Category Archives: Rewards

American Express Blue Card

Rewards
American Express Blue Card
Blue Card from American Express

The classic American Express Blue Card provides cardholders a worry-free Amex credit card for everyday use.

Its basic package includes an effective 1% rebate on eligible purchases, some special discounts, monthly and yearly statements to track spending habits, and world-class American Express customer service.

Interest Rates

  • Purchases – 0% for 25 days if statement balance is zero
  • Purchases – 16.99%, 19.99%, 21.99% if statement balance is greater than zero
  • Cash Advances – 26.99%
  • Balance Transfers – 14.24% to 25.24% starting on transfer date
  • Late payments – 29.99% (for at least 6 months)

Fees

  • Annual Fee: $0.00
  • Fee on balance transfer: 3% ($5 min)
  • Cash advance: 3% ($5 min)
  • Foreign transaction: 2.7%
  • Late payment: up to $38
  • Returned payment: up to $38

Earn Rewards

  • 1 Membership Reward point per dollar on eligible purchases
  • 2 Membership Reward points per dollar on eligible travel purchase at AmexTravel.com 
  • Minimum to redeem: 2,000 points

Redeem Membership Rewards

  • Cash back on eligible purchases
  • Merchandise such as electronics, fashion, home goods
  • Online shopping at amazon.com, walmart.com, grubhub.com, and more 
  • Gift cards
  • Travel, including airfare, hotels, luggage
  • Entertainment
  • Donate to selected charities

Purchase Services

  • Theft and accidental damage protection, including cell phones
  • Return protection within 90 days of purchase
  • Free extended warranties (up to 2 years)

Travel Benefits

  • Roadside Assistance Hotline
  • Car rental and damage insurance (excludes liability coverage)
  • Global Assist Hotline (doesn’t pay for third-party costs)
  • Travel accident insurance on common carriers

Security Features

  • Fraud Protection
  • Advanced secure chip technology
  • Text alerts

Amex Card Benefits

  • Exclusive savings with Amex Offers
  • Amex mobile app
  • ShopRunner program members receive free 2nd-day shipping from participating merchants.
  • Guaranteed savings off MSRP on new vehicles using the TrueCar service, with some dealers allowing cardholders to place the entire purchase on their Amex card, up to their credit limit
  • Entertainment Access for cardholder-only events and places
  • Monthly and annual summaries
  • Free authorized users cards

For all the fine print and application visit the American Express Blue Card site.

Chase Sapphire Credit Card Comparison Tool

Rewards

Chase Sapphire Card
Chase Sapphire with Ultimate Rewards no longer takes new clients, but current cardholders can still use the card as before.

Chase currently offers a Ultimate Rewards card in two versions:

  • Sapphire Preferred ($95 annual fee)
  • Sapphire Reserve ($450 annual fee)

You can compare the three Chase Ultimate Rewards cards offer in the table below to see which one is best for you.

CHASE SAPPHIRE COMPARISON CHART

FEATURES REG PREFERRED RESERVE
Type VISA VISA VISA
Grace period 21 21 21
Annual Fee $0 $95 $450
Balance Transfer Fee n/a 5% 5%
Cash Advance Fee 5% 5% 5%
Foreign Transaction Fee 0% 0% 0%
APR Intro n/a n/a n/a
APR Balance 17.49%- 24.49% 17.49%- 24.49% 17.49%- 24.49%
APR Cash Advances 26.49% 26.49% 26.49%
REWARDS
Base  purchase rewards 1% 1% 1%
Dining (see notes) 2% 2% 3%
Travel (see notes) 1% 2% 3%
Annual bonus no no 50% UR
Minimum amount to redeem none none none
Redeem at UR portal 100 => 100 100 => 125 100 => 150
Redeem at ChasePay 100 => 80 100 => 80 100 => 80
Redeem at Amazon 100 => 80 100 => 80 100 => 80
PURCHASE SECURITY
Fraud Protection yes yes yes
Purchase Protection $500 per claim $500 per claim $10K per claim
Price Protection discontinued discontinued discontinued
Return Protection discontinued discontinued discontinued
Warranty extension 1 yr max 2 yr max 3 yr max
Free FICO score yes yes yes
Blueprint Financial Tool yes yes yes
Apple Pay yes yes yes
Mobile App yes yes yes
Visa Signature Concierge yes yes yes
Add authorized user fee $0 $0 $75
Shop through Chase yes yes yes
Credits – travel no no $300
Credits – global entry no no yes
Credits – travel no no $300
Points transfer no 1 to 1 1 to 1
Lounge access n/a n/a Priority select
INTRO (ONE TIME ONLY)
Bonus points ($4000 spend/3 months) n/a $500 $500
Bonus points (authorized user) n/a $50
INSURANCE
Auto rental collision yes yes yes
Trip cancellation up to $5K up to $10K up to $10K
Trip Interruption $500/12 hrs $500/12 hrs $500/6 hrs
Baggage delay yes $100 day/ 5 days $100 day/ 5 days
Lost baggage $3K per person $3K per person $3K per person
Roadside assistance fee fee 4 times
Travel accident death $500K $500K $1M

NOTES

DINING REWARDS

The restaurant category for extra reward points is broader than is generally believed, since it includes fast-food places, coffee shops, bars, as well as fine dining ones.

