credit cards with rewards.

[Darth-Baiter]

i never carry a balance.  i dont use a CC that often, but i have been considering switching over to an Airline credit card.  

 

my fishing tackle purchases could help with some airline points to get to to actual fishing trips.  i'm thinking about the SWA card.  thoughts?

 

i have a non reward card, and it just kinda sits there never helping me beyond the occasional rental card or fishing rod purchase.    my main CC is my wife's costco card. 

[casts_by_fly]

Start here and read this:

 

https://wallethacks.com/credit-cards/

 

This is my friend's website, not just a random one.  There is far more info available to you there than you will find by asking a random group of people on the internet.

 

The short answer is that CC rewards can be useful if you have a card that gives rewards you are interested in.  My wife and I travel a lot.  We both have rewards cards that give bonuses for travel related spend and then also when you spend the rewards on travel items (so a double bonus really).  With the card we get various travel insurances, trusted traveler programs, pre-check, etc.  All things we find immensely useful and would pay for ourselves if we needed to.  My parents use the sam's club credit card because they shop at sams and spend all of the rewards on purchases there (again, there are multiplier bonuses in that case).

 

Also know that CC rewards are just a redistribution of costs.  Some card companies and processors charge more depending on the card used.  When they are charging more to the retailer, the retailer is rolling that cost across all products.  So the price goes up for everyone, but the rewards cards users get a little of it back.  

[Dwight Hottle]

Get a cash back card. Then you can use the cash back credits to pay for what ever and never have to play the games associated with reward cards that don't pay back cash. I have an American Express card & a Visa card that gives back cash with no annual fees. It's a no brainer. 

[gim]

3 minutes ago, Dwight Hottle said:

Get a cash back card. Then you can use the cash back credits to pay for what ever and never have to play the games associated with reward cards that don't pay back cash. I have an American Express card & a Visa card that gives back cash with no annual fees. It's a no brainer. 

This is me too.  Mine is cash back which can be straight up mailed as a check, or applied to a balance.  No annual fee.

 

I will say that I don't use my CC for everything because I use my debit card for daily purchases.  I use my CC for larger purchases.  As long as you pay it off in time of course.

 

Something to keep in mind is that every time you apply for a credit card, it affects your credit rating.  My wife has a Target Red Card.  Honestly wish she didn't lol

[Jig Man]

We have been using a cash back for years.  It beats the rewards cards by a lot.

[MN Fisher]

4 minutes ago, gimruis said:

Mine is cash back which can be straight up mailed as a check, or applied to a balance.  No annual fee.

Yep - same here for my one CC

 

4 minutes ago, gimruis said:

I use my debit card for daily purchases.  I use my CC for larger purchases. 

Yep-yep - with today's interest rates - no way am I carrying a balance longer than I have to

 

5 minutes ago, gimruis said:

My wife has a Target Red Card.  Honestly wish she didn't lol

She have the Debit one? Mine links direct to my bank account - so like the bank's debit card...but I still get the 5% discount.

[Darth-Baiter]

8 minutes ago, gimruis said:

This is me too.  Mine is cash back which can be straight up mailed as a check, or applied to a balance.  No annual fee.

 

I will say that I don't use my CC for everything because I use my debit card for daily purchases.  I use my CC for larger purchases.  As long as you pay it off in time of course.

 

Something to keep in mind is that every time you apply for a credit card, it affects your credit rating.  My wife has a Target Red Card.  Honestly wish she didn't lol

good points.  thankfully, my rating is about as good at a rating can get. 

 

i froze all my credit again, after my buying my truck..so this could be a bigger pain than i want anyways.  

 

okay.  my wife CC is a cash back.  i will stay the course.  

[gim]

8 minutes ago, MN Fisher said:

She have the Debit one? Mine links direct to my bank account - so like the bank's debit card...but I still get the 5% discount.

No, hers is the credit one.  She had it before we got married.

 

@Darth-Baiter if I'm not mistaken you do a fair amount of traveling.  In your case it might be worth looking into one that offers travel miles through an airline.  I know a few people that have the Delta Skymiles one here because Delta has a major hub at MSP airport and they travel a lot.

 

I'm not a big traveler so the airline miles one just isn't for me.  Doesn't mean its not for everyone though.

[Jigfishn10]

56 minutes ago, Dwight Hottle said:

Get a cash back card. Then you can use the cash back credits to pay for what ever and never have to play the games associated with reward cards that don't pay back cash. I have an American Express card & a Visa card that gives back cash with no annual fees. It's a no brainer. 

Amex since 1987

[Choporoz]

Cash back VISA from my credit union.  Between 1 and 1.75% back on every use.  I use it for every possible purchase and bill payment, and never carry a balance.  Haven't kept track, but has to be $500+ per year cash back

[LrgmouthShad]

I use a USAA Amex card