Bank of America Unlimited Cash Rewards Card Review: 1.5% Flat Cash Back (Up to 2.6% With Preferred Rewards)

My Money Blog has partnered with CardRatings and may receive a commission from card issuers. Some or all of the card offers that appear on this site are from advertisers and may impact how and where card products appear on the site. MyMoneyBlog.com does not include all card companies or all available card offers. All opinions expressed are the author’s alone.

The new Bank of America Unlimited Cash Rewards Card is the most simple, straightforward, no-annual-fee credit card in the Bank of America line-up. If you are a Preferred Rewards client, you can increase the cash back earned by 25% to 75%. For such “relationship” customers, this boost can change this card from good to great. Here are the highlights:

  • New customers: $200 cash rewards bonus after $1,000 in purchases in the first 90 days.
  • Earn unlimited 1.5% cash back on all purchases. Redeem as a statement credit, deposit to BofA bank account, or deposit to Merrill brokerage account (including 529).
  • 0% Introductory APR offer. See link for details.
  • 10% customer bonus when you have an active Bank of America checking or savings account.
  • If you’re a Preferred Rewards client, you can increase that bonus to 25% – 75%. See details below.
  • 3% foreign transaction fee.
  • No annual fee.

Preferred Rewards bonus. The Preferred Rewards program is designed to rewards clients with multiple account and higher assets located at Bank of America banking, Merrill Edge online brokerage, and Merrill Lynch investment accounts. Here is a partial table taken from their comparison chart (click to enlarge):

bofa_pref1

Let’s consider the options. Bank of America’s interest rates on cash accounts tend to be lower than highest-available outside banks (read: nearly zero), so moving cash over to qualify may result in earning less interest on your cash deposits. Merrill Lynch advisory accounts also usually come with management fees. The sweet spot is therefore the Merrill Edge self-directed brokerage, where you can move over your existing brokerage assets like stocks, mutual funds, and ETFs held elsewhere (Vanguard, Fidelity, Schwab, etc).

In the past, moving over to Merrill Edge at the Platinum and Platinum Plus levels also led to 30 to 100 free online stock trades every month. Fast forward to now, and nearly all major online brokers offer commission-free trades anyway.

Personally, I moved over $100k of brokerage assets from Vanguard to Merrill Edge to qualify for Platinum Honors. You should ask Merrill Edge if they will cover any ACAT transfer fees involved. I realize not everyone will have this level of assets to move around, but if you do then it is worth considering. Keep in mind that it will take a while for your “3-month average combined balance” to reach the $100k level and officially qualify for Platinum Honors. You might become Gold first, then Platinum, and so on. After that, the 25%-75% rewards bonus on credit card rewards kick in. Once you reach a certain tier, BofA guarantees that you will stay there for a year no matter what, even if your balance fluctuates.

Note that the terms state “The Preferred Rewards bonus will replace the customer bonus”, which means that you will lose the 10% customer bonus when you qualify for the 25% to 50% bonus.

Boosted cash back percentages with Preferred Rewards. The standard structure is a flat 1.5% cash back on all purchases. Here’s how the numbers work out after you reach each tier:

  • Platinum Honors: 2.625% cash back on all purchases (75% bonus).
  • Platinum: 2.25% cash back on all purchases (50% bonus).
  • Gold: 1.875% cash back on all purchases (25% bonus).
  • BofA checking or savings accountholder: 1.65% cash back on all purchases (10% bonus).

I consider the bar set at 2% cash back to be considered a “great” rewards card. The Platinum and Platinum Honors levels allow you to surpass that bar. Again, not everyone will have this level of assets to move around, and so this offer is not available to everyone. BofA is willing to pay such high cash back on the credit card because they hope to make it back through their other products (banking, brokerage, loans).

Their plan worked on me because Bank of America has managed to convince me to go from only having a checking account with them to now also having a Merrill Edge brokerage account and a Bank of America credit card.

Comparison against other BofA credit cards. Not all Bank of America consumer credit cards qualify for Preferred Rewards. Other cards of interest that do qualify are:

Honestly, these are all solid cards if you qualify for Preferred Rewards. I can see any one of them being a good choice for those that want relatively simple rewards after setting up a “relationship” with BofA.

My slight personal favorite is the Travel Rewards credit card. The rewards structure on the Travel Rewards is similar to the Unlimited Cash Rewards card including the 1.5% back (up to 2.62% with Preferred Rewards) earning rate and no annual fee, except that the rewards can only be used to offset past travel and dining purchases made on the card in the past 12 months. I have redeemed thousands of dollars in statement credits and never run out of travel/dining purchases to offset. Their redemption process is quick and easy. One difference is that the Travel Rewards has no foreign transaction fee, while this Unlimited Cash Rewards card has a 3% foreign transaction fee. Together, this makes the Travel Rewards card a great “catch-all” card that I always have in my wallet. You may prefer the Unlimited Cash Rewards card if you have very little travel/dining charges.

The Premium Rewards card may be better if you can reliably utilize the $100 annual Airline Incidentals credit (seat upgrades, baggage fees, lounge fees) to offset the $95 annual fee, as then the increased cash back on travel/dining is all net profit. The Customized Cash Rewards cards with its 3/2/1 structure is also tempting as a companion to the Travel/Unlimited Cash, but you may prefer other rewards card for specific categories.

Bottom line. The Bank of America Unlimited Cash Rewards Credit Card is an “okay” cash back rewards card with a 1.5% cash back on everything structure, but turns into an “excellent” 2.62% cash back rewards card if you can take full advantage of their Preferred Rewards program. If you transfer $100,000 of existing brokerage assets (could be ETFs or mutual funds) over to Merrill Edge, you can qualify for the highest Platinum Honors tier. This won’t be a good option for everyone, but something to be aware of if you can swing it.

My Money Blog has partnered with CardRatings and may receive a commission from card issuers. Some or all of the card offers that appear on this site are from advertisers and may impact how and where card products appear on the site. MyMoneyBlog.com does not include all card companies or all available card offers. All opinions expressed are the author’s alone, and has not been provided nor approved by any of the companies mentioned.

MyMoneyBlog.com is also a member of the Amazon Associate Program, and if you click through to Amazon and make a purchase, I may earn a small commission. Thank you for your support.


