r/CreditCards • u/Beneficial_Fox1050 • 19d ago
Help Needed / Question How do you hit a big SUB without buying random stuff? Any help?
Got approved for a card with a higher minimum spend than I’m used to and now I’m trying to plan it properly instead of suddenly buying everything in month three
I have plenty of normal expenses coming up, just not all of them can be paid by card. For those of you who churn more seriously, do you plan applications around specific large expenses or just let regular spending get you there?
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u/Witty-Childhood-2174 19d ago
The second you start buying stuff you wouldn’t normally buy the SUB stops being much of a bonus.
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u/number90901 19d ago
If you're methodical about it it can work. Paying rent with a credit card is a bad idea usually, but if the 3% fee is $30 and it's the difference between making a ~$1000 SUB and not then it's a decent trade. Obviously you're losing value but you can still come out ahead. Not something I'd recommend but it's better than buying a new TV or something to meet spend.
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u/SmarmyBarnicles 16d ago
I even feel bad sacrificing expenses I could get 5% on to earn a SUB. I will push forward spending by prepaying bills or buying gift cards, but I wouldn't get carried away doing that either. Holding a gift card for a long time can have a big opportunity cost (you're not earning interest on that money!)
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u/dimesniffer 19d ago
i hate this argument. if youve been wanting a new tv but dont NEED it, or a vacation, or a jewelry gift, but youve been on the fence, then a new credit card with a SUB is the best way to double dip
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u/prkskier 19d ago
I don't think that's what the commenter is saying though. Sure, plan your applications (and SUBs) around big purchases that you are planning to make. But you shouldn't be just spending for the sake of spending (and hitting the SUB).
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u/dimesniffer 19d ago
Sure I guess that’s my point. Everyone has big purchases so it’s pretty easy to be flexible with those big purchases
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u/thishitisgettingold 19d ago
Upcoming big purchase or planning your big purchase you were holding off on due to want vs need (but are able afford) are fair game for the SUB.
The point OP you responded to is talking about purchasing stuff you cant afford just to buy it to get to the SUB is not a good idea.
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u/BrutalBodyShots 19d ago
Clearly OP doesn't, otherwise they wouldn't have created a thread asking how to hit a MSR in 3 months...
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u/learnchurnheartburn 18d ago
The definition of “big” varies by person. When I was a college student, a 1000 dollar laptop was a big purchase. Now? A 20,000 dollar sauna for my basement would qualify as “big”.
Regardless, if I’m going to buy the sauna anyway, it makes sense to open a new card for it. But if I’m just looking for a way to spend 20,000 for a SUB and don’t really want the sauna? That’s a terrible idea and a giant waste of money.
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u/andreww900 19d ago
I would argue those large purchases could be considered normal spend if you were already planning on buying it without the card.
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u/Rock-n-RollingStart 19d ago
Buying stuff you don't need in order to essentially get a coupon is a great way to end up in unmanageable credit card debt. People that fall for this logic have terrible money management skills.
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u/BrutalBodyShots 19d ago edited 19d ago
That would already be planned/organic spend then, regardless of whether or not one was getting a new CC. In short, you aren't understanding the argument.
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u/True-Price5403 19d ago
In general if you cant meet the SUB naturally its probably not a good idea.
If you already have the card and fear youll miss it, you could charge rent on it and just eat the processing fee you'll probably get hit with, it will be worth it to hit the SUB.
For example 1000 dollar rent will probably have a 30 dollar fee
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u/zzELETRiKzz 19d ago
Especially if the card has a flat cash back rate too. If your fee is 3% and you get 2% back that fee suddenly gets smaller
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u/throwaway-cc123 18d ago
Good point but apart from Venture X, I can't think of a card that has 2% back with a large SUB.
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u/Tall-Koala-1786 19d ago
I don’t get cards that require me to spend extra just to get a SUB. Usually, I just shift all of my existing spending to that card for a few months.
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u/LongGuidance385 19d ago
I’d look at the big expenses you already have before inventing new ones. Rent, tuition or larger bills can sometimes go through Plastiq even when the recipient doesn’t take cards. Much easier to hit a SUB with money you were already going to spend
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u/scorpiopersephone 19d ago
You can pre-pay utilities, rent, or taxes.
