Chase Sapphire Sign Up Offer

Like all new credit cards, one of the most appealing features is the sign-up bonus. The current sign up offer allows new card holders to earn 80,000 bonus points after spending $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening the account. There is a $95 annual fee for this card, which is not waived for the first year.

80,000 points are worth $1,000 in travel. As points can be redeemed at 1.25 cents a piece. Or stack your rewards with another credit card and transfer them to one of 14 transfer partners. Including both airlines and hotel partners. 

Chase Sapphire Rewards

Beyond the sign up bonus offer you can earn points every day with this card. Chase ultimate reward points are easy to earn and stack up quickly. Earn points with every swipe of the card.

• 5x points per dollar on travel purchased through Chase Ultimate Rewards®, e $50 Annual Ultimate Rewards Hotel Credit
• 5x total points on Lyft rides through March 31st, 2025.*
• 3x points on dining at restaurants, including delivery like uber Eats and doordash 
• 3x points on select streaming services
• 3x points from online grocery purchases
• 1x point everywhere else

The credit card earns points nearly everywhere. My favorite part of this card is Chase’s liberal use of restaurants. Unlike the American Express Gold card which earns 5x points at Restaurants, this card only earns 3x points. Yet, chase categorizes most bars as restaurants. Meaning you can earn 3x points while enjoying your sunday funday or dancing saturday night away.

The Chase Sapphire also has a $50 hotel credit which can help reduce the annual cost of the card. Book any prepaid stay via Chase’s ultimate rewards travel portal and receive a $50 statement credit, once annually. 

Finally, for those who love to travel know that the Chase Sapphire Preferred card comes with additional travel protection. Use your card to book travel and receive the following protections every time. 

• TRIP CANCELLATION/TRIP INTERRUPTION INSURANCE
• AUTO RENTAL COLLISION DAMAGE WAIVER=
• TRAVEL AND EMERGENCY ASSISTANCE SERVICES
• TRIP DELAY REIMBURSEMENT
• BAGGAGE DELAY INSURANCE
• LOST LUGGAGE REIMBURSEMENT

Bottom Line

The Chase Sapphire Preferred is offering 80,000 bonus points for a limited time to new card holders or those who have not had the card in the last 48 months. Remember you cannot have both a CSP and Chase sapphire Reserve. It is one or the other. The card annual fee is $95, which is relatively low compared to other travel rewards cards.

Overall, the Chase Sapphire Preferred credit card is a great choice for those who want to earn travel rewards and maximize their spending. Its sign-up bonus, rewards program, and travel benefits make it a popular choice among frequent travelers. While it does have an annual fee and foreign transaction fees, these drawbacks are offset by the benefits and rewards the card offers.

Read the rest of this article at Chase Sapphire Preferred Sign Up Bonus: 80,000 Bonus Points.

The Amex Gold card does have a $250 annual fee, yet between the bonus points and and annual credits, this can easily be offset. There’s $240 in annual credits between the dining and uber monthly credits. Plus, this card earns points fast! Utilized them to transfer to over 15 airline and hotel partners.  Your next hotel stay or business class award flight can be free.

Earn Membership Reward Points Fast

The American Express Gold Card offers a generous rewards program, allowing cardholders to earn 4 Membership Rewards points for every dollar spent at restaurants worldwide. The gold card offers one of the highest bonuses in the industry for restaurant spend. Do note that bars and clubs do not count towards restaurant spend.

In addition, earn 4 Membership Rewards points per dollar spent at U.S. supermarkets. Each year, you can earn up to 100,000 Membership Rewards points by going grocery story shopping. After you spend $25,000 per calendar year, then 1 point per dollar is continued to be earned at grocery store. Grocery stores are not only great for food shopping, but purchasing gift cards. Think, earn 4 points per dollar on Amazon, but buying amazon gift cards at grocery stores. Target, Walmart, Auto zone, the list goes on! You can utilize the purchase of gift cards at grocery stores to maximize your earning potential.

Apply for your amex gold card here.

Finally, cardholders can earn 3 Membership Rewards points per dollar spent on flights booked directly with airlines or on amextravel.com. This is a fantastic value. I personally use my American Express Platinum for air travel, earning 5 points per dollar. Yet with the lower annual fee, 3x points is great earn rate.

Additional Card benefits & Credits

The Gold card comes with a slew of credits and benefits. These include a dining credit, uber credit, and a ton of American Express standard benefits such as purchase protections and more.

Each month, you can each a $10 dining credit. $120 value for the year. Just spend $10 or more at Grubhub, The Cheesecake Factory, Goldbelly, Wine.com, Milk Bar and select Shake Shack locations and a $10 statement credit is automatically applied.

Like the $10 monthly dining credit, there’s a similar credit for Uber. Enjoy up to $120 in Uber Cash annually with your Gold Card. Just add your gold card to your Uber account and you’ll automatically get $10 in Uber Cash credit each month. This credit can be utilized for Uber Eats orders or Uber rides in the U.S. Just be sure to use it each month as credits do not roll over. 

I also love this card because it opens up access to the American Express Fine Hotels & Resorts program. the FHR program offers exclusive benefits at over 1,000 luxury hotels worldwide. These benefits includes early check-in, late check-out, $100 resort credit, and more. This program is very similar to Hyatt Prive, but only available to American Express Card holders.

Finally, the card comes with a ton of other benefits which are common with American Express cards. Such as travel insurance, exclusive Amex offers, rental car CDW insurance, the hotel collection, and most importantly zero foreign transaction fees.

Membership Reward Transfer Partners

Why does 90,000 points matter? Not only can you redeem them for cash value towards an award, but better yet you can transfer them directly to several airline partners. See the chart below for hotel and airline transfer rates. Most airlines transfer at a 1:1 rate and are instant.

Hotel transfer partners are below

90,000 points can be utilized for multiple nights at hotels. Save on your dream vacation by NOT paying for your hotel. Or utilize these points for a business class ticket. With these points you can travel further, for less!

Bottom Line

The American Express Gold Card offers a variety of rewards and benefits, including dining, travel and shopping benefits, that can be very valuable for those who dine out frequently and travel often. However, the annual fee of $250 should be considered before applying for the card. If you can find value in credits, then this card is for you. There’s few cards that earn more than 2 points at supermarkets and restaurants, and this is one of my favorite.

Read the rest of this article at American Express Gold Card 90,000 New Card Holder Bonus.

“Hi, (your name), the legal notices for your credit card account are now available”

Well, this wasn’t your typical “legal notice” email with terms and conditions of your account, fees and interest rates.  Rather, this letter is an update on the benefits of the Alaska Airlines Visa credit card.  There was one negative change that I consider minor.  The rumored change to the annual companion pass did not happen which is great news.  Again, if you disregarded the email due to the misleading subject line, I will cover the changes.  Some of the changes are effective now and the rest will become effective in March, 2023.

The Bad News

There isn’t much in the way of bad news so I will get that out of the way now.  The annual fee for the Alaska Airlines Visa credit card increases from $75.00 per year to $95.00.  The increase may be offsite with some enhancement of benefits.  There was a rumor a few months ago that you would have to spend $6,000 to receive the companion voucher.  Thankfully, that was a rumor that didn’t come true.  If you don’t want to pay the additional annual fee, you can cancel your account by notifying Bank of America by the deadline shown in your letter.

Enhanced Benefits Beginning Now

There is an increase in earning rate from one mile per dollar spent to two miles per dollar spent on select spending categories:

• Gasoline and diesel,
• Local transit including ride share,
• Cable and satellite television and
• Select streaming services.

The terms and conditions for these categories are:

You can increase your earnings by an additional 10% by having non-commercial savings or checking account with Bank of America.

You and your party of up to six additional people on the same reservation may be eligible for priority boarding ahead of the general boarding groups.  First class and elite members will still board ahead of those eligible for priority boarding.  If you don’t have elite status with Alaska Airlines or oneworld, this perk may be for you.

Enhanced Benefits Beginning March 2023

Alaska Lounge Access

You have been able to purchase a $60.00 Alaska Lounge day pass for half price with the Alaska Airlines Visa credit card.  Alaska Airlines has been quietly discontinuing the sale of day passes in an effort to ease overcrowding in the lounges.  You will be able to purchase an annual Alaska Lounge+ membership for $100.00 off.  Alaska Lounge+ membership includes access to American Airlines Admirals Clubs.  The regular annual price for Lounge+ membership is $650.00 or $550.00 for elite Alaska Mileage Plan members.  This is a change in lounge benefit.

TIP:  You may do better if you have a rewards credit card with an ancillary airline credit.  My AMEX Hilton Aspire card has a $250.00 credit which can be used for lounge membership.

TIP:  Alaska Airlines MVP Gold 100K members can choose a free year of Alaska Lounge+ membership if you choose the lounge benefit.

The cardholder and up to six companions on the same, qualifying reservation can each check one bag for free.  This is pretty much the same bag benefit as before.

