The 9 Best Credit Cards for Premium Roadside Assistance Coverage [2024]

Whether you’re a working road warrior or a parent who needs to ensure that everyone in the family gets where they need to be, you depend on your vehicle to reach your destination.

The same is true when you’re on a vacation road trip or rushing to make that special business meeting. Getting to your destination is always important, and it’s always frustrating if you become stranded due to a breakdown.

Roadside assistance, an often-forgotten credit card benefit, is a handy perk that can help in times of need. This benefit comes complimentary on a lot of travel rewards credit cards.

Not all roadside assistance benefits are created equal, however — some are simply referral services that can help you reach a service provider.

Other roadside assistance benefits (referred to as premium roadside assistance) can actually provide the services for free or provide a specified dollar amount of coverage to the cardholder to offset the cost of a roadside service call.

Today we’re focusing on premium roadside assistance and the travel rewards cards that offer this benefit. It’s possible you may have coverage on one of the cards in your wallet right now!

Let’s find out how premium roadside assistance can save you time and money and which cards carry this useful benefit.

What Is Roadside Assistance?

Basic Roadside Assistance or Roadside Dispatch

Roadside assistance (or roadside dispatch, as it can commonly be referred to) usually means you’ll have a dedicated phone line to call for referral services when you have a vehicle roadside emergency.

Services can include towing, tire changes, emergency fuel, and other related vehicle breakdown-related services. Basic roadside assistance coverage comes complimentary on a lot of credit cards.

Although the referral service itself is complimentary, the cardholder is responsible for the cost of any actual services provided. For example, if you were to have a flat tire and call the roadside assistance line, a service provider could be summoned to come change your tire, but you would be responsible for paying the service provider.

Hot Tip: Some basic roadside assistance coverage can also include a preferred pre-negotiated flat rate that is charged to the cardholder, such as $59 per service call.

Premium Roadside Assistance

Premium roadside assistance is a step up from roadside dispatch, as the services are provided either at no cost or include a specific maximum benefit amount (such as $50 per service call).

For example, services like towing, lockout service, fixing a flat tire, or providing a small amount of fuel might be provided at no charge, or the cardholder might pay any amount exceeding the maximum benefit limit.

Premium roadside assistance is also a complimentary benefit that is included on several credit cards. Knowing which type of roadside assistance coverage you have can save you plenty if you’re stranded and need help.

The 5 Best Personal Credit Cards for Premium Roadside Assistance

Let’s take a look at some of the best credit cards that currently come with this premium roadside assistance benefit.

Card Summary

Card	Welcome Bonus and Annual Fee	Benefits for Roadside Assistance Coverage
Chase Sapphire Reserve®	Earn 60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months. Annual fee of $550	Premium roadside assistance (complimentary up to $50 per service call, up to 4 events per calendar year): Towing Tire changing Jump-starting Lockout service (not including key replacement) Fuel delivery (cost of up to 2 gallons included)
United℠ Explorer Card	Earn 50,000 bonus miles after spending $3,000 on purchases in the first 3 months. Annual fee of $0 intro annual fee for the first year, then $95
Chase Freedom Unlimited®	Earn an extra 1.5% on everything you buy (on up to $20,000 spent in the first year) — worth up to $300 cash back. That's 6.5% on travel purchased through Chase Travel, 4.5% on dining and drugstores, and 3% on all other purchases. Annual fee of $0	Basic roadside assistance (flat fee applies): Towing up to 5 miles Tire changing Jump-starting Lockout service (not including key replacement) Fuel delivery of up to 5 gallons (plus fuel cost) Standard winching
Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card	Earn 75,000 miles when you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months. Annual fee of $395 (rates & fees)
Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card	Earn 60,000 points after spending $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months. Annual fee of $95

Chase Sapphire Reserve^®

Our top-shelf winner in this space of credit cards with roadside assistance is the Chase Sapphire Reserve card.

One of Chase’s ultra-premium credit cards, the Chase Sapphire Reserve card offers some amazing rewards as well as travel benefits, including premium roadside assistance.

Currently, this credit card offers up to 10x Ultimate Rewards points on purchases:

• 10x points on car rentals, hotels, and dining booked through the Chase Travel portal
• 10x points on Lyft purchases through March 31, 2025
• 10x points on Peloton equipment and accessory purchases over $250 through March 31, 2025
• 5x points on airfare booked through the Chase Travel portal
• 3x points on all other travel and dining purchases
• 1x points on all other purchases

Other transportation-related perks on top of premium roadside assistance include elite status and/or discounts with Avis, National, and Audi on demand, as well as other travel protection perks.