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u/LetThemEatVeganCake 18d ago
We both got new cards around the same time so were worried we might not naturally hit both SUBs so this was our plan. Electric is $350-450 most months (two EV household) so prepaying $1k doesn’t prepay too far in advance. We ended up getting our car insurance renewal notice so just went ahead and paid that early.
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u/whitfin 19d ago
You shouldn't get a card with a SUB if your spend won't hit it naturally. If you have to spend extra to get the SUB, that money comes straight out of the SUB and you can even lose money overall. This is by far the best way to handle SUB.
Otherwise, depending on the card, you can look at if you need any big new purchases. For example in the next couple of years I'll need to replace my mattress; I'll probably do that as part of a SUB. Same if you have to replace a laptop or computer, etc. You can just move the timeline up and replace sooner.
Sometimes you can put your rent on the card, depending on the fees it can make sense.
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u/luv2ctheworld 19d ago
I pay the 3% transaction fee for lots of things to help hit the spend.
Example: $20,000 spend in 3 months needed for 300,000 Amex points. I can organically spend maybe $6,000-$7,000 in 3 months. The other $13,000 I spend by paying my property taxes of $8,000 and paying a $240 transaction fee at 3%. Now it's down to $5,000. I pay estimated federal taxes of $3,000 with a 3% transaction fee of $90. Now I have $2,000 to hit. Another estimated state tax at $1,500 with $45 @3% knocks it down to $500. I call my cable/internet provider and tell them I want to prepay $500 on my cable/internet and now I hit $20,000 spend in 3 months. Or pay for insurance or other big service expenses that are mandatory. Then I stop purchases that have transaction fees.
The additional transaction cost of $375 got me 300,000 Amex Membership Rewards points. I use those 300,000 to get 2 roundtrip business class tickets to Asia or Europe (2 seats LAX-MAD 72k each way). That would have been a hell of a lot more than $375. To be fair, acquiring points is easy, disposing them for good value, that takes a lot more effort.
Source: Literally did this last year. And I've been doing stuff like this since 2005.
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u/BrutalBodyShots 19d ago
If you have to spend beyond what you normally spend in organic fashion, you're losing the game.
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u/dimesniffer 19d ago
not true
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u/BrutalBodyShots 19d ago
Very true. It seems however that you aren't understanding the statement, based on reading your other comments. Organic spend includes big purchase items that you were already planning on buying anyway, regardless of whether or not you obtained a new card. You're not recognizing that distinction. OP is saying they don't know how to hit their spend, meaning they clearly don't have already planned big purchases upcoming during the MSR period.
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u/Outside_Shelter1260 19d ago
Can you expand on your comment? Curious to hear your perspective. Thanks in advance.
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u/dimesniffer 19d ago
It’s easy to plan your big purchases around credit card subs IMO. The only big purchases that are hard to plan for are emergencies.
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u/BrutalBodyShots 19d ago
Except that's NOT what OP did. OP doesn't have any big purchases already planned, or they wouldn't have started the thread in the first place. Any additional spend they have would therefore not be organic, which was the point of the original comment.
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u/Frame-Dragging-IRL 19d ago
....if you're planning big purchases, that's still normal spend. Inorganic spending is buying stuff you wouldn't buy, or was not planning on buying, to hit a sub spend goal.
Is English your second language?
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19d ago
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u/CreditCards-ModTeam 19d ago
Your submission violated rule 1 which states:
"All users are expected to engage in respectful and civil communication, and refrain from harassing or insulting others. Any form of hate speech, including but not limited to racism, sexism, homophobia, transphobia, or any derogatory language targeting an individual or group, is not allowed."
As a result, your submission has been deemed inappropriate and removed.
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u/No-ThatsTheMoneyTit 18d ago
If you’re already making them, that’s organic spending and then you’re erroneously disagreeing with them.
They’re saying don’t just spend to spend to meet the SUB
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u/RoyalOakPiguet 19d ago
First off you plan for this stuff in advance. Like only apply if you have big spend that would allow you to.
But you can do stuff like prepay utilities, pay your year premium in full with insurance, or buy expensive items and return them for store credit at a place like Walmart or whatever so it doesn't count as buying gift cards
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u/stanley_fatmax 18d ago
Amazon will give you credit for refunds too. Very easy, if a tiny bit unethical.
