Dr. Credit Card
  • Top 10
  • Promotions
  • Points
  • Perks
  • Protection
  • All Reviews
  • Blog
    • Blog 中文

Best bonus ever for Hilton Amex, Hilton Surpass Amex, Hilton Business Amex ($100+100K points, $150+150K points)

1/31/2021

0 Comments

 
Amex and Hilton have brought the best bonuses ever for the cobranded Hilton Amex, Hilton Surpass Amex, and Hilton Business Amex:
  • Amex Hilton ($0): $100 statement credit after your first purchase & 100,000 points after you spend $1,000 within the first 3 months of new account opening (our value $500)
  • Amex Hilton Surpass ($95): $150 statement credit after your first purchase & 150,000 points after you spend $2,000 within the first 3 months of new account opening (our value $655)
  • Amex Hilton Business Card ($95): $150 statement credit after your first purchase & 150,000 points after you spend $2,000 within the first 3 months of new account opening (our value $655)
0 Comments

Check your email for the huge Barclays promotions for existing cardmembers - up to 60,000 miles/points or $600 cash!

11/14/2020

0 Comments

 
Picture
Throughout this pandemic when many card issuers have been bringing temporary benefits or bonuses to keep their existing cardmembers, Barclays has been quiet, until now. 

​In the last couple of days, many Barclays cardmembers received a promotional email titled "Double Bonus Opportunity – Earn up to 60,000 miles!" or "...60,000 points!" or "...$600 Uber Cash!"  This appears to be a widely targeted offer to all Barclays cards such as Arrivals cards, AAdvantage Aviator cards, JetBlue cards, Hawaiian Airlines cards, Wyndham cards, Uber card: between 11/10/2020 and 1/31/2021, you will earn up to 60,000 miles/points or $600 cash, depending on which card you have (e.g. 10x additional points on everything, up to 10,000 points earned, and additional 50,000 points when you spend a total of $3,000 within this period).  This must be the best bonus ever for existing cardmembers since I started writing about credit cards in 2011; usually you need to open a new account and meet the minimum spending requirement to receive a bonus like this; mostly likely the existing cardmembers did receive a similar bonus when they opened the card, and now it is like receiving a second bonus to keep the card.
0 Comments

Best bonus ever for Amex Platinum, Amex Gold, Chase Ink Cash, Chase Ink Unlimited, and Chase United Explorer

11/13/2020

0 Comments

 
Picture
Wow, Amex and Chase have brought us a few truly exciting offers this week, each representing the historical high.  We estimate the value of each offer based on our valuation of points, mostly from the miles transfer feature for long-haul international premium cabin redemptions, as well as typical spending pattern.  Do your own math to see your value.  See the fine prints for the eligibility.
  • Amex Platinum Card: 100,000 points + 10x on groceries & gas for 6 months :: $300 effective annual fee (our value $1,605).
  • Amex Platinum Card (via Resy.com): 75,000 points + $300 for dining + 10x groceries & gas for 6 months :: $300 effective annual fee (our value $1,530).
  • Amex Gold Card (via Resy.com): 60,000 points + $250 for dining :: effective annual fee $150 (our value $1,000).
  • Chase Ink Cash: 75,000 points :: no annual fee (our value $750, or $1,125 if you have Sapphire Reserve, Sapphire Preferred, or Ink Preferred).
  • Chase Ink Unlimited: 75,000 points :: no annual fee (our value $750, or $1,125 if you have Sapphire Reserve, Sapphire Preferred, or Ink Preferred).
  • Chase United Explorer: 70,000 miles :: first year free (our value $910).
0 Comments

Chase introduces more temporary bonuses to its credit card portfolio for November and December 2020

10/31/2020

0 Comments

 
Chase has introduced temporary benefits on more of its credit cards.  In a recent post, we covered Chase Sapphire series, Ink series, and Freedom series.  Now select cardmembers will receive the following category bonuses between 11/1/2020 and 12/31/2020; you need to activate the offer through a link in the promotional email or at chase.com/mybonus directly.
  • 5x miles/points on Amazon.com and groceries, up to $1,500 in combined spending per month, for United Airlines cards, Southwest RapidRewards cards, Brith Airways Visa, Iberia Visa, Aer Lingus Visa, Marriott Bonvoy cards, and Ritz-Carlton cards.
  • 5x points on Amazon.com and 3x on groceries, up to $1,500 in combined spending per month, for Hyatt cards and IHG Rewards cards.
  • 10x points on Marriott portfolio hotels, up to $3,500 spent per month, for Marriott Bonvoy cards and Ritz-Carlton cards.

