An easy way to earn travel rewards at home: Your guide to airline and hotel dining rewards programs | CNN Underscored

When airline and hotel loyalty programs first started, the only way you could earn miles and points was to actually take flights or stay at hotels. Today, you can earn points and miles without ever having to step foot on an airplane or in a hotel. From credit cards to online shopping, even dining out at restaurants and more, you can earn travel rewards that will put you well on your way toward free travel.

One of our favorite ways to earn travel rewards is through dining rewards programs. With them, you can get rewarded in your favorite airline or hotel loyalty program for dining out at participating restaurants in your area. Best of all, practically every major hotel and airline loyalty program has one of these dining rewards programs, making it easy to earn extra rewards quickly for your next trip.

Here’s your complete guide to maximizing airline and hotel dining rewards programs for earning more travel rewards quickly on each meal.

Dining rewards programs are pretty straightforward: You sign up and register one or more credit cards with the airline or hotel loyalty program of your choice. Then, you’ll earn bonus rewards whenever you dine at a participating restaurant using the registered card. Some programs offer extra points when you complete a review or opt-in to receive email notifications. If you’re a frequent diner, you’ll be upgraded to VIP status and become eligible for even more rewards.

Most of the programs offer bonus points when you complete a certain amount of spending within the first 30 days of joining — think of it like a sign-up bonus. Once you register and complete the required meals out, you’ll be rewarded with even more points or miles.

Because the airlines and hotels use the same service to run their programs, you can’t register the same credit card with more than one program. For example, you can’t use your American Express® Gold Card with both the Delta SkyMiles Dining and American AAdvantage Dining programs. If you do, the first program you registered your card with will automatically remove it from your profile.

The great thing about dining rewards programs is that the points you earn are in addition to the rewards you’ll earn from your credit card. So, for example, not only will you earn miles with United Airlines from the United MileagePlus Dining program, but you’ll also earn American Express Membership Rewards points from using your Amex Gold Card to pay for the meal. Getting a card that earns extra points on dining is a great way to double-dip for additional rewards.

Which airlines and hotels have dining rewards programs?

Nearly all the major airline and hotel loyalty programs have their own dining rewards programs. You’ll earn bonus points or miles without much effort beyond creating an account and registering your credit card.

With American Airlines, the points you earn even count toward AAdvantage elite status. So, you could very well eat your way to top-tier AAdvantage Executive Platinum status if you play your cards right (though you would have to spend a significant amount of money dining out to do so!). Similarly, Southwest Rapid Rewards dining points will count toward earning the Companion Pass.

Here’s a look at all of the airline and hotel dining rewards programs available, along with their sign-up bonuses and earn rates.

When determining which are the best credit cards to use with a dining rewards program, you want to prioritize using those that earn bonus points on dining. You can register as many credit cards as you want with a single dining rewards program, but you can’t register the same card with multiple programs.

If you’re in the market for a credit card that earns bonus points on dining, the following are some good options:

Dining rewards programs are so valuable because the earning potential is uncapped. Depending on the airline or hotel partner, you can earn between 0.5 points to 8 points per dollar spent. In addition, most programs offer a welcome bonus of 1,000 points to 6,000 points — and sometimes more! — when you spend a certain amount within the first month of joining. Best of all, there is no maximum number of points you can earn.

You can join as many dining rewards programs as you want. But because they’re all part of the same network, you can’t register the same card with multiple programs. If you have multiple credit cards, you can split them between different programs to ensure you never miss out on bonus points when dining out.

You can earn dining rewards for ordering takeout or dining in, though it depends on the dining establishment. Not all restaurants offer this option, but you can search for restaurants ahead of time to determine whether you’ll earn points on your takeout order.

The best dining rewards program really depends on which loyalty program you prefer. If you’re trying to make progress towards elite status with American Airlines, then the AAdvantage Dining Program is the best for you. If you want to earn the Southwest Companion Pass, then go with Rapid Rewards Dining. Ultimately, each traveler’s goals and needs will vary. If you live in a city that is dominated by one airline — Atlanta with Delta Air Lines, for example — it could be a good idea to accrue miles in the SkyMiles program for the range of options out of your home airport.

Airline and hotel dining rewards programs are an easy way to earn bonus miles and points to use toward free travel. When it comes to travel rewards, earning your rewards is an important first step toward redeeming for free travel. Whether you’re looking for business-class flights around the world or a terrific hotel suite for your honeymoon, travel rewards are a good way to achieve travel experiences that would otherwise be out of reach.

Looking for a travel credit card? Find out which cards CNN Underscored chose as our best travel credit cards of 2022.