"CC debt" add on: best card for rewards?

[tightasadrum]

The link on credit card debt made me wonder what company has the best rewards program.

My bank gives me "points" for using my debit card as a credit card. The points are one point per dollar. But the rewards points are matched to a huge list of things that require a huge number of points to redeem anything. They control the point levels.

Who has the best card for rewards?

 

[tgotch]

I have been looking into this card from Schwab. 2% rebate, no spending limits, and not not a bunch of restrictions...

Schwab Has New Rebate Card - WSJ.com

 

[REWahoo]

This has been discussed numerous times on the forum. Pentagon FCU is hard to beat and anyone can join:

Visa Platinum Gas Cash Reward

• Earn 2% cash back on supermarket purchases*
• Earn 5.00% cash back from gas purchases paid at the pump*
• Earn 1.25% cash back from all purchases** you make with the card during each billing cycle
• Up to $50,000 limit
• No Annual Fee
• Cash Rewards credited each month
• No special restrictions to earn your cash rewards

 

[LOL!]

There is no single "best" card or card company. One has to think about what their personal usage is and how they will use the rewards to get the best deal.

For example:

(1) we use the Citibank dividend card which gives 2% cash back on gas and groceries. We ONLY use this card for gas and groceries and nothing else.

(2) We use a Continental miles card for restaurants because we live near a Continental airport and my work-related travel makes me fly on Continental quite a lot. With my credit card, I get companion ticket, a couple of airport lounge tickets and miles. The miles help top up my FF miles from business travel so that my family can enjoy free air travel when we go on vacation.

(3) A CapOne card for foreign credit card transactions. This has 1% cash-back that can be used for airtravel as well. So the 1% cash-back plus the no-added-fee on foreign transactions is like a 2%-cashback card.

(4) A USAA card for the 0% interest rate and 5%-return on stoozing.

I heard that Amex Blue is one of the best if you charge more than $6000 a year.

 

[Goonie]

There is no single "best" card or card company. One has to think about what their personal usage is and how they will use the rewards to get the best deal.

Agree completely. I use an Amazon VISA rewards...earns points on all purchases, and triple points on all Amazon purchases. Most of my 'online' shopping is done at Amazon, therefore this one works quite well for me. YMMV.

 

[CuppaJoe]

Agree completely. I use an Amazon VISA rewards...earns points on all purchases, and triple points on all Amazon purchases. Most of my 'online' shopping is done at Amazon, therefore this one works quite well for me. YMMV.

Me, too.

The "cheap b*stard" in me, however, pays attention to the fact that their reward coupons are $25.00 and free shipping starts at $25.00 but is is very difficult to find one or two items that add up to that amount. I usually wind up spending an extra $11.00 which goes on the Amazon card for a future reward.

Forget about those websites that tell you how to fill in the odd extra amount. Like buy a spatula for $1.50, nine times out of ten, it will be available only thru an outside vendor for an extra shipping fee. Sometimes I just pick up some groceries on the $25.00 coupon, their Beethoven ground coffee is pretty good.

Edit: The books I buy from them are often the ones I re-sell thru their website, haven't done the math but that can be a way to eventually turn the coupons into cash.

 

[clifp]

I just got the Schwab card. It is similar to the existing Schwab Visa card (or any of the "World Points" cards) with the exception of that you don't have the option to get Airline/Hotel rewards. Instead 2% of your purchases get rebated to your Schwab One account. I don't know how it works for none Schwab customers, in my case I always redeemed my points for cash, so it was no brainer.

APR 14-15%, interestingly my credit limit was cut in 1/2 on the new card.

 

[ziggy29]

I just got the Schwab card. It is similar to the existing Schwab Visa card (or any of the "World Points" cards) with the exception of that you don't have the option to get Airline/Hotel rewards. Instead 2% of your purchases get rebated to your Schwab One account. I don't know how it works for none Schwab customers, in my case I always redeemed my points for cash, so it was no brainer.

Non-Schwab customers can get the card, but unless they have a Schwab One account to link it to, they won't get the rewards.

I have the Schwab World Points card, and it would be nice if we could just call and convert our old accounts without needing to apply for credit again, without getting a new inquiry on the credit report and all that stuff. As a result I probably won't bother, but 2% is pretty tempting. Since we probably charge about $20-25K a year for as many regular expenses as we can, that would be an extra $200-250 per year...