In addition, not from Chase or Amex, the following hotel program policies are recently announced:
  • Marriott: annual free night certificates expiring before 12/11/2020 will be valid until 1/31/2021, and those expiring between 12/11/2020 and 7/31/2021 will be valid until 8/1/2021.  These cards earn annual free night certificates: Amex Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant, Amex Marriott Bonvoy Business, Chase Marriott Bonvoy Boundless, and those Marriott/Ritz-Cartlton/SPG cobranded cards issued by Chase or Amex that are no longer accepting new applications.
  • Hyatt: annual free night certificates with an expiration date between 3/1/2020 and 12/31/2021 will be valid until 12/31/2021.  Chase World of Hyatt Visa and Hyatt Visa earn annual free night certificates.

Finally, to track all the COVID-19 related temporary credit card benefits, please visit our featured review which has been under continuous update with the most recent updates highlighted in cardinal.
0 Comments

Amex Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant Card & Business Card offering free Marriott Platinum status & 100,000 points & more

10/15/2020

0 Comments

 
In response to Chase Marriott Bonvoy Boundless Visa's crazily lucrative five free 50K-nights offer, Amex has also brought us very impressive offers for both the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant Card and the Marriott Bonvoy Business Card:
  • For the 2021 calendar year, enjoy free Marriott Platinum Elite status, the second top tier elite status in the Marriott Bonvoy program, normally achieved by staying at least 50 nights per year and offering lounge access/free breakfasts, upgrades to a suite, and other perks. 
  • Earn 100,000 points when you spend at least $5,000 within 3 months of new account opening for either card.
  • Earn additional 25,000 points upon your first anniversary when you renew your Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant Card.  The annual fee is $450 but after considering the annual $300 Marriott credit becomes $150 effectively.  The card offers a free 50K-night upon each anniversary, which can easily negate the effective annual fee.
  • Earn up to $150 in statement credits for select U.S. advertising purchases within the first 6 months with your Marriott Bonvoy Business Card, which carries a $125 annual fee and offers a free 35K-night upon each anniversary.
Considering how lucrative Marriott Platinum status could be, we judge these as the best signup bonuses ever for both cards.  The only concern is obviously your travel plan during this pandemic.
0 Comments

Chase Marriott Bonvoy Boundless best bonus ever: five free nights, each capped at 50,000-point level

