Category: Credit Cards

  1. Do this now: Register for 5x card Q4 categories:

    – Chase Freedom (Flex): Grocery, dining, and the Red Cross
    – Discover IT*: Restaurants, entertainment, utilities
    – Citi Dividend: Restaurants and Citi Travel Bookings
    – US Bank Cash+: I choose utilities and electronics

    Grocery excludes Walmart and Target, and entertainment is possibly more interesting than you think.
    *capitalone.com manages most Discover cards now, and they made 5% registration super easy to find in the same way that passing a kidney stone is super easy. To find it, login to your dashboard, click “Rewards & benefits”, then click “View rewards” and scroll down.
  2. The Incomm sites are running new promotions:

    – MasterCardGiftCard: $10 Mastercard free with $200+
    – VanillaGift: $10 Visa free with $200+
    – AmExGiftCard: Fee-free with promo code FALL26

    These are each valid through Sunday. Don’t buy with an AmEx, you won’t earn points or credit toward minimum spend. (Thanks to GCA)
  3. Chase Ultimate Rewards has a 70% transfer bonus to Marriott Bonvoy through October 15. This brings the transfer ratio to 1,000:1,700. There’s some non-zero value here on the high end of the award chart.
  4. The Citi ThankYou Mastercard recently converted to a World Mastercard, in case you were wondering why you got a replacement card with the same number, expiration, and CVV in the mail recently. They also sent new targeted mid-month offers for:

    – $50 back on $750+ in online purchases through October 14
    – $75 back on $1,000+ in online purchases through October 14

    There’s some speculation that the conversion to a World Mastercard means it’s going to again be available for applications, but it’s Citi so I wouldn’t count on anything. (Thanks to David, Rocky, and Birt)

Happy Wednesday!

More entertainment: Pre-dried paint, no more watching paint dry here.

  1. Q3 estimated taxes are due today. Your options for potentially turning this into a win for the federal side are:

    – ACI: credit fees 1.85%-2.95%, debit fees $2.10
    – Pay1040: credit fees 1.75%-2.89%, debit fees $2.15
    – Plastiq: card fees 2.99% + $1.49
    – Melio: card fees: 2.9%

    State taxes are a mixed bag, they may be outstanding for you, or your state might be Vermont in which case, sorry about that 3% fee.
  2. Buyer beware: American Express Membership Rewards to ANA Mileage Club aren’t working for some users. (Thanks to DoC)
  3. Qatar reportedly no longer requires qualifying activity to add accounts to Family & Friends, now the restriction is only that those accounts are at least 30 days old, making this program again useful for more than just “P1’s Qsuites and Chill Adventure”.
  4. Safeway, Albertsons, Vons, and other Just4U stores have a digital coupon for 10x points earning on $50+ in Lowes gift cards through Saturday. Double check that your particular chain has the offer, not all of them do this round because why be consistent?
  5. Southwest has a paid and award fare sale for travel booked by Thursday and flown between October 5 and March 3, 2027, with blackouts around expected days. There is some meat on the bone here, enough so that it’s probably worth your time to reprice any existing travel.

Happy Tuesday, friends!

Unofficial Just4U motto.

  1. The Bank of America Alaska Atmos Business Visa has an increased sign-up bonus of 85,000 miles after $5,500 spend in 90 days.

    You can get multiple, just don’t try on the same day or the Bank of America gods may smite you.
  2. The Chase IHG Premier Visa has a new sign-up bonus of five 40,000 point free-night certificates after $4,000 spend in three months, and a bonus 10,000 points after adding an authorized user to your account within three months. This link is from an IHG hotel wifi pop-up.
  3. BMO Bank has a personal checking sign-up bonus of up to $600. “Up to” you ask? Well it’s $100 per month for six months, as long as you receive at least $1,000 in direct deposits, or “direct deposits”, that month.
  4. Staples stores have fee-free $200 Mastercard gift cards through Saturday, limit nine per transaction.

    These are Pathward / BlackHawk Network gift cards.
  5. Wyndham points are on sale for 0.68 cents each through October 21, which is still a good deal for certain use cases. Stated annual limits are a lie too. (Thanks to DDG)

Happy Monday!

Bank of America’s multiple card application dashboard.