 

[freebird5825]

Take a quick look at National City Everyday Rewards (4-3-2-1). No annual fee. Full balance payback within the billing cycle makes the interest rate a non-issue. We use it for all normal expenses that were once handled with a debit card.
It was nice to get that 4% cashback on gasoline and automotive related purchases. we have 2 older cars that needed a lot of wear and tear repairs.
During the oil bubble, $4 plus per gallon at the pump really added up to the $250 monthly limit very quickly.
2% on groceries and restaurants over an entire year adds up nicely also.
It is not offered everywhere in the country. I managed to get 2 of these cards before they limited the geographical area of the offer.

 

[Koolau]

DW and I try to get the most cash-back within the bounds of having Visa, Discover and Amex cards. By switching around our usage, we never get less than 1 % CB and often get as much as 5% back on such things as gas. The "points" cards tend to be rip offs, IMHO. In the good old days (say 2004?) we could convert, say, Visa points for roughly double on restaurant gift cards. That worked out to roughly 2% cash back equivalent. Now, most redemption is at about 20% discount on a restaurant or other gift card. So points are only accumulated when no one will take a card which pays CB. A bird in the hand, etc., etc.

YMMV

 

[clifp]

As a result I probably won't bother, but 2% is pretty tempting. Since we probably charge about $20-25K a year for as many regular expenses as we can, that would be an extra $200-250 per year...

I agree it would be smart for Schwab just to offer an option to convert but... Ziggy pick up the phone. I did the whole thing over the phone total time from calling Schwab to getting approval was 10-15 minutes. I know you Wall St types make good money but prolly not more than $1K/hour....

 

[ziggy29]

The "points" cards tend to be rip offs, IMHO. In the good old days (say 2004?) we could convert, say, Visa points for roughly double on restaurant gift cards. That worked out to roughly 2% cash back equivalent. Now, most redemption is at about 20% discount on a restaurant or other gift card. So points are only accumulated when no one will take a card which pays CB. A bird in the hand, etc., etc.

So now points are "only" 1% in cash back. How is that a ripoff? It may not be the deal it used to be, but it isn't a "ripoff."

I have two rewards cards that issue "points" -- and both of them allow redemption for cash rebates at the rate of 1 cent per point (i.e. $100 per each 10,000 points). That's why the Schwab 2% deal sounds better (especially since I already have a Schwab account to link this to), but I don't want to have to apply for another card and it seems silly that I can't just convert my existing Schwab Visa.

 

[ziggy29]

I agree it would be smart for Schwab just to offer an option to convert but... Ziggy pick up the phone. I did the whole thing over the phone total time from calling Schwab to getting approval was 10-15 minutes. I know you Wall St types make good money but prolly not more than $1K/hour....

I'm not a Wall Street type -- I'm in IT.

Did they have to issue a hard pull of your credit report? If not, I'm willing to invest the time. It's the hard pull on the credit file I'd rather avoid.

 

[clifp]

A hard pull. So minus ~5 points to your FICO score for ~6 months... But your total credit availability will increase which eventually adds to your FICO score. I guess if you are refinancing next year than it would make sense not to bother applying otherwise

 

[Animorph]

Fidelity has a new 2% cash back card. I'm still making due with the old 1.5% cash back card because I didn't want a new CC. Cash back for all purchases directly into your Fidelity account. I assume no Fidielity account means no cash back, but I would think other brokerages would have something similar.

 

[ziggy29]

A hard pull. So minus ~5 points to your FICO score for ~6 months... But your total credit availability will increase which eventually adds to your FICO score. I guess if you are refinancing next year than it would make sense not to bother applying otherwise

Just went ahead and bit the bullet after thinking on it more and did it -- hope they keep this 2% deal in place. My FICO was around 810 last I checked, so I'm not that concerned and I don't see us taking out any installment loans in the next year or two anyway.

 

[Goonie]

Me, too.

The "cheap b*stard" in me, however, pays attention to the fact that their reward coupons are $25.00 and free shipping starts at $25.00 but is is very difficult to find one or two items that add up to that amount. I usually wind up spending an extra $11.00 which goes on the Amazon card for a future reward.

I usually wait until I have 2 or 3 $25 rewards coupons, then buy ink for one or more of my printers. If I run the bill a little past the total coupon amount, like you say, it goes towards more points. Come to think of it, I have 3 coupons (or is it 4?) and I'm needing to order ink....one of the printers whined to me about the other day!

 

[Koolau]

So now points are "only" 1% in cash back. How is that a ripoff? It may not be the deal it used to be, but it isn't a "ripoff."

