encounter long lines or crowded lounges, which is not a premium experience. As a result, she believes lounge owners will prioritize ways to limit access and reduce crowding.
Artificial intelligence penetrates credit cards
Credit Card associate writer Stephanie Stevens has been thinking about artificial intelligence. She believes credit card issuers will start using AI to help them create targeted, dynamic welcome offers for potential cardholders. She also believes artificial intelligence will be used to manage lounge waiting lists and overcrowding.
Of course, introducing artificial intelligence into anything raises security and privacy concerns, especially when it is granted access to sensitive financial data. It remains to be seen where and how issuers will adopt these tools.
bottom line
2026 is sure to be an exciting year. We expect to see a number of notable developments – some positive, some negative. No matter what happens, one thing remains the same: Points and miles are the best way to unlock amazing travel experiences.
No matter what happens next year, we’re still here to help you do it.
