Best credit cards?

T

thateuropalegendlad

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Already have the NFCU Go Rewards card for over 2 years. No late payments credit score in mid 700s. Looking to further build credit score. Looking for recs for a second card as a cadet at USAFA, especially for decent cash back
 
Well it’s not cash back but it is one of the best perk cards you can get. American Express Platinum. It’s $695 a year but if active military the fee is waived. You can also add additional users if you desire which is usually $150 each a year but this is waived as well. It’s the best Luxury Card. Gets you in a lot of lounges while traveling and a lot of useful credits a month and some a year.
 
If you’re not in the military, what would make the $695 yearly fee worthwhile?
 
If you were to utilize all the refunds they amount to roughly $1,500 a year. I wouldn’t use the rewards enough to validate getting the card but I did get one as a free authorized user. My son doesn’t mind as he knows I’ll pay my part off every month. I really only wanted it from him for the Sky Lounges, Centurion Lounges for traveling with an extended layover.
 
Bigrod said:
Well it’s not cash back but it is one of the best perk cards you can get. American Express Platinum. It’s $695 a year but if active military the fee is waived. You can also add additional users if you desire which is usually $150 each a year but this is waived as well. It’s the best Luxury Card. Gets you in a lot of lounges while traveling and a lot of useful credits a month and some a year.
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Is this only for active service members or can ROTC cadets get this card as well?
 
Bigrod said:
Well it’s not cash back but it is one of the best perk cards you can get. American Express Platinum. It’s $695 a year but if active military the fee is waived. You can also add additional users if you desire which is usually $150 each a year but this is waived as well. It’s the best Luxury Card. Gets you in a lot of lounges while traveling and a lot of useful credits a month and some a year.
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You were able to get the additional user fees waived? We didn’t realize it could be waived.
 
thechrbru said:
Is this only for active service members or can ROTC cadets get this card as well?
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It's active only - so my guess is that's a no for ROTC cadets since it's a no for reservists

AMEX platinum is definitely awesome. Chase Sapphire also has some great benefits and waives the fee (at least they did as of a few years ago). As your score increases, you can get some of the other top tier credit cards (the AMEX Marriot Bonvoy and Hilton Aspire are good too) and get the bonus points for some sweet vacations. There is a whole military community that makes the most of this awesome (and fairly under utilized) perk
 
My DS recently got the Amex Platinum. And i was laughing SO HARD AT HIM bc on his recent trip home, he and his new wife actually headed to the SAN airport, 3.5 hrs early (bc you can only go into the lounge 3 hrs before a scheduled flight) just to go to the lounge. Great food, drinks (did i mention drinks 🍹????), etc.

Did not know about the 3 extras allowed…sounds like a good idea for mom/dad to have one for when we travel, as well! Especially international.

@Bigrod what is the community you mention? Ill pass along to them.
 
AMEX plat is great, for those non-service members, who travel all the time. Otherwise, it's not worth it unless you're active duty. Although depending on where you're traveling to/thru, the lounges get jam packed and have long wait lines just to get in. I can't tell you how many times I've got into the Centurion Lounge using that card and there's nowhere to sit.
 
Bigrod said:
Sorry not sure where I said community. Also as anonymous said the lines can get long. Just last week coming Bach from Cancun the VIP lounge was a 1.5 hour wait to get in.
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Oops sorry, @USAFA10s mentioned that there is a community. And i misunderstood their meaning. Apologies!
 
Here is a pretty good link:
militarymoneymanual.com

Best Credit Card Bonus Offers for January 2023 | MLA + SCRA

Here are the best credit card bonuses available this month. Amex, Chase, Citi, Barclays, Capital One - many waive annual fees for military!
militarymoneymanual.com militarymoneymanual.com

