I’m not a credit card or financial expert, I’m just a normal guy who picked up a passion for personal finance and credit cards while attending college at the University of Illinois. I got together with a life-long friend and credit scientist to put together this information and build this site. We were in complete agreement that the best place to start would be with credit card reviews. Credit cards are the lowest hanging fruit in the consumer finance game. They can open up so many travel, financing, entertainment, and saving opportunities without changing many things about your day-to-day schedule. I tried to keep it as simple as possible while writing these reviews and felt that sometimes less is more. Everyone should be able to relate to a red, yellow, and green light rating for the cards.

I didn’t grow up traveling to different countries with my parents, to be honest I didn’t have a passport until I was 21. The first time I left the country was in 2016 and now I’ve been to more than 20. In 2019 I flew on 38 different flights and paid for 23 of those with miles (60%). Credit cards have provided me with more opportunities then I could have ever dreamed of and they can do the same for so many others.

Out of the 21 credit cards I have had to my name I have only been in credit card debit twice. Once during the back end of my study abroad semester and the other during my entire senior year of college. I consider both to be “good debts” because my balances carried 0% interest, which is lower then the interest I pay on my student loans.

My starting salary out of college was $40,000. I started contributing 10% of my after-tax salary to a Roth IRA and increased that percentage with every raise. When I decided to leave my position I was contributing 22% of every paycheck to a Roth IRA. I’m a strong believer that saving money is the true key to freedom even though I’m not always the best at it.

We all try our best to save but there are always speed bumps along the way. This site was developed with the idea that the strategies and tactics mentioned will help others. Where can you pick up a point?

Anyway here’s all the credit cards I’ve had and exactly what I used them for

CITI FORWARD

My first credit card was given to me at 18 years old about 2 weeks after my high school graduation. I had no idea at the time but this basic card would fuel my appetite for points in the coming years. Shout out to my Dad for getting me into the game. Good card to start it can really help get your credit score up to where it needs to be in order to take advantage of higher tier cards and intro bonuses. Can accumulate some decent thank you points as well. Over the year and a half that I used this card daily I was able to accumulate enough thank you points for a roundtrip flight from Champaign, IL to Phoenix, AZ and a free Jeff Gordon NASCAR suit Halloween costume from Amazon that I still use as a back-up costume. Had a $1,000 limit which is really nothing special. Start small end big! Still have this card, although I believe it is the Citi Rewards + now, with no annual fee I like to think leaving it open boosts my credit score a little.

CITI AADVANTAGE GOLD

After my first semester of sophomore year of college I arrived home in California to my first direct mail credit card promotion flyer. The Gold AAdvantage card from Citi and I could earn 50,000 American miles after spending $2,000 in 3 months on the card. At the time, $2,000 seemed like a lot of money and I was nervous about spending it all. So I decided to wait until about a week before heading back to school to apply. I knew I could pay for all my books and other new semester expenses on it. Hit the $2,000 minimum spend in 2 months and banked the points a few days after. Closed this account less than a year later before having to pay the annual fee.

US AIRWAYS BARCLAY’S

Used my newly acquired AAdvantage miles from the Citi card to book a flight to California (home) from Tampa (played club baseball down there on spring breaks in college) because I broke up with my girlfriend at the time and wanted to hang with my Mom. Whatever, I’m soft, let me have it. On the flight to California I was aboard a U.S. Airways plane and they handed out the flyer for the card. 60,000 U.S. Airways miles after making a purchase and paying the $99 annual fee. I thought I was a genius at the time because I applied and got the card 2 days before the American Airlines and U.S. Airways merger was official and the U.S. Airways points became AAdvantage miles. Turns out this card still has the same bonus (Red Aviator AAdvantage)! Great card – no minimum spend but be careful because once you cancel the card you won’t be able to ever have it again. Closed this account before having to pay the annual fee for a second time..

