Credit card bonus whoring

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by sonatine

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by FR1GHT

http://slickdeals.net/f/8256561-chas...mos?src=sticky

"Chase is offering 50k Bonus Points ($625 towards travel) w/ $4000 Spent in First 3 Months of Account Opening (normally 40k points) for their Sapphire Preferred Credit Card with $0 Intro Annual Fee for the first year, then $95."

---

it was bumped to 100k points aka $1k cash or $1500 travel.

nabbed mine in late december, apparently they just dropped it back to 50k point but appear to have lowered the yearly fee...

disregard, bottomset big upped it a few posts later.

but yeah i got mine while the offer lasted and its hot fucking fire.

shout out to infinite airport lounge access.

---

You're thinking of the Chase Sapphire Reserve. The Chase Sapphire Preferred has never had a 100k bonus. The CSR still has the same annual fee, just a lower bonus.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by monsterj

Are you sure the Priority Pass membership with CSR is the basic membership? I have the Citi Prestige and Amex Plat and they both come with Priority pass(the citi one allows me to bring a guest for free) and neither has to pay a fee to get into the lounges. The lounges aren't anything special though, compared to the centurion lounges or flagship admirals clubs.

---

You know what, you're probably right. I saw priority pass and assumed it was their basic membership, but you're probably right.

I keep hearing about Ultimate Rewards and how they can be used for 1.8c each or whatever.

Does this apply to Chase points earned with things like the Freedom card? I had always thought that the only viable option with those points was to cash them at 1c each, because everything else I see tends to be things like fail gift cards which you would buy at 1c also.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Dan Druff

I keep hearing about Ultimate Rewards and how they can be used for 1.8c each or whatever.

Does this apply to Chase points earned with things like the Freedom card? I had always thought that the only viable option with those points was to cash them at 1c each, because everything else I see tends to be things like fail gift cards which you would buy at 1c also.

---

Yes, this applies to your Chase Freedom card since that utilizes the Ultimate Rewards syste. DO NOT cash in your Chase Freedom points for 1 cent on the dollar. You can transfer them to travel partners where you can earn much more than 1c. You can convert them to the following point systems:
Airlines — British Airways, Korean Air, Singapore Airlines, Southwest Airlines, United Airlines, and Virgin Atlantic
Hotels — Hyatt, IHG Hotels, Marriott, and Ritz-Carlton
Other — Amtrak

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by PLOL

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Dan Druff

I keep hearing about Ultimate Rewards and how they can be used for 1.8c each or whatever.

Does this apply to Chase points earned with things like the Freedom card? I had always thought that the only viable option with those points was to cash them at 1c each, because everything else I see tends to be things like fail gift cards which you would buy at 1c also.

---

Yes, this applies to your Chase Freedom card since that utilizes the Ultimate Rewards syste. DO NOT cash in your Chase Freedom points for 1 cent on the dollar. You can transfer them to travel partners where you can earn much more than 1c. You can convert them to the following point systems:
Airlines — British Airways, Korean Air, Singapore Airlines, Southwest Airlines, United Airlines, and Virgin Atlantic
Hotels — Hyatt, IHG Hotels, Marriott, and Ritz-Carlton
Other — Amtrak

---

So you're saying that when I earn 5% on the Freedom card (and I have an Ink card which gives me 5% on my cell phone and internet bills), I actually can get like 9% through the UR program?

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Dan Druff

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by PLOL

Yes, this applies to your Chase Freedom card since that utilizes the Ultimate Rewards syste. DO NOT cash in your Chase Freedom points for 1 cent on the dollar. You can transfer them to travel partners where you can earn much more than 1c. You can convert them to the following point systems:
Airlines — British Airways, Korean Air, Singapore Airlines, Southwest Airlines, United Airlines, and Virgin Atlantic
Hotels — Hyatt, IHG Hotels, Marriott, and Ritz-Carlton
Other — Amtrak

---

So you're saying that when I earn 5% on the Freedom card (and I have an Ink card which gives me 5% on my cell phone and internet bills), I actually can get like 9% through the UR program?

---

Yes, it's a very nice perk if you have one of the high end chase card. Also one of the reasons Chase Freedom Unlimited might be the best card for non category purchases.

Quick tip: If you have Chase UR points and you use Amtrak, they have a really good conversion rate (and they transfer at 1:1). I usually go to Milwaukee once or twice a year on Amtrak. Buying a ticket would be $25 each way, but it's only 863 points. That's a conversion rate of 2.9c/pt. All of a sudden your 3pts per dollar spending was really 8.7% back. Of course the one downside is you have to convert it in blocks of 1k points like with all the programs, but that's still a really good conversion most of the time. Also, when you first sign up with Amtrak you get a 500 point sign-up bonus.