These Benefits Remain The Same

Alaska Airlines has kept the companion voucher the same.  There was a rumor a few months ago that would require a $6000.00 annual spend to receive the companion voucher.  Having a spending requirement would have killed the Alaska Airlines Visa credit card.  The companion voucher is subject to Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan program rules.  You can hold up to five Alaska Airlines Visa credit cards so you could receive an annual companion voucher for each qualifying credit card.  The voucher is issued each year on your credit card anniversary and expires 12 months later.

TIP:  Even though the companion voucher expires in 12 months, that means you have to book travel before the voucher expires.  You could conceivably complete your travel 23 months after receiving the companion voucher.

MVP Gold 100K Choice Benefit

The Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan has announced a new benefit for top-tier elite members.  Those members can choose one of the following:

• 50,000 Mileage Plan account miles or
• One year Alaska Lounge+ membership or
• One year of onboard internet or
• Gift MVP Gold status.

It is my understanding that Alaska Airlines will be sending an email on January 10, 2023 that will allow those members to make their benefit choice.  I was told by customer care that once the Lounge+ membership choice has been made, that benefit should be available immediately.  Again, this is what customer care told me so we will see how well that happens.

STORY UPDATE – MVP GOLD 100K CHOICE BENEFITS ARE LIVE, YOU CAN READ IT HERE.

Final Thoughts

Aside from the modest $20.00 increase in annual fees, the overall changes are positive for the most part.  I can offset the additional annual fee amount by the increased earning rate for select spending categories and having a qualifying Bank of America account.  For those reasons, this should be a wash for me.

If you have MVP status or higher, you already have the airport benefits so the additional enhancements here will help those card holders without elite status.

The Alaska Lounge day passes are already dead for the lounges located at Anchorage, Seattle and Portland.  I suspect that more lounges will discontinue day pass sales to handle lounge overcrowding.  The $100.00 Lounge+ discount is weak as many reward credit cards have a more generous ancillary airline credit that could be used for lounge membership.  If you are an MVP Gold 100K member, you can choose a year of Lounge+ membership at no cost.

Read the rest of this article at Changes To Alaska Airlines Visa Card Benefits, No Real Bad News.

Card Benefits

The Gold Amex comes with a ton of benefits and earning power. As most people know, we have credit cards that earn rewards so we can fly for free and stay in hotels for free. The Amex Gold card is no exception. Earning Membership rewards points, you can then transfer to a slew of airlines and hotels for free travel. Furthermore, you can earn points quickly with this card due to several bonus categories. Earn 4x points at Grocery stores, 4x points on dining, and 3x points on airfare booked directly with the airline. Or 3x points via all travel when utilizing Amex travel. The card earns 1 point everywhere else.

Additional card Benefits

To help offset the card fees of $250, there are two featured benefits that are great, but can be hard to fully utilized. First, save up to $120 a year on Uber Eats or Uber rides. I personally use this for Uber Eat pickup orders. Saving on the high delivery charges. Each month, American Express will add $10 to your Uber wallet. This must be utilized before the end of the month. If maximized it $120 back each year.

Secondly, there’s a similar dining credit for $10 in statement credits each month. Use the credit card for a Grubhub, Seamless, or Boxed order and receive $10 back. Or you grab a slice of cheesecake at the Cheesecake factory or a shake at Shake shack for the $10 statement credit each month.

If you use these two benefits alone, the card  nearly pays for itself. Adding up to $240 in reimbursements/credits. Leaving you with just $10 to pay each year.

Finally, the card comes with a ton of other benefits which are common with American Express cards. Such as travel insurance, exclusive Amex offers, rental car CDW insurance, the hotel collection, and most importantly zero foreign transaction fees.

Membership Reward Transfer Partners

Why does 90,000 points matter. Not only can you redeem them for cash value towards an award, but better yet you can transfer them directly to several airline partners. See the chart below for hotel and airline transfer rates. Most airlines transfer at a 1:1 rate.

Hotel transfer partners are below

Bottom line

Earning 90,000 for a new card is great, especially on an American Express Gold Card. Use those 90K points to travel the world. You can transfer them to several partners to enjoy a business class flight to Europe or South American on Air Canada or any of their partners. It’s even enough for First Class on ANA! Point is, this offer is much higher than normal. So if you’ve never had this card, now is your opportunity to earn a HUGE bonus.

Read the rest of this article at American Express Gold Card: 90K Point Offer.

It comes on the heels of a much more generous offer last fall when you could earn 2,500 elite qualifying miles for every $2,500 spent — a 1:1 ratio instead of the new 1:5 ratio. However, the old offer was capped at 20,000 elite qualifying miles over a brief two-month window. This new offer is unlimited and runs through the end of the year. It’s very similar to how the Hyatt Visa from Chase offers one elite qualifying night toward status with every $5,000 spent. You won’t easily earn status through credit card spend alone, and it’s not a great offer. But it makes the card more compelling than it was before.

It used to be that, as a general rule, credit cards didn’t help you earn elite status with the airline. Miles were classified as either elite-qualifying (good for status, but little else) or redeemable (good for awards, but not status). Credit cards, flying, just about everything under the sun earns redeemable miles — and still does. But elite-qualifying miles could only be earned by flying.

Now more airlines are blurring the lines. Delta has long offered a few thousand elite qualifying miles (EQM) with its Amex cards. American has started using credit card spend as a way to earn elite qualifying “loyalty points,” though it will take an awful lot of spend to get yourself all the way to Executive Platinum.

Alaska has long had a weak credit card in my view. As much as I love the airline the card isn’t good for much since it earns just one mile per dollar on non-airline spend and doesn’t provide many benefits you can’t already enjoy as a member with elite status. I keep it solely for the annual companion fare, which could potentially save a couple hundred bucks on high-value destinations like Hawaii and Latin America.

These recent offers to earn elite qualifying miles are tempting me to start spending more on my Alaska Airlines credit card, but only temporarily. To start including it in my regular rotation we need to see something more permanent. I mentioned the similarities to Hyatt’s credit card benefits. I have used my Hyatt card to cover large purchases in the past for this exact reason, and I used my Alaska Airlines card for a similar purpose last fall to maximize the offer. Hopefully this gets rolled out to all cardmembers and becomes a regular feature in future years. The current offer may be a test run before such a change.

Read the rest of this article at Another Chance to Boost Elite Status with the Alaska Airlines Credit Card.

I know finding the best cruise for you or your family can be overwhelming. Reach out to me via Scott & Thomas travel and I can help you plan the perfect vacation getaway. From ultra luxury deals to Antarctica to family vacations to Mexico. I have you covered.

Currently, there are several targeted American Express offers. Some of these offers include a cash rebate or bonus points. Both Carnival corporation and Royal Caribbean are offering cash back.

Royal Caribbean discount is only for their brand and not their partner brands such as Royal Caribbean/Universal Resort Joint Vacation, MGM Resort International Joint Vacation and Royal Wedding Packages. It also excludes Celebrity Cruise, TUI Cruises and Silversea brands. In contrast, Carnival discount is good for Carnival Cruise Line, Princess Cruises, Holland America Line, Seabourn or Cunard. Gift cards are excluded from this promotion.

In addition to cash back, other bonus offers include bonus points for booking cruises. First, Celebrity Cruises is offering 15,000 bonus points for spending just $500. That’s 30 points per dollar for the first $500 spent!

Finally, SilverSea is offering 5 additional Membership Rewards points for every dollar spent, up to 40,000 points. To maximize this promotion, spend $8,000 to earn all 40,000 points.

I found these offers on both my American Express Platinum and American Express gold card. If you currently do not have an American Express card and are looking at cruising in the near future, now may be the time to upgrade your wallet. I took a cruise in October of 2021, and would recommend getting back out at sea!

Did you receive these offers? Or maybe a different one? Please share so readers know what they are missing.

Read the rest of this article at Big Saving on Cruises and Bonus Points.

In case you don’t know what Walmart+ is, don’t feel bad. Neither did I and I had to look it up. It’s basically Walmart’s version of Amazon Prime, but not as good.

Walmart+ Features

• Free grocery delivery from Walmart Stores ($35 order minimum)
  • Order as often as you want
  • Same everyday low prices
  • 100% freshness guaranteed
• Free shipping from Walmart.com (excludes oversized, freight and Marketplace items)
  • No $35 order minimum required
  • Only includes items shipped by Walmart
• Prescriptions for less
  • Get Select prescriptions for as little as $0
  • Available at over 4,000 Walmart pharmacies
• Member prices on fuel
  • Save 5 cents per gallon at Walmart and Murphy stations
  • Access member prices at Sam’s Club fuel centers

Walmart+ costs $12.95/month or $98/year. To get the free credit, all you have to do is use your American Express Platinum Card to pay for the monthly Walmart+ membership (annual memberships do not qualify). You will then receive a monthly credit to offset the cost. This applies to all flavors of the American Express Platinum Cards including the vanilla, Morgan Stanley, Charles Schwab, etc.

