The Top 25 Credit Cards

(If you see any errors, please let me know. I try to keep a full list, but it’s a lot of information and I do make mistakes)

 

Significant Changes Since Last Month:
-Removed old Hyatt link.
-Added new Hyatt card.
-Frontier card was “relaunched” with some new features like spending your way to status.
-Barclays Arrival added back to the list.
-Marriott 100,000-point bonus looks like it could be ending very soon (still working for now).
-Avianca higher bonus promo code looks dead, so this one moves down the list.
-Removed Delta for now.

 

Before Playing This Game:
-Find a new hobby until you can pay off all balances each month.
-Take a second to look at what you’re applying for and confirm a bonus is what you expect.
-Get a screenshot of the bonus description in case you have issues collecting it later.
-Take 2 minutes to read the small print before applying.
(Look for “once in a lifetime,” “no bonus for cardholders in last 24 months,” etc.)
-Keep everything very organized in a spreadsheet. You’ll thank me later.

 

Time for my monthly Top 25 Credit Cards. It’s called “Top 25” out of tradition, but you’ll get many more links than that below. Again, if you’re a rookie, make sure you read The Newbie Guide. It’s a little outdated but many basic questions can still be answered there. For people running out of cards, remember there’s often a Business card option. Also, “churning” (getting the same card more than once) might be an option. The dates here were a guideline but things always tend to vary individually. If you’re new, it might be wise to start with Chase cards because of the limitations they’ll place on you soon.

Miles and points are far from an equal currency. 50,000 Delta SkyMiles are worth less to me than that amount from Alaska Airlines. 25,000 Hyatt points mean way more than the same number from Hilton. And so on. These links work right now (July 1st at midnight). If you read this later, many of the offers will have changed. Things move fast so read offer details and terms before applying. Especially all that small print when you’re trying to get bonuses more than once on the same card. Ok, enough chatter…here we go! My “Top 25” current credit cards are below.

Read More

My Current Relationship With Chase (And Other Banks)

This one is going to be a mildly depressing post.
(Translation: you might punch your screen)

At the midway point of 2018, the following is my current situation with major banks. In short, this is (so far) the worst year I’ve ever had from a credit card bonus standpoint.

Chase:
Obviously, these are the guys for newbies to start with. As soon as you hit 5 or more credit cards from anywhere in a 24-month period…Chase is really, really not going to be your friend. So, at this point, I basically just get the leftover cards that are immune from that limitation. Not a ton there. Well, at least my last 3 months have been decent. I got 85,000 IHG points (because their new card product is still immune) and yesterday I was approved for the new Hyatt card (also currently immune). Make sure you read the terms for the latter (especially the first paragraph on the Offer Details page). If Chase wasn’t already a pain, multiple readers have had their accounts closed for various reasons – big spending, opening/closing too many cards, etc.  Chase is tough.

Bank Of America:
These guys were closer to a sure thing than anything I’ve ever experienced. For a long time, the door was WIDE OPEN for me there. Not anymore. Like everyone else I talk to, I’m now limited to 4 Bank Of America personal cards per 24 months. So I haven’t had one for a while. The Business card side has been ok.

Barclays:
I haven’t been approved for a Barclays card yet in 2018. Not much happening for me there.

American Express:
They’ve also been known to shut down multiple readers. My last approval there…well…it wasn’t exactly a pleasant story. I’m not really applying for much there. This sounds like a pattern. A dumb one.

Citibank/US Bank/Others:
Scattered success. Nothing that exceptional.

 

Well, I warned you.

(This post = the MileNerd equivalent of watching an injured puppy limp sadly into the kitchen to his water bowl)

Have a great weekend, nerds!

 

Free July 4th Ride In DC

My daily plan to avoid thinking about Washington DC has a 100% rate of failure.

But today that’s because of a free $15 Lyft ride (even for existing users).

If you live in DC, grab the code at 5:00 on July 4th here and apply it to your account quickly.

Nice Hotel For 50 Bucks

In all the years I’ve been dong this, I don’t think I’ve mentioned Hotwire once. There are just never any deals there worth mentioning. But a few of my grouchiest readers (who typically don’t like anything) reached out with positive words about this one. A 4 or 5-star hotel in NYC, Miami, San Francisco, Chicago, LA, Austin, DC, or Orlando for $49 is definitely worth a post. This is for travel through July 8th. You won’t know the name of the hotel ahead of time, but readers have been happy with the results of this gamble (so far).

Easy Wyndham Points

Get 1,500 LaQuinta/Wyndham points for linking a Visa card, using the card, and replying to a text message. It doesn’t get much easier than that. In fact, this is the current list of easiest things to do in the world:

  1. Take candy from a baby.
  2. Be better with money than Johnny Depp.
  3. Find a dishonest blog.
  4. Go on a bad date with Bill Cosby.
  5. Get 1,500 points from this promo.