About once a year I like to take a step back and review my overall credit card strategy and then review what credit cards I have in my wallet and how I’m using them. Things change over time and so has my credit card strategy. This past year I downgraded a few cards (couldn’t bring myself to outright cancel) and refocused some of my spending to help meet my goals of travel. In last week’s post I got way too deep into my overall credit card strategy so this post will just be focused on what’s in my wallet and why!
CARD: Bank of American Premium Rewards
Annual Fee: $95
Why I’ve had it: On the surface this card doesn’t seem that great with 2% on restaurants/travel and 1.5% on everything else, but it’s not a bad return. The kicker is the perk through Preferred Rewards in which the more you have with Bank of America accounts, the higher rewards rate you’ll get. With the highest, you can earn 3.5% on travel/restaurants and 2.625% on everything else. After a few IRA rollovers from old jobs I’m at the highest tier.
Why I’m keeping it: In years past this has been my primary go to card but as of late it’s been relegated, despite it’s amazing returns. As stated in the beginning, I view credit cards as a tool to help me achieve my goal and my goals this past year were around some luxury travel, which required points not cash back. The $100 travel credit always sounds nice but to be honest I haven’t used all that much of it this year.
How I’ll use it in 2023: I’m in need of Marriott points for some big hotel stays we expect this year so I imagine I’ll be focusing on other cards more this year but this is still a great card and so I’m going to hold onto it!
Card: Delta Blue American Express
Annual Fee: $0
Why I’ve had it: This card was previously the Platinum version of the card and I had it to help me earn higher status as well as the companion pass. Spending $25,000 on the card earned me 10,000 MQMs (medallion qualification miles), which were helpful when I was flying a lot more and chasing status. Fast forward to 2022, I’m just not travelling as much for work, and actually through a work perk with Delta was able to complete a challenge to earn Gold status, so the MQM perk didn’t mean a lot to me. Companion passes sounded great but in reality we always found them not as easy to use as we would have liked, we could never really use them on time (COVID screwed that up) and the companion ticket isn’t eligible for all flights. American Express raised the fee from $195 to $250 and I just said enough is enough and downgraded to the free version of this card. I don’t get any meaningful perks and have the chance to earn 1 skymile for every $1 spent so not a great return (but not terrible).
Why I’m keeping it: It’s free and I don’t love the idea of cancelling cards.
How I’ll use it in 2023: Enough to keep the card active – so a few purchases each month! There could be a world in 2023 or beyond where Mrs. Money and I are in need to this card and we might even upgrade it (Amex is flexible which is nice). It’s $0 so I’m going to hang onto it to keep my options open!
CARD: CHASE SAPPHIRE PREFERRED
Annual Fee: $95
Why I’ve had it: People lost their minds (myself included) when this card came out and it seemed like everybody was getting it. It was a really good deal – 3x on travel/restaurants, a bunch of travel perks and lounge access. It came with a travel credit, which nearly negated the annual fee, making it a no brainer. Fast forward though, they kept raising the annual fee and it just wasn’t as worthwhile anymore to me. It felt like more and more work for rewards I wasn’t enjoying. So I downgraded from the Reserve version of this card to the Preferred.
Why I’m keeping it: I still have a handful of Chase points (nearly 100,000) and those points are definitely valuable so I’m holding onto the card until I can really find a way to use it!
How I’ll use it in 2023: Lightly, definitely enough to keep the card active and to keep earning a few points here and there!
CARD: CHASE MARRIOTT BONVOY BOUNDLESS
Annual Fee: $95
Why I’ve had it: I have kept this card primarily for the free night it comes with and the 15 elite credit nights. I’ve been a Marriott loyalist all throughout my traveling career and currently have lifetime Gold. The 15 nights help me achieve my goal of Platinum, which is 50 nights/year, leaving me with 35 nights needed between work and travel. In 2023 I’ll be one year away from lifetime Platinum which is very appealing to me! Historically I haven’t put that much spend on the card as through travelling I always had plenty of Marriott points to use.
Why I’m keeping it: The free night in my opinion pays for the card and I keep it for the 15 nights to help me achieve Platinum which I need one more year of. However in 2023 I expect a lot of nice hotel stays (Italy) which will require a fair amount of points. Also in 2021 Chase did a refresh on the card so now I can earn 3x on gas, groceries and dining. Mrs. Money’s Amex Gold gets 4x on groceries and dining, and my Bank of America card gets 3.62% on dining but 3x on gas is great! All other spend gets 2x points and to help bolster our Marriott stach, I expect to spend more on it next year!
How I’ll use it in 2023: For the first half of 2023 I expect this to be one of my primary cards, as I foresee the need to have lots of Marriott points handy for our Italy trip!
CARD: CHASE SOUTHWEST RAPID REWARDS CARD
Annual Fee: $39
Why I’ve had it: I initially got this card a few years ago that allowed you to earn a Southwest Companion pass for the rest of the year. Mrs. Money and I took advantage and took 3 flights that year – the BOGO was pretty sweet. Since then we really haven’t done much Southwest travel but I still just hold onto the card because I dislike closing out credit cards. In 2021 I did downgrade from the Plus ($69) to an unadvertised regular card that’s $39/year. I got talked out of straight up cancelling and have held the $39 card.
Why I’m keeping it: I ended up not cancelling the card in 2021 and 2022 and downgraded as we were looking to buy a house (which happened but not till 2022) so I didn’t want any ding on my credit history which might have impacted my ability to get a loan / lower interest rate. Honestly I hate to say that I’m ambivalent here but in 2023 I’ll probably just do the same and hold onto it. It’s on $39.
How I’ll use it in 2022: I don’t plan to be!
CARD: American Express Platinum
Annual Fee: $695
Why I’ve had it: I signed up for the big bonus (100,000 points) and for the ability to access Delta Skyclubs. It’s funny but I have this vivid memory of sitting in the Ft. Lauderdale Airport with time to kill and being like “forget this…I’m getting a credit card that gives my Skyclub access”. I had enough! In hindsight that’s a bit silly but honestly I enjoy Skyclub access so much and have gotten a lot of joy with it!
Why I’m keeping it: I did a lengthier post (wow I love talking about this stuff don’t I?) a few months ago but TLDR I still get enough value out of this card to keep it. Due to my employment status (who presumably is a huge customer of American Express’) I get a $150 credit back from Amex which puts a little ding in it.
How I’ll use it in 2022: I’ve found Amex points to be quite valuable but this card doesn’t offer a great return – 5x on flights and 1x on everything else. This is a card I hold more for the perks but who knows – I may find myself in need of Amex points and start putting more spend on it!
TLDR
When used responsibly, reward credit cards can be awesome! I will say they are a bit like tattoos (or so I’m told) – it’s hard to stop at 1! Once you get them it’s also tough to cancel – just for the fear of losing your credit history although unless you’re buying a house it shouldn’t affect you too much assuming you’ve got other cards in good standing with a few years of experience. I think a lot about my credit cards and the role the play and am happy with what’s in my wallet!
Disclosure: Links here for these credit cards will earn you, and me a signup bonus. If you are considering signing up for one of these cards I would appreciate the chance to refer you!
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