Capital One Venture 100K Offer

The Capital One Venture is back with another exciting 100K offer.

The offer

  • Earn 50,000 miles if you spend $3,000 on purchases in the first 3 months
  • Earn another 50,000 miles when you spend $20,000 total on purchases in the first 12 months from account opening

Normally, this is a pretty interesting offer but things are much more interesting now that we know about the upcoming changes.

Capital One is set to add new transfer partners, a 1:1 transfer tier, new airport lounges, and a new travel portal.

In short, they are stepping up their game big time. For this reason, those potential 100,000 miles now amount to a new level of value.

Learn how to apply

70K Membership Rewards (+$300) Offer Expires Today

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Today is the last day to sign up for one of the best ever offers for the Amex Business Gold Card. If you apply by the end of today, you can earn 70,000 Membership Rewards after you spend $10,000 in the first three months.

And in addition to that you can get $150 back on both U.S. advertising in select media and U.S. shipping, for a total of up to $300 in statement credits on eligible purchases within the first 3 months. Application link (referral).

This is one of the best public offers ever available for this card. The bonus increased from 35,000 points to 70,000 points so it is one of the extremely rare opportunities to jump on a card that has doubled its bonus.

If you are not aware, the Business Gold Card is one of the most lucrative cards for earning points via spend. It earns 4X Membership Rewards on the 2 categories where you spent the most each billing cycle.

So you will always be able to optimize your earnings based on your spending patterns. That is a cool feature that I don’t think this card gets enough credit for. Here are the categories that you are eligible to earn bonus points on:

  • Airfare purchased directly from airlines
  • U.S. purchases for advertising in select media (online, TV, radio)
  • U.S. purchases made directly from select technology providers of computer hardware, software, and cloud solutions
  • U.S. purchases at gas stations
  • U.S. purchases at restaurants
  • U.S. purchases for shipping

You do need to take note that the 4X points applies to the first $150,000 in combined purchases from these 2 categories each calendar year. After you max out that limit, you will only be earning one point per dollar spent.

If you run lots of ads for your business this is definitely one of — if not the best card to get. Application link (referral).

Amex Gold Card 75K + $200 Offer Pulling Up

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One of the best credit card offers that we have seen (ever) is the 75,000 point (+$200 statement credit) offer for the Amex Gold Card after spending $4,000 in the first six months.

And right now, people are having luck pulling up this offer with our referral link right here. (If you don’t see the 75,000 point offer, try opening up the link in Incognito.) Also, if you have WalletFlo downloaded you can click on the offer within the app because it is pulling up the 75K offer for many app users (as shown below).

This is a tremendous offer.

The 75K offer is allowing you six months to meet the minimum spend of $4,000.

You can also earn $200 back in statement credits on eligible purchases at select U.S. home furnishing stores. You might be initially turned off by the limitations on this credit but remember that you can purchase a lot of every day items at stores like Home Depot.

For example, you should be able to purchase things like laundry detergent, paper towels and other essentials and utilize that credit.

The eligible stores include: Anthropologie – Home & Furniture, Bed Bath & Beyond, CB2, Crate and Barrel, Crate and Kids, The Home Depot, Lowe’s, Terrain, and The Container Store.

So for many people, that credit is as good as cash.

Final word

I would highly recommend considering this offer because 75K plus a $200 statement credit is a pretty phenomenal offer. If the link above does not pull up the 75K offer, click on the offer through WalletFlo and you might see the 75K offer appear. Good luck!

Do IHG devaluations mean reconsidering your credit card strategy?

For a while now, IHG has remained one of my secondary hotel reward programs (below the big three: Hyatt, Hilton, and Marriott).

I’ve never been a huge IHG fan for a few reasons. The biggest reason is I do not like that they exclude elite benefits on award redemptions (at least on paper).

Some hotels will still provide you with benefits based on your elite status but I think it says a lot about a program when they exclude those benefits from award redemptions in their terms.

IHG has also constantly devalued their currency and made it difficult to plan awards with their dynamic pricing.

We still hold the IHG Premier Card because we can utilize the free night every year pretty easily and come out on top but that might be changing soon.

IHG has been at it again when it comes to devaluations.

This time, people are reporting some pretty absurd prices. As View From The Wing highlighted, we’re seeing Holiday Inns going for 70,000+ points a night. Many on FlyerTalk have reported some pretty ridiculous prices as well, such as properties raising from 40,000 to 70,000 points per night.