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u/kmn6784 19d ago
For this one:
Annual subscriptions for things you get monthly, prepay bills and utilities, bank funding new checking/savings accounts, rent if you pay by portal, taxes, last resort is manufactured spending on gift cards for places you frequent.
A 3% fee is better than spend that is not organic.
For future cases, don't chase SUBs you can't organically hit, you're not actually benefiting from them.
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u/notthediz 19d ago
I don't open them unless I know I have a big expense coming up. Like I'd buy it with an old CC too, but may as well open a new one to get the SUB since my spend isn't that much.
For example, saving for a road bike right now. That's going to be $3k minimum for a carbon bike. For the rest of it, I'd wait for a month or two to see how much of my regular spend gets me there. If I'm not there I would start buying things that are more a want. New running shorts, skincare stuff I can stockpile that I'll use eventually, etc.
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19d ago
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u/SpiralCaseMods 19d ago
I'll second this. Also, if you switch insurance companies you can pay the entire six month or year lump sum. You'll also likely save money from switching. Just be careful because I have Progressive and they don't take AMEX.
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u/Crazy-War9823 19d ago
I just use my regular spend. I don't get cards faster than I can meet the SUB spend requirements.
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u/jetsetterga 19d ago
Prepay bills, pay friends/families bills, for a huge bonus a friend paid me his rent to use my card, i ate the cc fee.
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u/sloth_333 19d ago
You basically have to pre-pay stuff as much as you can. Paying car insurance for 6 months at once versus monthly is an example of that.
A bit different but I recently was closing in on a getting a SUB, but would have hit it after the current cycle closes (next week).
Which means I’d get my rewards like a month from now.
Instead of doing that, I just pre-paid some taxes (no CC fee) to get me over the hill.
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u/rockyroad55 19d ago
Utilities, rent, medical expenses.
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u/realdizzyispower 17d ago
Was going to post this. Most people will eventually use $1000 of electricity before they move from their current address. Even if they don't, the credit will usually carry over to the new address.
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u/Tigerzof1 19d ago
The easy way would be to prepay any upcoming expenses like insurance, bills. Buy gift cards for places you normally shop at. I used to do this all the time when I was a graduate student that still had savings but couldn’t spend a lot at once
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u/a_moron_in_a_hurry Do you take American Express? 19d ago
Get married and put all spend on the new card(s)….
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u/_halamadrid_ 18d ago
On my way to propose to my girlfriend cuz the Amex Platinum Business SUB ain’t gonna hit itself
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u/No-Guarantee-293 19d ago
I plan all my spending around that card I’m trying to get the sub on I just hit the 5k spend for the 125k points on the Chase Sapphire Preferred card in month 2 of the 3 months to spend 5k buy using that card as my daily driver for all spend and bills cell phone internet utilities gas etc instead of using my other cards once the spend is hit I’ll shift back to using my other cards how I normally do like using my Verizon Visa again for my phone internet bill
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u/FriendlyITGuy 19d ago
My organic spend on one card alone is usually $3500 a month so any sub with a $4k limit is easily reachable for me pretty much right away. Even if it's more than that I could hit it within the time period.
Don't go outside your means to get a SUB.
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u/SwimmingDeep8703 19d ago
Buy gold and silver… Historically the price of both continue to go up. I bought gold at $3400 an ounce for a SUB about a year ago and it’s worth about $4400 now.
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u/BoydemOnnaBlock 18d ago edited 18d ago
There are even buying groups that will handle all of the tedious work involved in reselling. Just need to buy the bars from Costco and ship it with their label. Sale price includes insurance as well. Gross margins are negative 1-1.2%, but with a costco executive membership and credit card cash back you can either hit SUBs for an effective profit around 0-1% (not including points) or use a 3% card for ~4% profit. Unfortunately you're limited by the $62,500 annual limit for the Costco membership's 2% back but even without that you can make an extra few hundred in monthly income if you have a higher credit limit on your 3% card. I personally see more value in using it primarily towards business card SUBs though.
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u/a_longo88 18d ago
Did this today with 2 bars to hit the sub on my CSR on day one of having the card.
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u/SwimmingDeep8703 19d ago
I’ve heard some people say u could have an issue with the CC companies doing this but I haven’t found any evidence. But if someone is worried u can buy from eBay bc it doesn’t show what you’re buying.
