Should I drop Amex Gold, keep CSP… or just move on?

Current cards: (list cards, limits, opening date)
⁠• ⁠CSP, $34,500, Jan 2018
⁠• ⁠Amex Gold, No limit, Dec 2023
• ⁠FICO Score: 800+
• ⁠Oldest account age: 15+ years
• ⁠Income: $150,000
• ⁠Average monthly spend and categories:
⁠• ⁠Dining: $300
⁠• ⁠Groceries: $900 (Costco: $300)
⁠• ⁠Gas: $200
⁠• ⁠Travel: Once a year
⁠• ⁠Amazon: $200
• ⁠Open to Business Cards: No
• ⁠Main goal for next card: Reward points for hotels or flights
• ⁠Prefer category spending or general spending? Probably general

My wife and I are careful with money, but when it comes to credit cards, I always wonder if I’m really getting the best deal. I’ve had CSP for 7 years, but they annoyed me last year, so I grabbed the Amex Gold. I was going to cancel CSP but realized I still need a backup for places that don’t take Amex. Now I’m stuck paying these annual fees, and I’m wondering if Amex Gold needs to go…

I do use the Uber Eats credit and Resi for dining, but I’m not sure it’s enough to justify keeping the card.

We put everything on a credit card and pay it off each month. Most of our spending is on groceries, dining out, and bills. We save points for hotels or flights, but I don’t go crazy with maximizing redemptions.

I see people suggesting the Chase trifecta or similar setups, but I like to keep things simple. If I can get one solid card that covers most things, I’d prefer that.

Would love to hear your thoughts. Thanks!

Which program gives you the best transfer partners?

If nothing stands out, I’d go with Chase. You can always cash out at 1 cent per point, while Amex tends to devalue their points for statement credits.

If you’re not using the credits, Amex is a hard sell.

@Rian
I like that Chase gives a 1:1 transfer to Southwest, but beyond that, I haven’t looked into it much.

@Rian
What do you mean by Amex devaluing their cash back?

Kingsley said:
@Rian
What do you mean by Amex devaluing their cash back?

If you redeem Membership Rewards for statement credit, you only get 0.6 cents per point.

I was going to suggest the Capital One Duo, but since you only travel once a year, are travel points really better for you than cash back?

Campbell said:
I was going to suggest the Capital One Duo, but since you only travel once a year, are travel points really better for you than cash back?

I always thought travel points were a better deal than cash back.

@Merlin
Not always. It depends on how much effort you put into using transfer partners.

If you’re thinking of dropping Gold, Capital One Savor + Venture X could work.

Capital One Savor (no annual fee)

  • 3% back on groceries (Costco & Walmart don’t count)
  • 3% dining, entertainment, streaming
  • 5% hotels & car rentals (Capital One Travel)
  • 1% everything else

Capital One Venture X ($395 annual fee, but credits offset this)

  • 10x hotels & rental cars (Capital One Travel)
  • 5x flights (Capital One Travel)
  • 2x general spending
  • $300 yearly Capital One Travel credit
  • 10,000 anniversary miles

Perks: Priority Pass, Capital One Lounge access, Global Entry credit, primary rental coverage, and solid travel protections.

Capital One Travel uses Hopper but price matches public fares.

Pre-approval links:

You’d need to wait 91 days before getting a second card.

@Campbell
So you’re saying Savor for daily spending and Venture X for travel?

Merlin said:
@Campbell
So you’re saying Savor for daily spending and Venture X for travel?

Exactly. Venture X is a better catch-all at 2x, while Savor gets 3% on dining, groceries, entertainment, and streaming.

@Campbell
Thanks! This helps a lot.

@Merlin
That’s just marketing. Sites like Nerdwallet push travel cards because they get bigger affiliate commissions.

If you rotate between cash back cards, you can easily get 4-5% back. Travel cards don’t usually go over 3x except in their own portals (which are often overpriced).

Annual fees also eat into those points fast.

Looking for cash back cards? Check out these links:

Summon me with !cashback if you need more info.

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I think you should decide what matters more: simplicity or maximizing rewards. If you don’t want to juggle multiple cards, go with a strong all-rounder. If you want to squeeze every point, look at a multi-card setup.