Category: Credit Cards

You’ve probably figured out by now that I typically do two types of posts: First a deal and shenanigan recap post, and second, a philosophy and wisdom type of post. Sometimes it can be a bit slow for the first type when there’s not much is going on, but that’s definitely not the case today though. Buckle up!

  1. Do this now: Check for a targeted 5,000 – 7,000 Ultimate Rewards bonus for booking a hotel and flight of over $105 through the Ultimate Rewards travel portal. In theory this is limited to Ultimate Rewards earning or transferrable cards. (Thanks to DansDeals)
  2. Southwest has retooled its elite status program to be more generous, following in JetBlue’s footsteps, and running squarely against Delta’s footsteps (Side note, with airlines is footsteps the wrong analogy? Maybe it should be skid marks, contrails, jetways, speed-tape, or gremlins?) The changes:

    – You can book with a combination of cash and points
    – Credit card Tier Qualifying Points (TQP) bonus spend requirements are cut in half
    – A-List Preferred status members will get two free drunks drinks per flight segment starting November 6
    – Segment requirements for A-List and A-List Preferred statuses have dropped to 20, and 40, respectively)

    They still haven’t brought back the lounge seats though. (Thanks to Southwest king-pin Brian M)
  3. The Citi AA Advantage Business Select card has a 75,000 mile sign-up bonus for $6,000 spend in six months, and the annual fee is waived for the first year. This is effectively the best deal we’ve ever seen for this card, and it’s been years since we’ve heard from Toby.

    Note that there’s also a $100 targeted referral bonus from Citi. (Thanks to DDG)
  4. Citi ThankYou Points has a 25% transfer bonus to Avianca LifeMiles through November 4. A few sweet spots:

    – US to and from Africa in economy
    – United short haul US economy and business class
    – Mispriced awards to and from Europe from multiple Eastern US cities

    There are other great values in this program too, always be probing.
  5. American Express has new card linked offers:

    – $15 off of $150 at Home Depot (they sell gift cards)
    – 5x on Amazon purchases
    – $40 off of $200 or more with Frontier Airlines
    – $75 off of $300 or more with Delta Air Lines
    – $150 off of $750 or more at Four Seasons resorts
    – $150 off of $750 or more at Hiltons in Mexico

    Gamers gonna game. (Thanks to Rich)
  6. Citi has added “Leading Hotels of the World” as a transfer partner for ThankYou Points. The transfer ratio is 1:5 but redemptions require a relatively low number of points, so for back-of-the-envelope math just assume that you’re going to get 1.6 cents per ThankYou point.

    You can find a list of properties here.

Have a nice Tuesday friends!

Today’s post as a Disney attraction. Just like the Disney version, you end up in hell.

  1. Do this now: Register for IHG’s Q4 promotion for 2,000 bonus points every two nights through the end of the year.
  2. The Citi Shop Your Way Rewards Mastercard, the SLS of credit cards and an original Unsung Hero, seemingly has made the 15th of every month its online spend targeted offer day. And given that [checks notes] the 15th was yesterday, we have new offers for cumulative online spend through November 14:

    – 250,000 Shop Your Way Rewards points on $800
    – 200,000 Shop Your Way Rewards points on $800
    – $80 statement credit on $800
    – $50 statement credit on $750
    – $30 statement credit $400

    These offers stack with existing offers. Also, fun fact: This card used to be the Sears credit card and I’m eternally jealous of anyone that has one that still carries Sears branding. Instead, I just have to be happy with having the second most ridiculously branded card, Buick. (Thanks to Gasongasoff, David 99, birt, and Brandon)
  3. Meijer has a promotion for 50,000 Meijer points with $500 spend, limit one per account. Amazon gift cards are excluded, but other popular bulk brands like BestBuy, Home Depot, and Apple aren’t.

    Gift card resale rates for most of these brands is currently hovering around 93%.
  4. Chase has a 25% transfer bonus from Ultimate Rewards to AirFrace/KLM FlyingBlue miles through November 30. Sweet spots:

    – Delta domestic short haul in economy
    – US to and from Europe in business class
    – Europe short haul in any class
    – Promo awards

    You can also book international first class on China Eastern, but that puts you closer to the cockpit where there’s still a decent chance that you’ll smell cigarette smoke cause China Eastern., but it’s less prevalent than pre-COVID. (Thanks to DoC)
  5. Safeway’s Just4U rewards program lets Alaska residents redeem for Alaska Airlines miles under the right conditions, and through tomorrow those redemptions are at triple their regular redemption rate.

Happy Monday!

