Best strategies to get most out credit cards, rewards, balance transfer offers.

[Jim_n_NYC]

3 hours ago, Kevin Slater said:

Also, often the ATM will prompt you with a screen saying something like "the conversion rate we're offering you is XXX" which is invariably worse than the spot rate your bank will give you.  You have the option to accept (meaning the charge will go through as dollars but at their bad rate) or to decline (meaning the charge will go through as ,say, Euros and then get your bank's exchange rate).  You're best off declining their proffered rate of conversion.

Kevin Slater

"Dynamic Currency Conversion"...the worst deal ever.  Always use local currency if asked when using a credit card.  Probably second worst deal next to changing money at the airport currency conversion desk...ugh.

[+ FrankR]

On 6/5/2023 at 9:39 AM, Jim_n_NYC said:

Yea, I was going to get the green card since it is a good balance of bonus points on travel and dining (3x each), but while I was considering it we did a trip to Spain and Portugal and I was checking most places we went to (restaurants mostly) and I don't remember a single place that took Amex.

Surprisingly, last fall in Germany (Bavaria), I was surprised at how many places didn't take CC's at all.  We used ATMs a lot more than we usually do.

Yes, good luck using a credit card in the Netherlands. None of the grocery stores and shops I visited accepted them. Cash and debit cards only. It was eye opening. 

[Jim_n_NYC]

1 hour ago, FrankR said:

Yes, good luck using a credit card in the Netherlands. None of the grocery stores and shops I visited accepted them. Cash and debit cards only. It was eye opening. 

And then on the other hand, we've been to Iceland twice (2017 and 2021) and I don't even know what their currency looks like.  They are all in on electronic payments for everything.  Tap your card or your phone or however.  I had to go out of my way to make sure I got some currency as a souvenir.

[handiacefailure]

On 6/5/2023 at 5:44 PM, Kevin Slater said:

Also, often the ATM will prompt you with a screen saying something like "the conversion rate we're offering you is XXX" which is invariably worse than the spot rate your bank will give you.  You have the option to accept (meaning the charge will go through as dollars but at their bad rate) or to decline (meaning the charge will go through as ,say, Euros and then get your bank's exchange rate).  You're best off declining their proffered rate of conversion.

Kevin Slater

Agree.   Same if a merchant will ask you if you want it charged in US or their currency.   The conversation rate sucks.   I know Harrods in London gives you the choice and a lot of duty free stores at airports will.

 

Also make sure you travel with a card that has no foreign transaction fees.   There's a couple out there with no annual fee like the PenFed visa (which also is the only credit card I've found that is US based that has a PIN capability which is great oversears).  

[handiacefailure]

10 hours ago, FrankR said:

Yes, good luck using a credit card in the Netherlands. None of the grocery stores and shops I visited accepted them. Cash and debit cards only. It was eye opening. 

Didn't try using it a grocery store, but no issue at all using my credit card anyplace in Amsterdam when I was there in 2013 except bars and for edibles.   

There's places I've been to in Paris and London that only take plastic.  

[mike carey]

7 hours ago, handiacefailure said:

(which also is the only credit card I've found that is US based that has a PIN capability which is great oversears).  

Good grief! I'm gob-smacked! PINs have been the only thing here for about 10 years (apart from contactless for below [usually] $100). The financial authorities decided that signatures were insufficient for security so they made chip and PIN the standard. Signatures aren't accepted as proof if a transaction is disputed.

[Jim_n_NYC]

3 hours ago, mike carey said:

Good grief! I'm gob-smacked! PINs have been the only thing here for about 10 years (apart from contactless for below [usually] $100). The financial authorities decided that signatures were insufficient for security so they made chip and PIN the standard. Signatures aren't accepted as proof if a transaction is disputed.

LOL, for frequent US travelers, this has been a thing for years.

[handiacefailure]

17 hours ago, mike carey said:

Good grief! I'm gob-smacked! PINs have been the only thing here for about 10 years (apart from contactless for below [usually] $100). The financial authorities decided that signatures were insufficient for security so they made chip and PIN the standard. Signatures aren't accepted as proof if a transaction is disputed.

