The best credit card combos: Maximize rewards and cash back for every dollar you spend

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Most people would love to just use one credit card for all purchases. However, no credit card currently offers all of the perks and rewards needed to make it the one card to rule them all. 

Instead, the best way to maximize the return on your purchases is by curating a credit card portfolio. By using the right combination of cards, you can earn the highest amount of rewards on every type of purchase you make.

And thankfully this doesn't have to be a complicated process. CNBC Select breaks downs some of the best two- and three-card combos that can help you really maximize the return on every dollar you spend.

• Best Chase credit card combo
• Best Citi credit card combo
• Best American Express credit card combo
• Best Capital One credit card combo
• Best cash-back credit card combo

• Core combo: Chase Freedom Flex℠ and the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
• Earning rates: 5X points in a rotating category and on travel purchased through Chase Ultimate Rewards®, 3X points on dining at restaurants (including takeout and eligible delivery services) and drug stores; 2X points on all other travel purchases
• Combined annual fee: $95
• No-annual-fee card to boost your earnings: Chase Freedom Unlimited®

The no-annual-fee Chase Freedom Flex℠ is one of the best cash-back credit cards on the market. You'll earn 5% cash back on up to $1,500 in purchases in a quarterly rotating bonus category (such as gas stations and grocery stores) and on travel purchased through Chase Ultimate Rewards® (then 1%). Plus, you'll earn 3% cash back on dining at restaurants (including takeout and eligible delivery services) and at drugstores.

Those are great earning rates, but your rewards are only worth one cent per point if you only have the Chase Freedom Flex. Thankfully, you can boost the value of these points by turning your cash back into transferrable Ultimate Rewards® points worth much more than 1 cent per point. All you need to do is pair the Chase Freedom Flex with a Chase card that earns transferrable Ultimate Rewards points. For many, the Chase Sapphire Preferred is the perfect match.

The $95-annual-fee Chase Sapphire Preferred earns 5X points on travel purchased through Chase Ultimate Rewards®, 3X points on dining and 2X points on all other travel purchases. Points linked to the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card can be transferred to 14 airline and hotel partners at a 1:1 ratio. Or, you can redeem points through the Chase Travel Portal for 1.25 cents apiece.

Plus, eligible new cardholders can earn 60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. That bonus is worth $750 when redeemed through the Chase Travel Portal.

To boost your return further, add the Chase Freedom Unlimited. The Freedom Unlimited is structured similarly to the Freedom Flex. However, instead of a 5% rotating category, the Freedom Unlimited offers a base earning rate of 1.5% cash back on all non-bonus purchases, plus an additional 1.5% on all purchases in the first year, on up to $20,000 spent.

• Core combo: Citi® Double Cash Card and Citi Premier® Card
• Earning rates: 3X points on restaurants, gas stations, supermarkets, air travel and hotels; 2X points on all other purchases
• Combined annual fee: $95
• No annual fee card to boost your earnings: Citi Custom Cash® Card

If you're looking for a simple no-annual-fee cashback card, it's hard to beat the Citi Double Cash. This card earns 2% cash back on all purchases — 1% when you make a purchase plus 1% when you pay your bill. Boost your Citi Double Cash cash-back earnings by pairing it with a Citi card that earns ThankYou points. And what better card to pair it with than one of the best travel cards charging under a $100 annual fee: the Citi Premier Card.

The Citi Premier Card earns 3X ThankYou points per dollar spent at restaurants, gas stations, supermarkets, air travel and hotels — and 1X point per dollar spent everywhere else. Plus, once per calendar year, you can save $100 off a hotel stay of $500+. That more than wipes out the card's $95 annual fee.

Citi ThankYou points can be transferred to any one of 16 airline and hotel partners. Citi's eclectic mix of airline partners takes a bit of getting used to. But, you'll be rewarded for doing so with 7,500-mile award flights to Hawaii, 45,000-mile business class awards to Europe (when using Turkish Airlines miles for United) and 45,000-mile business class award flights to Japan (when using Virgin Atlantic points for ANA).

You can further boost your earnings by adding the no-annual-fee Citi Custom Cash to your Citi card lineup. This card is practically a "choose your bonus category" card. You'll automatically earn 5% cash back in the category in which you spend the most each month, and the cashback is earned in the form of ThankYou points, so you'd also be able to transfer those rewards to airlines if you hold a Citi Premier card.

• Core combo: American Express® Gold Card and Amex EveryDay® Preferred Credit Card
• Earning rates: 4X points on dining at restaurants and at U.S. supermarkets; 3X points on eligible flights; 2X points on gas; with the ability to earn 4.5X points at supermarkets, 3X points on gas and 1.5X points on all other purchases
• Combined annual fee: $345 respectively (see rates and fees) and (see rates and fees)
• No annual fee card to boost your earnings: The Blue Business® Plus Credit Card from American Express (see rates and fees)

The American Express Gold Card is the ultimate dining and travel card. Cardholders earn 4X points on dining at restaurants and at U.S. supermarkets (up to $25,000 in purchases each year) and you'll earn 3X points on flights booked directly with airlines or through Amex Travel. Plus, you can enroll to get valuable perks like $10 per month in dining credits and $10 per month in Uber Cash.