Edit: Ugh, Chase took away Amtrak :(

BUMP

I wanted to post a warning regarding Chase Bank and what appears to be an attempt to thwart credit card bonus whoring.

They are now DECLINING applications for most (and perhaps all) credit cards if you have a certain number of new credit cards opened WITH ANY BANK in the past 24 months.

I spoke to the lending department, and was told that this was a hard rule handed down by corporate, with zero exceptions allowed.

In my case, I opened 8 credit cards between July 2015 and today.

That is considered excessive by Chase, even though most of those cards were NOT Chase cards, and my credit/payment history is virtually perfect.

I was told that I will be shut out from all new Chase cards until at least late July 2017, at which point two cards I opened in July 2015 will "fall off" the new list. However, they will not tell me the "magic number" of cards they're looking for in the past 24 months, so even with 6 cards in 24 months (instead of my current 8), that might still be too much.

This is very disappointing.

They did not state that this is about thwarting bonus whoring, but I believe it probably is. The reason is that they don't seem to care in this case regarding the amount of total credit held, or your ability to pay your existing cards. This does not seem to be a matter of preventing risk, but rather turning away customers who seem to open a whole lot of cards in a short time, which is a sure sign of bonus whores. I could be wrong, but either way I'm shut out of anything new with Chase for another 5-6 months, and perhaps longer.

In fact, if I bonus whore with any other card, again I will screw myself with Chase, as that will add to my "new cards opened within 24 months".

As Chase provides a lot of the best cards for bonus whoring, I would advise NOT opening low-value credit cards in the future, as this will screw you later when attempting to apply for Chase cards.

Annoyingly, two of those eight cards include the MGM M-Life credit card (which I only got so I could get free parking at MGM properties) and a fail HSBC card which was "sold" to me under false pretenses by an incompetent banker.

Magic # unfortunately is 4 new credit cards (this was told to a buddy of my mine who has a highend account with them). Also, not done to thwart credit card bonus whoring but more to thwart someone getting excessive credit quickly which from a risk perspective is not something the bank doesn't want much exposure to. It just unfortunately has a bad affect on anyone who is bonus whoring but is otherwise a perfect client. They are also not the only bank to start this, unfortunately from my experience just the worst to get around this. I had similar issues with another bank I won't mention here.

Actually it's 5. This is called the 5/24 rule and has been in place for a little while now. You should always check to see if your card falls under the 5/24 rule before applying otherwise you will be auto-denied and you can not get them to reverse their decision. This applies to most Chase cards, but not all. For instance, the Amazon Prime Chase card does not fall under the 5/24 rule. But any card you've opened within 24 months will count towards your 5 cards, even if it's not a Chase card or a card that falls under the 5/24 rule. And you are correct that a big reason they instituted this policy is because of bonus whoring.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by handicapme

Magic # unfortunately is 4 new credit cards (this was told to a buddy of my mine who has a highend account with them). Also, not done to thwart credit card bonus whoring but more to thwart someone getting excessive credit quickly which from a risk perspective is not something the bank doesn't want much exposure to. It just unfortunately has a bad affect on anyone who is bonus whoring but is otherwise a perfect client. They are also not the only bank to start this, unfortunately from my experience just the worst to get around this. I had similar issues with another bank I won't mention here.

---

If it's really 4, then I'm screwed for awhile -- probably until 2018 or very close to it.

Initially I also thought this was a risk thing, but I offered to transfer credit from another card (so they're not giving me any new credit), and they declined, telling me this is a hard rule.

Keep in mind that I was declined many times in the past by Chase, and then got around it by the "transfer credit from another card" trick.

This time it didn't work, and they honestly were not interested in all in my credit history (aside from # of new accounts opened), total recent new credit acquired, or additional risk to their bank (in which I was offering none). In the past I was able to talk them into it (sometimes requiring a bit of effort, admittedly) by citing these factors. This time I was shut down and told that it was a super-hard-line corporate rule.

I guess it's possible this is some poorly-conceived anti-fraud measure which happens to screw bonus whores, but I also think it's possible this is a no-exceptions policy specifically because they don't want anyone opening a lot of cards quickly, figuring them to either be fraudsters or bonus whores.

In general, Chase does seem to be the bank with the most hardline corporate rules.

