Yeah, earning free money off 0% balance transfers is great, but those cards go straight from the envelope to the lockbox. So what’s in MY wallet? Only the best rewards cards, of course:
This entry used to be about the Citi Dividend Card, but since it is no longer available I have replacing it with the Citi Driver’s Edge MasterCard (discussed here) which has a similar but not identical rewards structure.
Also in my wallet are the MBNA/Fidelity Investments 529 College Rewards Card with 2% cashback towards a 529, and the Starwood Preferred Guest American Express Card, which is a great airline/hotel rewards card.
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Just curious.. do you know how much cashback or cash equivalent you earned from these credit cards annually?
(I am referring to cash back/rewards and not the interest you earned from 0% balance transfer)
great post. I also highly recommend the citi dividen.. its one of the better cash back cards out there. when my current 0% BTs run out and paid off, I’ll apply for the citi dividen right away.. hopefully before they change the program’s structure.
Great post! I’ll be looking for the next parts and will likely switch credit cards as a result. Thanks!
Hi Anon,
I’m not exactly sure because the Starwood Cards give you points, which I feel are worth about 2 cents/mile at least.
But if you are only looking at cash back, I’d say somewhere around $200-300 a year. But of course it depends on what large purchases I have that year on a credit card (furniture, moving, etc.)
Why the focus on 0% credit cards? A lot of the sites seem to be focusing on how to use them. I guess I’m just to risk adverse to do it. We don’t maintain any credit card debt, but rather focus our time on our investments. I’m probably missing something here.
http://elym.blogspot.com
I’m not sure exactly, but for me it’s easy money, takes less than an hour to manage for upwards of a few hundred dollars a year, and there’s almost zero risk as I keep the borrowed money in an FDIC-insured account. Everything is managed by online bill-pay, and I simply pay it all off before the 0% period is over. Your credit is dented slightly, I admit, but it was worth it for me since I wasn’t borderline and shopping for a home loan.
I have the card – check out the Merchant Network program they offer. This with program, you can apparently earn 5% (or close to it) at many online and retail stores outside of the normal gas station/drug store/supermarket restriction. Even better – dollars earned with these select Merchants don’t count against the $300 year limit. There is no reward limit!
Carlos – Thanks for the heads up. I heard about this program before during my 0% period and didn’t sign up and promptly forgot about it. The store selection isn’t the greatest, but it includes Hollywood video and others, and it’s nice to have automatic rebates. 5% back on Amazon.com gift certificates sounds great too.
Hi Jon,
Thanks for the tips about credit cards. However, I own about 6 credit cards already. I’d like to apply for the cards you use here. Do you think it’s okay to apply more credit cards, just to get the benefit? Should I close my other credit cards that is unused? I have no debt at all though.
there’s usually little benefit in closing your credit card accounts.. even if you don’t use them. (unless they have an annual fee, if so, no reason to keep them if you dont use them)
the reason is that this temporary lowers your overall credit limit, and thus lower your debt to credit limit ratio. (although you dont have any debt right now)
regardless, you’re getting rid of positive history, so that will cut down a few scores too.
generally the less amount of credit cards (or open revolving accounts) the better, especially when it comes time to apply for larger loans such as mortgages. those lenders view it as, the more available credit, the more risk.
still, you should be fine in getting more cards, especially if the ones you’re using now dont have any great benefits. you can close those unnecessary credit lines later on if you do need to apply for larger credit.
there’s really no magic number in the amount of cards to determine good credit. some have many and still have great credit, while some have little and horrible credit. there’s many factors involved.
basically, if your credit is fine right now.. and you’re not planning for any big purchases, there’s little harm in applying for new credit cards.
I have the Citi Dividend Card as well the 5% cash back one. However, I have mainly been getting 1% cash back although i mainly use it as a gas card. Is there a set amount of balance i need to have to get the full blown 5% cash back (like the Chase cash back card)? Anyone know?
more free money from citibank: I enrolled for their credit protector service- normally a rip, but they have been sending me rebate vouchers, $10 a month for almost a year, with no end in sight! The service charge is based on your month end balance, my charge averages less than 2 bucks… check it out- once again they figure most won’t bother with the paperwork.
