Having acquired Northwest Airlines, Delta is now a dominant force among the remaining legacy carriers in the United States. Delta also enjoys an extremely close relationship with one of the major issuers of credit cards, American Express. Through this partnership, they offer five different credit cards for consumers, and three for small businesses. Of all of these products, the Delta SkyMiles Platinum card may represent the best value for the average consumer.

New customers are immediately rewarded with 20,000 bonus miles after their first purchase, 5,000 of which count towards Medallion status. A further 5,000 miles can be earned if cardholders choose to add two additional authorized cardholders to their account. One mile is earned for each dollar spent on most purchases, with two miles being received for each dollar spent with Delta. Cardholders can earn an additional 10,000 Medallion qualifying miles when they spend $25,000 in a calendar year and another 10,000 when they reach $50,000 in charges. This card is also on the forefront of the trend to add additional non-mileage benefits to airline credit cards. (more…)

In a world of complex credit cards, Americans yearn for simple products without harsh penalties and conditions. In response, many banks have begun offering at least one card without the large menu of fees and penalties that commonly appear on the disclosure statements of their other products. American Express offers its Clear card for those who value simplicity, but still want to earn some credit card rewards.

How This Card Works

For each dollar spent, cardholders will receive one cent in their Automatic Rewards program. This program is extraordinarily simple; cardholders will receive a $25 American Express shopping card for each $2,500 in spending. Additionally, new customers will be offered a 0% introductory APR on purchases for the first 12 months after opening an account. Subsequently, interest on both purchases and balance transfers will be incurred at the standard rates, which are equal to the Prime Rate plus 13.99%, 16.99%, or 18.99%, depending on the applicant’s credit worthiness. There is no annual fee, no late fees, no balance transfer fees, no over-limit fees, and no cash advance fees with the Clear Card. Unfortunately, American Express is still charging a 2.7% credit card foreign transaction fee on all charges processed outside the United States. (more…)

If someone made a movie about Hawaiian Airlines, the voiceover for the preview would go something like this, “In a world where major airlines have joined together in global alliances to dominate the planet, one carrier has chosen to go it alone.” That pretty much tells the story of this little airline that has learned how to thrive by connecting its small, but popular state to the rest of the world. Like nearly all other airlines, Hawaiian also has its own frequent flier program and co-branded airline miles credit card. The Hawaiian Airlines Visa Signature Card from Bank of America is marketed to Hawaiians and mainlanders who wish to earn miles towards free travel on their airline and a few select partners. For Hawaiians in particular, this is one of the best credit cards to have.

Overview

Cardholders will earn up to 35,000 miles as a sign up bonus when they open an account. 20,000 miles are earned after their first purchase, with another 15,000 being awarded when customers spend $1,000 within 120 days of opening their account. Subsequently, cardholders will earn a single mile in the HawaiianMiles program for each dollar spent, with two miles per dollar being earned for spending with Hawaiian Airlines. Other benefits include a 25% discount on travel between the mainland United States and Hawaii for the cardholder and a single companion. The card features a variable interest rate equal to the Prime Rate plus 11.99%. There is a $79 annual fee, although cardholders do receive a 2,000 mile bonus each year when they renew their card. Finally, there is a 3% foreign transaction fee on all purchases processed outside of the United States.

Benefits

People do not want to earn award travel to relatively unexciting destinations, and free travel to Hawaii is a very alluring proposition. Although Hawaiian Airlines is not a member of a particular airline alliance, they are still partners with Delta, Continental, Virgin Atlantic, and Korean Air. Another interesting feature of their program is that cardholders can combine mileage balances between family members, allowing them to exercise additional flexibility as they pool miles for awards.

Drawbacks

This card’s annual fee of $79 is rather high, and its foreign transaction fees make it a poor choice for use outside of the United States.

