topic Re: Credit card suggestions in 2021 in Credit Cards

Credit card suggestions in 2021

xenon3030 — Mon, 10 May 2021 00:35:58 GMT

Within ~1-2 months, I may be in the market for ~1-2 credit cards. The preference is cashback but can consider also MR (reasonable AF). Here are my current card arrangements:

Grocery: ~3-5% (Freedom, Discover, BOA Cash Rewards, AMEX Gold).
Dining: 4% (USBank Altitude Go).
Online shopping: 3% (BOA Cash Rewards).
Phone/Internet: 5% (USBank Cash+).
Amazon: 5% (Chase Amazon).
Walmart: 5% (Walmart).
Gas: No need (have EV).

Chase CSP has ~80k intro offer and it is my first option. Is there any other suggestion?

USALLIANCE Visa Signature gives 3% cahsback on every purchase. Is this card reliable (not issued by large banks)? Is there any other similar card?

Also, what is the best credit card for shopping at Costco? The Citi Costco card gives only 2% cashback.

Re: Credit card suggestions in 2021

Anonymous — Mon, 10 May 2021 01:28:02 GMT

If you have the executive membership at Costco it's 4% total between Costco bonus and citi bonus, the one I know of is discover but since Costco only takes visa you can't use it there for Costco the visa is the best option that I know of

Re: Credit card suggestions in 2021

Anonymous — Mon, 10 May 2021 01:28:27 GMT

Sounds like the AOD FCU VISA Signature is what you're looking for. 3% cash back on all purchases, automatically redeemed each month, APR as low as 7.49%, and a great Costco card too.

https://ficoforums.myfico.com/t5/Credit-Cards/AOD-Visa-Siggy-Discussion-Thread/m-p/6005027#M1718074

Re: Credit card suggestions in 2021

Kforce — Mon, 10 May 2021 03:26:14 GMT

@xenon3030 wrote:

USALLIANCE Visa Signature gives 3% cahsback on every purchase. Is this card reliable (not issued by large banks)? Is there any other similar card?

The USAlliance is only a temp 3% card.

Those of us that got it last year lost the 3% ~ 10 months later.

For some reason, closures, complaints, many just using card less, they re-activated the 3% however this time said that it would stop at end of this year.

I would say the AOD is a superior option for a 3% card.

Only half a year at 3% left.

Re: Credit card suggestions in 2021

SouthJamaica — Mon, 10 May 2021 03:28:52 GMT

@xenon3030 wrote:
Within ~1-2 months, I may be in the market for ~1-2 credit cards. The preference is cashback but can consider also MR (reasonable AF). Here are my current card arrangements:

Grocery: ~3-5% (Freedom, Discover, BOA Cash Rewards, AMEX Gold).
Dining: 4% (USBank Altitude Go).
Online shopping: 3% (BOA Cash Rewards).
Phone/Internet: 5% (USBank Cash+).
Amazon: 5% (Chase Amazon).
Walmart: 5% (Walmart).
Gas: No need (have EV).
Chase CSP has ~80k intro offer and it is my first option. Is there any other suggestion?

USALLIANCE Visa Signature gives 3% cahsback on every purchase. Is this card reliable (not issued by large banks)? Is there any other similar card?

Also, what is the best credit card for shopping at Costco? The Citi Costco card gives only 2% cashback.

I can't see what advantage you will gain by adding more cashback-type cards.

Re: Credit card suggestions in 2021

Andypanda — Mon, 10 May 2021 04:08:31 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
If you have the executive membership at Costco it's 4% total between Costco bonus and citi bonus, the one I know of is discover but since Costco only takes visa you can't use it there for Costco the visa is the best option that I know of

If you disco or chase freedom flex for the 5% categories, you can use them on costco.com for Costco gift cards, and use the gift cards at the physical store. That way you can get $3,000 at 5%, plus the 2% executive cb.

Re: Credit card suggestions in 2021

xenon3030 — Tue, 11 May 2021 03:25:08 GMT

I go for Chase CSP + AOD (3% cashback).