10/1/2020

2 Comments

 
Chase has brought us an amazing signup offer for Marriott Bonvoy Boundless Visa Signature:
  • When you spend $5,000 within the first 3 months of new account opening, you will earn five free nights at Marriott International portfolio hotels worldwide, each capped at 50,000 points redemption level. 
  • The free night certificates expire 12 months after issuance. 
  • The potential maximum value for this signup bonus is 250,000 Marriott Bonvoy points, compared to the previous signup bonus of 100,000 points.  This is easily the best offer ever for this card, and probably also better than any of the previous offers from Marriott, Ritz-Carlton, Starwood credit cards. 
  • The downside of free night certificate compared to outright points bonus includes: (1) the free nights will have the best value when redeemed at hotels that require exactly or at least close to 50,000 points per night, which represent a subset of Marriott portfolio hotels worldwide, while Marriott Bonvoy points can be redeemed at any Marriott portfolio hotels at different redemption levels; (2) free night certificates expire after 12 months of issuance and there is no way to extend them after expiration dates (except for COVID-19 related measures), while Marriott points expire after 24 months of account inactivity and any qualifying activity will keep all points active for another 24 months; (3) Marriott points can also be transferred to frequent flyer miles of 44 partners, and in our book this feature actually represents better value than hotel redemption (currently 0.75 cent per point vs. 0.6 cent for hotels).  Partners such as American, United, Alaska, Delta, Southwest, British, Cathay Pacific, Qantas, Japan, Air Canada, ANA, Avianca, Singapore, Turkish, Korean, Flying Blue, Etihad, all have their own unique strength and value;  (4) you can redeem these free nights separately at different hotels or at the same hotels for different stays, but if you decide to redeem them for a five-night stay at the same hotel, keep in mind that Marriott allows you to pay for 4 nights using points and get the 5th night for free - in this way the five free nights will represent value of 200,000 points instead of 250,000 points as previously discussed.
  • Of course, it is up to you to decide which hotel(s) you want to redeem these free nights.  Here we would like to give some ideas to maximize the value of these free nights.  The following is Marriott Bonvoy's current hotel redemption chart, and obviously better value could be found at Category-6 hotels requiring 50,000 points for standard redemption rate, Category-7 hotels requiring 50,000 points for off-peak rate, and Category-5 hotels requiring 40,000 points for peak rate, as circled in red.
Picture
  • Here are some examples of hotels considered as having great value for free night redemption:
  • Category-6 (standard redemption): Al Bustan Palace=a Ritz-Carlton Hotel, The Ritz-Carlton Langkawi, The Ritz-Carlton Cancun, The Ritz-Carlton Orlando Grande Lakes, The Ritz-Carlton Budapest, The Ritz-Carlton Riyadh, The Ritz-Carlton Dove Mountain, The Ritz-Carlton Abama, The Ritz-Carlton Chicago, The Ritz-Carlton Moscow, The Ritz-Carlton Macau, The Ritz-Carlton Santiago, The Ritz-Carlton Atlanta, The Ritz-Carlton Mexico City, The Ritz-Carlton Bali, The St. Regis Houston, The St. Regis Langkawi, The St. Regis Singapore, The St. Regis Mexico City, Las Alcobas Mexico City=a Luxury Collection Hotel, Tembo del Inka Valle Sagrado=a Luxury Collection Resort, The Shanghai EDITION, W Hollywood, W Miami, JW Marriott Nara, JW Marriott Scottsdale Camelback Inn, JW Marriott Phoenix Desert Ridge, Château de la Resle=a Member of Design Hotels, The Westin Miyako Kyoto, The Westin Palace Madrid, Marriott's St. Kitts Beach Club, Renaissance Hong Kong Harbour View, St. Pancras Renaissance London, Le Metropolitan Paris=A Tribute Portfolio Hotel
  • Category-7 (with decent off-peak rate availability): The Ritz-Carlton Half Moon Bay, The Ritz-Carlton Amelia Island, The Ritz-Carlton Fort Lauderdale, The Ritz-Carlton Laguna Niguel,  The Ritz-Carlton Bacara - Santa Barbara, The Ritz-Carlton Dallas, The Ritz-Carlton Washington DC, The Ritz-Carlton Reynolds - Lake Oconee, The Ritz-Carlton Ras Al Khaimah Al Wadi Desert, The Ritz-Carlton Osaka, The Ritz-Carlton Toronto, The Ritz-Carlton Herzliya, The Ritz-Carlton Bahrain, The Ritz-Carlton Shanghai Pudong, The Ritz-Carlton Koh Samui, The Ritz-Carlton Vienna, The St. Regis Atlanta, The St. Regis Osaka, The St. Regis Toronto, The St. Regis Washington DC, Hotel The Mitsui - Kyoto=a Luxury Collection Hotel, The Jaffa - Tel Aviv=a Luxury Collection Hotel, Caresse - Bodrum=a Luxury Collection Resort & Spa, King George - Athens=a Luxury Collection Hotel, Hotel Grande Bretagne - Athens=a Luxury Collection Hotel, SLS Hotel - Beverly Hills=a Luxury Collection Hotel, Hotel Imperial - Vienna=a Luxury Collection Hotel, Hotel Marqués de Riscal - Elciego=a Luxury Collection Hotel, Excelsior Hotel Gallia - Milan=a Luxury Collection Hotel, Hotel President Wilson - Geneva=a Luxury Collection Hotel, The Bodrum EDITION, The West Hollywood EDITION, The New York EDITION, The Times Square EDITION New York, W New York - Union Square, W Amsterdam, W Bali Seminyak, JW Marriott Essex House New York, The Algonquin Times Square=Autograph Collection, 11 Howard New York=a Member of Design Hotels, Blakes Hotel London=a Member of Design Hotels, The Westin Maldives Miriandhoo Resort, Le Méridien Bora Bora, Paris Marriott Champs Elysees, Wealia Beach Resort - Marriott Maui, Grand Cayman Marriott Beach Resort, Aruba Marriott Resort & Stellaris Casino, Renaissance Paris Vendome
  • Category-5 (peak redemption): Sharq Village & Spa=a Ritz-Carlton Hotel, The Ritz-Carlton Doha, The St. Regis Shanghai Jing'An, The St. Regis Cairo, The St. Regis Doha, Trump Turnberry - Scotland=a Luxury Collection Resort, Hotel Paracas=a Luxury Collection Resort, The Alexander -  Yerevan=a Luxury Collection Hotel, The Sanya EDITION, W Muscat, W Santiago, W Brisbane, JW Marriott Phu Quoc Emerald Bay Resort, JW Marriott Tucson Starr Pass Resort, JW Marriott Monterrey Valle, ​Pier One Sydney Harbour=Autograph Collection, Sydney Harbour Marriott Hotel at Circular Quay
2 Comments