Unfortunately it is very hard to get a pin enabled credit card from a US bank.   Only place I found that has one is PenFed.   Fortunately most places take apple pay in other countries so it isn't really a big deal but a pin card can come in handy at the Amsterdam train kiosk and some gas stations overseas require a pin.

And apple pay still isn't very common in the US.   Walmart and Kroger still don't accept apple pay and most restaurants don't have apple pay either.

And speaking of ApplePay discover is giving five percent back on all mobile wallet purchases next quarter if you register up to a Max of $1,500 in charges.   I really miss the promo they had when Discover was first enabled for Applepay and gave a 10% cashback on all ApplePay purchases with no Max.   I bought a new dishwasher from BestBuy and a bunch of gift cards for places I shop at from a small grocery store near me that accepts applepay.

[+ FrankR]

On 6/7/2023 at 11:16 PM, handiacefailure said:

Unfortunately it is very hard to get a pin enabled credit card from a US bank.   Only place I found that has one is PenFed.  

My Target credit card is chip & pin - mastercard issued by TD Bank. 

Edited June 9, 2023 by FrankR

[mike carey]

@handiacefailure I'm an android guy not apple (I started to write 'I'm an android not an apple guy') and I don't remember any trouble using Google Pay in the US in April, although that might have been pure luck with the places I tried (I had a card I used half the time that wasn't loaded in my wallet). In some places they still wanted a signature as well rather than a PIN ffs. I suspect that the point of sale terminal technology needed for chip and pin is also needed for mobile wallets and some big firms haven't seen the need to invest in it yet.

And I can use Google Pay to tap on and off public transport in Sydney (not, or not yet, in some other Australian cities). I believe that also works in NYC but I knew I needed a physical Metro Card for the JFK air train so I didn't try.

[handiacefailure]

14 hours ago, mike carey said:

@handiacefailure I'm an android guy not apple (I started to write 'I'm an android not an apple guy') and I don't remember any trouble using Google Pay in the US in April, although that might have been pure luck with the places I tried (I had a card I used half the time that wasn't loaded in my wallet). In some places they still wanted a signature as well rather than a PIN ffs. I suspect that the point of sale terminal technology needed for chip and pin is also needed for mobile wallets and some big firms haven't seen the need to invest in it yet.

And I can use Google Pay to tap on and off public transport in Sydney (not, or not yet, in some other Australian cities). I believe that also works in NYC but I knew I needed a physical Metro Card for the JFK air train so I didn't try.

The London transit system has had the capability since before covid to pay with you phone or watch and I love it, beats having funds left on an oyster card and cashing them out at the airport.   Chicago's and NYC's system has also had tap and pay for a while but like you said in NYC you can't use it on the Airtrain which sucks since you have to pay a fee for the stupid MTA card.

[+ Vegas_Millennial]

2 hours ago, handiacefailure said:

The London transit system has had the capability since before covid to pay with you phone or watch and I love it, beats having funds left on an oyster card and cashing them out at the airport. 

This is good to know because I'll be in London in August.  I didn't know I could cash out unused funds from a transit card.  I always assumed I had to use it or lose it.

[mike carey]

5 hours ago, handiacefailure said:

The London transit system has had the capability since before covid to pay with you phone or watch and I love it, beats having funds left on an oyster card and cashing them out at the airport.   Chicago's and NYC's system has also had tap and pay for a while but like you said in NYC you can't use it on the Airtrain which sucks since you have to pay a fee for the stupid MTA card.

Haha, yes, I now have four US and three Australian transit cards with funds on them, including a Sydney one from before the system was credit/debit card enabled. I haven't been to London for a long time but knew you could use cards/phones there. In a Points Guy video comparing ways to get to LHR, one guy CONSPICUOUSLY used his Amex Gold Card. Product placement much?