You can utilize the Chase Sapphire Reserve card’s $300 annual travel credit, complimentary Priority Pass Select membership, a 50% redemption bonus when using points on bookings made through Chase Travel, a $100 Global Entry, TSA PreCheck, or NEXUS application fee credit, and access to the Luxury Hotel & Resort Collection.

Lastly, you’ll get purchase protection, extended warranty, and no foreign transaction fees whenever you use your Chase Sapphire Reserve card.

Why We Like Earning Chase Ultimate Rewards Points

We painstakingly track how much different points and miles are worth — and we believe Chase Ultimate Rewards points are worth 2 cents each, which means you can earn a return on spending of up to 20% with the Chase Sapphire Reserve card!

And although this number can fluctuate depending on how you use your points, you could potentially get even better value if you cleverly use the Chase transfer partners to book luxury award travel.

Furthermore, there are other, reduced-value ways to use your points, including travel through Chase Travel, gift cards, statement credits, charitable donations, and online shopping.

United℠ Explorer Card

The United Explorer card is one of the few credit cards offering premium roadside assistance, which means it’s in the exclusive company of cards like the Chase Sapphire Reserve card.

And for a credit card with such a mild annual fee, this benefit sets it apart from all other credit cards in the category, at least in the context of premium roadside assistance.

To start off, the welcome bonus is substantial and the earning categories are abundant:

• Earn 2x miles on United purchases
• Earn 2x miles on dining (including eligible delivery services) and hotel stays when booked with the hotel
• Earn 1x miles per dollar spent on all other purchases

But what you’ll probably fall in love with is the long list of benefits that United loyalists find useful:

• Free first checked bag for yourself and a companion on the same reservation when you purchase your United ticket with your United Explorer card
• Priority boarding for yourself and a companion on the same reservation
• The ability to earn 25 Premier Qualifying Points (PQPs) when you spend $500, up to 1,000 PQPs per calendar year
• 2 United Club 1-time passes every cardmember year
• 25% statement credit on United inflight purchases

General travel benefits include a $100 Global Entry, TSA PreCheck, or NEXUS application fee credit, no foreign transaction fees, travel insurance, purchase protection, extended warranty, and no foreign transaction fees.

Why We Like Earning United MileagePlus Miles

United MileagePlus miles are worth around 1.3 cents each. If you earn 2x miles on certain purchases, you’ll get a return on spending of around 2.6%.

To squeeze even more value from your United miles, save your miles for redemptions in international business or first class flights on partner airlines like Lufthansa and ANA.

Chase Freedom Unlimited^®

The Freedom Unlimited card is one of our favorite credit cards for everyday purchases, and it just so happens to be one of the best credit cards that offers access to basic roadside assistance.

Although you may get a welcome offer from time to time, you’d want to keep this card open for the long-term benefits, which include the following rewards tiering:

• 5% cash-back on all travel booked through Chase Travel
• 5% cash-back on Lyft purchases through March 31, 2025
• 3% cash-back on dining and at drugstores
• 1.5% cash-back on all other purchases

Even better, the rewards earned from the Freedom Unlimited card can easily be converted to Ultimate Rewards points at a 1%-to-1x ratio if you have an eligible Ultimate Rewards credit card like the Chase Sapphire Preferred^® Card, Chase Sapphire Reserve card, or Ink Business Preferred^® Credit Card.

By converting your points, your 5%, 3%, and 1.5% cash-back can transform into a higher ROI of 10%, 6%, and 3%, respectively.

The Freedom Unlimited card even comes with a 0% introductory APR benefit, as well as purchase protection, extended warranty, secondary car rental insurance, fraud protection, and authorized users for no additional annual fee.

Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card

As our only Capital One credit card option in this guide, the Capital One Venture X card is a fabulous pick, whether or not you’re looking for basic roadside assistance coverage.

Right now, the welcome bonus is fantastic, and that’s not even taking into account the earnings of up to 10x Capital One miles:

• 10x miles on car rentals and hotels booked via Capital One Travel
• 5x miles on flights purchased through Capital One Travel
• 2x miles on other purchases

This credit card is one of the only options that offers complimentary Hertz President’s Circle status, as well as the only card that allows unlimited complimentary visits to Capital One Lounges.

