@@TheCreditFrogHilton Surpass does better than 5% back, considering the free night credit, I think it’s the best return on non-categorized spend if you hit the $15K threshold. …Or multiple surpass cards, for that matter...
Lol same! My go to has been to use the PayPal Mastercard for estimated taxes as there is a 1% arbitrage on that (3% cash back and approx 2% PayPal fee).
Insurance ( auto, homeowners, renter’s ) and pet care ( veterinary, food ) are just 2 categories that are not commonly covered under the 5% categories. Discover has mobile payment this quarter and does help a lot
Yeah, you're totally right! A lot of the service based industries are harder to cover at the 5% level as well as insurance and taxes so, of course, we have to try to supplement them with a catch-all, or like you mentioned, those rotating category cards can sometimes catch them as well!
I have the Discover it card and my car insurance payment is coming up in October. Can you please help me understand how I can use this quarter's "Gas Stations and Digital Wallets" 5% back to pay for my insurance in Septermber?
This is one of my favorite video topics and I thoroughly enjoyed this one. The beauty of a cashback setup is you really don't have to be tied down to 1 or 2 lenders to get value from your cards which is what makes these videos so fun. I'd say you came up with a pretty great list Stan! Nice work!
Thanks Spencer!! Yes, I think it's such a fun activity to see if you can make a 5% cash back setup to cover all of your major categories. I agree that having the freedom to move between issuers to maximize that multiplier is super liberating, and I (kind of) miss the days when all I had were no annual fee cards - looking back, I think I ran a no annual fee setup for the first 7-8 years I had credit cards - which is crazy looking at me now - probably just making up for lost time. Or having a mid-life crisis 🤣
Hahah that's awesome. Maybe one day we'll have to take on a no annual fee credit card challenge or something and downgrade all our cards for the content 😉🤣@@TheCreditFrog
This is a thoughtful and well-researched strategy here Stan! I really like how you were able to build out an all-purpose 5% cash back setup without leaning on the BofA CCR and/or a bunch of Citi Custom Cash cards 😂 (while still showing their potential closer to the end). I think the setup you created is more accessible to those who can’t reach that Platinum Elite status or just wouldn’t want to move assets around to BofA/Merrill. Well done sir!
Thanks Josh! Yeah, I definitely didn't want to focus on the CCC and BofA CCR because that would make things a little too easy. Accessibility is key, especially for these no annual fee setups. Having said that, the CCC is pretty accessible to everyone and should be one of the first cards to get in a 5% cash back strategy. Appreciate you, bro!!
An honorable mention for gas is the Marcus GM rewards card. With the card if you spend $1,500 in a calendar year you get $100 back as a statement credit on top of the 1% you're earning (works out to roughly 7.65% back). Anything over that $1,500 doesn't get you anything substantial so I switch to a 3% gas card after. You'd have to break down the math for yourself on if a flat 5% would end up earning you more but in my case spending $150 a month on gas the GM card works great.
Great suggestion! Yeah $1,500 in gas at that multiplier rate can really go a long way! I think if you’re willing to do the math and switch out cards as needed, this is another great gas card to add to the portfolio!
The Citi Custom Cash is definitely one I have my eye on for next year. I love the creativity of how you keep this fun and entertaining...Great vid Stan 💥
The Citi Custom Cash is a solid card - definitely get this card as soon as it makes sense for you! Appreciate the feedback Mike, and I'm so happy you enjoyed the video!
be careful with CITI, they calculate due dates and late fees extremely strictly, unlike every other credit card company. you are basically late if you dont pay the cc charge immediately on the last day of the 30 day billing cycle the transaction was made. no one else does this. also their online portal will count your scheduled payment as a day late if its made after 5pm eastern time. they also increased their late fee from 30$ to 40$ this year. so draconian. i have 15 credit cards, i pay every single one of them by hand every month on the same day, and CITI's draconian rules has caused me to get a couple late fees. they even invented a difference between the statement ending day and the payment due date. so basically your payment is due like 2-3 days (depending on if its a business day or not) before the end of your statement end date. this is so bizarre to me.... gives me scammy 2010 wells fargo overdraft fee vibes. I would never do auto pays with how high interest rates are, ide rather keep an extra $2000 in my synchrony savings account @4.5% until the last week of the month.... but CITI is costing me a lot of lost interest because i have to keep more money in my 0% apr checking than i normally would to pay their dumb bill 4 times a month. what a nightmare.
Awesome video! I believe you can't have two AAA cards, but if you have a player two, you could get one each. If not, probably best to get whatever card has the category you spend more on. For EV charging, you could add the Citi Costco Anywhere Visa card as it gets 4% back up to $7k/year.
Thanks Isaac! Thanks for the tip! Yeah, I read that somewhere about the AAA cards, but then when I went back for this video, I couldn't find it. Good to know you can't have two, but I love your idea about using a P2 to get both cards! And yeah, the Citi Costco card is another great choice for gas/EV charging, although 4% is not 5%, that still is really good!
This was phenomenal! Really did this topic justice in a very simple and educational way, felt like a game show and I found myself really trying to guess which cards were which. I didn’t really know much about the AAA cards so I got those cards wrong haha. And good point about getting just a bunch of citi custom cash’s, haha, imagine if that was every card on your list 😂.
Thanks Tony! Yeah, I tried to make this more fun an interactive, so I'm glad you were able to play along. I think the easiest way to get 5% cash back on everything would be as many CCC and BofA CCR cards you can get, but it's not as interesting if I just said that like you mentioned! But multiple CCCs + BofA CCRs can be an effective strategy if you want to go that route!!
@@maximmireyev4225 For example, if you have a Citi Double Cash card for more than a year, you can call up customer service and ask to product change to a Citi Custom Cash card.
