Best reward card out there?

[LisaRN97]

My Dh and I want to begin using a credit card for everyday purchases so we can earn rewards, and then pay it off each month to maintain a zero balance. If you are currently using a card, what rewards does it offer and why did you choose it? Do you prefer cash back or reward points? We do have a disney visa which we use to book vacations and cruises but the 1% takes a while to add up.

Thanks!

 

[Marionnette]

My Dh and I want to begin using a credit card for everyday purchases so we can earn rewards, and then pay it off each month to maintain a zero balance. If you are currently using a card, what rewards does it offer and why did you choose it? Do you prefer cash back or reward points? We do have a disney visa which we use to book vacations and cruises but the 1% takes a while to add up.

Thanks!

It's really not a case of which rewards CC is the best, but which one is the best for you.

You'll get more perks and better rewards with a card that has an annual fee. That's just the way it works. Cash back is usually a slower earner than a card that offers merchandise or gift cards in exchange for your points. Cards that are attached to a specific brand will have better rewards for that brand but mediocre rewards for other redemptions.

Right now, I'm getting a lot of mileage out of my Citibank Mastercard. It is part of the Thank You Rewards program and I'm getting 4X bonus points for using the card for groceries, gas and drugstore purchases. That will end in about a month and I will move on to using another CC for those categories.

For all of our regularly occurring expenses, I use our Chase Sapphire card. I pay an annual fee for this card, but I love the extra perks like no foreign transaction fees and travel insurance. The rewards are pretty flexible and I've amassed quite a few over time.

We also have a Diner's Club card for our business. We put all of our overhead on the card and will be using the points to book round-trip tickets in first class for our Mediterranean cruise in the spring. The Diner's Club card has some great benefits for small businesses as well, so the card fits our needs perfectly.

 

[DanInMN]

We use the US Bank Flexperks card. 1 point per dollar spent, 20,000 points gets you free airline ticket up to $400 on any airline any time. That is 2%.

 

[DisneyEater]

Depends if you are looking to cover flights, park tickets, hotels, or you just want cash. How do you feel about annual fees? Where do you spend most of your money (i.e. groceries, dining out, gas)?

 

[pryncess527]

My most often used card is the AmEx Preferred Cash -- it gives me 6% back on groceries and 3% back on gas, year round. If you do a lot of your grocery shopping at Wal-Mart, Target, or Costco though, it may not be ideal as those stores are generally not considered grocery stores by AmEx

We also rotate in Chase Freedom, Discover, and US Bank. Between the three, we almost always get 5% back on restaurants, 5% back on gas half the year, and US Bank gives me 5% back on our phone bill.

I also really like my UPromise Mastercard. If we were trying to cut back cards, it'd make the short list. It gives me up to 10% back on online shopping through their website, and also has some decent dining perks.

The only one we pay an annual fee for is the AmEx, but the rewards more than make up the cost.

I think we'd get a better rate of return doing travel cards instead of cash back, but until we have some debt paid off, we aren't doing much travel. When that changes, we'll probably close some of these cards and get different ones.

 

[havaneselover]

My most often used card is the AmEx Preferred Cash -- it gives me 6% back on groceries and 3% back on gas, year round. If you do a lot of your grocery shopping at Wal-Mart, Target, or Costco though, it may not be ideal as those stores are generally not considered grocery stores by AmEx We also rotate in Chase Freedom, Discover, and US Bank. Between the three, we almost always get 5% back on restaurants, 5% back on gas half the year, and US Bank gives me 5% back on our phone bill. I also really like my UPromise Mastercard. If we were trying to cut back cards, it'd make the short list. It gives me up to 10% back on online shopping through their website, and also has some decent dining perks. The only one we pay an annual fee for is the AmEx, but the rewards more than make up the cost. I think we'd get a better rate of return doing travel cards instead of cash back, but until we have some debt paid off, we aren't doing much travel. When that changes, we'll probably close some of these cards and get different ones.

I love my Amex preferred too. Between the offers and the 6% back on groceries, it works well for me. I don't spend $500/month on groceries but max it out buying gift cards.

Capital one is my other main card (1.5%).

 

[Eighty8Keys]

Another vote for the Amex Blue Cash Preferred. I've only had it for a couple of months, but already the cash rewards are piling up. The 6% cash back on groceries, including gift cards is huge compared to the 1% I was earning with my other cards. I do a fair amount of shopping online so I've been buying Amazon, Target and Bed Bath and Beyond gift cards when I do my grocery shopping. In addition I earn either 2X or 4X fuel rewards, depending on the promotion that's running at the time.

