Comments on: Credit Card Rewards are a Complete Joke

By: Discover Card: Another Reason I Don’t Carry One… » Pants in a Can

Wed, 06 May 2009 09:53:02 +0000

[...] think they ever denied an application. And I’m pretty sure that they invented “reward” programs too. As a result, they attracted a less than desirable [...]

By: Citi Grinds My Gears… @ Finance Portal

Citi Grinds My Gears… @ Finance Portal — Wed, 08 Apr 2009 13:22:28 +0000

[...] And then it hit me, this was also the one credit card in my arsenal that earns reward points — yeah, those things that I think are a tot…. [...]

By: Wow… The Banks are Resorting back to Free Toasters… » Pants in a Can

Sat, 15 Nov 2008 02:03:54 +0000

[...] I’ve made my feelings pretty clear on what a bunch of crap rewards programs are so it’s not sucking me in but, even still, I wanted to see exactly what 10,000 reward points [...]

By: Intriguing Credit Card Offer: The 0% Offer Makes a Return » pantsinacan.com

Intriguing Credit Card Offer: The 0% Offer Makes a Return » pantsinacan.com — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 11:25:47 +0000

[...] In fact, none have really come close. A few 1.99% offers until paid in full from Bank of America, which isn’t bad, but nothing lower than that. Citi’s recent offers have been terrible, just terrible, like their rewards. [...]

By: Dedicated

Dedicated — Wed, 23 Jul 2008 00:57:14 +0000

I use a few cards for rewards – my main cards pay me exactly 1% in cash of everything I buy. I generally take the cash. The only time I don’t is if I have a planned purchase and then I will trade my Discover Rewards for a gift card where they always increase my reward – for instance I can trade $20 for a $25 gift card. That’s a good perk. But only if I’m shopping already.

Plus, I have my regular bills like Cellphone & Cable automatically paid with these cards, so I only have 1 payment to make and get cash back.

By: Brainy Smurf

Brainy Smurf — Tue, 22 Jul 2008 21:41:40 +0000

Hi Randy — perhaps, but how much have you spent over the 10 years on the AmEX to qualify for those rewards? I’m guessing that it’s a pretty large number.

I understand that over time, and if I put all of my expenses on a rewards card, that I might get some nice freebies, I dunno, like an umbrella or something… I like freebies.

But when you sit down and look at how much you’ve spent to receive the reward, you see how insignificant it (the value) really is…

By: Randy

Randy — Tue, 22 Jul 2008 21:13:17 +0000

Perhaps you have the wrong card? The trick is to find a card that has a good reward program; and then run as much of your common expenses through it as you can. Over the course of ten years, I have run countless thousands of dollars of business expenses through my American Express card; and it has paid off in the form of free airfare for my better half and myself. Together, we’ve flown to Australia, Europe, NZ, and Bali; not to mention various locations in the US…all on points.

By: Coupon Artist

Coupon Artist — Tue, 22 Jul 2008 21:06:09 +0000

If you have any student loan debt, the best thing to get with your Thank You Points is a student loan rebate. The $50 rebate is only 5000 points (as opposed to the 8000 for the $50 cash back). They send you the check and then you send it on to your student loan company, so if you are making loan payments anyway, it is almost the equivalent of cash back. The only thing is, you have to call to order the student loan rebates, you can’t do it online.