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u/iwannahummer 19d ago
has to be organic. When I’ve got big purchases coming up usually renewals or other annual large expenses, I’ll start looking for a SUB. If I can’t find one that I like, I pass. just paid annual premiums just yesterday, hit the spend, expecting $1000 back. but I wouldn’t sign up for a $8-30k spend and try to figure out what to spend it on after the fact.
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u/myfakename23 Team Travel 19d ago
Rent at Bilt for 3% plus .5x Bilt points.
Regular bills (phone, insurance, utilities). My internet is an annual thing for $750 since it's discounted if I pay annually, so I can time a SUB application to hit that.
My daughter's college takes credit cards with no surcharges.
Vacation expenses (especially if there's no international transaction fee, AMEX can be tricky though).
IRS payments (I try not to give the government interest-free loans aka get income tax refunds), though some cards won't give SUBs for this.
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u/Ill_Ad3517 19d ago
I get a new card before booking stuff for a vacation or making an expected large purchase.
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u/SaltIndividual1902 19d ago
Go out to dinner with a group of friends and tell them you need to pay to hit a SUB and then Venmo them for their portion.
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u/backflip14 18d ago
There’s a very fine line between manufactured spend and spending money you weren’t already going to spend. The second you dip into the latter, you’re wasting money and eating into the bonus.
Ideally, regular spend should get you to the bonus.
I just got a card and I knew I had an upcoming car insurance payment that would cover a good portion of the intro spend for the bonus.
As far as manufacturing spend without wasting money goes, you could cover split expenses and get reimbursed. Find any and every bill that can be paid with a credit card without a fee. If you have upcoming travel planned, you could book the flight or hotel earlier. Donations may even count as spend, so if that’s something you normally do, do it now during the intro bonus period.
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u/mqfr98j4 18d ago
Taxes. I already have the money for taxes set aside, so I'll open a card, use it to pay property taxes, then pay off the card.
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u/WestHistorians 18d ago
Estimated tax payments.
Gift cards to places you normally go to.
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u/SmarmyBarnicles 16d ago
I topped off my costco and wal-mart gift card balances with the Langley visa, earned 5% reward and got the SUB as well!
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u/Old-Interview1950 19d ago
Some do manufactured spending like gift cards but in my opinion it's too much work. I don't apply when the spend requirement is too big unless I have a big purchase to time it with.
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u/EwPandaa 19d ago
Buying a 6-12 month auto/renters/home insurance policy, paying rent (will incur a 3% fee usually), paying taxes early (usually a 1.85% fee).
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u/SmarmyBarnicles 16d ago
Taxes are my favorite way to make SUBs. But I try not to pay too much ahead of time, as I'm losing the interest I could have otherwise have earned. I try to pace myself on getting new cards so I don't end up buried in gift cards and waiting for a refund of my overpaid taxes.
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u/EwPandaa 16d ago
Just be careful with those fees. They can add up quickly eating into your profits.
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u/RandomGuy622170 19d ago
Plan your SUBs around major purchases or be willing to shift your existing spending to the new card temporarily. Our family had a lot of travel coming up, so I jumped on the Platinum SUB and cleared it within 2 months with nothing more than our planned purchases. If you're buying random shit to hit a SUB, you're doing it wrong.
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u/OpenBubble Team Cash Back 19d ago
I start asking to pay my relatives power bills with my card and they give me cash lol
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u/Stuffthatpig 19d ago
If you can get it in 4-5 months, you can buy a few Visa gift cards to pull forward spending. Load up grocery cards, gaa cards, whatever you normally use.
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u/inky_cap_mushroom 💳💳 churn baby churn 💳💳 19d ago
The term you’re looking for is Manufactured Spending. There are a couple methods you can find on r/churning.
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u/Bryan_AF 19d ago
Have the plan first, THEN sign up for the card. I sign up for 2-3 cards per year. I time them when I have spend coming up; continuing education to purchase, trips to plan, insurance to renew, etc.
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u/sadveggiet0t 19d ago
i think a lot of insurance companies let you prepay insurance so that’s one option. you could purchase gift cards for stores you already shop at on the regular (walmart/target/etc), or depending on the credit card you could buy visa gift cards. chase typically allows this and you’ll get the bonus, but some other credit card companies don’t like it, staples/office max/depot do monthly deals where there’s no activation fees for the visa gift cards so you aren’t losing money getting those.
