Thank you! it sure is.
My Chase/Amazon card is a winner
I dumped every other account at Chase though.
Costco/Citibank rewards can be redeemed for cash at a store. (done it many times)
I don’t fly much, butt the Choice Hotel card is offering 50,000 points for 1st $1000 spent in 90 days.
(made it in 45) My credit rating took a small hit butt it’s rebounding now.
Spam away man! I appreciate the info :+1:
I think I found a solid pair of cards to cover most of my bases. I travel for work, and stay in a combination of Hilton’s and Marriott’s. But recently I have been just a few nights short of becoming Gold with either of these chains. I travel internationally sometimes weekly so I really need a card that has zero foreign transaction fees, wont get denied if I’m in a pinch (like trying to use a AMEX in San Pedro Sula, Honduras) and something that will rack up points/cash back.
I just got approved for the Chase Sapphire Preferred which I plan to use for:
- 2x points on dinning: I always pay for dinner for my crew and then they Venmo me. It’s easier than trying to split a check 4 ways. So free points for me!
- 2x points for Uber/Lyft: I use them a lot
- 2x points on airfare
- 60,000 bonus points (which is currently higher than the more expensive Reserve card)
- No foreign transaction fees
- I’ll pretty much use this in lieu of my debit card and set up automatic payments
My next card (I think) is going to be the AMEX Platinum just for the benefits; primarily these ones:
- Airport lounges (best card for this, and I will definitely use it)
- $200 a year towards Uber
- $200 airline fee credit annually
- Global Entry/TSA PreCheck Credit
- Gold status with Hilton and Marriott (means free breakfast every morning)
- Status upgrade on Avis, National, Hertz (I rent a car at least once a month)
I only wish the Platinum had better rewards. It seems like I’m paying for a subscription service and the card is sort of a “proof of purchase.”
Platinum has excellent rewards if you travel a lot. 5x points on Airfare is really nice, and amex offers all the time with really good return, like there is almost always 3x points on amazon etc, pair it with the amex gold and get 4x on gas and dining.
You did good, just remember to get the better offers when signing up for a credit card. Sapphire preferred minimum good is 60k and no AF first year. Amex Platinum it is super easy to get targeted to the 100k points with $3k spent. Never settle for less. And Btw Marriott Gold no longer gives free breakfast.
What is your primary airport? If there is not a Centurion lounge in there then I would stay away from Amex priority pass, its the worst of all since August 1st because they took out the option to eat at restaurants lounges.
lotrbfme - I was surprised that the 60k bonus for the Preferred was higher than the 50k for the Reserve. I’m already second guessing myself wondering if I should have just gotten the Reserve regardless of the sign on bonus. I called and asked if I could upgrade it to Reserve, but they said I have to wait a year.
I’m in the Atlanta area and we don’t have a Centurion lounge yet. I heard something about AMEX dropping the food option on the lounges but I wasn’t sure what that applied to. I’ve only gone into “The Club” once so I’m not very familiar with how the lounge access works with the AMEX.
I’m definitely waiting to apply for the next card (maybe AMEX Platinum) until I get a targeted 100k bonus. Its currently at 60k now, so I’ll have to keep an eye out for it.
The reserve is not superior to the Preferred, they are just different products. At launch the Reserve offer was 100k points. If that one ever comes back it is a really good offer. But 50k points for a $450 annual fee is not worth it.
As of lounges, there are no restaurant lounges in ATL, only minute suites and The Club. There are delta sky clubs that you could access with the Platinum card when travelling on delta which actually makes the card worth it for you IMHO.
I figured I’m going to pay $95 a year for the Preferred, if I utilize the $300 a year travel credit on the Reserve (which I definitely will), it would only cost me $150 a year. Extra $55 bucks and I get a couple extra benefits. Sounds like an OK deal if the sign on bonus was better than it currently is (50k).
I travel mainly on Delta, so the Delta Sky Clubs would be nice (never been in one). Although having the Platinum and Reserve would kinda overlap a few things like Global Entry perk, Uber/travel credits, and Priority Pass.
Too many variables!
You dont need the reserve. You can only get a sign up bonus on a sapphire credit card every 4 years so you did the right thing by applying for the better offer. I would personally focus on amex cards on the long run, they offer better rewards overall. Chase UR is only specially good for hyatt and ok for united. Since you are in a Delta hub, the amex plat/gold is a better combo
So for those interested in airline miles which is a far better deal than other cashback cards, the general rule is usually something like this:
1. Chase is the most strict for personal cards, so most people start with them. They only limit applying if you’re under 5 cc applications in the last 24 months. Note that business cards, however, don’t count towards this.