That's about as close as some people can get to a perfect credit card. But, there's also a way to complement this card. The Amex EveryDay Preferred has a base earning rate of 3X points on U.S supermarkets (up to $6,000 per year in purchases) and 2X points at U.S. gas stations. You can boost that base earning rate by 50% by making 30 purchases in a billing period. By doing so, you can earn 4.5X points on groceries, 3X points on gas and 1.5X points on all other purchases.

If you have a small business, you can complement this duo with the Blue Business Plus Credit Card. This no-annual-fee business card earns 2X points on up to $50,000 in everyday business purchases each year, 1X points thereafter. By strategically using this Amex trio, you'll earn a minimum of 2X points on all purchases — at least until you reach the $50,000 cap on the Blue Business Plus Card.

• Core combo: Capital One Savor Cash Rewards Credit Card and Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card (see rates and fees)
• Earning rates: 4% cash back on dining, entertainment, streaming services; 3% cash back at grocery stores; and 2X miles on all other purchases
• Combined annual fee: $190

Capital One offers two primary types of cards: miles-earning cards and cash-back cards. And the perfect Capital One card combo pairs the best credit card from each category.

Capital One's best cash-back card is the Capital One Savor Cash Rewards Credit Card — which earns 10% cash back on purchases made through Uber & Uber Eats, 4% cash back on dining, entertainment, and popular streaming services, 3% at grocery stores and 1% on all other purchases. 

For simplicity in mileage earnings, it's hard to beat the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card's unlimited 2X mileage earnings on every purchase. Plus, the Capital One Venture Card has a healthy welcome bonus: New cardholders can earn 75,000 bonus miles once they spend $4,000 on purchases within the first 3 months from account opening.

By combining the two, you'll get solid cash back earnings in many popular spending categories and 2x miles on all other purchases. Redeem the Capital One Venture miles for travel at 1 cent each or transfer them to any of Capital One's 15+ travel loyalty programs. And the cash back earned from the Savor can actually be converted into miles if you have a Venture card, and therefore transferred to travel partners.

• Core combo: Blue Cash Preferred Card from American Express, Chase Freedom Flex and the Citi Double Cash
• Earning rates: 6% cash back at supermarkets and streaming services; 5% back on eligible travel and in rotating categories; 3% back on dining at restaurants (including takeout and eligible delivery services), drugstores, transit, and gas stations; and 2% cashback on all other purchases
• Combined annual fee: $0 intro annual fee for the first year, then $95. (see rates and fees)
• No annual fee card to boost your earnings: Citi Custom Cash Card

Travel credit cards can help travelers slash their travel costs. But, for many, cash is king. If you're looking for the best cash-back return, you'll want to pair credit cards from multiple banks. The best cash-back trio combines a card from American Express, Chase and Citi.

The Blue Cash Preferred Card from American Express earns 6% cash back on up to $6,000 per year in purchases at U.S. supermarkets (then 1%) and 6% cash back on select streaming subscriptions. Plus you'll earn 3% cash back on eligible transit purchases and at U.S. gas stations. Eligible new cardholders can earn a $250 statement credit after they spend $3,000 in purchases on their new card within the first six months.

Add the Chase Freedom Flex card to boost your cashback earnings on travel, dining and drugstore purchases. The Freedom Flex card earns 5% cash back on up to $1,500 in purchases each quarter in a rotating category, 5% back on travel purchases through Chase Ultimate Rewards and 3% back on dining at restaurants (including takeout and eligible delivery services) and drugstore purchases.

Then, the Citi Double Cash is your go-to for all other purchases. You'll earn a total of 2% cash back -- 1% when you make a purchase and 1% when you pay your bill.

If you don't mind adding a fourth card to the mix, consider getting the Citi Custom Cash Card to earn 5% cash back in yet another category. The Citi Custom Cash automatically earns 5% cash back in the category which you spent the most in that billing cycle. By strategically planning your purchases, you can get 5% back in one of the following categories each month: restaurants, gas stations, grocery stores, select travel, select transit, select streaming services, drugstores, home improvement stores, fitness clubs or live entertainment.

Everyone would love the simplicity of just one credit card. However, a little complexity can really pay off. You can really boost your earnings by strategically combining credit cards. Most credit card issuers offer ways to earn at least 5X points or at least 5% cash back in select categories. By combining these, you can quickly rack up points and cashback earnings.

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For rates and fees for the Blue Cash Preferred Card, click here.

For rates and fees for the Amex Gold Card, click here

For rates and fees for the Amex EveryDay Preferred Credit Card, click here

For rates and fees for The Blue Business Plus, click here

Information about the Amex EveryDay® Preferred Credit Card has been collected independently by CNBC Select and has not been reviewed or provided by the issuer of the card prior to publication.