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Credit Card Discussions - which to choose, and why.

masshi

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Off-topic, but since I imagine that the most finance/money-savvy people on this forum will probably be in this thread:


What do you guys think are the "best" credit cards out there (for an American)? Not necessarily for fashion purchases, but for life in general (not sure if that makes a difference, but thought I'd clarify regardless).

According to Credit Karma, I have an "excellent" rating, so I'm assuming that I'll have a decent number of options? I've asked others and have received multiple recommendations for Citi's Double Cash Back Card, so I'm leaning towards that at the moment, but is it necessarily the best I can get right now?

I've built my credit over the years (like around seven) through just my first and only credit card, making sure to pay the balance in full every month. I don't have any other credit accounts, don't have any loans, have never applied for any credit inquiries (excluding Credit Karma), etc. - don't know if any of that matters, but maybe some of that stuff will affect your guys' suggestions
 
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Login

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Off-topic, but since I imagine that the most finance/money-savvy people on this forum will probably be in this thread:


What do you guys think are the "best" credit cards out there (for an American)? Not necessarily for fashion purchases, but for life in general (not sure if that makes a difference, but thought I'd clarify regardless).

According to Credit Karma, I have an "excellent" rating, so I'm assuming that I'll have a decent number of options? I've asked others and have received multiple recommendations for Citi's Double Cash Back Card, so I'm leaning towards that at the moment, but is it necessarily the best I can get right now?

I've built my credit over the years (like around seven) through just my first and only credit card, making sure to pay the balance in full every month. I don't have any other credit accounts, don't have any loans, have never applied for any credit inquiries (excluding Credit Karma), etc. - don't know if any of that matters, but maybe some of that stuff will affect your guys' suggestions
Chase Freedom.
 

ambyance

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@masshi

it really depends...

chase freedom, discover, etc have rotating 5% each quarter (sometimes they overlap like right now where freedom and discover both offer 5% cashback jan-march).

double cash is just 2% cash back total on everything... good for domestic purchases that dont fall into the rotating categories (i usually use DC for most clothing purchases)

if you like shopping international, you might want to look at boa travel rewards or chase sapphired preferred since they have no foreign transaction fee.

id say go for DC since its a solid card but theres no signup bonus...
check out nerdwallet, r/churning and slickdeals finance
you can get serious $$ from bonuses while maintaining a good credit score. the one i just got gives me 200 after 500 spend in the first 3 months.
 
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crucialkc

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Off-topic, but since I imagine that the most finance/money-savvy people on this forum will probably be in this thread:


What do you guys think are the "best" credit cards out there (for an American)? Not necessarily for fashion purchases, but for life in general (not sure if that makes a difference, but thought I'd clarify regardless).

According to Credit Karma, I have an "excellent" rating, so I'm assuming that I'll have a decent number of options? I've asked others and have received multiple recommendations for Citi's Double Cash Back Card, so I'm leaning towards that at the moment, but is it necessarily the best I can get right now?

I've built my credit over the years (like around seven) through just my first and only credit card, making sure to pay the balance in full every month. I don't have any other credit accounts, don't have any loans, have never applied for any credit inquiries (excluding Credit Karma), etc. - don't know if any of that matters, but maybe some of that stuff will affect your guys' suggestions


First, using Credit Karma does not affect your credit score. Also, it uses a different scoring system than what credit issuers use so take their scores with a grain of salt as they are only an approximation.

Now that that's out of the way, it really depends on what sort of rewards or benefits you are after. Also depends on your spending habits. Out of all the cards I have, the most well rounded one is my Chase Sapphire Preferred. It has a stellar price protection policy (extends warranty of items purchased with card, pays you the difference in price if price drops, etc) along with many other travel benefits (car rental insurance, health insurance while traveling to an extent, pays you if your trip or baggage is delayed, etc). It also has a decent rewards system. If you're weary of paying an annual fee, the Chase Freedom is good but the main drawback is that you can't transfer the points 1:1 to travel partners unless you have a CSP or Chase Ink +. I don't think it has nearly the same amount of benefits as the CSP either. If you are just looking for a shitload of points/miles, there are other cards out there that would better suit you.

Source: have a fico score in high 700's and have points across several programs totaling just under 500k
 
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ppllzz

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JUST GET ALL THE CREDIT CARDS

it doesn't really affect your credit that much

income is the #1 factor when credit is concerned
 

t3hg0suazn

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^yes, shouldn't be hard to find, just be patient

Re: credit card, I sort of do the lazyman's churning: just once a year (doesn't hurt credit rating much or at all). I get the one with highest signing bonus plus no foreign exchange fee b/c I like taking advantage of the strong dollar. United Mileageplus (if you want United points), Chase Sapphire, Barclaycard, CapitalOne Venture. Get it when there's something like 50k points after some minimum spend. All have annual fees but waived first year. Chase Sapphire is the nicest, mostly because the card is thick and metal so it just looks really cool. But also Chase Ultimate Rewards points are the most flexible and booking flights/hotels through their system gives a slight discount.
I might even get the Chase Sapphire again and just pay the annual fee to keep it every year.

Chase Freedom is nice but I don't use all the categories and I'm too lazy to keep track. Amex Blue Cash Preferred has annual fee but 6% cashback on groceries so if you go to supermarkets a lot it's worth it (also 3% on gas).

CapitalOne Quicksilver has no fee and gives some discount on Uber rides, if that is relevant.
 

NaTionS

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You need to decide whether you want a cashback card or a rewards card (either flights or hotels) first, and then get down to choosing a particular card.
 

postal007

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You need to decide whether you want a cashback card or a rewards card (either flights or hotels) first, and then get down to choosing a particular card.


THIS.

For a rewards card, I would suggest the Chase Sapphire and/or Citi ThankYou Premier. Both have points that you can transfer to partners (please take a look at the lists carefully to make sure you use the specific travel partners before you get either or both), and have a sign-up bonus for a specific minimum spend over 3 months.
 

ace13x

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You need to decide whether you want a cashback card or a rewards card (either flights or hotels) first, and then get down to choosing a particular card.

I don't do a lot of C.C. spending (though, more now that internet banking is so convenient) except around the holidays, so for me the ancillary benefits outweigh the cash-back/rewards. Things like the buyer protection, car rental insurance, etc. So don't forget to factor those into your decision.

Its also nice if you have a card that lets you view your FICO score online automatically, like Chase Slate, but thats probably a secondary concern.

If you googol "how to get a 850 credit score" you will get a bunch of websites that will break down all you need to know about how your score is determined and what affects what. The big ones are length of credit, consecutive on-time payments, and balance to limit ratio if I'm not mistaken. I stopped paying attention to that stuff when my score got above 800, I don't think I can get it much higher than that since I don't currently have any loan payments, maybe when I get a new car in a few years.
 
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Medwed

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I recommend get them all and then enter into rotating 7 year bankruptcy cycle. That way you don't ever have to pay them back. That is how 1% roll.
 

otc

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Really depends on your needs and benefits.

Are you in a hub city of a certain airline? If you are able to use the points smartly, airline cards still offer some of the best rewards out there...and get you free checked bags and priority boarding and other perks.

For instance, the united mileage plus explorer card has pretty good benefits. For example, in addition to all of the airline stuff, it will also take over as *primary* insurance on a rental car (most CCs are secondary).

The SPG Amex has a great rewards program (although I would be wary...who knows what will happen when the Marriott/Starwood merger goes through). Points are easily usable at hotels, and transfer (with a bonus) to many airlines. Like many Amex cards, it also gets you free Shoprunner shipping (like amazon prime, but for a lot of different stores).
 

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