What Credit Card Do You Use and Why?

Rocket6 on 05/02/2017 - 12:42

I am looking for a credit card. I am aware that there are lots about that people use these given the benefits/rewards that are associated with a particular card, and thought what better place to ask than the OzBargain community.

It is important to note that I have never had a credit card. Also significant, I am typically quite smart with my money (in other words, I won't be racking up thousands of dollars of debt that I don't have the capacity to repay). I will be able to pay it off regularly without attracting any extra fees (interest etc). I will probably clear the debt every fortnight.

At the moment, I have been looking at the Virgin credit card/s. These are appealing to me, given I will be spending money on normal retail items whilst earning velocity points. The annual fee is around 130, which I am happy with, given I appear to be eligible for a $129 virgin gift voucher (which I would spend anyway) as well as the extra flying points. Anyone have any experience with these?

What do you use and why?

Would appreciate any ideas, suggestions or alternatives from the OzBarg community. :-)

Financial

Comments

  • oscargamer on 05/02/2017 - 12:55
    +1

    Bankwest.

    No fees.

    We pay it of in full every month.

  • charzy on 05/02/2017 - 13:03
    +4

    Citibank signature.
    No fees, rewards system, 55 day interest free.

  • MeesusEff on 05/02/2017 - 13:18
    +3

    Coles mastercard (rewards if you are looking to spend $750 p/m) with price protection if you pay fully by statement date. If not the free one is good too. PP is awesome, so much regret not jumping on a cc sooner

  • NancyCat on 05/02/2017 - 13:29
    +1

    NAB Flybuys Rewards
    Flybuys points
    Complimentary insurance (Travel, Purchase Protection, Price Protection…)
    Link to our other NAB accounts
    No annual fee (Shareholder benefits)
    (Pay in full every month.)

  • illumination on 05/02/2017 - 14:12
    +20

    Surprised no one has mentioned AMEX at all yet…

    Here's a previous comment I made about recommending an AMEX card (and specifically the AMEX Explorer), but to save you clicking I'll paste it here:

    If I had to recommend just one credit card to someone, I would recommend an AMEX like the AMEX Explorer and say don't even bother with Visa/Mastercard.

    It is factually not wrong that Visa/MC have better acceptance/lower surcharges, but I feel the benefit in having an AMEX outweighs the "risk" of being surcharged/not being accepted. If they don't accept it or the surcharge is too high for your liking, then don't pay with AMEX!

    Others have mostly covered it already:

    • AMEX Statement Credits - tell me how many Visa/MC statement credits you can find (if any). AMEX ones are monthly. Not to say you'll have one relevant to you every month, but due to the sheer volume of offers, you are bound to find one that suits you
    • Ability to multiply opportunity for statement credits by applying for supplementary cards
    • Supplementary cards pricing more generous than banks
    • Versatile rewards program - not applicable if you opt for one of the Qantas/Velocity cards as they're not really versatile
    • Non expiry of rewards program
    • From my personal experience, really good customer service. 24/7 too.
    • Cards that generally offer very good value and are reasonably versatile

    That's all I can think of now but I'm sure there'd be more.

    I'll elaborate a little more here, primarily looking at it from two angles:

    • A credit card portfolio
    • Why the AMEX Explorer is currently a really good option

    Credit Card Portfolio

    People above have recommended one card each. I would say from how you've worded it, it's reasonable that they've only recommended one card. You also haven't made it clear how many cards you're after, but I take it at this stage you probably aren't too familiar with why it's necessary to have multiple cards, given you haven't had a credit card before.

    Ideally with credit cards you'll want to have a diverse set of cards that are suitable for various situations you'll find yourself in. At a basic level, this should be as follows:

    • Overseas Card (ANZ Travel Adventures Card, Bankwest Zero Platinum Mastercard, 28 Degrees, Citibank Plus Debit Card)
    • Domestic Card (AMEX Explorer, AMEX Platinum Edge)
    • Domestic Backup Card (Mastercard/Visa - for places where they do not take AMEX)
    • This one is largely optional and very dependent on your situation, but the fourth being a card for you to use dependent on where you tend to spend a lot of money, or offers a particular unique benefit which is particularly valuable to you. As an example, if you spend a lot of money Jetstar flights, David Jones shopping, or you often stay at Hilton, you'd consider a Jetstar Mastercard, David Jones AMEX and/or Macquarie Platinum Visa (which comes with free Hilton gold status) respectively. The other card to consider could be the AMEX Platinum Charge - but only worth it if you travel a lot.
    Overseas cards:

