Another credit card thread

[jdhu]

Fidelity has a rewards card you can tie to a brokerage account.

Basically a percentage of whatever you spend gets automatically tossed into your 401k/IRA or whatever you decide to stuff it into.

I have one and have been happy with it.

+1. I switched from BoA card to Fidelity. The interest rate is much higher, 2% reward across the board, and payment is super easy.

Clarify that interest rate refers to interest paid to you for having an account, not the card's interest rate (which I never pay).

 

[250mL]

Our DiscoverCard still comes out for their rolling quarterly rewards programs, but has largely been shelved in favor of the Costco Visa.

https://citicards.citi.com/usc/LPAC...1&ProspectID=F12DA5A84C0B443A816436566BC58CBD
4% on fuel purchases
3% on restaurants and travel
2% on Costco purchases
1% on everything else

Some other highlights to address previous comments:
-No annual fee if you're a Costco member
-No foreign transaction fees
-Tap-and-pay enabled

With that said, I like the idea of the Fidelity card. For those with less control over spending, this would force some level of savings.

 

[TheRobSJ]

not the card's interest rate (which I never pay).

Of course. If you’re carrying balances and paying interest on CCs every month, this is not the thread for you. I guess if you got to, you got to. But paying interest negates any savings one would hope to get from rewards programs.

 

[rodr]

I have a Chase Sapphire Preferred.

Not willing to spend the 450 annually on a Reserve.

OK mine is the original Chase Sapphire, not Preferred nor Reserve. It has no annual fee but does have rewards, travel-related insurance, purchase protection etc. Looks like it's not offered any more.

 

[R3DS!X]

I looked into it for a second mostly for the prestige of just having one (and it’s a thick AF metal card), but it’s benefit package is really geared toward world travelers with the whole 5x points on air travel thing. I could give a fuck about Centurion Lounge access.

I got one for travel when i was committed to traveling more. I gotta say, that lounge is nice AF. I have the habit of always being way too early to the airport always. So now that I have lounge access I can at least get some food and get loaded while i wait to stumble towards my flight.

And the card is a behemoth even compared to my other metal cards. It has the density of a dying star.

I keep thinking about canceling because I don't travel as much now but the thought of returning to those lounges is really appealing still and I tell myself I'll take a trip soon.

 

[mikev]

Same here. Got mine using MikeV's link, I use it for airlines, hotels, and restaurants, and it's added up quickly since I don't have a company card now.

oh you lucky bastard

All of my travel is booked for me I at least get Marriott nights and I get all the airline miles so I have a decent number of Southwest and United points but if I could book my own and get reimbursed I'd be loving life.

 

[Cycle61]

My company has seventeen employees. We pretty much run our own show.

 

[Archimedes]

Citi American Airlines card and a regular Amex. Pay them off monthly, both give miles but the Amex are usable anywhere, not just American.

Don't have gold/platinum/black cards though I could probably qualify. Don't see any real benefit to them. Are there any or is it just dick swinging?

 

[Butch]

somewhere, sometime I read about a third of folks carry a balance of over $500 on their CC, 1/3 under 500. and a third pay it off completely monthly.

Personal financial management sorta starts at this credit card place.

 

[wazzuFreddo]

I use a Hilton Amex since most of my work travel spend it with hotels. I use the points for free hotel rooms while on trips with the family.

 

[R3DS!X]

Citi American Airlines card and a regular Amex. Pay them off monthly, both give miles but the Amex are usable anywhere, not just American.

Don't have gold/platinum/black cards though I could probably qualify. Don't see any real benefit to them. Are there any or is it just dick swinging?

If you fall into a category that makes full use of their benefits then yes there is. if you don't and you keep paying for them then its dick swinging/hoping you'll go back to traveling and having fun again. Like the people who hold onto their time share or the suit that doesn't fit anymore but maybe you'll lose weight.

 

[TheRobSJ]

Don't have gold/platinum/black cards though I could probably qualify. Don't see any real benefit to them. Are there any or is it just dick swinging?

Depends on how you want to play the game. The best way to play is if you’re a frequent traveler. The higher tiered cards (typically involving an annual fee of around $100 or more) offer more reward points/miles/cash back per transaction. Plus they may have stuff like reimbursement/credit for airline fees (checked bag, etc), TSA Pre/Global Entry, or Clear. Some have other credits towards dining or hotels. Some give you access to first class lounges at airports (like AA Admirals Club or Amex Centurion Lounge). Some of the really high end ones have concierge services...Amex has some legendary abilities to procure goods and services for their high end clients.