2. After that you have to decide if you want to focus on international flights, or if you want to try to get the southwest companion pass for lots of cheap/free domestic flights.
A good order of applying for cards might look something like this:
If you’re willing to do business cards - you can treat a small side biz as a sole proprietorship:
1. Chase ink preferred business
2. Chase southwest business + a chase southwest personal (to get the companion pass)
3. Chase united business or any other business card like Amex since they don’t count towards 5/24
4. Chase sapphire preferred (or reserve)… can only do this every 4 years, check offer
5. Other chase airline cards like United MileagePlus Personal
6+ All other personal or business cards like Amex personal, Amex business, Citi AA, Citi business, etc
If you’d like a referral for chase ink preferred let me know to get started let me know - that one is a nice 80,000 points
Good point! I really wish the AMEX Gold card you can get when you get the Platinum had the same rewards as a regular Gold card.
What card line up are you using?
I’ve stuck with a BOA VISA since most of my other accounts are there and paying it off is dirt simple.
I’ve started flying every other month or so, so I got a Delta Gold Amex. Flying from Atlanta and almost exclusively on Delta, the free checked bag and priority boarding is a nice perk. My first year is up in November, and I’m looking to see up upgrading to a Delta Platinum or Reserve would get me any real benefits after considering the fee increases. Will they give you the standard bonuses if you’re moving up their food chain?
Amishbill - I’m not sure about the Delta Amex, but all the cards I’ve been looking at only give you the bonus when you sign up for a new account/card. Unless they specifically send you an invite to upgrade with a bonus, which seems to be pretty rare.
I don’t really travel so any kind of airline point schemes don’t help me. I have a checking, savings, and credit card account with a local bank here. Only 4 branches in the entire county. Regardless of where I get debit or credit cards, I like the option to turn off and on my cards on demand. All the cards stay turned off until I use them. I just open the app, turn one on, use it, turn it back off. I even get alerts when my card is tying to be used even when it’s turned off. Of course the purchase would never go through but it’s nice to know if someone is trying to use it so I can quickly order a new card. Never had to, so that is nice not to have to deal with that problem. I’ve heard horror stories of friends going through hell trying to get their money and their identity straightened out.
Since I have checking and savings with the same bank as my credit card and also a car loan. I don’t pay any annual fees or other charges of any sort. Straight 9.5% if I carry a balance but I rarely do. I don’t make it a habit to spend money I don’t have. So if it’s not in the bank or otherwise spoken for, I don’t buy anything.
This all coming from a guy that up until about 9 years ago still kept cash in the safe at home. Now I can’t remember the last time I saw a $100 bill. Well I am married so I highly doubt I would ever see one again anyway. 
I'm researching credit cards... finally!
I'm looking for a low fixed APR and no annual fee with a "Price Rewind" feature.
I don't care about any other benefits, though they might be a nice touch.
The best website I have found so far is this one:
https://data.consumerfinance.gov/Government/Survey-of-Credit-Card-Plans/gme7-gkkr/data
It requires some work to get the site to give you the info you are after, but it has info on a lot of different credit cards.
Some Citi cards offer price protection. Chase use to but recently stopped. One nice Chase benefit is doubling of warranties. I use mine for electronic purchases like TVs and such. TD Bank is a good one to link to PayPal since it has no foreign transaction fees.
My Citi card used to, but also recently stopped.
Because it's a MasterCard, I can supposedly do up to 4 Price Protection claims per 12 months, but I just called them and they will not be open until Monday.
Annual fee = Deal breaker! No way I pay to use their card.
Low APR only applies if you carry a balance.
If you plan to carry a balance, you should look at other borrowing options.
Citibank ended the “Price Rewind” program for all cards on September 22, 2019.
https://www.citipricerewind.com/
Too bad as I saved hundreds and hundreds of dollars buying a bunch of electronics in the last couple years.
I did a Google search for credit cards that offer price protection, and I'm giving up on that feature.
I'll just consider a low fixed APR with no annual fee.
I can find some under 10%.
They have no perks, but I'm okay with that.
EDIT:
I applied for a credit card here:
The CC competition is apparently fierce right know if your credit score is good. I am constantly getting offers to open accounts and receive $150 or $200 statement credit. Hard to pass on free money. These are 0 annual fee reward cards. Then they bombard you with special rewards. Right know, Shop Your Way Mastercard ( previously Sears) is offering 20% back between Oct. 1st-Dec.31st on groceries and gas. Put all your grocery and gas purchases on the card and pay it off every month. Free money. I’m still waiting for the pre recession 0 transaction fee, 0 % interest loans to come back. I took one of them out, deposited the money in a 5% Orange Savings account for 3 years, then paid back the loan at the end of 0% 3 year period. Free money.