Walmart+ American Express Platinum Credit Bottom Line

Walmart+ does have some perks if you live near a Walmart Store or shop frequently from their website. But I’m not a Walmart shopper and this is not something that will push my shopping habits more towards Walmart. I already have Amazon Prime and almost everything that I want, I can get from there and I would rather do my own grocery shopping. I’m not too keen on having someone else pick out my groceries for me and how will I know they are doing the watermelon knock test correctly? I’m sure if you’re a working parent, this may be helpful for you. But as for me, I’m gonna add this to the list of Platinum Card benefits that will do nothing for me, along with the Equinox and entertainment credits.

What are your thoughts on this? Please let us know in the comments section below. Thanks for reading!

Read the rest of this article at AmEx Platinum Card Adds New Walmart+ Credit.

Understanding Curve

If you have never heard of Curve, do not be surprised. Curve is a smart wallet for your credit card which is already popular throughout the United Kingdom. Curve combines multiple debit and credit cards into one through an app. You also get a credit card that is NFC enabled. This allows contactless payment, instead of having to swipe or insert the chip. It’s literally one card to rule them all.

By using the Curve card, you optimize award points by ensuring that each time you swipe, the card with the best rewards is utilized. The app also helps you recognized missed opportunities for earning points. After each purchase you have 30 days to change which card to charge that purchase too. This way if you accidently charge your Chase Sapphire which only earns 1 point at grocery stores, you can then switch it to your American Express Gold which earns 4x points at grocery stores instead.

Curve truly simplifies award earnings and may even help some couple. Imagine the fewer arguments couples will have when the travel hacker partner users the “wrong” card. Problem solved! No one now must memorize what each card is for.

Watch this great video explaining Curve.

At the time of writing Curve is 100% free and has no fees. There are not even foreign transaction fees if you use Curve while traveling. Furthermore, you can link Visa, Mastercards, American Express or Discover cards to Curve. I expect Curve to remain fee free.

You could even use Curve with your debit card and Fluz to earn additional cash back, even if you don’t have reward cards.

Join the Curve Waitlist

Curve has yet to be launched in the United States, but you can sign up for the waitlist to be among the first to know when they do launch. Those who join the waitlist early will earn 1% back for the first 6 months of use. Those who wait will not have the opportunity to earn the additional 1% back. There’s no requirement to actually get the Curve card by signing up for the list. Currently all Curve asks for is your name, email address, and phone number to sign up to be a beta user. I have signed up and cannot wait for Curve to launch in the US. I learned about Curve a few years ago from friends living in the UK and they love Curve. Be sure to sign up today to maximize your earning potentials!

Read the rest of this article at Curve: Earn 1% Cashback Plus All Credit Card Awards.

Alaska Airlines MVP status starts at just 20,000 miles. Therefore, this promotion could earn someone MVP status through spending. Or, get you the EQMs needed to spend your way to the MVP Gold, 75K, or 100K elite level. Rather it be earning MVP Gold status for the first time or boosting your elite mileage balances to retain a higher status, this promo is great for those of us not flying but trying to retain status through 2022. A maximum of 20,000 elite miles per Alaska Airlines frequent flyer account can be earned. Those who carry multiple Alaska Airlines credit cards can only earn 20,000 EQMs total. No double dipping between cards. Also note, those who earn 75K status via this promotion are not eligible for the 50,000 bonus redeemable miles that Alaska Airlines offers to 75K members.

New Credit Card Holders May be Eligible

If you don’t have an Alaska Airlines Credit Card, no worries. There is still time to take part in this promotion. You could apply today and get your credit card in the next 1-2 weeks and still have 4-6 weeks to spend your way to elite status. New Alaska Airlines Credit Card holders are eligible for up to 65,000 bonus miles! These miles are redeemable and do not qualify for elite status. However, you still can earn the 20,000 elite miles through spending too! New applicants will earn 40,000 miles for spending $2,000 on the card in the first 90 days and then an additional 25,000 miles for spending $8,000 or more in the first 180 days. If you’re spending towards the elite miles, you should easily earn the full 65,000 redeemable mile bonus.

Alaska credit card also has the following benefits:

• Alaska’s Famous Companion Fare. Every year on your credit card account anniversary you’ll receive a companion fare which allows you to book a companion flight from just $121 ($99 plus taxes and fees from $22). Valid on all Alaska Airlines flights booked on alaskaair.com. Fly your travel companion to Hawaii, Costa Rica, Mexico or across the country for free!
• Free checked bag for you and up to 6 guests on the same reservation – that’s a savings of $60 per person roundtrip!
• Earn unlimited 3 miles for every $1spent on eligible Alaska Airlines purchases and unlimited 1 mile for every $1 spent on all other purchases.
• Enjoy 20% back on all Alaska Airlines inflight purchases.
• 50% off day passes at the Alaska Lounge when you pay with your new card.
• Flexibility when booking with no blackout dates on Alaska Airlines flights and miles don’t expire on active accounts.
• Plus, no foreign transaction fees and a low $75 annual fee.

Spend Today, Retain Status

Alaska Airlines is not following Delta Airlines lead and just extending elite status through 2023. Instead they are offering unique ways to earn and retain status. Such as offering 50% bonus EQMs on every flight through the end of the year. Or spending your way to Elite Status via their credit card offer. Finally, Alaska has hinted that there will be other ways to retain status by flying January – April 2022. Those details are to come later this year. So, if you want a jump start on 2022 status, need to retain status, or just need a EQM boost today, start swiping those credit cards and earn up to 20,000 EQMs.

For those of you already with Alaska 75K status, check our facebook group.

*Upon further investigation this may be a promotion limited to only those who received the email

Read the rest of this article at Alaska Airlines: Swipe Your Way to Elite Status.

Streaming services are limited to what Chase considers streaming services. These currently include the following:

• Disney+
• Hulu
• ESPN+
• Netflix
• Pandora
• Spotify
• YouTube TV
• Vudu
• Fubo TV
• Apple Music
• SiriusXM
• Sling

Chase Freedom cash-back calendar 2021

Earn Points vs Cash Back

For those more interested in earning points for travel, that too is a possibility. Chase Freedom cards earn cash back but can be pooled with other cards. If you have a Chase Sapphire card, Chase Freedom points can easily be transferred between Ultimate reward accounts. This is also true for Chase Business Ink card holders. This allows you to maximize earning when pooling points. Then transfer those valuable points, in this case 7,500 between accounts and to airlines and hotels.

Remember, Chase 5% categories are only possible with the Chase Freedom Flex card. The Chase Freedom Unlimited does not have rotating 5% categories, but instead offers 1.5x points on all purchases and 3x points on drug stores and dinning. If you’re interested in earning even more points on Groceries. Consider the American express Gold card. It earns 4x points on $25,000 of grocery spending and 4x points on dinning too.

Read the rest of this article at Earn 5% Back on Groceries and Streaming Services.

Chase Sapphire Overview

For those of you who are not familiar with the Chase Sapphire brand, it is one of Chase’s best travel cards. They have both the preferred and the reserve. The Reserve is more expensive and has more travel benefits. The Preferred, my focus for today has a lower annual fee and is for more casual travelers. With an annual fee of $95 it is more attainable. In addition, the Sapphire has a number of transfer partners allowing credit card points to go further.

Points can be transferred to a number of travel partners. Instead of redeeming each point for just a penny via their ultimate rewards portal, you can transfer points to a partner. 80,000 points is worth $800. Or like I said, transfer them. Currently, there are 13 transfer partners where points transfer at a 1:1 ratio. These include 10 airlines: Aer Lingus, British Airways, Emirates, Air France, KLM, Iberia, JetBlue, Singapore Airlines, Southwest, United and Virgin Atlantic. Or transfer  3 hotel chains. Hotel partners include: Hyatt, IHG and Marriott.

Chase Points Earning Review

The Chase Sapphire earns two points per dollar on everything travel. This includes parking, uber, tolls, hotels, flights, etc. The only thing “travel” that doesn’t earn bonus points is gas. It also earns two points per dollar on all restaurants and bars. Takeout services such as doordash, ubereats, etc also earn two points per dollar. All other purchases earn 1 point per dollar.

Chase Sapphire Limited Time offer

New card holders can apply now and earn 80,000 bonus points after spending $4000 in the first three months of membership. This bonus to anyone who does not current have a Chase Sapphire Preferred or Reserve card. In addition, you cannot have received a bonus in the previous 48 months for either card. I recently closed my Reserved card at the start of the pandemic to save over $550 in annual fees. Then recently, I signed up for the Chase Sapphire Preferred and earned the 80,000 bonus points.

In addition to earning 80,000 points, new card holders will earn a one time $50 bonus after spending $50 or more at grocery stores. This essential reduces the annual fee to $45 for the first year. There are other benefits on this card which can make it a money maker for many. These include up to $60 back on Peloton memberships and $0 delivery free with Doordash. All included when you apply for the card today.

