Tis the Season for Credit Card Spending Incentives

Now that we’re in October, the holiday season is sneaking up on us just around the corner. Credit card companies know that consumers will start whipping out their credit cards for increased spending during these last months of the year. Decorations, food, presents, travel, parties….it all adds up!

Banks also know that many consumers have more than one credit card, and they want to persuade you to use their credit card this quarter instead of another. so, they entice you to use their card by offering up spending incentives on your existing credit cards.

Two Spending Incentives I’ve Received

Over the last week or so, I’ve received emails from two of my credit cards with some holiday spending incentives.

My Chase United MileagePlus card is offering 6000 bonus miles if I spend $6000 or more on the card from October 1 through December 31, 2023. These miles are in addition to the usual miles I would earn on purchases (which for the most part is 1X).

My Chase Aeroplan card also has an offer:

I was very excited to see this 5X offer at grocery stores, gas stations and Amazon. However, the incentive caps out at $1000 in spending in these categories combined. So, the maximum bonus is 5000 miles. But, the required spending is less than the United spending incentive.

Low hanging fruit, but remember…

Check your email to see if any of your existing credit cards are offering you spending incentives. These offers require you to register for the promotion, which is free. Putting your holiday spending on a certain card for extra miles or points is easy. Definitely low hanging fruit.

But, remember, you can do better. A whole lot better. If you put your holiday spending on a new credit card to get a welcome bonus, you could get 50k-100k bonus miles. No, it’s not as easy. You have to apply, get approved, and start using a new credit card. But, the reward is much larger!

A few ideas for new credit cards:

Chase Ink Business Preferred (100k bonus points after spending $8000 in first 3 months), Capital One Venture Rewards (75k bonus miles after spending $4000 in first 3 months).

And please, only charge what you can pay off in full every month. Don’t go into credit card debt for miles and points!

I’m going to register for every incentive I receive via email, but I’m also looking into applying for one more card before the end of the year.