I have a Cabela's Visa but with Bass Pro taking them over, things have gotten a little weird so I am going to cancel it.
The credit card be will for business expenses and it is paid in full every month. Gas, restaurants, hotels, rental cars, and the occasional airline ticket.
I'm thinking one of the American Express rewards or travel points cards but I thought I would ask around before applying.
-Seconds Count. Misses Don't-
I prefer cash back instead of points. All points systems are designed to obfuscate the real value back to you. The American Express card I run for my business automatically deducts the cash back each month on the statement so I don't even have to worry about requesting the cash back.
I've been using two USAA cards as my primary CCs in the same method you described for a few years. One's an AMEX that has tiered cashback rewards (something like 5% gas, 2% grocery, 1% everything else) and a Visa with 1.5% cashback on everything. I swap between them based on what I buy.
I'm not sure if you have USAA or not, but I'm certain there's equivalent programs out there from other banks through the same card companies.
How have things gotten weird? I've had a Cabela's card since 2010. I like the new card better because my points accrue immediately and I see this on my statement. Previously, they accrued monthly. Otherwise, they seem the same. Interested in what you see that has changed.Originally Posted by SecondsCount
Chris
www.nerdwallet.com is a good resource.
We use a Chase Freedom card. We pay the balance a few times a month. The card pays 1% on everything and 5% on certain categories. The categories change quarterly. Once my reward balance exceeds 1000 I cash it in. They are also really good about catching fraudulent charges.
Second thumbs up for nerdwallet. Also check bankrate.
When I switched from Amex to an airline branded visa a few years ago, I got a 100,000 mile incentive bonus. Roughly 500 to $1000 value. If you travel a lot, like my wife and I, the AA Mastercard gets us both Admirals club access for less than the price of paid membership for one. Amex and Chase have similar-ish benefits at certain card levels. I also got $100 statement credit when I signed up for Trusted Traveler/Global Entry. Etc.
Also... Pro-tip.... Don't cancel your Cabelas card. If the card is free, you can park it and not use it. When you cancel a credit card your credit score actually goes DOWN. The math is based on your using a higher percentage of your available credit
Example.
You regularly spend $1000/month on your credit card.
You have one credit card with a $5000 limit.
You regularly spend 20% of your available credit.
Now you add a second card. Small ding on your credit score for the new inquiry. Temporary.
You now have $10,000 in available credit, but spend the same $1,000/month.
Now you are using only 10% of your available credit.
Also, if you kill a card you've held for a long time, that's another negative impact on your credit score, since the scores consider the age of accounts as well.
"No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms." - Thomas Jefferson, Virginia Constitution, Draft 1, 1776
I have an Amazon Prime Visa. You get 5% on Amazon and 1-2% for everything else. I use it like a debit card and have it set to auto pay the balance every month. Points can be deducted off your bill, or used on Amazon purchases. I let it stack up and it paid for most of the Christmas presents this year.
I used to use cash as much as possible but now I charge everything. I even set it to pay bills that don’t charge a fee for using credit cards. You’d be surprise, I ended up with about $800 in points last year.
Knowing I get 5% back, this makes me more inclined to shop at Amazon than anywhere else. Which I suppose was the intended effect.
Same here.
If you travel a lot - then a travel focused card would be my choice. I have a Southwest Rapid Rewards Visa that I ise almost ezclusivey foe travel. I like it quite a bit.
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