Hi. I am a college student, and am looking to get a new credit card that has some kind of miles program. I would like to then get into I don't travel a lot (but I would like to travel more, hopefully with the help of the card) so I would prefer a card without an annual fee.

The only frequent flyer miles I currently have are about 20,000 on American. They are not affiliated with their credit card though, and as I said I would rather not get a card with an annual fee.

Any suggestions?

United Airlines has a credit card with no annual fee, that gives 1 mile for every 2 dollars spent. Not to be confused with the one they always advertise - it gives more miles, but has a fee.

My primary suggestion is unrelated to which card you choose. Treat credit card purchases as if they are cash - meaning only buy something on your card if you can afford it, and then pay off your entire bill each month. Then, you are truly getting free miles - if you ever have to pay interest, you will be paying a lot more than the miles are worth.

As far as I know, every major airline has a free card that gives 1/$2. If you already have American miles, probably best to build on them instead of starting another airline, provided American is easily accessible to you at your airport.

Personally I prefer the Starwood AMEX, which can transfer its points to almost all of the airlines 1-1 and is free 1 year then has a fee, but if you are in college and do not charge that much per month, the fee may not be worth it for you.

Even if you do not see a free card advertised, I think that they all have them, just call the same number as for the regular card and ask about a no fee card that gives 1 mile per $2. Make sure that you get a bonus for signing up, I think it is usually like 2500 or 3000 miles.

Get the Citi AAdvantage MasterCard, which normally has an annual fee but is currently offering it free for six months. You get 10,000 bonus miles for first purchase on it. Even if you cancel in six months, you've got to use it for free and you now have 30,000 (your existing miles plus the bonus) PLUS 1 mile for ever $1 you've charged during the six month free period.

even if you just use it once, 30,000 will get you anywhere in the US including Alaska or the Caribbean.

Give me a minute and i'll find the six month fee free offer.

Starwood preferred guest. First year is free and $25/year thereafter. Allows you to earn miles on any airline and at starwood hotels. Starwood points transfer to most major carriers at 1:1 ratio. Redeem 20,000 starwood points and get 5,000 bonus miles on airline. Top up your orphan miles with starpoints. There is no better card in my opinion. As a backup cc, you might want to get a Bronze AA MC with no fee, $2 for 1 mile.

dac

I agree that this is the best card out there. But be sure that you get a card which is accepted by your school.

Thanks for all your help. I think I'll at least try the AA Advantage card for 6 months, and get the 10k miles, like you suggested.

I'll also look into those other cards.

Can someone point me towards where I might find that introductory 6-month deal with the AAdvantage card? On citibanks site it doesn't seem to mention that. Just says $85 fee for the platinum (10,000 mile bonus) and $55 fee for the gold (7,500 mile bonus).

Grab the AA Citibank card if you can get the 10K with 6 months free. More info on the AA board (including a link, I believe). That's a no-brainer.

After that, it depends on your level of spending. If you don't spend a lot on a credit card, you might be better off with a no-fee cashback card or one affiliated with your favorite gas station. For low spending, quick small rewards are probably better than FF miles.

(If you can't get that AA card for free, search the AA board anyway - the folks there will give you lots of ideas to get the 5,000 miles you need for a free ticket without a big cash outlay.)

Umm. I don't want to be flamed for being anti-credit, but I'd like to suggest a mileage earning debit card unless there are specific reasons you need a credit card.

I just think credit cards promote fiscal irresponsibility. It's already too hard to live within your means without a credit card giving you the temporary ability to spend beyond your means as well as miles as an incentive to spend more.

Just some advice. Be careful. Know yourself.

I understand that AMEX will start charging $14.95 or so to transfer miles after March 1.

Where did you get this information?

I believe Amtrak still offers a no-fee card which offers 1 point for every dollar charged; points can then be transferred to United or Continental in 5000 point increments on a 1:1 basis. 500 point bonus for signing up, too.

Citi AAdvantage card, fee-free for 6 months plus 10,000 bonus miles for first purchase:

http://www.aa.com/apps/netSAAver/Vie...omotionContent

(When you call I would be sure to verify with them that it's free for six months as the above offer indicates)

You can also get an American Airlines business card, free for a year, and 10,000 mile for first use. All you have to do is create a business of some sort. A customer rep told me you can get both deals, for a total of 20,000 free miles.

There are lots of free cards available. For a good, perhaps complete, list of them, see the Credit Cards page of my web site below.

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Free Frequent Flyer Miles