Evolve Money

[CluelessJohn]

I just heard of these folks yesterday and have been through their website.  Wherever and whenever possible I pay using a credit card that maximizes my points.  Right now that means AMEX CP, Citi Double and Chase Freedoom/Discover IT when their quarterly 5% make sense.

Recurring "checks" I have to write are cable, utilities and health insurance.  All my vendors on lisited on Evolve. Roundly that is $10K per year.

I have 2 questions:

1)  Why wouldn't I do this?  For me, it is a free $100 for very little hassle.  Am I missing something? 

2)  How does Evolve make money on this?  Unless Discover is taking a loss, Evolve is getting less than 99 cents from Discover.  How much is Evolve getting from the Vendor?  Its got to be better (for the Vendor) than what  they could get from VISA/MC or why would they do it?

Thoughts apppreciated.

[sunkissed]

cluessJohn, I have no idea how Evolve is making money on this.

If you can make Evolve work for you, I see no downside for you.  Just do it!

Do note, Evolve has been evolving since its inception - slowly making their service harder to use.  They've put caps on payment amounts per month when no caps had existed previously.  They used to allow payment of store cards and student loans with Discover, now you'll have to use debit as credit is no longer an option.

If you decide to go for it, do it quickly before they change the rules again!

[sunkissed]

Already nerfed again!  I received the following email:

Dear Evolve Money Customer,

Late last year we introduced Discover credit cards as a payment option in Evolve Money. The response has been overwhelming and we appreciate your taking advantage of this newest means of paying your bills.

Our introductory period has come to a close and we are implementing some changes to the use of Discover credit cards beginning Feb. 1, 2015.

• All restrictions on the types of bills you can pay have been eliminated. This means you can now pay loans, such as mortgages, auto, student and retail store cards along with your utilities and other bills.

• A new Bill Pay Fee of 3 percent is now being applied to all Discover credit card transactions. This fee is necessary to cover our processing costs. Note: In the payment summary you will see the new fee amount when using your Discover credit card. We waive this fee for major debit cards, so you will have the option to change your payment method before you complete a payment transaction.

There are no changes to the use of your Discover debit card.

[thelethargicage]

3%? Another one bites the dust.

[CluelessJohn]

Thx sunkised.  Seemed to good to be true.

[Anonymous]

Nerfed even further, received this email tonight:

Dear Valued Customer,

Evolve Money is dedicated to giving you the power to pay your bills whenever, wherever and however you like. We know that having the ability to pay by debit cards is important to many of our users.

Beginning next week, certain debit cards from smaller banks, as well as prepaid debit cards and gift cards will be subject to a 3 percent Bill Pay Fee on each payment.

This Bill Pay Fee will be waived for most major debit cards, cash load packs and Evolve Money credits. You can continue to use these payment methods free-of-charge.

Note: In the payment summary you will see the new fee amount when using a debit card for which the Bill Pay Fee has not been waived. If the debit card you are attempting to use has a fee, you will have the option to change your payment method before you complete a payment. We will send you a reminder before this change takes place.

We apologize for this inconvenience. We will continue to enhance Evolve Money with the features you request, such as the recent addition of payment by VISA, MasterCard and Discover credit cards. Plus, we have some more big changes we think you will like coming very soon.

If you have any questions, please contact Customer Support at support@evolvemoney.com. As always, thanks for your continued support of Evolve Money. 

The Evolve Money Team

Adios Evolve Money!