Travel Rewards for everyday spend

[Anonymous]

What card(s) are leading the pack now for best rewards to apply to travel off daily spending? Chase Trifecta still lead or has it been bumped out?

[csryang]

---

@Anonymous wrote:

What card(s) are leading the pack now for best rewards to apply to travel off daily spending? Chase Trifecta still lead or has it been bumped out?

---

Really depends on your needs. Chase, Amex, or Citi all have their point systems and trifecta/quadrafecta... Etc.

I personally like BOA cards especially with highest tier of preferred reward status. You get custom cash rewards' 5.25% cash back for category of your choice (can get multiple of the same card) and travel rewards' 2.65% cash back on everyday spend when redeem against travel all with zero annual fee!! 

[Anonymous]

If you can utilize ThankYou points, the Citi Premier has some pretty good multipliers. 3x on gas, groceries, dining, air travel, and hotels for a $95 annual fee.

If you feel like dancing around the monthly credits, the AmEx Gold card can be a great deal with 4x on dining and groceries and 3x on flights.

[BlueSea]

It depends how you use the points.  Citi is really strong now with Premier, DC and Custom Cash.

Another terrific option is the US Bank Altitude Reserve. 

If Chase didn't have Hyatt as a transfer partner,  they wouldn't be very competitive.

I think Citi has the edge now overall. 

But it really depends where you spend most and how you use the points. 

[GatorGuy]

If you value MR points, nothing really beats the Amex Blue Business Preferred which gives you 2 MR points for off category spend. My bare minimum value for MR points is 2ccp so it's 4% for non category spending. But MR points can easily go up to 5ccp or higher. 

The only draw back is they cap it at $50k spend a year. My wife and me both got one.

[coldfusion]

As a quick reminder, discussiion of business cards is limited to the Business Credit section of the forum.

[CBartowski]

I agree wil most folks here, it really depends on needs and type of traveller. If you like Business/First class and you're alright with some hoops I'd probably say AMEX MR; especially with the devaluation of the Schwab deal in Sept, travel will be what they have.

However, if you're an economy/BnB/sometimes off the beaten path traveler I'd recommend Chase UR still simply for their exposure to smaller BnBs and ability to book economy flights either through transfers or outright for more value than Amex. 

[Aim_High]

---

@csryang wrote:   ... I personally like BOA cards especially with highest tier of preferred reward status. You get custom cash rewards' 5.25% cash back for category of your choice (can get multiple of the same card) and travel rewards' 2.65% cash back on everyday spend when redeem against travel all with zero annual fee!!

While I have the Chase Quadfecta and like URs, I also have the Bank of America combination.  I like it as well, but in particular for the flexibility to redeem for higher cash-back than with Chase.  It just gives me a better redemption alternative. 

A few additions or corrections to the posting above, though:

• Highest tier of Preferred Rewards requires at least $100K in assets on deposit with Bank of America or Merrill Lynch.  This can be a show-stopper for some.  And there are those who prefer not to tie up that level of assets on conditional deposit.  But for those who are interested, it can done if you're able and willing to move a retirement account such as an IRA to Merrill Lynch.   The tiers for Platinum or Gold status are $50K and $20K respectively.   The credit card bonus magnifiers are 1.75%, 1.50%, and 1.25% respectively.  
• Technically, all of the above is not free of any annual fees.  The Premium Rewards card carries a $95 AF.  The fee can be completely offset with credits, but that doesn't remove the fee.  And there are people who wouldn't be able to recoup the credits.  The credits are $100 airline fee credit annually and TSA Global Entry reimbursement every 4 years ($100/4 = average value of $25 per year.)  For those who can and do take advantage of both credits, the effective annual fee is $0 and you get $30 value back in your pocket. 
• The uncapped and uncategorized earning rate is not quite 2.65%.  It's 2.625%.  (1.5% base rate on the card x 1.75% for the 75% bonus for those with Platinum Honors status.) 
• Not mentioned was that the Premium Rewards card also pays uncapped 3.5% in all dining and travel for those with Platinum Honors status!  (2.00% x 1.75%.) 

[Aim_High]

---

@Anonymous wrote:

What card(s) are leading the pack now for best rewards to apply to travel off daily spending? Chase Trifecta still lead or has it been bumped out?

---

How would you define "daily spending"?  Do you mean uncaterorized spending?  For daily spending, it can look vastly different, depending on consumer profile. 

I agree that it also depends on someone's redemption plans and lifestyle.  Transferring to partners is where the highest value lies and usually redemption is better for selected premium travel options.  If a traveler doesn't want to spend time and energy seeking the best value for points, their choice in cards or programs could be skewed.  Likewise, for an infrequent or budget traveler, direct redemption through the lender travel portal might be more attractive albeit at a somewhat lower value than when transferred.  And of course, even for those who will transfer, the choice of programs could be influenced by the travel partners that one prefers to work with.

I do think Chase's UR program and bi-fecta / tri-fecta / quad-fecta cards are still highly competive, but there are also great values from other major lenders like AMEX, Citi, Bank of America, and USB. 

[csryang]

---

@Aim_High wrote:

---

@csryang wrote:   ... I personally like BOA cards especially with highest tier of preferred reward status. You get custom cash rewards' 5.25% cash back for category of your choice (can get multiple of the same card) and travel rewards' 2.65% cash back on everyday spend when redeem against travel all with zero annual fee!!

While I have the Chase Quadfecta and like URs, I also have the Bank of America combination.  I like it as well, but in particular for the flexibility to redeem for higher cash-back than with Chase.  It just gives me a better redemption alternative. 

A few additions or corrections to the posting above, though:

• Highest tier of Preferred Rewards requires at least $100K in assets on deposit with Bank of America or Merrill Lynch.  This can be a show-stopper for some.  And there are those who prefer not to tie up that level of assets on conditional deposit.  But for those who are interested, it can done if you're able and willing to move a retirement account such as an IRA to Merrill Lynch.   The tiers for Platinum or Gold status are $50K and $20K respectively.   The credit card bonus magnifiers are 1.75%, 1.50%, and 1.25% respectively.  
• Technically, all of the above is not free of any annual fees.  The Premium Rewards card carries a $95 AF.  The fee can be completely offset with credits, but that doesn't remove the fee.  And there are people who wouldn't be able to recoup the credits.  The credits are $100 airline fee credit annually and TSA Global Entry reimbursement every 4 years ($100/4 = average value of $25 per year.)  For those who can and do take advantage of both credits, the effective annual fee is $0 and you get $30 value back in your pocket. 
• The uncapped and uncategorized earning rate is not quite 2.65%.  It's 2.625%.  (1.5% base rate on the card x 1.75% for the 75% bonus for those with Platinum Honors status.) 
• Not mentioned was that the Premium Rewards card also pays uncapped 3.5% in all dining and travel for those with Platinum Honors status!  (2.00% x 1.75%.) 

---

Yes glad you catch that error. my calculation was wrong on all non category spend, it should be 2.625% cash back (1.5*1.75) for the blue travel rewards card when redeem against travel charges.

I meant the travel rewards - the one with no annual fee and no FTF, I did not mention premier rewards with 95 annual fee in my previous post though that one is good if you have international travels. Otherwise, the cash rewards cards, one with travel category selected, trumps it.

I agree top tier of preferred rewards can be hard for some but as long as you transfer some assets to Merrill edge particularly the investment accounts, it should be easier including retirement account + regular brokerage when the stock market performed so well last year!