For example, they are one of the few banks not to allow ANY third party cash deposits into accounts. Doesn't matter if you show ID. You cannot deposit cash into personal accounts unless it's your own (business accounts yes, personal no).

They are also the hardest line against online gambling. If they get even a whiff that you're using your account to make or receive online gambling payments, they will close it.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by PLOL

Actually it's 5. This is called the 5/24 rule and has been in place for a little while now. You should always check to see if your card falls under the 5/24 rule before applying otherwise you will be auto-denied and you can not get them to reverse their decision. This applies to most Chase cards, but not all. For instance, the Amazon Prime Chase card does not fall under the 5/24 rule. But any card you've opened within 24 months will count towards your 5 cards, even if it's not a Chase card or a card that falls under the 5/24 rule. And you are correct that a big reason they instituted this policy is because of bonus whoring.

---

Well, now we're getting somewhere. Not that I'm happy to find out it's 5, which probably bans me from Chase until October or something.

This is the first time I've been affected by the 5/24 rule.

Can you post any links to the discussion of this on other sites?

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Dan Druff

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by PLOL

Actually it's 5. This is called the 5/24 rule and has been in place for a little while now. You should always check to see if your card falls under the 5/24 rule before applying otherwise you will be auto-denied and you can not get them to reverse their decision. This applies to most Chase cards, but not all. For instance, the Amazon Prime Chase card does not fall under the 5/24 rule. But any card you've opened within 24 months will count towards your 5 cards, even if it's not a Chase card or a card that falls under the 5/24 rule. And you are correct that a big reason they instituted this policy is because of bonus whoring.

---

Well, now we're getting somewhere. Not that I'm happy to find out it's 5, which probably bans me from Chase until October or something.

This is the first time I've been affected by the 5/24 rule.

Can you post any links to the discussion of this on other sites?

---

http://thepointsguy.com/2016/07/unfo...hase-524-rule/

https://www.nerdwallet.com/blog/cred...e-written-out/

Affected credit cards:
Chase Slate
Chase Freedom
Chase Freedom Unlimited
Chase Sapphire Preferred
Chase Sapphire Reserve
Chase Ink Cash (Business)
Chase Ink Plus (Business)
Chase Ink Preferred (Business)
Chase United Explorer
Chase United Club
Chase United Explorer Business
Chase Marriott
Chase Southwest Plus
Chase Southwest Premier
Chase Southwest Premier Business


Not affected:
Chase IHG
Chase Hyatt
Chase Fairmont
Chase Ritz-Carlton
Chase Marriott Business
Chase British Airways
Chase Disney Rewards
Chase Disney Premier
Chase Amazon
Chase AARP

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Dan Druff

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by handicapme

Magic # unfortunately is 4 new credit cards (this was told to a buddy of my mine who has a highend account with them). Also, not done to thwart credit card bonus whoring but more to thwart someone getting excessive credit quickly which from a risk perspective is not something the bank doesn't want much exposure to. It just unfortunately has a bad affect on anyone who is bonus whoring but is otherwise a perfect client. They are also not the only bank to start this, unfortunately from my experience just the worst to get around this. I had similar issues with another bank I won't mention here.

---

If it's really 4, then I'm screwed for awhile -- probably until 2018 or very close to it.

Initially I also thought this was a risk thing, but I offered to transfer credit from another card (so they're not giving me any new credit), and they declined, telling me this is a hard rule.

Keep in mind that I was declined many times in the past by Chase, and then got around it by the "transfer credit from another card" trick.

This time it didn't work, and they honestly were not interested in all in my credit history (aside from # of new accounts opened), total recent new credit acquired, or additional risk to their bank (in which I was offering none). In the past I was able to talk them into it (sometimes requiring a bit of effort, admittedly) by citing these factors. This time I was shut down and told that it was a super-hard-line corporate rule.

I guess it's possible this is some poorly-conceived anti-fraud measure which happens to screw bonus whores, but I also think it's possible this is a no-exceptions policy specifically because they don't want anyone opening a lot of cards quickly, figuring them to either be fraudsters or bonus whores.

In general, Chase does seem to be the bank with the most hardline corporate rules.

For example, they are one of the few banks not to allow ANY third party cash deposits into accounts. Doesn't matter if you show ID. You cannot deposit cash into personal accounts unless it's your own (business accounts yes, personal no).

They are also the hardest line against online gambling. If they get even a whiff that you're using your account to make or receive online gambling payments, they will close it.