This doesn’t mean that the value for the program is over. You can still find deals if you search hard enough and certain regions such as Asia may be better off. Also, there are still reports of prices going down so this was not a universal devaluation across the board.

What’s interesting is that the award price increases don’t seem to be directly tied to increases in cash prices. So some are speculating that IHG’s new price roll out might actually be riddled with glitches right now (which could mean some great deals).

But should this devaluation cause you to reconsider your credit card strategy?

I think if you are still devoted to IHG, the IHG credit card you can still provide you with enough value that it could be worth holding onto. With the fourth night free benefit, you can still probably get some decent cents per point for your redemptions and the 10X on IHG properties is pretty strong.

But if you don’t currently have the card, I would prioritize other hotel cards that are subject to 5/24 over the IHG card such as the World of Hyatt Card. That’s because it may become much more difficult to utilize your points and free nights in the future.

These prices don’t appear to be going anywhere as IHG clarified this is just how the new pricing will work:

We rolled out our Dynamic Pricing models to our hotels around the world last year which enabled the amount of points required for IHG Rewards members to redeem a Reward Night to flex up and down, just like cash rates.

Previously, Reward Night point amounts were static throughout the year. This model allows point amounts to decrease when demand is lower, providing greater value to our members.

Conversely, redemption amounts may also increase based on demand  and other factors and can update as often as daily. Reward Nights are not defined by categories or with minimum and maximum point amounts.

Under our new model, the number of points required for Reward Nights will vary with demand and seasonality.

Final word

IHG appears to be implementing a pretty wide devaluation (without notice) although prices don’t seem to directly correlate to cash prices. You can still find good deals out there but they may become increasingly more difficult to find and for that reason the IHG Premier Card may be less attractive.

Chase Extends Temporary Sapphire Benefits

The Sapphire Preferred and the Sapphire Reserve are two of the most valuable travel rewards credit cards.

The Sapphire Preferred is a favorite right now because you can get an all-time high 80,000 point welcome bonus after spending $4,000 in the first three months. The Sapphire Reserve also has an elevated bonus of 60,000 points and is the more premium option that comes with benefits like lounge access.

One perk that these cards also have in common is the ability to redeem points through the Chase Travel Portal. Normally, you can redeem your Ultimate Rewards for a statement credit at a rate of one cent per point. However, when you redeem your Ultimate Rewards for travel through the Chase Travel Portal, you can get a better redemption rate.

With the Sapphire Preferred, you can redeem your points for travel at a rate of 1.25 cents per point and with the Sapphire Reserve, you can redeem your points for travel at a rate of 1.5 cents per point. These are some of the best redemption rates for a travel portal and really adds a lot of value to these cards.

Chase recently decided to allow these enhanced redemption rates to apply to other charges like groceries, home improvement, and dining. Initially, this enhancement was sent to expire April 30, 2021 but Chase just decided to extend this to September 30, 2021.

This is a pretty huge expansion of the benefit because it turns these cards into extremely lucrative cashback cards for a few months.

If you are earning 2X on travel and dining and then using those points on grocery or dining purchases, then you are getting an equivalent of 3.75% back on your purchases.

If you are earning 3X on travel and dining and then using those points on grocery or dining purchases, then you are getting an equivalent of 4.5% back on your purchases.

These are extremely competitive rates!

The Sapphire Reserve also has another special benefit that has been extended. The Sapphire Reserve comes with a $300 travel credit that can now be used on groceries and gas. Initially, this expansion of the travel credit was set to expire June 30, 2021 but it has been extended all the way through the end of 2021.

This $300 travel credit was already extremely easy to use because so many different purchases code is travel but now that you can use it on groceries and gas, it’s basically the easiest credit on the market to use.

And finally, the deadline for redeeming Ultimate Rewards for Chase Dining at a higher redemption rate was extended from April 30, 2021 through Sept. 30, 2021.

New 125K Amex Marriott Brilliant Offer

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The Amex Marriott Brilliant is now offering one of the most lucrative offers we’ve ever seen for the card. It’s a welcome bonus worth over $1,000 and one that you may not want to pass one if you have interest in staying at Marriott properties.

This offer expires 5/12/2021.

The Amex Marriott Brilliant intro

  • 6X Bonvoy points on Marriott
  • 3X at U.S. restaurants
  • 3X on flights booked directly with airlines
  • 2X Bonvoy points on all other purchases
  • Marriott Gold status
  • Free night award
  • $300 credit
  • $100 property credit
  • 15 elite night credits
  • $450 annual fee
  • Learn how to apply here

Welcome bonus

  • Earn 125,000 points after you spend $5,000 in the first three months
  • Plus earn up to $200 in statement credits for US restaurants within the first six months

Typically, a 100,000 point offer on the Amex Marriott Brilliant would get folks really excited because that was one of the best offers we had seen.

