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EARNiNg FREqUENT FlyER MilEs

When evaluating which card to get, there are a few things to consider about each one:

Reward Sign Up Bonus

Most cards will offer incredible deals to first time cardholders to entice them to sign up for their card. In
recent years, we’ve seen offers as high as 100,000 miles. To put this in perspective, my sister flew from
Philadelphia to Auckland, Auckland to Tokyo, and Tokyo to Madrid for 97,000 American Airlines miles.

Usually, the more miles that are offered, the better the deal, but you must also remember to look at
where you want to go and how you can use those miles. In some cases, 50,000 miles on one airline
may be better than 75,000 on another based on your travel plans.

Be aware that most cards will only allow you to get the signup bonus ONE TIME, so if a deal isn’t more
at least 40,000 miles, I’d recommend holding off and seeing if the card increases its bonus.

Minimum Spend Requirement

Before you get your miles, some cards may require you to spend a certain amount in a certain time.
An example of this would be the Chase Sapphire Preferred, which requires you to spend $3,000 in 3
months before you get the signup bonus.

Only sign up for a card if you are certain you can make the minimum spend requirement in the allotted
time. If you don’t make the minimum spend in the allotted time, then you won’t get the miles and the
card is meaningless.

There are other cards that will give you the signup bonus “after first purchase”. The first purchase can
literally be ANYTHING, including a pack of gum at the local gas station! These are always nice to add on
to your stable of cards, so always be on the lookout for them.

Airline/Hotel/Company that the card is tied to

In its most basic form, there are three types of cards:

cards that get you miles with a certain airline (CitiBank/AAdvantage Visa card is an example)

cards that earn you points for hotels (Chase Marriot Rewards card)

cards that earn you “points” with a specific company (Chase, American Express) that can then
be transferred to their partners in the form of airline miles, hotel stays, or even gift cards (Chase
Sapphire Preferred, AmEx Gold, etc).

If there is an airline that you usually fly, then look for cards that can get you miles for that airline. If there
is a destination you travel to frequently (or would like to travel to), look for cards that can earn you miles
on an airline that flies there. If there is a hotel chain that you normally stay at, then look for a card that is
branded with that hotel.

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