80,000 Points – So What?

80,000 points is worth at minimum $800 in travel credits. You can use the points to book via Ultimate rewards. Or you can make your points go further by transferring them to one of the 13 travel partners. 80,000 points is enough points to fly to several destinations in the world. You could book a one-way business class ticket to Asia or Europe, or fly round trip in economy on several airlines.

If traveling isn’t on your bucket list this year, don’t worry. As long as your card is open, your points do not expire. And if you’re not looking to travel, instead pay yourself back. Through September 2021 you can use points to pay down your credit card bill. Chase’s Pay Yourself Back tool increases the value of Ultimate Rewards points by 25%. That means up to $1000 of spend can be paid via points in select categories. If you go this route, you’re essentially saving money by opening this card.

The Chase Sapphire 80,000 points is the highest we’ve ever seen. Pair this card with your Chase Freedom Unlimited and transfer points between the cards to maximize your earning. This will allow you to earn even more points across multiple categories and then transfer these points to travel partners.

What are you waiting for, this deal will not last.

Read the rest of this article at Chase Sapphire Preferred Best Offer EVER.

Three Free Nights at Marriott Hotels

Chase is offering new Marriott credit card holders 3 free nights at hotels around the world. Or an equivalent of 105,000 points. The Marriott Bonvoy Boundless card is $95 for the first year, but comes with 3 free nights after spending just $1000 in the first three months. That’s down from the typical requirement of $3,000 of spent.

The Marriot Bonvoy Boundless card also provides 15 elite status nights, which is enough for complimentary silver elite status. Benefits include complimentary wifi, late checkout, and 10% bonus points on Marriott spending. This includes hotel purchase, including on room rate and other incidentals that can be charged to your room, such as dining and spa. In addition, each year on your account anniversary you will earn an additional complimentary night. Easily making up for the $95 annual fee.

In addition, the boundless card earns bonus points too. Card holders will earn at least 17x points on Marriott spending, across all Bonvoy brands. Outside of hotel stays, the card earns 2x points on all purchase.

If you’re not looking for another card with an annual fee. Check out the Bonvoy Bold card. This card comes with 1 free night and no annual fee! The card earns 14x on Marriott spend and 1x point everywhere else. Better yet, both cards have no foreign transaction fees.

Chase and Marriott have been offering other promotions during the last year, offering bonus spend at Grocery stores, gas stations, and other places. If you’re considering getting either of these card, please use my referral link.

150,000 Hilton Points

Hilton doesn’t have an award chart, but instead a variable pricing system. Depending on the hotel standard award nights could range from 5,000 to 95,000 points per night. The higher end and more desirable the property the more expensive it tends to be. I usually can find stays for between 20,000 and 40,000 a night, but it really depends on the season and location. Currently, many hotels are offering discounts, expect to use fewer points. This will change though as more people start booking vacations. Plan ahead to get better deals.

To earn bonus points and free stay, consider these three different offers from American Express.

First, there is the no fee Hilton Honors American Express Card. It currently offers 80,000 bonus points after you spend $1,000 on eligible purchases within the first three months of account opening. It earns 7x points at Hilton and 5x points on gas, grocery stores and restaurants. I personally keep this no fee card in my pocket for the bonus opportunities.

For a $95 annual fee you can get the Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card. It currently offers  130,000 bonus points. Yet, some people will see a targeted 150,000 Hilton Honors Bonus Points after you use your new card to make $3,000 in eligible purchases within the first 3 months of card membership. The Surpass earns 12x points at Hilton hotels and 6x points on groceries, and dinning. Plus 3 points everywhere else. The surpass comes with added benefits such as 10 visits to Priority Pass lounges and Gold elite status.

Finally, there’s the Hilton Honors Aspire Card from American Express . This high-end card cost $495 but also earns 150,000 Hilton points after spending $4,000 on purchases within the first three months of account opening. This card earns the most points. You can earn 14x points at Hilton brands and 7x points on travel and dinning. The real kicker is that this card includes Hilton top tier Diamond elite status. Diamond status gets you lounge access, upgrades, late check out and more. Card holders also enjoy one free weekend night with the ability to earn more with additional spend. Finally, there’s a slew of travel benefits such as $250 in airline credits, $100 Hilton credit, and priority pass select membership. Easily making up the cost of the annual fee through credits.

Free Nights Everywhere

If you’re planning for travel for this summer or next fall. Consider these credit card offers. Most of them are higher than usually and require less spend. Free nights are great, but please remember, also spend within your limits. If you paying finance charges, you’re losing the value on these free nights. Spend within your limits and enjoy free hotel nights and expanded benefits with elite status!

Read the rest of this article at Free Stays at Marriott and Hilton With These Bonuses.

First, let’s talk about the three most popular American Express Platinum Cards (Vanilla, Charles Schwab and Morgan Stanley) and see how they stack up against each other. Note: American Express does have a partnership with Goldman Sachs but I won’t be discussing that card as it’s invite-only.

American Express Platinum Card

The normal American Express Platinum Card, or as people call it, the “Vanilla” American Express Platinum Card, is your standard Platinum Card.

• Annual fee of $695, not waived the first year
• Currently has a 100,000 Membership Rewards (MR) points signup bonus after $6,000 spend in six months
• 5 x points on flights booked directly with airlines or through American Express Travel
• 5 x points on prepaid hotels booked through American Express Travel
• 1 x point on everything else
• Hilton Honors and Marriott Bonvoy Gold status
• $200 airline incidentals credit
• $200 Uber credit
• $100 Saks Fifth Avenue credit
• $240 digital entertainment credit (effective 7/1/21)
• $300 Equinox credit (effective 7/1/21)
• $200 Hotel credit when booking a prepaid Fine Hotels and Resorts or Hotel Collection stay through American Express Travel (effective 7/1/21)
• $179 CLEAR credit (effective 7/1/21)
• Global Lounge Collection access including Centurion Lounges, Delta SkyClubs, and Priority Pass Lounges, etc.
• Cell phone protection up to $800 when you pay your monthly cell phone bill with your American Express Platinum Card
• And more

The one benefit of this card is that it’s the only one that regularly offers increased signup bonuses. It’s not uncommon to find signup bonuses ranging from 60,000 to 100,000 + MR points after eligible spend.

Charles Schwab American Express Platinum Card

The Charles Schwab American Express Platinum Card is only available to Schwab clients with eligible accounts such as a Schwab One or a general brokerage account.

• Annual fee of $695, not waived the first year
• Currently has a 100,000 Membership Rewards (MR) points signup bonus after $6,000 spend in six months
• 5 x points on flights booked directly with airlines or through American Express Travel
• 5 x points on prepaid hotels booked through American Express Travel
• 1 x point on everything else
• Hilton Honors and Marriott Bonvoy Gold status
• $200 airline incidentals credit
• $200 Uber credit
• $100 Saks Fifth Avenue credit
• $240 digital entertainment credit (effective 7/1/21)
• $300 Equinox credit (effective 7/1/21)
• $200 Hotel credit when booking a prepaid Fine Hotels and Resorts or Hotel Collection stay through American Express Travel (effective 7/1/21)
• $179 CLEAR credit (effective 7/1/21)
• Global Lounge Collection access including Centurion Lounges, Delta SkyClubs, and Priority Pass Lounges, etc.
• Cell phone protection up to $800 when you pay your monthly cell phone bill with your American Express Platinum Card
• And more

Exclusive to this card, you can receive a $100 statement credit if your qualifying Schwab holdings are equal to or greater than $250,000 or receive a $200 statement credit if your holdings are equal to or greater than $1,000,000. Additionally, you can transfer your MR points to your eligible Schwab account at a value of 1.25 cents per point, which is not a bad deal. For example, you can transfer 60,000 MR points to get $750 deposited into your Charles Schwab brokerage account. Effective 9/1/21, the transfer rate will be reduced to 1.1 cents per point.

Morgan Stanley American Express Platinum Card

The Morgan Stanley American Express Platinum Card is only available to eligible Morgan Stanley clients. Not a Morgan Stanly client? Don’t worry. I’ll explain how you can be one below.

• Annual fee of $695, not waived the first year
• Currently has a 100,000 Membership Rewards (MR) points signup bonus after $6,000 spend in six months
• 5 x points on flights booked directly with airlines or through American Express Travel
• 5 x points on prepaid hotels booked through American Express Travel
• 1 x point on everything else
• Hilton Honors and Marriott Bonvoy Gold status
• $200 airline incidentals credit
• $200 Uber credit
• $100 Saks Fifth Avenue credit
• $240 digital entertainment credit (effective 7/1/21)
• $300 Equinox credit (effective 7/1/21)
• $200 Hotel credit when booking a prepaid Fine Hotels and Resorts or Hotel Collection stay through American Express Travel (effective 7/1/21)
• $179 CLEAR credit (effective 7/1/21)
• Global Lounge Collection access including Centurion Lounges, Delta SkyClubs, and Priority Pass Lounges, etc.
• Cell phone protection up to $800 when you pay your monthly cell phone bill with your American Express Platinum Card
• And more

In my opinion, this is the best version of the Platinum Card for two reasons. First, you can receive a $695 bonus, which covers the entire cost of the annual fee, every year if you meet certain Morgan Stanley requirements (I’ll explain more in detail below). Secondly, this is the only version of the American Express Platinum Card where you can add an authorized user for FREE. All the other versions charge $175 to add an authorized user.