[Bokomaru]

12 hours ago, handiacefailure said:

The London transit system has had the capability since before covid to pay with you phone or watch and I love it, beats having funds left on an oyster card and cashing them out at the airport.   Chicago's and NYC's system has also had tap and pay for a while but like you said in NYC you can't use it on the Airtrain which sucks since you have to pay a fee for the stupid MTA card.

The metro card fee is just $1. But I hear you. It’s annoying to need a metro card for airtrain only, since the rest of the system lets you tap to pay. And if you don’t already have a metrocard you end up standing in line with the tourists to get one at train itself.  Ugh. 

[Bokomaru]

For international travel I use Revolut only now. The exchange rates are far superior to credit cards. No 2% rewards but who cares when you save so much on the better exchange? My experience is that banks either charge a % fee for non-USD transactions or they use an exchange rate that has that fee baked into it. Plus, Revolut is chip and PIN. True, you have to fund the card ahead of time, but it’s easy to transfer money directly from my checking via the app.

There are other cards similar to Revolut like Wise and N26. Not sure which ones are available for US customers. 

[+ Vegas_Millennial]

2 hours ago, Bokomaru said:

Plus, Revolut is chip and PIN

I have read on here a few times about a PIN for credit cards.

Will I be able to use my non-PIN US credit cards in Europe, without a PIN (most have a chip now)?  I did so in Canada a decade ago.  They made the US customers sign their receipts while Canadians entered their PIN.  

[Bokomaru]

1 hour ago, Vegas_Millennial said:

I have read on here a few times about a PIN for credit cards.

Will I be able to use my non-PIN US credit cards in Europe, without a PIN (most have a chip now)?  I did so in Canada a decade ago.  They made the US customers sign their receipts while Canadians entered their PIN.  

Yes you can. Previously, before US cards had chips it was problematic once in a while. Now, pretty much everyone in EU knows that American cards are “chip and sign.” Sometimes they take the signature seriously (ask to see ID) but that’s not very common. 

[handiacefailure]

7 hours ago, Vegas_Millennial said:

I have read on here a few times about a PIN for credit cards.

Will I be able to use my non-PIN US credit cards in Europe, without a PIN (most have a chip now)?  I did so in Canada a decade ago.  They made the US customers sign their receipts while Canadians entered their PIN.  

The only time I've heard of it being an issue is at some gas stations that have no humans and I ran into an issue at AMS train kiosk onetime but I just went to a human, just sucked waiting in line.

[handiacefailure]

20 hours ago, Vegas_Millennial said:

This is good to know because I'll be in London in August.  I didn't know I could cash out unused funds from a transit card.  I always assumed I had to use it or lose it.

Not sure if this is still the case but before they had tap and pay you could buy an Oyster card at LHR station and you had to pay a deposit and then on your return you could use the Kiosk and it would refund your money and the deposit on the card and disactiate the card.

I always thought the card fee was absurd if they would reissue the fee and let you keep the card and also they would disactivate it.   Everytime I went to London I would have to buy a new oyster card and wait in the line to get the refund.   Was also a pain having it refunded in coins since my bank in the US only takes bills but I woud just the coins at Duty free and put it towards my purchase and pay the balance on my credit card.

[edinbrooklyn]

On 11/23/2022 at 11:06 PM, BeamerBikes said:

Opening a thread on folks best practices around handling credit cards.  

I'm re-evaluating my annual rewards card landscape.  I was loyal to United for years then switched to Southwest for their reward program fairness. Now I'm considering would it better to go the route of a single high priced annual fee like an AMEX Platinum versus carrying multiple travel cards - CapitalOne, Airline, Hotel cards.  

 

 

 

If you travel a lot, you can make the Amex Platinum more than pay for itself. There are a host of other benefits, as well. But you have to be quite deliberate in how you spend you’re money. 

[Luv2play]

On 11/24/2022 at 7:19 PM, handiacefailure said:

Citi offers a 2 percent cash back card, but be careful.   I do a lot of credit card spend for work and they shut down my account with no notice and I forfeited over $1K in rewards.   They probably didn't like not making any money off me since I paid in full every month, if you go this route make sure to cash out the rewards as soon as the statement closes.