The Blue Business® Plus Credit Card from American Express Review: 2X Points on Purchases Up to $50k/Year + 0% Intro APR Welcome Offer

My Money Blog has partnered with CardRatings and may receive a commission from card issuers. Some or all of the card offers that appear on this site are from advertisers and may impact how and where card products appear on the site. MyMoneyBlog.com does not include all card companies or all available card offers. All opinions expressed are the author’s alone.

card_name

card_name is a business rewards card that features double Membership Rewards points. Therefore, if you can redeem for more than 1 cent per point of value, this card has the potential to beat a flat 2% cash back card. This is currently my primary business credit card.

  • Earn 15,000 Membership Rewards(R) points after you spend $3,000 in eligible purchases on the Card within your first 3 months of Card Membership.
  • 0% intro APR on purchases for 12 months from the date of account opening, then reg_apr,reg_apr_type, based on your creditworthiness and other factors as determined at the time of account opening. APRs will not exceed 29.99%.
  • 2X Membership Rewards points on the first $50,000 in purchases each year. 1 point per dollar thereafter. Terms and limitations apply.
  • No annual fee. (See Rates and Fees)
  • Terms Apply.

Better than 2% cash back? Membership Rewards points can be converted to the following airline miles (there are more, this is just a selection):

  • Delta SkyMiles
  • Hawaiian Airlines
  • ANA Mileage Club (partner of United Airlines)
  • Air Canada (partner of United Airlines)
  • British Airways (partner of American Airlines)
  • FlyingBlue (Air France/KLM)
  • Virgin Atlantic
  • Virgin America

If you value any of these miles at more than 1 cent per mile, then you would be getting more value than a 2% cash back card. You also add the ability to keep all your Membership Rewards points active.

My backup redemption plan. This card can earn the equivalent of 2 Delta miles per dollar spent. Delta has a “Pay with Miles” option that lets me get 1 cent of Delta airfare for each Delta miles, I am always able to get 1 cent of value from 1 Membership Rewards point as I fly Delta regularly. Of course, I try to do better than that, but at least I have a backup plan to get 2% value back.

Unfortunately, there are many redemption options for Membership Rewards points that are worse than 1 cent per point value. Here are a few examples:

  • Shop with Membership Rewards Points (~0.5 cents per point)
  • Shop with Points at Amazon.com (~0.7 cents per point)
  • Use points at BestBuy.com (~0.7 cents per point)
  • Gift Cards (varies from 0.5 up to 1 cent per point). For example, I have redeemed 10,000 points for a $100 Home Depot gift card recently.

If you don’t expect to get at least 1 cent per mile value, then you should stick with a 2% cash back card.

Business credit card eligibility. Many people aren’t aware that they can apply for business credit cards, even if they are not a corporation or LLC. Any individual can be a small business. Perhaps you sell items on eBay, Craiglist, or Etsy. Maybe you do some graphic design, web design, freelancing and/or consulting. If you received a 1099-MISC tax form and filled out a Schedule C, that means you have business income, you pay self-employment taxes, and you’re a sole proprietorship. This is the simplest business entity, but it is fully legit and recognized by the IRS. On a business credit card application, you should use your own legal name as the business name, and your Social Security Number as the Tax ID.

This card will require you to personally guarantee that you’ll pay them back what you charge on the card, which means they’ll check your personal credit score like any other consumer card. However, as the card is a business card, American Express won’t have it show up on your personal credit report, so it won’t change things like your credit limits, average account age, or credit utilization ratio.

Bottom line. card_name is a unique small business card in that it earn 2X Membership Rewards points on purchases up to $50,000 per year with no annual fee. The ability to transfer to miles means that you’re effectively earning 2X miles per dollar spent with no annual fee. Finally, linking this card also allows you keep Membership Rewards points earned from other cards active while having no annual fee. (See Rates and Fees)

My Money Blog has partnered with CardRatings and may receive a commission from card issuers. Some or all of the card offers that appear on this site are from advertisers and may impact how and where card products appear on the site. MyMoneyBlog.com does not include all card companies or all available card offers. All opinions expressed are the author’s alone, and has not been provided nor approved by any of the companies mentioned.

MyMoneyBlog.com is also a member of the Amazon Associate Program, and if you click through to Amazon and make a purchase, I may earn a small commission. Thank you for your support.


Summer of Dashpass 2021 Deals + New Chase Co-Branded $10 Doordash Credit

My Money Blog has partnered with CardRatings and may receive a commission from card issuers. Some or all of the card offers that appear on this site are from advertisers and may impact how and where card products appear on the site. MyMoneyBlog.com does not include all card companies or all available card offers. All opinions expressed are the author’s alone.

Doordash is running their Summer of Dashpass promotion again this year, with weekly deals from 7/20 through 9/6. First, Dashpass members will get an extra $10 in savings each week during this period. There will be a themed promotion each week:

  • July 20–26: Free cheese or pepperoni ExtraMostBestest® pizza with a Little Caesars order $20+ with code CAESARS.
  • July 27 — August 2: $10 off any Pickup order of $20+ with code HUNGRY.
  • August 3–9: $10 off a gift order of $20+ using code FRIENDLY.
  • August 10–16: Eligible DashPass members (21 yrs+) can get $10 off an alcohol order of $40+ with code THIRSTY (where available).
  • August 17–23: $10 off an order of $20+ on any Convenience or DashMart order using the code SNACKY.
  • August 24–30: $10 off any pet supply order of $20 or more using the code FLUFFY.
  • August 31 — September 6: $10 off grocery orders of $25+ using the code EASY.

DashPass is a subscription service that offers a $0 delivery fee and reduced service fees when ordering $12 or more from any DashPass-eligible restaurant (look for the checkmark), as well as 5% back on Pickup orders. The regular price is $9.99/month.

Up to 12 months of free Dashpass membership is included with many Chase credit cards, including co-branded cards, and they are throwing in an additional $10 Doordash credit to those co-branded cards on your next purchase by 9/30 if you register/add your card here. Note that after those free 12 months, you’ll automatically be charged $9.99/month for continued membership unless you cancel DashPass. Eligible co-branded cards include:

If you have a Chase Sapphire Reserve or Sapphire Preferred credit card, you can also get free DashPass benefits on eligible orders for at least 12 months (and a maximum of 24 months) after activation. Sapphire Reserve cardholders also get $60 in statement credits towards DoorDash in 2021.