---

Again it really has to do with the credit risk they're taking. Think of it like this, what person needs 4-5 (thanks plol) new credit cards in 24 months? Obv we are bonus whoring, but if you exclude this population of people all that is left are people who need leverage in 1 form or another. It just screams bad underwriting practices. It sucks because people like us will get screwed, but from a risk standpoint it is a great decision by the bank.

This was on the Chase Sapphire signup webpage in 2016:

https://assets.nerdwallet.com/blog/w...4-advisory.jpg

They took it down after word started getting around on the various bonus whoring advisory sites.

So looks like I'm screwed for awhile, since the language states that you will be auto-declined if you have 5 or more new accounts in the past 24 months, meaning that I would need 4 or fewer.

At the moment I have 8. I don't think four will fall off until 2018.

Anybody know if there's a way to look at the average credit limit given for a given card? CreditKarma used to show stats on Average Credit Limit, Average Credit Score, and a bunch of other stats, but they took this feature away for some reason. Just curious if there's another site out there that has aggregated this data.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by PLOL

Anybody know if there's a way to look at the average credit limit given for a given card? CreditKarma used to show stats on Average Credit Limit, Average Credit Score, and a bunch of other stats, but they took this feature away for some reason. Just curious if there's another site out there that has aggregated this data.

---

If you're bonus whoring, why does this really matter?

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by PLOL

Actually it's 5. This is called the 5/24 rule and has been in place for a little while now. You should always check to see if your card falls under the 5/24 rule before applying otherwise you will be auto-denied and you can not get them to reverse their decision. This applies to most Chase cards, but not all. For instance, the Amazon Prime Chase card does not fall under the 5/24 rule. But any card you've opened within 24 months will count towards your 5 cards, even if it's not a Chase card or a card that falls under the 5/24 rule. And you are correct that a big reason they instituted this policy is because of bonus whoring.

---

how do you get credit in the first place? does backpage report to the credit bureaus?

seriously, what do you put under employment and annual salary?

being a twink is like the new skinny, blonde, suburban pro-athlete chaser

i mean, druff at least reports (some?) ALL of his income, how the fuck do you get the best cc's despite never having a job (besides owning me)

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Dan Druff

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by PLOL

Anybody know if there's a way to look at the average credit limit given for a given card? CreditKarma used to show stats on Average Credit Limit, Average Credit Score, and a bunch of other stats, but they took this feature away for some reason. Just curious if there's another site out there that has aggregated this data.

---

If you're bonus whoring, why does this really matter?

---

I'm trying to keep my credit as high as possible and keeping my utilization as low as possible. Two of my existing cards offered me 0% interest for like 18 months and I could just write myself a cash check. I took advantage and gave myself a 0% int loan but now my utilization is kinda high

Weird this is I now see this data on CreditKarma, but it doesn't display when I'm logged in. Only when I'm viewing as a guest.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by WillieMcFML

seriously, what do you put under employment and annual salary?

i mean, druff at least reports (some?) ALL of his income, how the fuck do you get the best cc's despite never having a job (besides owning me)

---

I'd rather not disclose that.

For those of you who think CC bonus whoring is a credit score killer, my score right now is 817.

Admittedly it's been several months since I last opened up a new card, but as you can see, this whoring isn't negatively affecting me.

I've had the Amazon Visa card for years, because it was 3% cash back on all Amazon purchases, and I do a majority of my retail shopping on Amazon.

Without asking they just sent me an Amazon Prime Visa card, that gets 5% cash back on Amazon, with the same 2% from gas and restaurants, and 1% on other stuff, and still no annual fee. Redeeming your cash back is super easy. When you're checking out on Amazon, you just check the box that you want to use your Amazon Points as payment.

If you order off Amazon constantly like I do, it's a no brainer.

The physical card is very different from my old one. It's really heavy, like 3 times the weight of a normal card. And it doesn't have raised numbers on the front, just a small etched name. The number is on the back under the signature box in small very slightly raised numbers. Apparently the cell phone card readers killed off the last of the carbon paper imprint machines and they ended backward compatibility with them. Maybe that's normal now, but it's the first I've seen it.

https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon....1VgxfCVJOL.jpg

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by DirtyB

I've had the Amazon Visa card for years, because it was 3% cash back on all Amazon purchases, and I do a majority of my retail shopping on Amazon.[

Without asking they just sent me an Amazon Prime Visa card, that gets 5% cash back on Amazon, with the same 2% from gas and restaurants, and 1% on other stuff, and still no annual fee. Redeeming your cash back is super easy. When you're checking out on Amazon, you just check the box that you want to use your Amazon Points as payment.