There’s also a complimentary Priority Pass Select membership, access to Plaza Premium Lounges, an account anniversary bonus of 10,000 miles, an up to $300 annual Capital One Travel credit, and travel insurance that includes primary rental car coverage.

Enjoy cell phone protection, purchase protection, extended warranty coverage, no foreign transaction fees, and up to 4 no additional fee authorized user cards (rates & fees).

Why We Like Earning Capital One Miles

Capital One miles are worth 1.8 cents each in our books, making the one of the most valuable currencies out there. Earning 10x miles would be worth an approximate return on spending of 18%.

You’ll generally get the best value by redeeming those miles with transfer partners and booking premium cabin award travel.

Chase Sapphire Preferred^® Card

The last personal credit card we’ll discuss is the Chase Sapphire Preferred card, which is one of the most famous credit cards out there. And at the moment, it offers basic roadside assistance.

Despite having a low annual fee, the Chase Sapphire Preferred card earns a whopping 5x Ultimate Rewards points on select purchases:

• 5x points on travel purchased through the Chase Travel portal
• 5x points on Lyft purchases through March 31, 2025
• 5x points on Peloton equipment and accessory purchases over $250 through March 31, 2025
• 3x points on dining, select streaming services, and online groceries
• 2x points on all other travel
• 1x points on all other purchases

Also, the Chase Sapphire Preferred card has a unique benefit that provides cardholders a 10% rewards bonus after every cardmember anniversary.

Get an annual credit of $50 towards prepaid hotel stays booked through the Chase Travel portal, too.

Lastly, you’ll be able to utilize the fantastic travel insurance, purchase protection, extended warranty, no foreign transaction fees, and no additional fee for authorized user cards.

Bottom Line: Currently, we love the Chase Sapphire Reserve card and United Explorer card as our favorite personal credit cards offering premium roadside assistance. And our 3 favorite personal credit cards offering basic roadside assistance are the Freedom Unlimited card, Capital One Venture X card, and Chase Sapphire Preferred card.

The 4 Best Business Credit Cards for Premium Roadside Assistance

Chase is one of the only business card issuers to offer a premium level of roadside assistance. Let’s take a look at our favorite options.

Card Summary

Card	Welcome Bonus and Annual Fee	Benefits for Roadside Assistance Coverage
United℠ Business Card	Earn 75,000 bonus miles after you spend $5,000 on purchases in the first 3 months. Annual fee of $0 introductory annual fee for the first year, then $99	Premium roadside assistance (complimentary up to $50 per service call, up to 4 events per calendar year): Towing Tire changing Jump-starting Lockout service (not including key replacement) Fuel delivery (cost of up to 2 gallons included)
United Club℠ Business Card	Earn 75,000 bonus miles + 1,000 Premier qualifying points (PQP) after $5,000 on purchases in the first 3 months your account is open Annual fee of $450
Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card	NEW OFFER: Earn 100,000 bonus points after you spend $8,000 on purchases in the first 3 months. Annual fee of $95	Basic roadside assistance (flat fee applies): Towing up to 5 miles Tire changing Jump-starting Lockout service (not including key replacement) Fuel delivery of up to 5 gallons (plus fuel cost) Standard winching
Southwest Rapid Rewards® Performance Business Credit Card	Earn 80,000 points after you spend $5,000 on purchases in the first 3 months. Annual fee of $199

United℠ Business Card

Our favorite business credit card for roadside assistance is the United Business card, which is a match made in heaven for business owners that frequently fly on United.

In addition to the large welcome bonus, you can access premium roadside assistance, which is exceptionally rare for a business credit card.

This is on top of the 2x United miles earned per dollar spent:

• 2x miles on United purchases
• 2x miles at gas stations, on dining (including eligible delivery services), at office supply stores, and on local transit (including mass transit, rideshare services, taxis, train tickets, and tolls)
• 1x miles on all other purchases

If you happen to pair your United Business card with a personal United credit card like the United Explorer card above, you’ll get a better-together bonus of 5,000 miles after every cardmember anniversary.

