If you often have to wait in line at the airport to take care of business, you may already know how useful an air miles credit card can be. Not all credit cards with air miles are the same, though, and you'll need to do some research to find the best one for you. Here are some things to look for when you're trying to find one you can be proud of.
All-purpose card vs. airline card
There are two kinds of air miles credit cards: ones that are issued by the airline and ones that are issued by credit card companies. Even though the airline cards might get you a better deal when you fly on their airline, they might not be as useful overall. This is especially true if you might have to fly with a different airline in the future. If you always go to the same place and the airline leaves from both airports, this is good. But if your business needs you to go to other airports, you should get an air miles card that can be used for anything.
Getting Right to the Start
Some credit cards with air miles promise to give you a lot of points right away after your first purchase. Free points are always a good thing, but 5,000 points on two different cards might mean two very different things. How many points do you need to get the first free flight? This will give you a good idea of how much these points are worth. This will let you know how many points they are actually giving you.
Check out the rate of interest.
Most of the time, you won't have to pay interest on your credit card at first, but you will eventually. If you usually leave a balance on your credit card, this is an important number to know. These rates could be as low as 7.9 percent or as high as 18.24 percent. The actual interest rate you get will depend on your credit score, but you should try to get as low a rate as possible.
Advice About Air Miles
Some credit cards with air miles have an end date for the miles. This means that they will only stay on your credit card for a certain amount of time. If you don't use them, they will disappear after that. If you are saving them for a big trip in the future, you may not have them when you need them if you don't use this feature. The good thing is that some cards don't let you lose your miles. Make sure to find out if there is a limit to how many miles you can earn each year. Some cards have dates when you can't buy tickets with your miles.
Other Prizes
On some air miles credit cards, you can get a certain percentage of all the things you buy. If you know what these things are, you can save even more money. Some cards give you one point for every dollar you spend, while others give you two. Find out where you can use these points to buy things, eat at restaurants, stay at hotels, etc. If you don't go to those places very often, the card won't help you much.
Check out the different fees as well. Some credit cards with air miles have both an annual fee and a high interest rate. If you have a balance on another credit card, try to get one that lets you transfer the balance to it. This will save you more money. Lastly, don't get a card with a "universal default clause."
