thomsbrain
Lifer
- Dec 4, 2001
- 18,148
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I've earned $100 or so on my Costco AMEX since I got it in April. I drive a lot, so the 3% on gas really adds up. I'll use the rewards Costco Cash card to help buy a new TV in February.
Originally posted by: Maverick2002
Originally posted by: Elganja
are you kidding me? how old are you?
you get statements every month with a balance due and an optional minimum payment. When people say you pay it off right away you pay the balance due.
Old enough. And I don't get paper statements. Balance due /= balance, which was my original question regarding what people meant by "paying it off".
Originally posted by: dullard
NOTE: Just like virtually all other reward cards, Chase has a special deal with the biggest retailers (places like SAM's Walmart and Costco). Chase (and Discover and others) charge these superstores less fees. But, you get less rewards. All credit card applications that I've seen say that purchases at these locations receive less than the full reward. With Chase, you only get 1.25% at Walmart.
Originally posted by: Maverick2002
Originally posted by: Trey22
While not for everyone, if you spend quite a bit, put everything on the card and pay it off at the end of every month, the American Express Blue card rocks. No annual fee. After $6500 you get:
- 5% cash back at gas stations, supermarkets and pharmacy stores. 1.5% cash back on all other purchases.
So far I have $558 in cash back earned this year.
By paying it off at the end of every month, do you mean down to $0 or just close to it? For instance it's almost impossible for me to get to $0 on my current card because I make purchases daily and by the time I pay off what's showing up on my bank's website, I have a few new charges already racked up. Can you elaborate on this?
Originally posted by: Maverick2002
So the general consensus is to go with Chase Freedom?
EDIT: also, what if there's a small balance left over. Say you racked up $1000 in a month, paid off $800, starting next month with a $200 balance. At the end of next month you have $1000 total, paid of say $900, have $100 left over ... kind of keep going this way (where your balance is low, but never completely paid off to exact 0). How will this affect a card like the Chase Freedom?
I'm asking because on my current card I have with my bank, it doesn't really matter. As long as my total debt is relatively low (below $2k) and I pay off most of it on a regular basis, I don't get any purchase finance charges and my credit line keeps going up. Will it be this same way with a new card?
Originally posted by: Maverick2002
So the general consensus is to go with Chase Freedom?
EDIT: also, what if there's a small balance left over. Say you racked up $1000 in a month, paid off $800, starting next month with a $200 balance. At the end of next month you have $1000 total, paid of say $900, have $100 left over ... kind of keep going this way (where your balance is low, but never completely paid off to exact 0). How will this affect a card like the Chase Freedom?
I'm asking because on my current card I have with my bank, it doesn't really matter. As long as my total debt is relatively low (below $2k) and I pay off most of it on a regular basis, I don't get any purchase finance charges and my credit line keeps going up. Will it be this same way with a new card?
Originally posted by: Maverick2002
maybe .. I'm not sure what's going on. I don't know if it has anything to do with the fact that it's a credit card I got through my bank, but I've had it for years, and in the past 5-6 months or so that I've checked my online billing cycles and there haven't been any purchase finance charges. I've kept my amount very low, sometimes paying it off almost entirely.
It seems like I don't get purchase finance charges as long as the balance is below a certain amount ... does this make sense at all?
Originally posted by: Maverick2002
So the general consensus is to go with Chase Freedom?
EDIT: also, what if there's a small balance left over. Say you racked up $1000 in a month, paid off $800, starting next month with a $200 balance. At the end of next month you have $1000 total, paid of say $900, have $100 left over ... kind of keep going this way (where your balance is low, but never completely paid off to exact 0). How will this affect a card like the Chase Freedom?
I'm asking because on my current card I have with my bank, it doesn't really matter. As long as my total debt is relatively low (below $2k) and I pay off most of it on a regular basis, I don't get any purchase finance charges and my credit line keeps going up. Will it be this same way with a new card?
Originally posted by: Elganja
Originally posted by: DLeRium
Blue is not that good. You only get like what 1% on the first 1500? 20k a year isnt enough to really make a killer from that card. I'd rather get a card like Citi Dividend and/or AMEX TrueEarnings from Costco.
