I ran through this drill almost exactly a year ago, so now’s the perfect time to revisit what’s in my wallet. Every purchase I make, I want to maximize the potential reward, so it’s critical to have the right cards in my wallet at any given time. If you don’t review what’s in your wallet at least a few times a year, you’re probably losing valuable points or miles earning opportunities.
My main overarching goal is always to maximize earning points and miles. For day-to-day spending, I almost always choose which credit card to use based on earning the most points possible for every transaction. For example, I pay for travel expenses with my Chase Sapphire Reserve card because it earns me more points in that category than any other card I own. Similarly, I use my American Express Gold card for dining and grocery store transactions because those earn 4x Membership Rewards points.
However, there are times when I need to change my credit card usage. In general, there are three reasons why I change which cards I use and thus which cards I carry in my wallet.
- Spending on a new credit card in order to meet the minimum spending requirement for a sign-up bonus
- Taking advantage of a special credit card promotion
- Earning points or miles towards a specific goal
So with that being said, here are the credit cards currently in my wallet and when I use each.
My Wallet as of September 2020
American Express Gold Card
As was true a year ago at this time, the American Express Gold card is my most used credit card. In a given month, the majority of my transactions can be grouped into dining and grocery purchases. And since this card earns 4x Membership Rewards (MR) points on both restaurants and groceries, it gets the most use of any card in my wallet.
American Express Blue Business Plus
My next most used card is one of my two “catch-all” cards. This card earns 2x MR points on all purchases. Any spending that doesn’t fall into a bonus earning category on another card goes on this one. Cards like the Amex Gold (4x on dining) or the Chase Sapphire Reserve (3x on dining) earn only 1x points on purchases outside of their bonus categories. So I’d rather earn 2x points on this card then 1x points on any other card. Plus Amex makes it easy by pooling MR points, so spending on any card in the MR family are put into the same account automatically.
Chase Freedom Unlimited
My other “catch-all” card is the Chase Freedom Unlimited, which earns 1.5x Chase Ultimate Rewards (UR) points on all purchases. I use the Amex Blue Business Plus a little more often, but I like to spread out non-bonus purchases between both cards. Chase recently announced, however, that cardholders will earn bonus cash back on travel, dining and drugstore purchases! So in addition to being one of my “catch-all” cards, I use this now for all purchases at my local Walgreens.
Chase Sapphire Reserve
While I view Chase Ultimate Rewards as the most valuable points program, this card usage has taken a hit this year. The Chase Sapphire Reserve earns 3x UR points on travel and dining expenses. If I was traveling, this would be my go-to card for all travel expenses, but COVID-19 had other ideas. And for dining, I mostly use my Amex Gold card. Even though I value Chase UR points over American Express MR points, I can’t pass up 4x MR points on dining with the Gold card. So this card mainly comes out of my wallet at any restaurant that doesn’t accept American Express or if I’d rather earn Chase UR points on a particular purchase.
Chase Freedom
My Chase Freedom card is in my wallet year round. This card earns a 5% return in rotating categories that change each quarter. Right now through September 30, Chase is paying 5x UR points at Amazon.com and Whole Foods Market, on up to $1,500 in combined purchases. I’ve been using this card exclusively at Amazon.com, so I really don’t need to carry it in my wallet. So we’ll consider this card to be part of my “virtual” wallet instead.
Discover It
My other rotating categories card, the Discover It card, has been in my wallet since the third quarter began. During this quarter, cardholders earn 5% cash back at restaurants an online purchases made via PayPal. I’ve mostly used the card online when checking out using PayPal, but I also have it in my wallet for occasional use at restaurants.
Costco Anywhere Visa
The Costco Anywhere Visa card is always in my wallet even though I don’t use it all that much. For part the year, I use it to earn 4% on purchases at gas stations. During the rest of the year, I use my Chase Freedom or Discover It cards since gas stations usually earn 5% in multiple quarters. I also use this card for 2% cash back on my Costco runs.
US Bank Business Cash
The US Bank Business Cash card is a new card I applied for just this past June. It was in my wallet in order to meet the minimum spending requirement needed for the $500 sign-up bonus. Even though I’ve already received the welcome bonus, I’m still using the card to pay my monthly mobile phone bill. I do this because I earn 3% cash back on purchases from cell phone providers, but also because I get mobile phone protection up to $800 per claim as long as I pay my bill with the card.
Recently Dropped from my Wallet
Hilton Honors Aspire Card
Since hitting my Hilton Honors points goal for an upcoming trip to Hawaii, I removed this card from my wallet. I haven’t stayed even one night at any hotel this year, so until I start traveling again, this card stays on the sidelines. Currently, the only thing that would bring it back into my wallet is a compelling promotion from American Express. There’s a current offer of 1,000 Hilton points for every $1,000 spent, but with Hilton points only worth 0.5 to 0.6 cents per point, the return on that offer is pretty poor.
United Explorer Card
I had planned to keep this card to get free checked baggage fee and lounge access during my trip to Hawaii. After returning home, I was then going to downgrade the card to the no annual fee version. But after the pandemic caused me to cancel my Hawaii trip, I decided to keep this card for at least another year. Hopefully we can travel to Hawaii in 2021 and use the benefits then. In the meantime, this card hasn’t been in my wallet all year, since I value earning flexible points from Chase and American Express over United miles.
Bottom Line
This group of cards is what works for me right now. Remember that while this is currently my ideal wallet, a different set of credit cards may work better for you. I don’t foresee any changes to my wallet or credit card usage for the rest of the month. However, I do expect the credit card companies to announce holiday promotions soon. When that happens, I will review each one and change my spending habits to take advantage of those that make sense for me.