If you order off Amazon constantly like I do, it's a no brainer.

---

Yeah, go back two pages...

Quote:

---

The physical card is very different from my old one. It's really heavy, like 3 times the weight of a normal card. And it doesn't have raised numbers on the front, just a small etched name. The number is on the back under the signature box in small very slightly raised numbers. Apparently the cell phone card readers killed off the last of the carbon paper imprint machines and they ended backward compatibility with them. Maybe that's normal now, but it's the first I've seen it.

---

Sounds like it's a metal card. I didn't realize they were using the metal format for the Amazon Prime card. This is becoming the norm for "higher end" cards. Not sure who started it but Citi and Chase do it, and pretty soon the Amex Platinum will be metal

ok Amex is offering an "upgrade" to platinum. 60,000 points which I think is worth about $600, and it looks like $200 uber credits a year and $200 airline credit. cost $550 a year, but I think I can just take the 60,000 and then move back to gold at the end of the year. funny enough I was thinking about dropping amex altogether. anyone looked at this upgrade offer?
Experience You've Ever Had
Earn 60,000 Membership Rewards® Points after you spend $5,000 on purchases on your new Card in your first 3 months of Card Membership.†

Upgrading your Card is simple - Your account number will not change and any existing Additional Card(s) will also be upgraded. You can continue using your existing Card(s) until you receive the new Card(s).
ANNUAL FEE
The annual fee for the Platinum Card is $ 550. The annual fee for Additional Cards is $175 for up to 3 Additional Cards. The annual fee for the 4th or more Additional Cards is $175 for each Card.¤
NO INTEREST CHARGES
No interest charges because you pay your balance in full each month.‡¤

Request an Upgrade
Add to Compare
†Offer Terms ‡Benefit Terms ¤Rates and Fees

New! Uber Rides With Platinum‡
Enjoy $15 in Uber credits for U.S. rides each month plus a bonus $20 in December1, simply because you're a Platinum Card Member. That can be up to $200 in annual Uber savings.

1Credit and Uber VIP status available to Basic Card Member only

This isn't whoring, per se, but what would stop me from using a credit card to buy BTC or a balance in a gambling platform, cashing out and then backcharging the initial charge as fraudulent.

Obviously it's sleazy and could only be used once or twice, but seems like there's little harm in trying. Are there even penalties for attempting to backcharge anything that can't be proved it was you?

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by GringoStar

This isn't whoring, per se, but what would stop me from using a credit card to buy BTC or a balance in a gambling platform, cashing out and then backcharging the initial charge as fraudulent.

Obviously it's sleazy and could only be used once or twice, but seems like there's little harm in trying. Are there even penalties for attempting to backcharge anything that can't be proved it was you?

---

Paging Yebsite.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by GringoStar

This isn't whoring, per se, but what would stop me from using a credit card to buy BTC or a balance in a gambling platform, cashing out and then backcharging the initial charge as fraudulent.

Obviously it's sleazy and could only be used once or twice, but seems like there's little harm in trying. Are there even penalties for attempting to backcharge anything that can't be proved it was you?

---

Anything you post on PFA can be used against you in a court of law

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Charham

ok Amex is offering an "upgrade" to platinum. 60,000 points which I think is worth about $600, and it looks like $200 uber credits a year and $200 airline credit. cost $550 a year, but I think I can just take the 60,000 and then move back to gold at the end of the year. funny enough I was thinking about dropping amex altogether. anyone looked at this upgrade offer?
Experience You've Ever Had
Earn 60,000 Membership Rewards® Points after you spend $5,000 on purchases on your new Card in your first 3 months of Card Membership.†

Upgrading your Card is simple - Your account number will not change and any existing Additional Card(s) will also be upgraded. You can continue using your existing Card(s) until you receive the new Card(s).
ANNUAL FEE
The annual fee for the Platinum Card is $ 550. The annual fee for Additional Cards is $175 for up to 3 Additional Cards. The annual fee for the 4th or more Additional Cards is $175 for each Card.¤
NO INTEREST CHARGES
No interest charges because you pay your balance in full each month.‡¤

Request an Upgrade
Add to Compare
†Offer Terms ‡Benefit Terms ¤Rates and Fees

New! Uber Rides With Platinum‡
Enjoy $15 in Uber credits for U.S. rides each month plus a bonus $20 in December1, simply because you're a Platinum Card Member. That can be up to $200 in annual Uber savings.