Plus even with Blue (wait isnt it Blue Cash where you get the cashback?), you only get the 5% on the amount over 1500 or something right? I remember digging through the terms and conditions and its tiered. 0.5% then 1% then 5%? All I remember was arguing with a friend who claimed to spend a lot (come on we were college students, how much can you freaking put on a card each month?) and he kept running around yelling 5% but I KNEW that I was beating his cashback by combining my Citi card with my AMEX TrueEarnings... although he wouldnt admit it.
Originally posted by: Elganja
The Blue Cash card has no cap on the cash back limits (got 610 back last year) and the rules are:
$0.00 - $6,500.00----1.0% (Bonus Cash Back Purchases)----0.5% (General Purchases)
$6,500.01 - or more----5.0% (Bonus Cash Back Purchases)----1.5% (General Purchases)
where bonus is grocery, drugstore and gas
the only downside of amex is that it isn't accepted everywhere... I wish there was an equivlent VISA/MC (I know chase freedom comes close).
Originally posted by: A5
Originally posted by: Maverick2002
So the general consensus is to go with Chase Freedom?
EDIT: also, what if there's a small balance left over. Say you racked up $1000 in a month, paid off $800, starting next month with a $200 balance. At the end of next month you have $1000 total, paid of say $900, have $100 left over ... kind of keep going this way (where your balance is low, but never completely paid off to exact 0). How will this affect a card like the Chase Freedom?
I'm asking because on my current card I have with my bank, it doesn't really matter. As long as my total debt is relatively low (below $2k) and I pay off most of it on a regular basis, I don't get any purchase finance charges and my credit line keeps going up. Will it be this same way with a new card?
The Chase Freedom card has like a 24.99% APR (for me anyway), so you would pretty much get destroyed by finance charges...if you go with Freedom, pay it in full every month.
Originally posted by: DLeRium
Originally posted by: Elganja
Originally posted by: DLeRium
Blue is not that good. You only get like what 1% on the first 1500? 20k a year isnt enough to really make a killer from that card. I'd rather get a card like Citi Dividend and/or AMEX TrueEarnings from Costco.
Plus even with Blue (wait isnt it Blue Cash where you get the cashback?), you only get the 5% on the amount over 1500 or something right? I remember digging through the terms and conditions and its tiered. 0.5% then 1% then 5%? All I remember was arguing with a friend who claimed to spend a lot (come on we were college students, how much can you freaking put on a card each month?) and he kept running around yelling 5% but I KNEW that I was beating his cashback by combining my Citi card with my AMEX TrueEarnings... although he wouldnt admit it.
Originally posted by: Elganja
The Blue Cash card has no cap on the cash back limits (got 610 back last year) and the rules are:
$0.00 - $6,500.00----1.0% (Bonus Cash Back Purchases)----0.5% (General Purchases)
$6,500.01 - or more----5.0% (Bonus Cash Back Purchases)----1.5% (General Purchases)
where bonus is grocery, drugstore and gas
the only downside of amex is that it isn't accepted everywhere... I wish there was an equivlent VISA/MC (I know chase freedom comes close).
The problem with that is if you want that to even equate up to 3% cashback to match Freedom, you need to spend $13000 per year on only grocery, drugstore, and gas. I don't know how much people need on those items, but if you do spend that much on those items, then only use it on your AMEX Blue Cash card.
You really have to spend A LOT on that card to make it worthwhile, at which point you should be wondering if you should even spend that much to begin with. Furthermore, I bet a lot of general expenses get lumped into the Blue Cash card, which brings your overall cashback % down even more.
That's why everyone needs to calculate % and work out what is best. To me, Costco TrueEarnings gives me 3% eating out, 3% gas, 2% travel, 1% everything, and combine that with Freedom's 3% on other things (I use it for other categories), and Citi's 2% on gas, drugs, groceries, I think it's a better option for me.
That's why Blue Cash is extremely deceptive. People look at that 5% and go oh yeah that's nice, but still feel ok when they have to spend a lot, but when you do some math and realize that unless you're spending a raw 13k on groceries, gas, drugs ALONE, then it might not be the most worthwhile option.
Originally posted by: Aimster
I have american express 5% cash back on food, gas, and drug stores
yet when I get the bill they do not credit me 5% for 95% of the places I ate at or put gas at.
WTF
New credit card
Originally posted by: Capt Caveman
1. Yes
2. Hell yeah