Great Blog. Thanks and keep it up. I have also been using credit cards for everything and paying off the balance in full every month. Only thing, I haven’t done is taking out cash at 0% and putting it in a CD or something because in doing so might affect in getting a BIG/ger LOAN. So folks who do this might want to reconsider this.
Although right now I was posting to get you guys free $20 from discover card.
http://www.discovercard.com/autobillpay
You should check out the AT&T and Chase Rewards Cards. Both have 5% on gas, supermarkets, and drugstores. With the $300/year cap, some of us need more than one card.
I know this is an old post these days, but… is there an annual fee associated with having the Fidelity 529 account? I signed up the other day, and I swear I saw mention of it somewhere…
Please re-read Part 2 – I mentioned it – you must contribute $50/month to the 529, or pay a $30 annual fee.
Nice Blog! I just wanted to say that I do exactly the same as you. I ONLY carry my Citi Dividend Platinum for 5% cash back at the grocery store and my AMEX Starwood for everywhere else, plus I have my Debit card for when I have to go to the ATM or need cash. Those are the two best credit cards for me and I pay them off every month so I don?t ever have to worry about APR or other fees (besides the small annual AMEX fee).
Whats in my Wallet?
Lip liner instead of a Pen!
(need to look good right now?)
Yes I need my credit cards!
Bank Cards! Yes Library Card!
University of Toronto Card
Ryerson University Card
Yes Fitness One Card
and of course my label of my name
and address (in case lost)
Maria,
I would advise you to put your phone number in your wallet instead of your address (for the purpose of allowing people to return your wallet to you if found). Primarily, because I think this reduces the risk of identity theft. Sort of for the same reason that we’re advised not to attach our address to our house keys. It also seems to me that with a phone number they could get in touch with you faster.
Thanks alot Mario. I am just going to do that!
I am always so frightened if I loose my wallet.
Advice for people! Use a little chain where you
attach you wallet zipper to your purse zipper.
Because You know what! I like to think alot too!
and sometimes thinking too much makes you forget
your wallet. It’s better to take my advice then to be sorry later. Not everyone will care to return a wallet to anyone. Some people like to see other people have a hard time because they are having a hard time. They might want to steal!
Curious to hear your thoughts on this. I use the American Express Blue Cash card – which gives 5% on gas, drug stores, and super markets, 1.5% on everything else. You need to spend more than $6000 a year, but since I pay all my bills with a credit card – this seems like the best single card deal. Let me know if I’m missing something and thanks for your advice.
Hi Matt, you card may be the best for high spenders, due to the tiers. On the first $6,500 in purchases, you are only getting 1% on Everyday and 0.5% on everything else.
Lets say you spend 15% of your overall purchases on ‘Everyday’ stuff. Compared to this card, at $6,500 in annual spending you are losing out on $67 in cash back. With this example, in order to get more cash back than with this Citi card, you would need to spend about $22,000 a year on your Amex card. If you charge more than that a year and shop at places that take Amex, then I would stick with your card.
(This is ignoring the fact that some grocery stores don’t take American Express, as well as various other places. I think you also only get paid once a year.
)
I have been following your blog on and off. Great source for
entry level finance. Today after reading this post, I just
applied for the chase card with 10k points as bonus.
Thanks.
BTW I have close to about 85k delta skymiles (thanks to
my company !) and not planning to travel anytime soon.
‘m wondering if you have any innovative suggestions
to convert these miles into cash ?
ram (this is really off topic here):
I’ve never tried this, but why not create an ad on Craigslist to “sell” your miles to someone who needs a Delta ticket? You “buy” their ticket with your miles and, and they pay you $ for buying their ticket.