CITI PREMIER

I was hooked on points by this card. Got another direct mail flyer to spend $3,000 in 3 months and get 60,000 ThankYou points in return. I got this one during my summer going into junior year of college while I was working an unpaid internship. Really relied on my parents help to hit this minimum spend. I jumped at any opportunity to fill up one of their cars with gas (also 3x thank you points for money spent at gas stations) and was able to accumulate enough spend to unlock those bonus ThankYou points. This was also the first credit card I used that would make girls double take. It’s a pretty sharp card that seems to be kind of uncommon so definitely, in my case at least, helped build social clout. I knew these points would come in handy for my semester abroad in Europe so I just banked them for spring. The following June when I was broke broke living in Vienna, Austria Citi offered me some 0% interest for 6 months on new purchases that I was able to take advantage of. Kept me afloat for a month or two and then I drove Uber when I got back to the States to pay it all off.

BRITISH AIRWAYS VISA CHASE

I was able to finish the minimum spend on my Citi Premier a few weeks before heading back to the University of Illinois for the fall semester so I decided to pick up another card to put my beginning of the school year expenses on (books, furniture, target runs, etc). I was planning to go abroad in the spring of that year so I thought the Avios would help me pay for my roundtrip international flight. That didn’t end up working out but the 50,000 Avios sure did come in handy for travel within Europe. I was able to secure at least 10 one-way flights with my Avios. I was living in Vienna in 2016 when Niki was still around so maybe that’s why I had such an easy time securing great flights. If you want to use Avios for an international flight you’re looking at $350+ in fees for a roundtrip flight. Maybe skip this one, I don’t see any easy use for your Avios outside of Europe. Closed before having to pay the annual fee.

SOUTHWEST RAPID REWARDS CHASE

Nothing special here, just trying to build up the points bank. Already had 1 Chase card so I started down that path. Chase only allows you to open up a max of 5 new credit accounts in 24 months. Once you’re in with Chase I suggest that you get as many Chase cards as you can. Most of the other banks (Amex is strict too!) won’t bother with this stuff, in my experience, but Chase is very strict. I was able to take advantage of the lost luggage insurance this card has. Austrian Airlines lost my luggage upon my arrival in Vienna for my semester abroad so I double dipped. Austrian gave me back 50% of the money I spent on clothing and the Southwest Card reimbursed me up to $100 in reasonable expenses for each day my bag was lost. So I filed claims to both and ended up getting to keep all the clothing I purchased and made about $80 on top of it. So no need to stress over lost luggage! Closed before having to pay the annual fee.

IHG CLUB REWARDS CARD CHASE

My quest for Chase domination continued, with the IHG Club Rewards. My Uncle Matt had let me onto a little tip about the free anniversary night you get each year for the $59 fee. It was one of the best deals any card had to offer at the time. I’ve had this card for almost 4 years now and I don’t plan on getting rid of it anytime soon. They changed the anniversary reward night to be capped at a redemption value of 40,000 points. I was fortunate enough to get 3 uncapped anniversary nights. The first one I used at a Holiday Inn Express in the Gaslamp district down in San Diego on a Saturday night during 4th of July weekend for a Padres game, they wanted $350 for the night. The Second year I used my free night at The Palazzo on the GGG vs Canelo boxing match night, retail value $900. My last uncapped night was used at the Intercontinental Amsterdam, retail value of $550. At $59 a year, I still believe it’s worth it for the 40,000 point anniversary night. No Foreign transaction fees came in very useful while traveling abroad.

UNITED MILEAGE PLUS CHASE

Last Chase Card I hit before I had to pump the breaks. I got this card towards the end of my time in Vienna and I was exclusively looking for cards with no foreign transaction fees. I also started to plan my uses for the intro bonuses out before I would even get the card. These points were very ideal because of the Chicago to Orange County flights I needed to get home for the holidays. Chicago, being a United hub, always had non stop flights I could find for 12,500 points and $5.60. It wasn’t always the exact flight I wanted but as long as I was flexible I never had any issues getting home and back on the house. Free checked bag is always nice too. Closed before having to pay the annual fee.

