krazykanuck

Same. I mean the CSR is $150/yr for all intents and purposes and is a good 3x catch all for things that don't qualify as dining on the Gold and misc travel. The Amex Gold is $30/yr (post credits, which for me are 100% face value) and I can MS way more than $30/yr worth of value out of it. The Plat, same thing. I'm a primarily Delta flyer, often use Centurion Lounges, and can buy all my work reimb. airfare on my personal card so the 5x is money.

uppereastsider

I hold all of them except for Amex EDP. Also add in Delta Amex Reserve and misc Marriott cards for free nights, Hyatt card for the free night and various credit cards solely for the signup bonus.

My strategy:

Trains, taxis/uber, hotels, cars, tolls, bars and restaurants within hotels / sports arenas (find that bars and restaurants inside a venue don't play well with Amex Gold)
Airfare on Amex Platinum
Dining on Amex Gold unless it's a restaurant I know that doesn't code properly
Groceries on Amex Gold (which includes buying amazon and itunes gift cards at Whole Foods)
Freedom on whatever the 5x category is
CFU for any non bonus US Spend
Amex Plat or CSR for international non bonus spend

(But I put 30k on the Delta Reserve every year before following this strategy. Thankfully I have a ton of reimbursable work expenses every month)

I have ~3k in gross credit card fees, but I maximize credits for each account. So Amex Platinum is always 50 net fee for me (gift cards / FCM on delta, use uber credits on uber eats, normally shop at Saks even w/o the credit), Amex Gold is 30 (I use seamless regularly pre Amex Gold, so those credits are easy to use + Delta gift cards), CSR is 150 (no problem using that 300 dollar travel credit) and the hotel credit cards all provide a free night that I always get at least 2-3x the AF value on)

I never planned to have the Amex Gold, but the 4x on dining is too good. I'm very happy with the card with the credits, but it would be a stretch if I was paying $250/year w/o credits. I also find significantly more value with MR than TYP, so the citi prestige doesn't appeal to me.

I swear this is my main credit card strategy for a bit, but you never know how it changes

jalm1

I hold all these but the AMEX Gold (have the EDP in place). I also do the Citi Premier for 5x and the Delta reserve card for the MQM's. I was looking at my wallet the other day and there are 4 $400+ AF fee cards. I get value from each which lowers their effective fee, and my tracking spreadsheet still has me coming out at ~2% on a net basis (after AF), but I feel I am in too many programs, just not sure where to trim.

lax01

haha yeah, my tracking spreadsheet is getting pretty complicated....gotta remember all the burned/wasted time worrying about this crap too!

I've completely cut Chase except for the Amazon card...its my sole Visa card in my wallet. AMEX Gold is pretty much go-to for everything right now

mlin32

Being an expat based in Europe but still using US-based cards, the addition of worldwide restaurants to the 4x bonus points is a huge boon, and may sway me to keep the card next year.

I just got my statement and can confirm that my recent restaurant transaction in Metz did accrue the 4x points.

Amex acceptance is notably lower if you live/travel outside major cities. However, larger chain stores may accept them but it is still far from widespread. I would consider it to be 20% in "real' France and Germany for non-chain stores.

krazykanuck

It is nice! I work for a European company and have to go to Paris quarterly, and I find Amex acceptance in Paris to be decent. Looking forward to using my Amex instead of my Citi premier card.

jalm1

bgriff

The bad news with AA gift cards no longer working for the Amex airline credits also weighs against Amex. I've typically used the Amex credits for Delta gift cards; if those stop working that would definitely make it easier to justify cutting out the Gold card if/when the time comes.

I used to make a big point to max out the Freedom bonuses each quarter (and I actually have 2 Freedom cards, one "native" one and one converted CSP) including buying gift cards at drug stores and the like, but eventually decided ... at best this is getting me 48k points per year (4 extra points (and in some categories it's much less than 4 extra points) * $1500 * 4 quarters * 2 cards) which I decided just weren't worth all the brainpower and time I was putting into the maximization effort. And that was on a card with no annual fee. I may eventually come around to deciding that the extra points the Amex Gold offers are similarly not worth it, especially if the recent development of AA gift cards not triggering the Amex airline fee credits turns into a broader trend.

jags86

krazykanuck

You may want to check out the AA thread, they seem to be working again. I agree with you though if these credits were no longer usable for GCs that would significantly change the value prop.

ToastedSi

This is my first card with an AF and 11th credit card overall. I think this card will replace most of my other cards with its 4x restaurants and groceries. Also, the weight on this card is pretty nice as well. It weighed in at 14g using my food scale. (compared to 12 and 11 on my other 2 "metal" cards)

sdsearch

You may want to check out the AA thread again. They're only working for some purchases, not for other purchases, even by the same person doing two different e-gift card purchases exactly the same way, the first counted, the second didn't (because only the second one coded as "gift certificate").

But whether they count or not has to do with how AA itself codes the purchase. It's not a change on the Amex side. So it has nothing to with DL.

trikotret

farwest101

Yes, you'll get the 5k bonus if you add new AUs. Can add AUs online - just click the link thru the email they sent about the offer, or via your online account: Account Services -> Add Someone to Your Account

trikotret