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Which Airlines Miles Rewards Credit Card?

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XxRaVeNxX
Regular Contributor

Which Airlines Miles Rewards Credit Card?

About a week, before I'm about to knock all 21 of my hard inquires off.(half of my hards done before I knew what credit meant)

And looking at getting a airline mile rewards card to garden with. Nashville is a hub to many airlines. So, I'm currently looking at:


Discover Miles
Chase Southwest Airlines
Starwood American Express
Delta Gold Skymiles American Express
Chase Sapphire



Capital One Venture is currently out of my league...I'm leaning towards towards the Chase Southwest Airlines. Any Suggestions? Prefer something that gives miles instead of points. (Eaiser to see what I have, instead of convert,(Also seem to be the better value) and where the miles don't expire, the AF should pay for itself in points. I only make 32K a year, but pay everything with credit card, then pay off)

Chase Southwest $5000 - November 2012 Wal Mart $1000 - November 2012 NFCU Visa $5,000 - Sept 2012 NFCU NavCheck $3,000 - October 2012 Amazon $900 - Aug 2012 Kay's Jewlery $2700 - Aug 2012 Buckle $250 (Shopping cart trick) - October 2012 Roaman's $250 (Shopping cart trick) - October 2012 Capital One Secured $225 - April 2012 Capital One Platinum $2500 - July 2012
Message 1 of 10
9 REPLIES 9
Cdnewmanpac
Established Contributor

Re: Which Airlines Miles Rewards Credit Card?

I think the Chase Sapphire Preferred is the best all around travel card out there. I have the Chase SW card and it works great, but when I fly United (which I do fairly frequently) or American (only work related), I get only 1 point/dollar. With the CSP, any travel charges get 2 points and these can be converted 1:1 into Southwest points or United points. There are others, but those are the only 2 I would use. Through United, those points can be used for any star alliance flight. Southwest points can also be converted to AirTran credits. Plus, you get 2 points per dollar on restaurants.

 

You don't get the anniversary miles that you get with Southwest, but you do get an anniversary percentage based on spend (7%). Both the SW premier and the CSP have no foreign transaction fees. But again, the SW card only gives 2 points on select hotels and rental cars or southwest flights, very few of which will be international, at least until the AirTran merger is complete.

 

I know a lot of frequent flyer sites recommend the SPG, which may also work for you. For me, the Chase airline and hotel partners compliment my needs better than the Starwood ones do, but you should check out the partners for both issuers. 

In wallet: Ink Plus 10k, AMEX TE 25k. In bag: CSP 16k, USAA WMC 15k, Hyatt 13k, United MPE 12k, AMEX HHonors 3k. In SD: Cap 1 QS 5k, Discover IT 7k. FICO 08 says my EQ is now 844, was 510 in 2010.
Message 2 of 10
Repo-ed
Senior Contributor

Re: Which Airlines Miles Rewards Credit Card?

Though I do not have the card (yet), SWA would work best for me, as they fly direct between nashville and Tampa or Ft. Lauderdale. The two airports I travel to/through the most thanks to the airtran aquisition.

 

That being said, if I didn't have direct connect, I would continue to use the GF Delta SM Plat and connect through ATL.

 

Beyond that, the CSP is likely the best bet.

 

Again, it really depends on you, your area, and airline you fly the most.

5/2012: 560 credit scores across the board
12/2014: 750+
3/2017: 780+
11/2019: 833
2/2023: Experian via Chase United Explorer CC pull - 891
Message 3 of 10
Voodard
Contributor

Re: Which Airlines Miles Rewards Credit Card?

I don't think your income of $32k or the cards you show in your signature will help you get the preferred version of the Sapphire,however you may be able to get the regular version.  If that ends up being the case, I'd rather see you go with the Chase Southwest Visa.  That's a good card with free travel very attainable, even by the modest card spender.  I say this only because the CSP is a tier 1 card and for people who already have large, established credit lines/limits.

 

Would you mind sharing your most recent TU or EQ FICO score?  This will also help us decide the right card for you.