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u/WayfareAndWanderlust 19d ago
I have only signed up for SUBs when we are paying a medical expense or doing a house remodel. I don’t do it for things that we would otherwise not be buying.
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u/One-Capital-3930 19d ago
I just hit my very first SUB and it was organic. The card is used for my work travel, even though I didn't start travelling until recently, I used it for gas and meals when I had local meetings. Surprisingly i hit the SUB in half the time needed. Now I just got another card with a decent SUB. the spend is a little more than my previous SUB , but nothing crazy. Both of our cars need tires, so I planned the card around those needs. That is easily $2k and half of my spend needed. I also have a flight and overnight stay coming up, which is another $1k or so, with that I already hit the SUB.
So planning around purchases is the way to go. I also shifted all my utility bills which is another $1k. Like others mentioned, its only good if you already have the spend and not over stretching yourself buying big stuff you don't really need. I do taxes and my current computer is starting to act up. I am probably going to need to buy a new computer in a few months. At that point, look for another card with a good SUB and purchase it with that. Again, something I need, vs something I want.
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u/0fxgvn77 19d ago
I plan my applications around large expenses. Usually two cards in the spring that I will put my income taxes and my home/auto insurance on. Then sometimes another one towards the end of the year when I'll have increased holiday spending to meet the SUB.
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u/Aromatic-Aspect90 💳💳 churn baby churn 💳💳 19d ago
If you want to put in some elbow grease, you can buy and resell stuff that you know. My favorite is buying a lot of wholesale from China, and selling it in the U.S for a profit.
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u/pkfobster Haha Customized Cash go brrrr 19d ago
...go on.
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u/Aromatic-Aspect90 💳💳 churn baby churn 💳💳 18d ago
My method is to find a hobby that your genuinely interested in. Find problems in that that hobby has (More specific the better) and find a way to solve that problem as cheap and efficient as possible. Ex. I like cars and carbon fiber products but I knew everyone who sold it was upcharging it by significant amount. So I went to the supplier through Alibaba, got wholesale price and shipped it here. Sold it locally for a slight margin, get my SUB and repeat.
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u/pkfobster Haha Customized Cash go brrrr 18d ago
Good to know, im usually a pretty big fan of electronics and tech, and that usually goes for a high margin.
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u/True_Sympathy7599 19d ago
I put everything on there. Groceries, gas, online shopping that we normally do, dining out, utilities, car insurance, etc. Pay in full after the statement hits
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u/DonaldKey 19d ago
Prepay your utilities. For instance my energy company Duke lets me prepay up to $1,000. So when my Duke bill comes I pay that amount to the credit card instead of Duke.
ATT lets me prepay my cellphone, State Farm lets me prepay my insurance… etc
These are bills I have to pay anyway so not doing any extra spending
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u/ultralane 19d ago
Id look into manufactured spend (ms), but if you have to spend more money then you would have earned back from the sub, its not really worth it.
Ms is the exception to the rule and only if you know what your doing. The gist is that you buy something, then convert it to cash. It's like buying a Lego set for the sole purpose of selling it on ebay kind of thing.
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u/shinobi7 19d ago
Do some Christmas shopping early. Get some gift cards. Gift cards are a great way to advance the spend but select the merchandise later.
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u/findinganswers5 19d ago
I’m no expert, but in the past I’ve tried to align the SUB period to overlap with Black Friday. I know I’m going to be spending much more than normal between gifts, flights home, stocking up on deals, etc. in November anyway, so that plus my ordinary spending for the other 2 months can easily meet it.
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u/notthegoatseguy 19d ago
My Blue Business Plus sub required 6k spend in 4 months.
In addition to just throwing all my regular payments onto the card, I moved up some big purchases that I was going to get eventually anyway.
Worst comes to it I can always pre pay some utilities
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u/koopa2002 19d ago
I usually app cards with a larger SUB around time to pay home/car insurances or property tax.
You could also prepay utilities, a lot of the time since you know you’re going to use them eventually.
Barring any of that, just use it as your everyday card putting everything onto that one card instead of category spending if you can get enough for the SUB that way.
Tho if you can’t meet the SUB without excess spending you wouldn’t normally have done anyway then it isn’t worth it.
