@lhcole77 wrote:
@longtimelurker wrote:
@lhcole77 wrote:
kdm31091 wrote:
In any event, if you like it and it works for you, that's the only person you have to justify it to.
This is kind of a unfair statement in this thread.
This thread was started as if Barclays was fading out (due to lackluster cards, etc). Some of us have chimed in why we like our cards and then there comes the "yeah, but..." replies.
If why we like something is a justification, isn't it equally true that so are the "yeah, buts...."?
If we were allowed to be non-FSR, I would state it more as: "The FACTS are against you (unless you spend $89K per year domestically (when it beats the DC etc), or $15,000 in foreign transactions (when it beats a QS). But if you like it anyway, fine!"
Bwahahahaha!
If you focus squarely on the % back, sure, other cards might beat this one.
But, again I say, there are other factors to consider with this card. 18 month, 0% BT offers with 1% transfer fee are amazing. Multiple SP CLIs of 6K is awesome. Lower APRs than published, pretty great.
This is is my big picture view.
For me, I loved loved the Arrival+ when it first came out, and I even got 5 of my friends to sign up because of how the cash back rewards beat out everyone else as long as you had decent spend and traveled enough.
Once they reduced the reward rate from 2.22% to 2.11% (and I'm assuming it's still the same) I couldn't justify the amount of spend needed to keep the card, plus with Double Cash I love being able to get a cash back check sent to me every month instead of me having to wait to purchase travel to get the cash back on the Arrival+ (we typically take a Disney Cruise every year so I had no problems getting the cash back, but generally I would only get it once a year).
However, I do agree with you that other factors have to be conidered like you said. Some people wouldn't agree with my rewards strategy either. I use my Freedom, Ink Cash, CSR, and Marriott cards to maximize rewards on their respective purchases (i.e. only put quarterly bonused spend on Freedom, put office supplies, gas station charges, cable and internet charges on my Ink Cash, etc.) and then put everything else on the Double Cash. In theory I could get a Chase Freedom Unlimited for all the unbonused spend and earn 1.5% back, then transfer that to my CSR and effectively turn the 1.5% into 2.25% by using it for travel through the CSR portal which is better than the 2% cash back rate I get on the Double Cash - but I don't travel enough to do that. In fact I'm sitting on 295,000 URs (and that is before the CSR bonus posts) and 145,000 Marriott points - which many people would chastize me for since point valuations generally always go down over time instead of up - but I'm planning on eventually taking my wife on a nice vacation.
So, with that all said, you have to do what is best for you. It's like comparing cars, we can all talk about which has the most power, best handling, best gas mileage, etc. but in the end one is going to pick the car which they most like. Sometimes it comes down to something as subjective as looks, and that includes credit cards (not for me - but I understand for others) - and I think most would agree that the Arrival+ looks better than the Double Cash. The Points Guy still recommends and uses the Arrival+ for those that have significant spend and will redeem it on travel that they usually couldn't do on other mileage transfer cards - such as cruises.
