Being Frugal By Using Cash Rebate Credit Cards
My friend Dru does not carry any credit card debt. He uses his credit card wisely and yet when I ask him what credit cards they carry, he says he got a card from a regional bank a long time ago and worse of all, they were paying an annual fee.
This is when it really bothers me. For those who do not carry any credit card debt, using credit cards actually can save you money. How? I suggested that he consider getting a cash back credit card with no annual fee. Here’s why I think it makes sense.
Most cash back credit cards do not charge any annual fee. You will usually earn 1% rebates for every follar that you spend on the card. The better cards though, pay you more than 1% rebates on selected expenditure. For example, the Chase Freedom Card allows you to earn 3% rebates for certain expenditures like gasoline supermarkets, restaurants etc. In fact, the card has 15 categories which they will pay you 3% for your 3 biggest expense in the month among the 15 categories!
Citibank for example, has the Citi Professional Cash Card, which allows you to earn 3% rebates on gasoline, certain business expenses and wireless phone bills. The American Express Blue Cash lets you earn 5% rebates on gasoline, supermarket and drugstore expenses once your annual expenditure exceeds $6,500.
So as you can see, with the proper use of cash rebate credit cards, you can actually save money on your daily purchases.
Some cards like the Discover More Card gives you a 5% to 10% discount with you shop with certain partner merchants. Some of their partner merchant includes places like Barnes & Nobles etc. Hence, this is another card that allows you to get cheaper prices at certain stores.
So if you do not carry any credit card debt, but have card that does not have either any reward program or cash rebate program, then I strongly suggest that you get a cash back credit card or cards. You can simply your choice by using our cash back credit card calculator to find the most appropriate card for your spending levels.
Pay Your Other bills with Your Credit Cards
You can save even more money by paying your bills through your credit card. The best thing to do is to set up your credit card to autotically pay off your utility bills every month. Some cards like the Citi Dividend Card allows you to earn 2% rebates on utilities.
Bottom Line : Get a Cash Rebate Credit Card
I have alway felt that getting a cash back credit card is one of the smartest choice you can make with regards to your credit card. You can save money and often get discount on certain merchants with the credit cards. If you pay your bills on time and do not carry any balance, it would be criminal not to get one.
February 24th, 2008 at 2:50 am
I have a Discover Card from Sam’s Club that offers cash back. There’s not really an easier way to save 2-5% on ALL your purchases.
February 26th, 2008 at 12:04 pm
[...] Ask Mr. Credit Card writes about credit cards and rewards. [...]
February 27th, 2008 at 11:41 am
For any of your UK visitors - Amex Platinum has a 5% cashback deal on ALL purchases for 3 months.
February 29th, 2008 at 12:11 pm
i think the key to this is that you have to also change your mindset of how you think about these cashback cards. start thinking about them in terms of saving x% rather than getting x% cash back. it isn’t a coincidence that marketers came up with “cashback”, since people are more prone to round off their purchases in order to get the cash back.