Credit Cards

[nickn86]

I've had the Forward card for about two months now, and I use it a lot.  As a grad student, really almost all of my spending is on food, bars and Amazon, all of which the Forward gives 5 times Thank You Points for.  However, I've noticed the redemption value for the Forward is very weak.  As an example, look at the value of an Amazon.com gift card on thankyou.com when I am not logged in versus when I am.

Not logged into thankyou.com -- http://imgur.com/8QxJE

Logged in (thus site knows only card I have is Forward) -- http://imgur.com/c4Txu

So, I know that if I want to get a value of 1 cent per TYP I am goign to have to get a "higher tier" Citi card (even though none of Citi's cards are as useful to me as the Forward).  What I'm wondering is if it is has to be a Citi card with an annual fee?  Can anyone with a Thank You card or Thank You Preferred card report what their redemption rate is on thankyou.com?

[navigatethis12]

Not all gift cards are like that. Macys gift cards are 1:1 if you redeem for $100 (10000 points). It appears Staples is the same. This is the main reason I hate any Citi card. Even if the rate is a bit more than the Amazon Chase Visa, I really loathe not getting full point value. You do have different redemption options with different cards though.

[nickn86]

Macy's isn't 1:1 for me either.  Basically nothing is (except student loan payment, which is nice).  I think the Forward has the weakest rate of all the Citi cards (probably why they give out 5x points for such broad categories).

Essentially, what I'm asking is what Citi card should I apply for to bring up the redemption rate?

EDIT: You're actually right that Macy's is $100 for $10,000 points.  Still, I know the other Citi cards have better overall redemption rates, and I want to get one, just to make my Forward points more valuable.

[sakhalin070]

Is there a website where you could sell giftcards for cash?  If you take the 1:1 giftcards and sell them for cash via another website its like getting 1:1 cashback.

[navigatethis12]

I am not sure of that. I do know that the Citi Thank You Premier ($125 fee after first year) has different redemptions. I signed into Citigold, and the redemption values are still the same. If you redeem for flights you get a bonus of 33%. Thank You Points are terrible for cash or cash equivalents.

[Cdnewmanpac]

Citi Thank You Preferred has no AF and allows you to get 1c value per point on most gift cards. The differences between Preferred, Premier and Prestige are really in the travel redemption section, not the GC section. If you aren't planning to use your points for travel, I'd get the Preferred, but keep most of your spending on the Forward.

[navigatethis12]

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sakhalin070 wrote:

Is there a website where you could sell giftcards for cash?  If you take the 1:1 giftcards and sell them for cash via another website its like getting 1:1 cashback.

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There are multiple, but they will not give you dollar for dollar; they wouldn't make money that way. if you sell a $100, they may give you $80, so they can sell it for $92.

[nickn86]

Thanks cdnewmanpac, that's what I was looking for.

Yeah, I'm mainly concerned with just getting a 1:1 value on gift cards.  I agree with most that Citi's point system sucks, but the Forward's 5x system for all the categories I charge on means I have to live with it.

[CruzImperial]

ao lools like the Thanl You Premier will be in my next years hit list

is there any other altrrnative?

[flowfaster]

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CruzImperial wrote:

ao lools like the Thanl You Premier will be in my next years hit list

is there any other altrrnative?

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Haha yeah it is kinda shady but they give 1:1 redemption for mortgage payments.  Just tell them what bank you have and they will cut a check......even if you don't have a mortgage.......Catch my drift.