I still have a Disney Visa, but the rewards are minimal compared to other cards and I rarely use it. My parents love their Disney Visa and when my Dad was telling us that he had $250 in reward dollars to use for their next trip, my son pointed out to him that he had to have made $25,000 in purchases to earn that $250. The look on my Dad's face was priceless when he realized that.

 

[platamama]

You've gotten some good suggestions for cards.

You need to decide what you want to "save" up for - is it simply cash back each year, or do you want to invest time and energy into figuring out the best return for your spending? Also look at what the sign up bonuses are - sometimes they are very generous.

Easiest is probably the Capital One Q----silver 1.5% cash back with no annual fee, though the sign up bonus is pretty small. At least the minimum spend to get it is small too. There is a Fidelity AMEX that offers 2% cash back with no annual fee -- you just need to have a Fidelity account for the cash to go into. No sign up bonus though. Both are very simple.

For me, grocery spending goes 100% on the AMEX Blue Cash Preferred to get 6% cash back. I especially make use of that when Kroger is running 4x Fuel Points on gift cards. I make up the $75 annual fee easily from the cash back and the AMEX Offers that sometimes show up, e.g. Small Business Saturday in November.

I have been accumulating points (mostly from sign up bonuses!) on various cards over the past couple of years in order to put together a trip to Europe for my family. Yesterday I snagged a seat on Aer Lingus that cost me $40 out of pocket for what would have cost $2500 at least.

But I have to keep track of so many details to maximize my returns, and I usually carry 6-10 different cards on me at a time, so woe is me if I lose my wallet!! My DH doesn't want to deal with what I deal with, so he just carries 2 cards - whichever ones I deem is best for him to carry at the time.

 

[havaneselover]

You've gotten some good suggestions for cards. You need to decide what you want to "save" up for - is it simply cash back each year, or do you want to invest time and energy into figuring out the best return for your spending? Also look at what the sign up bonuses are - sometimes they are very generous. Easiest is probably the Capital One Q----silver 1.5% cash back with no annual fee, though the sign up bonus is pretty small. At least the minimum spend to get it is small too. There is a Fidelity AMEX that offers 2% cash back with no annual fee -- you just need to have a Fidelity account for the cash to go into. No sign up bonus though. Both are very simple. For me, grocery spending goes 100% on the AMEX Blue Cash Preferred to get 6% cash back. I especially make use of that when Kroger is running 4x Fuel Points on gift cards. I make up the $75 annual fee easily from the cash back and the AMEX Offers that sometimes show up, e.g. Small Business Saturday in November. I have been accumulating points (mostly from sign up bonuses!) on various cards over the past couple of years in order to put together a trip to Europe for my family. Yesterday I snagged a seat on Aer Lingus that cost me $40 out of pocket for what would have cost $2500 at least. But I have to keep track of so many details to maximize my returns, and I usually carry 6-10 different cards on me at a time, so woe is me if I lose my wallet!! My DH doesn't want to deal with what I deal with, so he just carries 2 cards - whichever ones I deem is best for him to carry at the time.

I'm up to $250 in savings from Amex offers since November 2013. Definitely makes the $75 annual
Few less painful

 

[ellochka]

I use the no fee cards only. I have Capital One Venture that get's you 1.25 points per dollar spent (1.25% if you redeem credit cards). It seems that you have to watch the offerings and update your cards one in a while, as they tend to strip the benefits away. I have Blue Cash from AmEx, and it is not earning much nowadays.
Fidelity AmEx is an excellent option. If you have a brokerage account with them, you should consider it.

 

[SUSIEQ]

Take a look at the Citicard Double Cash Back card (2%).

 

[msmama]

Like others have said, it depends what YOU want out of a CC. This website could help: http://www.nerdwallet.com/rewards-credit-cards

Personally I don't like the cashback cards. I don't know why, but I don't feel as much of a "reward" for it.

At the moment I am down to my Disney and Southwest cards. I know there are cards that would get me more perks, but I like that all my rewards go to vacation. It kind of forces me to always have my next vacation in mind - which I like.

 

[MomToOne]

I currently favor my Barclay Arrival+ card. I got it for a European trip because it is the only US card with Chip and Pin (there are lots of chip and signatures though). But I like it for use now that I'm back because it is giving me basically 2% back, although you get that level of reward only if you apply your points to a travel expense. If you try to get cash back or gift cards, you only get 1% back out of it. But I spend plenty on travel each year, so that's not a problem for me - I'll have no problem finding things to apply credits to to get the 2%.