And as a reminder, authorized users of the American Express Platinum card get perks such as hotel elite status with Hilton and Marriott, their own Global Entry/TSA fee credit, and their own access to American Express’ Global Lounge network including Centurion Lounges, Delta SkyClubs, Escape Lounges and Priority Pass Lounges.

This is great if you and your partner are frequent Delta flyers as the Platinum Card only allows complimentary access to Delta SkyClubs for the individual cardholder. Each guest will cost you $29 per visit. But if your partner is an authorized user with his/her own Platinum Card, you can both get in for free. This is also great for families as the Priority Pass Select membership only allows the cardholder plus two guests in for free. If your partner is an authorized user with his/her own Priority Pass Select membership, he/she can get complimentary lounge access for him/herself plus two additional guests. This is very beneficial for families (or traveling parties) of four or more.

And lastly, you can transfer your MR points to your Morgan Stanley account at a value of 1 cent per point. This isn’t the best deal and I don’t recommend it as I think MR points are worth more than 1 cent but if you really want to, you can.

Here’s How to Get Your Morgan Stanley American Express Platinum Card for Free

Like I said earlier, you’re gonna have to jump through some hoops so be prepared. The whole process is long and cumbersome but you only have to do it once and it’s worth it to save $695 ($870 with an authorized user) a year. You need to do things specifically in this order:

1. You need to have an investment relationship with Morgan Stanley (see below for more information). If you have one already, great. If you don’t, the easiest way is to open up a Morgan Stanley Access Investing account.
   • Morgan Stanley’s Access Investing is their latest foray into Robo-investing.
     • The simplest way to describe this type of investing is “set it and forget it.” You just pick how aggressive you want to be or the types of industries you want to invest in and they do the rest for you. You don’t pick any funds or individual stocks.
   • It requires a $5000 minimum deposit and comes with a .35% annual fee ($17.50 a year for $5000) but your money is invested and in theory, will return a lot more than .35% a year. As a data point, I opened my account three months ago and I’m currently sitting at a 4.04% return.
2. Sign up for Morgan Stanley Online. This is their online portal that allows you to manage all your Morgan Stanley accounts in one place. If you signed up for the Access Investing account online, you will automatically have a Morgan Stanley Online account created for you.
3. Wait a month. This is to allow time for Morgan Stanley to recognize your investment relationship with them, which will then allow you to move onto the next step.
4. Open up a Morgan Stanley Platinum CashPlus account and meet their monthly requirements to avoid a monthly fee. Click here for more information and my complete review of the Morgan Stanley Platinum CashPlus account.
   • The Morgan Stanley Platinum CashPlus account does come with a $45 monthly fee. Effective 2/1/22, the monthly fee will be raised to $55/month. To avoid this monthly fee, you need to have:
     • $5,000 recurring monthly deposit, AND
     • $25,000 average daily BDP balance, AND
     • Morgan Stanley Online enrollment, AND
     • Another qualified non-CashPlus Morgan Stanley account (not including retirement accounts). Your Morgan Stanley Access Investing account will meet this requirement.
5. Make sure both these accounts are grouped together in the same Account Link Group (ALG). This is very important and you need to call them to do this. Make sure they add both accounts to the same ALG, and not just the same household. I hate to say it but Morgan Stanley’s phone advisors aren’t the best. This step literally took me three different phone calls to do.
6. Apply for the Morgan Stanley American Express Platinum Card through your CashPlus account. The link can be found on your account home page.

So How Does This Work?

An American Express Platinum Card comes with an annual fee of $695 but the Morgan Stanley Platinum CashPlus account gives you an annual engagement bonus of $695 a year, which covers the cost of the annual fee. If you are able to meet the monthly requirements, you would essentially get an American Express Platinum Card with all of its perks for free every year.

But if you’re not able to meet the monthly requirements each month, then the $45/month fee would kick in. Let’s just assume you weren’t able to meet the monthly requirement at all and paid $45/month for a whole year, you would actually still be paying less for the American Express Platinum Card as $45 x 12 = $540 ($155/year savings). Effective 2/1/22, the monthly fee will be raised to $55/month so if you paid that every month, you would still pay less for a Platinum Card ($660 vs. $695). So if you’re gonna pay for an American Express Platinum Card anyways, why not get it for $155 less a year? Even if you’re only able to meet the requirements a few months out of the year, this significantly reduces your “annual fee” even more. Makes sense?

Important note: You need to spend at least $1000 on your Morgan Stanley American Express Platinum Card each calendar year to keep the $550 engagement bonus tax-free. Otherwise, Morgan Stanley will send you a form 1099 at the end of the year. This is the one unknown at this time. I’m not sure if this rule still applies or if Morgan Stanley will send you a 1099 form now that the bonus has been raised to $695, regardless of how much you spend.

In regards to eligible investment relationships, Morgan Stanley considers eligible investment accounts to be AAA Accounts, Self Directed Brokerage Accounts, Morgan Stanley Access Investing Accounts, or discretionary/nondiscretionary Advisory Accounts or programs through Morgan Stanley’s Advisory Program. Retirement Plan accounts, including IRAs, are currently not eligible. If you have questions about whether a specific account qualifies, please contact Morgan Stanley.

UPDATE: Morgan Stanley recently updated their terms and conditions. For anyone whose investment relationship is solely the Access Investing account, you will not receive the annual engagement for your first year. Your annual engagement bonus will kick in starting your second year.

For more information regarding what qualifies as a monthly recurring deposit, please click here.

Terms for the American Express Platinum Card Engagement Bonus:

• We will only pay an Annual Engagement Bonus to new American Express Platinum cards opened in connection with your Platinum CashPlus Account. You will not receive an Annual Engagement Bonus for an American Express Platinum card not issued in connection with your Platinum CashPlus Account.
• Your Platinum CashPlus Account must be open and your American Express Platinum Card must be opened in connection with your Platinum CashPlus Account and must be open at the time the Engagement Bonus is paid.
• You must be the primary cardholder of American Express Morgan Stanley Platinum (does not apply to any Additional Card Members)
• Your Platinum CashPlus Account must be open and your American Express Platinum Card must be opened in connection with your Platinum CashPlus Account and must be open at the time the Engagement Bonus is paid.
• The Annual Engagement Bonus will be paid in the month following the month you open your American Express Platinum Card (“the Card Anniversary Month”) with the exception of the first year you open your American Express Platinum Card.
• In the first year you open your Platinum CashPlus Account, and apply for the American Express Platinum Card, there may be a three month grace period (“the Grace Period”) before you receive the Annual Engagement Bonus, but only if you do not meet the Fee Avoidance criteria for the Platinum CashPlus Account during the Grace Period. If you meet the Fee Avoidance Criteria prior to the expiration of the Grace Period, you will receive the Annual Engagement Bonus the following month. If you do not meet the Fee Avoidance Criteria during the Grace Period and are charged a monthly fee at the expiration of the Grace Period, you will receive the Annual Engagement Bonus the following month.
• We will only pay an Annual Engagement Bonus to new American Express Platinum cards opened in connection with your Platinum CashPlus Account. You will not receive an Annual Engagement Bonus for an American Express Platinum card not issued in connection with your Platinum CashPlus Account.
• You may be subject to tax and information reporting with respect to any Annual Engagement Bonus. If you do not meet a minimum spending requirement of $1,000 on your American Express Platinum Card within the calendar year of receiving the $550 Annual Engagement Bonus, then Morgan Stanley may be required to report the $550 Annual Engagement Bonus as taxable income on your Form 1099. You should consult your tax advisor regarding the tax implications of any awards, including the $550 Annual Engagement Bonus, based upon your specific circumstances.

Morgan Stanley Free American Express Platinum Card Bottom Line:

In my opinion, if you’re gonna have an American Express Platinum Card anyways, then the Morgan Stanley version is probably your best bet. Other than the increased signup bonuses, this card offers you all the perks of the normal Platinum Card and it gives you the opportunity to get a free authorized user and the annual fee waived each year. Sure, there are some hoops to jump through but those are all worth it in my opinion. And like I said, even if you can’t meet the monthly minimum requirements each month, you will still save $155/year or $330/year with an authorized user.

What are your guys’ thoughts on the Morgan Stanley American Express Platinum Card? Will you be opening one? If so, please share your thoughts with us in the comments section below. Thanks for reading!

