Credit Card Recommendations

[bc-chris]

i saw a commercial this evening mentioning different credit cards and thought of this thread.

i did a quick scan of the thread and didn't notice this webpage posted yet, so check it out...

http://canada.creditcards.com/

looks like a fairly easy way to compare cards

[Hi-Psi]

Originally Posted by getbak

It's a Canadian card. All transactions are charged to it in Canadian funds.

Sorry, what I meant was that you get charged a conversion fee when a non Canadian charge is applied to the card. This fee is usually a couple cents on the dollar.(This is separate from the foreign transaction fee)

The only real benefit of this card is the fact you don't pay the 2.5% foreign transaction fee. Unless you are making a TON of purchases from outside Canada there are better cards to be had.

Jason

[maverickstruth]

Originally Posted by Hi-Psi

Sorry, what I meant was that you get charged a conversion fee when a non Canadian charge is applied to the card. This fee is usually a couple cents on the dollar.(This is separate from the foreign transaction fee)

The only real benefit of this card is the fact you don't pay the 2.5% foreign transaction fee. Unless you are making a TON of purchases from outside Canada there are better cards to be had.

Jason

That's incorrect; I have the Amazon.ca Visa, and just used it on a trip to the states. There is no conversion fee, no forex fee; the charge to the card is simply the amount converted to CAD at the Visa exchange rate at the time of the purchase.

It's also a cash back card - flat 1%, not tiered, which makes it a fairly strong general purpose card (if you're interested in cash back).

When I did my research when the Amazon card was first released, it was actually the best cash back card for our situation simply because it was an untiered card and even charging everything to the card, we don't spend a enough to catch the various tier levels that other cards require. We pair it with the Costco Amex which we use for restaurants (3%), gas (2%) and Costco trips, and it works out very well.

[Hi-Psi]

Originally Posted by maverickstruth

the charge to the card is simply the amount converted to CAD at the Visa exchange rate at the time of the purchase..

That right there is your exchange fee, if you look at the Visa exchange rate versus the real exchage rate you will see anywhere from 2-5% difference usually.

Jason

[CarlW]

Originally Posted by Hi-Psi

That right there is your exchange fee, if you look at the Visa exchange rate versus the real exchage rate you will see anywhere from 2-5% difference usually.

Jason

Just went on Visa's exchange rate page for today vs current exchange rates between Canadian Dollar vs Reminbi, HKD, and US Dollars. Seem to get an exchange rate difference of 0.27% - 0.28%. Maybe my math is off?

(Current exchange rate - Visa exchange rate)/Current Exchange Rate * 100 = percentage difference?

so currently 100 CNY = 17.0149 CAD while Visa's is 100 CNY = 16.967200 CAD
difference of 0.0477 CAD.

( 0.0477 / 17.0149 )*100 = 0.28034% ?

[maverickstruth]

As I understand it, comparing rates really depends on what you're comparing to.

I don't know of any way an individual, for personal purchases, can get a wholesale exchange rate. Which means comparing the Visa exchange rate - a consumer rate - with a wholesale rate (which is what you'd hear on the news, for example) isn't really a fair comparison.

Instead, you need to compare Visa's rates to other consumer rates (since that's all that a consumer can get). These rates are, by their very nature, marked-up from the wholesale rate. But that doesn't mean that you're paying an extra fee when you pay the Visa exchange rate. It just means that you're purchasing your foreign currency from Visa, rather than from your bank or the airport kiosk.

And, when you compare to other consumer rates, credit card consumer forex rates are extremely competitive. So if your alternative, when shopping overseas, is to use cash, traveller's cheque or debit - you're actually likely to be dealing with a more favorable exchange rate when you use the Visa rate. They "mark it up less", so to speak.

The only way that I'm aware of to avoid mark-up on exchange rates altogether is to either gain access to wholesale currency exchange, or to pay (e.g.) on a US card from a US bank which has money stored in US funds. But unless you are getting those funds from a US source, you're still going to be dealing with the bank's consumer exchange rate to deposit the money in the first place.

/shrug At this point, I think it's likely semantics anyway. And not really germane to the question of which credit card is the best to get - just more an observation that for foreign currencies, credit card consumer forex rates (not including transaction fees) are usually a pretty "good" deal, all things considered.