There is an annual fee (79? 89?), but I got the first year free and 40,000 points (equal to $400) for a sign-up bonus. I'll evaluate at the end of the year whether or not to keep it and pay the annual fee.

I also have an AmEx card (Blue Sky - no annual fee) for the offers and free ShopRunner, and a Chase Freedom card (also no annual fee) for the 5% back categories each quarter, and several others for other reasons. But the Arrival+ card is my go-to for general spending.

 

[LisaRN97]

Thank you all so much; this gives us some options to look into. I'd like to get travel rewards as we usually take two trips a year which requiring flying the four of us. But the 6% cash back on groceries seems decent too!

Thanks again!!!

 

[aclov]

I have a few cards but the no fee card I prefer is Discover and Costco Amex. On the Costco Amex you get a rebate check from both Costco and Amex. But as others have pointed out it depends what your goal is and airline/hotel you prefer. Someone I know is aiming for a Hawaii trip so has a Amex Starwood card but not a SW card since they don't fly there.

 

[ColoradoEquestrian]

CapitalOne Venture -- the no fee card. Not only are the rewards awesome, the customer service is fantastic. My card details were stolen a few months back, and they had it shut down and charges reversed within hours. My husband uses their *********** card and receives cash back all the time. We pay for everything with our cards and pay off the balances about every two weeks. It's the way to go!

 

[sunshinehighway]

I've been using my Amex Everyday a lot lately. Its the only no annual fee Amex that gives you membership rewards (at least I think it is). It's 2% on grocery store purchases, 1% on everything else and 20% bonus on the first 20 purchases per month (must have 20 purchases to get it). There's an annual fee version too. It has higher percentages but I'm happy with the no fee one.

Right now I'm looking to transfer the points to airline miles to combine with my current airline miles for that company. I'm hoping for a transfer bonus when it's time (they offer transfer bonuses occasionally). Between the Amex points and the airline credit card points (got a good sign up bonus on that one), I should have enough points for two roundtrip business class tickets to Ireland or 4 roundtrip coach ticket.

 

[hsmamato2]

straightforward travel rewards, that's what I want (because in real life numbers, I can;t afford it)
Best cards that give me what I want the fastest?
Southwest cc- bonuses and companion pass (google and research) best deals available for domestic airfare
Chase sapphire preferred- annual fee but accrues lots of user friendly points and can be transferred and used with so many other travel companies....(incl. Southwest,and many others)
Chase Freedom,combined with the above sapphire for the 5x rewards categories (then combining the points)
Starwood amex- b/c I love staying at Disney for next to nothing!
Barclays is a good card,lots of easy rewards for travel expenses,and you always get a 10% bonus just for using your own rewards which = more travel!
Whatever card you get, make use of the shopping portals!!!!! each card usually has their own,and can net you anywhere from double the usual reward point to up to 20 extra points per dollar spent! (makes online shopping even smarter)
look for and take advantage of bonuses offered.
lots of ways to use cards, just decide what you want the most and work toward it. And never carry a balance to make it worth your while!
The Disney visa is only good for a small discount while shopping at the park, or a free picture.

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

For me, the SWA card is great. Usually one the biggest costs in a vacation is flights so to have that eliminated, even partially, makes it worthwhile. I like that with SWA, unlike USAirways, I can book with points for a one way if I don't have enough points for a RT. Sometimes, flights in one direction are so much cheaper than the other so sometimes I can book all 4 of us one way, then pay to return. In fact, it's been so long since I paid for RT flights for all for us. I can't even remember when. Years.
When I first got the card the AF was only $59 so I'm locked in there. They give a bonus of several thousand points at each anniversary (varies with which card you get.)
I love being able to supplement more points by shopping through the SW online mall, as a pp mentioned. We rarely eat out but most airlines have a way of earning points/miles by dining out. Just register any cc in advance then use that card to pay for the meal.

I feel like a cash back card isn't really a "reward" more like a discount. Still $ saved but it would just get mixed back in with $ for bills.


We also have a Venture card but never use it. I found that you must have a LOT of miles to be able to use the Purchase Eraser. We had put thousands on it and still only had enough to erase a $12 cab fare because each of the individual charges besides that one were much larger and we didn't have enough to cover any of them. You can't apply those miles toward the cost of something bigger, only what you have enough miles to cover. That's kind of a pain to me. It would take forever just to cover a $200 deposit for Disney. I can get a one way seat to MCO on SWA in 2 months.

 

[mymeme]

Southwest for us. Free RT flights to Disney every year!!