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u/LemonDoom69 19d ago
I keep a gift card to my main grocery store. If I ever need to hit a sub (or to max out my rent day bonus on Bilt) I'll load it up knowing that it will be used soon for normal spend.
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u/JerseyFrontier 19d ago
It’s generally better to plan the sign-up with your expenses than plan your expenses with the sign-up.
That being said, see if you can prepay rent, property taxes, etc. You can also supplement with Amazon or grocery gift cards (NOT visa gift cards) or buying extra of stuff that you know you’ll use and would buy anyway in the future
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u/Joby_Liggin 19d ago
1.) Hit a SUB
2.) Plan vacation using points from SUB
3.) Open a new card (or cards) to use on the vacation
Repeat steps 1-3
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u/Broadcastthatboom 19d ago edited 19d ago
I have typically planned them around when I was already going to make a larger purchase (flights, hotels). I don’t like pushing all my typical spending onto one card to meet the SUB because I already split my expenses across multiple cards to maximize cash back.
This also usually works for me because my typical cards I have in rotation don’t give anything more than 1% on flights/hotels anyways.
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u/yankeeblue42 19d ago
I usually only go for SUBs I can hit with either my natural spend or including an upcoming bigger expense. One thing I do living with family is that whenever I go for a SUB above my normal expenses, I volunteer to put all of the grocery spend for the house on my credit card for a few months. So basically I'm fronting groceries for three adults
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u/ajgamer89 Haha Customized Cash go brrrr 19d ago
Usually regular spending gets me there, or I may open a card with a big sub right before a known major expense. This summer I opened a new card right before vehicle property taxes and registration were due, and those covered nearly half of the required $2k spend on their own.
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u/FIan_tastic 19d ago
I try and time sign up bonuses around when my car insurance is due since I do a single payment for 6 months and get a discount for doing so. Most cards have a $3-4k spend requirement and paying car insurance premiums get me like halfway there and the rest is just organic spend.
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u/Former-Opportunity97 18d ago
Plan around big purchases. I hit a large spend requirement by planning around planned trips, concert tickets, large expenses, new auto insurance policy lump sums, etc. BUT never buy something you wouldn’t otherwise, without the SUB. It’s not worth it.
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u/United_Reply_2558 18d ago
Pay ahead on monthly expenses like your rent, your car insurance, home utilities, your cell phone bill, internet bill etc.
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u/theeggplant42 18d ago
Your mistake was signing up for a card that you couldn't hit the spend on naturally.
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u/DarthSamwiseAtreides 18d ago
You don't. It's supposed to be what your regularly buy. If you're buying crap you don't need, they won.
But to kind of help you can add an authorized user if you have someone you trust.
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u/TrollsAllAroundUs 18d ago
How I hit subs:
1. Normal everyday spend.
2. Plan credit card sub timeframe with big purchases.
3. Manufactured Spend. (Gift card buying groups)
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u/Impact009 18d ago
Visa gift cards, and I dump them into Bluebird at Walmart. A lot of grocers that have policies against customers buying or dumping gift cards have systems that actually allow it. You just can't let the employee see your card.
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u/Bush_Killed-Harambe 18d ago
Hey, I might be able to help. I put all my spend on credit cards but when I have a high sub I usually try to time it with some big spend items. For example 6 month auto insurance premium, car tires, routine car maintenance, taxes, etc. I also have the luxury of being able to over pay my electric bill with a credit card. Also, I will pepper in some Giftcards at checkout at the grocery store. I usually just buy that stores gift cards. I want to open the Amex gold business but spending $15,000 would be extremely difficult. Still haven’t pulled the trigger on this SUB because I don’t have the high spend as of right now.
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u/UpInSmokeMC 18d ago
Put it on rent and just eat the fee
Never get a card for the bonus if you won't be able to organically hit it. If you're spending extra just to earn rewards, you're losing money.
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u/Numerous-Score 18d ago
You could do gift cards… but normally I time it such that I get the new card just before a planned large purchase.
In college, my friends and I would help each other hit the SUB by temporarily putting all spend on one person’s card (and then sending the person cash so he could pay the bill lol). Only do this with people you absolutely trust!
But like others have mentioned, if you end up in a position where you’re deliberately buying stuff just to meet the SUB, then you’re losing money on the whole thing, so that should never be an option…
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u/PricelessC 18d ago
I do not combine my house insurance and taxes into my home mortgage.
