topic Re: Opinions on elan max cash visa? in Credit Cards

Opinions on elan max cash visa?

FicoMike0 — Wed, 29 May 2024 00:56:24 GMT

I was looking at an offer for an elan max cash visa. Anyone have experience with it? Are the 5% categories usefull?

Re: Opinions on elan max cash visa?

ptatohed — Wed, 29 May 2024 01:11:34 GMT

Only you would know if the categories are useful. What offer did you find? I've noticed the Elans are usually $150 welcome bonus and the USB Cash+ is $200.

It seems like a nice card with some useful categories but the one thing that has always turned me off from this card is that they separate out fast food (5%) from restaurants (2%). I don't know of another card issuer that does that. I want (expect) 5% on all dining so that eliminates the otherwise potentially nice 5% fast food category. I am still considering the card(s) for 5% on utilities/cell/Internet/etc. I had been content with 3% AOD (but maybe I shouldn't have been).

Re: Opinions on elan max cash visa?

coldfusion — Wed, 29 May 2024 01:41:48 GMT

If you're a homeowner look at your electric/natural gas/water/sewer, cell phone, and TV/internet monthly spend as you can pick 2 out of these 3 categories to get 5% back on up to $2000 spend per quarter and compare your potential cashback with a standard 2% cards

If you don't have a deposit account with the co-branded financial institution advertising the card you can't redeem rewards for cash back but statement credits work.

The Elan website is unsophisticated but it is functional .

Re: Opinions on elan max cash visa?

markbeiser — Wed, 29 May 2024 02:12:41 GMT

It is a great card for home utilities and cable/internet!

Re: Opinions on elan max cash visa?

FicoMike0 — Wed, 29 May 2024 02:48:18 GMT

Thanks! I got the offer from Wes banco. I don't know where they got the name, they re an old bank, based in wheeling wva. I have an account there because they bribed me $400 to open it, lol. The card has a $150 sub for $500 spend. I'm trying to go for cards I will actually use, rather than just go for the sub. I'm presently maxed out with usb, two cards in three months. I'll likely pc my shoppers card to a no af cash+ next year.

I kind of like going from checking sub to cc sub with the same bank. Fewer apps on my phone.

Re: Opinions on elan max cash visa?

DoppelgangerD — Wed, 29 May 2024 16:38:49 GMT

As long as you can handle the card and hit to your credit, I advise going for it.

It's a super useful card that earns 5% CB, and one of the few cards that you don't even need to carry in your physical or digital wallet, because you can just pay utilities / mobile / internet etc... right from home, or even on autopay.

For me personally, some of my utilities charge fees for online payment, but not egregious enough that I don't still get cash back.

There are also set fees per payment from two of my utilities, so I like to pay 2-3 months worth to offset the fees even more.

For me it's an easy average of twenty-something dollars a month of free money.

Re: Opinions on elan max cash visa?

Anonymous — Wed, 29 May 2024 05:00:39 GMT

Are they

@FicoMike0 wrote:
Are the 5% categories usefull?

Are they?

5% Choose 2
Home Utilities
Cell Phone Providers
TV, Internet & Streaming Services
Gyms/Fitness Centers
Ground Transportation
Electronics Stores
Fast Food
Furniture Stores
Department Stores
Select Clothing Stores
Sporting Goods Stores
Movie Theaters

2% Choose 1
Grocery Stores
Gas & EV Charging Stations
Restaurants

-----

Edit: My bad. These are for the Cash+

The Elan Max Rewards are very slightly different

https://ficoforums.myfico.com/t5/Credit-Cards/Should-I-choose-U-S-Bank-Cash-or-Elan-Max-Cash-Preferred/m-p/6662305#M1844886

Re: Opinions on elan max cash visa?

TrapLine — Wed, 29 May 2024 07:07:53 GMT

The card is a close relative of the US Bank Cash+ and works well for the categories offered. Others already posted what you really need to know.

What I can say for my own experiences, Elan tries to offer good CLs without the relationship. Many financials that use Elan are not so tied that you can't get around their geo-restrictions and so on (and it has been noted you may be required to take statement credits if no financial relationship). US Bank tends toward a more conservative relationship based customer although many on here have done well.

The Max Cash really does well on utilities. Also, do not understand the splitting of fast food from dining?

Re: Opinions on elan max cash visa?

Anonymous — Thu, 30 May 2024 00:10:02 GMT

Another good thing about the card (compared to the Cash+) is that the categories are sticky, you don't have to enroll in them again every quarter (you can change if you want but you don't have to). Not huge, but useful. Imagine if Freedom/Flex/Discover/etc just enrolled you automatically in the quarter's 5% without you having to....

Re: Opinions on elan max cash visa?

