topic Re: What's your favorite credit card to use for STREAMING services? in Credit Cards

What's your favorite credit card to use for STREAMING services?

sean31732 — Sun, 03 Aug 2025 01:56:22 GMT

Thought I'd ask the community which credit card they prefer to use on their tv/movie/music streaming services.

Note: Right now, I'm using Amex (BCP), but I'm looking for an annual fee free alternative to replace it soon. 👍

Re: What's your favorite credit card to use for STREAMING services?

NoHardLimits — Sun, 03 Aug 2025 02:19:22 GMT

@sean31732 wrote:
Thought I'd ask the community which credit card they prefer to use on their tv/movie/music streaming services.

Note: Right now, I'm using Amex (BCP), but I'm looking for an annual fee free alternative to replace it soon. 👍

I've been using US Bank Cash+ for the past couple years @ 5% cash back, but I plan to close that account next month because I'm fed up with US Bank's recent rounds of rewards redemption ~~shenanigans~~ devaluations. I've shifted some streaming subscriptions to Capital One Savor for 3% cash back, and I just opened a Bank of America Customized Cash Rewards which should give me 6% cash back for the first year. Afterwards, it drops to 3%.

Re: What's your favorite credit card to use for STREAMING services?

phantasm — Sun, 03 Aug 2025 03:10:54 GMT

Hard to go wrong with the BCE or BCP (if no AF or covered AF with 6% Grocery CB)

Re: What's your favorite credit card to use for STREAMING services?

mgood — Sun, 03 Aug 2025 04:32:18 GMT

I was using Blue Cash Preferred for 6%. I changed it to Blue Cash Everyday after the first year and moved my streaming to US Bank Cash+ for 5%.

Re: What's your favorite credit card to use for STREAMING services?

Follower — Sun, 03 Aug 2025 13:06:22 GMT

My Citi Custom Cash just kind of ended up the card I use for 5% on streaming because I don't really have a use for it otherwise. It's not a bad fit since my monthly recurring bill is under $70, so I never get anywhere near the monthly cap.

(It doesn't cover my Apple One subscription since that goes on my Apple Card.)

Re: What's your favorite credit card to use for STREAMING services?

Kforce — Sun, 03 Aug 2025 16:05:47 GMT

Have the BMO. ($15 rewards threshold)

(5% Streaming, Internet, Satellite -- No Cap) and (3% Gas, EV Charging & Grocery) -- {1500/q _ Cap}

They did a large number of account closings from inheriting Bank of the West

card holders a few months back.

Personally have had no issues, using for only the 5% cat's, approx $320/mo spend.

Re: What's your favorite credit card to use for STREAMING services?

Zoostation1 — Tue, 05 Aug 2025 03:27:02 GMT

I'm also using BCP so not much help for ya there.

Re: What's your favorite credit card to use for STREAMING services?

Drifter73 — Tue, 05 Aug 2025 03:52:39 GMT

Streaming is probably my least spend category, even with 9+ subscriptions its only weighs in around $135 per month.

So, I just stack that onto my CreditOne x5 Amex that's also used for gas and groceries until it caps the $5k per year spend. Then I switch the grocery and gas spend to other 5% cards for those categories to finish out the year.

Re: What's your favorite credit card to use for STREAMING services?

MarkintheHV — Tue, 05 Aug 2025 20:26:37 GMT

I always look at the cost vs. benefits. With my AmEx BCP, while I do pay the $95 annual fee, so far this year I have received $590 in cash back. I am not really using this for 100% either as I have had to put spending on other cards (mainly Delta AmEx to keep my platinum status). So, for me, its a no brainer to keep using AmEx BCP for as much spending as I can (right now, about 99% of my spending is back on my BCP.

Re: What's your favorite credit card to use for STREAMING services?

unsungivy — Tue, 05 Aug 2025 15:50:32 GMT

Much like others, I'm using the BCP for the moment but plan on switching to my Elan MCP when the next time I downgrade the BCP.

Unfortunately my Disney+ is at a military discount (my Hulu is free), and the Disney Bundle (which is being renamed and upgraded to $120 a year/$10 a month credits, and the reins have been loosened as far as what streaming services together now count) don't apply to it, or it would pay for itself.

Math for me:

Disney+ through the Exchange (25% off JUST Disney+ with no ads, annual sub, bundles not allowed).

$159.99 - 25% = $119.99 + 6% tax = $127.19 / annual (which is what was billed, so I'll consider this math logical)

HBO (no ads) with a "spend $100+ and get $25 off" AmEx deal

$139.99 + 6% tax = $148.39 - $25 = $123.39 / annual (I see they upped this price to $169.99/annual, which will affect me in May... hopefully the AmEx offer increases too)

= $250.58 annual, or $20.88 monthly currently. This will go up to $23.53 monthly if I account for the price hike in HBO and everything else remains the same.

=$307.38 if there is no applicable AmEx offer, or $25.61 monthly

Disney+/Hulu/HBO no ads bundle on BCP

$29.99 + 6% tax = $32.69 - $10 credits = $22.69 monthly + $7.91 monthly "cost" of the AF for keeping the BCP = $30.61

Disney+/Hulu/HBO no ads bundle on BCE

$29.99 + 6% tax = $32.69 - $7 credits = $25.69 monthly

I have to keep looking at my cell phone bill as well, because if the grandfathered T-Mobile plan we're currently on becomes not-the-best for us, ditching the free Hulu for free Netflix instead will change all that math, and almost certainly make the BCE/BCP route the better one.