[getbak]

Originally Posted by Hi-Psi

That right there is your exchange fee, if you look at the Visa exchange rate versus the real exchage rate you will see anywhere from 2-5% difference usually.

Jason

Visa charges the bank an exchange rate that is about 2.5% higher than the published exchange rate for the day. That is charged by the credit card company to the bank and is standard regardless of which bank issued your card.

On top of that, most banks charge an additional 2.5% transaction fee. The Amazon card does not charge this extra transaction fee.


At the end of the day, all other things being equal, for every $1000 you spend in a foreign currency, you'll pay $25 less if you use the Amazon Visa rather than a Visa card issued by one of the big Canadian banks.

[Hi-Psi]

Originally Posted by getbak

Visa charges the bank an exchange rate that is about 2.5% higher than the published exchange rate for the day. That is charged by the credit card company to the bank and is standard regardless of which bank issued your card.

On top of that, most banks charge an additional 2.5% transaction fee. The Amazon card does not charge this extra transaction fee.


At the end of the day, all other things being equal, for every $1000 you spend in a foreign currency, you'll pay $25 less if you use the Amazon Visa rather than a Visa card issued by one of the big Canadian banks.

Yes that is true, hence why I said that it really depends on how much you use it, if you're only spending $1000-2000 a year on US goods then it's really not worth it, there are much better cards out there.

Jason

[caff]

Originally Posted by Hi-Psi

I find the best way to find short haul flights with BA is to go to the American Airlines website and search the American Advantage(points) flights. They are worth the same as BA points and you can book their flights through BA.

That should give you options for pretty much all of the US

Jason

Thanks Jason. That works very well. The only problem now is that Alaska Airlines flights can't be booked on BA site.

[Daliwan]

Originally Posted by caff

Amex has a points to travel credit promotion: AMEX MR Promo 1000pts = 12,50$ in credit (25% bonus) (end august 31st). If anyone has Amex points, it is good time to change it to credit. It can be applied to any purchases, not only for travel.

This promotion is over.

[caff]

The 20k bonus Amex points for the Amex gold card is still on.

[caff]

Originally Posted by Daliwan

The american express gold card is a very good one. Now it offers 20k bonus points and first year free.

https://www.americanexpress.com/cana...IeDQ0bCQ%3D%3D

another one is the Amex SPG card. It offers 21k bonus points for signing up now:

https://www.americanexpress.com/cana...IWHxcJDw%3D%3D

I have both cards, and I love the insurances come with the card.

The Amex Gold Rewards card sign up bonus just increased to 25k.

[Hi-Psi]

Originally Posted by caff

Thanks Jason. That works very well. The only problem now is that Alaska Airlines flights can't be booked on BA site.

I always call when looking to book BA, also you should be able to see Alaska options on the AA site under AAadvantage redemption, it's the same thing.

Oh and both AMEX promo's are still on and if you are referred then you get the 25k now instead of the 20k.

If anyone wants a referral link, feel free to PM me, it's the only way to get the extra bonus points. Plus you'd help out a fellow CPer :-)

Jason

[caff]

Do they charge service fee if we book Alska Airlines flights with points by calling BA? Thanks.

[Hi-Psi]

The same fees as you would by booking online which is mostly just the taxes. I never encountered any "booking fee" by calling.

[caff]

Originally Posted by Hi-Psi

The same fees as you would by booking online which is mostly just the taxes. I never encountered any "booking fee" by calling.

Good.

Aeroplan charges $30 if you call to book flights.

[spetch]

Avion charges your $50 bucks if u call in. You can do it on the RBC rewards website for free.

[Hi-Psi]

If you convert to Avios though you can book over the phone for free, at least I was able to when I booked my last one in May.

Jason

[caff]

A new good promo by Amex for AeroplanPlus Gold card: 30k Aeroplan miles and first year free: https://www.americanexpress.com/cana...ATEg4dAw%3D%3D

[Daliwan]

Just booked a business class ticket to Sydney with 135k Aeroplan miles. Next year the same ticket will cost 160k Aeroplan miles.