This should be a great discussion topic and I hope to get heavy community participation. On more than one occasion, the topic of what qualifies as a “SUB” (Sign-up Bonus) has been debated. Is this important? No, not really. 
But for those of us who have a credit card and personal finance hobby, the distinction is worth consideration. There was one conversation 02/07/2024 from >this thread.< Then, the subject came up again this week in >this thread< which made me decide it was time for a group topic.
I’ve had credit cards over 40 years, since the early 1980’s. Back-in-the-day, there was no such thing as any sort of bonus or offer to get a new credit card. The credit card market was not nearly so competitive or market-saturated and most cards had little if any rewards. Most major-network cards from not only AMEX but also Mastercard and VIsa charged a nominal annual fee, even without a lot of perks or rewards. I will point out, though, that those cards often had more attractive interest rates or lower fees. In the mid-1980’s, credit card spending rewards were introduced, both with airline miles programs and cash rewards. AMEX Member Rewards didn’t come along until 1991 and Chase Ultimate Rewards until 2009. Cash rewards have increased significantly in the past 25 years, starting at 1% or less. Over time, the card market has become much more competitive. As one of many changes, in their struggle to add market share, lenders have introduced descriptive terms of incentives to apply for their cards including “Sign up Bonuses,” “New cardmember Offers,” “Welcome Bonuses,” “Welcome Offers,” and many other variations. These new card incentives began to appear around 2000 to 2010 and have proliferated into almost standard industry practice on most cards among the major lenders. However, they take many forms and often have varying requirements, most commonly to spend $x to receive $x in rewards. Likewise, banking deposit account bonuses were essentially non-existent until about the same period, and I notice My FICO abbreviations doesn't even include deposit accounts as SUBs, even though many of our members talk about banking “SUBs.” Our discussions have even danced around whether the word “Bonus” is appropriate for an incentive that requires some action to receive it or if sticking to “Offers” is necessary.
When My FICO Forums began in 2007, new cardmember offers were still in their infancy compared to today. From >the Common Abbreviations< thread on 10/29/2007, a SUB is defined as:
SUB - Sign Up Bonus. Extra incentive for solely getting a credit card. Different than a spend requirement bonus
In my opinion, this definition could be construed two different ways. Either ANY bonus requiring a spend is not a “SUB.” Or the intent was just to exclude spending retention offers on existing AF cards such as with AMEX from the definition of a SUB, since there is not a new account involved. My interpretation is that the second sentence isn't meant to insinuate that a SUB cannot require spending on a new account, but simply that retention spending offers on pre-existing accounts are not SUBs.
If you adhere strictly and literally to the first interpretation above, the majority of posts on My FICO completely misuse and overuse the term “Sign up Bonus” or the abbreviation “SUB.” Moreover, you’d also find the majority of other card forums and websites misuse or overuse the terms. However, I believe the term “SUB” has evolved in the vernacular to become an abbreviation of ALL new cardmember offers, regardless of the type. This usage on My FICO is inconsistent with the general public usage of the term. It's almost unheard-of for an “offer” on a new credit card or new banking account to give you something without a condition other than signing up. (The current Chase Amazon Offer is probably the only one I’ve seen lately See >HERE<.) So for that matter, use of the word SUB on a new deposit account where you must deposit a minimum sum and leave it for a minimum time would be technically incorrect, as actions are required to fulfill the agreement. Even introductory 0% financing offers have a requirement to transfer funds to save money on financing. Consequently, in my opinion, the term SUB has become more of an umbrella term for ALL introductory offers on cards and deposit accounts, regardless of any additional requirements. I would even go so far as to include 0% introductory financing as a form of a SUB, as the bonus takes the form of less interest paid on carried debt if a balance is transferred. I will give examples in a follow-on message.
- In my opinion, “SUB” or “Sign Up Bonus” is just a simple and concise way to refer to some form of new account incentive and makes general discussions on the forums easier.