How much you earn on the mile depends on how much the ticket they want costs, and how much “discount” you’re willing to give below the actual ticket cost.
With 85K miles, in theory you could sell 3 domestic tickets, or perhaps 1 or 2 international tickets depending on the destination. Even if you heavily discounted a domestic ticket, e.g. selling 3 domestic tickets for $200 each, you’ve turned miles you may never use into $600. More if you can find someone willing to pay more.
Not sure if this would work with Delta, but with my American miles, I can purchase an “award” ticket with my miles for anyone. Not sure how you’d work out the payment logistics either (maybe do this with trusted friends or family only?)…
Given the state of Delta’s business, I’d try to either use the miles or convert them into cold hard cash as soon as possible.
Just an idea.
I’ve been looking at the Citi Dividend Preferred to get 5% cash back for gas, drug stores & groceries. And Emigrant Bank’s credit card which offers 1.4% on ‘any other’ purchases (deposited twice a year) directly into your Emigrant Direct Savings Account. Since I have an account with them, this sounds ideal. Any downsides?
The main downside is that you need to keep $10,000 in your Emigrant account at all times to get that 1.4%. What if Emigrant rates start to lag other banks or you stop liking it for any other reason? Or what if you need the cash for something else? Too many strings attached for me, personally.
Jonathan,
Thanks for your reply. I noticed the 10K that needs to be kept in my Emigrant account which I’m not too concerned about. I can always switch to another card if rates lag (Emigrant historically seems to be very competitive with other online banks) or if I have an emergency and need to dip below 10K. Another option I have is a card through USAA that gives 1.25% with an unlimited cash-back rewards program. Downside with USAA is the rebate check is cut annually.
Thanks to everyone else! This is a great site!
That’s cool, just note for the Emigrant Direct card that you may lose your 1.4% retroactively if you drop below $10k. They pay out every six months, so if after six months your drop under $10k, *ALL* your purchases for the last 6 months will only get 0.50% cashback. Just be carefully not to move out of Emigrant before you get paid!
Hi everyone,
Here’s a bit of interesting information about the Citi Dividend Platinum Select MasterCard. I learned today that there is a possibility you can get *two* Dividend cards to increase your possible rewards limit from $300 to $600. Here’s how I found out:
I currently have a Citi Dividend Platinum Select MasterCard. I also had (until just today) a Citi AAdvantage MasterCard (American Airlines miles reward card). I just replaced my AAdvantage card with the Starwood Preferred Guest card because of it’s cheaper annual fee & more flexible rewards.
When I called today to cancel my AAdvantage card, they started pulling out the stops to keep my business. They offered either 4000 bonus miles or to credit $50 to my account to offset the annual fee, I declined both (the Starwood card gets me 4000 bonus points for signing up & has no fee the first year anyway). Then they asked me what other cards I had, and I told them about the Citi Dividend card.
Here’s the interesting part.
I don’t remember the exact words the Citi rep used, but she told me since they were going to lose my business on the AAdvantage card, she could “convert” my AAdvantage card that I was canceling to a *second* Citi Dividend card with no annual fee. The obvious benefit here being that this effectively doubles the potential reward limit to $600.
I chose not to do this because I don’t expect to exceed the $300 cap by much, but this might be useful for those of you who do. Not sure if you have to threaten to cancel one card to get this deal or if you can just apply for a second card.
In any case I thought I’d share this interesting information. Apologies if this is common knowledge (it wasn’t for me).
Seems like a great. Whats the credit score you need to get this card . is 720 good enough .
Jonathan, what’s the best card for cash back period?
Pradeep – 720 should be plenty. I would say you need above average credit, but it doesn’t have to be rock-star quality.
Barry – Well, like I talk about in this post I use two credit cards primarily – this Citi Dividend 5% one and the MBNA Fidelity 2%. If you’re only going to pick one, it would depend on your specific spending habits. If you travel a lot then the AmEx card I list third is also a great card.
Jonathan, I just signed up for the card, and I think they changed the offer – the 5% cash back in supermarkets and drug stores is only for the first year. After that it’s 1% for everything. Not a big deal as I would just sign on to a different card that has the 5% offer, but it’s something to be aware of.
Barry – I don’t see anything in the Terms and Conditions at all about that, the 5% cashback is the trademark of the “Dividend” card. Where did you get the impression that it was only for 1 year?
The Citi Simplicity Rewards card gives you 5 “ThankYou Points” for every $1 spent at gas stations and drug stores for the first 12 months only, then 1 point per dollar after that. Maybe this is being confused with the Dividend card. I haven’t heard anything about Citi changing the terms on the Dividend card.
Have you considered the Amex TrueEarnings card? It gives you 3% back at restaurants, 2% on traveling, and 1% everywhere else. There is an anual fee but it is waived if you maintain your Costco membership. Seems like it would be a good balance for the Citi Dividend Platinum Select card… You can still save your Fidelity card for 2% back on other things not covered by these other two cards.
Card link
The Coscto Card is okay, but the only way it beats my 2% on everything card is getting that 3% at restaurants. And I already get 3% back at restaurants with my Citi Professional Card (+ $100 Gift Card to start off).
Also you can get up to 5% back with the Citi mtvU card. (Many people approved not even in college)
So in the end, if you’re going to get another card for extra $ back at restaurants, there are a lot of other options.
Hey Guys,
new to the blog. absolutely love it. i have a quick question, im currently a college student and i already applied to the citi dividend platinum select card.
however i just found out they offer the same exact card for students. what’s the difference? any unique benefits?
also what is the best credit card option for a student just starting to build his credit?
I have a question on the 5% cash back for gas, drug stores & groceries. Do the following stores qualify?
For groceries : Walmart, Kroger, Target
For drug stores: Walgreens, CVS Pharmacy.
I had received an offer long time back from some company and they said that Walmart does not qualify as a grocery store.
So on if you use your citi card at Walmart, do you get 5%?
Well, shoot. It seems like they’re no longer accepting applications for the Citi Dividend Select. I’d really prefer a cash back card to a rewards card (though i guess the Citi Preferred Rewards is still an option…) Jonathan, what would you recommend as a primary credit card in light of that? Should i wait for Citi to come out with its newest iteration of the Dividend Select, or what?
Hmm… that’s weird. This card is pretty popular, so I would imagine they would keep it around! Maybe it’ll be back in a bit. I hope so. Although Chase used to have a similar card but discontinued it as well…
You can get 6% back for a year via the Citi Driver’s Edge Card. You can get cash back for car-related expenses or convert to points for gas cards and such.
Jonathan, I just called Citi, and they said that the Citi Dividend Select card was discontinued, and they don’t have any straight cash-back card options. How sucky!
What!?
Yeah. That’s what they said…
Yep. It has disappeared from the Citi website, too. Citi Dividend Platinum Select is no more. 🙁
Haven’t received any letter from Citi, though.
Hi Jonathan, Does this mean that existing customers that have the Citi Dividend Platinum Select card will have to give the card up or is it that new customers cannot apply for it? If this applies to existing customers that will be a real bummer.
Of course it will apply to existing customers, too. If the APR is variable, why shouldn’t the cashback be? You can close it anytime.
I guess that’s the way Citi thinks. They really don’t care for having you as a long-time customer, since they know people are not loyal to credit card brands.
I hope they give us a while before they take it away from existing cardholders…I’m currently in the bonus offer for 5% on hotels and restaurants until 9/15 and I don’t want to lose that until after I go on vacation in early September 🙂
Hopefully they’ll at least roll us into another rewards program instead of dropping the account entirely. I had a MyPoints MasterCard from Citibank a few years ago, and when they decideded to drop the program they closed the account entirely (and noted it on my credit report as “Customer requested account closure” even though they discontinued the card on me).