If you have a Chase Freedom or Slate credit card, you can free DashPass benefits on eligible orders for 3 months after activation. After the first 3 months, the user will be auto-enrolled for the next 9 months in DashPass with a 50% discount applied to the then current membership rate. You can cancel at any time.

If you are new customer to DoorDash and sign up via my DoorDash referral link, you will get $10 off your first 3 DoorDash orders over $15 ($30 total savings). I will get food credits as well. Thanks if you use it!

My Money Blog has partnered with CardRatings and may receive a commission from card issuers. Some or all of the card offers that appear on this site are from advertisers and may impact how and where card products appear on the site. MyMoneyBlog.com does not include all card companies or all available card offers. All opinions expressed are the author’s alone, and has not been provided nor approved by any of the companies mentioned.

MyMoneyBlog.com is also a member of the Amazon Associate Program, and if you click through to Amazon and make a purchase, I may earn a small commission. Thank you for your support.


AmEx Shop Small Offer 2021: $5 off $10+ on Two Purchases

My Money Blog has partnered with CardRatings and may receive a commission from card issuers. Some or all of the card offers that appear on this site are from advertisers and may impact how and where card products appear on the site. MyMoneyBlog.com does not include all card companies or all available card offers. All opinions expressed are the author’s alone.

If you have any American Express credit cards, check your “Amex Offers” in either your online account or smartphone app. Most people are seeing the offer “Spend $10+, get $5 back up to 2X (total of $10) after you Shop Small”.

Get a $5 statement credit by using your enrolled eligible Card to make a single purchase of $10+ directly at any business on the Shop Small Map (or Online Directory) in the US or US territories by 08/22/21. Limit of 2 statement credits (total of $10 back)

Here’s a screenshot:

You can find eligible businesses at americanexpress.com/shopsmalloffer or americanexpress.com/shopsmallonline.

This is a smaller deal than last year, but it’s easy enough.

Our two “keeper” consumer American Express cards are the Amex EveryDay Card (keeps my Membership Rewards points active with no annual fee, helps qualify for various Amazon and AmEx promotions) and the AmEx Blue Cash Preferred (earns 6% cash back on US supermarkets, up to $6,000 annually and 6% cash back on US streaming services).

The “keeper” business American Express card that I maintain is the Blue Business Plus Card – Earn 2X Membership Rewards points on all purchases, of up to $50,000/year. There is also the Blue Business Cash Card that earns a flat 2% cash back on up to $50,000 in purchases each year. I prefer the flexibility of having MR points, but both have no annual fee.

My Money Blog has partnered with CardRatings and may receive a commission from card issuers. Some or all of the card offers that appear on this site are from advertisers and may impact how and where card products appear on the site. MyMoneyBlog.com does not include all card companies or all available card offers. All opinions expressed are the author’s alone, and has not been provided nor approved by any of the companies mentioned.

MyMoneyBlog.com is also a member of the Amazon Associate Program, and if you click through to Amazon and make a purchase, I may earn a small commission. Thank you for your support.


Alliant Credit Union Visa Signature Card Review: Up to 2.5% Cash Back, But With Some Hoops

My Money Blog has partnered with CardRatings and may receive a commission from card issuers. Some or all of the card offers that appear on this site are from advertisers and may impact how and where card products appear on the site. MyMoneyBlog.com does not include all card companies or all available card offers. All opinions expressed are the author’s alone.

New rules as of July 2021. Alliant Credit Union, the 5th largest US credit union by assets, is changing up the terms of their Alliant Visa Signature Credit Card (again) as of July 2021. There are now additional hurdles to achieving the full 2.5% cash back, but the good news is that the previous $99 annual fee is going away for everyone. There are now two separate “tiers” of cash back rewards:

Tier 1: Up to 2.5% cash back

  • 2.5% cash back on up to $10,000 in qualifying purchases per billing cycle. On purchases above that $10,000 cap, you get 1.5% cash back.
  • For existing cardholders or if you open this card by 7/13/21, you automatically get Tier 1 for the July, August and September 2021 billing cycles.
  • In order to qualify for Tier 1 for October-December 2021, you must meet the requirements for an Alliant High-Rate Checking account each month of the third calendar quarter (July, August and September of 2021), AND maintain an average daily balance of $1,000 or more in their Alliant High-Rate Checking account for the last two months of the calendar quarter
    (August and September of 2021).
  • Qualification for Tier 1 repeats every future quarter in the same manner. Keep everything up for Q4 2021, and you get Tier 1 for Q1 2022, and so on.
  • No annual fee.

Tier 2: Flat 1.5% cash back

  • If you do not meet the requirements listed above, you default to Tier 2.
  • 1.5% flat cash back on all qualifying purchases.
  • No annual fee.

Redeem cash back rewards via a credit card statement credit (takes up to two billing cycles) or as a deposit into your Alliant checking or savings. Must first accrue $50 in cash back rewards.

Requirements for Alliant High-Rate Checking account

  • Must opt-in to free online statements.
  • Must have at least one monthly electronic deposit posted to your checking account in each calendar month. An electronic deposit is defined as a direct deposit, payroll deposit, ATM deposit, mobile check deposit OR transfer from another financial institution.

Competition. Please read my card-specific reviews for details.

Alliant CU membership eligibility. If you start the online membership application, it does a good job of walking you through their various eligibility options. If you don’t otherwise qualify, anyone can join as a member of the Foster Care to Success (FC2S) charity group, and Alliant will now pay that $5 fee on your behalf. In other words… now anyone can join for free.

My take. Overall, I think this is a smart and practical move on their part. Historically, any credit card paying above 2% cash back with no annual fee has not been sustainable on its own. The only way to make it profitable is to offer it as part of a greater “relationship” with the financial institution. For example, Bank of America has its Preferred Rewards program to encourage additional bank and brokerage holdings. Here, Alliant is now requiring you to maintain a certain level of activity on their checking account. The one monthly direct deposit (can be a simple ACH bank-to-bank transfer) and $1,000 minimum balance is relatively easy to achieve when compared to competitors that require a payroll direct deposit or 12+ debit card transactions per month.