I have two rewards cards that issue "points" -- and both of them allow redemption for cash rebates at the rate of 1 cent per point (i.e. $100 per each 10,000 points). That's why the Schwab 2% deal sounds better (especially since I already have a Schwab account to link this to), but I don't want to have to apply for another card and it seems silly that I can't just convert my existing Schwab Visa.

Ziggy,

Guess "rippoff" is in the eye of the beholder and dependent upon which card you hold and how you use it. I don't want to go to the hassle (and possible credit score dilution) of getting a "better" card which offers "better" points redemption. For one thing, the redemption rate and availability may change - it certainly has for my card over the years as I explained in my original reply.

I say "ripoff" because you don't know when you earn the points what they will be worth by the time you save up enough points to redeem them. Yeah, it could be a "good" deal if you could redeem saved points for more than the typical 1% you get from virtually everybody. But in my experience the higher than 1% deals are for something I don't want or don't use or can't use.

Finally At BEST my card allows redemption for cash of only 1% - again that's AT MOST. It also requires accumulation of relatively large amounts of points before you get the 1% (Redemption delayed is redemption denied... or something like that.)

Maybe I just prefer to know what the deal is up front - and not for some teaser period of time. Ripoff is the term I use when the card provider gets to set the terms AFTER I use their card instead of before - especially when they use points to get you to use THEIR card and then change how they redeem the points later.

I don't mind if a card gives, say 5% cash back for gasoline for 3 months and then goes back to 1%. They tell you that up front and you DO actually get the cash back for that period of time. You don't have to redeem anything. But if the points redemption rules changes as time goes on - after I've finally earned enough points to get the original deal - that's what I object to.

Again and as always, YMMV.

 

[calmloki]

... the redemption rate and availability may change - it certainly has for my card over the years as I explained in my original reply.

I say "ripoff" because you don't know when you earn the points what they will be worth by the time you save up enough points to redeem them. Yeah, it could be a "good" deal if you could redeem saved points for more than the typical 1% you get from virtually everybody. But in my experience the higher than 1% deals are for something I don't want or don't use or can't use.

Finally At BEST my card allows redemption for cash of only 1% - again that's AT MOST. It also requires accumulation of relatively large amounts of points before you get the 1% (Redemption delayed is redemption denied... or something like that.)

Maybe I just prefer to know what the deal is up front - and not for some teaser period of time. Ripoff is the term I use when the card provider gets to set the terms AFTER I use their card instead of before - especially when they use points to get you to use THEIR card and then change how they redeem the points later.

I don't mind if a card gives, say 5% cash back for gasoline for 3 months and then goes back to 1%. They tell you that up front and you DO actually get the cash back for that period of time. You don't have to redeem anything. But if the points redemption rules changes as time goes on - after I've finally earned enough points to get the original deal - that's what I object to.

Again and as always, YMMV.

Which gets us all the way back around the tree to Penfed. 1.25% on everything but gas, 5% on that, and credited to your account each billing cycle. No lost rewards. simple.

 

[REWahoo]

Which gets us all the way back around the tree to Penfed. 1.25% on everything but gas, 5% on that...

Don't forget it pays 2% on groceries.

 

[calmloki]

Don't forget it pays 2% on groceries.

forgot that - use the Costco business Amex for costcofood, which is about all we eat.

 

[Lyle]

Best two cash back cards I have found are Chase Freedom. It yields about 1.8% cash back and Countrywide 1st USA. Country wide has 1% cash back that they will match if you added it to a Countrywide bank account, making the yield 2%.

 

[OAG]

My vote is with the PENFED Card. Simple and payment (Cash rebates) come monthly in the form or a credit on the current statement. For 2008 I charged about $8,000 to the card and received $160 in rebates, so the average rebate was 2% (even tho the gas is 5%, Food 2% and all others is 1.25%).

 

[tightasadrum]

Many of you have talked about PenFed before, so I guess it's time to check the details for non-government employees like me.

I'm glad to see Fidelity has a dog in the fight, since I have a FIDO account anyway. I'll call them about the cash back policy.

Good information, thanks.

 

[Tadpole]

We get all our gas from a WAWA (kind of like a 7-11 or Royal Farms). Will the PenFed card work for this vendor and will it call our gasoline purchases gas or food? I tried to Goggle this after PenFed said that their provider decided these questions but found nothing at the provider's website that listed their recognized vendors and vendor categories.

PenFed says:

Certain restrictions may apply. Visa USA determines which transactions are classified as paid at the pump and which stores are classified as supermarkets.

But how do I find out what Visa USA recognizes?