If you use Delta a lot their reserve card can be great if you do a lot of spending since you can get the MQD waiver and MQM boosts and lounge access to Delta clubs and AmEx centurion clubs when flying delta.

Since I do a lot of business spending I have a lot of different cards.

I have the AmEx platinum that I have mainly for the benefits and don't put much spend on it unless I have a good offer on their site (AmEx offers a lot of good offers on their site, like spend $200 at Hilton get $50 back) and a $20 a month streaming credit, $50 off at Saks every six months, Marriott Gold status, and $200 a year in Uber credits and a free walmart plus membership and clear membership fees reimbursed and a $150 a year airline credit.

All my spending at the beginning of the year goes on my Delta cards until I have enough in for the MQM boosts and then it goes in a drawer.

After that, unless I have a credit card that gives bonus points all my day to day spend goes on my Chase freedom unlimited that is 1.5% and I trasnfer those points to my chase sapphire reserve and if I use the points for payyourself back for restaurants or travel I get a 50% bonus netting me a 2.5% return.   I have the chase freedom as well that has 5% quarterly categories and I use it for those categories and transfer it to my CSR netting me a 7.5% return, but unfortunately it's only $1,500 of spend each quarter in those categories.

The chase freedom and unlimited have no annual fee.   The Chase Sapphire reserve is something like a $450 fee but you get a $300 travel credit netting it down to $150 and you get 3 points per $ on travel and dining and the travel category is very generous and includes parking, ubers, public transit and tolls.   And you get a 50% bonus if you use the points on the chase travel portal netting 4.5% on bonus categories.   The past two years they have had something called paid yourself back where you can use points to get dining purchases credited at a rate of 1.5 cents per point and also the annual fee, so this is a great card for travellers and high spenders.   You also get global entry reimbursement and great rental car protection and a premium priority pass membership and travel insurance (that benefit has more than paid the annual fee when I've had a flight cancel).

I have the Hilton credit card and while it has a $450 annual fee it more than pays for itself.   You get a free night every year (I used it in September in paris where the nightly rate was over $600 so paid for it right there for the annual fee), diamond status (which is great overseas since you get lounge access), a $200 airline credit and a $250 resort reimbursement that can be used against the room rate.   Only use this card for Hyatt purchases.

I have the Hyatt credit card I use only for Hyatt purchases and even though I have globalist status with Hyatt the free night a year more than pays the annual fee, same with the Marriott card.

I also have the Wyndham card and I believe it's $75 or $90 a year and you don't get a free night but get enough Wyndham points instead that pays for a room in a lot of cities and they points can be transferred to Caesars.   Only reason I have this card is that it comes with Wyndham diamond status and I rarely use Wyndhams outside of WEHO Ramada but Caesars has a status match with Wyndham and the Diamond status at Caesars if you go to vegas even one time a year pays for this annual fee since you get a $100 a year dining credit and if you stay with Caesars properties, it will waive the resort fee.

I also have a discover card but have had it since 85 when the card first came out when I was in college and when reward cards were very rare and used it a lot when I was younger just for the 1% back.   I still have the card and just use it when they have a 5% bonus category (this quarter it is apple pay).

 

I take it you spend more than $1million per year on these cards.

[edinbrooklyn]

11 hours ago, Luv2play said:

I take it you spend more than $1million per year on these cards.

Way outside my league but even with a much smaller budget you can make it work for you, if you’re attentive. A bit light high-end coupon clipping!

[handiacefailure]

On 6/12/2023 at 7:11 PM, Luv2play said:

I take it you spend more than $1million per year on these cards.

No but spend about $450K which is very easy to do as a business owner.   When I retire I'll probably only keep a couple of the credit cards for every day spend but will keep my Hyatt, Marriott and Hilton cards just for the free night, the annual fee more than pays for the free night.  

[Pd1_jap]

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[+ The Big Guy]

Best advice learned is to use the points quickly before my partner does!