credit card reward programs?

[rick snagwell]

so im getting married in 6 months, heard about some people that get a credit card during this time to use to pay vendors and such for the wedding, instead of paying cash. doing this gets you 'rewards' thru the credit card companies...such as miles with airlines, or free nights at hotels!

has anyone done this? if not this, what are the greatest credit cards everyone has here that get awesome miles/hotel nights (rewards)?

thanks

 

[swiftaw]

I did this when I got married last year, however, my main concern wasn't the rewards program but getting one with an introductory 0% APR. If found one though Citibank, which has 0% APR for 18 months allowing me to pay off all my wedding expenses over a few months without paying a single cent in interest. The card also gave me 1% reward points which I could use for various things.

 

[rick snagwell]

good info. lemme add...we have the cash, 20k , so we will pay stuff off or the bill so no APR. this will help our credit and get some rewards...thats the catch!

 

[duneriderltr450]

No complaints with my Chase Freedom card. I haven't really looked into the flights, hotels, ect. I always choose the cash back.

 

[adk]

I have a card from Citi and I don't think their rewards system is very good. The "points" you earn aren't worth very much (equates to less than $.01 per point) unless you order a gift card from a select few merchants. Best case scenario is that if you charge all of your 20K worth of expenses on a citi card you'd get $200 in gift cards to a store such as The Gap, or 20,000 points that might get you half an airline ticket or one night at a hotel.

Might I suggest trying to negotiate a slight discount for paying with cash? Generally a merchant will pay 3-5% in fees when you pay with a credit card, and for a large order they may be willing to offer a 1.5-2% discount for paying with cash/check.

 

[eric/]

Idk about rewards for a wedding or anything, but I use American Express Blue Cash Preferred.

I've made like $200+ this year. I just buy everything on my credit card, pay the full amount, and I get all the benefits. Perfect.

 

[rdowns]

I have a card from Citi and I don't think their rewards system is very good. The "points" you earn aren't worth very much (equates to less than $.01 per point) unless you order a gift card from a select few merchants. Best case scenario is that if you charge all of your 20K worth of expenses on a citi card you'd get $200 in gift cards to a store such as The Gap, or 20,000 points that might get you half an airline ticket or one night at a hotel.

Might I suggest trying to negotiate a slight discount for paying with cash? Generally a merchant will pay 3-5% in fees when you pay with a credit card, and for a large order they may be willing to offer a 1.5-2% discount for paying with cash/check.

I wouldn't recommend paying for a wedding in cash. Way too many stories of catering halls closing, photographers disappearing etc. if you pay cash, you have no recourse. At least with a credit card as payment, you may have some recourse.

 

[samiwas]

My check card used to have rewards. It was awesome. Didn't have to deal with credit cards and paying a bill every month, yet still got rewards for going about my normal life. Then they canceled the program.

 

[yg17]

Idk about rewards for a wedding or anything, but I use American Express Blue Cash Preferred.

I've made like $200+ this year. I just buy everything on my credit card, pay the full amount, and I get all the benefits. Perfect.

Yeah, the 6% at the grocery store and 3% on gas on the BCP is great. The annual fee sucks, but the rewards pay for it if you use it for every grocery and gas purchase.

For everything else, I have a Capital One Rewards Visa. Basically, every $100 spent = $1 in cash back. Doesn't sound like a lot but it adds up if you use it for every purchase. Then on your card anniversary date, you get a 50% bonus on cash back already earned, so essentially it's 1.5% cash back. CapOne also doesn't have foreign transaction fees if you travel overseas a lot. I'm only out of the country once every couple years so I wouldn't pay a lot of FTFs anyways, but it's a nice perk.

Basically for me, gas and groceries on BCP, Amazon on my Chase Amazon (3% rewards on Amazon purchases) and everything else on CapOne.

 

[adk]

I wouldn't recommend paying for a wedding in cash. Way too many stories of catering halls closing, photographers disappearing etc. if you pay cash, you have no recourse. At least with a credit card as payment, you may have some recourse.

This is an excellent point that I didn't think of, especially since most of these people likely require advance payment.

 

[rick snagwell]

great info from everyone, reason i love these boards! thanks everyone.


i thought there was more rewards, but looks like its minimal. still better than nothing!