Best cash back credit card with no annual fee?

[kgtest]

For gas (5.25%), grocery/Costco/Walmart (3.5%), I use Bank of America Cash Rewards
For Amazon purchase, I use Amazon Store Card (5%)
For restaurant, travel, I use Chase Sapphire Reserve (3 X UR points)
For everything else, I use Bank of America Travel Rewards (2.625%)

There is also Chase Freedom. For 5% cash back quarterly category, I use Lyft this quarter and paid internet last quarter.

I prepaid phone and internet to cash in on that.

 

[Mo Money]

Citi Double Cash Card, as mentioned above. Love it.

 

[MJ]

For gas (5.25%), grocery/Costco/Walmart (3.5%), I use Bank of America Cash Rewards

I checked Bank of America Cash Rewards but what they show is this description
"1% cash back on purchases everywhere, every time, 2% at grocery stores and wholesale clubs and 3% on gas for the first $2,500 in combined grocery/ wholesale club/ gas purchases each quarter."
Can you elaborate?

 

[audreyh1]

I checked Bank of America Cash Rewards but what they show is this description
"1% cash back on purchases everywhere, every time, 2% at grocery stores and wholesale clubs and 3% on gas for the first $2,500 in combined grocery/ wholesale club/ gas purchases each quarter."
Can you elaborate?

If you have $100K invested with BofA/Merrill Lynch, you get up to 75% bonuses when you redeem your credit card rewards. So 2% groceries would become 3.5%.

I have a BofA checking account, and I get a 10% bonus for that. So for me groceries is 2.2%.

 

[googily]

I just added the Amazon Prime card to my lineup. Given how much I buy from them, I probably should have done it sooner. But with a Whole Foods about to open in sight of my stoop, I figured it was time.

I imagine my lineup will be:
Amazon Prime for 5% cash back at Amazon and Whole Foods
Citi Thank You Premium for all travel, food, and commuting. (3x points on travel/gas, 2x on food/entertainment, plus points go 25% farther when used for airfare)
AmEx Blue for non-Whole Foods groceries (3% back)
Citi Double Cash for everything else

BTW, the process on getting the Prime card was a major pain, but not because of Amazon or Chase--freaking Equifax was having all sorts of problems with their web site, and I couldn't get the temporary lift of my credit freeze working. (Plus I think the first Chase person refused to believe me when I said Equifax does not provide a PIN to outfits wanting to see your unfrozen report.) Waited a week or so and it all finally worked.

 

[JPatrick]

Thanks all! Going to move forward with the Fidelity card.

Good idea..I think you will find their website to be very user friendly also.

 

[MJ]

+1. We have an executive membership so we get 2% back, plus the 2% on the Fido card. So 4% off Costco’s usual low price is a deal.

Just for the records,you can use any non-costco visa card at the warehouse or non-costco visa/mastercard online and you will still get the 2% with exec membership. The one thing I don't like about the Costco CC is that you have to wait until the end of the year to get your cash reward. I prefer instant gratification so I use my 1.5 % capital one visa cashback at the warehouse and my non-costco citibank 2% cashback online. If buy a computer, I will the costco cc to get the additional 1 year warranty extension, on top of the 1 year extension costco gives. That adds up to 3 years warranty plus 2 more year extension from citibank.

 

[audreyh1]

I enjoy using the Costco card to buy gift cards for myself at Costco.com. You get the 2% Executive rebate and the 2% cash rewards. That’s pretty much how I pay for my Netflix streaming and other Apple TV/iTunes goodies. I try to catch the 16.5% off sale on the iTunes gift cards, electronic delivery too.

 

[MJ]

There was some discussion about car rentals. The most important issue for me is the rental benefits the CC provides. I have the citibank mastercard and capital one visa and I have found that capital one protects me without any deductable unlike citibank. I don't know the citibank costco visa card is as good or better.