1Credit and Uber VIP status available to Basic Card Member only

---

I didn't realize they were offering the bonus for upgrading existing accounts. I would do it. 60k MR points should be worth in the neighborhood of $1,000, depending on how you use it. Some things to consider:
*The $200 airline credit is per calendar year. That means you'll actually get a $400 credit in the first 12 months of having this card. Unlike the Sapphire Reserve or Citi Prestige, the Amex airline credit is supposed to only be used for incidental purchases, such as baggage fees. BUT, there's a way around it. You can buy 4 $50 gift cards and they'll be re-imbursed and then you can use those GC's towards a $200 plane ticket. Whereas if you just buy a $200 plane ticket, it won't be reimbursed. It's important to buy the GCs in $50 increments because to the Amex system it'll look like you're paying for a baggage fee.
*Yes you can downgrade your card back to gold (or even a no-fee Amex) after you use all the benefits. You should wait until at least January 2018 to do this tho, so you get the $200 airline credit twice.
*The Amex platinum isn't a particularly rewarding everyday spending card but there are some nice benefits. You should be using the card for buying airfare direct (5x points) and hotels (tho annoyingly you'll have to do it through the amex portal). You'll get access to the Centurion lounges, which are some of the nicest stateside lounges, but they're few and far between. You'll also get access to Delta lounges, but only when flying Delta.

Personally, I think out of the 3 main premium cards (Chase Sapphire Reserve, Citi Prestige, Amex Platinum), that the Platinum is the weakest. But I would still definitely take this offer and then downgrade the card in 2018. You should be getting approximately $1,600 in benefits for $550.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by GringoStar

This isn't whoring, per se, but what would stop me from using a credit card to buy BTC or a balance in a gambling platform, cashing out and then backcharging the initial charge as fraudulent.

Obviously it's sleazy and could only be used once or twice, but seems like there's little harm in trying. Are there even penalties for attempting to backcharge anything that can't be proved it was you?

---

:fraudalert

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by PLOL

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Charham

ok Amex is offering an "upgrade" to platinum. 60,000 points which I think is worth about $600, and it looks like $200 uber credits a year and $200 airline credit. cost $550 a year, but I think I can just take the 60,000 and then move back to gold at the end of the year. funny enough I was thinking about dropping amex altogether. anyone looked at this upgrade offer?
Experience You've Ever Had
Earn 60,000 Membership Rewards® Points after you spend $5,000 on purchases on your new Card in your first 3 months of Card Membership.†

Upgrading your Card is simple - Your account number will not change and any existing Additional Card(s) will also be upgraded. You can continue using your existing Card(s) until you receive the new Card(s).
ANNUAL FEE
The annual fee for the Platinum Card is $ 550. The annual fee for Additional Cards is $175 for up to 3 Additional Cards. The annual fee for the 4th or more Additional Cards is $175 for each Card.¤
NO INTEREST CHARGES
No interest charges because you pay your balance in full each month.‡¤

Request an Upgrade
Add to Compare
†Offer Terms ‡Benefit Terms ¤Rates and Fees

New! Uber Rides With Platinum‡
Enjoy $15 in Uber credits for U.S. rides each month plus a bonus $20 in December1, simply because you're a Platinum Card Member. That can be up to $200 in annual Uber savings.

1Credit and Uber VIP status available to Basic Card Member only

---

I didn't realize they were offering the bonus for upgrading existing accounts. I would do it. 60k MR points should be worth in the neighborhood of $1,000, depending on how you use it. Some things to consider:
*The $200 airline credit is per calendar year. That means you'll actually get a $400 credit in the first 12 months of having this card. Unlike the Sapphire Reserve or Citi Prestige, the Amex airline credit is supposed to only be used for incidental purchases, such as baggage fees. BUT, there's a way around it. You can buy 4 $50 gift cards and they'll be re-imbursed and then you can use those GC's towards a $200 plane ticket. Whereas if you just buy a $200 plane ticket, it won't be reimbursed. It's important to buy the GCs in $50 increments because to the Amex system it'll look like you're paying for a baggage fee.
*Yes you can downgrade your card back to gold (or even a no-fee Amex) after you use all the benefits. You should wait until at least January 2018 to do this tho, so you get the $200 airline credit twice.
*The Amex platinum isn't a particularly rewarding everyday spending card but there are some nice benefits. You should be using the card for buying airfare direct (5x points) and hotels (tho annoyingly you'll have to do it through the amex portal). You'll get access to the Centurion lounges, which are some of the nicest stateside lounges, but they're few and far between. You'll also get access to Delta lounges, but only when flying Delta.