@@maximmireyev4225 The Citi Custom Cash is the way to go! If you get the Citi Rewards+ card too, you can redeem your points for 5.5X points, which is also pretty cool!
That's awesome! Yeah, the USB Cash+ card is such a solid card - thinking of picking it up one day for my own setup as well. I'm glad you enjoyed this video topic! And keep it up, transitioning from a spender to a saver! It's never too late to change your mindset and turn your financial outlook around for the better 👍!
Elan bank max cash preferred card also give 5% utilities and you don’t have to opt into the categories each quarter. They’re issued by various banks but all the cards use the same underwriting.
Very cool! Yea, I heard they’re a clone of the US Bank Cash+ card. Having two of these is nice because now you can cover 4 5% categories instead of 2, or up the max limit on a selected category by doubling up!
Thanks Josh! Yeah, I remember reading something about you could only have one AAA card, but when I made this video, I couldn't find it again for some reason. Gotta love that Abound card!!
Interesting. Hopefully you can get both. I do recall other videos saying you can't get both. But seems we need more proof of those actually acquiring both.
Love the setup here Stan, you definitely hit all of the major spend categories with this setup, and it was a really fun way to be 5x better than how most Americans use their Credit Cards! Kudos to you for finding some really unique, more underrated Cards to complete this setup as well! Some under the radar brands like U.S Bank & AAA as well. Great video as always Stan!
Thanks Matt! Yeah, it definitely was a fun exercise to figure out how to get 5% cash back on as many categories I could without it getting too overwhelming, haha! I think some of those less known cards can get some great value on our everday spending categories, and of course, with no annual fee cards, everyone is a winner! (including the banks because they still get swipe fees)!
Nice video Stan. This was well laid out and the cards you chose for the categories are great cards. This would be an excellent set up for someone looking to maximize their cash back set up. That AAA Abound card is sneaky good. Excellent content sir!
Thanks Jon! Yeah, this was a fun exercise to see how many 5% categories I could hit! It looks like you can't have the AAA Daily and Travel Advantage cards together, so that Abound credit union card for 5% gas would be a nice alternative!
This was an amazing video! Honestly didn’t even think of the Triple A cards, so that is good to know that they can help with those categories, especially being for categories that are more for everyday use.
Awesome video, Stan! I just recently added the AAA Daily Advantage to my arsenal and am loving the 5% back on groceries plus those awesome 3% categories as well! Even though I already have two Citi Custom Cash Cards and a Discover It, I think I will be using the AAA card for most of my grocery/wholesale club purchases from now on. Even though I have the AMEX Gold, I am actually trying to focus on cashback at least for the rest of the year to have funds for Christmas presents for friends and family. I’ll leave my points/miles for aspirational travel later on. 😅
That’s great Armando! Looks like you have a very powerful 5% cash back setup already and adding that AAA Daily Advantage card looks like it fits right in for those 5% groceries. Super solid bro, you’re really living the 5% dream haha!
Are we going to have to rename you Stan the Cash Back Frog?!?? Great video and you've put some new cards on my radar even though I thought I was committed to gardening lol
Haha! I don't know if I'm "switching" to cash back, but there are certainly a lot of merits to that type of setup, and I do use my 5.25% BofA CCR card for gas, so I'm still partaking in a little bit of cash back! Glad I could interest you in more cards, haha - that's how this game goes. You think you're done, and then you're not 🤣
Here's My 5% Setup: Entertainment - Elan Max Cash Groceries - AAA Daily Advantage EV Charging - FutureCard Retail Shopping - Target RedCard, Walmart Card, Amazon Card Dining - Citi Prestige Travel - Citi Custom Cash & Citi Prestige (OTAs) Transit - FutureCard Utilities & Internet - US Bank Cash+
Great video. I might slowly convert over to cash back with a couple cards I didn't know about. The only category I disagree with is travel. If you use the chase travel portal, your easily paying 5% more than if you booked direct as a member to whatever hotel or airline.
Thanks Nick! That's so interesting. I've never used the Chase Travel portal myself, so I didn't realize that you overspend when using the portal itself. The only bank travel portal I'm familiar with really is with BofA, and that one matches the airline websites 1:1. In that case, you may have to use a second CCC card, another BofA CCR w/ PH, and figure out a new strategy for that dining category! That travel/dining dichotomy is tricky to deal with without using either of those two cards so all I was left with was 5X Chase Travel portal 😕
Wow Stan that was a great card select for cash back it sounds like your pick can beat the Amex gold for points owned and No annual fee. I will have to look into that restaurant card. Nice keep that content coming.
EXTREME 5X Sweet video. I'm loving the Custom Cash Card and the Customized Cash Rewards card. Question: I know you can get a second CCC but how would you go about getting a 3rd one, the same with the CCR ? Would an additional one be the Susan Kormen one? Is the a video on how to get multiples of the same? Thanks for the video.
Of course man! Yeah, so when it comes to the BofA CCR cards. You can product change ANY BofA family cards to the CCR (UR, TR, PR, PR Elite). Probably best to wait 1 year before the product change so that will slow you down a little. That strategy, plus the Susan G Komen card, like you mentioned, can help you get an ARMY of CCR cards. Then add Player 2 and double that, or you can run simultaneously to save time. With Platinum Honors, you could have like 6-8 CCR cards with 5.25% on your choice 3% category which is insane! Then add the Citi Custom Cash with P2, and maybe have 2 of those as well 🤯. That's why I didn't focus on those cards in this video because I feel like that's cheating 🤣
Thanks JP! Yeah, cash back is sort of a different world with their own strategies, but the points and miles game is so diverse, which is what makes it fun and interesting 👍!
Simple short video with a lot of great information.. One topic though I didn’t hear was car insurance. Would you say Citi bank custom cash? Thanks in advance..
