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1. That $50/guest fee is only applicable for the relatively few (~15-20) Centurion Lounges, not the ~1,400 lounges under the Priority Pass program.
2. And even for the Centurion Lounges, you can avoid the $50 guest fee by charging $75k annually to the card. That shouldn't be difficult for many Platinum Card holders.
I wouldn’t spend 75k on the Amex really in any scenario I could fabricate so “just spend 75k” isn’t all that useful at least for me. Much easier for me to add authorized users and pay 175.00 and spend elsewhere that I can earn more
Centurion lounges domestically are far better than priority pass, imo. I also have pp through chase and it’s a better option than Amex version so as far as Amex, centurion is the lounge I care about
I have a Fifth Third rewards MasterCard and use it for everything and autopay the statement each month. Get some points, but I don't sweat how much or go crazy calculating how much more I could have earned if I used x card or y card.
If you get to a point of being pO'd at yourself or your spouse because they used the "wrong" card for gas or w/e, you've probably gone too far.
Agree having a CC is necessary at this point for hotels, rental cars, flights, for purchase protection etc. and some rental cars and uhaul you MUST have a CC.
Just make sure you DO use the card every once in a while. Dormant cards Chase will eventually call it and say if you don't use, they will cancel.
My wife and I churn credit cards for miles and points.
We don't spend above our means at all. Both of our credit scores are in the 800's. Our combined income is about 140K, our mortgage is about 680 a month. Small car payments, I think combined they are about 500-550 a month.
We charge everything all month.. it is rare for me to have cash, and the only time I use my debit card is to get cash out. We then pay the bills in full every month.
In the last 5-6 years, we have flown to Europe at least 7 times for nearly free, Colombia, Costa Rica, Mexico, cross country for a wedding, etc. In fact, I think 5 of those Europe trips we flew lie flat business class on the way there, and once on the way back. The most recent Mexico one, we stayed in an All Inclusive Resort for 6 nights for completely free in Puerto Vallarta on points. We also have a trip planned for April there and back in business class. Colombia and Mexico trips recently were both in business or first class. We have done that on miles and points.
The best card to start with right now would be a Chase Sapphire Preferred.
If that is of interest to you, then credit cards can be awesome, IF you manage them responsibly.
Great post. I'd consider the Capital One Venture X to be a strong contender as well. 75k sign up bonus for $4k spend, $300 annual travel statement credit, 10,000 mile anniversary bonus, 2x miles earned on spending, and $100 global entry/TSA credit. The $395 annual fee literally pays for itself if you take advantage of the benefits. Authorized users are free and they get Priority Pass access too.
DW and I each got one when the sign up bonus was 100,000 miles and included a $200 AirBnb credit. We've already used the $300 travel credit and the AirBnB credit, and booked r/t flights ORD to MAD in the front of the plane for 68k each on Iberia.
If you're a responsible credit user, this card is a no brainer.
I LOVE my credit cards! I put every possible expense onto one or another, depending on how I want to use the points of cash back features. For travel, I enjoy free checked bags and discounted or free flights using my miles. For shopping, I get cash back or points to use on Amazon, which I use often (and enjoy the benefits of Prime membership with free shipping and a LOT of free video and music). I get 5% back on gasoline, which isn't trivial these days. There are many other benefits to CCs as well. Besides, having them but barely using them increases your credit score, making auto and home loans less expensive.
Since I pay off the entire balance every month, these perks cost me nothing extra. A couple of my cards have annual fees, but I get far more back in benefits than that cost.
If what you're doing works for you, then by all means keep doing it.
With credit card rewards I've stayed in hotels for free, including on my honeymoon in the Caribbean. I've also flown for free, again to the Caribbean, Asia and domestically. Maybe the experience feels better knowing it was free? The past few years with travel curbed, over been using the credit card rewards and cashing them out to invest. It's several hundred dollars on free rewards on spending I'm already doing and not costing any finance fees.
It does feel better. Our travel budget is limited but is turbo-boosted with points and miles. We play the game moderately aggressively and are now traveling much more frequently than we used to.
I LOVE my credit cards! I put every possible expense onto one or another, depending on how I want to use the points of cash back features. For travel, I enjoy free checked bags and discounted or free flights using my miles. For shopping, I get cash back or points to use on Amazon, which I use often (and enjoy the benefits of Prime membership with free shipping and a LOT of free video and music). I get 5% back on gasoline, which isn't trivial these days. There are many other benefits to CCs as well. Besides, having them but barely using them increases your credit score, making auto and home loans less expensive.
Since I pay off the entire balance every month, these perks cost me nothing extra. A couple of my cards have annual fees, but I get far more back in benefits than that cost.
Two great points. We too put every penny of spend on CC's. I keep a spreadsheet of costs/benefits and if a card isn't adding value it's a goner.
I use my AMEX for grocery as it gives me 6% cash back,but the annual fee is 95 dollars,their customer service online and off line are better than the banks,not every retail place takes AMEX,my dentist does not.
I have Chase Saphire but I dont use it,you do get better service when you walk into their branch. I heard their perks are good.
OP, How do you reserve and pay for plane,train,hotel, car, online purchases??
A no /low fee CC with or without points works for us.
I’ve always just used a debit card. It’s only an issue when I get a rental car, as they will charge deposits (and sometimes even insist on running your credit) unless you use a CREDIT card - which is mostly why I keep those two low-limit ones around. But you can use a debit card for basically everything you’d use a credit card to purchase.
Note I put quotes around “cash” to denote that I didn’t mean literal CASH. Of course I have a debit card + Apple Pay and a few other online payment methods. It would be extremely difficult to manage in today’s society with only physical cash.
A CC can get some people in a lot of trouble. One month the bill is 200.00 and the next month its 10K.
That’s why I’ve avoided them in the past, but today that’s not really an issue. I should always have enough cash to pay it in full, and don’t anticipate that changing anytime soon (see my income vs lifestyle/expenses breakdown in the OP to confirm that). I also have good willpower, and no expensive hobbies that would lead me to a balance I can’t pay.
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Anyway, like you I am a cash person BUT i use a CC for most things and pay it off monthly/daily. A CC can protect you in todays world. You can insert your debit/bank card into a gas pump and the next think you know is that your bank account is cleared out. Just one of many examples
Nothing like that has ever happened to me in 45 years of debit/cash spending only; but that is still a valid point. As I mentioned last night, I ended up getting instantly approved for a $5000-limit Chase Sapphire card. So I guess I’m joining the ranks of CC users!
And I think $5000 is the perfect limit for me - enough to charge a big one-time expense like travel or home projects, but not big enough to get me in trouble.
It’s not an issue if you are making the purchase in store
If AMEX wants, they can clawback giftcard purchases at stores.
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