People with multiple Cards

[TransferMony2IRAanitsgone]

Hey guys,

Looking for some guidance from people that have had success rotating the different cards they use every month. Is 3 to many different cards to swap out every month? ( i.e one that handles monthly reoccuring charges, one that is strictly gas and groceries, and one for other monthly expenses) Or should I not use this many cards? Any guidance to your strategy would be greatly appreciated!

PS i will PIF all 3 every month. 

[daybreakgonesXe]

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@TransferMony2IRAanitsgone wrote:

Hey guys,

Looking for some guidance from people that have had success rotating the different cards they use every month. Is 3 to many different cards to swap out every month? ( i.e one that handles monthly reoccuring charges, one that is strictly gas and groceries, and one for other monthly expenses) Or should I not use this many cards? Any guidance to your strategy would be greatly appreciated!

PS i will PIF all 3 every month. 

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That's actually a great plan!

Honestly, do whatever works for you. Also, do whatever is best for you to gain the most rewards/cash back for your cards. I often use each one of my cards at least once every month, ensuring any bonus categories that I'm spending on are put on the appropriate card. However, it is also a good plan to rotate cards to gain the max rewards/help keep track of your expenses. Paying 6 cards every month isn't always fun! 3 would be a lot more to manage

[jsickz32]

I do that. As you can see i have plenty of cards to rotate. I always make sure i only spend on each whatever amount i know i will be able to PIF at the end of the month.

[eagles08]

Yeah as long as you PIF it doesn't matter. Pick your favorite, for me it was my BCE until I got the PRG. Ok use that for everything except bonus categories! So right now Discover is gas. Ill use Discover for gas, BCE everything else! When freedom had restaurants I used that when I ate out an then the BCE for gas groceries, etc. whatever maximizes your rewards. Right now I'm going to use PRG for everything literally to meet the spending for bonus points! After then I can start switching up cards again based on categories. Otherwise ill buy lunch with a different card from time to time just to keep em active.

[09Lexie]

I use cc's based on the bonus being offered ie rotating categories. For monthly bills, I use a basic 1% cc. PRG gets everything else

[TransferMony2IRAanitsgone]

Awesome. So as far as which cards are in my wallet at any given, im taking them according to whats gonna give most back. Now that im PIF I wont have reports of multiple cards with balances, right? Thats only if I allow it to roll over to the next month?

[Peteyglad]

3 is what I use on a daily basis. I have my Amex BCP for my 6% groceries, Sallie Mae for my 5% gas and 5% Amazon and my Fidelity Amex for 2% on everything else.

[eagles08]

Yeah, as long as you PIF before the statement cuts! That's not to be confused with the actual due date!

[longtimelurker]

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@TransferMony2IRAanitsgone wrote:

Awesome. So as far as which cards are in my wallet at any given, im taking them according to whats gonna give most back. Now that im PIF I wont have reports of multiple cards with balances, right? Thats only if I allow it to roll over to the next month?

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You need to PIF BEFORE the statement cuts to avoid balance reporting.   If you pay after, you will show multiple cards with balances.  So long as you pay by the due date, there is no interest, but it has some impact on your credit score compared to paying before the statement cuts.

Really only matters if you plan to app, as there are also costs involved in paying early.

[sccredit]

I have tried to balance spending to max bonus categories among different cards.  In the last 12 months I have over $3k in rewards.  The downside of that is I have had to use a spreadsheet to keep track of the number of cards.  At this point I have decided to trim it down to a couple of cards (mainly Freedom and CSP) for spending and put the others away.