Disclaimer: I’m not a financial advisor and this post is not considered financial advice. You need to figure what works for you or seek advice from a qualified financial planner.

Read the rest of this article at An American Express Platinum Card for Free? Here’s How..

Morgan Stanley offers two different versions of the CashPlus account: Premier and Platinum. Premier sounds like it should be the more prestigious account but it’s actually the lesser of the two. It has fewer monthly requirements but also offers fewer perks compared to the Platinum account. In this post, I will mainly focus on the Morgan Stanley Platinum CashPlus account but I will touch on the Premier account as well.

Morgan Stanley CashPlus Benefits:

Both the Morgan Stanley Premier and Platinum CashPlus accounts offer easy access to your money, anytime and from anywhere in the world, for free. That’s right. You can use any bank or ATM that accepts Mastercard to access your money for free. There are no foreign transaction or bank fees and all ATM fees charged by the individual ATMs will be automatically reimbursed as well. This is probably my favorite feature of the CashPlus account as I hate driving around looking for a specific bank or ATM just to avoid a withdrawal fee, especially while traveling abroad.

Additional features include online bill pay, unlimited check writing, no wire fees, electronic funds transfer including Zelle, direct deposit, spending and budgeting tools and more.

Both accounts offer comprehensive protections such as free extended warranty and price protection on purchases made with your debit card, insufficient funds coverage, SIPC/FIDC coverage, and Identity and Credit Protection provided by Experian, including monthly credit reports, real-time credit alerts, Vantage score and more. These are really good perks usually found on higher-end credit cards. The Platinum account will provide you with four different Experian enrollments whereas the Premier account will only provide you with two.

I actually really love the Experian benefit. In addition to the monthly credit report and Vantage scores, I can lock and unlock my Experian credit report whenever I want. This prevents thieves from being able to access my Experian credit report and opening accounts under my name. A standalone Experian product with this same level of coverage would normally cost $19.99/month so I appreciate that it’s included with this CashPlus account.

But most importantly, the Morgan Stanley Platinum CashPlus account offers an engagement bonus of $695/year if you have the Morgan Stanley American Express Platinum Card. It basically covers your annual fee every year with the bonus. The idea behind this sounds great but in actuality, requires you to jump through a lot of hoops to get the bonus. More information regarding the American Express Platinum Card Exclusively for Morgan Stanley can be found here.

Morgan Stanley CashPlus Fees:

The Premier account comes with a $15 monthly fee. To avoid the monthly fee, you will need:

1. $2,500 recurring monthly deposit, OR
2. $25,000 average daily BDP balance, AND
3. Morgan Stanley Online enrollment, AND
4. Another qualified non-CashPlus Morgan Stanley account (see below)

The Platinum account comes with a $45 monthly fee. Effective 2/1/22, the monthly fee will be raised to $55. To avoid the monthly fee, you will need:

1. $5,000 recurring monthly deposit, AND
2. $25,000 average daily BDP balance, AND
3. Morgan Stanley Online enrollment, AND
4. Another qualified non-CashPlus Morgan Stanley account (see below)

They do allow you a two-month grace period to set all this up before they start charging you a monthly fee. And the $$2500/$5000 monthly recurring deposit requirement is waived if any amount of Social Security benefits are deposited into your account. Good news for old folks.

Morgan Stanley considers eligible deposits to be:

• Direct deposits
• Incoming transfers (including Zelle)
• Mobile check deposits
• In-branch check deposits
• Incoming wires
• Any social security deposits
• Distributions from a Morgan Stanley Retirement Account

In order to avoid the monthly CashPlus account fee, you must open and/or maintain an additional eligible Morgan Stanley investment account. Eligible investment accounts include, but are not limited to, an AAA Account, Self Directed Brokerage Account, Morgan Stanley Access Investing Account, or a  discretionary/ nondiscretionary Advisory Account or program through Morgan Stanley’s Advisory Program. Retirement Plan accounts, including IRAs, are currently not eligible. If you have questions about whether a specific account qualifies, please contact Morgan Stanley.

If you have an investment account with Morgan Stanley already, great. If you don’t, the easiest way to open one up is with a Morgan Stanley Access Investing account. This is a Robo-investing account similar to Wealthfront or Betterment, which uses computers and sophisticated algorithms to buy/sell mutual funds and ETFs for you. If you don’t know much about Robo-investing, the simplest way to describe this type of investing is “set it and forget it.” You just pick how aggressive you want to be or the types of industries you want to invest in and they do the rest for you. You don’t pick any funds or individual stocks.

Access Investing does require a $5000 minimum deposit and comes with a .35% annual fee ($17.50 a year) but your money is invested and in theory will return a lot more than .35% a year, which will cover the cost of the fee. As a data point, I opened my account three months ago and I’m currently sitting at a 4.04% return.

Morgan Stanley CashPlus Negatives:

On paper, the Morgan Stanley CashPlus account looks pretty amazing but honestly, the biggest drawback for most people will be the interest rate. Both accounts earn a measly .01% APR. Even in this day and age, that’s a terrible return for parking $25,000 in their account. In case you were wondering what the math was; .01% of $25,000 would equal $2.50 a year… Ridiculous, right?

Additionally, their customer service is TERRIBLE. Their call center is based in Tampa, Florida but the majority of the financial advisors I spoke to, and there have been plenty, were just incompetent. I feel like they didn’t know what they were doing and each time I called, I got a different answer. It was really ridiculous how disorganized they were and how unfamiliar they were with their own products.

For example, just opening an account was a pain in the ass. They sure don’t make it easy to just apply for an account online. Every time I clicked on a link, it would give me an error and say I needed to contact a financial advisor to set up an account. I then called to create an account but unbeknownst to me, the advisor never sent me disclosure agreements (to fully open my account). So my account sat in limbo for days until I finally called to see why I couldn’t set up a direct deposit.  The next advisor then sent me disclosure agreement forms but didn’t advise me that I needed to submit proof of identity and residency for verification. I can go on and on but you get the point. It was like no one knew what they were doing and the whole process took a lot longer than it needed to.

Morgan Stanley American Express Platinum Card:

If you are looking to open a Morgan Stanley American Express Platinum Card in conjunction with this Platinum CashPlus account, this may make sense for you. Despite the low-interest rate, the annual engagement bonus actually makes it worth it. Let’s do the math.

An American Express Platinum Card comes with an annual fee of $695 and the annual engagement bonus would essentially make the card fee-free each year. If you are able to meet the monthly requirements, you would essentially get an American Express Platinum Card with all of its perks for free every year.

But if you’re not able to meet the monthly requirements each month, then the $45/month fee would kick in. Let’s just assume you weren’t able to meet the monthly requirement at all and paid $45/month for a whole year, you would actually still pay less for the American Express Platinum Card as $45 x 12 = $540 ($155/year savings). So if you’re gonna pay for an American Express Platinum Card anyways, why not get it for $155 less a year? If you’re able to meet the requirements even a few months out of the year, this significantly reduces your “annual fee” even more. Effective 2/1/22, the monthly fee will be raised to $55/month so if you paid that every month, you would still pay less for a Platinum Card ($660 vs. $695).

Now, assuming you could park $25,000 in the Platinum CashPlus account, would you be missing out on earned interest in some high-yield savings account? Well, you would, sort of. Let’s do some more math.

A typical high-yield savings account nowadays pays about .65% in interest. .65% of $25,000 would be $162.50 in earned interest a year. That’s significantly less than the $695 annual engagement bonus you will get each year, which equals out to be 2.78%. So if you can put your money into the stock market or somewhere else that would earn you more than 2.78%, then no, it wouldn’t be worth it for you to open this Platinum CashPlus account. But if you can’t, or need access to liquid cash, then it may be worth it for you.

UPDATE: Morgan Stanley recently updated their terms and conditions. For anyone whose investment relationship is solely the Access Investing account, you will not receive the annual engagement for your first year. Your annual engagement bonus will kick in starting your second year.

Morgan Stanley Platinum CashPlus Bottom Line:

Is Morgan Stanley’s Platinum CashPlus worth it? Well, I would say it depends. If you’re just looking for a traditional checking account that gives you fee-free ATM cash withdrawals, you can easily set up a Charles Schwab account with no minimum balance or monthly BDP requirements. There’s really no reason why it would make sense for you to open up a Platinum CashPlus (or even Premier for that matter) account if you’re just looking for a basic bank account.

The only reason why you would open up this account is for the annual American Express Platinum Card engagement bonus. If that’s your end game, then it may be worth it if you will use the benefits. Otherwise, I would say no. But whatever you do, you should speak with your financial advisor to see what makes sense for your own financial situation.

What are your guys’ thoughts on the Morgan Stanley Platinum CashPlus account? Will you be opening one? If so, please share your thoughts with us in the comments section below. Thanks for reading!

Disclaimer: I’m not a financial advisor and this post is not considered financial advice. You need to figure out what works for you or seek advice from a qualified financial planner.