 

[audreyh1]

Some credit cards offer primary insurance for rental cars. Several of the higher level Chase cards do - like the Sapphire and United Mileage Explorer and Club cards. There aren’t that many credit cards out there offering this feature and they tend to have annual fees.

https://www.theflightdeal.com/2017/03/06/credit-cards-that-offer-primary-car-rental-insurance/

https://thepointsguy.com/guide/cards-primary-car-rental-coverage/

I use my United Explorer Club card when I rent cars for this reason.

 

[VanWinkle]

2% cash back on everything with Paypal Mastercard through Synchrony bank.

 

[Katsmeow]

Interesting.... looked it up and it maxes at $6K in purchases and now cost $95.... still is worth $175 net if that is all you purchase...

I have the Amex Blue Cash card. Yes, it costs $95. But I try to use Amex for everything I buy. I have collected almost $900 in rewards so far this year. I do usually max out the grocery category but you get rewards at a less rate on other things.

We did just recently get the Amazon Prime Visa. I had the Amazon store card before to get 5% on Amazon purchases online. But, now that we have moved I am less than 5 minutes from a Whole Foods so getting the 5% there was important. Yes, I can use the Amex there but I max out on grocery every year so this will work out better.

 

[Reach]

Last year, I signed up for the newly introduced CapitalOne Savor Master Card.

No Annual or Foreign transaction fees.
$150 one time cash bonus after $500 spent in first 3 months

3% cash back on Dining
2% cash back on Groceries
1% cash back on all other purchases

 

[HMMY]

For no fee, I use the Citi Double Cash (2% back). For travel and dining, I use the Chase Sapphire Reserve ($450 fee less $300 travel credit with 3x points on travel and dining and 1.5x points for travel booked through Ultimate Rewards). For groceries, I use the American Express Blue Cash Preferred ($95). As GalaxyBoy pointed out, if you spend at least $6k on groceries, you earn back the $95 fee on the Amex Blue.

 

[COcheesehead]

Just for the records,you can use any non-costco visa card at the warehouse or non-costco visa/mastercard online and you will still get the 2% with exec membership. The one thing I don't like about the Costco CC is that you have to wait until the end of the year to get your cash reward. I prefer instant gratification so I use my 1.5 % capital one visa cashback at the warehouse and my non-costco citibank 2% cashback online. If buy a computer, I will the costco cc to get the additional 1 year warranty extension, on top of the 1 year extension costco gives. That adds up to 3 years warranty plus 2 more year extension from citibank.

I get the 2% back on my Fido card within a day or two of that month's closing.

 

[calmloki]

I get the 2% back on my Fido card within a day or two of that month's closing.

To add: auto redemption happen only when you have 5000 points built up, otherwise the points roll into the next month. Our two Fidelity cards only rack up $750-$1750 each per month, so our auto redemptions happen now and again.

 

[COcheesehead]

To add: auto redemption happen only when you have 5000 points built up, otherwise the points roll into the next month. Our two Fidelity cards only rack up $750-$1750 each per month, so our auto redemptions happen now and again.

We put everything possible on the card, cable, cell bills, business expenses, anything that doesn't have a fee to use a credit card. YTD we've gotten $1270 back in cash.

 

[calmloki]

Good plan - I used to (and still) think that credit cards were leech-like drags on the economy. Paid with cash or check. Nobody wanted to give a discount to recognize their saving on swipe fees, and so I grudgingly started using cards - for pretty much everything except tips and some private contractors.

 

[Chuckanut]

Good plan - I used to (and still) think that credit cards were leech-like drags on the economy. Paid with cash or check. Nobody wanted to give a discount to recognize their saving on swipe fees,

I'm not sure there is that much savings with cash. It has to be handled very carefully, counted several times by several people, tracked, sorted, stored in a safe place, removed from registers on busy days when to much accumulates in the cash drawers, etc. etc. etc. Lots of labor intensive stuff to handle cash. CC transactions are an electronic blip.