......

If you want to max ROI, then surely all that matters is what value you place on UA miles.

At $5 vgc fee + $1 MO fee and 1.5x on the UA card, you are buying UA miles at <0.68cpm
(Not counting travel/personal time).

If you just do Spark you are making 1% profit on every transaction. Therefore using the UA card instead of Spark also carries a 1cpm opportunity cost.

With these numbers, if you think you can extract more than 1.68cpm redeeming UA miles, then you should just put everything on the UA card and forget Spark.

why not just use ink+??

I just use a grocery rewards card to earn cash.

I don't do anything with miles as I have small children, and am renovating our house. So I just pay for the renovation with my MS on my best cash back options.

Yes, some of us call it OBC ;)

That 2% is nothing compared with 5% minus a little over 1% in costs :D

It even offsets an annual fee every now and then, when banks don t give it back and you need a specific miles card.

I believe I am doing the "offset" method, also. Too complicated to explain specifics but my comment about the "Trifecta" in another thread does point that direction.

More info on the UA miles, please. Is there a strategy to combine with the current "United Airlines Bonus Miles for Spending Money on Flights"?

Good point, Miami, but I DIDN'T forget about that. I HAVE to be in that town 3 Times per Week (wife has to undergo dialysis...I have to drive her...closest location for dialysis is 150 miles away; long story). So anyway, Im there anyway, so I can either sit in the waiting room for 3 Hours, or I can do this.;) I'd like to do more transactions, but in this particular town, there's only 1 WM. And if I buy 8 VGC's Daily, that means 2 separate MO transactions, of 4 swipes each. I dont want to push much past that. They have been perfectly willing to let me buy 4, $999.30 MO's in 2 transactions, with no problem.

Occasionally, my wife has medical appointments in another town which has 3 WM's, an OD, Staples, CVS, among many other chains. When Im at this town, I certainly scale up.:D

Actually, MO is 70 Cents per 2 VGC's, not $1 for Each (I can buy $999.30 MO, with 2 VGC's).
But be that as it may, the thing is, by using Spark, to offset, there is literally no out of pocket Expense for me to get these miles. Paying nothing is always better than Paying Something. And gas is a non-issue, as I have to be in that town 3 Times Weekly for my wife's medical procedures. If I were to just use United, without the offset, then I would be Paying for the miles. Does that make sense?

I use Ink when Im at a town with OD. There is none in this town that I visit thrice Weekly.

Cool! We all gotta do whats best for us! My family (other than my wife) all live 2000 miles away in NY, so it would be nice for me to buy free tickets all The Time. And the only Airline that flies to my small Airport is United. Literally the only 1.

Good point Carlos. Sadly, no grocery stores that sell VGC's here, and I dont think Walmart codes as grocery for Amex. I dont do business with Amex anyway, but glad it works 4 u!^

Im not familiar with That Bonus. Please explain?

https://promotions.united.com/bb/

goto the above link and put in your mp number ad register, do the same with other family members,
there is a promotion to spend money and fly united from regerstation until some time in November, the deal I got was spend 500 get 10,000 miles, spend 1000 get 25,000 spend 2,500 get 50,000 miles.

I put in my MP no., and it indicated that it was by invitation only, and I wasn't eligible. Oh well, thanks anyway, was worth a shot!

I got a ton of miles anyway, so wasn't planning on spending Any Money on United anyway. :)

You are still paying for the miles...you are just using the Spark profits to do it. Depending on how you value United Miles, either the UA card or Spark produces higher profit per transaction and should be used exclusively. The only advantage to using both would be to avoid spending thresholds which could get you shut down.