Typically the way to maximize credit card rewards is to take advantage of the best credit card welcome offers and also to use the cards with the best bonus categories.
Many people may find themselves in a situation where they need to make a very large one-time purchase. Maybe you’re paying taxes by credit card. Maybe you’re doing a home renovation. Maybe your business has a huge purchase it needs to make.
Assuming your purchase isn’t in a category that otherwise qualifies for a bonus category (like dining, groceries, gas stations, airfare, hotels, etc.), what’s the best way to maximize rewards? Of course let me note upfront that this is contingent on having a card with a high enough credit limit for this kind of a purchase (otherwise, this is where a charge card could come in handy).
Admittedly there’s no one size fits all answer. It depends on what rewards and perks you value most, and it depends on just how much you’re spending (after all, “big spending” means different things to different people).
In this post, I’d like to take a look at how I’d go about deciding which card to use for a large purchase, so that you can hopefully at least come up with an approach that works for you.
Reach a big minimum spending requirement
Credit cards often have big welcome offers, and the spending requirements to unlock those bonuses can vary. Sometimes you can unlock the bonus after a single purchase, and sometimes you can unlock the full bonus after tens of thousands of dollars of spending.
So if I do have a big purchase to make, my first consideration is if there’s any card that I’ve been considering applying for that has a big spending requirement. These kinds of situations can be the ideal time to pick up a card like this. This would probably get you the highest return per dollar spent of any of the possible options.
Maximize your rewards on everyday spending
Another logical option for your spending would be to simply use one of the best cards for everyday spending. Nowadays you don’t have to work hard to get a good return on spending:
- Among personal cards earning travel rewards, the Bilt Palladium Card (learn more) (Rates & Fees), Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card (learn more), Capital One Venture X Card (learn more), and Citi Double Cash® Card (learn more), potentially earn 2x transferable points or miles per dollar spent, which I value at a return of 3.4%
- Among business cards earning travel rewards, the Capital One Venture X Business (learn more) consistently earns 2x miles per dollar spent, The Blue Business® Plus Credit Card from American Express (learn more) earns 2x points per dollar spent on the first $50K annually (then 1x points), and The Business Platinum Card® from American Express (learn more) earns 2x points on purchases of $5K or more (up to $2 million spent annually, then 1x points)
- Among personal cards earning cash back, the Bank Of America® Premium Rewards® credit card (learn more) is unique, as Bank of America has the BofA Rewards™ Program, where you receive bonuses if you have certain amounts deposited with the bank — if you have at least $1 million deposited with the bank, you can earn an incredible 2.625% back on all non-bonused purchases
- Among business cards earning cash back, it’s tough to beat the Ink Business Premier® Credit Card (learn more), which offers 2.5% cash back on purchases of at least $5K
Earn airline elite status & perks
If you’re looking to earn something beyond just points or a welcome offer with a big spending amount, there are quite a few airline credit cards that offer significant incentives for spending. This can either be for spending any amount, or there are certain threshold bonuses. Let’s break this up into two categories, and I’ll list the opportunities I consider to be most lucrative.
For one, there are airline credit cards that can help you earn airline elite status, with the most lucrative opportunities being the following:
- With Alaska Atmos Rewards’ status points system, you can earn elite status exclusively through credit card spending, all the way up to Titanium; for example, spending $250K on the Atmos™ Rewards Summit Visa Infinite® Credit Card (learn more) would earn that status, including the 10K bonus status points offered by the card
- With American AAdvantage’s Loyalty Points system, you can earn elite status exclusively through credit card spending, all the way up to Executive Platinum status; for example, spending $170K on the Citi® / AAdvantage® Executive World Legend Mastercard® (learn more) would earn you that status, including 30K bonus Loyalty Points offered by the card
- With Delta SkyMiles’ Medallion Qualifying Dollars system, you can earn elite status exclusively through credit card spending, all the way up to Diamond Medallion status; this includes spending on cards like the Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card (learn more) and Delta SkyMiles® Platinum American Express Card (learn more)
- With United MileagePlus’ Premier Qualifying Points system, you can earn elite status exclusively through credit card spending, all the way up to Premier 1K status; this includes spending on the United Club℠ Card (learn more) and the United Quest℠ Card (learn more)
There are also airline credit cards that can help you earn companion perks, with the most lucrative opportunities being the following:
- Southwest credit card welcome offers and spending count toward the 135K point requirement for Companion Pass, which is Southwest’s generous perk that allows a companion to fly with you while just paying the taxes and fees; this could be on cards like the Southwest Rapid Rewards® Priority Credit Card (learn more), the Southwest® Rapid Rewards® Performance Business Credit Card (learn more), etc.
