topic Re: Why no praise? in Credit Cards

Why no praise?

Skye12329 — Fri, 20 Feb 2015 05:19:24 GMT

So went to Sams Club as usual, and thought why doesnt their card get more praise than it gets? Like i mean unless im missing something here the rewards are really decent. Am I missing something?

Re: Why no praise?

Anonymous — Fri, 20 Feb 2015 05:20:39 GMT

@Skye12329 wrote:
So went to Sams Club as usual, and thought why doesnt their card get more praise than it gets? Like i mean unless im missing something here the rewards are really decent. Am I missing something?

Perhaps because it's seen as just another store card.

It's on my list for next year.

Re: Why no praise?

Turbobuick — Fri, 20 Feb 2015 05:23:41 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
@Skye12329 wrote:
So went to Sams Club as usual, and thought why doesnt their card get more praise than it gets? Like i mean unless im missing something here the rewards are really decent. Am I missing something?
Perhaps because it's seen as just another store card.

It's on my list for next year.

Depending on what Costco does, Sams might be on my list next year too. I may jump regardless....

Re: Why no praise?

eagle2013 — Fri, 20 Feb 2015 05:28:52 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
@Skye12329 wrote:
So went to Sams Club as usual, and thought why doesnt their card get more praise than it gets? Like i mean unless im missing something here the rewards are really decent. Am I missing something?
Perhaps because it's seen as just another store card.

It's on my list for next year.

Bingo. There's a lot that goes into the "appeal" of a credit card and often times it isn't the rewards structure alone but prestige as well; the "feel" we get when we pull it out and use it. I have this card but don't use it over my AMEX or Chase. It is what it is.

Also, remember that this is 'technically' an AF card (Sam's membership is required), so unless you were already a big shopper at Sam's this card may have less bennies.

Re: Why no praise?

Anonymous — Fri, 20 Feb 2015 05:30:58 GMT

Also there is that thing about only getting your cashback once a year...

Re: Why no praise?

Anonymous — Fri, 20 Feb 2015 05:36:16 GMT

My mother has it and it is quite nice.

The cons I see are:

There is an annual rewards cap, and the tiers have caps too. Yeah, it's a high cap (in my opinion) but some people don't like that.
The cash back comes in the form of a check once a year, and it has to be redeemed at Sam's (ETA: it doesn't have to be redeemed for products but IIRC it has to be cashed out there at their customer service department). Not being able to redeem as you like is a turn off to some people.

I can handle the cap because there's no way I would personally break it, but that redemption deal isn't my favorite. My mom liked it when her check came in a couple weeks ago - she got most of her shopping trip for free that day which was handy. We also share a Sam's Club Plus membership so we get the 2% back through that as well that pays for our membership, so she doesn't even have a faux annual fee for her Sam's Club Mastercard.

Re: Why no praise?

Anonymous — Fri, 20 Feb 2015 05:42:37 GMT

i dont shop at sams but if i did it would make sense to have it

Re: Why no praise?

Skye12329 — Fri, 20 Feb 2015 05:44:31 GMT

I agree with you Nixon that i still consider it a store card which slightly deters me, but as also mentioned the look. I didnt know you only get the CB once a year...well i guess the pre-approval for me is ending in the shredder with the rest. Thanks!

Re: Why no praise?

happypill — Fri, 20 Feb 2015 08:30:18 GMT

No Sams Club anywhere near me.

Re: Why no praise?

nyancat — Fri, 20 Feb 2015 10:25:34 GMT

@Skye12329 wrote:
So went to Sams Club as usual, and thought why doesnt their card get more praise than it gets? Like i mean unless im missing something here the rewards are really decent. Am I missing something?

If you live near a Sam's Club and not a Costco it's pretty much a no-brainer.

Re: Why no praise?

Anonymous — Fri, 20 Feb 2015 11:25:19 GMT

@nyancat wrote:
@Skye12329 wrote:
So went to Sams Club as usual, and thought why doesnt their card get more praise than it gets? Like i mean unless im missing something here the rewards are really decent. Am I missing something?
If you live near a Sam's Club and not a Costco it's pretty much a no-brainer.

Why? I do live near Sam's and shop there, but always use a 2% M/C there (if I'm not using up a WalMart giftcard). Even if I had it, why would I use the Sam's credit card for only 1%?

I already get 5.5% on gas and 3% on dining. Nevertheless, the Sam's Club card is on my "to get" list, for the 3% on travel, but there's a few cards in front of it.

Chris.

Re: Why no praise?

dobirdsmommy — Fri, 20 Feb 2015 11:27:51 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:

@nyancat wrote:
@Skye12329 wrote:
So went to Sams Club as usual, and thought why doesnt their card get more praise than it gets? Like i mean unless im missing something here the rewards are really decent. Am I missing something?
If you live near a Sam's Club and not a Costco it's pretty much a no-brainer.
Why? I do live near Sam's and shop there, but always use a 2% M/C there (if I'm not using up a WalMart giftcard). Even if I had it, why would I use the Sam's credit card for only 1%?

I already get 5.5% on gas and 3% on dining. Nevertheless, the Sam's Club card is on my "to get" list, for the 3% on travel, but there's a few cards in front of it.

