@xgac12x wrote:
So don't even use the Freedom Unlimited? Just SPG for non bonus, CSP for travel and dining and Freedom for 5% categories?
I will be getting a CSR eventually and saving my points until then as well. So I get the 50% bonus for redeeming for travel.
Do what makes most sense to you for how you travel. If you stay exclusively at places like Hyatt and don't use any of the SPG airline partners (some of which aren't available as UR transfer partners) then the Freedom Unlimited should be used over the SPG card. However, if you plan on staying at SPG/Marriott properties it would be better to use the SPG card as you earn 1 SPG point (which is worth 3 Marriott points) for every dollar spent.
I value 1 SPG point more than 1.5 Ultimate Reward points - even if I can earn between $0.02-$0.04 per each Ultimate Reward point. Why? Because like I said earlier, I can earn Ultimate Reward points with several different cards (just like you) - I earn 5 UR and 2 UR/$ on my Ink Cash card, 3 UR/$ on my CSR, and 5 UR/$ on my Freedom card. I can only earn SPG points off my SPG card and SPG/Marriott stays.
I still use my Freedom Unlimited card, any unbonused spend from vendors that won't take Amex (like my bread vendor, produce vendor, car insurance, electric company, etc.) goes on the Freedom Unlimited. But for me I can get some great value on SPGs Nights and Flights, where you get 5 night stays and 50,000 airline miles for only 60,000-70,000 SPG points depending upon the property - and the only way to get the points to redeem these is via the SPG card or SPG/Marriott stays (unless you want to convert Marriott points to SPG points - but it takes 3 Marriott points to get 1 SPG point - so transferring UR points to Marriott for SPG points isn't a very good use of them at all).
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