The United benefits are similar to those on the United Explorer card:

• Free first checked bag for yourself and a companion traveling on the same reservation when you purchase the ticket with your card
• Priority boarding for yourself and a companion traveling on the same reservation
• Earn 25 Premier Qualifying Points (PQPs) after spending $500 on your card (up to 1,000 PQPs per calendar year)
• 2 United Club 1-time passes every year
• 25% back on United inflight purchases
• $100 United travel credit after you make 7 United flight purchases of $100 or more every cardmember year

Unsurprisingly, the United Business card also offers access to the Chase Luxury Hotels & Resort Collection, travel insurance, purchase protection, extended warranty, no foreign transaction fees, and employee cards for no additional annual fee.

Ink Business Preferred^® Credit Card

The runner-up credit card is arguably our favorite Chase business credit card: the Ink Business Preferred card. It offers a generous welcome bonus, incredible rewards categories, and access to basic roadside assistance.

To start off, this business credit card earns 3x points per dollar spent on purchases in the following categories (capped at the first $150,000 in combined purchases every anniversary year):

• Ads purchased with search engines or social media sites
• Internet, cable, and phone services
• Shipping expenses
• Travel

It also offers 5x points on Lyft purchases through March 31, 2025. On all other purchases, you’ll earn 1x points.

Overall, earning 5x, 3x, or 1x Ultimate Rewards points is equivalent to a 10%, 6%, or 2% return on spending.

This impressive credit card has some incredible cell phone protection coverage, purchase protection, extended warranty, no foreign transaction fees, and no additional fee for employee cards.

Southwest Rapid Rewards^® Performance Business Credit Card

The Southwest Performance Business card is the most premium credit card product from Chase’s partnership with Southwest Airlines. Right now, the credit card has basic roadside assistance and a fantastic welcome bonus, as well as a seemingly endless list of benefits when flying Southwest.

With this credit card, you can earn up to 4x Rapid Rewards points per dollar spent:

• 4x points on Southwest purchases
• 3x points on Rapid Rewards hotel and car rental partners
• 2x points on local transit and commuting purchases (including buses, parking lots and garages, passenger trains, rideshare, taxis, and tolls), on social media and search engine advertising, and on internet, cable, and phone services
• 1x points on all other purchases

Every year, holders of this card will get a cardmember anniversary bonus of 9,000 Rapid Rewards points.

Get closer to A-List elite status by spending $5,000 in purchases to earn 1,500 tier qualifying points (TQPs). There are also 4 Upgraded Boardings every year when available, a $500 fee credit for points transfers per anniversary year, inflight Wi-Fi credits, and a $100 Global Entry or TSA PreCheck application fee credit.

To round out the benefits on this card, enjoy purchase protection, extended warranty, travel insurance, no foreign transaction fees, and no additional fee for employee cards.

Why We Like Earning Southwest Rapid Rewards Points

Southwest Rapid Rewards points are worth approximately 1.4 cents each, though the exact value can fluctuate in small amounts. You won’t get any outsized value from your rewards far beyond what their standard value is because Rapid Rewards points are a fixed-value currency.

The good news is that your redemption value is consistently between 1.3 and 1.5 cents per point, but the bad news is that there’s no way to get double or triple the value on your redemptions.

United Club℠ Business Card

The final credit card in this guide is the United Club Business card, which happens to be the ultra-premium credit card product offered to business owners loyal to United Airlines. At the moment, it offers premium roadside assistance, though the annual fee on this card is substantial. You’d really only want to get this credit card if you needed United Club access included with your card.

The good news is that the welcome bonus is massive, and the earning structure is streamlined:

• 2x miles on United purchases
• 1.5x miles on all other purchases

Even better, you’ll get better United perks with the United Club Business card than you would with the United Business card:

• United Club membership
• Free first and second checked bags for yourself and a companion on the same reservation when you purchase your United ticket using your card
• Complimentary Premier Access travel services, which include priority check-in, security, boarding, and baggage handling
• Get closer to elite status by earning 25 PQPs after spending $5 per calendar year (up to 1,000 PQPs per calendar year)
• Complimentary upgrades on award tickets for yourself and a companion on the same reservations
• 25% back on United inflight purchases

The benefits also include access to the Avis President’s Club, access to the Luxury Hotel & Resort Collection from Chase, travel insurance, no foreign transaction fees, and employee cards for no additional annual fees.

How Premium Roadside Assistance Works for Chase Cards

When you’re stranded with a dead battery, flat tire, or even a mechanical breakdown, Chase’s roadside assistance can help you get back on the road quickly.

On eligible cards, Chase provides either premium roadside assistance or basic roadside assistance.

