A reader recently asked me what I thought was the “best cash back credit card?”
Typically credit-related questions are difficult to answer because of their subjective nature, but this is a surprisingly straightforward, objective one to tackle.
The Blue Cash from American Express offers the highest cash back rewards in the industry without question.
For year-to-date purchases between $0 and $6,500, you get 1% cash back on everyday purchases and 0.5% cash back on all other purchases.
By everyday purchases, they mean purchases made at grocery stores, gas stations, and drugstores.
After you spend $6,500, you get a whopping 5% cash back on everyday purchases and 1.25% cash back on all other purchases.
That level of cash back beats all the other offers out there quite easily.
And most other cash back credit cards only offer up to 5% off in certain categories during certain times of the year. Ver
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The Citi® Diamond Preferred® Rewards American Express® Card is a rewards card that offers a variety of perks for card members. This card is designed for those with good to excellent credit. The card offers a low interest introductory rate and a solid rewards program.
- 0% Intro APR on Purchases and Balance Transfers for 12 months. After that, the APR will be 12.99%-20.99% based on your creditworthiness. This APR will vary with the market based on the Prime Rate.
- Redeem ThankYou Points for electronics, travel rewards, sporting events & more
- Concierge Service–24/7 help with booking trips, dining reservations & much more
- Diamond Perks–Access to Private Pass which gives you the opportunity to enjoy a wide variety of exciting events and unique experiences
- Travel Center from American Express–Your one-stop online travel planning site
Introductory Offers and Rates
The card offers an introductory rate of 0% on purchases for 12 months and combines that offer with 0% on balance transfers too. After th
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When the CARD Act passed, some skeptical observers complained that it had a big loophole. The CARD Act only covered personal cards. Business cards, also known as professional cards were deemed exempt. At the time, I speculated that credit card companies would be unlikely to have two different sets of rules for business and personal cards. Apparently, I gave the banks too much credit.
Some Business Cards Go By The Old Rules
According to this article in the Wall Street Journal, some banks are choosing to exploit the business card loophole. The article cites CitiBank as applying payments to the lower interest rate balances first, and for raising interests rates sharply in the event of a missed payments. Both actions would be prohibited if the card was a personal card, not a business card. The article does give Capitol One recognition for applying the CARD Act rules to it’s business cards.
What Is The Deal With Business Cards?
Frankly, I have always wondered why these cards exist. They are a great tool for someone like me who wants to receive multiple sign up bonuses. When a really killer deal is out there, I have been known to sign up for both the personal and the business cards. As for legitimate uses, my belief has always been that a business card can allow you to segregate your business expenses from your personal expenses. I have operated a number of small ventures, but I never had any trouble distinguishing my business expenses from my personal ones. If my business grew, I could see how it would be nice to have a different card, although I am not sure why it would have to be a business card, rather than a different personal card.
Some business cards offer the feature of having multiple additional cards for employees with the rewards accruing for the primary cardholder. I would hate it if my job asked me to charge a bunch of stuff to a company card where I didn’t see any rewards. Hypocritically, I would be the first to have such a card if I had people under me who needed to purchases for my business.
For now, I would still consider getting a business card for the sign up bonus, but as always, I don’t imagine really using it much.
As of the end of February, there were 576 million credit cards in circulation in the United States alone, according to CNBC.
And US consumer revolving debt was $864.4 billion as of the beginning of the year, with 98% of it tied to credit card debt.
So who are the top issuers of all these credit cards?
Well, you may be surprised to hear that Bank of America was the leader, with $194.7 billion in credit issued.
That includes business outside the US, in places like the UK, Canada, and Spain.
Chase came in a close second with $184 billion in credit issued via 119.4 million credit cards, making it the largest credit card issuer in the United States.
At third was Citi, with $148.9 billion in credit issued on 92 million credit cards.
Top 10 Credit Card Issuers
1. Bank of America/MBNA – $194.7 billion
2. Chase – $184 billion, 119.4 million credit cards
3. Citi – $148.9 billion, 92 million credit cards
4. Ameri
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To create a Walmart debit account, you need to either sign up online or visit a Walmart store. Luckily, there are thousands of them all around the world. When you pick up a temporary MoneyCard, you will have to buy it at the checkout, paying the amount that will serve as your initial deposit. Make sure you keep your receipt until you receive your permanent card.
When you sign up online, you will have to provide a phone number. You will need to call from that number to activate your card. You will also need to type in your Social Security number and birth date so that Walmart can verify your identity. Note that if you sign up this way your card will not initially have any money on it.
To activate your card if you buy it in the store, you’ll need to go online and type in the activation number on your receipt, the last four digits on the temporary card and a captcha code, which simply proves you are a real person and not a spam program.
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