In exchange, earning an extra 0.5% cash back on up to $120,000 in purchases annually is worth potentially an extra $600 a year in cash back over a flat 2% card, although I’d run your own estimate as very few households will charge that much. Some people will value the simplicity of keeping a single credit card with excellent cash back on almost everything and no categories to track.

I would skip the Tier 2 option completely. At 1.5% cash back for the tier with no checking account, it’s just another ho-hum average credit card.

Bottom line. The Alliant Visa Signature Credit Card offers up to 2.5% cash back on up to $10,000 on all qualifying purchases per month (no categories) with no annual fee, but you’ll need an active Alliant High-Rate Checking account amongst other requirements. Membership is easy and free.

My Money Blog has partnered with CardRatings and may receive a commission from card issuers. Some or all of the card offers that appear on this site are from advertisers and may impact how and where card products appear on the site. MyMoneyBlog.com does not include all card companies or all available card offers. All opinions expressed are the author’s alone, and has not been provided nor approved by any of the companies mentioned.

MyMoneyBlog.com is also a member of the Amazon Associate Program, and if you click through to Amazon and make a purchase, I may earn a small commission. Thank you for your support.


HM Bradley Credit Card Review: 3-2-1 Cash Back, Saving Tier APY Boost

My Money Blog has partnered with CardRatings and may receive a commission from card issuers. Some or all of the card offers that appear on this site are from advertisers and may impact how and where card products appear on the site. MyMoneyBlog.com does not include all card companies or all available card offers. All opinions expressed are the author’s alone.

Update December 2021: On December 15th, 2021, HMBradley announced upcoming changes to their interest rate that will become effective February 1st, 2022, along with changes to their credit card boosts that are effective January 1st, 2022. See my HM Bradley review for additional commentary.)

Original post (will be outdated as of 1/1/2022):

I’ve reviewed the HM Bradley Checking account as a new bank option offering interest rates of up to 3% APY on balances up to $100,000, depending on factors like savings rate and direct deposit. Last week, I finally managed to qualify for their HM Bradley credit card, which offers additional advantages when used with their banking product:

  • Savings Tier Boost: Get boosted to the next highest Savings Tier APY when you spend at least $100 each monthly cycle on the HM Bradley credit card AND have a least $2,500 in monthly direct deposits for each month of the previous quarter. If you are already at the highest Savings Tier, they will increase your APY by another 0.5% APY. (Currently, this makes it a possible 3.5% APY.)
  • Savings Tier Protection: When you pay your HMBradley Credit Card with your deposit account, it won’t count against your Savings Tiers.
  • Annual fee waived for the first year, then $60 (charged as $5 per month?).

3-2-1 Cashback rewards on credit card purchases details:

  • 3% cash back on your top eligible spending category each monthly statement cycle
  • 2% cash back on your next eligible spending category each monthly statement cycle
  • 1% cash back on everything else.

How do I apply for the HM Bradley credit card? I can’t find the application. As someone who already had a sizable amount deposited at HM Bradley, I was definitely interested in that 0.5% APY boost. However, I couldn’t find an application link anywhere! This is what they tell you to do:

With an active HMBradley account, you just need to opt into One Click Credit, and we will automatically notify you if you are eligible for the HMBradley Credit Card. We send offers at the beginning of every month, so be sure to check your account and email to see if you qualify. With One Click Credit, you authorize us to make a soft inquiry on your credit report each month for twelve months to determine if you are eligible for the HMBradley Credit Card. The inquiry does not affect your credit score and is not an application for credit.

I followed their directions have been opted in to “One Click Credit” for several months. Yet, what I didn’t know was that they also screen people based on income (not only credit score), AND they estimate your income based on your direct deposits to HM Bradley. I split my direct deposit many different ways, so they thought my income was too low.

It turns out the magic number for me was about $2,500 in direct deposits within a month. As soon as my HMB direct deposit was higher than that threshold, I was invited with an email subject “You have a new credit offer!”. This also happens to match their ongoing requirements, but I can’t be sure that this is the same number for everyone. I’m just reporting my own experience.

Alternatively, if you click on the “Insights” tab on the left, you can also self-report your income now in order to help you qualify for this credit card. Again, I am not sure what minimum income they are looking for, but the range looks to be above a minimum of roughly $35,000 per year.

List of eligible categories. Taken from their fine print:

• Education
• Motor Vehicle
• Pets
• Groceries
• Utilities
• Financial
• Gas
• Shopping
• Entertainment
• Alcohol & Bars
• Dining
• Healthcare & Childcare
• Professional Services
• Health & Fitness
• Home
• Furniture
• Personal Care
• Business Services
• Electronics & Software
• Air Travel
• Ground Transportation
• Lodging
• Sporting Goods

My take and a warning. Their 3-2-1 cash back rewards structure includes some unique categories that I don’t see on other credit cards, and another positive factor is a lack of a cap on earned rewards. Thus, if you happen to make large credit card purchases in specific niche categories like Education or Healthcare/Childcare, then the 3% cash back may be attractive. Otherwise, you may be better off with a flat 2% cash back on everything with no annual fee, especially given that HMB will charge a $60 annual fee after the first year.

More significant to me was the Savings Tier Boost. As I’m already at the 3% APY tier, earning an additional 0.5% APY could be worth up to hundreds of dollars a year. $10,000 at 0.50% APY would be another $50 a year, almost covering that eventual $60 annual fee. $50,000 at 0.5% APY would be $250 in additional interest per year. $100,000 at 0.5% APY would be $500 in additional interest per year. Definitely a nice ongoing perk to encourage me to use their bank and credit card frequently.

However, I just noticed this line in their fine print about the Saving Tier Boost promo: “Offer expires December 31, 2021.” That was a surprise. I don’t like the idea of promoting something as a headline credit card feature when you already plan on having it expire in less than 7 months. I do hope they extend it, as without this feature I would not have applied for this card.

Bottom line. The HM Bradley credit card offers a unique set of perks that currently mesh really well with their banking product. Be aware that you must maintain an certain minimum monthly direct deposit into their HM Bradley checking account in order to be invited to apply (roughly $2,500 a month for me). Before applying, be aware that the Savings Tier Boost feature is set to end on December 31, 2021.

My Money Blog has partnered with CardRatings and may receive a commission from card issuers. Some or all of the card offers that appear on this site are from advertisers and may impact how and where card products appear on the site. MyMoneyBlog.com does not include all card companies or all available card offers. All opinions expressed are the author’s alone, and has not been provided nor approved by any of the companies mentioned.