BLUE CASH BACK EVERYDAY AMEX

First AMEX, first credit line above $10,000, and boy did I put it to good use. Didn’t really have any plans for the $250 cash bonus after spending $1,000 (straight up 25% return btw) within 3 months or the 18 month 0% intro APR but life gives you mysterious opportunities. I got this card going into senior year of college in 2016, also the same time the Cubbies were picking up steam for what would be a World Series Championship, the first in over 100 years. After game 1 of the World Series I bought 4 tickets to game 7 for $8,864 thinking that if the series went to a game 7 the tickets would be the highest priced ticket in the history of sports (which was true) and if they didn’t increase in value I’d be able to pay them off by November of the next year at 0%. Unfortunately I got in too early and was in a position to take a huge loss so I booked a hotel with some IHG points in Independence, Ohio, rounded up 3 of my boys and we hit the road to Cleveland. The rest is history. Tickets burnt the biggest whole I’ve ever had in my pocket and hundreds of bartending shifts later I was able to pay them off in full the day I graduated college without ever paying a cent in interest. Shout out Mom and Dad for help with the rent that year.

GOLD CARD AMEX

When I was within $3,000 of paying off the Cubs World Series tickets in full I decided to hop on another American Express. They had been badgering me with promotional offers for months and finally hit me with 50,000 points after spending $3,000 in 3 months with the first year annual fee waived on the American Express Gold Card. I knew the points could be used for anything so I wouldn’t have any trouble spending them. This was before the Amex gold had the $250 annual fee and the only real benefits were the hotel collection and $100 airline credit. Spent these points 10 months later to get down to see my brother play baseball in Sincelejo, Colombia.

CASH REWARDS BANK OF AMERICA

Fresh out of debt up in this Mofo (not really still have student loans!). I had just finished paying off the Cubbies World Series tickets and began working full-time. For some reason I thought it’d be a good idea to get a bottom tier cash back credit card. I got $200 after spending $500 in 3 months (40% return for you math wizards). These cards offer unreal percentage returns for your spending but more often than not are pebbles compared to the higher tier travel intro bonus. Nonetheless cash is king and 0% APR intro bonuses can come in super handy whenever you’re in a bind and need some financing. Easy to gain approval along side taking advantage of a new checking account bonus.

CASH WISE VISA WELLS FARGO

Cash back phase continued. $150 cash back after $1000 spent, nothing spectacular but it was a bank that I had no prior relationship with and they seemed hungry for my business. I was getting offers for their new checking account bonus, so I figured why not do the credit card too if it’s on the menu. Not like I was going to find a 15% return on $1,000 I was going to spend anywhere else. No real noteworthy benefits and Wells Fargo is not my favorite bank. Closed it within a year alongside with my checking account even though there is no annual fee.

CITI PRESTIGE

Had a dead period for a little, maybe 5 months without a new credit card (upgrades sometimes don’t count as opening new accounts). Citi had sent me upgrade offers before but I never took advantage of them, thought the Prestige was too expensive for me. I did a little more research and decided to pull the trigger on the upgrade from the Premier. In November, of course, because the Prestige travel credit resets each calendar year. So I paid the $495 fee, get $250 in travel credit in 2017 and 2018 while only paying the fee once. It didn’t take long to recoup that one! First experience with the Priority Pass and probably got another $600 at least out of that bad boy in airport booze alone. Also was able to take advantage of the flight delay insurance, it paid out after 3 hour delays back then. Great card and I was sad to let go of it, but knew there were bigger fish to fry out there. Also no bonus points with this upgrade so it was exclusively to check out the card perks. Catch flights not feelings.

JETBLUE PLUS BARCLAYS

Another one of my favorite cards that I actively pay the annual fee on. I got this card because JetBlue has some great, cheap flights out Long Beach, CA. At this time I was living in Dana Point, CA and used the 50,000 mile intro bonus (got it after spending $1,000 in 90 days on the card) for a lot of my snowboarding trips that winter. Great seasonal nonstops from Long Beach to Big Sky and Steamboat then year-around flights up to Sacramento and Reno to hit Tahoe. First checked bag free is huge and another one of my favorite perks is the half off in-flight snacks and drinks. After the discount you’re paying $4 a beer, please find me a $4 beer in at any airport. The $99 annual fee is recouped once you fly JetBlue 4 times with a checked bag.

AADVANTAGE PLATINUM CITI

Nothing special here, just a classic snatch and grab. Spent $3,000 on this card to get the 60,000 American miles and never used it again. There are some great deals on American flights sometimes though. Don’t sleep on the first class flights for 25,000 miles. Free checked bag, 25% off in flight purchase, the normal works with airline credit cards. Great if you’re planning a trip and are thinking of booking it with American Airlines. American and United are the best miles to sit on for last minute flights. If you have to get somewhere in a hurry these airlines usually have flights for not too many miles, just don’t forget about the extra $75 fee American charges for any milage award within 21 days of departure.

