A few months ago I got a very disappointing letter in the mail telling me that the rewards for my credit card were changing. A card that used to earn me as much as 2.5% on all purchases would now earn only 1% on most purchases. As someone who loves credit card rewards, that wasn’t acceptable.
After looking long and hard for a new credit card, I finally found the best rewards credit card to replace my Citi ThankYou Premier. I am a proud cardholder of the Barclaycard Arrival World MasterCard.
The Barclaycard Arrival is one of the best credit cards available today. You can find my full review of the Barclaycard Arrival on Reward Boost, but I’ll give you some of the highlights here.
2.2% Back on All Purchases
I earn 2 miles for every dollar I spend on the card. 10,000 miles can be redeemed for a $100 statement credit against any travel purchases.
Then if any miles are redeemed for travel, I get 10% of those miles back. That means if I use 10,000 miles for a $100 statement credit, I’ll immediately be credited with 1,000 miles that can be used for my next redemption.
My old credit card earned ThankYou points which limits me to using their travel center or getting gift cards from a limited number of companies if I want to maximize the value of my rewards. Being tied to only the items offered by ThankYou.com really limited my ability to maximize my rewards.
However, now I can shop for the lowest prices on any plane tickets, hotels, car rentals, or anything else. I can go to Priceline, name my own price and save 40%, and then use my Barclaycard Arrival miles for a statement credit. This is MUCH better.
$440 Sign Up Bonus and 0% for 12 Months
I can’t forget two other great benefits with this card. First, I get a 40,000 mile sign up bonus. Again, I’ll get 10% of my miles back when they are redeemed, so it’s really like a $440 sign up bonus!
Second, I have a 0% APR for 12 months. Normally I would never carry a balance on a credit card, but with my wedding coming up in just under 3 months, there might be a few expenses that I’ll want to pay off over a few months. At 0% APR, I can pay something over time and never pay a dime of interest.
The only downside is the $89 annual fee, but that is waived for the first year. Plus the $440 sign up bonus pays for almost 5 years of the annual fee.
Free FICO Score Every Month
As if this card wasn’t awesome enough already, they also give my my FICO score free every month. This is a really valuable benefit if you care about your FICO score.
If you go to myFICO.com and pay for your score, it will cost you $15 a month. That’s $180 a year just for your monthly credit score. The Barclaycard Arrival gives a free FICO score every month as long as you are a card member.
Their Website is Great
This may not be a big deal for some people, but I love a good looking and intuitive website. With this being my first Barclays credit card, I didn’t know what to expect.
I was pleasantly surprised. The site is easy to navigate and looks great. With this being my new main credit card, I’ll look forward to logging in to check my account every few days.
I Love My New Rewards Credit Card
I have a lot of wedding bills to pay over the next few months and I can’t wait to put them on this card and earn double miles for every purchase. By the time my wedding and honeymoon are paid for, I might have enough points to pay for my next vacation!
If you are interested in adding the Barclaycard Arrival World MasterCard to your wallet (including the $440 sign-up bonus), I encourage you to read my full review over at Reward Boost, and if you still think it’s a good idea then go for it! Just make sure you pay off the balance at the end of every month!
Kevin McKee is an entrepreneur, IT guru, and personal finance leader. In addition to his writing, Kevin is the head of IT at Buildingstars, Co-Founder of Padmission, and organizer of Laravel STL. He is also the creator of www.contributetoopensource.com. When he’s not working, Kevin enjoys podcasting about movies and spending time with his wife and four children.
Kevin,
I’m loving my new Capital One Visa that you may have seen advertised on television with Samuel L. Jackson. It provides 2% back on everything, with no limits. One of the cool things about it is that I can click on my account page to have the full amount sent to me every month which works great with my budget. I’ve got through a couple of billing cycles now and have made it a habit to request the cash back on the first of the month, therefore guaranteeing a bit of extra income for the month.
Before the anti credit card bashers jump in, I have to say I pay for everything I possibly can with a credit card. I don’t buy extra because I’m using a credit card, I stick to my budget. I also pay the bill in full every month. The last time I paid credit card interest was a few months after my honeymoon in 1990. I figure if you are going to work hard and find ways to do without in order to find money to save at 1% or less, then why not make 2% on all of the money that has to flow through your hands. The U.S. government charges a departure tax for those citizens who choose to renounce their citizenship and relocate to more tax friendly locations, and I like to think I’m imposing a departure tax of 2% on money that doesn’t remain in my custody. Do you hear that? It’s the sound of interest accruing. Why look, another baby penny was just born!