What to do with Barclay's Arrival+?

[trumpet-205]

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@longtimelurker wrote:

Right.  Some have complained that is a little simplistic, as it ignores the FTF on the other cards, and the WEMC features available.   But on the other hand, FIdelity and DC have unrestricted redemption vs travel only, so it's more or less fair.

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You nailed it. Arrvial+ requires comparable spending on travel to redeem at 1:1 ratio. From where it stands, Arrival+ is more expensive than Venture. WEMC benefits are hard to utilize. Take airline upgrades for example, it requires you to book full fare ticket. You'll save a lot more money by going with discounted ticket instead.

I wish Barclay adds more perks to it. A primary CDW on Arrival+ would have make the AF wothwhile.

[Shock]

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@trumpet-205 wrote:

You need to spend avg. $3.7K per month in order to earn more rewards than Double Cash and Fidelity AMEX. Don't just look at braking AF even, but the point where you earn more rewards than others.

Here is the math,

0.022x - $89 = 0.02x

0.002x = $89

x = $44,500

$44,500 / 12 months = avg. $3,708 per month

Spend less than that, and your AF will caused you to earn less rewards overall.

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But what would the brak even point be? $5k as I suggested? higher?

[longtimelurker]

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@Shock wrote:

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@trumpet-205 wrote:

You need to spend avg. $3.7K per month in order to earn more rewards than Double Cash and Fidelity AMEX. Don't just look at braking AF even, but the point where you earn more rewards than others.

Here is the math,

0.022x - $89 = 0.02x

0.002x = $89

x = $44,500

$44,500 / 12 months = avg. $3,708 per month

Spend less than that, and your AF will caused you to earn less rewards overall.

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But what would the brak even point be? $5k as I suggested? higher?

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Break even, as trumpet says, is really not the way to think of it.  As I've said before, the LongTimeLurker SuperDooper Card, annual fee $1, earns 0.1% on everything.  You breakeven after just $1000 !!!!!   But still a lousy card, because there are much better choices.  Hence the comparison to Fidelity or Double Cash.

But if you really want to know, the question is $89 = 0.022X, so X = 89/.022 = $4045+    Math isn't hard!

[Shock]

yeah, i calculated 5000 x 0.02 cuz i thought annual fee was 95, and just rounded to 100 for simplicity. good to know i got the order of operations right! lol...

as it sits now, im probably going to cold app for the sallie mae and just transfer the line over if im approved

[trumpet-205]

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@Shock wrote:

But what would the brak even point be? $5k as I suggested? higher?

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Brake even point for the AF is at $4,045 (8,900 / 2.2).

Brake even point is a terrible way of determing the value of the card. Suppose I can spend $20,000 annually.

With Arrival+,

$20,000 x 0.022 - $89 = $351 worth of rewards.

With Fidelity AMEX or Citi Double Cash

$20,000 x 0.02 = $400 worth of rewards.

Of course if there is foreign spending mixed in the math is a bit different. Despite the fact that you offset the AF with $20,000 annual spending, you still earn less than Fidelity AMEX or Citi Double Cash. From rewards perspective it makes no sense to pick Arrival+.

[Shock]

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@trumpet-205 wrote:

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@Shock wrote:

But what would the brak even point be? $5k as I suggested? higher?

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Brake even point for the AF is at $4,045 (8,900 / 2.2).

Brake even point is a terrible way of determing the value of the card. Suppose I can spend $20,000 annually.

With Arrival+,

$20,000 x 0.022 - $89 = $351 worth of rewards.

With Fidelity AMEX or Citi Double Cash

$20,000 x 0.02 = $400 worth of rewards.

Of course if there is foreign spending mixed in the math is a bit different. Despite the fact that you offset the AF with $20,000 annual spending, you still earn less than Fidelity AMEX or Citi Double Cash. From rewards perspective it makes no sense to pick Arrival+.

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Well, yes. In simplest terms, if Citi DC and Arrival+ both got 2 percent back, the one without the annual fee wins automatically for reward purposes.