BLUE CASH PREFERRED AMEX

Amex offered me an upgrade from the Blue Cash Everyday (no annual fee) to the Blue Cash Preferred. The upgrade included a nice $200 bonus after spending $1,000 in 3 months. No fee waiver, but I’m not one to turn down free intro bonuses that don’t effect your 5 in 24 months score with Chase. This card is pretty tight, the 6% cash back at grocery stores is money. I would go out of my way to buy booze at the grocery store because I love the feeling of getting 6% cash back. I also like to cook so a lot of my weekly shopping was done at the grocery store down the street. If you spend $1,600 at grocery stores a year (or about $133 a month) the annual fee takes care of itself.

TRAVEL REWARDS BANK OF AMERICA

Opened a Bank of America Savings Account to take advantage of some free money. Had to go into the bank for some reason and the Johnny Pencil Pusher behind the desk asked me if I wanted this travel card. I played dumb and said I have 1 card but would be interested in another. Got approved instantly and then spent $1,000 to get the 25,000 travel points. These points are solid I’ve always redeemed them on Airbnb charges for $.01 per point. No Foreign transaction fees and occasionally there is a 5% off Airbnbs up to $28 promo. No annual fee so I still carry this bad boy in my arsenal.

SPG CARD AMEX

I moved from California to New York in March of 2019 and got this cause I knew I’d be spending at least $3,000 on moving expenses. I also had already spotted the property I was going to use these points at. Plus I’m a free anniversary night whore and 35,000 Marriott points goes further than you would think. I used these points for a 5 night stay at the Westin Snowmass in January 2020, it’s a ski-in ski-out property and it did not disappoint.

PLATINUM CARD AMEX

I was getting hit up by Amex to upgrade to the platinum for almost a year before I actually took their offer. They kept hitting me with an offer to upgrade for 25,000 amex points. I knew from past experience that if I waited it out a little they would eventually give me something much better that would satisfy my appetite. Got an email offer for the upgrade and 60,000 points if I spent $5,000 in 3 months. That was a little daunting, that’s a lot of scratch to spend in 3 months. After rent expenses I wasn’t even making $5,000 in 3 months. Fortunately I had work expenses I was able to put on this card to cover the minimum spend. I transferred about 50,000 of the 60,000 upgrade bonus points to Marriott Bonvoy points in order to book the 5 night stay in Aspen. Not the greatest redemption value on the Amex points but looking back definitely worth it.

IHG CLUB REWARDS PREMIER CHASE

The second IHG card in my arsenal. I got this card because of the super juicy intro bonus offer of 120,000 points after spending $3,000 in 3 months. This card also gets you a fourth night free when you book 3 consecutive nights with points. I love these points, I think they’re the best hotel points out there. I have a far fetched dream that I’m going to start dating some smoke and take her to Bora Bora all on points. Maybe one day. Anyway 1 free night a year and TSA pre or Global Entry reimbursement. The $89 fee pays for itself. My Dad also got this card around the same time I did and he just used his points with my Mom for 9 free Holiday Inn Express nights on a road trip from California to St. Petersburg, FL. These nights are completely free, they don’t even have you pay the taxes, it’s pretty tight.

GOLD DELTA AMEX

Had been getting flyers for this card for a while and finally bit on an offer I thought was too good to pass up. 70,000 delta points after spending $2,000 in 3 months. I also got a nice $50 statement credit on my first delta purchase. I got this card specifically because of the smoking deals on flights to/from LAX and JFK. I was getting nonstop, cross-country flights for 7,000 points and $5.60 in taxes. It’s the best deal I can find anywhere. Also I dig the pairing of this card with the Amex Platinum. The Delta Amex has already saved me well over $100 on checked bags (I fly with my snowboard a lot) and the Amex Platinum gets me into the super impressive Delta lounges at JFK terminal 4 and LAX. I’m not talking salad bar and hard boiled eggs with a decent soup. LAX is usually a serve yourself taco bar while JFK terminal 4 has a new sky deck with some above average pasta options. Don’t forget to booze your face off.

To be continued… but for now I need a beer!