TU 743 as of 5/12
EQ 715 as of 10/13
EX Plus 780 as of 7/12

Cards in wallet: Chase Sapphire Preferred ($25k) Chase Freedom (8k) NFCU Platinum ($24k) HHonors Reserve ($11k)
United MileagePlus Club ($17k)
Message 4 of 10
SportBike4Life
Regular Contributor

Re: Which Airlines Miles Rewards Credit Card?

Wait for the 50k promo offer from Southwest and then apply for the Chase Southwest Premier credit card. Smiley Wink

Jun 2012 FICO® ~ 734 EQ
Sep 2012 FICO® ~ 684 EQ; 734 TU
Oct 2012 FICO® ~ TBA

Goal for 2014 ~760+

Trying to stay in the garden...but also trying to get as many apps as possible for now Smiley Wink
Message 5 of 10
XxRaVeNxX
Regular Contributor

Re: Which Airlines Miles Rewards Credit Card?

Well, I found a link for the 50K bonus sign up miles for Chase Southwest...which, they don't advertise on the main site...

 

https://applynowdc2.chase.com/FlexAppWeb/renderApp.do?CELL=625Q&PROMO=DF01&SPID=F2NW

 

I assume it still works, does anyone know for sure?

 

So, it's between this one, and a new contender; Citi AA

Chase Southwest $5000 - November 2012 Wal Mart $1000 - November 2012 NFCU Visa $5,000 - Sept 2012 NFCU NavCheck $3,000 - October 2012 Amazon $900 - Aug 2012 Kay's Jewlery $2700 - Aug 2012 Buckle $250 (Shopping cart trick) - October 2012 Roaman's $250 (Shopping cart trick) - October 2012 Capital One Secured $225 - April 2012 Capital One Platinum $2500 - July 2012
Message 6 of 10
Cdnewmanpac
Established Contributor

Re: Which Airlines Miles Rewards Credit Card?

Sme things to think about with aa card: right now, aa is a disaster area. Our travel service is no longer booking them for work related travel. Their executives have strong individual financial incentives to avoid a merger, but it seems clear only a merger will end the current actions. So I would be shocked if it got better in the next 6 months. Also, you are fairly marginal for all of these cards, but chase is great with recon, whereas citi essentially sucks. Finally, if you are an infrequent flyer and don't do much international, I think sw offers meaningful redemptions at much lower point totals than aa.

In wallet: Ink Plus 10k, AMEX TE 25k. In bag: CSP 16k, USAA WMC 15k, Hyatt 13k, United MPE 12k, AMEX HHonors 3k. In SD: Cap 1 QS 5k, Discover IT 7k. FICO 08 says my EQ is now 844, was 510 in 2010.
Message 7 of 10
surfnspy
Contributor

Re: Which Airlines Miles Rewards Credit Card?

Delta miles never expire. If miles are your thing then this may be good for you. If I'm not misken it means going through AMEX. As far as earning miles/points it looks like the CSP is the way to go. Just my 2 cents Smiley Happy

EX: 750 (05/2015) | EQ: 765 (5/2015) | TU: 765 (5/2015)

Barclays World MasterCard CL: $19K
Capital One MasterCard CL: $3.9K (sock drawer)
CHASE Sapphire Preferred Visa Sig CL: $20K
JPM Ritz Carlton Visa Sig CL: $20K
Inquiries: 1 (EX) 0 (TU) 0 (EQ)
Message 8 of 10
Revelate
Moderator Emeritus

Re: Which Airlines Miles Rewards Credit Card?

What are folks' thoughts on the newish BOFA travel rewards and the preferred option of that card?



        
Message 9 of 10
Jazzzy
Valued Contributor

Re: Which Airlines Miles Rewards Credit Card?

I use the Delta AmEx. I like the companion certificate you get each year. I also do a lot of my online shopping through Skymiles Shopping where you can get sometimes 5x, 6x, 7x miles for purchases. I get my annual fee back a few times over each year with the accumulating miles, the free bag at check-in for you and those traveling with you, and the companion certificate.

 

I flew Delta a lot prior to getting the card, and the airlines you like using are important in making this decision.

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