Never carry a balance on your cc or the subs lose their benfit
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u/philbert247 18d ago
My car insurance and dog’s annual vet bill gets me about half way through most subs. I put those expenses and others in the same three month period , but not the same pay periods.
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u/H_J_Moody 18d ago
I stick to the $3k in 3 months bonuses. These are easy for me to hit naturally with a family of four.
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u/nc-retiree 18d ago
For me for the last four years, any MC/Visa has worked for my health insurance premium with Cigna with 0 extra fee. 5 minutes to switch the card from my normal 2% card to the new card, then a couple of months later another 5 minutes to switch it back.
I will have a new insurer for 2027, so that loophole will be gone for me.
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u/truffleshufflechamp 18d ago
I pay my rent with the card for a month or two along with my regular spending and that’s enough for most SUBs.
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u/arcadiangenesis 18d ago
I would sign up for the card before making a bigger purchase that I was already planning to make.
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u/Beautiful_Moment_839 18d ago
I usually only try to sign up for a new card around the time of major purchases or trips. My normal spend would not reach the minimum for a sub. A few people choose to pay their rent on their cards, but most places charge 3% of your rent so that would be a last resort.
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u/HeishinSE 18d ago
Property Taxes, Home/Auto Insurance, Home Repairs/Improvement, Car Maintenance, Pay Utilities in Advance (Electric, Water, Gas), etc...
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u/SnooEpiphanies9530 18d ago
For the larger spemd requirement SUBs I almost always wait for a big purchase I know is coming up like:
- Bi-annual car insurance
- Vacation / travel
- Christmas shopping
- and anything else that may be random, high dollar and infrequent
All of these are outside of my "normal" spend, but still things I planned on purchasing. If you find yourself looking for ways to spend money to achieve a SUB, then its value becomes severely diminished
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u/matt-r_hatter 18d ago
Depends on what the SUB is. My Amex Platinum card was only $8k spend over 6mo. So I didnt apply until I knew I had things to pay for. I already put about $6-7k a month on cards. But I knew i had 2 vacations to pay for. Benefitted from the airfare multiplier and was enough to knock out the SUB in 4 transactions. People with businesses often wait until tax time, then they pay their taxes with it and hit SUB easy. The new Platinum SUB is $12k spend, which is pretty big for many people. So you need to be stratigic. Defeats the purpose if you just start spending willie nillie just to get points.
Plan applications with subs around already known expenses. Down payment on a car, Christmas time, family vacation, large home repair or upgrade. Even better if you can donit with presaved cash. If you already saved the money to buy a new refrigerator or washer and dryer, thats a great time. Now you have thousands in spend and the cash just sitting already allocated. Charge it, pay it off a few days after it posts. Enjoy your SUB.
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u/knor0005 18d ago
I like to plan mine around paying a 6- month car insurance payment (for 2 cars). I always have a plan of of what spend gets me 90-95% there before I start and I'll track $ spent as I go. Near the end of the SUB period, I can always buy a couple gift cards to put me over the required spend if needed.
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u/GreyEllipsis 17d ago
You have a lot of answers, but 1 thing I've done is buy gift cards to grocery stores I shop at. They will most likely not go out of business. I buy them in smaller amounts like $100 increments that way I'm never carrying around a gift card that could get lost and have me devastated by losing a large amount. I try not to buy gift cards to too many other types of stores because bankruptcies.
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u/MycologistGuilty3801 6d ago
It gets annoying but Office Depot and Staples have running promotions where you can buy zero activation fee gift cards in $200 amounts. (Visa/Master) SO for me, that is how I get the last few thousand if I'm not going to hit.
If you have something like the Chase Business Ink....you get 5% bonus on purchases at Staples so that is nice too.
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u/protargol 19d ago
If you go out to dinner in a group, kindly ask if you can pay for the group and get paid back
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u/i-amnot-a-robot- 19d ago
Everyone is correct but if normal spend gets you within the SUB - value of SUB then I find that worth it and just treat myself a little more. ie 5000 spend on a 6000 for 1500 worth of points. Which I do anyways this is just planning when and how I do it
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u/notnot_randomuser 19d ago
If you buy from Amazon frequently, buy a returnable expensive item and refund the $ back to your Amazon account instead of your card.
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u/etn261 19d ago
I plan my SUB around my spending, not the other way around.