I'm not sure if there's a good 5% cash back category for car insurance. The closest card that I can think of is the Kroger World Elite Mastercard where you can earn 5% on mobile wallet purchases (if you can pay your car insurance through a mobile wallet) up to $3k per calendar year.
@@mitchell.9632 I haven’t applied for the travel advantage yet. My wife just got the daily advantage card, but I did see the limitation for holding only one while researching the details. I might apply for it in a few months, still deciding. The details page does have a calculator for helping you decide which one to get.
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Aaaaand now I have two more credit cards to juggle.;P I'm always torn between just using a travel card for everything or getting cash back. 5% is hard to argue with though.
It’s so true. Sometimes it’s hard to determine whether you want to go full travel points or run a cash back setup. I’m personally in favor of running a hybrid setup to get the best of both worlds!
@@TheCreditFrog VIDEO IDEA!! highest return on spend credit card set up that earn flexible currency only(AmEx MP, chase UR, Citi TY, Capital One and BILT)
People don't realize how much 5% is worth. They'll scoft at 5% back and be content with 2x back... That's essentially "buying" points at 2.5 cpp... which I doubt most consumer would ever get close to.
Yeah, 5% cash back can be very powerful, especially when utilizing no annual fee credit cards. With just a little bit of effort, the savings can go a long way, and then multiplied over decades, this can really add up!
Thanks Jay! Yeah, that would be a great 5% category to have! I’m not familiar with any cards that do that, but that just means the market is open for any takers!
Great video. Biggest holes from this that I see are (i) kids expenses (if you have them), (ii) rent/mortgages (common Bilt for the latter for even 1x!!), (iii) home services other than utilities (think Ring/ADT or your lawn guy), (iv) medical expenses, (v) pets, and (vi) insurance expenses. Anyone have any strategies with any of these? Understand there’s going to be holes of course but figure I’d ask just in case. I’d also be interested in seeing this list with small annual fee cards included too (i.e. Blue Cash Preferred or US Bank Shopper Cash Rewards). Finally, can you product change to get multiple US Bank Cash+, Citi Custom Cash, or BofA Customized Cash Rewards cards? I’m guessing yes with some work?
Thanks Jordan! Yes, you bring up some very good points about expenses that are unlikely to be covered by the 5% category. It comes down to breaking down each category into it's own respective goods and services. For example, kids goods and items can be purchased using retail/online shopping, but services such as childcare can't be bought on Amazon (yet). LIkewise, medical and insurance expenses are more service-based expenses and so they fall out of that "goods" category that could be purchased retail or online. I will say that one loophole I've found that has been pretty effective is the BofA business customized cash rewards card with its computer services and business consulting services category. When paired with Business Preferred Rewards, this category can get up to 5.25% in those categories, which are a lot more expansive then I realized. For example, I use Adobe to make YT stuff, and this subscription falls under the computer services category. I've also used Fiverr to do some freelance jobs, and that codes under business services. I think that card is a card that could help in those service-type of expenses, but it'd depend on the merchant category code. When you get the card, you get a pamphlet with all the MCCs and if your interested, I show that pamphlet in my unboxing video on that card. I think it would be awesome to see what kind of setup that could be built with mid-tier cards ($95 annual fee cards, etc)! I'll add that idea to my list. And yes, you can product change to multiple Citi Custom Cash and BofA CCR cards. Essentially wait for 1 year and do the PC (DC and Premier for CCC and UR/TR/PR/PR Elite for the CCR). It's not that much work, but you do have to wait at least 1 year. This could go faster with a P2 👍!
Loved how you covered this topic! I'm not too familiar with citi yet and am wondering, can you transfer points earned from a p2's CCC to p1's portal and then transfer to external partners if p1 has the citi premier?
Thanks so much! Yes, so Citi does have this "points sharing" feature when you can enter a family/friend's Citi ThankYou points account number and you can transfer your points from your account that other person's account to get the rewards benefits associated with the person with the Citi Premier card!
Yes, that's what I heard as well! One way around this is to do a P1/P2 setup, or that Abound credit card for gas would work great if you got the AAA daily advantage card. Also, someone brought up the Sam's club card which gets 5% on gas, which is pretty good too!
Sounds great on the surface, but compared to the Chase Amazon Prime card with 5%, it's a tough sell. I know that Amazon Prime has a membership fee so that should also be taken into some consideration, but I'm more of a fan of the cards with a slightly lower multiplier but with no annual fee.
Yeah, a lot of them do. But usually the 5% back on the Cash+ earns you more than what is charged as a fee so you still come out ahead, although not by as much.
That's a pretty sweet deal! That would make for a great gas/EV charging card! And you could probably get a lot of consumer staple goods and Sams Club as well! I know that Sam's Clubs sometimes runs membership promotions as well so that could probably lower that "annual fee." Solid.
Stan The "Rose Gold" Credit Frog, are you team Eric or team Luke when it comes to the Chase World of Hyatt credit card? Is it a God mode card or a junk card?
First of all, love your name! Not sure where you came up with "Rose Gold" Credit Frog, because I am forever on Team Classic Gold!! But on to your question. I'm actually on Luke's side when it comes to the WOH card. I think that the FNA is pretty good, especially given the $95 AF on the card, but the multipliers do suck, so if you stay at a lot of Hyatt properties, and want to make Hyatt your main transfer partner strategy using Chase UR or Bilt, then I could see the draw, and from that perspective it's a great card. Otherwise, cards like the Chase Ink Preferred, in my opinion, are better.
@@ExtraGuac007 Haha! Yes, the context was CJ who is Team Rose Gold was buying me out with a SuperChat so I had to say that. I'm definitely classic Gold 🤣
Anybody tried getting both and *if so how long did you wait between applications between the two AAA cards?* Haven't heard much feedback Stan awhile ago (though the card was newer) and have been that wondering myself.
