Dining Spend - CSR vs. CF Unlimited

[Anonymous]

I have both a CSR and CF Unlimited. WIth the rollout of 3% back on dining, I am wondering if this translates to 3x UR points vs cash back (assuming yes).

Also interested in knowing which of my two cards is best to put dining on, since I can earn 3x by using CSR or am assuming can use CF Unlimited, earn at 3x, and transfer to my CSR at 1.5x, and ultimately get 4.5x on dining. Is this the right way to think about it?

[CreditCuriosity]

Doesn't matter which card you put it on as long as it end up on the CSR.. Rumor also says on the 5th of October new buffs are coming to the CSR whether that is fact or fiction we shall see and see what they are if they do come hoping for 4x or 5x on dining, but probably wishful thinking..

[BmoreBull]

Yes cash back is same as ur points. Yes you can use the fu and transfer to csr. Doesn't really matter which card you use unless your trying to hit a spend bonus. 

[Anonymous]

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@Anonymous wrote:

Also interested in knowing which of my two cards is best to put dining on, since I can earn 3x by using CSR or am assuming can use CF Unlimited, earn at 3x, and transfer to my CSR at 1.5x, and ultimately get 4.5x on dining. Is this the right way to think about it?

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I wouldn't quite phrase the bolded part that way.   You transfer to the CSR at 1x, in either case ending up with 3x UR on the CSR, which can then be used at 4.5c on dining (for now, and for travel "permanently")  But bottom line is that it doesn't matter which approach, except putting it directly on CSR is one less step.   But if you using CFU for other things as well, you will need to transfer the points anyway.

[NRB525]

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@Anonymous wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:

Also interested in knowing which of my two cards is best to put dining on, since I can earn 3x by using CSR or am assuming can use CF Unlimited, earn at 3x, and transfer to my CSR at 1.5x, and ultimately get 4.5x on dining. Is this the right way to think about it?

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I wouldn't quite phrase the bolded part that way.   You transfer to the CSR at 1x, in either case ending up with 3x UR on the CSR, which can then be used at 4.5c on dining (for now, and for travel "permanently")  But bottom line is that it doesn't matter which approach, except putting it directly on CSR is one less step.   But if you using CFU for other things as well, you will need to transfer the points anyway.

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And it is not unheard-of that what you think should code Dining turns out to be general spend, so using CFU gets 1.5 UR in that fail sequence.  

[Anonymous]

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@NRB525 wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:

Also interested in knowing which of my two cards is best to put dining on, since I can earn 3x by using CSR or am assuming can use CF Unlimited, earn at 3x, and transfer to my CSR at 1.5x, and ultimately get 4.5x on dining. Is this the right way to think about it?

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I wouldn't quite phrase the bolded part that way.   You transfer to the CSR at 1x, in either case ending up with 3x UR on the CSR, which can then be used at 4.5c on dining (for now, and for travel "permanently")  But bottom line is that it doesn't matter which approach, except putting it directly on CSR is one less step.   But if you using CFU for other things as well, you will need to transfer the points anyway.

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And it is not unheard-of that what you think should code Dining turns out to be general spend, so using CFU gets 1.5 UR in that fail sequence.  

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Very good point!   So my advice then switches to always use CFU for dining (over CFF for that matter as well as CSR) unless and until CSR increases the dining multiplier.

[coreysw12]

I agree, that's definitely a great point. In that case it's always best to choose CFU even if you have a CFF and/or CSR.

Worst case scenario, it saves some wear-and-tear on my pretty CSR. Best case scenario is it earns me an extra 0.5x if the restaurant codes the transaction as something besides dining. (I've never had that happen, but I can certainly believe that it could happen, especially where the restaurant is part of a larger business, like a theme park perhaps).

Only exceptions would be if CFF had a dining-related category that quarter, or CSR bumps up their multiplier, or you just want to impress people at the dining table

ETA: Actually, I just remembered that if you want to get 1.5x redemption via "Pay Yourself Back", you'll have to use the CSR for dining. So, at least until the end of the year, that's a good reason to continue using CSR if you want to use that redemption option. "PYB" is only worth 1x if you use it against dining spend on your CFF/CFU.

[Hoben02]

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@NRB525 wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:

Also interested in knowing which of my two cards is best to put dining on, since I can earn 3x by using CSR or am assuming can use CF Unlimited, earn at 3x, and transfer to my CSR at 1.5x, and ultimately get 4.5x on dining. Is this the right way to think about it?

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I wouldn't quite phrase the bolded part that way.   You transfer to the CSR at 1x, in either case ending up with 3x UR on the CSR, which can then be used at 4.5c on dining (for now, and for travel "permanently")  But bottom line is that it doesn't matter which approach, except putting it directly on CSR is one less step.   But if you using CFU for other things as well, you will need to transfer the points anyway.

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And it is not unheard-of that what you think should code Dining turns out to be general spend, so using CFU gets 1.5 UR in that fail sequence.  

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I've had situations where I've used my CSP at food festivals and when it didn't code as dining been able to call a customer support rep and they have switched it to dining

[coreysw12]

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@Hoben02 wrote:

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I've had situations where I've used my CSP at food festivals and when it didn't code as dining been able to call a customer support rep and they have switched it to dining

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That's good, but kind of a pain if it happens frequently. For an extra 20 or 30 points I probably wouldn't bother picking up the phone, personally.

[wasCB14]

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@Anonymous wrote:

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@NRB525 wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:

Also interested in knowing which of my two cards is best to put dining on, since I can earn 3x by using CSR or am assuming can use CF Unlimited, earn at 3x, and transfer to my CSR at 1.5x, and ultimately get 4.5x on dining. Is this the right way to think about it?

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I wouldn't quite phrase the bolded part that way.   You transfer to the CSR at 1x, in either case ending up with 3x UR on the CSR, which can then be used at 4.5c on dining (for now, and for travel "permanently")  But bottom line is that it doesn't matter which approach, except putting it directly on CSR is one less step.   But if you using CFU for other things as well, you will need to transfer the points anyway.

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And it is not unheard-of that what you think should code Dining turns out to be general spend, so using CFU gets 1.5 UR in that fail sequence.  

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Very good point!   So my advice then switches to always use CFU for dining (over CFF for that matter as well as CSR) unless and until CSR increases the dining multiplier.

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As a counterexample, I've had dining sometimes code as travel.

I gave up on URs in January, but the big example of that (at least then) was Uber Eats.