Read the rest of this article at Morgan Stanley Platinum CashPlus Review.

Maximize Chase Points

Quarter 1 of 2021 will be a perfect opportunity to earn the most points with your Chase Cards. If you hold several of Chase’s credit cards, the Freedom Flex is perfect, as it supplements other high earning cards and has zero fees. Earn 5x points, up to $1500 in spend at Wholesale clubs which include BJ’s, Costco, and Sam’s club. The freedom flex will earn 5x points at these warehouses. I’d suggest putting all spending at these locations on your Chase Freedom Flex in Q1 2021. If you shop year-round at these locations, but do not plan to spend $1500 there in the next three months, consider buying a gift card for your favorite wholesale club. Then use the gift card to make purchases throughout the year, earning 5x points year-round!

Remember, only the Chase Freedom Flex earns 5x points in select categories. If you currently have the Chase Freedom Unlimited, this card will only earn 1.5x points at wholesale clubs and all other locations. You can have both the Freedom Flex and Freedom Unlimited in your wallet. I carry both cards, as the Freedom Unlimited allows me to earn 1.5x points everywhere, plus 3x points while dining and at pharmacies! All with no annual fee.

As far as the other spending categories for Q1, I will not make any changes. Personally, I will keep my spending for Internet, cable and phone services on my Chase Ink. The Ink cash earns 5x points already in this category. Therefore, there’s no need to change my spending habits.

New Freedom Card Holder Bonus

If you are not carrying the Chase Freedom in your wallet, you really are missing out. The Credit Cards has no annual fees and is a great way to earn reward points quickly. New card holders will earn $200 cashback, aka 20,000 points, after spending a low $500 in the first 3 months. In addition, to further entice you as a welcome bonus, you can also earn earn 5% cash back on grocery store purchases (not including Target^® or Walmart^® purchases) on up to $12,000 spent in the first years. That’s an additional 60,000 points for free! Or a total of 80,000 bonus points during the first year.

Read the rest of this article at Earn 5% Back at Wholesale Clubs.

Most Cash Back in Useful Places

The Chase freedom Unlimited earns 5% back on travel, 3% on dining, and 3% at drug stores. New cardholders can also earn 5% back at grocery stores! Better yet, earn 1.5% back everywhere else. Most cards only offer 1% everywhere, Chase Unlimited offers 50% more. Pair this card with the fluz app, and you can enjoy up to 36.5% back!

My favorite category for this card is drug stores. Fewer credit cards offer bonus points at pharmacies, and now chase is helping you save on your medications and toiletries. It is common to only see 3x or 5x earning on cards with large annual fees. It’s great to see Chase shaking up the market and bringing large multipliers to cards without the fees.

To earn 5% on travel, you must book trips via Chase’s online portal. This Chase travel portal is powered by Expedia. Therefore, the look and feel is very similar. You can book airfare, hotels, rental cars, cruises, and travel packages via the portal and earn 5% back on every vacation. Just about anything you can book on Expedia, you can book through chase and earn 5% back.

3% on dining is also a great perk of the Chase Unlimited. Earn 3% back at your favorite restaurant or bar. That’s right, bar! Going for a drinks on a Friday night, enjoy a 3% ROI! Food delivery also earns 3% back, so if you’re ordering in, you can also save a lot of money. Not only does this credit card earn 3% back with every dining purchase, but Chase Unlimited has partnered with Doordash to provide card holders with a complimentary 3 months of DashPass. This is DoorDash’s subscription service that provides unlimited deliveries with a $0 delivery fee and reduced service fees on eligible orders over $12 on DoorDash and Caviar. After 3 months, you can get 50% off Dashpass.

Trade Cash Back for Ultimate Rewards Points

To me, the real reason why this card is so valuable is because of Chase Ultimate Reward transfer partners. Ultimate Reward point transfer to several hotels and airlines partners at a ratio of 1:1. These partners include the following:

Chase Ultimate reward hotel partners

• IHG Rewards Club
• Marriott Bonvoy
• World Of Hyatt

Chase Ultimate rewards Airline Partners

• Aer Lingus Aeroplan
• British airways Executive Clube
• Emirates Skywards
• Air France / KLM Flying Blue
• Iberia Plus
• Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer
• Southwest Rapid Rewards
• United MileagePlus
• Virgin Atlantic Flying Club

Alone the Chase Freedom card is a cash back card. The points can be redeemed for cash back or gift cards or applied towards travel through the chase portal. Yet, pair the freedom with another Chase product which earns Ultimate reward points and you have the secrete sauce. This card now earns 3x points instead of cash back. Transfer the cash back earned on the Chase Unlimited to a Chase Sapphire or Business Ink and then transfer the points to any of Chase’s Ultimate Reward partners.

By adding the Chase Freedom to your wallet, along with any other Ultimate rewards card, your points can multiply faster and free travel is easier than ever. Or, keep the cash back and pay yourself back and enjoy saving every day.

Limited Time Sign up Bonus

The Chase Freedom Unlimited is offering new referrals a $200 cash back bump as a thank you for signing up for the card. Just spend $500 in the first 3 months of opening the card and you’ll earn 20,000 bonus points or $200! That’s 200 free dollars, just for opening up an account! In addition, new card holders will earn 5% cash back on grocery store purchases (not including Target^® or Walmart^® purchases) on up to $12,000 spent in the first year. That’s up to another $600 back! If you’re looking at ways to maximize savings and cash back, the Chase Freedom card is the perfect card for you. If you’re getting this card, please consider using my referral link, your support is appreciated.

Read the rest of this article at Chase Freedom Unlimited: My New Favorite Card.

Elite Status Rollover For 2021

Like most airlines, Alaska will rollover your existing elite status for the 2021 benefit year.  This means that if you don’t do anything this year, you will be able to keep your elite status.  Alaska has gone beyond the other airlines with three EQM promotions.

EQM Rollover Into 2021

Alaska Airlines will rollover any EQMs earn during the period of January 1, 2020 through April 30, 2020.  I had 23,216 miles post during that period and those EQMs will rollover to my account on January 1, 2021 for the 2021 qualifying year.

Earn a 50% Mileage Bonus On Flights Through 2020

Elite qualifying miles are determined by the base miles between point A and point B.  Every time you connect with a different flight number, the base mileage counter starts over.  Alaska Airlines awards a minimum of 500 miles per flight at a rate of one mile earned to every mile flown.

Alaska Airlines also awards EQM bonus miles for higher price tickets:

• First class fares F, P and I receive an EQM bonus of 75% over the base miles,
• Economy  fares Y and S receive an EQM bonus of 50% over the base miles and
• Economy fares M and B receive an EQM bonus of 25% over the base miles.

The “Fast Track To Status” promotion adds additional EQM earning at a rate of 50% of base mileage on top of any fare class bonus.  This promotion applies to Alaska Airlines flights from June 1, 2020 through December 31, 2020.

Terms and Conditions

50% bonus elite-qualifying mile offer terms: No registration required. All active Mileage Plan members will receive a 50% bonus on elite-qualifying miles earned on flights marketed and operated by Alaska Airlines between June 1 and December 31, 2020. Mileage for qualifying flights must be credited to the member’s Mileage Plan account. Not valid on free or award travel. The bonus elite-qualifying miles awarded as part of this promotion count toward elite status qualification only, are non-redeemable, and cannot be used toward award travel. All terms and conditions of the Mileage Plan program apply.

EQM Earning Through Credit Card Spending

If bonus EQMs, status and mile rollovers weren’t enough, you have another program to earn EQMs.  Through September 30, 2020, you can earn 2,500 EQM for every $5,000 of spending using the Alaska Airlines Visa credit card.  You can qualify for up to four bonus earnings up to 10,000 miles.

Terms and Conditions

Alaska Airlines Visa® bonus elite-qualifying mile offer terms: Qualified members can earn 2,500 elite-qualifying miles (maximum of 10,000) that count toward elite status qualification if they make any combination of purchase transactions totaling at least $5,000 (exclusive of any fees, including the annual fee, returns and adjustments) that post to an eligible Alaska Airlines Visa card between June 1, 2020 through September 30, 2020. Purchases from different Alaska Airlines accounts cannot be combined to reach the $5,000 threshold.

One individual can only earn a maximum of 10,000 elite-qualifying miles via this campaign, even if they hold multiple Alaska Airlines consumer and small business Visa cards. Elite-qualifying miles will be credited to your Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan account within the first two billing cycles after qualifying. To qualify for this offer, your credit card account must be open with active charging privileges.

Bank of America is not responsible for fulfillment of this elite-qualifying miles offer and posting of miles directly to your Alaska Mileage Plan account. Elite-qualifying miles will not appear on your credit card statement.

Elite-qualifying miles count toward elite status qualification only, are non-redeemable and cannot be used toward award travel. All Mileage Plan terms and conditions apply

Alaska Airlines Ends Change Fees

Today, Alaska Airlines announced the permanent end of change fees.  You can read that post here.

