What are the best credit card and platform bonuses right now?

Start by checking your American Express account for elevated referral bonuses. Some Platinum and Gold cardholders are seeing offers of up to 45,000 Membership Rewards points per referral, well above the usual 10,000–15,000. You can earn up to five referral bonuses per calendar year, and the person you refer can apply for a different Amex card entirely — they don't have to pick the one you sent them. The welcome offers on those cards can go as high as 175,000 points on Platinum (after $12,000 spend in six months) and 100,000 on Gold (after $8,000 spend in six months), but those vary by applicant.

If you're not an Amex cardholder, consider joining Rove, the transferable-points platform that launched in April 2025. It just added Rove Dining and in-store card-linked offers. You can earn Rove miles at thousands of restaurants by linking a payment card, and at select retailers for in-store purchases. Rove has 20 transfer partners, and new users can get a 1,500-mile referral bonus plus 5,000 extra miles on their first hotel booking over $500 with code "BRIANKELLY500." Just be aware that linking a card to Rove Dining might unlink it from other dining programs like AAdvantage Dining — read the fine print.

Looking ahead, Southwest Airlines is building lounges in Austin and Nashville (targeting 2027 openings) and working with Chase on a premium credit card in the $395–$650 range that would include lounge access. That card hasn't launched yet, so there's no offer to act on now, but it's worth keeping an eye on if you fly Southwest frequently.

The actionable takeaway: log into your Amex account today to see if you have a referral bonus offer, and if you're new to Rove, sign up and link a card for dining before you eat out this week. These are limited-time windows.