FlyerMel

Apologies if it was covered somewhere but I couldn't find what I need. I am SM with DL and have SkyMiles plat card + Amex plat which gets me MR points + usual perks. I like flexibility of rewards points and I just got CSP card with its nice bonus and also because it is Visa and easier to use abroad. However, I am looking for an everyday card to help me get rewards points faster. I will likely be transferring points to one of the airlines for award travel. It may be DL but may be another airline. That's why I like flexibility. I wonder which one is better to get in my case: Amex Everyday Preferred or Chase Freedom Unlimited (or both??). Looks like folks here have a lot more experience in this area than I do, and I could use an informed opinion based on personal experience. Thanks in advance!

FlyerMel

Just in case it might help somebody, I found this comparison: http://thepointsguy.com/2016/04/chas...day-preferred/.

I ended up picking Sapphire Preferred/Unlimited combo because Chase had an offer for me that I could not refuse. I will likely pick up Everyday Preferred as well as I think each has its place but I will probably wait until I also get an offer that I can't refuse.

NoStressHere

The Chase Reserve gives you 100,000 points, $300 a year travel credits, priority pass club access.

Signup bonus drops to 50,000 on Jan 12th. Act fast.

$50 annual fee and if you got more than 4 new credit cards in the past 24 months, you will not be approved

FlyerMel

I already have an Amex Platinum. There's a lot of overlap between it and Chase Reserve to justify getting Reserve. The combined bonus on my combo pf CSP/FU was very close to advertised bonus on Reserve at a significantly lower cost.

NoStressHere

Let's see.

The Chase Reserve will give you
$300 travel credit this year and
$300 next year,
plus 100,000 points good for $1,500 in travel not be enough to pick it up?

How is that not enough to justify getting it?
Spend $450 and get $2,100.

FlyerMel

Technically, it is more like spend $900 and get $2,100 rather than spend $450 and get $2,100. You are including 2nd year $300 travel credit in the benefits but not 2nd year fee of $450.00.

I am not arguing that it isn't a great offer but you must have overlooked the fact that I already have Amex Platinum. And I do not want to cancel this card. Then a reasonable question is what do I need two cards at $450 a piece with overlapping benefits for? What will I do with two Priority Pass memberships in my name even if it is possible to have two of them? Etc, etc. I think you kind of have to pick which card of this type you want to have, and I had made that choice a while ago.

Instead I went for CSP/FU combo with a combined net sign-up bonus which is within 5% of Chase Reserve net sign-up bonus over 1 year period and within 1% over 2 year period.

Starting this thread, I just wanted to get feedback from folks with personal experience with both cards as to which card (FU or EDP) provided a more optimal way for quick accumulation of either MRs or URs. Unfortunately, no one with such an experience had responded. On the plus side, though, through my limited research, I ended up with CSP/FU. And I still may pick up EDP if the right offer comes my way.

PointsTutor

The $300 dollar annual travel credit is based on a calendar year and not card member year and thus you'll have approximately 2 weeks to get that 2nd annual travel credit in 2017 before your annual fee hits.

In regards to the Everyday Preferred, I have it and used it as my primary card in 2016. I did start getting tired of having to worry about meeting the 30 transaction minimum and that Amex is not accepted everywhere. As a result I've now started using my CSR/FU/CF combo for 2017. While I truly love Amex.. I also hate having to carry a "backup" card for every time my Amex card isn't accepted.

NoStressHere

Point #1 - You could get the 2nd year travel credit before the fee comes due. Then cancel.

Point #2 - The fact that you have another $450 card does not matter. You still get the $2,100 (less $450) the first year. You have to look at the net. If there were 5 offers like this out there, at $450 each, they would still make sense. Why is picking up over $1,000 NET a bad deal? Keep the Amex if it works for you.

I have a brother that will not do this deal - "I will never, ever pay those .......s an annual fee". So, I offered to pay the annual fee, and told him to give me the $2,100. He of course saw no point in that either. I will make you the same offer. I will pay your fee, and you send me two grand!!

ILovetheReds

I was approved the Sapphire a couple days ago. Whilst I hate paying $450 for a credit card it's a great deal at least the first year since it provides $1,500 in travel with the sign up bonus and I'll get another $300 back at the end of the year with the travel credit.

I want to make sure I understand booking tickets using points with Chase for Delta.

I will still get the miles and be eligible for the upgrades and get the perks for C+ seating, etc. just as if I booked it paying with $ correct? And I'll be able to link my SM numbers so I can view the reservation on Delta.com correct? I want to make sure I'm not losing out on my diamond benefits booking on the chase site.

NoStressHere

You will get $300 on the next $300 in travel spend... so it could be this month (not the end of the year). It happens overnight once an expense hits your account. Also, once you reach the first bill after the last one in 2017, another $300 in credit will appear - if you do any travel expense in that timeframe.

In my example, my bill cutoff date is the 10th of the month. I got my $300 back in October for 2016. When I booked a flight in the middle of December, it was already in my next bill cycle and the $300 for 2017 actual hit my card in December (as part of my Jan 10, 2017 bill).

So, I have already rec'd $600. And 100,000 miles worth $1,500 or more in travel.

ILovetheReds

That's a great deal if the credit goes through when the statement closes. I was reading it that it would post at the end of every 12 months when the new annual fee would post.

For most people 100,000 miles is worth more than $1,500 but in my case I'm always cutting it close for the 125K MQM's to keep diamond and a lot of times use my miles for a PWM upgrade to first class on FCM fares just to get the MQM's. Seeing the amount of travel I do the free Skyclub membership is great seeing I would buy a membership anyway and the SWU's are valuable for international vacations and my wife and I can each gift one of our teens gold status.

Zorak

You missed the important bit

As NoStressHere says, the credit posts as soon as a travel-coded expense posts to your account. e.g. over the course of a few days I bought a $2 train ticket and it posted as a $2 charge immediately followed by a $2 credit. Then I bought a $220 plane ticket which posted in similar fashion. Then $120 on a hotel room which posted as a $120 charge and a $78 credit maxing out the $300.

There's a dedicated Chase forum and multiple threads about the CSR benefits if people want to research in more detail:

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/chase...e-rewards-722/

NoStressHere

It is sad that so many can not read and do the math.

The 100,000 is gone now. The 50,000 is still a good deal, even if you have other cards.

But, it does require one to have a reasonable understanding of the english language and math skills of at last the 10th grade level.

dgilman

...except it's still available if you apply in person at a Chase until March 12th. No need to be a Chase customer to do this.

The Situation

This is why I still only have a Visa and AmEx card that have no annual fee, but offer cash back. It is extremely difficult to use all of the perks that come with these high fee cards, especially since so many cards have overlapping categories. CC companies are investing in you like an annuity. The AmEx platinum card has caught my attention, but a lot of the perks are things that I don't need anyway. My status with DL means I have never incurred the incidental fees, I get priority security lines, so the incremental benefit of global entry isn't great, and lounge access is nice, but I try to book short layovers as much as possible so its a waste. It does come with 5% reward points on flights now, but I would need to spend nearly $13K on flights to break even and I don't come close to that (although I know a lot of people do). Point is, take 10 minutes and do the math. You may find your DL medallion benefits and existing benefits with other cards, would mean you are just forking over an extra few hundred bucks a year for no real gain.