- The opposite viewpoint is that the first interpretation of that My FICO definition above is still correct. From posts from my friend, @ptatohed , “Per myFICO's own acronyms, a SUB (sign up bonus) is not the same as an intro offer. A SUB is something you get when opening a new card regardless of anything needed on your part. e.g. a 0% intro rate on purchases for X months. An intro offer like 'Spend $Xk for XXk points is not a SUB.” >and< “FYI, it's an 'Offer', not a 'Bonus', meaning, you can choose to participate, or not. It's not a 'Bonus'. A 'Bonus' is something you get, regardless of whether or not you are willing to take them up on their 'offer'. By definition.”
Here are my questions:
(1) Is a new cardmember offer a SUB if it requires some action such as meeting a spending requirement?
(2) Is the use of the word “Bonus” appropriate if any action is required to receive it?
(3) Do you agree that the My FICO definition for SUB should be updated to “Extra Incentive to add a new credit card or deposit account,” while dropping the “different from a spend requirement bonus?”
If the community agrees that the answers are YES, I suggest we have moderators update and clarify the definition in “Common Abbreviations.” And if the answers are NO, forum-inappropriate use of the words “SUB” and “Bonus” should be flagged on all future posting to be consistent with forum guidelines.
Discuss.
Use of the terms “SUB,” “Sign Up Bonus,” or “Bonus” can be found throughout the webz. At least two major lenders, Chase and Capital One, spell out their definition of Sign-up Bonus on their educational webpages. Per the other links below, most of the major credit and financial websites reference “Welcome Offers” interchangeably with the words “Bonus” or “SUB” or “Sign up Bonus.”
These include:
- US News and World Report
- Doctor of Credit
- Credit Karma
- Credit Cards.com
- Wallet Hub
- Nerd Wallet
- The Points Guy
- Bankrate
- Card rates
- The Motley Fool
- CNBC
- Upgraded Points
- Award Wallet
- Cards and Points
- One Mile at a Time
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A sign-up bonus is an enticement offered by card issuers to consumers for applying and using a card. Sign-up bonuses have become generous in recent years, sometimes as much as 100,000 points. Typically, the cardholder must “earn” the bonus by reaching a spending threshold in a limited initial period, for example, by spending $3,000 on a card in the first 90 days after opening the account. Compare sign-up bonus credit card offers.
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Chase Bank:
Credit card sign-up bonuses, also known as a new cardmember offer, are a one-time offer to receive extra rewards for meeting the purchase requirements in the given time frame. Chase link 2.
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- A credit card sign-up bonus offers a one-time reward for new cardholders.
- Sign-up bonuses are sometimes called welcome bonuses or early-spend bonuses.
- To earn a sign-up bonus, new cardholders typically must use the card to spend a certain amount of money within a specific time frame.
- Depending on the terms and conditions of the card, bonuses could take the form of miles, cash back or other credits.
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Links:
Wells Fargo (uses "bonus")
One Mile at a Time (uses "bonus")
Again, good stuff Aim. 
I don't deny that the term Sign-Up Bonus (SUB) is largely used. I'm not at all surprised by all the third-party sites you found (Post 2) that use the term SUB. It is the well-established slang term. It's just that they are wrong. What do the credit issuers themselves call it?
Let me break it down in my view (which is obviously the minority view...... View of one, perhaps? lol)
1.) You don't "Sign Up" for a credit card. You apply for it. You Sign Up for karate or dance classes.
2.) A bonus is something you get by virtue of applying and receiving the card. I might use the Discover first year cash back match as an example. Or a hotel card's one free night per year. An offer is something you need to accept and choose to take them up on. The obvious example: Spend $X,XXX in the first 90 days, get $YYY.
I like to use the term Welcome Offer. WO? lol I'd be curious to see what the majority of issuers call it.
But, hey, I know am in the very low minority on this one! So, yeah, let me put on my flame suite and you guys can flame away! 
Oh boy, the semantics are of little use to this cat. What matters is that your putting green in your pocket without it costing you anything more than normal spend, at worst. Creative accounting can make it so you don't spend any of your hard earned cash, my favorite.
What becomes more interesting is you have to pick and choose what SUB's/Offers/Rewards to take on. What is the opportunity cost involved compared to others? How does it fit into your long term goals.
This year I came very close to equaling my CC/debit spend with SUB's/Offers/Rewards, thus almost having a net zero CC expense for the year. Sticking it to the man! LOL. Don't mind me, please continue with the topic at hand.
Citi:
Chase:
Aven:
RH:
