FlyerTalk Forums - View Single Post - Simplicity versus optimizing rewards - Amex Platinum/Gold, CSR/CFU, etc
Old Apr 10, 2022 | 12:27 pm
  #13  
notquiteaff
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Originally Posted by yugi
I "simplified" to the following everyday roster:
Ouch, that gives me headaches. And I thought my scheme was complex.

Airfare: mostly plat (5x), sometimes CSR (3x)
Hotels: mostly CSR (3x), sometimes Aspire (14x)
car rentals, other travel: CSR (3x)
gas: Ink Cash (2X)
Dining: mostly CSR (3x)
Drugstores: CFU (3x)
Healthcare/Insurance: Ink Cash (5x via Visa/MC gift cards)
Groceries: Amex EDP (3/4.5x)
Everything else: either Ink Cash (5x via Visa/MC gift cards) or CFU (1.5x)
Amazon: mostly Ink Cash (mostly 5X via gift cards)

What throws a monkey wrench into this scheme is temporary bonus offers such as Chase.com/mybonus or Amex offers or AS EQM offers. E.g., at the moment I can get 5X on groceries and gas on my Hyatt Visa (capped at $1500) which I value more than 3x or even 4.5x MR on the EDP. And I can get 1000 AS EQM for $5k AS spend on the BofA AS Visa, so I sent some estimates tax that way instead of using the CFU. Completely unclear how to value them at this point as I don’t know if I will actually need them.
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