5X Everywhere
Or more!
Big Scores
Credit card
churningMega
shopping deals
Category bonuses
First, a moment of silence…
The Original 5X Everywhere
“One Card to Rule them All”
Then came Bluebird
5X everywhere + Bill Pay!
Another moment of silence…
5X Everywhere
Lives On
Vanilla Visa & Merchant Gift cards
Vanilla Visa + Target
Vanilla Visa + Vanilla Reload
Hilton Amex + Vanilla Reload
6X
Forward 5X
5X Options Compared
Option Cost to load $500
Fee % ATM? Bill Pay?
Vanilla Visa $4.95 .99 No No
Vanilla Visa + Target
$6.45 1.29 Yes No
Vanilla Visa + Vanilla Reload
$8.90 1.78 Yes Yes
Hilton Amex + Vanilla Reload
$3.95 .79 Yes Yes
Forward 5X $3.95 .79 Yes No
How big is this?
Living 1X
Consider these example annual expenses:• $20K credit card spend• $25K checks and bank transfers• $5K ATM withdrawals
Points per year earned from typical credit card:
$20K spend X 1 = 20,000 points
Category Bonuses
Average ~3XPoints per year earned:
$20K spend X 3 = 60,000 points
6X groceries, gas, drug
stores
2X Travel,
(restaurants)
5X restaurants
, bookstores,
movies
5X telecom,
cable, internet,
office supply
5X : Vanilla Visa & merchant gift cards
Average ~5XAnnual cost depends on gift cards used: ~$120
Points per year earned:
$20K spend X 5 = 100,000 points(or 88,000 for free)
5X: Vanilla Visa + Target
Average 5X across all credit and cash expenses
Annual cost: ~$325
Points per year earned:
$25K spend X 5 = 125,000 points(or 92,500 for free)
5X: Forward
Average 5X across all credit and cash expensesAnnual cost: ~$200
Points per year earned:
$25K spend X 5 = 125,000 points*(or 105,000 for free)
* $1K limit may be a deal breaker
5X: Vanilla Visa + Vanilla Reload
Average 5X across all expensesAnnual cost: $890
Points per year earned:
$50K spend X 5 = 250,000 points(or 161,000 for free)
6X: Hilton Amex + Vanilla Reload
Average 6X across all expensesAnnual cost: $395
Points per year earned:
$50K spend X 6 = 300,000 points(but, points are not as valuable)
Beyond 5X
Beyond 5X Everywhere
• Pay all credit charges with best credit card• $20K X 3 = 60K points
• Pay all bills (including credit card bills) & ATM with Bluebird• $50K X 5 = 250K points
Annual cost: $890Points per year earned:
310,000(or 221,000 for free)
Life Beyond 5X
Once a week:• [Go to Office Depot, buy two $500 Vanilla Visa
cards]• Go to drug store, buy two Vanilla Reload cards• Go home, load Vanilla Reload cards to Bluebird• Use Bluebird to pay bills & transfer money to
checking
As needed:• Use best credit card for purchases• Use Bluebird for ATM
Comparing TechniquesTechnique Points
EarnedCost Cost per
PointPain
1X 20K $0 $0 None
Category Bonuses ~3X
60K $0 $0 Low
Vanilla Visa + Gift Cards
100K ~$120 $0.0012 High
Forward B&N 125K ~$200 $0.0016 Medium
Vanilla Visa + Target 125K ~$320 $0.0026 High
Vanilla Visa + Vanilla Reload
250K $890 $0.0036 High
Hilton + Vanilla Reload
300K $395 $0.0013 Medium
Beyond 5X 310K $890 $0.0029 High
A moving target
Office Depot
CVS
Wal-greens
Use Caution
Questions?
Reload Cards
Paying Federal Taxes
Federal Taxes, Two Good OptionsFor example, assume $20K in taxes…
• Pay with mile earning debit card (e.g. SunTrust Delta card):• Earn 1 mile per dollar• Cost = $3.49• Miles earned = 20,000
• Pay with gift cards:• Buy 40 $500 Visa cards at 5X• Call Official Payments and use cards as debit cards• Cost = $356• Miles earned = 100,000 (or 64,400 free)