Personally, I think out of the 3 main premium cards (Chase Sapphire Reserve, Citi Prestige, Amex Platinum), that the Platinum is the weakest. But I would still definitely take this offer and then downgrade the card in 2018. You should be getting approximately $1,600 in benefits for $550.

---

Some hotels on Amex Platinum also offer special benefits, such as a food/spa credit and late checkout. Varies from property to property, and many properties don't offer it at all. You need to call them to find this out. Maybe there's a list online now. There's also a law of diminishing returns to this, as the food credit is the same for a 1-night stay and a longer stay, so you're not getting much beyond the first night as far as extra value. Still a nice benefit.

If you qualify for the Amex Platinum Business, get that. You also get free Gogo Wifi (which is the provider for many airlines).

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Dan Druff

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by PLOL

I didn't realize they were offering the bonus for upgrading existing accounts. I would do it. 60k MR points should be worth in the neighborhood of $1,000, depending on how you use it. Some things to consider:
*The $200 airline credit is per calendar year. That means you'll actually get a $400 credit in the first 12 months of having this card. Unlike the Sapphire Reserve or Citi Prestige, the Amex airline credit is supposed to only be used for incidental purchases, such as baggage fees. BUT, there's a way around it. You can buy 4 $50 gift cards and they'll be re-imbursed and then you can use those GC's towards a $200 plane ticket. Whereas if you just buy a $200 plane ticket, it won't be reimbursed. It's important to buy the GCs in $50 increments because to the Amex system it'll look like you're paying for a baggage fee.
*Yes you can downgrade your card back to gold (or even a no-fee Amex) after you use all the benefits. You should wait until at least January 2018 to do this tho, so you get the $200 airline credit twice.
*The Amex platinum isn't a particularly rewarding everyday spending card but there are some nice benefits. You should be using the card for buying airfare direct (5x points) and hotels (tho annoyingly you'll have to do it through the amex portal). You'll get access to the Centurion lounges, which are some of the nicest stateside lounges, but they're few and far between. You'll also get access to Delta lounges, but only when flying Delta.

Personally, I think out of the 3 main premium cards (Chase Sapphire Reserve, Citi Prestige, Amex Platinum), that the Platinum is the weakest. But I would still definitely take this offer and then downgrade the card in 2018. You should be getting approximately $1,600 in benefits for $550.

---

Some hotels on Amex Platinum also offer special benefits, such as a food/spa credit and late checkout. Varies from property to property, and many properties don't offer it at all. You need to call them to find this out. Maybe there's a list online now. There's also a law of diminishing returns to this, as the food credit is the same for a 1-night stay and a longer stay, so you're not getting much beyond the first night as far as extra value. Still a nice benefit.

If you qualify for the Amex Platinum Business, get that. You also get free Gogo Wifi (which is the provider for many airlines).

---

You can see the hotel list here:
https://www.americanexpressfhr.com

But, and this is completely backwards, the 5x points on hotels doesn't apply to FHR properties. It only applies to non-FHR hotel reservations made through amextravel.com

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by HoodedN

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by GringoStar

This isn't whoring, per se, but what would stop me from using a credit card to buy BTC or a balance in a gambling platform, cashing out and then backcharging the initial charge as fraudulent.

Obviously it's sleazy and could only be used once or twice, but seems like there's little harm in trying. Are there even penalties for attempting to backcharge anything that can't be proved it was you?

---

:fraudalert

---

I am aware this is fraud and I'm not surprised that no one provided any information whatsoever, but my question wasn't "is this legal?" I was wondering what stops people from doing that, it seems like an unprosecutable offense.

I know what CC fraud is, so please save me the basic legal nonsense.

Chase is offering 100,000 points for anyone who takes out a new mortgage thru them if you have the Sapphire card. 2k in value.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by NaturalBornHustler

Chase is offering 100,000 points for anyone who takes out a new mortgage thru them if you have the Sapphire card. 2k in value.

---

Wonder how competitive their rates are.. 2k is no big victory if you are paying an extra quarter point.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by sonatine

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by NaturalBornHustler

Chase is offering 100,000 points for anyone who takes out a new mortgage thru them if you have the Sapphire card. 2k in value.

---

Wonder how competitive their rates are.. 2k is no big victory if you are paying an extra quarter point.

---

I tweeted the same exact thing, they will just make it up tacking on a fraction of a point in fees that most won't even realize.

