Credit Card Sign-up Bonuses

The quickest way to gain several points is with credit card sign up bonuses. With these, users sign up for a credit card and if approved would receive a card with a certain bonus offer. Typically this bonus is cash back or points but could be anything of value; I remember in college they offered a free t-shirt!

Our Actual Cards

The bonus is usually only given once the user meets specific requirements with a specific time period. For example, if the card offers a 100,000 point bonus with a $1,000 spending requirement within a 3 month period; that translates to the user needed to charge at least $1,000 on the credit card within three months of receiving the card to receive 100,000 points in that company’s loyalty program.

These bonus offers fluctuate throughout the year so it is a good idea to research the current offer versus previous offers. Sometimes it is beneficial to join a company’s loyalty program before trying to get their credit card as the company may offer a special targeted offer for their existing users which is usually much better than their public offers.

Some users raise concerns about the different interest rates offered. Generally I say to just pay your credit card statements on time and you do not have to worry about these rates. Be smart and live within your means, the bonuses are not worth it if you are paying a bunch of interest.

Obviously every user is different so which credit cards they want is different too. In future posts, we will offer reviews of various credit cards and why/why not they may be right for you.