I think the general consensus was that you actually can't get both cards, although, if you have a P2, you could definitely get one, and your P2 can get another.
@@TheCreditFrog Have you heard the denial reasons? Personally have heard mix results on holding both and think it maybe spacing out applications but am not sure. Being a newer card if they applied for both withing a few months than I could see why.
I’m not familiar with any card that specifically gets you a good multiplier on healthcare expenses specifically. The best card is probably a generic 2% cash back card or equivalent.
Yes! I did this two months ago. I held my Double Cash for more than a year, and product switched to another CCC with no problem at all. I use Custom Cash # 1 for gas exclusively, and the other one I leave it unused for a miscellaneous category that might pop up randomly. It actually worked for me this month because I had some purchases to make at Home Depot that were just under the $500 cap. I always leave it open for a decent sized purchase on a monthly basis.
This was not only fun, but I have always wondered what card set up makes 5% everything? Now it’s answered! Naturally, my next question is gonna be: can we please get a 5X everything category video? Love your content. - Ivan
Haha, that’s would be such a challenging video to make, but I’ll see what I can do! I’m glad you enjoyed this one Ivan! There’s so many ways to 5% everything, whether it be with separate cards or shotgunning the CCCs or BofA CCRs. It’s always going to depend on what those spending categories are for you! Thanks Ivan!
This might seem like an obvious question but in the same way one has to have an Abound Credit Union bank & savings account to get their gas card, does one have to be AAA member to get the AAA cards talked about?
No, I think you can just apply for the card outright! I think you have to be in certain geographical locations though - I think that's the only limiting factor.
@@TheCreditFrog if someone is a super min maxer then I guess it might be worth it to them but in general, people don’t spend enough where getting 5% vs 2% back is substantial
@@BY-ib9ew Yeah, that's for sure! Luckily a lot of these cards are no annual fee cards so there's no pressure to spend a lot, other than trying to hit the SUB, if the card has one!
I think Sam’s Club has a credit card that gets you 5% back at Sams club so if you’re looking for a warehouse 5% category, that would be a great option! Don’t think there’s one for Costco, and I’m not familiar with BJs but maybe they have a card with some good cash back!
My biggest expense is federal income tax 😂.
Yeah, same 😕. Still looking for a 5% cash back card for that use-case..
Taxation is theft!!!!!
@@TheCreditFrogHilton Surpass does better than 5% back, considering the free night credit, I think it’s the best return on non-categorized spend if you hit the $15K threshold. …Or multiple surpass cards, for that matter...
i second that
Lol same! My go to has been to use the PayPal Mastercard for estimated taxes as there is a 1% arbitrage on that (3% cash back and approx 2% PayPal fee).
Insurance ( auto, homeowners, renter’s ) and pet care ( veterinary, food ) are just 2 categories that are not commonly covered under the 5% categories. Discover has mobile payment this quarter and does help a lot
Yeah, you're totally right! A lot of the service based industries are harder to cover at the 5% level as well as insurance and taxes so, of course, we have to try to supplement them with a catch-all, or like you mentioned, those rotating category cards can sometimes catch them as well!
I have the Discover it card and my car insurance payment is coming up in October. Can you please help me understand how I can use this quarter's "Gas Stations and Digital Wallets" 5% back to pay for my insurance in Septermber?
@@outl1t If you can somehow pay your insurance with Apple Pay, that would be one way to do it!
Pet Food & Toys - Credit One Best Friends CC 5% Back
This is one of my favorite video topics and I thoroughly enjoyed this one. The beauty of a cashback setup is you really don't have to be tied down to 1 or 2 lenders to get value from your cards which is what makes these videos so fun. I'd say you came up with a pretty great list Stan! Nice work!
Thanks Spencer!! Yes, I think it's such a fun activity to see if you can make a 5% cash back setup to cover all of your major categories. I agree that having the freedom to move between issuers to maximize that multiplier is super liberating, and I (kind of) miss the days when all I had were no annual fee cards - looking back, I think I ran a no annual fee setup for the first 7-8 years I had credit cards - which is crazy looking at me now - probably just making up for lost time. Or having a mid-life crisis 🤣
Hahah that's awesome. Maybe one day we'll have to take on a no annual fee credit card challenge or something and downgrade all our cards for the content 😉🤣@@TheCreditFrog
This is a thoughtful and well-researched strategy here Stan! I really like how you were able to build out an all-purpose 5% cash back setup without leaning on the BofA CCR and/or a bunch of Citi Custom Cash cards 😂 (while still showing their potential closer to the end). I think the setup you created is more accessible to those who can’t reach that Platinum Elite status or just wouldn’t want to move assets around to BofA/Merrill. Well done sir!
Thanks Josh! Yeah, I definitely didn't want to focus on the CCC and BofA CCR because that would make things a little too easy. Accessibility is key, especially for these no annual fee setups. Having said that, the CCC is pretty accessible to everyone and should be one of the first cards to get in a 5% cash back strategy. Appreciate you, bro!!
An honorable mention for gas is the Marcus GM rewards card. With the card if you spend $1,500 in a calendar year you get $100 back as a statement credit on top of the 1% you're earning (works out to roughly 7.65% back). Anything over that $1,500 doesn't get you anything substantial so I switch to a 3% gas card after. You'd have to break down the math for yourself on if a flat 5% would end up earning you more but in my case spending $150 a month on gas the GM card works great.
Great suggestion! Yeah $1,500 in gas at that multiplier rate can really go a long way! I think if you’re willing to do the math and switch out cards as needed, this is another great gas card to add to the portfolio!
Can't argue with 5X on everything! Thanks for the great info + video!