  1. The Chase Aeroplan Mastercard relaunched with a new structure and 75,000+40,000 mile sign-up bonus, and they’ve removed 3x grocery:

    – $195 annual fee is not waived the first year
    – 2x dining, grocery, and gas, 1x elsewhere
    – 75,000 Aeroplan miles after $4,000 spend in three months
    – 40,000 Aeroplan miles after $20,000 spend in one year
    – $50 semi-annual Air Canada statement credits
    – 15% discount on some Air Canada metal redemptions
    – Low level 25k Aeroplan status for holding the card

    This card doesn’t do referrals.
  2. The NFCU Flagship Rewards Visa launched yesterday with 50,000 points after $4,000 spend in 90 days. The vitals:

    – $95 annual fee is not waived the first year
    – 4x travel, 3x dining, 1x elsewhere
    – Points are worth 1 cent each, no uplift
    – $100 airline credit
    – Yet another global entry or pre-check credit

    NFCU doesn’t love cycling, so hope for a big credit line.
  3. The American Express Hilton cards have increased sign-up bonuses:

    – Aspire: 200,000 Honors points after $6,000 spend in six months
    – Surpass: 130,000 Honors points and a free night certificate after $3,000 spend in six months
    – Honors: 70,000 Honors points and a free night certificate after $2,000 spend in six months
    – Business: 150,000 Honors points and a free night certificate after $8,000 spend in six months

    These are all available via referrals, please use another player’s referral or a churner’s referral rather than applying through a blog or head-on.
  4. The Marriott Bonvoy Business American Express has an increased sign-up bonus of 100,000 Bonvoy points and a 50,000 point free-night certificate after $8,000 spend in six months. The card’s $125 annual fee is not waived for the first year.

    This is available via referrals. The sign-up bonus is definitely worth the $125 annual fee with no credit reporting, but that doesn’t mean it’s a super strong bonus thanks to the terrible value of Bonvoy points.
  5. Stop & Shop, Giant, and Martins stores have 8x points earning on Zift gift cards through Thursday, limit $1,500-$2,000 per week. Meanwhile Giant Food has 2x earning on Mastercard gift cards with seemingly no cap? Finally Giant Food gets some love I guess.

    These are Pathward / BlackHawk Network gift cards.
  6. If you like picking up pennies: Register for Marriott Bonvoy’s Q4 promotion for 1,500 bonus points at non-resorts and 4,500 bonus points at resorts on stays of at least two nights through November 22.

    What’s the value of 1,500 Bonvoy points, you ask? I mean probably not over $5. Thanks Marriott.

Have a nice weekend!

A churner proves that hiking around a Marriott property is probably more valuable than their promo.

  1. Do this now: Register for double points at Hyatt’s Thompson hotels via the Hyatt mobile app through November 10.
  2. The Capital One Venture Rewards Visa card has an increased sign-up bonus of 75,000 miles and a $300 hotel credit when booked through the Capital One Travel portal after $4,000 spend in three months.

    This offer is widely available via referrals too, so use another churner’s referral and make their day. If you refer someone else to the card, apologize for the stupid Capital One Travel portal in advance.
  3. Giftcards.com has 10% off of gift cards including Visas with promo code SAVE10, limit $20 back per account. This one should stack with a shopping portal.
  4. American Express Offers has an offer for $200 off of $450+ at North American Marriott properties through November 30.
  5. Breeze Airways has 25% off of roundtrip base fares with promo code POSTCARD for travel between September 21 and February 10, 2027 with carveouts around the holidays.

    And I know you know what this means: it’s time for the next callout on Breeze Route Bingo™. Today’s route is VRB-PVU (Vero Beach, FL and Provo, UT)! If you got a bingo, reach out for validation and your prize.

Happy Wednesday friends!

The Breeze route planner’s previous delivery job was … weird.

  1. The Chase British Airways, Iberia, and Aer Lingus credit cards have heightened bonuses for 90,000 Avios after $5,000 spend in three months, and their $95 annual fee is not waived for the first year. Each card has different ongoing benefits after the sign-up bonus so if you’re going to hold the card, it’s worth investigating each. Generally the favorite is the British Airways flavor for its three award ticket fee reimbursements and companion ticket available after $30,000 spend.