DakotaM — Thu, 30 May 2024 00:36:50 GMT

I have 3 of them! One was product changed from a Rewards+ that wasn't as useful as I thought.

One is utilities/internet and never taken out of my drawer.

Another is electronics/department stores - mostly to get 5% at Newegg, Best Buy, and some other computer stores

Third is recreation/entertainment - admittedly used rarely, but I do get occasional use from it.

Re: Opinions on elan max cash visa?

ptatohed — Thu, 30 May 2024 09:37:29 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
Another good thing about the card (compared to the Cash+) is that the categories are sticky, you don't have to enroll in them again every quarter (you can change if you want but you don't have to). Not huge, but useful. Imagine if Freedom/Flex/Discover/etc just enrolled you automatically in the quarter's 5% without you having to....

Good point ltl. But I kinda like 'extra steps' if that makes any sense. I think of it as an opportunity for those not willing to (or have the knowledge of, or the memory to) spend the time to do a fairly quick activation, to be the ones who help supplement the rewards for those of us who would never ever forget to activate a quarter. How many people are running around with their freedom/flex, charging away at 1% CB just because that's the card they opened when they opened their Chase checking/savings some 5, 10, 15+ years ago and have no interest in CC rewards? I don't know, but I'm sure it's not insignificant.

Re: Opinions on elan max cash visa?

GatorCowboyLion — Thu, 30 May 2024 02:36:18 GMT

We have Cash+. However, I have friends and family that are not even close to being the credit junkies we are. Many of them know I have an interest, but most of them cannot be even be bothered with quarter categories. I recommend a general spend card, Citi Custom Cash and Max Cash NOT Cash+ for this very reason of sticky categories. These normies do not care about a difference of $50 in the SUB like we do. They want their credit app accepted and reliable card for the next decade plus. They don't want to have to remember anything. Just wait though, you never know what will pique their interest and be a gateway 🤣

Re: Opinions on elan max cash visa?

Anonymous — Thu, 30 May 2024 03:28:38 GMT

@GatorCowboyLion wrote:
We have Cash+. However, I have friends and family that are not even close to being the credit junkies we are. Many of them know I have an interest, but most of them cannot be even be bothered with quarter categories. I recommend a general spend card, Citi Custom Cash and Max Cash NOT Cash+ for this very reason of sticky categories. These normies do not care about a difference of $50 in the SUB like we do. They want their credit app accepted and reliable card for the next decade plus. They don't want to have to remember anything. Just wait though, you never know what will pique their interest and be a gateway 🤣

But probably most will continue to view credit cards as just a way to pay (and, gasp, maybe carry a balance) and not have to worry about what, in the scheme of things, are fairly insignificant rewards. Probably a more healthy approach come to think of it, close this site down!

Re: Opinions on elan max cash visa?

TrapLine — Thu, 30 May 2024 13:12:52 GMT

Do admit, I liked the Elan Max Cash sticky categories. It sometimes has been a navigational hazard with US Bank Cash+ as they change the "how to" every so often and I get tired of figuring it out on category selection?!

Re: Opinions on elan max cash visa?

ptatohed — Thu, 30 May 2024 22:27:47 GMT

@FicoMike0 wrote:
Thanks! I got the offer from Wes banco. I don't know where they got the name, they re an old bank, based in wheeling wva. I have an account there because they bribed me $400 to open it, lol. The card has a $150 sub for $500 spend. I'm trying to go for cards I will actually use, rather than just go for the sub. I'm presently maxed out with usb, two cards in three months. I'll likely pc my shoppers card to a no af cash+ next year.
I kind of like going from checking sub to cc sub with the same bank. Fewer apps on my phone.

FMO, still curious what you mean by 'offer'. Do you mean simply an invitation or is there something special above and beyond the normal deal?

Re: Opinions on elan max cash visa?

FicoMike0 — Thu, 30 May 2024 22:39:07 GMT

it was a mailing. I think it was their normal deal. Prior, I didn't know they offered this card, or that their cards are really elan.

Re: Opinions on elan max cash visa?

TrapLine — Fri, 31 May 2024 01:50:06 GMT

Possibly your already being a bank customer signaled a marketing opportunity to get you into bank's Elan Card.

From multiple experiences with Elan and US Bank, for me Elan has been much more generous in the area of CLs and the Apr was not any higher than US Bank.

Between the two, I would go to Elan ... only based on my experiences and their website is quite basic but for me that is great. Us Bank is forever ITing their website and I never know what I will find?!

Re: Opinions on elan max cash visa?

Citylights18 — Fri, 31 May 2024 05:28:15 GMT

As a 0% APR kind of guy I like that Elan runs BT offers which I find useful on their business cards.