My Wallet
Why have just one card in your wallet when you can maximize your savings and use separate cards on different purchases? Although it takes a little bit more effort, it pays to divvy up your spending amongst different rewards cards. Instead of the regular 1% cash back you can earn 3%, 5%, or even more in some cases. I am keeping a running list of what cards I keep in my wallet to use on an everyday basis. Now, I like keeping my wallet thin (no 'Costanza wallet' for me!), so the list is frequently updated as I find better deals and promotions. Past cards are listed near the bottom of the page.
American Express SimplyCash Business Card: 5% back on Office Supplies, & Wireless Services, Examples of seasonal cash back rewards: January-March: 5% back on all travel expenses (including airlines, cruises, hotels, car rentals, trains, buses, etc.). April-June: 5% back on all home and apparel purchases. The Chase
Best Everyday Rewards Programs
Chase Freedom Rewards Card: Update 12/01/2008: Terms have changed, rewards program has been downgraded. Unless you already have the card there's not much reason to apply for one now. New card to be featured soon.
5% 3% back on gas, 1% on all else. No annual fee. Twelve month 0% APR offer on purchases. More detailed information available here.
BEST CARD FOR GAS, OFFICE SUPPLIES, & WIRELESS.
Current Credit Cards:
These cards are in my wallet and I use them on a regular basis.
This is another American Express Business card (available for personal use as well). The Amex SimplyCash Card is my most used business card as it comes with a 12 month 0% APR on all purchases and also gives you cash back on all transactions. This isn't just the standard 1% cash back that you can find anywhere either—this card gives you 5% back on all gasoline, office supply, and wireless/cellular phone services. The cash back is automatically credit to your account each month so you don't have to worry about forgetting to redeem your cash or dealing with 'points'. All of this and no annual fees! More info.
On most purchases you receive a flat 1% rewards rate. The main benefit of the Discover More Card (formerly known as the Discover Platinum Card) is the 5% reward categories that change seasonally. The only thing is that you really have to stay on top of what categories are available at what time of the year (this information is provided for members on your online account page). Another benefit of this card (and many other Discover-branded cards) is that they offer decent 0% APR options: 0% APR on purchases for the first six months and 0% APR on balance transfers for twelve months (3% fee, up to $50, applies).
Chase
Freedom Cash Visa
Chase Freedom Rewards Visa card is the card I use most often for everyday purchases (besides wireless services, and office supplies—I can get 5% back on those purchases with the American Express SimplyCash card). Why do I use this card? Because you receive 3% automatic cash back on the top three (or five) categories you spend in each month. There are fifteen categories including gas, restaurants, groceries, cell phones, and department stores. 1% back on all the rest of your purchases. $50 sign-up bonus with your first purchase. More information in this post.
Platinum Rewards MasterCardThis is my main card when shopping for groceries, buying gas, or going to drugstores as I get 5% cash back (1% on all other purchases). Unfortunately it was nixed by Chase and is no longer offered to new customers. Instead, they have replaced it with the rather lackluster Flexible Rewards Platinum Visa card. This card offers only 1% back on purchases.
Past Credit Cards:
Used to have these cards in my wallet, still use them on occasion (unless noted).
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A business card that is also available to non-business customers, the American Express Business Gold Rewards Card is a decent choice for everyday use as it provides an equivalent 1% cash-back program as well as discounts of up to at certain retailers. You receive 5,000 points after your first purchase which is equivalent to $50. Just be sure to cancel before your first year is up to avoid the $125 annual fee. And yes, you can sign up for this even if you already have a different AmEx card (having a card actually makes the application process shorter). |
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I initially applied for the American Express Blue Cash card because it looked cool and it had a cash back program. This was many years ago, and it was my first ever cash back card. It has no cap on the amount of money you earn back, six months of 0% introductory APR on all purchases, and it gives you 5% back on all 'Everyday Purchases' (defined as U.S. drugstores, supermarkets, and gas stations). However, you only earn that 5% once you have spent over $6,500 during the year—it's only 1% up to that point. My advice: stick with the |
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After I cancelled my Northwest Worldperks Visa card (see below) I opted for the Citibank/American Airlines AAdvantage Miles World MasterCard because of it's very large new user mileage bonus (20,000-40,000 miles, depending on the promotion and charges on the card) and fee-free first year (an $85 value). It provides the same perks for the most part (one mile per dollar spent, less restrictions when redeeming miles/buying tickets, etc.). Once my first year ended I called in to cancel the card and they offered me 6,000 miles to keep it for at least another month. I cancelled it after that month, kept the extra miles, and was refunded almost all of the $85 annual fee that I paid (lesson is, it pays to call in—sometimes they'll even waive the annual fee altogether). |
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The USBank Northwest Worldperks Visa Platinum card used to be my main card for many years. Northwest's hub is in Detroit, where I lived, and so this was a pretty useful card to have. But then I did the math and figured out that it wasn't worth the $55 annual fee—I could receive the same or better benefits from other cards without paying any fees at all (and the Northwest Visa card is one of the cheaper annual rates out there as far as mileage credit cards go!). It is however still worth it to open up an account solely for the mileage bonus that you get (10,000 bonus miles with your first purchase). You receive one mile per dollar spent, so it works out to be about a 1% return on your money. |
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The Citibank Dividend Platinum Select MasterCard used to be my card for all grocery, drugstore, and gasoline purchases because it gave me 5% back (1% on all other purchases). Then they made it 5% for the first six months you have the card, 2% thereafter. As a result of that change I cancelled this card and now use the Chase Platinum Rewards Card (not open to new applicants) or the Chase Freedom card for all groceries/gas/drugstore purchases. |
