Now that I’m done with my undergrad, I am excited to have more time to devote toward my hobbies, namely collecting and using points and miles! Utilizing credit cards is a large part of my strategy… so today, I’m going to tell you what’s in my wallet and why.

Cash:$38. Why? For use in an emergency and when I visit places that don’t accept cc or have minimums for cc purchases.

Credit Cards:

Chase Sapphire Preferred: Why? 2.14x* UR points on travel and dining at restaurants. 1.07x* on all other purchases. No foreign transaction fees. Transferable points currency to many hotel/airline programs. (* due to 7% annual points dividend). Annual fee: $0 first year/$95 after. Current offer: 40,000 bonus points upon signup with $3,000 spend in the first 3 months.

Chase Freedom: Why? 5x UR point quarterly rotating categories (up to $1,500 spent), unlimited 1x on all other purchases. If paired with a premium Chase card (Ink Plus/Bold, Sapphire Preferred) points can be combined and transferred to many hotel/airline programs. $0 annual fee. Current offer: 10,000 bonus points upon signup with $500 spend in the first 3 months.

Chase Ink Plus: Why? 5x UR points at office supply stores and on cell phone, land-line  internet, and cable TV services, 2x UR points at gas stations and for hotel accommodations when purchased directly from the hotel, 1x on all other purchases. Transferable points currency to many hotel/airline programs. Annual fee: $0 first year/$95 after. Current offer: 50,000 bonus points upon signup with $5,000 spend in 3 months.

Discover It: Why? 5% cash back in quarterly rotating categories. Unlimited 1% cash back on all other spending. No foreign transaction fees (on a no fee card!!). Annual fee: $0. Current offer: No sign up bonus.

Citi Forward: Why? 5x ThankYou points at restaurants and on entertainment, 1x everywhere else. Technically, you have to be a college student to get this card, but Frequent Miler explains a potential workaround in this post. Annual fee: $0. Current offer: No sign up bonus.

AirTran Airways A+ Rewards: Why? Honestly, for the sign up bonus. Who knows how long this card is going to be around with the Airtran/Southwest merger. Once the minimum spend is met on this card it will not be used again, and will be cancelled before the annual fee comes due again. Annual fee: $69. Current offers: Public offer – 16 A+ credits after $1,000 spend in first 3 months. Offer courtesy of Frequent Miler’s Best credit card offers – 32 A+ credits after $2,000 spend in first 3 months.

Club Carlson Premier Rewards: Why? 10x at Club Carlson hotels, 5x elsewhere. Automatic Club Carlson Gold Status, which can get you complementary room upgrades, among other things. 40,000 point renewal bonus each year that you renew your card (which in my opinion covers the annual fee). Bonus award nights – when you redeem points for 2+ consecutive award nights, the last night is free! This is my favorite benefit of this card by a long shot! Annual fee: $75. Current offer: 50,000 bonus points after first purchase, and 35,000 more with $2,500 spend in the first 90 days.

American Express Premier Rewards Gold: Why? 3x MR points for flights booked with airlines, 2x points at US gas stations and US supermarkets, 1x on all other purchases. Annual fee: $0 first year, $175 thereafter. Current offer: 25,000 bonus MR points with $2,000 spend in 3 months. (note, this is a charge card)

American Express Business Gold Rewards: Why? Now, this last one isn’t strictly in my wallet, yet. Even though it was less than 2 weeks after my most recent 4-card credit card churn, I couldn’t turn this offer down! The Points Guy had the first post on the 75K Amex Business Gold card that I saw, and I just couldn’t pass this offer up even though it was a relatively high-risk application for me with my latest churn being so recent. I was notified that my application needed further review, so I called the reconsideration line as soon as I could. All they wanted to do was verify my address and my card was in the mail! Hopefully this card will be in my wallet later today. The benefits of this card outside of the bonus are 3x MR points on airfare, 2x on advertising in select media, gas in the US, and shipping, and 1x everywhere else. Annual fee: $0 first year, $175 thereafter. Current offer: 50,000 bonus MR points with $5,000 spend in the first 3 months. (note, this is a charge card)

 

Keep in mind, this list is a selection of my current cards, just the ones that are currently in my wallet either for reaching minimum spend or actually putting spending on in the long term.

Is there anything that’s not listed here that you think should be in my wallet?

 

Note, I do not receive a referral bonus for clicking on any credit card links in this post. I have provided you with the best sign up bonuses that are known to me at this time.