So with another 25,000 points added on top of that, this is a pretty sweet offer (although the spend requirement of $5,000 is a little bit on the higher side).

The added bonus of $200 in statement credits for US restaurants within the first six months is also a nice addition.

At a valuation of .77 cents per point, 125,000 points comes out to $962 in value. When you add on the dining credits, you’re looking at about $1,162 in value for a bonus.

That is a pretty tremendous hotel credit card offer. Learn how to apply here

Perks and credits

In addition to the bonus, this card is attractive because it is so easy to offset the annual fee every year if you stay at Marriott properties.

The $300 annual credit can be used on room rates which means that if you spend $300 a year at Marriott properties you instantly offset this fee down to $150.

You will also receive a free night award that could be used at Marriott properties costing 50,000 points per night. You can easily get around $300 in value from those type of properties so this card is a no brainer for many people.

If you stay at luxury properties like the Ritz-Carlton or St. Regis you can also get a $100 credit to use on qualified charges when booking a two night minimum stay.

The Marriott Gold elite status is a so-so benefit in my opinion but it is nice to get the annual 15 elite night credits that will help you climb elite status quicker.

Eligibility

The eligibility rules for the Marriott credit cards are pretty complex and a little confusing.

And in addition to those rules, the Brilliant is subject to the American Express once per lifetime rule and other credit card rules like the 2/90 rule.

These rules can be time-consuming to keep up with and so I would recommend that you just use the free app WalletFlo which automates your eligibility for these rules.

Final word

If you are in the market for a hotel credit card and especially a Marriott card, this would be a fantastic time to jump on this card because it is one of the most valuable bonuses we’ve seen ever offered.

New all-time high credit card offers

There are quite a few lucrative offers out right now that you definitely want to consider, including some all-time high offers for Hilton credit cards that are truly impressive.

I will use the WalletFlo emoji ranking system to showcase to you how good these offers are. If you don’t already have the app, we will be launching it within just a couple of weeks so be sure to be on the lookout for it!

Here’s a rundown of the offers:

Chase Sapphirre Preferred 🔥

The Chase Sapphire Preferred currently comes with a strong 60,000 point bonus after you spend $4,000 in the first three months but now also has an additional $50 statement credit for groceries.

The 60,000 point bonus is not quite as strong as the 80,000 point bonus we saw in the past but 60,000 Ultimate Rewards is still a very valuable bonus.

Utilizing the Chase Travel Portal, that’s at least $750 and with the grocery credit, you’re looking at a minimum of $800 in value.

It’s not clear to me if or when the 80,000 point bonus will return so jumping on this card at 60,000 points is still a great move, especially considering you have to be under 5/24 to get it.

If you were to try to hold out for the 80,000 point offer, it may not come back for a long time and you might be forced to miss out on other offers.

Hilton Surpass 🦄 

One of my top hotel credit cards, the Hilton Surpass just increased its bonus to 150,000 points after you spend $2,000 in the first three months. In addition, you also earn a $150 statement credit after your first purchase within the first three months.

This is just a tremendous offer.

First, the 150,000 points is the highest bonus we’ve ever seen for the Hilton Surpass. And when you add on the $150 statement credit that you receive with just a single purchase, this is an exceptional offer.

And just to make the deal a little bit sweeter, you only have to spend $2,000 in the first three months to earn the welcome bonus.

Beyond the welcome bonus, this card has some great perks like automatic Hilton Gold status. Hilton Gold will hook you up with a lot of benefits like:

  • Complimentary breakfast for two
  • Upgrades (subject to availability)
  • Late check-out
  • 80% bonus on base points
  • Lounge access when upgraded to lounge level rooms
  • 5th night free

You can also earn a free weekend night by spending $15,000 on your card in a calendar year — one of the most lucrative spend bonuses on a credit card.

I also really like the bonus categories on this card which consist of:

  • 12X for charges with a hotel or resort within the Hilton Portfolio
  • 6X at U.S. restaurants, at U.S. supermarkets, and at U.S. gas stations
  • 3X on all other eligible purchases

If you were ever waiting for a time to apply for a Hilton or hotel credit card, this is definitely a great time.

