Category Archives for Credit Cards.
The Citi® Double Cash Card has no annual fee and earns 2% cash back (1% when you make a purchase and 1% when you pay for the purchase). That makes it one of the best value cards (strong rewards with no or low annual fee) and one of the very best cash back cards.
So far so good, it’s been a strong value card for awhile. However in the past quarter they made a change that turns the card from a top cash back card into a top card, period.
I think I’ve figured out why Chase and Visa would agree to give United $400 million more a year – starting right away – for a credit card deal they already had in place for several years.
Much of United’s explanation why made no sense. This new deal isn’t likely to lead to a lot of “portfolio growth” (more cardmembers). They already were introducing new cards, new benefits, and have been running aggressive acquisition bonuses. However 5 words in United’s SEC filing seem to give away the plot.
A little over a decade ago we saw the first 100,000 offer in the U.S., from Chase’s British Airways Visa. After that we saw a few others, especially coming out of the financial crisis where banks had been able to buy miles cheaply from cash-strapped airlines. As the economy improved, and the cost of credit card deals to the banks went up too, I didn’t think we’d see 100,000 mile offers – at least right away.
That’s why it’s so notable to me that we’re seeing a bunch of best-ever 100,000+ point offers this late in the economic cycle. Or maybe it’s because we’re late in the economic cycle that it’s happening. Regardless, it’s generous and program members should be excited.
Chase and United are long term partners issuing United-branded credit cards. Their existing deal ran into 2025. They’ve extended the deal into 2029. United says the new deal will increase their revenue this year by $400 million. I’m having a hard time making sense of that number.
Customers who pocket big bonuses, use their rewards, and spend most heavily in the fastest earning spending categories — all while paying off their card in full each month — may not wind up being a profitable customer for a bank. That’s especially true with the richest rewards cards, however those also come with the heftiest annual fees.
Not everyone is willing to apply for a $450 or $550 annual fee credit card. So here are some of the best value cards with annual fees less than $100 that deliver the strongest benefits and rewards.
Chase and United have extended their credit card agreement into 2029. United will remain a Chase Ultimate Rewards transfer partner. And Chase is, it seems, paying United more for the miles that it awards to customers – the airline says its bottom line will improve $400 million in 2020 alone.
Last year Chase had an initial offer of 125,000 points with an IHG credit card. That was really impressive — the standard offer used to be 60,000 and we’d get excited when it bumped up to 80,000. Now Chase has trumped even that offer.
How can you not jump at a 140,000 point initial bonus offer?
The Southwest Airlines Companion Pass is arguably the best deal in all of travel. After earning 125,000 points in a calendar year from qualifying sources you can bring a companion along on your Southwest Airlines travels usually for just an extra $5.60 for the second passenger. It’s easily within reach now.
Chase’s new 100,000 point offer for the premium Southwest Airlines business card will earn you enough points for a Companion Pass as soon as you’ve spent enough to earn the bonus. There are (4) things to know about applying for this card and (7) things you can easily do to meet the spending requirement for the full bonus.
Emirates offers a great product. They have some interesting airline partnerships. And they serve a number of U.S. gateways. To make a U.S. co-brand attractive they could take a lesson from the Chase British Airways card and offer a statement credit towards taxes and fees on redemptions each year, as well as offer fast mileage-earning and progress towards elite status along with upgrades on the airline.
Gary Leff is one of the foremost experts in the field of miles, points, and frequent business travel -- a topic he has covered since 2002.
Co-founder of frequent flyer community InsideFlyer.com, emcee of the Freddie Awards, and named one of the "World's Top Travel Experts" by Conde' Nast Traveler (2010-Present) Gary has been a guest on most major news media, profiled in several top print publications, and published broadly on the topic of consumer loyalty. More About Gary »