MyMoneyBlog.com is also a member of the Amazon Associate Program, and if you click through to Amazon and make a purchase, I may earn a small commission. Thank you for your support.


Gold Delta SkyMiles American Express – 70,000 Miles Limited-Time Offer + Annual Fee Waived First Year

My Money Blog has partnered with CardRatings and may receive a commission from card issuers. Some or all of the card offers that appear on this site are from advertisers and may impact how and where card products appear on the site. MyMoneyBlog.com does not include all card companies or all available card offers. All opinions expressed are the author’s alone.

New limited-time offer. The Delta SkyMiles Gold American Express can be a useful credit card if you fly on Delta even once or twice per year due to the free first checked baggage perk. Right now, they are running a limited-time offer. Highlights:

  • Limited Time Offer: 70,000 Bonus Miles after spending $2,000 in purchases on your new Card in your first 3 months. Offer expires 4/13/2022.
  • 70,000 Skymiles is worth at least $700 in Delta airfare. With this card, you get a minimum value out of your Skymiles via the “Pay with Miles” option. 70,000 Skymiles can reduce the price of your Delta ticket by $700 at the very least. (5,000 mile = $50 minimum redemption.) You can still book traditional award tickets and possibly get better value.
  • $$100 Delta Flight Credit: After you spend $10,000 in purchases on your card in a calendar year, receive a Credit to use toward future travel.
  • First checked bag free. Delta now charges $30 for the first checked bag, each way. That means this perk is worth $60 per person each roundtrip. For a family of four, this perk is worth $240 per person each roundtrip.
  • Annual fee is waived for the first year, then $99. (See Rates and Fees)

Here is the new rewards structure on card spend:

  • 2X miles at restaurants worldwide, including takeout and delivery.
  • 2X miles at U.S. supermarkets.
  • 2X miles on Delta purchases. 2 miles for every dollar spent on eligible purchases made directly with Delta.
  • 1 miles per dollar spent on all other purchases.

It is best to apply for this card during a limited-time offer, as you can only get the welcome bonus one per card version:

Welcome offer not available to applicants who have or have had this or previous versions of this Card. We may also consider the number of American Express Cards you have opened and closed as well as other factors in making a decision on your welcome offer eligibility.

I will be adding this limited-time offer to the Top 10 Best Credit Card Bonus Offers.

My Money Blog has partnered with CardRatings and may receive a commission from card issuers. Some or all of the card offers that appear on this site are from advertisers and may impact how and where card products appear on the site. MyMoneyBlog.com does not include all card companies or all available card offers. All opinions expressed are the author’s alone, and has not been provided nor approved by any of the companies mentioned.

MyMoneyBlog.com is also a member of the Amazon Associate Program, and if you click through to Amazon and make a purchase, I may earn a small commission. Thank you for your support.


Hotels.com Rewards Visa Card Review: 2 Free Reward Nights (Worth up to $250)

My Money Blog has partnered with CardRatings and may receive a commission from card issuers. Some or all of the card offers that appear on this site are from advertisers and may impact how and where card products appear on the site. MyMoneyBlog.com does not include all card companies or all available card offers. All opinions expressed are the author’s alone.

The Hotels.com Rewards Visa credit card is a no-annual-fee travel rewards credit card for folks who don’t have loyalty to a specific hotel chain. Instead, you earn free nights from the Hotels.com loyalty program (detail below). Right now, they are running a limited-time offer for new cardholders – 2 free rewards nights worth $250 total ($125 max value each). Here are the highlights:

  • Limited Time Offer: Get 2 reward nights worth $250 total (max $125 per night)*, when you spend $1,000 on purchases in the first 3 months. *Excludes taxes and fees. If a night costs less than $125, you won’t get the difference.
  • Collect 1 stamp each time you spend $500 on purchases with your card. You also get 1 stamp for every night you stay at any eligible property booked on Hotels.com. When you collect 10 stamps, you’ll get 1 reward night to redeem on future bookings through Hotels.com. Choose from over 500,000 properties in 200+ countries around the world.
  • Free Hotels.com Reward Silver tier status for the first 12 months, including perks such as free breakfast, airport transfers, free WiFi and more at select properties.
  • Pay your monthly cell phone bill with your card and get up to $600 protection against damage or theft (subject to a $25 deductible).
  • No annual fee.

Bonus Rewards Nights details. The redemption value of each bonus reward night as part of this sign-up bonus is limited to $125 per night. If the night costs less than $125, you don’t get any refund. If the night costs more than $125, you just pay any difference. Note the following fine print about how it doesn’t cover taxes and fees. The limited-time offer is for 2 free nights, but the standard offer is only 1 free night.

If you choose a reward night room, apartment, or other equivalent accommodation that costs more than $125, you pay the difference and you are responsible for taxes, fees, and other charges. If you choose a room, apartment, or other equivalent accommodation that costs less than $125, the redemption value of the bonus reward night is limited to the cost of the accommodation before taxes, fees, and other charges. You cannot combine the bonus rewards nights’ values or apply the difference to any other reward night. There will be no cash refunds for any residual amounts.

Hotels.com Rewards program overview. This hotel program tries to make it more straightforward to get a free hotel night. Each night you book through Hotels.com at an eligible property, you get a “stamp”. Collect 10 stamps and you get a free night. The value of that reward night is based on the average cost of the nights you booked. So if you booked all $100 per night hotels, then the free night would be worth $100. If you booked all $500 per night hotels, then the free night would be worth $500. Fair enough.

The rewards from this credit card are meant to mix in seamlessly with your paid hotel nights. Every $500 you spend on this card, you will get another “stamp”, as if you stayed a night at a $110 per night hotel. So if you charged $5,000 on this card over time, via credit card spending alone you would have collected 10 stamps at $110/night and earned a free Reward Night worth $110. That works out to 2.2% back on purchases (110 divided by 5,000) when redeemed for a hotel night reward at full value or higher (just pay any difference).

The stamps also help you get “VIP status” with Hotels.com. Their Silver tier is free for the first year with this card, but otherwise requires 10 stamps in a year and includes perks like price matching, free breakfast, and free Wi-Fi at participating VIP Access properties. Their Gold tier requires 30 stamps in a year and includes free room upgrades at VIP Access properties.