Their rates are some of the best it was in the article but I don't feel like finding it.

I know LOL MACY'S OR JC PENNY'S OR NIKE, WHO SHOPS THERE!

No but really fuckers if you have the chase freedom card below is the MONEY BACK you'll get:

Macy's: 16% up to 1500 than 11% after (10% bonus for this month, plus 1% normally, plus quarterly department store bonus 5%). Transfer this to chase sapphire preferred and get 24% towards travel (1.5x on pts used for travel)

JC PENNY'S: 14%
Nike:11% (no department store bonus)

MUST SHOP THROUGH THE CHASE CARD PORTAL, DONATE REWARD MONEY TO 2018 WSOP LOBSTERMAC FUND.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by LobsterMac

I know LOL MACY'S OR JC PENNY'S OR NIKE, WHO SHOPS THERE!

No but really fuckers if you have the chase freedom card below is the MONEY BACK you'll get:

Macy's: 16% up to 1500 than 11% after (10% bonus for this month, plus 1% normally, plus quarterly department store bonus 5%). Transfer this to chase sapphire preferred and get 24% towards travel (1.5x on pts used for travel)

JC PENNY'S: 14%
Nike:11% (no department store bonus)

MUST SHOP THROUGH THE CHASE CARD PORTAL, DONATE REWARD MONEY TO 2018 WSOP LOBSTERMAC FUND.

---

Good post, but yeah I freaking hate this quarter's Freedom bonus. Who the hell shops at big box department stores anymore? Isn't Chase supposed to be going after Millennials? And I think you meant to say transfer to Sapphire Reserve, which gives 1.5x on travel. The inferior Sapphire Preferred gives 1.25x.

Luckily I just got a Discover IT card w/5% rotating quarters. This quarter is 5% off at Amazon and Target. And for the first year they double it. So I'm getting 10% off at Amazon and Target, which is actually better than the Amazon Prime CC. Closer to the end of the year I'm just going to buy an Amazon gift card so I can get 10% off through most of 2018 too.

Amex Platnum members this year started receiving a monthly Uber credit of $15, with a $35 credit in December for a total of $200 a year.

Big deal right?

I don’t use Uber so it didn’t do much for me. I recently created an Uber account because I was going to use my monthly credit for a friend. By doing so, I discovered that you can use the monthly credits for Uber eats as well.

Uber eats is their food delivery service. When you order, the food, the tax, deliver fee etc are all deducted from you credits.

$15 isn’t much (although I got $35 this month) but you can find something cheap to order for free or pay a few dollars additionally and get some decent food.

Any unused credit does expire on the last day of the month.




GS




ZoD

According to a leak from a source within Chase, Chase is actively looking at disabling the ability to transfer points between cards. This has been rumored for a while, but may finally be getting closer. This would be a big blow to bonus whores who have the trifecta of Freedom, Freedom Unlimited, and Sapphire Reserve (as I do). It'll effectively make the CFU useless if you have the CSR. The change would have the following impact:
Chase Freedom + CSR: Your 5% quarterly categories will now be worth 5% (currently worth 7.5%+ for travel).
Freedom Unlimited + CSR: Non-bonus spend will be worth 1.5% (currently worth 2.25%+ for travel)
Sapphire Reserve: Unaffected. Dining and travel purchases will continue to earn 4.5%+ towards travel and non-bonus spend will earn 1.5%+.


Hopefully at the very least they will give an ample amount of heads up before they implement this change (which still isn't 100%, but seems likely). But in any case, if you have a bunch of points lying around on a Chase card, I would advise transferring them to your CSR (or Chase Ink) ASAP.


https://frequentmiler.boardingarea.c...rds-transfers/

:gay3

Apparently Chase is now offering 3% (really 3x points) on all purchases in the first year on the CFU for new cardholders. Bonus whores could really crush Chase on this one if they transfer these points to their CSR, where they'll be worth 50% more. All you'd have to do is keep sending a friend a bunch of money on paypal using your CFU. I believe paypal charges 3%. So you'd pay 3% in fees, and get back 4.5% in points (and more if you get creative with your points).

So it makes sense that Chase is trying to clamp down on people doing this. While I hate that Chase is considering doing this, I think it makes sense as a business move. The CSR is still highly valuable and I doubt they'll see much of a loss in their customer base as a result.

Where are we at on this topic now? Chase Saphire still the top?

I’m closing a shitty Disney card. I was going to open the princess cruise line card but that aparently is an uber shitty deal as well.