Conclusions

With continuing service to several destinations in Asia and Australia, this is a great card for those who wish to travel to Hawaii and beyond. By combining a generous sign up bonus with some great aspirational award possibilities, Bank of America has produced a product worthy of the scrappy little carrier that bears its name.

Some people look disdainfully at the whole practice of collecting and redeeming frequent flier miles. They rightfully complain that these programs are too confusing, and the awards are too hard to redeem. Others relish the opportunity to explore the details of these programs in the hopes of finding hidden opportunities to earn points and miles towards free travel. Among the later group, Asiana airlines of South Korea has earned a reputation for offering excellent possibilities to earn miles and redeem them on its many airline partners. Bank of America offers their Asiana American Express card, not just for Asiana customers, but for anyone clever enough to recognize how valuable their airline credit card rewards program is.

Overview

For each dollar spent, cardholders will earn two Asiana Club miles in their program, with three miles per dollar earned at grocery stores. Cardholders will also receive a 5,000 miles sign up bonus after their first purchase. As this is not a 0% credit card, card members who carry a balance will incur interest at a rate equal to the Prime Rate plus 12.99%, which applies to both purchases and balance transfers. There is a 4% balance transfer fee, as well as 3% foreign transaction fee on all charges processed outside of the United States. Finally, there is $50 annual fee for this card.

Benefits

By itself, it is exceptional that this card earns double miles on all purchases, and triple miles at grocery stores. When it comes time to redeem their miles for award travel, cardholders can find tremendous value in Asiana’s partner award chart, which is distance based. For example, Americans who live on the east coast can fly on any Star Alliance carrier to Europe in business class for as little as 75,000 miles. In contrast, other Star Alliance partners such as United and US Airways require 100,000 miles for the very same award. Furthermore, customers can make up to 5 stopovers of 24 hours or more on any award flight, as well as an open jaw. For example, a New York based traveler could spend as little as $25,000 at grocery stores to earn enough miles for a  business class ticket to visit London, Paris, Munich, Zurich, and Milan on a single trip.

Drawbacks

This credit card offers a somewhat modest sign up bonus of a mere 5,000 miles, while other airline cards can offer 50,000 miles or more. As with many reward cards, this one features a higher interest rate than other cards, so it is best for those who always pay their balance in full. Finally, a 3% foreign transaction fee is increasingly out of place on products such as these that cater to international travelers.

Conclusions

This is an incredible card for those who want to maximize their miles earned from spending, rather than sign up bonuses. Even if one has no plans to visit South Korea, their awards on partner carriers such as Lufthansa, United, and Thai can be incredibly valuable. For those who crave airline award travel opportunities, Bank of America and Asiana Airlines offer an unbeatable deal.

It is generally accepted that there are two types of credit card users; those who pay their balance in full, and those who carry a balance each month. For those who avoid interest charges by paying their total balance each month, earning credit card rewards makes perfect sense, while cardholders that carry a balance should always be seeking the best interest rates. The Wells Fargo Rewards and Cash Back Visa cards try to play both sides of this game by offering some rewards points as well as an introductory financing offer.

New applicants will receive a 0% introductory APR on purchases and balance transfers for a very short six months.  Many other 0% APR credit cards offer intro periods of up to 21 months, and most offer these rates for at least 12 months. During the introductory period, balance transfers will be assessed a fee of 3%, which rises to 5% after it expires. The standard interest rate is equal to the Prime Rate plus 7.9% to 19.9%, depending on the applicant’s credit worthiness.

In addition to the introductory financing offer, Wells Fargo is also granting Rewards card customers one point in their rewards program for each dollar spent. Wells Fargo Cash Back cardholders receive a one cent rebate on each dollar spent. Since their rewards points are only worth .77 cents each as cash back or in other forms, the cash back card is clearly the superior product. However, many cash back credit cards currently offer a minimum of 1% cash back while also providing cash back sign up bonuses, making this a less than ideal option for those who want to profit from their rewards cards. (more…)