Just like the Citi Sears card, the Sears branded rocket is the best branded rocket. It’s science.

  1. The American Express’s Business Gold card has had an extremely rare public 150,000 Membership Rewards sign-up bonus for several days. I haven’t mentioned it before today because people have wasted literally hours trying to get it to appear with very limited success, and I think your time is worth something. But we now have a new efficient method make it appear:

    – Visit this link in a private or incognito window
    – Verify that you see an offer for a Business Platinum card at 170,000 Membership Rewards (and reload if you don’t)
    – Click the Hamburger Menu (☰) icon
    – Click “Most Popular Cards”
    – Click “American Express Business Gold Card”

    This link has lifetime language, but that doesn’t matter. Instead remember that if you don’t get a pop-up during application telling you that you’re ineligible for a bonus, you’ll get the sign-up bonus regardless of the language. (Thanks to irieriley via MEAB slack and C-MontgomeryChurns)
  2. PayPal has an offer for 1.5% cash back at giftcards.com. This stacks with existing shopping portals and card linked programs too. (Thanks to Zp via MEAB slack)
  3. Clear has a promotion for a $75 Uber voucher with a new membership using promo code CLAIMUBER75 through October 24, and it may surprise you to learn that American Express Platinum and Business Platinum cards have an annual Clear credit. If only there were someway to have multiple email addresses 🤔.

    This promotion requires that you don’t opt out of Clear’s promotional emails until your Uber voucher is delivered, and lately Uber has (sometimes) blocked multiple Clear vouchers on the same account. Just make sure to turn off auto-renew after creating your account. (Thanks to MsTuffy)
  4. While we’re talking about being surprised, it may also surprise you to learn that Staples has a promotion starting Sunday and running through the following Saturday for fee-free $200 Visa gift cards, limit eight per transaction.

    Don’t forget that the American Express Business Gold card now has a monthly $20 credit at office supply stores. (Thanks to DoC)
  5. The Chase Freedom Unlimited has a Discover-esque sign-up bonus for 3x Ultimate Rewards everywhere within the first 12 months of holding the card. The card has no-annual fee, and unfortunately isn’t a Freedom Flex Mastercard for extra shenanigans, but that’ll do donkey, that’ll do. This bonus isn’t available by referral but could be in a few weeks, so if you’re in two-player mode I’d wait to see how that pans out.
  6. American Express Offers has a new offer for $40 back on $200 or more in airfare at JetBlue. Now if only there were a way to book a non-basic economy flight and refund it to a travel bank, or maybe even something more sinister. Alas, here we are.

Because you haven’t had enough surprises today, apparently “surprise burgers” are a thing. 2023, amirite?

  1. Bank of America has an annual promotion called “More Rewards Day” on a single day when all of your Bank of America cards earn an additional 2% cash back or 2x points on spend. It’s back again for 2023, and it’s scheduled for November 9.

    Last year it was very lucrative for some and frustrating for others because it was effectively capped only by your credit lines, but sometimes Bank of America’s fraud algorithms ran rampant like a rabid bunny with a Napoleon complex. As a result, Bank of America has limited rewards to $2,500 in purchases per personal card or corporate account this year.

    Now’s a good time to apply for Bank of America cards so that you’ve got them in-hand to hit minimum spend for November 9.
  2. Plastiq has a storied past with churners. Once upon a time it was one of the easiest platforms for no-cost or low-cost debit liquidation, but that slowly eroded into crapulence and then bankruptcy. Some highlights:

    – A great way to have scheduled tiny transactions in June 2021
    – Plastiq: The Zigening in March 2022
    – When IT and Promotions Fail Together in August 2022
    – Plastiq: A Slow Requiem in November 2022
    – Plastiq declares bankruptcy in May 2023

    They were acquired by Priority Technology Holdings in bankruptcy, and a few weeks ago a judge approved the new company’s bankruptcy exit plan.

    Plastiq’s background helps frame the news that they shared: Plastiq will be accepting American Express cards for payments starting in a few weeks. Knowing Plastiq, it’s not going to be implemented properly. Always be probing.
  3. American Express Offers has an offer for $200 back on $2,000 in spend through November 21, up to two times. So far it’s been seen on both the personal and the business Amazon cards, but likely exists on other cards too. (Thanks to Ragerz78)
  4. Chase Offers and BankAmeriDeals have an offer for 10% back on IHG purchases of $100 or more, up to $31 cash back through November 15. Yes, you can capture these without staying at a Holiday Inn Express. (Thanks to DoC)

Happy Wednesday!

Bank of America’s fraud algorithms personified.