Pros: Hotel room flexibility and no annual fee. An important factor is that this free night applies at at any of 500,000 hotel rooms worldwide, not just restricted to a specific chain and whatever inventory they decide to release. As long as there is a hotel room that is being sold for $110 and you have a $110 Reward night, you can book it, even if it is not a “standard room”. This card also has no annual fee. Wells Fargo is the issuer, which may make it easier to qualify for if you already have cards from the other major issuers like Chase and American Express.

Cons: Not enough premium over cash. Even though this card offers the equivalent of 2.2% back in value towards a very flexible hotel room, it is still not as easy to redeem as cash back. So you have to compare with straightforward 2% cash back, or possibly getting better than 2.2% value from a specific co-branded hotel credit cards like Hyatt or Hilton. If I was already a Hotels.com Rewards program user, then I might take the 2.2% value as it is even better than a 2% cash back card. If I was a Hyatt loyalist or didn’t stay at hotels frequently, then it wouldn’t be worth the added complications. When you book a hotel through Hotels.com (or similar site like Priceline or Expedia), you don’t earn chain-specific loyalty points on the stay.

Bottom line. The Hotels.com Rewards Visa credit card is a great fit if you already use the Hotels.com Rewards program instead of being loyal to a specific chain. You can earn 1 stamp per $500 spent on the card, which will help you get free hotel nights at a solid rate (2.2% value back) and also help you reach the next tier of VIP Rewards status. The limited-time sign-up bonus of 2 free nights worth up to $250 value is relatively strong for a card with no annual fee.

My Money Blog has partnered with CardRatings and may receive a commission from card issuers. Some or all of the card offers that appear on this site are from advertisers and may impact how and where card products appear on the site. MyMoneyBlog.com does not include all card companies or all available card offers. All opinions expressed are the author’s alone, and has not been provided nor approved by any of the companies mentioned.

MyMoneyBlog.com is also a member of the Amazon Associate Program, and if you click through to Amazon and make a purchase, I may earn a small commission. Thank you for your support.


Citi Custom Cash Card Review: 5% Cash Back On $500 For Single Category Each Month

My Money Blog has partnered with CardRatings and may receive a commission from card issuers. Some or all of the card offers that appear on this site are from advertisers and may impact how and where card products appear on the site. MyMoneyBlog.com does not include all card companies or all available card offers. All opinions expressed are the author’s alone.

The Citi Custom Cash Card is a newly-launched rewards credit card which offers 5% cash back on your top eligible spending category up to $500 spent each month. This card will again compete against the other 5% cash back cards on the market, as did their now-discontinued Citi Dividend card. Highlights:

  • Earn $200 cash back after you spend $1,500 on purchases in the first 6 months of account opening. This bonus offer will be fulfilled as 20,000 ThankYou(R) Points, which can be redeemed for $200 cash back.
  • 5% cash back (5X Thank You points) on your top eligible spending category up to $500 spent each monthly billing cycle. 1% cash back on all other purchases.
  • No rotating bonus categories to sign up for – as your spending changes each billing cycle, your earn adjusts automatically when you spend in any of the eligible categories.
  • Citi will only issue one Citi Custom Cash(SM) Card account per person.
  • No annual fee.

This is a new card, but note the following:

Citi will only issue one Citi Custom CashSM Card account per person. You will qualify for the bonus offer only if you have not received a bonus offer for opening a new Citi Custom CashSM Card in the past 48 months.

List of eligible categories. Taken from their fine print:

  • Restaurants. Includes purchases at cafes, bars, lounges and fast food restaurants. Excludes purchases at bakeries, caterers, restaurants located inside another business (such as hotels, stores, stadiums, grocery stores, or warehouse clubs) and third party dining delivery services.
  • Gas Stations. Excludes gasoline purchases at warehouse clubs, discount stores, convenience stores or other merchants that do not use the gas station merchant category code.
  • Grocery Stores. Includes purchases at supermarkets, meat/seafood stores, dairy stores, bakeries, and miscellaneous food/convenience stores. Excludes purchases at general merchandise/discount superstores; wholesale/warehouse clubs; candy, nut and confectionery stores. Purchases made at online supermarkets or with grocery delivery services also do not qualify if the merchant does not classify itself as a supermarket by using the supermarket merchant category code.
  • Select Travel. Includes airline, hotel, cruise line and travel agency purchases. Excludes timeshares, boat leases and rentals, campgrounds and trailer parks, and real estate agencies.
  • Select Transit. Includes car rentals, ferries, commuter railways, subways, taxis/limousines/car services, passenger railways, bridge and road tolls, parking lots/garages, bus lines, and motor home and recreational vehicle rentals. Excludes bike/scooter rentals, auto clubs and insurance companies.
  • Select Streaming Services. Includes the following cable, satellite, and streaming providers: Amazon Prime Video, Amazon Music, Apple Music, CBS All Access, Disney+, AT&T TV NOW, ESPN+, fuboTV, HBO Max, NBA League Pass, Netflix, Pandora, Showtime, Sling TV, Spotify, Starz, SiriusXM, Vudu, YouTube Red, YouTube TV, and Tidal.
  • Drugstores
  • Home Improvement Stores
  • Fitness Clubs
  • Live Entertainment

Thank You points. As with the Double Cash card, this card technically earns Thank You points, which you can then convert to a statement credit or direct deposit into your bank account. So you really earn “5 ThankYou Points for each $1 you spend in your highest spend category each billing cycle up to the first $500 spent in that category.” 2,500 Thank You points = $25 statement credit, and so on.

You can’t convert your points to airline miles with this card, but if you also have the Citi Premier Card, that card does allow you to convert miles in various programs on a 1:1 basis including JetBlue, Cathay Pacific, EVA Air, Etihad, Flying Blue by Air France and KLM, Singapore Airlines, and Thai Airways. For example, with the Premier card, you could convert 20,000 TY points into 20,000 Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer miles.

My take. This is a minor variation of the other cards that offer 5% cash back on rotating categories every quarter. Those cards usually offer 5% cash back on a couple of specific categories on up to $1,500 of spending each quarter (3 months). This makes the maximum cash back via 5% categories the same: $25 a month, or $300 a year.