    If you know you will be able to (and want to) book a flight for yourself domestically at least once a year (key "catch" being you have to book 60 days in advance), then the ANZ Travel Adventures card offers awesome value. It is the only AMEX card in the market that waives forex and international transaction fees and comes with a free domestic flight every card anniversary year. It also comes with a Visa companion for you to use where AMEX is not accepted, which is probably more important for when you're overseas than in Australia! If you do not think you'll use up the flight, the value proposition changes significantly and I would look at one of the other cards I mentioned.

    The Bankwest Platinum Zero Mastercard is the best of the other ones that I've mentioned because it provides free travel insurance as long as your travel expenses were charged to the card and hit the minimum "trigger threshold" (which I believe is $500), but is more difficult to get than the 28 Degrees due to a higher minimum salary (which will also mean you'll have a higher credit limit).

    The Citibank Plus Transaction Account is the easiest to get and probably the least hassle because it is not a credit card and thus does not trigger a credit check/enquiry. I don't think it's possible to be rejected for this card..

    By the way, if you were to apply now for one of these cards, I would highly recommend the ANZ Travel Adventures - you currently get 60k Velocity Points in addition to the other benefits as a one-time sign up bonus. This alone would be worth the current annual fee - even if you do not use your flight!

    AMEX Explorer Credit Card

    The Explorer is attractive because it's a bloody attractive card.

    Being more objective, there is a fairly high annual fee of $395 - however, easily offset by the $400 travel credit you get to use on the card every card year. This travel credit however can only be used via AMEX Travel. I have not used it personally, but have heard that in some cases it's cheaper than other websites (like Expedia/Skyscanner) but other times more expensive, so it's a little hit and miss in that sense, but it's quite versatile as it can be used on flights, hotels and car hire.

    In addition to this, you get free Travel Insurance for purchases on the card, and access to the Sydney International Airport AMEX Lounge twice per calendar year (although I see you have your location as VIC, so may not be of significant relevance to you). This card will also give you access to many of the AMEX offers that get posted here.

    It is currently also a good time to apply, because you will get 50k (80k with a referral!) Membership Rewards points which can be converted to Velocity Points + many other airlines after spending $1500 within 3 months. You get 2 Membership Rewards points per dollar almost everywhere, which is a really high rate and amongst the highest you'll find in the market.

    The Platinum Edge is also a very good card. However, in my view it is like a watered down version of the Explorer. The only reason why I would currently recommend it over the Explorer is if you spend a lot at supermarkets (you get 3pts/$ at supermarkets) and if you think $400 travel credit is too much (this one gives $200). The annual fee for this card is $195, but is currently waived for the first year, which makes the first year more attractive. You will also attain a sign up bonus of 5k (15k with referral) Membership Rewards points if you spend $750 within 3 months.

    Domestic Backup Card

    To be honest, there aren't too many MC/Visas which I find are easy to generically recommend in the Australian market right now. There are two that stand out in my mind, but both are somewhat situational.

    The first one is the Jetstar Mastercard. The reason I think this card is particularly interesting is because you actually get a really high return on your expenditure - the equivalent of 2% of your expenditure is returned to you in the form of "Jetstar Dollars". This is arguably better than some AMEX cards get you. However, I can only see this card being right for you if you actually spend on Jetstar flights anyway. Keep in mind there's an annual fee of $169, but also currently will get you a return domestic flight on Jetstar.

    The second one was mentioned above: the Coles Mastercard. If you choose to get an AMEX from above, I would choose the fee-free Mastercard. Finding a card in the market with no annual fee and rewards points is extremely rare, but the Coles No Annual Fee Mastercard is one of the few. I actually can't think of any other non-AMEX credit card that is always readily available that offers no annual fee and rewards besides the Coles No Annual Fee Mastercard. The other ones are mostly AMEXs (AMEX Velocity Escape, AMEX Qantas Discovery, AMEX Essentials) - and it is also for this reason why I believe the AMEX Explorer to be an extremely good card - provided you can use the Travel Credit (which essentially means the card is free!).

