Making the most of rewards credit cards.
It's tempting to think that by just using your rewards credit card, you will earn back something you would otherwise have to pay money for.
But its worthwhile thinking carefully before you pick a card.
But its worthwhile thinking carefully before you pick a card.
Rewards cards tend only to make sense if you pay off your balance in full each moth. Otherwise the interest charges and fees will mean any reward you get is quickly outweighed by the penalties.
Equally, rewards are typically only offered on purchases made on the card, and not on cash withdrawals or on credit card cheques - so as well as being an expensive option, this will also not build your rewards.
It's also worth thinking about how often you will use your card, and the amount of money you are likely to spend on the card. Rewards cards work on the principle that the more you spend, the more rewards you are offered. But if you don't spend much on your card, you may find that a 0% on purchases card would give you a better deal in the real world.
Finally, the amount of cash back, air miles, money off in store and other rewards offered by each card varies. So it always pays to shop around.
Added : Tuesday 11th March 2008 15:30