Of course Jimmy James! 👍
The Citi Custom Cash is definitely one I have my eye on for next year. I love the creativity of how you keep this fun and entertaining...Great vid Stan 💥
The Citi Custom Cash is a solid card - definitely get this card as soon as it makes sense for you! Appreciate the feedback Mike, and I'm so happy you enjoyed the video!
be careful with CITI, they calculate due dates and late fees extremely strictly, unlike every other credit card company. you are basically late if you dont pay the cc charge immediately on the last day of the 30 day billing cycle the transaction was made. no one else does this. also their online portal will count your scheduled payment as a day late if its made after 5pm eastern time. they also increased their late fee from 30$ to 40$ this year. so draconian. i have 15 credit cards, i pay every single one of them by hand every month on the same day, and CITI's draconian rules has caused me to get a couple late fees. they even invented a difference between the statement ending day and the payment due date. so basically your payment is due like 2-3 days (depending on if its a business day or not) before the end of your statement end date. this is so bizarre to me.... gives me scammy 2010 wells fargo overdraft fee vibes.
I would never do auto pays with how high interest rates are, ide rather keep an extra $2000 in my synchrony savings account @4.5% until the last week of the month.... but CITI is costing me a lot of lost interest because i have to keep more money in my 0% apr checking than i normally would to pay their dumb bill 4 times a month. what a nightmare.
Awesome video! I believe you can't have two AAA cards, but if you have a player two, you could get one each. If not, probably best to get whatever card has the category you spend more on.
For EV charging, you could add the Citi Costco Anywhere Visa card as it gets 4% back up to $7k/year.
Thanks Isaac! Thanks for the tip! Yeah, I read that somewhere about the AAA cards, but then when I went back for this video, I couldn't find it. Good to know you can't have two, but I love your idea about using a P2 to get both cards! And yeah, the Citi Costco card is another great choice for gas/EV charging, although 4% is not 5%, that still is really good!
The Sam’s Club Mastercard is 5% on gas everywhere up to 6k as another option.
@waynekelee1630 Great! Thanks for letting me know. Sounds like a great option for a gas card!
I can confirm that the AAA cards are 1 per person. But if you have a spouse then you can easily do one with the other.
@AMan7595 thanks for confirming. That’s why P2 setups are 👑 if it’s an option!
This was phenomenal! Really did this topic justice in a very simple and educational way, felt like a game show and I found myself really trying to guess which cards were which.
I didn’t really know much about the AAA cards so I got those cards wrong haha.
And good point about getting just a bunch of citi custom cash’s, haha, imagine if that was every card on your list 😂.
Thanks Tony! Yeah, I tried to make this more fun an interactive, so I'm glad you were able to play along. I think the easiest way to get 5% cash back on everything would be as many CCC and BofA CCR cards you can get, but it's not as interesting if I just said that like you mentioned! But multiple CCCs + BofA CCRs can be an effective strategy if you want to go that route!!
Team Cash Back is definitely underrated!
I agree Aldair. There's something so freeing when thinking about the simplicity of cash back setups, of course, with no annual fee!
@@TheCreditFrog 1:18 I think the bofa customized cash is the perfect alternative to the blue cash everyday
IMO this gets much easier if you get 2 or 3 Custom Cash cards. You cant apply for multiple CCCs, but you product change into it to get multiple
I agree! That's a great path to take for a simpler setup!
How you product change? Could you share an example, please?
@@maximmireyev4225 For example, if you have a Citi Double Cash card for more than a year, you can call up customer service and ask to product change to a Citi Custom Cash card.
@@TheCreditFrog thank you! Any other Citi cards worth looking into that have similar flexibility?
@@maximmireyev4225 The Citi Custom Cash is the way to go! If you get the Citi Rewards+ card too, you can redeem your points for 5.5X points, which is also pretty cool!
I’ve had my eye on that Cash+ card for those exact categories.
This was such a great idea for a topic, Stan. So good!
That's awesome! Yeah, the USB Cash+ card is such a solid card - thinking of picking it up one day for my own setup as well. I'm glad you enjoyed this video topic! And keep it up, transitioning from a spender to a saver! It's never too late to change your mindset and turn your financial outlook around for the better 👍!
@@TheCreditFrog awww thank you thank you! I'm getting there!
Elan bank max cash preferred card also give 5% utilities and you don’t have to opt into the categories each quarter. They’re issued by various banks but all the cards use the same underwriting.
Very cool! Yea, I heard they’re a clone of the US Bank Cash+ card. Having two of these is nice because now you can cover 4 5% categories instead of 2, or up the max limit on a selected category by doubling up!
Nice list! I don’t believe you can have both AAA cards, but yes, the Abound card is fantastic! 😍
Thanks Josh! Yeah, I remember reading something about you could only have one AAA card, but when I made this video, I couldn't find it again for some reason. Gotta love that Abound card!!
Called number on website linked to daily card, representative said you can get both🤷♂️
@@jacobspurgeon2110 Haha! Well I guess you never know until you try!
I dig seeing those lesser known cards! @@TheCreditFrog
Interesting. Hopefully you can get both. I do recall other videos saying you can't get both. But seems we need more proof of those actually acquiring both.
Love the setup here Stan, you definitely hit all of the major spend categories with this setup, and it was a really fun way to be 5x better than how most Americans use their Credit Cards! Kudos to you for finding some really unique, more underrated Cards to complete this setup as well! Some under the radar brands like U.S Bank & AAA as well. Great video as always Stan!
Thanks Matt! Yeah, it definitely was a fun exercise to figure out how to get 5% cash back on as many categories I could without it getting too overwhelming, haha! I think some of those less known cards can get some great value on our everday spending categories, and of course, with no annual fee cards, everyone is a winner! (including the banks because they still get swipe fees)!
Nice video Stan. This was well laid out and the cards you chose for the categories are great cards. This would be an excellent set up for someone looking to maximize their cash back set up. That AAA Abound card is sneaky good. Excellent content sir!