Premium roadside assistance — included with the Chase Sapphire Reserve card, United Explorer card, United Business card, and United Club Business card — covers traveling in the U.S. and Canada, up to a limit of $50 per service call, for up to 4 events each calendar year. Cardholders are covered when driving a vehicle they own, a leased vehicle, or a vehicle furnished by the owner.

The following services are provided under Chase’s premium roadside assistance coverage:

• Towing to the nearest facility or location of your choice
• Tire changing (installation of your inflated spare tire)
• Fuel delivery of up to 2 gallons
• Battery boost
• Lockout service (not including key replacement)

Any service charges in excess of $50 will be charged to the cardholder’s Chase credit card.

Only cardholders and authorized users are covered for roadside assistance, regardless of which Chase credit card you have.

Premium roadside assistance is available 24/7 by calling 888-860-7978. When you call, you’ll need to provide your name, address, vehicle identification number (or make/model/year of the car), the location of the vehicle, and a phone number where you can be reached.

Services are provided on a “sign and drive” basis, which means you do not need to pay the service provider when you receive service. Any excess over the $50 benefit limit, if applicable, will be charged to your Chase credit card.

Hot Tip: Basic roadside assistance for Chase cardholders is available at a different phone number (800-847-2869) and is subject to a pre-negotiated, per service fee that covers standard towing of up to 5 miles, tire changing, jump start, lockout, fuel delivery of up to 5 gallons plus fuel costs, and standard winching.

Exclusions

Emergency road service is not available in “off-road” areas. The service is meant for ordinary vehicles only — so campers, vehicles in tow, commercial vehicles, and trucks with over 1-ton capacity are excluded.

Service is limited to 1 event for the same cause within a 7-day period.

Bottom Line: Chase offers premium roadside assistance service and provides a benefit of up to $50 for each service call. Coverage is offered in the U.S. and Canada, with a maximum of 4 service calls per year. On some Chase cards, you must be more than 50 miles from home to use the service. 

How Basic Roadside Assistance Works for Visa Cards

Several of the cards we’ve profiled, including the Freedom Unlimited card, Capital One Venture X card, Chase Sapphire Preferred card, Ink Business Preferred card, and Southwest Performance Business card, come with Visa’s basic roadside assistance.

To use basic roadside assistance, just call 800-847-2869. This service has a set, pre-negotiated price per service call, which covers:

• Standard towing (up to 5 miles included)
• Tire changing (must have good, inflated spare)
• Jump starting
• Lockout service (no key replacement)
• Fuel delivery (up to 5 gallons, plus the cost of fuel)
• Standard winching

At the moment, the current fee for a standard service call is $69.95.

Exclusions

If you require a tow for more than 5 miles, you must pay additional costs beyond 5 miles.

If there’s a secondary unit being towed, it may be accommodated for an extra fee.

Towing rates apply to vehicles with up to 1 ton of gross vehicle weight.

Standard winching also applies only within 100 feet of paved or county-maintained road only.

Hot Tip: If you happen to have a Mastercard that offers Master RoadAssist Roadside Service, this basic roadside assistance benefit can be used by calling 800-MASTERCARD.

Final Thoughts

While premium roadside assistance coverage is not a primary reason alone to select a travel rewards card, if you have a lot of credit cards in your wallet, it’s good to know which ones carry this benefit.

In addition, you may be paying for AAA or other roadside assistance programs, but not need the full array of coverage offered with such a membership. If the premium roadside assistance on your credit card is adequate and matches the scope of your driving activity, you may be paying for excess coverage you don’t need. Chase cards that offer this coverage require you to be away from home, have a cap of 4 uses per year, and limit the coverage to $50 per service call.

It’s important to note that the credit card with the best roadside assistance may not be the best credit card for you overall. There are far more important benefits to consider when selecting a travel rewards card that is going to be the best fit for your situation.

For Capital One products listed on this page, some of the above benefits are provided by Visa® or Mastercard® and may vary by product. See the respective Guide to Benefits for details, as terms and exclusions apply.

Enrollment required through Capital One website or mobile app. Upon enrollment, eligible cardholders will remain at upgraded status level through December 31, 2024.  Please note, enrolling through the normal Hertz Gold Plus Rewards enrollment process (e.g. at Hertz.com) will not automatically detect a cardholder as being eligible for the program and cardholders will not be automatically upgraded to the applicable status tier.  Additional terms apply.