With so many credit cards out there, how do you decide which to sign up for? There are a lot of resources out there, such as Reddit Churning. Consider this as your guide for maximizing your credit card bonuses.
If you love traveling, you’ll love churning credit cards. All you have to do is sign up for new cards, spend them responsibly, and you’ll be traveling for free.
We’ll break down all of the resources available, and share feedback on each.
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One Quick Lesson: The 5/24 Rule
Prioritizing credit cards is crucial thanks to the 5/24 rule. Some credit card issuers such as Chase will not approve a credit card if you have activated 5 credit cards over the last 24 months.
The reason why is obvious – it makes no business sense to give massive signup bonuses if customers move to another card tomorrow.
Being declined due to 5/24 doesn’t sound like the end of the world, but it does harm your credit rating since it qualifies as a hard inquiry. Each hard inquiry dings your credit – the assumption being that the more you apply for credit, the more you need it.
Best Churning Resources
You only have so much money to spend, and credit cards to add, so make sure you prioritize the right credit cards.
Several bloggers make a living writing about credit cards, and they could have a conflict of interest. Here are the best credit card resources to ensure you prioritize the right cards.
Reddit Churning
Reddit has an incredible network of credit card churners who are constantly reviewing the best cards to add. If you ever receive a targeted mailer, you can validate the deal by searching “credit card sign up bonus reddit churning”. For example: “United Card 75k Reddit Churning”.
They also have an amazing flowchart that the network updates monthly. This chart breaks down which cards to add by order based on what you want.
Follow along the chart and you’ll add the right card 80% of the time. I say 80% because Reddit Churning updates the flowchart once a month, and you could catch some great promotional offers in between their updates.
The Points Guy
The Points Guy is a decent resource for hacking credit cards and travel. Nearly 8 million people visit The Points Guy every month. Aside from their travel tips, they rank the best credit cards in order.
Before you take their word as gospel, remember that The Points Guy gets affiliate bonuses for each card you sign up through their site. Not all cards pay the same, so they might have a conflict of interest towards the cards they rank.
Doctor of Credit
Doctor of Credit is a lesser known resource, nearly 3 million people visit their site every month. Instead of angling on travel, Doctor of Credit focuses on general credit card and finance deals.
They rank credit cards based on signup bonuses similar to The Points Guy. Just like The Points Guy, they could have a conflict of interest towards the cards they recommend.
Since all credit card sites will have a conflict of interest, your best bet is to cross reference websites with each other. Aggregate all of the sites, and you’ll find the best of all worlds.
Our Verdict – Reddit Churning
There are a lot of websites recommending credit cards, but Reddit Churning is the only site that has zero conflict of interest. This is a true community of people helping others.
The Points Guy, Doctor of Credit, and other sites are great to find new offers, but their incentives may not align with yours.
Cross verify any offers featured on websites with Reddit Churning. Their community will give candid feedback on how decent the deal is.
Finally, remember the risks to churning credit cards. Be responsible, and pay all your balances in full. Happy churning!