Thanks Jon! Yeah, this was a fun exercise to see how many 5% categories I could hit! It looks like you can't have the AAA Daily and Travel Advantage cards together, so that Abound credit union card for 5% gas would be a nice alternative!
This was an amazing video! Honestly didn’t even think of the Triple A cards, so that is good to know that they can help with those categories, especially being for categories that are more for everyday use.
Thanks Michael! Yeah, those AAA cards are super underrated, and their benefits are superb as a no annual fee card for those groceries/gas categories!
The cash back video we needed! Fantastic as always, Stan.
Thanks Joshua! Glad you enjoyed the video!
Awesome video, Stan! I just recently added the AAA Daily Advantage to my arsenal and am loving the 5% back on groceries plus those awesome 3% categories as well! Even though I already have two Citi Custom Cash Cards and a Discover It, I think I will be using the AAA card for most of my grocery/wholesale club purchases from now on. Even though I have the AMEX Gold, I am actually trying to focus on cashback at least for the rest of the year to have funds for Christmas presents for friends and family. I’ll leave my points/miles for aspirational travel later on. 😅
That’s great Armando! Looks like you have a very powerful 5% cash back setup already and adding that AAA Daily Advantage card looks like it fits right in for those 5% groceries. Super solid bro, you’re really living the 5% dream haha!
Are we going to have to rename you Stan the Cash Back Frog?!?? Great video and you've put some new cards on my radar even though I thought I was committed to gardening lol
Haha! I don't know if I'm "switching" to cash back, but there are certainly a lot of merits to that type of setup, and I do use my 5.25% BofA CCR card for gas, so I'm still partaking in a little bit of cash back! Glad I could interest you in more cards, haha - that's how this game goes. You think you're done, and then you're not 🤣
Here's My 5% Setup:
Entertainment - Elan Max Cash
Groceries - AAA Daily Advantage
EV Charging - FutureCard
Retail Shopping - Target RedCard, Walmart Card, Amazon Card
Dining - Citi Prestige
Travel - Citi Custom Cash & Citi Prestige (OTAs)
Transit - FutureCard
Utilities & Internet - US Bank Cash+
Nice setup! Looks like you have a lot of the major categories covered with popular and the more esoteric 5% cards. Very cool!
Great video. I might slowly convert over to cash back with a couple cards I didn't know about. The only category I disagree with is travel. If you use the chase travel portal, your easily paying 5% more than if you booked direct as a member to whatever hotel or airline.
Thanks Nick! That's so interesting. I've never used the Chase Travel portal myself, so I didn't realize that you overspend when using the portal itself. The only bank travel portal I'm familiar with really is with BofA, and that one matches the airline websites 1:1. In that case, you may have to use a second CCC card, another BofA CCR w/ PH, and figure out a new strategy for that dining category! That travel/dining dichotomy is tricky to deal with without using either of those two cards so all I was left with was 5X Chase Travel portal 😕
The one cc video I've been looking for
Awesome Sarah! I'm glad I could make it for you!
Wow Stan that was a great card select for cash back it sounds like your pick can beat the Amex gold for points owned and No annual fee. I will have to look into that restaurant card. Nice keep that content coming.
Thanks Clausell! Yeah, there are a lot of great cards out there that can get you amazing value for no annual fee. Appreciate it man!!
EXTREME 5X
Sweet video. I'm loving the Custom Cash Card and the Customized Cash Rewards card. Question: I know you can get a second CCC but how would you go about getting a 3rd one, the same with the CCR ? Would an additional one be the Susan Kormen one? Is the a video on how to get multiples of the same? Thanks for the video.
Of course man! Yeah, so when it comes to the BofA CCR cards. You can product change ANY BofA family cards to the CCR (UR, TR, PR, PR Elite). Probably best to wait 1 year before the product change so that will slow you down a little. That strategy, plus the Susan G Komen card, like you mentioned, can help you get an ARMY of CCR cards. Then add Player 2 and double that, or you can run simultaneously to save time. With Platinum Honors, you could have like 6-8 CCR cards with 5.25% on your choice 3% category which is insane! Then add the Citi Custom Cash with P2, and maybe have 2 of those as well 🤯. That's why I didn't focus on those cards in this video because I feel like that's cheating 🤣
@@TheCreditFrog 5X should be a team on of its own. Thanks for the info. I may work on getting one additional of both of them and go from there
Not heavy into cash back at the moment, but this was some good information. Thanks Stan!
Thanks JP! Yeah, cash back is sort of a different world with their own strategies, but the points and miles game is so diverse, which is what makes it fun and interesting 👍!
Simple short video with a lot of great information.. One topic though I didn’t hear was car insurance. Would you say Citi bank custom cash?
Thanks in advance..
I'm not sure if there's a good 5% cash back category for car insurance. The closest card that I can think of is the Kroger World Elite Mastercard where you can earn 5% on mobile wallet purchases (if you can pay your car insurance through a mobile wallet) up to $3k per calendar year.
You are a legend for making this list.
Thanks!! It was a fun one!
The AAA Daily/Travel Advantage cards do only allow you to hold only one, so you either need a player 2, or find another card for the other category.
Great! Thanks for the info. Thats what I thought too, but couldn’t find it stated specifically!
How long did you wait between applications between the two cards?
@@mitchell.9632 I haven’t applied for the travel advantage yet. My wife just got the daily advantage card, but I did see the limitation for holding only one while researching the details. I might apply for it in a few months, still deciding. The details page does have a calculator for helping you decide which one to get.
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Great! Thanks for your suggestions Terrel!
First! 5% on everything? Yes please!
Joshy Josh! You are indeed FIRST! 🏆 🎉
we cannot get AAA daily and AAA travel together. only 1 can be taken. may be some other member in the family can take either
Yeah, sadly you can’t have both, but like you said, a P2 could get the other card and then you’re good! 👍
good video my man. Gonna be applying for the AAA card for groceries
Thanks! AAA daily advantage card is awesome for groceries if you can get it!