@puzzler , to answer who/why gets fee cards, you should do a spreadsheet of value to cost. For example, I have the Hyatt personal card, $95 fee and mostly spend $ to Globalist - essentially paying all my bills from this card and I pay in full each month (so I don't pay attention to terms/interest etc). I get a free night (Cat 1-4) each year, another free night (Cat 1-4) at $15k spend, and on my way to Globalist: $100 Hyatt credit, another free night (Cat 1-7), and a bunch of (useless) upgrade rooms and lounge access certificates. I just used my Cat 1-7 voucher and the "savings" was Cat 6 standard king upgraded to suite, $478 night rate, breakfast for 2 hotel credit $70, free valet $48, and drumroll....2 free bottled waters, $2 value! I did an analysis of Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant, $650 annual fee. The most valuable for me are: $300 annual dining credit, $100 Global Entry, $150k points/$5k spend/3months, up to 85k point annual free night, Priorty Pass Select (airport lounge), and Marriott Platinum Elite Status (biggest for me is lounge and/or free breakfast depending on hotel. Not as good as Hyat Globalist, but similar). So for all that and minor benefits, i'd "earn" the spread with a staycation at the local Ritz-Carlton, which is a $550-$699 value). All these cards have pretty decent travel insurance too. As a non-road warrior, I chose Hyatt (very small footprint but Miraval with points is key for me) and American Airlines, passsed on the Marriott.

@thateuropalegendlad , lots of cards out there give a bonus for spend - see which ones meet your goals. I just got a Fidelity Visa CC offer -$150 for $1,000 spend, no annual fee, 2% cash back no category/earning limits. Passed because I am looking for no FX fee card. A very basic one is the Discover, variations of no annual fee, rotating 5% categories, student bonus, and ability to use rewards for git cards, further streching your cash back, often "$45 for $50" etc. I always get Red Lobster and Bath & Body Works (then stack with coupons at their semi-annual sales).

Speaking of Fidelity and investment houses, don't forget to set up your Roth IRA if you haven't already and maybe even brokerage account to start saving/investing that Cadet pay! My DD has her Roth and brokerage at Schwab, TreasuryDirect account, and USAA for banking. Over winter break, made her annual contributions for 2022.
 
Sad thing about all airport lounges — whether they're affiliated with airlines or provided by credit card companies — is that they’ve gotten unbearably crowded, grimy and stingy. That’s if you can actually get in and use it for more than a half hour. Used to be that you could spend a couple relaxing hours, have a decent bite to eat, and get some work done in relative comfort. No more. Part of the overall degeneration of air travel, I think.
 
Great advice above. I like The Points Guy and NerdWallet for great credit card and travel program recommendations and analysis.

The Points Guy - Maximize your travel.

Maximize your travel with hands-on travel advice, guides, reviews, deal alerts, and more from The Points Guy. Check out our recommendations so you can travel more often and more comfortably.
thepointsguy.com thepointsguy.com

NerdWallet: Finance smarter

Make smarter financial decisions with NerdWallet’s side-by-side comparisons, objective ratings and reviews, customized insights, and trusted expertise.
www.nerdwallet.com
 
CatDog99 said:
Great advice above. I like The Points Guy and NerdWallet for great credit card and travel program recommendations and analysis.

The Points Guy - Maximize your travel.

Maximize your travel with hands-on travel advice, guides, reviews, deal alerts, and more from The Points Guy. Check out our recommendations so you can travel more often and more comfortably.
thepointsguy.com thepointsguy.com

NerdWallet: Finance smarter

Make smarter financial decisions with NerdWallet’s side-by-side comparisons, objective ratings and reviews, customized insights, and trusted expertise.
www.nerdwallet.com
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Anonymous121 said:
AMEX plat is great, for those non-service members, who travel all the time. Otherwise, it's not worth it unless you're active duty. Although depending on where you're traveling to/thru, the lounges get jam packed and have long wait lines just to get in. I can't tell you how many times I've got into the Centurion Lounge using that card and there's nowhere to sit.
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Thought that service academy cadets/mids could no longer get the Amex Platinum card
 
Clubs at airports are usually over run and not worth it from what I have seen lately. Good intel on the AMEX deal, might tell junior about it.
 
Consider that the platinum card isn't great for the kind of everyday spending that mids and cadets do. Sure, open it for the travel benefits but also consider some lower tier non-travel cards that offer better points on dining, gas, groceries, everyday purchases etc. You can look into the amex gold and chase sapphire preferred. Both cards will still earn you either chase or amex points, but at a better multiplier for everyday stuff.
 
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