Capital One Venture up to 100,000 Miles ($1,000 in travel rewards or 75,000 frequent flyer miles)

9/22/2020

0 Comments

 
  • Capital One Venture Rewards Visa Signature is offering up to 100,000 Miles (50,000 Miles when you spend $3,000 within 3 months of new account opening, and an additional 50,000 Miles when you spend a total of $20,000 within the first year).  This comes close to this card's historical high of 100,000 miles with the first year annual fee waiver and low spending requirement in 2011 & 2012.
  • Since May 2020, the $95 annual fee is no longer waived for the first year.
  • 100,000 Capital One Miles can be redeemed for $1,000 in fixed-value travel rewards, or for food delivery, takeout, streaming services through 9/30/2020 as a COVID-19 relief measure.
  • 100,000 Miles can also be transferred to 75,000 frequent traveler miles/points of the following parter programs: Aeromexico, Air Canada Aeroplan, Alitalia, Avianca, Cathay Pacific, Emirates, Etihad, EVA, Finnair, FlyingBlue (Air France & KLM), JetBlue, Qantas, Singapore, and Wyndham Rewards, or 50,000 Accor Live Limitless points.
  • Our current valuation for Capital One Miles is 1.1 cents a piece based on the miles/points transfer feature, or 1 cent based on fixed value rewards.  This card returns 2x Miles on everything, i.e., 2~2.2% rewards.  Even though the $20K spending requirement is kind of high, you don't really lose anything compared to a benchmark 2% cashback card such as Citi Double Cash or Fidelity Visa.  So if you could spend this much in the first year, opening this card is highly recommended.
  • Keep in mind that while most other card issuers usually pull from one of the three credit reporting agencies, Capital One is infamous for pulling all three.
0 Comments