    The Coles No Annual Fee Mastercard gives you 1 FlyBuys point per $2 spent. There is also an optional insurance which I believe is a really unique and special feature of theirs - they offer "Price Protection" for 2 years from the time of purchasing an item. This means if you buy a Samsung Galaxy S8 for $1300 from JB Hi-Fi and it drops to $800 in 18 months time, you can claim the $500 price difference back which gets credited to your card as a credit. There is no excess payable, however there is a "1% premium on your closing balance" which is payable - avoidable if you pay off your card before your statement is generated.

    Ok - I typed up a lot more than I had intended to, but hopefully you find this informative. Let me know if you have any questions.

    • Rocket6 on 05/02/2017 - 14:35
      +1

      @illumination, holy moly. Thanks so much mate.

      • illumination on 05/02/2017 - 16:07
        +3

        Haha no problem.

        To answer your question of "which credit cards do you use and why?", my answers are as follows:

        • 28 Degrees - my ongoing card for overseas expenditure. My goal is to eventually apply for the Bankwest Zero Mastercard (or ANZ Travel Adventures, provided there is a bonus like currently)
        • Coles No Annual Fee Mastercard - as mentioned above, basically my ongoing "backup" card but I actually rarely use this anymore unless I want to take advantage of the 2 years of Price Protection
        • AMEX Platinum Edge - due to the great earn rate at supermarkets - I had this card from when they used to provide a free flight with the card, which offered me better value - my goal is to eventually replace this with the AMEX Explorer
        • AMEX Velocity Platinum - I applied for this at a time when there was an insane bonus on it (110k Velocity points). This is the only remaining direct AMEX card with a free domestic flight on Virgin Australia, and has two other unique things I like about it: 3pts/$ at restaurants (including cheapo ones like Maccas) and a Travel Insurance with no minimum spend threshold, or requirement to have a return fare, or even start your journey in Australia.
        • NAB Velocity - signed up when they offered 75k Velocity bonus
        • ANZ FF Black - only signed up a couple of days ago due to 75k Qantas points bonus

        Of the above, I consider the first 4 cards to be ongoing/long-termish cards. The last two were obtained purely for sign up bonuses.

        The first four cover the scenarios I mentioned to you - i.e. overseas expenditure, domestic AMEX, domestic backup

        • [Deactivated] on 12/02/2017 - 20:32

          I got the ANZFF recently… how do you spend the $2.5k in three months? perhaps, is there any ozbargain around it :P

          Thanks

        • bluesky on 12/02/2017 - 20:36

          @ozbargainforlife: A few ways I can think of: buying Wish Cards at 5% (or more) discount, from Cashrewards or other places. Another is prepaying utility and telecomm bills.

        • [Deactivated] on 12/02/2017 - 20:40
          +1

          @bluesky: I don't have utility bills… but telecomm is not a bad idea.

          Cheers

        • bluesky on 12/02/2017 - 20:42

          @ozbargainforlife: Wish cards are never a bad idea - can be used for petrol, supermarket purchases, wines etc. And furthermore, it can be gotten at a discount too. My first choice, actually. Unless you already have too many :-)

        • [Deactivated] on 12/02/2017 - 20:46
          +1

          @bluesky: never used them… I will read on them and give them a go.

          Thanks

        • bluesky on 12/02/2017 - 20:57

          @ozbargainforlife: An easy way to save 5% on your everyday expenses.

          Sometimes, they increase this a little beyond the 5%, like this recent deal. Have a read of this - the OP here provided some very useful info for anyone new to Wish cards. If you decide to buy this, just follow the deal link to get the card (although it is the usual 5% when no special offer).

        • [Deactivated] on 13/02/2017 - 20:41
          +1

          @bluesky: thanks mate, couldn't comment earlier due to some ozbargain rules… I am just a new user

    • illumination on 05/02/2017 - 17:41

      Lol I can't believe I got negged for this comment :P negger care to share why?

      • [Deactivated] on 05/02/2017 - 18:23
        +1

        whats your opinion on the ANZ FF Black credit card?

