Rewards Program

[longtimelurker]

One of those things that depends on your spending and what type of rewards you are after.

If cash back is the goal, then go the "maximize each transaction" route, using whatever card gives you the biggest cash-back (or equivalent) on that type of purchase.

If you want travel rewards, and don't spend huge amounts, you probably want to focus (nearly) all spending onto one program, if there are multiple cards in the program, again choosing the one that gives the most points on that purchase.

(If you spend huge amounts, it matters less, as your random spending gives you both the  travel rewards and the cash back.  "Huge" depends on the individual....)

[Open123]

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@Laugh wrote:

Or do you guys like to scatter the spending among different rewards programs?

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I use 3--SPG, UR, and MR.

All non-bonus spending on SPG.  All dining, office/telecom and/or travel related on UR cards.  All non-bonus business spending on the MR program.

For some smaller "hobby" spending, I'll use Discover, Freedom or Flexperks.

[CreditScholar]

For me pretty much everything goes into my CSP (dining, travel, UR mall purchases) or United Club card (everything else). Only the first 10k of general spend goes on the Ritz.

I typically end up transferring my UR points to United 90% of the time anyways, so it works out just fine.