Chase introduces Freedom Flex and revamps Freedom Unlimited

9/14/2020

0 Comments

 
  • Today, Chase introduces a new product Freedom Flex World Elite MasterCard (WEMC), which replaces the popular Freedom Visa while keeping the 5% quarterly rotating categories and zero annual fee.  Freedom Flex WEMC offers a few new bonus categories: 5% cashback on travel booked through Chase Ultimate Rewards (UR), and 3% cashback on dining & drugstores.  The signup bonus remains the same: $200 with $500 spent within 3 months of new account opening + 5% cashback on groceries up to $12,000 spent for the first year.  Freedom Visa will be discontinued for new applications, and the existing cardmembers will have an option to product change to the new Freedom Flex WEMC.
  • A few words about the 5% cashback on travel booked through UR: it makes a lot of sense to book airfare (other than a few exceptions such as Southwest) to take advantage of the bonus, as the rates are the same as if you book directly with airlines and if you remember to add your frequent flyer number you will still earn miles and be recognized for your elite status; however, you may want to think twice before booking hotels, because several hotel programs won't allow points accumulation or recognize your elite status if you book through a third party; you may also need to be careful about car rentals, as you might not be able to apply certain coupons or promotions.
  • Chase also revamps Freedom Unlimited Visa, adding 5% cashback on travel booked through Chase UR and 3% on dining & drugstores, while keeping 1.5% cashback everywhere else and zero annual fee.  The signup bonus also remains the same: $200 with $500 spent within 3 months of new account opening + 5% cashback on groceries up to $12,000 spent for the first year.  The existing cardmembers don't need to do anything to receive the new benefits.
  • Even though both Freedom Flex and Freedom Unlimited are advertised as cashback cards, they actually earn UR points and have the "1,000 points = $10 cash" redemption option (starting with 2,000 points minimum per redemption).  Both offer impressive rewards, especially for the bonus categories.  However, if you have a premium UR card such as Sapphire Reserve, Sapphire Preferred, or Ink Preferred, you can move the UR points earned from either Freedom card to the premium UR account and take advantage of two premium redemption features: (1) transfer UR points to miles/points of frequent traveler programs (such as United, Singapore, British, Flying Blue, Southwest, JetBlue, Hyatt) at 1:1 ratio, or (2) fixed-value travel redemption when booking through UR at 1.25 cents/point for Sapphire Preferred / Ink Preferred or 1.5 cents/point for Sapphire Reserve.  This increases the rewards value of either Freedom card by 50%, based on our current valuation of UR points. 
  • Freedom Unlimited is now rated as #9 Best Credit Card for Rewards, which is only based on 1 cent per point value because our ranking method is based on single-card scenarios.  If we use 1.5 cents value assuming pairing with a premium UR card, Freedom Unlimited will easily take the top spot from the current champion Citi Premier, and Freedom Flex will be rated #2.
  • Freedom Unlimited and Sapphire Reserve make a great combo, allowing you to pool UR points in Sapphire's account for fixed value rewards or points transfer with elevated value.  Obviously, you want to use Freedom Unlimited for most purchases, while using Sapphire Reserve for foreign transactions.  As for travel, it makes sense to put hotels & car rentals on Sapphire Reserve as previously explained, and you need to decide on which to use for airfare - even though Freedom Unlimited gives you 2 more points, Sapphire Reserve's travel protection is second to none, offering Travel Delay, Baggage Delay, and other coverages with higher insurance amounts.  In addition, if you want to throw in Chase Freedom Flex that earns 5x points on quarterly rotating categories, your return will be even higher.  Chase is smart to make you keep all three cards if you want to maximize UR point earning.
0 Comments

Chase Sapphire Preferred 80,000 points ($1,000 in travel rewards, or 80K miles of United, Southwest, JetBlue, Singapore, British, Hyatt, etc.)

9/14/2020

0 Comments

 
Chase just brought us an improved signup bonus for Sapphire Preferred:
  • 80,000 Chase Ultimate Rewards points (=$1,000 travel rewards via Chase, or 80K miles/points of United, Singapore, British, Flying Blue, Southwest, JetBlue, Hyatt, etc.) after spending $4,000 within 3 months of new account opening.  Note that there is no more first annual fee waiver as before.  
  • This bonus is not available if you currently have a Sapphire card (Sapphire, Sapphire Preferred, or Sapphire Reserve) or have received signup bonus from any Sapphire card in the past 48 months.  
  • Based on anecdotal reports, this card is subject to Chase's 5/24 rule (you won't be approved for this card if you have opened 5 or more new accounts within the past 24 months; any new account with any issuer will count, not just with Chase; new accounts include most credit cards and charge cards but exclude non-Chase business cards and store charge cards). 
  • The historical high of the signup bonus for this card was 100,000 points, but it was many years ago in 2012.  This 80K points offer is the best bonus we have seen since 2012.
  • Sapphire Preferred is a great card to pair with the newly enhanced Chase Freedom Unlimited which offers 5x points on travel through Chase, 3x on dining & drugstores, and 1.5x everywhere else, because you might move points earned from Freedom Unlimited (which is ineligible for miles/points transfer) to Sapphire Preferred's account so they become eligible for miles/points transfer as well as the 1.25 cents per point fixed-value travel redemptions, greatly improving Freedom Unlimited's value.
0 Comments