As wit the other 5% cards, since you only earn 1% cash back on every other purchase, you can easily get better rewards elsewhere. For example, if you had the Citi Double Cash card, you could be earning 2% cash back on every other purchase. You could put all your small purchases on the Citi Rewards+ card, which rounds up rewards to the nearest 10 points. If Citi really wanted to shake things up, they would have combined the 5% cash back on up to $500 and the 2% cash back on everything else, instead of making us keep two different cards going. That would have been a slam dunk.

As a rewards optimizer, the best use for this card would be to only use it for a specific category all year long (up to $500 a month). If you wished you could just pick a category and just stick with it all year, this card lets you do that. You could put only gas on the card. You could put only restaurants on the card, and so on. Use another card for your other purchases, even a 1.5% cash back card is better. Of course, Citi is hoping you won’t do that, making your overall cash back rate much lower, possibly even lower than 2%.

Bottom line. The Citi Custom Cash Card is a newly-launched rewards credit card which offers 5% cash back on your top eligible spending category up to $500 spent each month. Since you only earn 1% cash back on everything else, you should pair it with a 2% cash back card like the Citi Double Cash card.

My Money Blog has partnered with CardRatings and may receive a commission from card issuers. Some or all of the card offers that appear on this site are from advertisers and may impact how and where card products appear on the site. MyMoneyBlog.com does not include all card companies or all available card offers. All opinions expressed are the author’s alone, and has not been provided nor approved by any of the companies mentioned.

MyMoneyBlog.com is also a member of the Amazon Associate Program, and if you click through to Amazon and make a purchase, I may earn a small commission. Thank you for your support.


PFS Buyers Club: NEW US Mint Coin Arbitrage Opportunity ($290+ Net Profit)

My Money Blog has partnered with CardRatings and may receive a commission from card issuers. Some or all of the card offers that appear on this site are from advertisers and may impact how and where card products appear on the site. MyMoneyBlog.com does not include all card companies or all available card offers. All opinions expressed are the author’s alone.

(Update: This 5/24 opportunity is no longer available. You can still sign up for an account and be alerted of the next opportunity roughly 48 hours prior.)

New deal May 24th, 2021. The US Mint regularly releases limited-edition coins to collectors. The coin sets are often limited by household. PFS Buyers Club is a website broker that recruits regular folks to buy their allotted coin set with a set markup amount, with the agreement that they will sell only to PFS Buyers Club. For example, you might pay $300 for a coin and they’ll agree to pay you $350 for it – a fixed profit of $50.

On Monday, May 24th at 12:00 pm Noon Eastern Time, there is a new guaranteed profit opportunity. You can buy up to 10 sets of two different limited-edition Morgan Silver dollars. You can buy 10 of each coin at $85 each plus $4.95 shipping, which should cost you $854.95. PFS will pay you $1000 ($145.05 commission) for those 10 coins. If you do this for both of the two sets, you will spend $1,709.90 and get paid $2,000 for a total profit of $290.10. One minor wrinkle on this offer is that they don’t expect to ship until October, but they also won’t charge your card until October.

Note that the eventual value of the set may exceed that elsewhere – you may be able to get $120 for each coin on eBay, for example – but if you want to make that bet, don’t promise to sell to PFS Buyers Club. Just buy it on your own and try to sell it yourself. Keep in mind that eBay seller fees can be quite high, and you’ll be responsible for other costs like the proper shipping with adequate insurance. PFS Buyers Club will send you a free prepaid mailing label (including insurance) and pay you via eCheck, paper check, or PayPal.

You’ll also earn credit card rewards on your purchase (worth another $34.20 here at 2% cash back), or also possibly satisfying the requirements for some $500+ value credit card bonuses. This makes the total net profit safely over $300. Note the October wrinkle above though for timing purposes. (Added: There is concern that American Express and Fidelity credit cards might not award points on US Mint purchases, so to be safe I would use alternative cards.)

My past experience. I used PFS back in March for the first time, and everything went smoothly and I was paid my money in full without issue. The amount of communication was great and better than expected; I was kept up-to-date every step of the way. The total time commitment was about 30 minutes for $400+ profit, including the stop at the Fedex store to drop off the box with prepaid label. The eCheck option worked great – I printed the check out at home and deposited immediately via mobile app. PFS has a very solid reputation online, and I referred several blog readers last time and did not receive a single complaint. (Some folks were unable to buy the coins from the US Mint itself.)

Here are the two coins: Morgan 2021 Silver Dollar w/ O Mark and Morgan 2021 Silver Dollar w/ CC Mark. Here is a direct quote of the deal text:

On Monday, May 24th, at 12:00PM ET the US Mint will be releasing two limited edition Morgan Silver Dollars. Each has a purchase limit of ten per household, so you’re able to buy ten of each. The cost of each Silver Dollar is $85.00, and when adding the $4.95 shipping charge, each order will total $854.95.

You will have each order shipped to your own house or office and then ship it to PFS Buyers Club with a prepaid shipping label that we will provide for you. Please note: The Mint only intends on shipping these “beginning in October”. They will not charge your credit card until they ship.

PFS will be offering a commission of $145.05 for each order for a total payout of $1,000.00. To be clear, you have the opportunity to place two orders of $854.95 each or $1,709.90 in total, and we’ll be paying you $2,000.00 for a total profit of $290.10! This is also a great opportunity to earn valuable points/miles on your credit cards, as well as meet any spending thresholds..

If you want to jump on this, you can sign up to join PFS Buyers Club here. Sometimes these deals fill up, so I would sign-up and opt-in sooner rather than later. You can still opt out of the deal until an hour prior to the coins going on sale. They will provide very detailed instructions. Follow them carefully, and it was pretty easy for me as a first-time buyer. If you use that link, I will receive a referral fee if you successfully sell your coin for a profit. Thanks for those that use it, and for those that already used it last time! I will be opting in myself as well.

My Money Blog has partnered with CardRatings and may receive a commission from card issuers. Some or all of the card offers that appear on this site are from advertisers and may impact how and where card products appear on the site. MyMoneyBlog.com does not include all card companies or all available card offers. All opinions expressed are the author’s alone, and has not been provided nor approved by any of the companies mentioned.

MyMoneyBlog.com is also a member of the Amazon Associate Program, and if you click through to Amazon and make a purchase, I may earn a small commission. Thank you for your support.