        Great write up btw

        • illumination on 06/02/2017 - 23:54
          +3

          The ANZ FF Black card is quite a good card, but probably not ordinarily worth the annual fee unless you actually make the most of the benefits.

          The other bank cards which are approximately in the same "tier":

          • Westpac Altitude Black
          • ANZ Travel Adventures
          • Commbank Diamond

          Of the ones above, I'd say the ANZ Travel Adventures is the main stand out which I mentioned in my long ass comment above. Second would be the Commbank Diamond, due to its very unique Travel Insurance perk. You do not need to make the purchase on the card to activate the Travel Insurance, unlike the majority of other free travel insurances on other cards. The Westpac Altitude Black is actually pretty similar, benefits/features-wise.

          Personally, ANZ FF Black & Westpac Black are worth it during promotional times like these where the first year annual fee is waived. That alone is good enough, but the fact that it comes with a sign up bonus makes it very compelling.

          ANZ FF Black & Westpac Black:

          • Great consistent earn rate (equivalent of 1.5 QFF or VFF per dollar - depending on which rewards program you have opted in to)
          • Unlimited Lounge access at "Veloce" (not Velocity) branded lounges - ironically there are none in Australia - only on ANZ FF Black (not a perk of Westpac Black)
          • Access to Sydney AMEX International Lounge twice a calendar year
    • NotAMoodle on 05/02/2017 - 18:23
      +2

      Give the guy a bloody referral already!!!

      • Nillionaire on 10/02/2017 - 09:08
        +1

        First person I look for on financial deals with referrals :)

    • RockyRaccoon on 05/02/2017 - 20:09
      +1

      @illumination Only issue is they have never owned a credit card before. Amex is generally tougher on giving away a credit card, so that may not be available at this time.

      Otherwise good summation and maybe worth posting in the wiki

      • NotAMoodle on 10/02/2017 - 18:18
        +1

        Of the few Amex I've applied for they have been instantly approved and sent the cards without even asking for proof of income.

        Applying for NAB and ANZ black both requested proof and NAB wanted a proof of employment letter.

        I guess everyone's situation is different, but in my experience AMEX are quite easy to get a CC with.

  • bluesky on 05/02/2017 - 17:51
    +1

    A CitiPlus card is highly recommended, despite it being a debit card. Suitable for free foreign fees scenarios, e.g. travel and buying overseas, and when an Amex is not accepted. With that, an Amex card is a possibility for the rest of situations.

    My previous comment here has a link to all Amex cards, and you can select criteria (on the left) to see which cards have features suitable for you. Also, some info on free Amex cards – the only change since is that the free Qantas Discovery now requires $750, instead of $300 spend in first 3 months, to get the bonus 12,500 points with referral. I also posted about the free Amex Essential here.

    Amex free cards are good for someone with moderate expenditure (card fees not justified), not so keen on card churn (cancel/re-apply after 1st year) but want some ongoing benefits/rewards; or as a backup card. Hence, suitability is dependent on individual circumstances.

    Hope this helps.

  • tommo160 on 05/02/2017 - 18:45

    Decided to bite the bullet and got myself the explorer last week. Only got the 80k bonus (thanks to OzBargain referral) compared with the earlier 120k offer, but still a good card. Now just waiting on Amex to start their cash back offers !

  • modsec802 on 05/02/2017 - 20:26

    ANZ FF Black for uncapped Qantas points and 28 Degrees MasterCard for fee free usage when traveling abroad for work

    • modsec802 on 05/02/2017 - 20:27

      I've had the ANZ black card for a few years. They waived the fee for the second and third years (first was free), but recently won't do it anymore. I don't really care as I get lots of FF points as I pay for work travel and Qantas flights are 2.5 points per dollar spent on the card.

    • altomic on 05/02/2017 - 22:07
      +1

      28 Degrees MasterCard - only fee free for purchases. not ATM withdrawals any more.

  • demiurge on 05/02/2017 - 23:40
    +2

    AMEX essential whenever I can.

  • raykim on 06/02/2017 - 09:26
    +1

    Amex. Benefits and applepay.
    Nab flybuy. Everyday purchases plus flybuy points
    28 degree. Oversea trvelling, no fee on paying different currencies
    I pay no annual fees and always pay them full as per statements.

    • bobwokeup on 06/02/2017 - 19:44

      How do you get no annual fees on AMEX?

