Clark: Cash Back Challenge

We constantly see ads for highest cash Back Cards only to find that they are based on Categories. Clark, has your team ever looked at these cards and using an average Family budget, whether these outperform a straight 2% Cash Back?.. and is it worth the effort to keep track of these categories.

Granted, if you are doing remodeling or something specific it might pay in the short run, but is it worth the opening and closing in the long run. And what does Opening and closing Cards do to your credit?

We often recommend 2% cash back for most people because of the simplicity. We do have a roundup of the best 2% credit cards: 2% Cash Back Credit Cards: Comparing 7 Best Options

But we do not have a specific 5% category vs. 2% straight cash back comparison. We can take a look and see what we can do.

We also lightly touch on the impacts of canceling credit cards here: Why You Should Keep Old Credit Card Accounts Open

Thanks for sharing your ideas. We are always looking for content that can help people!

I have a Discover card that rotates the 5 % quarterly to different categories. I only use it for the 5 % that quarter . Then use a 1.75 % for my other purchases . You can put a small sticker on each card to help you track which card to use . Yes it is worth it , For groceries we usually get the max $75 per quarter. Only worth it if you pay it off monthly .