    Side note: What is British Airways flavor? Don’t ask.
  2. USAA launched its Eagle Navigator Visa card. The vitals:

    – 50,000 points after $3,000 spend by January 31, 2027
    – $95 annual fee, not waived the first year
    – 3x points on travel and transit
    – 2x points everywhere else
    – Points worth 1.0 cents each for travel, or 0.7 cents for a statement credit
    – Points can be pooled with other USAA cards

    With the right plays and payments there’s probably room for another 2x Visa card in lots of manufactured spending wallets, but my compel-o-meter measurement gives this card a solid 5.5 out of 10.
  3. Bank of America has a new personal checking account bonus of $500 with $10,000+ in direct deposits within 90 days. This account is also eligible for a fast-track to Honors status in branch.
  4. Giftcards.com has 10% off of Virtual Visa gift cards with promo code LD10, which I can only assume stands for “Lucifer’s Dog, 10”. What a weird thing to have a promo code for but cool cool.

    Go through a portal, this deal reportedly stacks properly with the promo code.
  5. Kroger stores have a 4x fuel points promotion on third party gift cards excluding Amazon and flexible fuel cards running today through Monday evening.
  6. Stop & Shop, Giant, and Martins stores have 2x points earning on Mastercard gift cards through Wednesday, limit $1,500-$2,000 per week. Meanwhile Giant Food has 8x earning on Zift cards which, if you’ve done anything recently with Zift cards, frankly feels like a punk rather than a perk to its customers.

Happy weekend friends!

The forefather of the USAA Eagle Navigator Visa.

  1. Capital One has a 30% transfer bonus to JAL MileageBank through September 30, bringing the transfer ratio to 1,000:975.
  2. AA has new targeted loyalty point promotions for September on your account’s promo page. Reportedly 2,000 bonus Loyalty Points with two flights booked in premium economy, business class, or first class, and flown by the end of October is widely targeted.
  3. The Citi ThankYou Mastercard sent new targeted spend offers for September. We’ve seen:

    – 10% back on up to $800 in eligible in-store and online purchases monthly for September, October, November, and December

    Most things work for these except home improvement stores, wholesale clubs, and grocery stores.
  4. AirFrance / KLM FlyingBlue released its September promo rewards. US cities:

    – Economy: Washington, Chicago New York, Detroit, Los Angeles
    – Premium Economy: New York, San Francisco
    – Business: Minneapolis

    Prices are 18,750 miles, 30,000 miles, and 45,000 miles respectively, and you’ve still got time to book before the devaluation on September 8.
  5. American Express Membership Rewards has a 30% transfer bonus to Hilton through October 14, making the ratio 1,000:2,600.

    Hilton’s program is currently a dumpster fire sitting on the deck of a sinking oil tanker, but there can be use cases where this makes sense.
  6. JetBlue debuted its BlueFirst cabin, and I guess to prove the K-shape economic recovery model, is also reducing pitch in economy from 32″ to 30″.
  7. Smart & Final grocery stores have $10 off of your next purchase with a $50 One4All Ultimate gift card through Tuesday. Smart & Final deals are transactional, so scaling is generally easy.

Happy Wednesday!

How it’s going: The Hilton Honors program.

  1. The Rove travel and shopping portal added Copa ConnectMiles as a 1:1 transfer partner today. There’s also a 40% transfer bonus through the end of September, pushing this month’s ratio to 10:14, or 1:1.4 if you don’t like aesthetically pleasing numerology.
  2. Giftcards.com has a few interesting promotions:

    – 10-22% back through Capital One Shopping
    – $5 off of physical Visas with promo ECO5 (works with portals)
    – $10 Kroger gift card with a $100 virtual Visa with promo KROGER10
    – 10% off of virtual Visas with promo code SD10OFF
    – 10% off through Slickdeals

    Mastercard gift cards are no longer eligible for portal cashback for the second time in the last 30 days.
  3. Bilt has a 25-100% transfer bonus to Virgin Atlantic FlyingClub today only, with the size of the bonus based on your Bilt status and your willingness to spend Itchy and Scratchy bucks, err, Bilt Cash.
  4. The Barclays Carnival Rewards Mastercard has a new 50,000 point sign-up bonus after $1,000 spend in 90 days. The vitals:

    – Points are worth 1 cent each for Carnival redemptions
    – 2x earn at grocery and restaurants
    – 1x status point per dollar

    I reached out to ask if you get priority onboard water slide access with the card, and the pressroom said “What?” so I guess I like those odds.

Happy Tuesday!

For some reason not all the waterslides need priority access.