I plan to get executive membership of Costco to use its 2% offer. If the credit score would not become too low after opening the two cards above, I may apply also for the Citi Costco card (not a fan of gift cards for purchases, the difference is 1%).

Re: Credit card suggestions in 2021

Anonymous — Tue, 11 May 2021 09:16:23 GMT

That's way too much work to buy a gift card online then have to take it to the store a bunch of bs over a couple percent, I still don't know why they won't take anything but visa must have some kind of contract, it also doesn't help the 9 months of the year it's not in the rotating category, it's also funny in Canada it's MasterCard only and issued by capital one, one reason I prefer sams you can use anything there

Re: Credit card suggestions in 2021

joltdude — Tue, 11 May 2021 13:05:28 GMT

Costco does not pay the normal merchant/interchange rates if i recall.. but it comes at the cost of only accepting one network...

Re: Credit card suggestions in 2021

FormerCollegeDJ — Tue, 11 May 2021 13:35:48 GMT

@xenon3030 wrote:
Within ~1-2 months, I may be in the market for ~1-2 credit cards. The preference is cashback but can consider also MR (reasonable AF). Here are my current card arrangements:

Grocery: ~3-5% (Freedom, Discover, BOA Cash Rewards, AMEX Gold).
Dining: 4% (USBank Altitude Go).
Online shopping: 3% (BOA Cash Rewards).
Phone/Internet: 5% (USBank Cash+).
Amazon: 5% (Chase Amazon).
Walmart: 5% (Walmart).
Gas: No need (have EV).
Chase CSP has ~80k intro offer and it is my first option. Is there any other suggestion?

USALLIANCE Visa Signature gives 3% cahsback on every purchase. Is this card reliable (not issued by large banks)? Is there any other similar card?

Also, what is the best credit card for shopping at Costco? The Citi Costco card gives only 2% cashback.

If your entertainment spending (i.e. movies, sports events, concerts, etc.) is not insignificant during "normal" times, I recommend considering the Elan Financial Services Max Cash Preferred Visa/Mastercard (processing network depends on the bank "issuing" the card), which provides 5% rewards on entertainment spending, or the Capital One SavorOne Mastercard, which has 3% rewards on entertainment spending. Both cards are no annual fee cards. (There is also the Capital One Savor Mastercard, which has an annual fee but provides 4% rewards on entertainment as well as dining.) The entertainment category is one of the primary differences between the Elan Max Cash Preferred Visa/Mastercard and its similar "cousin" card, the US Bank Cash+ Visa (the latter of which has only a partial 5% rewards entertainment category).

Re: Credit card suggestions in 2021

xenon3030 — Tue, 08 Jun 2021 21:32:51 GMT

I completed the mortage and I went out of garden. I got approved for CSP but stragenly, got denied for Citi Costco (citing too many inq).

I have not applied for AOD yet. What is the expected credit profile to get approval for this card? I have 780+ credit score and 2/24. But I have a few HPs for autoloan ~6 months ago (~2-3 across all bureaus) and some mortgate HP ~2 months ago (~2-3 across all bureaus). Is it recommended to apply for AOD now?

Re: Credit card suggestions in 2021

Aim_High — Tue, 08 Jun 2021 22:17:38 GMT

The best Costco cash back return I know about is with:

Costco Executive Membership ($120 annual Fee versus $60 AF for standard "Gold Star" membership) for an additional 2% back on all Costco purchases, up to $1K back annually on up to approximately $50K in purchases.
Payment with Bank of America Customized Cash Rewards Visa card with Platinum Honors Preferred Rewards status at 3.5% (up to $10K annually)

Total Return of 5.5% back ... less the $60 difference in Costco AF.

(However, the $60 may also be offset by other Executive Member benefits such as lower prices on check printing, auto buying, roadside assistance included at no charge for vehicles covered through the Auto Insurance program and additional travel benefits.)