Credit Cards with Rewards

C

cnelk

New member
Mar 23, 2017
5,542
I don?t use a credit card all that much. Usually just save up and pay with cash or a debit card. I know that some people get ?rewards or points? when they use a credit card and then they turn them into merchandise.
Cabela?s or Capital One seem to be the favorite ones.

I am planning my Alaska trip and if I know if you apply for an Alaska Air Credit card you get enough ?miles? to get a free ticket.

My question is this:
Is it really worth it?
 
I\'ve lived my life strictly on cash.
If I want something, then I buy it with cash.

Three years ago my bank offered me a cash reward credit card.
Basically I get cash back for purchases.

Since then I still only buy things when I have the cash for it, but I just pay with my credit card.
The second it clears I pay it off.

That way I am not paying interest.

My card does not have annual fees, so I dub this all \"free money\".



I make anywhere from 200-500 a year because of it.


So if you build a system like that and stick to it, then it\'s good.
 
Credit cards are great if you pay them off in full every month. If you don\'t, you can dig yourself into a deep hole mighty quick!
 
Be sure to read the fine print on when you can use the points and any blackout periods. In order to get one of the airline freebies, I believe you\'ll have to get one of their branded credit cards - may or may not have annual fees. Frontier offers something similar but the points will go away if you don\'t fly like every 6 months if I recall correctly. I know you had to charge more or travel - can\'t recall which one.

You might look into Delta also for your trip. They were cheaper than Alaskan when we went to Anchorage last June and had a pretty good upgrade package for addt\'l legroom, wi-fi, movies, drinks for like $39 each way.

You can still get yourself in trouble by paying off the credit card each month if you\'re putting on charges you normally wouldn\'t if you had cash in your pocket. We use Capital One to acquire points then use them to pay for travel thus eliminating any blackout concerns - just have to find the best price and book it. BUT, we only put certain items on it - gas, groceries and eating out(and online licenses). Rest we use a debit card for which for us is kind of a check and balance(no pun intended)!!
 
I pay with cash and debit card for nearly everything I buy...

The only credit card I have is a Wally World credit card that I use to buy gas and diesel for our vehicles... It saves me $.05 a gallon and I\'ve never stopped to figure out how much it saves us over a year... I, like others have said, pay my monthly balance every month so there is no interest applied...
 
\"iccyman001\" said:
I\'ve lived my life strictly on cash.
If I want something, then I buy it with cash.

Three years ago my bank offered me a cash reward credit card.
Basically I get cash back for purchases.

Since then I still only buy things when I have the cash for it, but I just pay with my credit card.
The second it clears I pay it off.

That way I am not paying interest.

My card does not have annual fees, so I dub this all \"free money\".



I make anywhere from 200-500 a year because of it.


So if you build a system like that and stick to it, then it\'s good.
Click to expand...

x2 exactly how I do it avoid the temptation of well Ill get that money and pay it later. I only buy if I have the money to back it and pay it off each month it earns quite a bit over a year.
 
Join us in 2016, Brad! People nowadays pay with plastic!

Joking, but I pay for almost everything with plastic, both business and personal. I pay off the cards EVERY MONTH 100% so as not to incur any charges, and right now I\'m putting most of everything on Cabela\'s ... plenty of free gear from them.

Soon, I\'m going to start looking at the Alaska Airlines thing. I think I\'ll do that for a year or two, pay for a trip (or two) and then go back to Cabela\'s or find one that offers more cash back.

What\'s the downside? (As long as you don\'t over-spend, that is.)

Annual fee with Alaska Airlines is $75, I think, though, so they aren\'t free tickets.
 
John, only downside is if you\'re purchasing things on credit that you normally wouldn\'t if no cash in your pocket/wallet just to chase miles or gear. This goes outside of the fact whether you can afford it or not.

Ex: You go to Cabela\'s for a headlight($30). While shopping, you remember you\'re only 50 points away from another $10 off on merchandise. So, you buy a knife($20) to get $10 back. Someone close to me, who\'ll remain nameless, mentioned needing another $8 in groceries to get an additional .10/gallon off gas. So, I asked how many gallons for a fill up? Answer: 20. Next question: You\'re willing to spend $8 in order to save $2 at the pump? Yes, it was a LLLLLLOOOOOOOOOONNNNNNNNNNNNGGGGGGGGGGGGGG drive home but point was made.
 
Remember in math class when some kid asked \"When are we ever going to need this stuff?\"
 
It was Geometry until I realized how effective it was at calculating angles for making killer bank shots playing pool! :)
 
We also pay for everything with a credit card and pay it off each month. Check out Bank of America...their card has no annual fee and you can redeem points on any airline, so you aren\'t restricted to only one.
 
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