- The Atmos™ Rewards Summit Visa Infinite® Credit Card (learn more) offers a 100K-point global Companion Award when you spend $60K on the card in an anniversary year; this can be used to discount a companion award ticket by up to 100K points
- The Atmos™ Rewards Ascent Visa Signature® credit card (learn more) and Atmos™ Rewards Visa Signature® Business Card (learn more) offer a $99 companion fare if you spend $6K on either card in an anniversary year; this can be used to take a companion with you on Alaska or Hawaiian within the Americas
- The British Airways Visa Signature® Card (learn more) offers a companion voucher if you spend $30K on the card in a calendar year; this can be used to have someone travel with you on an award while just paying the taxes and carrier imposed surcharges (which can be high)
- While this is out of reach for a vast majority of us, the Chase Air Canada Aeroplan® Credit Card (learn more) probably has the single coolest perk of any card; if you spend $1 million on the card in a calendar year, you can take a companion with you on Air Canada or any partner airline in any class an unlimited number of times (Global +1), and 100% of the points redeemed for them will be reimbursed
Earn hotel elite status & perks
Not only are there lucrative airline credit cards if you’re spending big amounts, but arguably there are even more lucrative opportunities with hotel credit cards. This can either be for spending any amount, or there are certain threshold bonuses. Let’s break this up into two categories, and I’ll only list the opportunities that I consider to be most lucrative.
For one, there are hotel credit cards that can help you earn hotel elite status, with the most lucrative opportunities being the following:
- The Brand New IHG One Rewards Premier Select Credit Card (learn more) offers IHG One Rewards Diamond status when you spend $25K in eligible purchases on the card in a calendar year, The New IHG One Rewards Premier Credit Card (learn more) offers Diamond with $40K in eligible purchases, and The New IHG One Rewards Business Credit Card (learn more) offers Diamond with $50K in eligible purchases
- The Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card (learn more) and The Hilton Honors American Express Business Card (learn more) offer Hilton Honors™ Diamond Status when you spend $40K on the card in eligible purchases in a calendar year; however, personally I’d prefer to earn this status simply by having the Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card (learn more)
- The World of Hyatt Credit Card (learn more) and World of Hyatt Business Credit Card (learn more) both offer elite nights for spending, though you’ll have to spend a significant amount to earn World of Hyatt Globalist status
There are also hotel credit cards that can help you earn free night awards, with the most lucrative opportunities being the following:
- The World of Hyatt Credit Card (learn more) offers an additional Hyatt free night award when you spend $15K on the card per calendar year, so to me that’s very much a spending sweet spot on the card
- The Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card (learn more) offers a Hilton free night award when you spend $15K on the card per calendar year
- The Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card (learn more) offers a Hilton free night award when you spend $30K and then $60K on the card per calendar year, for a total of up to two free night awards
Use a 0% intro APR card to finance charges
Personally this isn’t my strategy, but understandably, some people really value the ability to finance a large purchase. In those situations, odds are that you’ll come out way ahead if you get a card with a 0% intro APR offer, rather than just focusing on maximizing rewards.
The exact cards offering 0% intro APR differ over time, but that’s definitely something that’s worth considering. Just make sure you have a plan to actually pay off the amount before the end of the 0% intro APR period, since financing charges after that can be really steep.