Final Thoughts

Alaska Airlines has gone the extra mile to not only keep your 2020 status but make it easier to upgrade your status for 2021.  Most airlines stopped at elite status rollover.  Alaska has added rollover miles and bonus EQM earning opportunities to upgrade your elite status level.

Read the rest of this article at Last Month For Alaska Airlines EQM Bonus For Credit Card Spend.

Fluz is now coding as an office supply with select merchants. All transactions for listed merchants will be coded as Office Supplies (MCC: 5943 – STATIONERY/OFFICE SUPPLIES). For a list of merchants, see the photo below. Going forward, every time I use the Fluz app and use my Chase Ink card, I’ll earn 5x the points! Before this change I was mainly using my American Express for $5 back on small businesses purchases or my Chase Ultimate Rewards freedom for 1.5 points. Starting immediately, I will also be using my Chase Ink to earn 5x points on Fluz.

As the pandemic has changed my focus from earning points that I can barely use, my focus is now cash back. I can now earn a ton of points and even more cash back! Just yesterday, I used Fluz on Amazon to save 1%, little did I know I could also have earned 5x points on that purchase.

If you have a business card, be sure to start using Fluz today to earn 5x points on everyday purchases. Do note only business categories count as business spend, not all of Fluz partners. Yet it’s also important to note that opening an Amazon Business account is as easy as having a business credit card. Plus, Amazon Business gift cards can be applied to your regular Amazon accounts.

Use Fluz, Save Money

Yes, I know I have been talking a lot about Fluz lately. Call me crazy. But with so little travel and not a lot of groundbreaking news in the industry, saving money has become my new hobby. If you’re not using Fluz, sign up today and receive your first three 35% off vouchers by being referred to me. Use the referral code RockyFluz or you will not get the three vouchers. Then, invite your friends to Fluz using your own invite code and earn an additional voucher for every friend who joins! This will allow you to continue to save money. Do note, the vouchers do expire, so make sure you’re using them as you earn them. After all, each purchase is a gift card. Therefore, buy today and save the gift card for use in the future. NEVER let a voucher expire, that’s $3.50 in free money going to waste if you do!

Verify Cards Now Required

Fluz is constantly trying to make their app more secure. Because of this, before you can make a purchase you must verify your credit card. To do this click on the menu, choose ‘Privacy and Security’ and then select your payment card. Follow the in app instructions to verify the card. This requires Fluz to put a temporary small hold on your credit card, ranging from $0.05 to $3.00. Then, log into your credit card account and verify the amount. Now, you can use that credit card as a from of payment and start earning cash back and 5x points! Otherwise paypal is always an option. However, if you want to earn 5x points, verify your business cards today!

Do you have a question about Fluz? Please post them below and I’ll gladly answer your questions or check out the Fluz Portal. Happy shopping! Join my Fluz Facebook group to network, share tips and tricks, and more.

Read the rest of this article at Confirmed: Earn Cash back and 5x Points with Fluz.

Chase Marriott Credit Card Bonus

Marriott is offering this 10x bonus on the following cards to current cardholders: Marriott Bonvoy Boundless, The Ritz-Carlton Credit Card, Marriott Bonvoy Credit Card, Marriott Bonvoy Premier Credit Card. The business versions are also available, including Marriott Bonvoy Business Credit Card and Marriott Bonvoy Premier Plus Business Credit Card. Unfortunately, new card holders are excluded.

New Marriott Bonvoy Boundless card holders earn 3 free night certificates worth 35,000 points each after spending just $3000. In addition, the card earns 6x points per dollar at Marriotts and 2x points everywhere else. The annual fee is $95 and not currently waived. Remember, even if you sign up today, you will not be eligible for the fuel and dining bonus. But there may or may not be future promotions. Please consider using my sign up link for this card.

If you have a Chase Marriott, be sure to check and sign up for this promotion. This bonus easily represents a 2 to 3x higher earning potential than typical earning rates. The promotion runs from July 15 to September 15. The max you can earn is 10x points per dollar on $3,500 in spending at restaurants and gas stations, for a total of up 35,000 points.

American Express Marriott Credit Card Bonus

American Express is follow with a similar bonus. Marriott credit cards from Amex also earn 10x points at gas station and restaurants. These offers are available through American Express targeted offers, also known as Amex offers. Sign into your account to add the offer to your American Express.

The American express Marriott offer runs from August 3 to October 31, 2020. In addition to earning 10x at gas stations and restaurants, spending at Marriott hotel increases.

• 10x at U.S. Gas Stations
• 10x at U.S. Restaurants
• 10x on eligible purchases at participating Marriott Bonvoy hotels

If you not traveling but you want to build up your hotel balances for future stays, these bonuses are both delights.

**Update: The Chase offer may be targeted.

Read the rest of this article at Marriott Credit Cards Earn 10X Points on Fuel and Dining.

Plastiq’s Previous Value Proposition

Payment services like Plastiq gained popularity in the points & miles arena over the last few years. That’s because they allow you to charge payments that you must normally pay with cash or check – car loans, mortgages, rent, etc. Thus, Plastiq provides a way to earn those lucrative rewards points for normally ineligible expenses. The catch, of course, was the transaction fee; Plastiq previously charged 2.5%. In general, that still didn’t make sense in most cases. After all, paying 2.5 cents for, say, Membership Rewards points worth 1.5 cents represents a poor deal.

However, there were a couple of scenarios where paying the fee could represent a good opportunity:

• You need to meet a high minimum spend threshold to trigger a bonus, but don’t have enough everyday spend.
• Your card earns 2x points, thus earning more than 2.5 cents of value per dollar.

The second point became particularly valuable for cards like the AMEX Blue Business Plus or Citi Double Cash (if you have another card earning Thank You points) cards. I traditionally value Membership Rewards and TYP at 1.5 cents/point; therefore, buying the points at 1.25 cents each actually does provide surplus value.

Plastiq Fee Increase Means Break Even Value, At Best

The problem now, of course, is the bump in fee to 2.85%. The e-mail I received from Plastiq describes the change as follows:

Recently, several major credit card companies announced an upcoming interchange price increase (the cost of processing a credit card), which directly impacts our costs at Plastiq. This third party increase requires our fees to move to 2.85%, effective July 1, 2020 for most transactions.

Plastiq has historically absorbed the cost of all interchange increases, and we have kept our fees flat. However, at this time, an increase is necessary. We remain committed to delivering quality tools and features, and we’re still priced lower than our competitors.

We continue to improve Plastiq and we’re excited about the launch of Plastiq Accept and our new multi-user feature. Keep an eye out for new Plastiq features and products for your business that are on the way.

Whether you believe the corporate Newspeak or not, the issue here is that you are now paying 1.425 cents per point. I guess that’s still a positive arb, though at .075 cents a point, not worth the extra effort in IMO. The potentially larger issue, though is this: are transferable points even worth 1.5 cents/point at this juncture? Yes, you can still transfer them to a variety of airline and hotel programs. Programs largely unusable at the moment, though, due to travel restrictions. Yes, Thank You Points helped score ANA First Class through LifeMiles, but that’s not an option for the foreseeable future. We also have no idea how many of these programs might survive the current situation.  With all that in mind, I lean towards a lower value at this point in time.

Where Plastiq Might Still Make Sense

There are two situations where Plastiq payments might still make sense, even with a 2.85% fee.

You Need to Hit a Significant Minimum Spend Threshold

One such example is the British Airways Visa card, which requires $23,000 in spending in one year to earn the full 100k bonus. That’s a tall order for many just with ordinary spending. Not to mention, the opportunity cost for foregoing bonus categories on other cards. Hitting up Plastiq with the car and mortgage/rent payments might just help get you there.

You Use Plastiq for Business Spend

If you have a (legitimate) business, the value proposition improves somewhat. That’s because if you use Plastiq for business expenses, the fee becomes tax deductible in most cases. Depending on your marginal tax rate, that provides a “discount” between 12% and 37% on the gross fee. If we assume a rate of 25%, the net fee after tax deduction drops to 2.1375%. If you use the Blue Business Plus card, for example, that means you’re purchasing points at about 1.07 cents/point. That’s a very good price, even if you believe points aren’t worth what they used to be.

This assumes, of course, that you’re paying a vendor that doesn’t already accept credit cards without a fee. It pays to double check; I’ve personally found more vendors accepting cards these days in an effort to encourage completely contactless payments.

Final Thoughts

With the fee increase, I’m personally done with Plastiq for now. I just don’t see the value at this price point, especially if you consider transferable points temporarily devalued. I might change my mind after things settle down, though. Meanwhile, I probably won’t recommend that you use the service, either, unless you either have a significant minimum spend hurdle or business spending where the tax deduction helps offset the fee.

If you would like to support The Road More Traveled, if you make electronic payments, please consider using Plastiq via my affiliate link. Thank you for your support.

Read the rest of this article at Plastiq Fee Increase Significantly Reduces Value Proposition.