Hilton Honors American Express Business Card 🦄 

If you are trying to stay under 5/24 or simply minimize the new accounts on your credit report, then I would highly consider the Hilton Honors American Express Business Card.

Just like the Hilton Surpass, you can now earn 150,000 points after you spend $2,000 in the first three months along with a $150 statement credit after your first purchase in the first three months.

You’ll also receive a lot of the same benefits like the Hilton Gold status and free weekend night after $15,000 in spend. The cool thing about the business card is that you can earn an additional free weekend night when you spend an additional $45,000 in purchases in a calendar year.

Last call for two great hotel credit card offers

As you kick off 2021, you still have an opportunity to grab a couple of amazing hotel credit card offers. These offers expire tomorrow so you will need to act quickly if you want to take advantage of these.

IHG Rewards Club Premier Credit Card

  • 140,000 points after spending $3,000 in the first three months
  • Up to 25X for spend at IHG
  • 2X at gas stations, grocery stores and restaurants
  • Annual free night certificate at an “eligible hotel”
  • Automatic Platinum Elite Status
  • 20% discount on purchases of IHG points
  • 4th night free on award stays
  • Global Entry or TSA PreCheck credit of up to $100 every 4 years
  • No foreign transaction fees
  • $89 annual fee

140,000 points is a lot of IHG points. I like the IHG Rewards Club Premier Credit Card for people who want to actively stay at IHG properties because it is such a rewarding card.

The card, together with your elite status, can get you 25 points per dollar spent at IHG properties, which is a ton of value. Using a WalletFlo valuation of .56, that comes out to 14% back which is pretty solid.

And you can turn around and use your points to get the fourth night free on award stays which only increases the value. The annual free night makes this card a keeper for a lot of people because it is not that difficult to get well over $100 in value from it.

This offer expires tomorrow (1/13).

The Amex Marriott Brilliant

  • 6X Bonvoy points on Marriott
  • 3X at U.S. restaurants
  • 3X on flights booked directly with airlines
  • 2X Bonvoy points on all other purchases
  • Marriott Gold status
  • Free night award
  • $300 credit
  • $100 property credit
  • $450 annual fee

The premium Amex Marriott Brilliant is offering up to 125,000 points. You can earn 100,000 points after you spend $5,000 in the first three months and an additional 25,000 points after your first anniversary. What makes this offer truly special is that you can get free Platinum elite status for 2021.

Platinum elite status will get you some valuable benefits with Marriott like free breakfast and even lounge access. You will also be able to get better upgrades at a lot of properties.

If you’ve never experienced one of the upper elite status levels this is a perfect opportunity to give it a shot. Keep in mind that you would normally have to spend $75,000 on this card to get this perk.

While this credit card has a high annual fee, the $300 hotel credit is extremely easy to use because you can even use it on room rates. This knocks down the annual fee to an effective $150 which can further be offset by the free night award, which can be used for properties that cost up to 50,000 points per night.

If you were ever interested in applying for this card, this would be the time. This offer expires tomorrow (1/13).

Great 0% APR options for balance transfers

The start of a new year is a great time to take control of your finances. One way to do this is to eliminate any interest you might have to pay by utilizing 0% APR balance transfer cards.

In some cases, you can save yourself hundreds of dollars over the span of months or years so they are worth checking out if you carry a balance on your credit cards.

Below are some fantastic options for avoiding interest and saving a lot of money as you pay down your balances. These cards also offer some of the best cell phone protection insurance you’ll find on a credit card.

  • Wells Fargo Platinum
  • Wells Fargo Cash Wise
  • Wells Fargo Propel American Express

Tip: Check out the free app WalletFlo so that you can optimize your credit card spend by seeing the best card to use! You can also track credits, annual fees, and get notifications when you’re eligible for the best cards!

Wells Fargo Platinum

This is one of the best balance transfer options you can find. You can get 18 months of 0% APR on purchases and on qualifying balance transfers.

The balance transfer fee will be either $5 or 3% of the amount of the balance transfer, whichever is greater and as long as you make the transfer within 120 days from account opening. After that, the fee goes up to 5% for the balance transfer.

This card also has a $0 annual fee and you can get up to $600 in protection for your cell phone with only a $25 deductible so long as you pay your monthly phone bill with the card.

Wells Fargo Cash Wise Visa Credit Card

Another solid option is the Wells Fargo Cash Wise Visa Credit Card. You can get 0% intro APR for 15 months from account opening on purchases and on balance transfers as long as the balance transfers are made within 120 days.