Let’s start with a few reminders based on the current talk of the churning town, and why it might be all noise:

  1. American Express keeps adding restrictions and changing its language about sign-up bonuses on various cards, and it makes people stress out. Yes we’re all language lawyers, but when it comes to sign-up bonuses with American Express, ignore the terms and conditions about eligibility and instead pray to the pop-up gods.
  2. Chase keeps having big checking and savings account sign-up bonuses, but it continues to be a very risky play for a churner. The MEAB way: Just ignore Chase banking bonuses and move on unless you don’t care about the Chase credit card portfolio.
  3. The Chase United Business MileagePlus card has a 75,000 mile sign-up bonus with $5,000 in spend in three months. The $99 annual fee is waived the first year, which is I guess why people are excited. On the other hand, the Chase Ink Cash has a 90,000 Ultimate Rewards sign-up bonus and 40,000 point referral bonus with no-annual fee ever, and in conjunction with a a Sapphire or Ink Preferred card you can transfer those 90,000/130,000 Ultimate Rewards to United.

    I guess if you value two United Club passes for crackers and cheese cubes along with a free checked bag over 55,000 Ultimate Rewards, maybe it makes sense? I don’t get it but here we are.

And now for a couple of news items:

  1. Staples.com sells gift cards and while some of them are processed by BlackHawk, some of them are not, like this one. Those that aren’t do work for the American Express Business Gold card $20 monthly offiice supply credit.
  2. The Capital One Venture X card has a 90,000 point sign-up bonus after $4,000 in spend in three months, which is 10,000 points below the all-time high. It now has a 40,000 point referral bonus on many accounts though, so in two-player mode you can turn this into 130,000 points.

    This card has a $395 annual-fee and a less-gamable-than-it-used-to-be $300 credit for booking through the Capital One travel portal.
  3. The Chase Freedom Flex Mastercard has an increased sign-up bonus of $200 after $500 spend in three months and an additional 5x at gas and grocery on up to $12,000 spend in 12 months. (If you maximize both, this is effectively an 80,000 Ultimate Rewards sign-up bonus on a card that also awards 3x at pharmacies.)

    The $0 annual-fee either is or isn’t waived the first year, your choice.

Happy Monday!

Another “talk of the town” that I’m not meant to understand.

  1. Staples will have fee-free $200 Mastercard gift cards starting Sunday and running through the following Saturday, limit eight per transaction.

    Yes it’s possible to split payment at Staples and take advantage of the new American Express Business Gold monthly $20 office supply store credit, but you may get some side-eye. (Thanks to GCG)
  2. The Chase Ink Cash and Chase Ink Unlimited cards have had a public 90,000 Ultimate Rewards offer for a few weeks, but it’s now also available via referral. The referrer bonus is currently 40,000 Ultimate Rewards, giving you a total bonus of [runs a program on a super-computer] 130,000 Ultimate Rewards in two-player mode.

    As usual, use a P2 link or another friend’s link to make their day if you’re going to apply. (Thanks to FM)
  3. Check your email for a targeted promotion from Visible for a free Orbic Myra 5G UW Smartphone. The email will have a unique promotion code and takes 100% off of the purchase price. Visible will unlock the phone after 60 days, and the resale value is well north of $200.

    If you’re not sure why this is here at MEAB, see Cell Phone Burners. (Thanks to Bork)
  4. Chase Ultimate Rewards has a targeted 25% transfer bonus JetBlue TrueBlue miles, but in general you really should think hard before transferring in because:

    – JetBlue miles are worth somewhere around 1.3 cents per point
    – Sapphire Reserve holders can book paid airfare at 1.5 cents per point
    – Sapphire Preferred holders can book paid airfare at 1.25 cents per point
    – Ink Preferred holders can book paid airfare at 1.25 cents per point
    – Award tickets don’t earn miles when flying
    – Paid tickets do

    On the flip-side, playing games like booking yourself an extra empty seat don’t work with the Ultimate Rewards portal, so do what makes sense. I think the bonus is only present if you’ve already linked your JetBlue frequent-flyer account to Chase before today. (Thanks to dontcelebrate)

The mathematical average of a Staples clerk’s look after being asked to split payment on 12 Business Golds.