Chase Co-Branded Credit Cards: Free 12 Months of DoorDash DashPass

My Money Blog has partnered with CardRatings and may receive a commission from card issuers. Some or all of the card offers that appear on this site are from advertisers and may impact how and where card products appear on the site. MyMoneyBlog.com does not include all card companies or all available card offers. All opinions expressed are the author’s alone.

Chase has expanded their partnership with DoorDash (and Caviar) to offer free DashPass membership for 12 months to co-branded Chase credit cards. DashPass is a subscription service that offers a $0 delivery fee and reduced service fees for subscribers when ordering $12 or more from any DashPass-eligible restaurant (look for the checkmark). The regular price is $9.99/month. Eligible cards include:

  • Chase Southwest cards
  • Chase Marriott cards
  • Chase United cards
  • Chase Disney cards
  • Chase IHG cards
  • Chase British Airways cards
  • Chase Aer Lingus cards
  • Chase Iberia cards
  • Chase World of Hyatt cards

You must activate here. Note that after those free 12 months, you’ll automatically be charged $9.99/month for continued membership unless you cancel DashPass.

If you have a Chase Sapphire Reserve or Sapphire Preferred credit card, you can also get free DashPass benefits on eligible orders for at least 12 months (and a maximum of 24 months) after activation. Sapphire Reserve cardholders also get $60 in statement credits towards DoorDash in 2021.

If you have a Chase Freedom or Slate credit card, you can free DashPass benefits on eligible orders for 3 months after activation. After the first 3 months, the user will be auto-enrolled for the next 9 months in DashPass with a 50% discount applied to the then current membership rate. You can cancel at any time.

If you are new customer to DoorDash and sign up via my DoorDash referral link, you will get $10 off your first 3 DoorDash orders over $15 ($30 total savings). I will get food credits as well. Thanks if you use it!

My Money Blog has partnered with CardRatings and may receive a commission from card issuers. Some or all of the card offers that appear on this site are from advertisers and may impact how and where card products appear on the site. MyMoneyBlog.com does not include all card companies or all available card offers. All opinions expressed are the author’s alone, and has not been provided nor approved by any of the companies mentioned.

MyMoneyBlog.com is also a member of the Amazon Associate Program, and if you click through to Amazon and make a purchase, I may earn a small commission. Thank you for your support.


U.S. Bank Altitude Connect Visa Signature Card Review: 50,000 Point Bonus + 4X Points on Travel/Gas

My Money Blog has partnered with CardRatings and may receive a commission from card issuers. Some or all of the card offers that appear on this site are from advertisers and may impact how and where card products appear on the site. MyMoneyBlog.com does not include all card companies or all available card offers. All opinions expressed are the author’s alone.

US Bank continues its credit card expansion with the new U.S. Bank Altitude Connect Visa Signature Card, a premium travel rewards card which has a headline feature of 4X points on travel and gas stations, plus 2X points on dining and grocery stores. There is also a launch offer of 50,000 bonus points worth $500 cash via statement credits. Here are the details:

  • 50,000 bonus points after you spend $2,000 in the first 120 days. 50,000 points can be redeemed for a $500 statement credit.
  • 4X points per dollar spent on travel and gas stations.
  • 2X points per dollar spent on grocery stores, grocery delivery, dining and streaming services.
  • 1 point per dollar spent on all other eligible net purchases.
  • Up to $100 towards TSA PreCheck® or Global Entry® application fee reimbursement via statement credit, once every four years.
  • $30 annual streaming credit. $30 credit for annual streaming service purchases such as Netflix and Spotify®.
  • Cell phone protection. Up to $600 reimbursement if your cell phone is stolen or damaged when you pay your monthly cell phone bill with your card.
  • No foreign transaction fees
  • $0 annual fee the first year, $95/year thereafter.

$30 annual streaming bonus details. If you charge at least one eligible video or music streaming service ever month onto this card, you’ll get 2X points per dollar spent, and also a $30 streaming service credit after 11 months of streaming service purchases. Eligible services include Netflix, HBO Max, Hulu, Disney+, Sling TV, YouTube TV, Vudu, AT&T TV Now, Apple Music, Google Music, Spotify, Amazon Music Unlimited, Tidal, SiriusXM, and Pandora. A clever little incentive to keep you actively using this card.

An automatic statement credit of $30 per 12-month period will be applied to your U.S. Bank Altitude Connect Visa Signature Card Account within 2 statement billing cycles following 11 consecutive calendar months of eligible streaming service purchases, such as Netflix, Hulu, Apple Music, if the Account is in good standing (open and able to use).

Overall thoughts. Even beyond the attractive sign-up bonus, this card looks very solid. Most of the major spending categories are covered by the 2X/4X tiers: travel, gas stations, grocery stores, dining out, and streaming. The TSA PreCheck fee reimbursement, $30 annual streaming credit, and cell phone protection also add ongoing value. The annual fee is waived during the first year, so there is no upfront cost to trying this card out.

Based on the rewards structure and annual fee, this cards will compete directly with the highly-popular Chase Sapphire Preferred card. Note that earning Ultimate Rewards points may be more attractive to those that can maximize the value of airline miles and/or hotel points. However, if you prefer to redeem for straight cash (statement credits), this US Bank card has higher multipliers on travel and gas stations, and thus likely higher rewards when comparing cash back amounts.

You may also compare this with the U.S. Bank Altitude Reserve Credit Card, which has more rewards but also a much higher annual fee.

Bottom line. The new U.S. Bank Altitude Connect Visa Signature Card offers a competitive 4X points on travel and gas stations, plus 2X points on dining out and grocery store purchases. Right now, new applicants can score a sign-up bonus worth $500 with the annual fee waived during the first year. This is definitely going on the Top 10 Best Credit Card Bonus Offers, especially as it is one of the few that I don’t already have.

My Money Blog has partnered with CardRatings and may receive a commission from card issuers. Some or all of the card offers that appear on this site are from advertisers and may impact how and where card products appear on the site. MyMoneyBlog.com does not include all card companies or all available card offers. All opinions expressed are the author’s alone, and has not been provided nor approved by any of the companies mentioned.

MyMoneyBlog.com is also a member of the Amazon Associate Program, and if you click through to Amazon and make a purchase, I may earn a small commission. Thank you for your support.