Revamped Citi Premier becomes #1 Best Credit Card for Rewards by Dr. Credit Card

8/23/2020

0 Comments

 
Citi Premier has been revamped to offer 3x ThankYou points on groceries & gas & dining & airlines & hotels & travel agencies, almost single-handedly covering all important bonus categories.  Previously, Citi Premier offered 3x on gas & travel, and 2x on dining & entertainment.  Our current valuation for ThankYou points is 1.5 cents a piece based on the miles/points transfer feature (partners including Avianca, Singapore, Cathay Pacific, Flying Blue, JetBlue, Etihad, etc.), and thus Citi Premier returns 4.5% travel rewards for all its 3x categories.  With this substantial improvement, Citi Premier is now #1 Best Credit Card for Rewards, unseating the long reigning Amex EveryDay Preferred, and also rated #3 Best Credit Card by Dr. Credit Card.  Note that 3x bonus on groceries & gas has been offered to cardmembers since June, ahead of the schedule revamp as part of temporary COVID-19 relief by credit cards.  Here are the before and after snapshots for our Top 10 list.
However, Citi Premier only returns 1x for non-bonus spending, and we recommend looking somewhere else for general spending.  For example, Citi Double Cash which usually returns 2% cashback can be a great card to pair with Citi Premier, as you may transfer Double Cash's cash rewards to ThankYou points and activate miles/points transfer feature to unlock the full potential of the card - an unmatched 3% travel rewards based on our valuation. 

On the other hand, leveraging the flexible miles/points transfer feature can be both very rewarding and challenging at the same time.  If you don't know how to use the transfer feature effectively / just don't want to bother with the hassles and rather prefer fixed-value travel rewards, you probably want to check out the competitors such as 
Chase Sapphire Reserve, US Bank Altitude Reserve, and Wells Fargo Propel Amex, each of which offers a 1.5-cent fixed-value travel redemption option.

We also updated the Best Credit Card for Rewards review to reflect this change.  Now we recommend Citi Double Cash + Citi Premier as one of the four best two-card combos for rewards.
0 Comments
<<Previous

    Author

    Dr. Credit Card helps you to find the best cards and the best signup deals for you!

    Archives

    April 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    November 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    April 2018
    November 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    August 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012
    October 2012
    September 2012
    August 2012
    July 2012
    June 2012
    May 2012
    March 2012
    February 2012
    January 2012
    December 2011
    November 2011
    October 2011
    September 2011
    August 2011
    July 2011

    Categories

    All
    Airlines
    Airtran
    Alaska Airlines
    Alliant
    American Airlines
    Amex
    Asiana Airlines
    Automobile
    Avianca
    Banco Popular
    Barclays
    Bofa
    British Airways
    Capital One
    Chase
    Citi
    Club Carlson
    CNB
    Delta Air Lines
    Diners Club
    Discover
    Fairmont
    Fia
    Frontier Airlines
    Hawaiian Airlines
    Hilton
    Hotels
    Hsbc
    Hyatt
    IHG Rewards
    JetBlue
    Lufthansa
    Marriott
    PenFed
    Radisson
    Ritz Carlton
    Southwest Airlines
    Spg
    Spirit-airlines
    Starwood
    Synchrony
    UBS
    United Airlines
    Us Airways
    Us Bank
    Virgin Atlantic
    Wells Fargo
    Wyndham

    RSS Feed

Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.