Chris.

No SAMs by me have a gas station. Why I never bit on the pre-approval they sent. I have the plus membership but I would rather get my cashback 1.5 on the transaction instantly

Re: Why no praise?

nyancat — Fri, 20 Feb 2015 11:32:44 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:

@nyancat wrote:
@Skye12329 wrote:
So went to Sams Club as usual, and thought why doesnt their card get more praise than it gets? Like i mean unless im missing something here the rewards are really decent. Am I missing something?
If you live near a Sam's Club and not a Costco it's pretty much a no-brainer.
Why? I do live near Sam's and shop there, but always use a 2% M/C there (if I'm not using up a WalMart giftcard). Even if I had it, why would I use the Sam's credit card for only 1%?

I already get 5.5% on gas and 3% on dining. Nevertheless, the Sam's Club card is on my "to get" list, for the 3% on travel, but there's a few cards in front of it.

Chris.

For the 3% travel, mainly. The 5% gas is also nice, but easier to match elsewhere.

P.S. If you have CSP, it's obviously better on travel. It's just that for a free card if you shop at Sam's, it is nice. Not necessarily that it is "the one" or anything, or for everyone. But it's a nice card and free... it makes sense for a LOT of customers.

Re: Why no praise?

Jerry45 — Fri, 20 Feb 2015 12:24:15 GMT

Re: Why no praise?

bigblue7722 — Fri, 20 Feb 2015 12:34:11 GMT

I still dont understand how they only give 1% back on sams club purchases? Its a store card they cant give a little more back?? I get 1.5% with my QS card, (applied for double cash got denied) but thats 2% back. I dont need the 5% back on gas and the 3% travel is good but the rewards check just seems odd to me...

Also for the membership there are ways to get some of your money back. Discover deals has a 10 dollar gift card for savings and business members and a 25 dollar gift card for plus members when you renew or start a new membership.

If you are not a member i would reccomend keeping on eye on slickdeals.net there usally is a better deal for new members to sign up, it probably comes around once every quater or so.

Re: Why no praise?

Themanwhocan — Fri, 20 Feb 2015 16:48:47 GMT

Re: Why no praise?

Callandra — Fri, 20 Feb 2015 17:47:12 GMT

@nyancat wrote:
@Skye12329 wrote:
So went to Sams Club as usual, and thought why doesnt their card get more praise than it gets? Like i mean unless im missing something here the rewards are really decent. Am I missing something?
If you live near a Sam's Club and not a Costco it's pretty much a no-brainer.

Seems to me that most members here live near Costcos. Except when I lived in Japan, I have never lived near a Costco (there was one literally right down the street from where I worked there!).

I have a BJ's membership through my father; we've always lived near BJ's so that's what we've always had membership to. The closest Costco to us is about a 30 min. drive (Sam's is about the same). It seems like no one here ever mentions the BJ's card either (I think there's one poster who does have it).

Re: Why no praise?

mikelo22 — Fri, 20 Feb 2015 19:35:37 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
Also there is that thing about only getting your cashback once a year...

Bingo. Same reason I wouldn't get the Amex TE Costco is same reason I wouldn't get the Sam's. Not a fan of One Year redemption. Plus having to redeem at a Sam's is awkward.

And TMWC out with the charts shows the card does have value given your spending. A very solid card for those that have it.

Re: Why no praise?

sunkissed — Sat, 21 Feb 2015 02:43:46 GMT

I have the BJ’s card and I think it’s fantastic! It’s the only one in the bunch (Costco, Sam’s, and BJ’s) that actually rewards spend in the warehouse club. I earn 5% on Bj’s purchases, 2% on restaurants and non-BJ’s gas, 1% everywhere else and a 10 cent per gallon discount at the BJ’s gas station. Additionally, having the card gives me a $25 per year discount on my membership fee. If I ever need to carry a balance, the APR ono BJ’s purchases is only 7.99%. The APR on purchases outside of BJ’s is 14.99%. And I don’t have to wait all year to receive my rewards. Once I’ve earned at least $20 in rewards, the cashier asks me if I’d like to apply my rewards at checkout.

Re: Why no praise?

bigblue7722 — Sat, 21 Feb 2015 03:01:25 GMT

@sunkissed wrote:
I have the BJ’s card and I think it’s fantastic! It’s the only one in the bunch (Costco, Sam’s, and BJ’s) that actually rewards spend in the warehouse club. I earn 5% on Bj’s purchases, 2% on restaurants and non-BJ’s gas, 1% everywhere else and a 10 cent per gallon discount at the BJ’s gas station. Additionally, having the card gives me a $25 per year discount on my membership fee. If I ever need to carry a balance, the APR ono BJ’s purchases is only 7.99%. The APR on purchases outside of BJ’s is 14.99%. And I don’t have to wait all year to receive my rewards. Once I’ve earned at least $20 in rewards, the cashier asks me if I’d like to apply my rewards at checkout.

Thats good to know. I was pre approved for the BJ's card but did not take the offer. I hate the self serve checkouts there. The ones at sams are much better because they give you a scan gun so you dont have to throw stuff on the register/belt like BJ's