In addition to the balance transfer benefit, this card comes with a welcome bonus of $150 cash back after spending $500 in the first three months.

It has some pretty decent bonus earnings as well since you can get 1.8% cash back on digital wallet purchases during the first 12 months from account opening. You can also earn an unlimited 1.5% cashback on all purchases.

Just like the card above, you can also get the $600 protection on your cell phone coverage with the same $25 deductible.

Wells Fargo Propel American Express Card

The Wells Fargo Propel American Express Card has a 0% APR for 12 months on purchases and balance transfers and is a great fit for someone who wants to avoid interest for a while but also wants to earn some great cash back rewards.

The balance transfer fee is 3% as long as the transfer is made within the first 120 days and after that it goes up to 5%.

This card offers the best welcome bonus out of the three with the opportunity to earn 20,000 bonus points after you spend $1000 in the first three months. Those 20,000 points come out to $200 in cash back.

This card also comes with some great bonus opportunities which include 3X on dining, streaming, gas stations, and various travel purchases.

And just like the cards above, you also get the $600 in cell phone protection.

For a no annual fee card, it’s actually a very lucrative opportunity and it also has no foreign transaction fees.

Credit card offers just in time for the holidays

As the holidays approach, you’ve got some great options for maximizing your credit cards and making strategic moves. The cards below all come with no annual fee, great welcome bonuses and/or bonus earning, and can get you 0% APR which is perfect for the holidays!

The Chase Freedom cards

  • Chase Freedom Flex
  • Chase Freedom Unlimited

The Freedom Flex comes with a $200 welcome bonus after you spend $500 in the first three months after account opening. Most would agree, $200 is a pretty solid welcome bonus for a personal card with no annual fee. Learn how to apply here.

You’ll also get 0% intro APR for 15 months from account opening on purchases. But the Freedom Flex is really going to stand out with its new bonus categories.

The Chase Freedom Flex maintains the rotating 5% quarterly categories but it has additional categories which include:

  • 5X on travel purchased through Chase Ultimate Rewards
  • 3X on dining
  • 3X on drugstores

3X on dining is on par with the Chase Sapphire Reserve — a card that comes with a $550 annual fee. Getting 5X on travel through the Chase Travel Portal means you can earn 5X on purchases like airfare which is on par with the Amex Platinum Card, another card with a $550 annual fee.

So in short, these are very competitive bonus categories.

The Chase Freedom Unlimited is going to better for people who don’t want to keep up with multiple bonus categories every quarter and would like to earn a straight cashback rate on all purchases. It will earn the following rates:

  • 1.5X on all purchases
  • 5X on travel purchased through Chase Ultimate Rewards
  • 3X on dining
  • 3X on drugstores

The Chase Freedom Unlimited is also going to come with a $200 welcome bonus after you spend $500 in the first three months after account opening. You’ll also get 0% intro APR for 15 months from account opening on purchases. Learn how to apply here.

Also, with both of these cards you can get 5% cash back on grocery store purchases (not including Target® or Walmart® purchases) on up to $12,000 spent in the first year!

Over 5/24?

If you are over 5/24 and still want a good 0% APR card you might want to consider the cards below.

The U.S. Bank Altitude® Go Visa Signature® Card has a 12-month 0% APR benefit, and you’ll also get:

  • 25,000 bonus points after spending $1,000 within 90 days of account opening
  • 4x points on takeout, food delivery and dining
  • 2x points at grocery stores, grocery delivery, gas stations and on streaming services
  • $15 credit for annual streaming services like Netflix and Spotify
  • No annual fee

Another great option would be the Capital One SavorOne Cash Rewards Credit Card. You’ll be able to earn a $200 cash bonus after you spend $500 on purchases within the first 3 months and also get:

  • 3% cash back on dining and entertainment
  • 2% at grocery stores
  • 1% on all other purchases

This could be a fantastic option for taking advantage of 0% APR because you’ll get a 0% intro APR on purchases for 15 months.

The best 0% APR option for a big balance

Finally, if you want the ultimate 0% APR option then consider going for the the Blue Business Plus Credit Card From American Express. This is another credit card with no annual fee and with a 0% APR period of 12 months. You’ll be able to earn 2X on all purchases up to $50,000 per year and spend which is fantastic.

Since this is a business credit card that does not report to your personal credit report, this means that you could put a large balance on this card and it will not affect your credit score. Since you have 0% APR for a year, this is a great way to pay something off over 12 months without it having any impact on your credit and not paying interest. Learn how to apply!

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