Buuuut some of it is dick swinging. A platinum Amex is $550 a year. If you’re a frequent world traveler, it’s not hard to negate that fee with the credits included (like Global Entry credit and Saks 5th Ave credit) and then using the 5x points you earn on air travel to book more air travel for free. If you were going to be buying all that stuff anyways, it’s worth it to have a card like that to earn the rewards. But if you don’t buy enough with the card or utilize the rewards, then it is just dick swinging. Out for a business lunch and you all split the check? Flop that big boy card on top of everyone elses at the table (as it lands with the metallic clank noise) and watch everyone react.

I’ll be shaking hands in a couple hours with a guy who has a Amex Centurion (the “black” card). $10k initiation plus $5k annual fee. And there’s no points multiplier on purchases. Really it’s biggest perk is the elite level concierge. And the fact that if you whip it out, they all know you’ve got the biggest one in the room.

 

[Silence]

I really don't think the AMEX Platinum or CSR cards command much respect as the credit score requirement is so lax these days that every techie child has one or the other (sometimes both). The Centurion is a different story.

 

[ejv]

I have 2 ancient cards. Both no fees. The Amex has a very low limit because I have maybe put $200 on it total since the Global Financial Crisis. Since I wasn't using it at the time and it was paid off, they cut my limit from around $18K to $1K. It's purely an emergency card. I try to use it once or twice a year just to make sure it's still working. The other is a USAA card. Lowest APR I've ever seen. Some points but since I pay it off every month I suppose I could find a better card. I didn't always used to pay it off. And when I didn't and I still had a student loan my credit score was about 60 points higher. So I may have to occasionally leave a balance just to show I can pay on revolving debt. Most of my spending is just done by debit card.

 

[madsen203]

The Costco Visa has some of the best rewards and cash back on fuel, restaurants, and travel. 4 and 3% respectively.

Concierge services are for the uber rich and not necessary for a common folk that frequent BARF.

The only downside to the costco card is you have to have a costco membership (which most folk do) and you only get your cash back reward once per year. I bet that it'll do better dollar for dollar than a airline card as you can shop around online vs. relying on their website and elevated prices/point system.

 

[Archimedes]

If you fall into a category that makes full use of their benefits then yes there is. if you don't and you keep paying for them then its dick swinging/hoping you'll go back to traveling and having fun again. Like the people who hold onto their time share or the suit that doesn't fit anymore but maybe you'll lose weight.

That's what I figured. I spend some, but I pay off monthly and I don't travel much. I seem to recall that I got an offer a few years back and decided it wasn't worth the annual fee for me.

 

[mrzuzzo]

I have had the Platinum Amex through work since I was 20 years old.

The Centurion lounges are few and far in between... and half the time it's not even in the right terminal for me. Meh.

BTW, mine is plastic and not metal.

Personally, the best deal is the Discover card with 2X multiplier in first year:
10% cashback on categories (up to $300/quarter I believe)
2% cashback on everything else (unlimited)

 

[TheRobSJ]

I didn't always used to pay it off. And when I didn't and I still had a student loan my credit score was about 60 points higher. So I may have to occasionally leave a balance just to show I can pay on revolving debt. Most of my spending is just done by debit card.

I assume most people know this, but it is in fact good for your credit score to utilize your credit. A little bit. Having a debt to credit ratio of 90% is of course not good. But carrying a little bit, maybe 10% here and there is a good way to to it. There are some cards with super low or zero APR for introductory periods (like the first year or 18 months). So having a card like that would be a good place to park a balance to utilize credit. The Amex Everyday Card has no annual fee, zero balance transfer fee, and no APR for the first 15 months. That’s a good one to start playing the game.

But just using a debit card to buy everything is not playing the game at all. What do you get back for that...checking account monthly fee waived?

 

[Removed 3]

Would anyone be so confident to use credit on a 0% interest rate 0% fee transfer offer, buy equities and hold for the duration of the no interest and then pay the balance off when the regular interest rate kicks back in?

 

[madsen203]

I have had the Platinum Amex through work since I was 20 years old.

The Centurion lounges are few and far in between... and half the time it's not even in the right terminal for me. Meh.

BTW, mine is plastic and not metal.

Personally, the best deal is the Discover card with 2X multiplier in first year:
10% cashback on categories (up to $300/quarter I believe)
2% cashback on everything else (unlimited)

Discover often uses a tier system where you only get the full 2% after spending x amount. Read the fine print. Stopped using them after finding that out. Basically...the first $3-5k are at .25-.5% and only after the high threshold do you get the full 1-2%.