I know you guys are solely looking at a Cash Back Card, for which I am thinking about getting the
Chase CASH PLUS Rewards MasterCard for a $50 bonus and 5% on gas, groceries, and drug stores with $300 max, or the
Chase REWARDS PLUS Visa no bonus same deal with $750 max.
But for another decent reward card what about the Citi Home Rebate Platinum Select MC with 6% on House bills, like utilities, cable and phone rebates go to your Mortgage. For a homeowner this sounds like a fantastic deal for 12 Months, then switch it to some other card Citi Card, or better yet sign up for the Diamond Preffered Card get the $100 bonus and then switch to the Home Rebate Card for the year.
What do you guys think about these cards? Do you have suggestions about something else instead?
If anybody is doing some remodeling or home repairs, you might consider the Chase Home Improvement card with 3% cash back at home improvement stores (Home Depot, lumber yards, paint stores, etc) and 1% everywhere else with a $600 per year cap.
All of the cards I wrote about in the above post have since changed.
In the meantime, the Drivers Edge Card is a reasonable solution with a 6% offer for ThankYou Points.
Driver edge with 6% back can be made even better. You also earn 1pt/ mile driven on one of your vehicle. You can only earn as many driving points as the purchase points though. Although if you drive enough, you can very well get 12% back (max 1000 yr (500 on purchases, 500 on driving). In addition once this money is converted to TY points, you can then match them with flight points (take a look at citi premier pass/premier pass elite) which should make buisiness travelers happy. Flight points are also earned in a similar manner (either 1pt/ mile traveled for elite card (75/yr annual fee) or 1pt / 3miles for no annual fee). Thus if you were a heavy buisiness traveler (airlines) and heavy driver, you could potentially earn as much as 24% back in points. Taking it to the extreme if you redeem for travel rewards like the Starwood can be, you can potentially get about $0.02 for each point. That would leave you at best 48% back value. Its a stretch, but citi does have some programs that can be used to the utmost.
When taking advantage of these offers, it would be wise to maintain a reasonable buffer between the balance and credit limit. Banks are starting to jack up rates if your credit score drops: link
I hope this practice will be a short-lived experiment that fails miserably.
Hi everyone,
I am new to the blog but so far I think it ROCKS!
I have something to add that I dont see mentioned here. I use a Sam’s Club Discover (Which is Different from the regular Discover. It’s GE credit. ) But how this card works as well as with many of the cash back card’s its a tier program.
$0- $1500 dollars gets you$.025
$1500.01-$2000.00 gets $.050
$2000.01-$2500.00 gets $.075
$2500.01-3000.00 gets 1% and so on.
I dont remember the exact numbers but you can see what I mean.
It states Really Small, that it is “UP to 2% back”
Just wanted everyone to look at thesethings when considering a new Cash back card. Unless you spend X-Amount you won’t even get the 2%.Plus on the Sam’s Discover you have to be a Plus member to actually get the 2% which is a $100 dollar a year membership fee,usually only good if you are a business member who purchases alot.Other wise you only get “Up to 1%” back.
I do know the regular Discover is also a Tier program.
Hope this helps everyone.
🙂
Does anyone know how AmEx Account Protector program works…. I think I may be unemployed due to a layoff?
CitiCard AND Captial One should be on trial for predatory practices. Both have offered balance transfers for a fee in exchange for a great interest rate on that transferred balance. They note that the payments will be applied to the lower interest transactions first.
WELL?given we have ALWAYS paid our balance off in full each month?there would not be any higher rate transactions to pay down first. However, their logic is that the purchases, which are interest free for 30-days?.ARE the higher rate activity?even if you do not carry a balance from month to month. This is a total out and out scam and the they should be investigated for such predatory practices?and closed down! NO Integrity!!! Again, that is CITI Card and Capital One?total loser companies. If you have the same complaints please join me in filing a formal complaint against these two enities. By the way?.BP Visa ran this same offer and somehow, THEY were able to simply apply the lower rate interest against the transferred balance?go figure! Switch to BPVisa ?WE DID!!!!