💳 Credit & Banking
My card collection, credit tips, and everything I've learned about building credit. Don't believe everything you hear — here's what I know matters.
Prime Store Card
- 5% back at Amazon & Whole Foods
- Prime members only
- No annual fee
Prime Visa
- 5% back on Amazon & Whole Foods
- 2% restaurants, gas, transit
- 1% everything else
- No annual fee
Blue Cash Preferred
- 6% back on groceries (up to $6k/yr)
- 6% streaming subscriptions
- 3% transit & gas
- 1% everything else
Everyday Card
- 2x points at grocery stores
- 1x everywhere else
- No annual fee
Customized Cash Rewards
- 3% back in a category you choose
- 2% grocery stores
- 1% everything else
- No annual fee
SavorOne
- 3% dining & restaurants
- 3% entertainment
- 3% streaming
- 3% grocery stores
- No annual fee
Freedom Flex
- 5% rotating categories (quarterly)
- 3% dining & drugstores
- 1% everything else
- No annual fee
Custom Cash
- 5% on your top spend category each cycle
- Up to $500 per billing cycle
- 1% everything else
- No annual fee
Double Cash
- 2% on everything
- 1% when you buy, 1% when you pay
- No annual fee
Simplicity
- 0% intro APR on purchases
- 0% intro APR on balance transfers
- No late fees ever
- No annual fee
Coinbase Card
- 2% back in Bitcoin on all purchases
- Coinbase One perk
- No annual fee
It Cashback
- 5% rotating categories (quarterly)
- 1% everything else
- Cashback match your first year
- No annual fee
It Chrome
- 2% back at gas stations & restaurants
- Up to $1k per quarter
- 1% everything else
- No annual fee
Fidelity Visa
- 2% back on everything
- Deposited into a Fidelity account
- No annual fee
IHG Premier OneRewards
- 26x points at IHG hotels
- 5x travel, dining, gas
- Free night certificate annually
- Global Entry/TSA PreCheck credit
PlayStation Visa
- 5x points at PlayStation Store
- 2x dining & entertainment
- 1x everywhere else
T-Mobile Visa
- 2% back on everything
- T-Mobile customer perks
Preferred Cash Rewards Visa
- 1.5% base cashback on everything
- Preferred Rewards: 25-75% bonus
💡 Credit Myths & Tips
"Carrying a balance builds credit"
✅ TruthPay it off every month. You build credit by using the card and paying on time — not by paying interest.
"Credit Karma scores are fake and unreliable"
✅ TruthCredit Karma and other credit tools may use VantageScore 3.0, which is a real scoring model created by the three major credit bureaus (Equifax, Experian, TransUnion). It's not fake — it's just a different model than FICO. It still reflects your credit health and trends accurately.
"Only your FICO score matters"
✅ TruthFICO is used by ~90% of lenders for decisions, so it does carry more weight. But VantageScore (what Credit Karma shows) tracks the same factors — payment history, utilization, age of accounts. If your VantageScore is trending up, your FICO likely is too. Use Credit Karma to monitor trends for free, but check your FICO through your bank or Experian before applying for big loans.
"Closing old cards helps your score"
✅ TruthClosing old cards kills your average age of accounts and reduces total credit limit — both hurt your score.
"Checking your credit hurts your score"
✅ TruthChecking your own credit is a soft pull — it has zero impact. Only hard pulls from applications affect your score.
"All debt is bad"
✅ TruthYour utilization ratio matters more than zero balance. Keep it under 30%, ideally under 10%.
"You have to pay interest on credit cards"
✅ TruthIf you pay your full statement balance by the due date every month, you'll never pay a cent in interest. The goal is to never pay it — treat your credit card like a debit card with rewards.
"Opening new cards always tanks your score"
✅ TruthShort-term dip from the hard pull, but long-term gain from increased total credit and lower utilization — if managed right.
🧊 Freeze Your Credit
A credit freeze prevents new accounts from being opened in your name. A credit lock does the same but is usually app-based and a paid subscription. Freezing is free and recommended.
🏗️ Credit Building Strategies
- Utilization ratio: Keep it under 30%, ideally under 10% of your total credit limit
- Payment history: This is 35% of your score — never miss a payment
- Credit mix: Having both revolving (cards) and installment (loans) accounts helps
- Authorized user: Being added to someone's old card with good history can boost your score
- Credit limit increases: Request them every 6-12 months to lower your utilization ratio
- Dispute errors: Check your reports annually and dispute anything inaccurate
🎯 Rewards Stacking
Use the right card for the right purchase to maximize cashback:
- Groceries: Blue Cash Preferred (6%)
- Amazon: Prime Visa or Prime Store Card (5%)
- Dining: SavorOne or Freedom Flex (3%+)
- Gas: Customized Cash Rewards (3%) or It Chrome (2%)
- Streaming: Blue Cash Preferred (6%)
- Everything else: Double Cash (2%) or Fidelity Visa (2%)
📎 Sources
Where I've learned this stuff:
💳 Credit Tools
Banks I've used & have collected some nice signup promos (Credit & Bank bonuses) — and you can too. Need a new bank and some extra money? Look for signup bonuses for new checking accounts. Sites like Doctor of Credit and NerdWallet track the latest offers.
🏦 Banking Tips
- High-yield savings: Your money should be earning interest — look for 4%+ APY accounts
- FDIC insurance: Your deposits are insured up to $250,000 per depositor, per bank by the U.S. Government
- Multiple institutions: Spreading accounts across banks gives you more FDIC coverage and backup access
- Avoid fees: Most checking account fees can be waived with direct deposit or minimum balance and try keeping overdraft settings off
- Auto savings: Set up automatic transfers to savings — pay yourself first and tuck it away
📊 My Credit & Budget
Here's my credit limit, credit score, and the budget sheet I use.
688
FICO 8
676
FICO 8
694
FICO 8
📝 My Budget Spreadsheet
Budgeting is the foundation of everything else on this page. If you don't know where your money's going, you can't make it grow. I use a simple Excel sheet to track income, expenses, savings goals, and subscriptions every month. Feel free to download it and make it your own.
— Placeholder: link to your Excel budget sheet when ready