Those AAA cards are SNEAKY good in the CashBack world.
This gives me some things to chew on for a…project
Haha, sounds good Matt! Those cards are VERY good and totally underrated. Looking forward to see what you come up with!
Aaaaand now I have two more credit cards to juggle.;P I'm always torn between just using a travel card for everything or getting cash back. 5% is hard to argue with though.
It’s so true. Sometimes it’s hard to determine whether you want to go full travel points or run a cash back setup. I’m personally in favor of running a hybrid setup to get the best of both worlds!
Another Banger video Frog!!! Keep them coming.
Thanks man! I sure will!
@@TheCreditFrog VIDEO IDEA!! highest return on spend credit card set up that earn flexible currency only(AmEx MP, chase UR, Citi TY, Capital One and BILT)
@@ceezthaday Great idea! I'll add that one to the list 👍
People don't realize how much 5% is worth. They'll scoft at 5% back and be content with 2x back... That's essentially "buying" points at 2.5 cpp... which I doubt most consumer would ever get close to.
Yeah, 5% cash back can be very powerful, especially when utilizing no annual fee credit cards. With just a little bit of effort, the savings can go a long way, and then multiplied over decades, this can really add up!
Awesome list. I wish there's a card that gives 5% on general car maintenance, auto parts and services.
Thanks Jay! Yeah, that would be a great 5% category to have! I’m not familiar with any cards that do that, but that just means the market is open for any takers!
@@TheCreditFrog However, when repairs or maintenance comes up. It's a good time for SUBs.
Where CJ???
My thoughts exactly Eric. What a slacker! 🤣
@@TheCreditFrogtrash talking 🧐
@@ItsMeCJ 💖you CJ
Great job.. anyway we can see the points version instead of Cash back.. 5% in points would be unheard of
That would be pretty amazing! I'll look into what kind of cards would fit in that type of setup!
Great video. Biggest holes from this that I see are (i) kids expenses (if you have them), (ii) rent/mortgages (common Bilt for the latter for even 1x!!), (iii) home services other than utilities (think Ring/ADT or your lawn guy), (iv) medical expenses, (v) pets, and (vi) insurance expenses. Anyone have any strategies with any of these? Understand there’s going to be holes of course but figure I’d ask just in case.
I’d also be interested in seeing this list with small annual fee cards included too (i.e. Blue Cash Preferred or US Bank Shopper Cash Rewards).
Finally, can you product change to get multiple US Bank Cash+, Citi Custom Cash, or BofA Customized Cash Rewards cards? I’m guessing yes with some work?
Thanks Jordan! Yes, you bring up some very good points about expenses that are unlikely to be covered by the 5% category. It comes down to breaking down each category into it's own respective goods and services. For example, kids goods and items can be purchased using retail/online shopping, but services such as childcare can't be bought on Amazon (yet). LIkewise, medical and insurance expenses are more service-based expenses and so they fall out of that "goods" category that could be purchased retail or online. I will say that one loophole I've found that has been pretty effective is the BofA business customized cash rewards card with its computer services and business consulting services category. When paired with Business Preferred Rewards, this category can get up to 5.25% in those categories, which are a lot more expansive then I realized. For example, I use Adobe to make YT stuff, and this subscription falls under the computer services category. I've also used Fiverr to do some freelance jobs, and that codes under business services. I think that card is a card that could help in those service-type of expenses, but it'd depend on the merchant category code. When you get the card, you get a pamphlet with all the MCCs and if your interested, I show that pamphlet in my unboxing video on that card.
I think it would be awesome to see what kind of setup that could be built with mid-tier cards ($95 annual fee cards, etc)! I'll add that idea to my list. And yes, you can product change to multiple Citi Custom Cash and BofA CCR cards. Essentially wait for 1 year and do the PC (DC and Premier for CCC and UR/TR/PR/PR Elite for the CCR). It's not that much work, but you do have to wait at least 1 year. This could go faster with a P2 👍!
Loved how you covered this topic! I'm not too familiar with citi yet and am wondering, can you transfer points earned from a p2's CCC to p1's portal and then transfer to external partners if p1 has the citi premier?
Thanks so much! Yes, so Citi does have this "points sharing" feature when you can enter a family/friend's Citi ThankYou points account number and you can transfer your points from your account that other person's account to get the rewards benefits associated with the person with the Citi Premier card!
This is the ideal setup! One caveat though, I don't think you can have both of the Triple A cards, you have to choose one or the other; which sucks.
Yes, that's what I heard as well! One way around this is to do a P1/P2 setup, or that Abound credit card for gas would work great if you got the AAA daily advantage card. Also, someone brought up the Sam's club card which gets 5% on gas, which is pretty good too!
@@TheCreditFrog those are great work arounds! I'll note those for when I reach this setup some day!
US Bank Shopper Cash Rewards gets 6% Cash Back at Amazon but has a $95 Annual Fee.
Sounds great on the surface, but compared to the Chase Amazon Prime card with 5%, it's a tough sell. I know that Amazon Prime has a membership fee so that should also be taken into some consideration, but I'm more of a fan of the cards with a slightly lower multiplier but with no annual fee.
Lol House of Frog! 😂
Haha 🤣! Never forget whose house it is!
Utility companies charges a fee if we use a credit card to pay the gas & electric bill.
Yeah, a lot of them do. But usually the 5% back on the Cash+ earns you more than what is charged as a fee so you still come out ahead, although not by as much.
If membership doesn't count as annual fee then the Sam's card gets me 5% cashback in the club, and 5% for gas/ev anywhere
That's a pretty sweet deal! That would make for a great gas/EV charging card! And you could probably get a lot of consumer staple goods and Sams Club as well! I know that Sam's Clubs sometimes runs membership promotions as well so that could probably lower that "annual fee." Solid.