However Chase writes, “Please note that merchants that sell food and drinks located within larger merchants such as sports stadiums, hotels and casinos, theme parks, grocery and department stores will not be included in this category unless the merchant has set up such purchases to be classified in a restaurant category.”

So buying a coffee from Starbucks in a grocery store may not get points, but a purchase in a free-standing shop will.

TRAVEL REWARDS

Although bonus rewards for travel aren’t applicable for the no-fee Chase Sapphire card, they could add up quickly in certain metropolitan areas such as New York City or Los Angeles.

Besides airline tickets and hotels, the travel category includes tolls and parking which can quickly add up in Manhattan, where the average monthly garage bill is about $400 or almost $5,000 per year, and the George Washington Bridge toll is $15 or up to $3800 per year.

Earning 2% on $7,800 nets $156, or more than the $95 annual fee on the Chase Sapphire Preferred card.

REWARD POINTS NEVER EXPIRE, BUT…

Under certain conditions Chase will take all your hard-earned points away.

Your points don’t expire as long as your account is open, however, you’ll immediately lose all your points if your account status changes, or your account is closed, for any of the following reasons:

  • You don’t make the minimum payment on your account within 60 days of the due date
  • You fail to comply with this or other agreements you have with Chase
  • We believe you may be unwilling or unable to pay your debts on time
  • You file for bankruptcy
  • We believe that you’ve engaged in fraudulent activity related to your account or the program
  • We believe that you’ve misused the program in any way, for example:by buying or selling points
  • By moving or transferring points to an ineligible third party or account
  • By repeatedly opening or otherwise maintaining credit card accounts for the purpose of generating rewards

In other words deadbeats and people who churn accounts at Chase will be unceremoniously booted out of the program.

Since the original Chase Sapphire cardholders can still use their cards Ultimate Rewards card, the choice on whether to upgrade to the premium versions depends on whether paying annual dues makes or breaks the deal.

Amalgamated Bank CashPlus Debit Card

Rewards

Amalgatmated Bank CashPlus Debit CardThe Amalgamated Bank (AB) CashPlus debit card with a personal line of credit has been retired and replaced with four excellent credit card options.

You can choose from three cards featuring generous rewards and introductory offers, or pick a low-interest no frills card for a simple lifestyle.

Visa® Real Rewards Card

  • Earn 1.5 points monthly for every $1 you spend on eligible net purchases (equal to 1.5% cash back)
  • As a bonus receive an extra 2,500 rewards points (good for $25) after your first purchase.

Cash Rewards American Express® Card

  • 3% on the first $6,000 on purchases per year at gas stations
  • 2% on eligible supermarket net purchases
  • 1% on all other eligible net purchases
  • One-time $25 cash back after your first purchase

Premier Rewards American Express® Card

  • 4 points per $1 at restaurants
  • 3 points per $1 on eligible airline purchases
  • 2 points per $1 gas purchases
  • 1 point per $1 on all other eligible purchases
  • 10,000 one-time bonus charging $1,000 in the first 3 months

Visa Platinum Card

Save on interest with a great low introductory rate or pay down other credit card balances faster with a special balance-transfer offer.

For more information and to apply online visit the Amalgamated Bank website.

Chevron Texaco Visa Card

No Annual Fee, Rewards, ,

Receive 10 cents in Fuel Credits per dollar spent on gas purchases at Chevron and Texaco gas stations.

Chevron Texaco Visa CardThis is not a limited introductory offer of a few months, but lasts for as long as you use it, with a limit of $300 in Fuel Credits per calendar year.

For the high-mileage driver, the Chevron-Texaco Visa card is the one to have.

You also get 3 Fuel Credits per dollar spent at Chevron and Texaco locations, as well as one Fuel Credit per dollar for shopping anywhere Visa is accepted.

There is no annual fee, but use the card as needed for maximum advantage, because the Chevron-Texaco Visa Card charges a hefty 23.99% APR on statement balances.

Responsible cardholders will benefit from Fuel Credits on every statement, which will be applied towards the next billing cycle: there is no waiting to reach a $25 or $50 threshold before getting your due.

The Chevron-Texaco Visa card is a no-frills card for the serious commuter because there are no special deals on Travel Benefits such as Discounted Hotel Rates and or Travel Insurance.

However it protects customers with zero fraud liability on their purchases.

As with all credit cards you also benefit by filling up and now paying later, with the additional bonus of having a record of all your fuel purchases in one place.