  1. The American Express Business Gold card has been revamped:

    – Annual fee increased from $295 to $375
    – $20 credit per month at GrubHub, FedEx, or office supply stores
    – $12.95 Walmart+ monthly credit
    – Two new 4x categories effective immediately: transit and wireless credits
    – Two 4x categories removed effective on February 1, 2024: airfare and shipping
    – Specific computer hardware and software 4x is now: general hardware, software, and cloud computing
    – Also, and probably the most-least important thing: rose gold colored cards are available

    This is good news for those of you playing with a four letter fintech. (Thanks to Jacob)
  2. It’s been almost four days since Delta did a devaluation, so guess what they decided to do for funzies? Good guess, another devaluation.

    Economy awards from South America to and from Asia have increased from 60,000 to 100,000 SkyMiles, and Southeast Asia to and from East Asia have increased from 17,500 to 22,500 SkyMiles. No doubt there was a devaluation in other cabins for the same regions too, stay tuned like the masochist that Delta wants you to be. (Thanks to TeddyH)
  3. Alaska Airlines has a paid and award sale for travel between October 17 and February 15, 2024 booked by tomorrow evening. There are some great options like:

    – West Coast to Hawaii: 7,500 miles
    – West Coast to Mexico: 7,500 miles
    – Transcontinental flights: 10,000 miles
    – Short-haul domestic flights: 4,500 miles

    I’m even seeing good availability around Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Years, which is exactly the opposite of what Delta would do.
  4. American Express Offers has an offer for 20,000 Membership Rewards with $1,000 or more in spend with AirFrance/KLM. There’s always a play, right? (Thanks to Rich and TeddyH)
  5. AirFrance and KLM’s FlyingBlue has a new set of promo rewards for October. Houston, Chicago, and San Francisco flights are all included in the promotion, in addition to several other easily accessible cities in North America like Mexico City, Cancun, and Montreal.

The head of Delta SkyMiles revenue management celebrates the Wednesday five-pack in the most Delta way possible.

  1. The Citi Shop Your Way Rewards card, a MEAB Unsung Hero, sent out targeted spending offers for Q4. Each of these offers is good once per month for October, November, and December:

    – $70 after $600 or more in gas, grocery, and restaurant spend
    – 10% back on between $600 and $700 or more in gas, grocery, and restaurant spend
    – 10% back on between $700 and $800 or more in gas, grocery, and restaurant spend
    – 15x ThankYou Points on $1,200 or more in gas, grocery, and restaurant spend
    – $200 after $1,200 or more in gas, grocery, and restaurant spend
    – $200 after $2,000 or mroe in gas, grocery, and restaurant spend

    For those who suck at math, the best of these offers is $600 over three months or 48,000 ThankYou Points over three months. This spend will stack with any other Shop Your Way offers linked to the card, because sometimes Citi’s IT isn’t completely broken and does something right. (Thanks to DC Domer, Ben, BB_Pcola, birt, FlashStash, and Adam)
  2. There are two deals conspiring to make Virgin Atlantic booking really cheap, and a Delta or ANA award slightly cheaper:

    – Chase Ultimate Rewards has 30% transfer bonus from to Virgin Atlantic through November 15
    – Virgin Atlantic has 25% off of award flights on their metal for travel through the end of the year booked by tomorrow

    Virgin Atlantic has high fuel surcharges on their own flights to London-Heathrow, so I think of these as cash with a mileage surcharge tickets (“pay regular premium economy ticket prices, use a few miles, and get business upper class”) as opposed to the traditional milage with a cash surcharge ticket.
  3. The United MileagePlus shopping portal has a 500 bonus miles promotion after $150 or more in spend through October 8. Yes, giftcards.com is on the United MileagePlus portal, why would you ask?
  4. Chase’s Pay Yourself Back categories have been extended through December 31. If you’re not sure why anyone would ever do this, then perhaps you have more runway to earn points than you’ve previously considered. Yes, transferring to some programs or booking travel through the Chase portal can net you a higher return, but also there are only 365 hotel nights a year and a few dozen or so business class flights that you can reasonably fit into the same time period.
  5. The Barclays AAdvantage Aviator Red card has a 75,000 AA miles sign-up bonus split into two parts:

    – 60,000 points for making a single purchase in 90 days
    – 15,000 additional points for adding and authorized user and making a single purchase in 90 days

    The $99 annual fee is not waived the first year. This card is also interesting because after you’ve put some decent spend on it, Barclays will typically let you product change to the AAdvantage Aviator Silver card which offers a credit for $25 per day in AA in-flight purchases and a companion pass that’s good for two companions.
  6. Meijer has $10 off of $150 or more in Mastercard gift cards purchased in-store through Saturday. As usual, scale with multiple MPerks accounts, and consider travel to Meijer land if you’ve got the liquidation bandwidth to scale this deal.

The manufactured spend points earning runway is long, but not infinite.