      • bluesky on 06/02/2017 - 19:57

        One way is to get one of the 3 free cards - Essential, Qantas Discovery or Velocity Escape. (See my comment above). Another is when they offer a card with fees, but waive the 1st year's fees.

        • bobwokeup on 06/02/2017 - 20:11
          +1

          Sweet cheers :)

          The other one to note for overseas travel is Qantas Cash Mastercard which is on all Qantas FF cards. Just like the Citibank card, no international fees, 1 Qantas FF point per $1 spent and you load the money onto it before travelling. I use that for places that accept CC without a fee and use cash from Citibank for all other purchases.

        • bluesky on 06/02/2017 - 20:18
          +1

          @billybob1978: While it has its benefits, it is a prepaid. So one is using one's own money. You won't be able to chargeback, if purchase is not as described. And cannot benefit from the interest-free period. Still good, but really depends on individual priorities, I guess.

        • bobwokeup on 07/02/2017 - 11:42
          +1

          @bluesky: Very true. It works for us as we have the money and getting the QFF is the bonus for us.

  • fantacular on 06/02/2017 - 09:52

    i put all my family expenditure (food, petrol, kids stuff, etc) on a joint credit card with the wife. pay it off in full each month. chasing velocity points as they seem to be best for a rewards flight to continental europe. change the card about once a year to get a sign-up bonus. currently on the ANZ travel rewards card, it seems very good although high annual fee.

  • paulieau on 06/02/2017 - 10:17
    +1

    I have both the Virgin High Flyer card and Velocity Amex. The virgin one used to be great, but it's been watered down a bit with no points earn on Bpay transactions and reduced points per dollar. It's decent value with the Virgin Australia credit though, especially if you would be flying with them anyway. Also they have no mobile app or mobile website to manage your account which can be frustrating at times in my experience.

    I have preferred to use the Amex since I got it, better points earn (when it's accepted), better benefits and a better customer experience overall (easy to manage your account through the app and the call Centre has always been efficient for me).

    • Rocket6 on 10/02/2017 - 09:54
      +3

      Thanks EVERYONE that commented. More helpful than you realise.

      Ended up getting the Velocity Amex. :)

      Also keeping my eye on the 28 degrees card people are mentioning, due to no fees overseas!

      Paulieau, your comment in particular steered me away from Virgin and more towards Velocity Amex. As you suggested, the Amex definitely looks like you'll get more value for your buck.

      • paulieau on 14/02/2017 - 19:24

        Glad my 2 cents worth was helpful. Enjoy the Amex cash back offers!

  • fkwong on 06/02/2017 - 20:07
    +1

    Amex Essential, AMEX Discovery and Nab QANTAS visa + Amex. To earn Qantas FF points and enjoy AMEX offers.

  • Brisxr6t on 07/02/2017 - 06:49

    Whilst citibank generally have good rewards programs I would not recommend them. CitiBank are the most underhanded, fraudulant company I have ever seen (apparently they also regularly top the list for government fines/complaints for being shonks in the us)

    Be wary lots of other financial institutions also use them as credit providers.

    Currently i am using Woolworths platinum CC. Been great so far and no complaints on racking up rewards points.

  • Nillionaire on 10/02/2017 - 09:04
    +2

    Under 18 so don't have credit card yet. As for debit and prepaid cards however; thought I'd share :)

    NAB Classic - First bank account. It's no fees won me over before I found out the other big banks would've waived their fees as I was a student. Simple, reliable and convenient as I have a branch very close to my house.

    Bankwest Student Account - For the StudentEdge offers and discounts

    Qantas Cash Card - Only option to earn Qantas Points although it's only 1 point per dollar. However they did have an online store with gift cards for most major retailers with which we got 5 points per dollar; made a decent amount of points with it. Unfortunately a few months back it was taken off their website during maintainence without any explanation.

    Coles Reloadable PrePaid MasterCard - Got it seeing the free deals here and for Flybuys but haven't used it much.

    AusPost Load and Go Reloadable PrePaid - Have used this, do not reccomend.

    That's about it I guess. Can't wait to turn 18 and unlock all the cool stuff… CitiBank Plus(or the new Macquarie Bank offer) and ING Direct come to mind :)

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