Re: What's your favorite credit card to use for STREAMING services?

creditrizz — Wed, 06 Aug 2025 06:55:23 GMT

Do most people on here actually keep the BCP year after year, or just alternate downgrading it back to BCE every other year to avoid the fee? The extra net cashback seems to be pretty slim after you pay the AF on the BCP (like $85 net a year?) , even if you max out the grocery spend. No idea what the typical person pays for streaming - maybe that makes it a better deal.

Re: What's your favorite credit card to use for STREAMING services?

bs1234 — Wed, 06 Aug 2025 14:47:37 GMT

@creditrizz wrote:
Do most people on here actually keep the BCP year after year, or just alternate downgrading it back to BCE every other year to avoid the fee? The extra net cashback seems to be pretty slim after you pay the AF on the BCP (like $85 net a year?) , even if you max out the grocery spend. No idea what the typical person pays for streaming - maybe that makes it a better deal.

With the free 5% cards (such as Custom Cash Rewards, or even better, Paypal Debit) that can be used for groceries, the BCP makes no sense if used purely for groceries (and/or gas). Heavy use for streaming can make it somewhat net positive but, IMO, this card is much more popular than it deserves, at least after you have to pay an AF.

(Just to make this clearer: Again, just on groceries, to overcome the annual fee over a 5% card, the extra 1% would have to exceed $95, which means $9,500 annual spend. Except the BCP caps out the 6% at $6000, so....! At the time BCP was launched, there weren't many non-rotating 5% grocery options (OBC but that has a "begin earning" threshold), so the 6% stood out, but that is no longer valuable. Now non-grocery usage can make the card worthwhile but it starts from a disadvantage)

Re: What's your favorite credit card to use for STREAMING services?

unsungivy — Wed, 06 Aug 2025 14:35:54 GMT

@bs1234 wrote:
@creditrizz wrote:
Do most people on here actually keep the BCP year after year, or just alternate downgrading it back to BCE every other year to avoid the fee? The extra net cashback seems to be pretty slim after you pay the AF on the BCP (like $85 net a year?) , even if you max out the grocery spend. No idea what the typical person pays for streaming - maybe that makes it a better deal.
With the free 5% cards (such as Custom Cash Rewards, or even better, Paypal Debit) that can be used for groceries, the BCP makes no sense if used purely for groceries (and/or gas). Heavy use for streaming can make it somewhat net positive but, IMO, this card is much more popular than it deserves, at least after you have to pay an AF.

Especially when you consider that that 6% for groceries ONLY applies to US Supermarkets. As someone who gets weekly deliveries from CookUnity, Supermarkets is a very limited category. Not downgrading/upgrading the BCP is just keeping things "simple" for a user; it's almost certainly not the most cost efficient option.

Re: What's your favorite credit card to use for STREAMING services?

galahad15 — Wed, 06 Aug 2025 18:52:46 GMT

I use one of my 2x US Bank Cash+ cards for the 5% streaming category.

Re: What's your favorite credit card to use for STREAMING services?

Taurus22 — Fri, 21 Nov 2025 23:48:39 GMT

I've been using US Bank Cash+ until I recently found out I'm not getting the credit for streaming. They've gotten sneaky and now categorize my streaming services as entertainment and/or television.

My 5% categories are Utlities and Internet/Streaming......however, they classify YouTubeTV as Entertainment (which is my primary tv streaming) and Netflix as Television. (I'm having to put my cell phone bill on here temporarily, I know I'm not getting anything there)

Shady AF.

The Electronics and Software category is a $3 fee that my water company charges for CC payments, which is less than the 5% cashback from my payment, so it's fine.

But knowing this now, I will be switching those 2 "streaming services" back to my Amex BCP.

Re: What's your favorite credit card to use for STREAMING services?

FicoMike0 — Sat, 22 Nov 2025 00:05:44 GMT

Not a big cat for me. I'm using bcp now, when I down grade to bce, I'll switch to a commerce visa that pays 4%,

https://www.commercebank.com/personal/cards/credit-cards/special-connections

Re: What's your favorite credit card to use for STREAMING services?

JamesS84 — Sat, 22 Nov 2025 00:19:55 GMT

I like Amex Blue Cash Preferred. 6% back.

Re: What's your favorite credit card to use for STREAMING services?

ptatohed — Sat, 22 Nov 2025 07:05:05 GMT

Streaming is not a huge spend category for us, even a family of 5, so I'm content with 4% CB using my Smartly Visa.

Re: What's your favorite credit card to use for STREAMING services?

unsungivy — Sat, 22 Nov 2025 14:55:18 GMT

@phantasm wrote:
Hard to go wrong with the BCE or BCP (if no AF or covered AF with 6% Grocery CB)

Actually, it isn't hard to go wrong. Because the BCP doesn't recognize things like Apple TV as a streaming service.

Re: What's your favorite credit card to use for STREAMING services?

pbtxlady — Thu, 27 Nov 2025 06:16:32 GMT

@Taurus22 wrote:

My 5% categories are Utlities and Internet/Streaming......however, they classify YouTubeTV as Entertainment (which is my primary tv streaming) and Netflix as Television. (I'm having to put my cell phone bill on here temporarily, I know I'm not getting anything there)

Taurus, my Hulu account is categorized as TV too, but TV is included in the Internet/Streaming category. I get the 5% back on it every month, but they sure make it confusing. Everything on the list is classified at 1%, and then they add it all up and pay the other 4% separately as a "bonus." I had to do the math to make sure everything was actually getting the full 5%.

Sorry I can't help with the entertainment category. I also have YouTubeTV, but it's included in my Frontier (internet) bill, so it gets counted that way. However, everything associated with YouTube is either TV or internet, so maybe you could call and get that changed.