Factor in purchase protection & extended warranty
I wouldn’t make this the sole consideration in deciding which card to use for a purchase, but it’s worth keeping in mind that credit cards typically offer some level of purchase protection. The more premium the card, the better the protection, and you might even find benefits like extended warranty coverage.
This can cover eligible purchases against theft or accidental damage, or can even extend the manufacturer’s warranty. So especially if you’re buying electronics or another item that might be eligible for an extended warranty, that could be worth considering.
My strategy when making big purchases
While the above are what I consider to be among the most lucrative options for big spending amounts, what’s my personal strategy? If I’m not trying to reach a minimum spending requirement on a card, usually my spending for big purchases goes on one of the following cards:
- I spend as much as I can on the Atmos™ Rewards Summit Visa Infinite® Credit Card, both in order to qualify for Atmos Rewards elite status, and to earn the 100K-point Global Companion Award
- I always make sure to reach $15K in spending annually on the World of Hyatt Credit Card, in order to earn the additional Category 1-4 free night award
- The balance of my large purchases typically goes on the Bilt Palladium Card, given that I consider it to offer the best return on everyday spending
Large purchases with credit cards FAQs
Bottom line
Many people view a big purchase as an opportunity to maximize their credit card rewards. There are several great strategies that you can take to maximize your rewards, as I don’t think there’s one best approach to take.
At a minimum, just use a card that’s best for everyday spending. However, ideally take advantage of a card with a welcome bonus that has a big spending requirement. Alternatively, airline and hotel credit cards sometimes have very lucrative spending bonuses, which can prove worthwhile.
What’s your credit card spending strategy for big purchases?
Churnin' SUBs... that's the whole ballgame right there. (But issuers will hate you. Don't feel too bad.) Heh, remember that brief moment when US Bank had that 4% back card, but then nerf'd it? Yeah... Also, remember how BofA's Platinum Honors used to be $100K balances (now $1m)? Yeah...
Thank you for the info on the Hyatt Card 15K spend.
I had to drop 50k last year on 2 unexpected funerals (and they were fairly basic aside from 1 of them required air transfer). I didn't do too much research on points at the time mainly due to feeling way too distraught. But one thing to know (for funeral expenses) you can spread the bills over multiple cards to maximize each cards bonus. Funeral homes expects folks to need to pay with multiple cards.
The information about the Bank of America card and the bonus is not correct. You do not need the money necessarily deposited into an account there. Having investments through Merrill Lynch could also qualify.
I just paid my estimated taxes on my AX Platinum card to finish getting to $75K spending - something I hadn't intended to do. But my wife and I both use the Skyclub a ton and I had an Amex offer for 8K points on $16K spend. So, I get nearly two years of the DL Skyclub for 2 people plus almost 2 points/dollar I spent on it. By the time I finished the math the $600 in fees were paid for multiple times over.
So I got my 3rd AmEx Biz Pltm for the signup bonus and hefty SUB Spend since we’re moving and the moving company accepts cc with fee amounting to $600 witch I add to most of the AF for cost per point. Slightly under a penny so not great but some fancy future first class experience with make redemption value high!
I should point out previous big spending requirements have been for taxes ;-)
Between SUB spend on new cards, I’ve also used the Hilton Biz card for 5x up to $100k spend. I usually get around .009/Hilton pt but even most blogger’s worst point valuations are .004, still a solid .02 value/pt (& can spend any amount up to $100k to earn).
Nice to stack a SUB/AU offer on an AMEX Biz Plat with $5k transactions at 1.5x (similar strategy with Chase Ink Premier).
I would add a consideration that depending on the type of purchase, the shopping protections offered by the Amex Platinum could be worth considering, though many of them exclude certain types of purchases or cap out at fairly low values.
High spending on the Amex Marriott Brilliant and Business cards earn an additional Free Night Certificate. Bevy and Bountiful come with no annual Free Night Certificate -- high spending alone earns one. Chase Marriott Boundless card earns an Elite Night Credit toward tier status for every $5k in spending. Chase Ritz Carlton card earns Platinum Elite status with $75k in calendar year spending.