It’s kinda wild to think you could get 5% back on all purchases!
Right, Manny? All it takes is a little strategeory, hah!
Stan The "Rose Gold" Credit Frog, are you team Eric or team Luke when it comes to the Chase World of Hyatt credit card? Is it a God mode card or a junk card?
First of all, love your name! Not sure where you came up with "Rose Gold" Credit Frog, because I am forever on Team Classic Gold!! But on to your question. I'm actually on Luke's side when it comes to the WOH card. I think that the FNA is pretty good, especially given the $95 AF on the card, but the multipliers do suck, so if you stay at a lot of Hyatt properties, and want to make Hyatt your main transfer partner strategy using Chase UR or Bilt, then I could see the draw, and from that perspective it's a great card. Otherwise, cards like the Chase Ink Preferred, in my opinion, are better.
@@TheCreditFrog I thought I saw Anthony Venture slid down his car seat in his Tesla, when you said you were team rose gold. My bad.
@@ExtraGuac007 Haha! Yes, the context was CJ who is Team Rose Gold was buying me out with a SuperChat so I had to say that. I'm definitely classic Gold 🤣
This is such a great video wow
Thanks Jessie! Glad you enjoyed it!
Great video !
Thank you!
Big league. Grab a label maker and get ready for all that cold hard cash money!!!!
HAHA, thanks Uncle Luke!! I think after 8 cards, I would probably need a label maker because all those cards can get confusing real quick!
are u able to have both AAA cards or is it one or the other?
It’s one or the other, but if you have a Player 2 you can get one each!
Anybody tried getting both and *if so how long did you wait between applications between the two AAA cards?* Haven't heard much feedback Stan awhile ago (though the card was newer) and have been that wondering myself.
I think the general consensus was that you actually can't get both cards, although, if you have a P2, you could definitely get one, and your P2 can get another.
@@TheCreditFrog Have you heard the denial reasons? Personally have heard mix results on holding both and think it maybe spacing out applications but am not sure. Being a newer card if they applied for both withing a few months than I could see why.
@@mitchell.9632 I'm not sure what the denial reasons would be ... other than you can't hold both of these cards at the same time.
What’s the best card for Cashback on healthcare costs?
I’m not familiar with any card that specifically gets you a good multiplier on healthcare expenses specifically. The best card is probably a generic 2% cash back card or equivalent.
Can you PC another Citi card to a SECOND CCC? I know you mentioned it at the end but the product change is the procedure to get the second I’d assume
Yes! I think you can PC a DC or a Premier into the CCC!
Yes! I did this two months ago. I held my Double Cash for more than a year, and product switched to another CCC with no problem at all. I use Custom Cash # 1 for gas exclusively, and the other one I leave it unused for a miscellaneous category that might pop up randomly. It actually worked for me this month because I had some purchases to make at Home Depot that were just under the $500 cap. I always leave it open for a decent sized purchase on a monthly basis.
@@armandoangeljr4464 That’s awesome to have a backup no annual fee 5% cash back card. What a great position to be in!
very smart you are, i am a sub
Thanks! Glad to have you on board!
This is a great video
Thank you so much!
This was not only fun, but I have always wondered what card set up makes 5% everything? Now it’s answered!
Naturally, my next question is gonna be: can we please get a 5X everything category video?
Love your content.
- Ivan
Haha, that’s would be such a challenging video to make, but I’ll see what I can do! I’m glad you enjoyed this one Ivan! There’s so many ways to 5% everything, whether it be with separate cards or shotgunning the CCCs or BofA CCRs. It’s always going to depend on what those spending categories are for you! Thanks Ivan!
This might seem like an obvious question but in the same way one has to have an Abound Credit Union bank & savings account to get their gas card, does one have to be AAA member to get the AAA cards talked about?
Nope, you can get the AAA cards whether or not you’re a member of AAA! It’s quite nice in that regard.
@@TheCreditFrog Most Excellent news! Thank you.
why would you put bank of america card on your thumbnail if you're not covering it in this video?
I did cover it in this video. It was just at the very end.
Thanks
No problem!
What card gives cash back on child support and alimony?
Sorry don’t think there’s a card for that category. Any issuer that makes that a 1X multiplier will go bankrupt in 1 billing cycle.
@@TheCreditFrog ain't that the truth
Do i need to have aaa membership to get the aaa card?
No, I think you can just apply for the card outright! I think you have to be in certain geographical locations though - I think that's the only limiting factor.
Oh ok, when I put in my zip code, it showed me the option
Man I miss the Sallie Mae Card
Was it good? Never heard of it.
Six cards is more trouble than it’s worth to be honest
I agree. The challenge is covering as many 5% categories as possible with as few as cards as possible, and I thought this was a good compromise 👍
@@TheCreditFrog if someone is a super min maxer then I guess it might be worth it to them but in general, people don’t spend enough where getting 5% vs 2% back is substantial
@@BY-ib9ew Yeah, that's for sure! Luckily a lot of these cards are no annual fee cards so there's no pressure to spend a lot, other than trying to hit the SUB, if the card has one!
This is literally my existing setup
Nailed it.
How about Costco, Sam's club, and bjs?
I think Sam’s Club has a credit card that gets you 5% back at Sams club so if you’re looking for a warehouse 5% category, that would be a great option! Don’t think there’s one for Costco, and I’m not familiar with BJs but maybe they have a card with some good cash back!
FIRST!!!
I'm sorry CJ. You are not first today 😕. But here's a participation medal 🏅
In this video, how to get 100% back by simply not buying something.
Yes, don't spend money! Best way to save for sure!
👍🏽👍🏽👍🏽👍🏽👍🏽
🙌🙌🙌