Recently got my Smartly card and was surprised by the weight. Looks to be 17 grams which is more than some other more premium cards.
Some people like to track this stuff and hadn’t seen this specific data point. Seems to be well made and not as flimsy as other US Bank cards like the Altitude Go which is ripped up quite badly after 2 years of moderate use.
The Altitude Reserve is also 17 grams if I recall correctly, so it looks like USB has decided to standardize on the same metal card base for all of their current metal cards. The only difference is that the physical Smartly card is actually useful! As a comparison, the CSP is 12 grams and feels noticeably lighter.
Thanks for the data point!
Edit: See below post. The Shopper Cash Rewards card weighs less.
@Farley
It’s always been funny to me that the Altitude Reserve, a card whose reward structure encourages you not to use it physically, is made of premium materials.
Same for the Apple Card.
garveytom said:
@Farley
It’s always been funny to me that the Altitude Reserve, a card whose reward structure encourages you not to use it physically, is made of premium materials.
Same for the Apple Card.
Some people like to use the physical Apple Card to pay at restaurants, bars, etc. since it’s one of the few cards that doesn’t have a card number printed on it, preventing fraud.
I usually bring my Altitude Reserve for checking in/paying at hotels, but that’s it.
@RiggyGee
Never thought about that use case for the Apple Card! That’s actually quite clever.
garveytom said:
@Farley
It’s always been funny to me that the Altitude Reserve, a card whose reward structure encourages you not to use it physically, is made of premium materials.
Same for the Apple Card.
This ensures that people who just want to flex a metal card in front of others are adequately punished with lower rewards 
@Kerr
The Platinum Card entered the chat
garveytom said:
@Farley
It’s always been funny to me that the Altitude Reserve, a card whose reward structure encourages you not to use it physically, is made of premium materials.
Same for the Apple Card.
Ditto! I got the Altitude Reserve a few weeks ago and was impressed with the materials and build quality of the physical card. I am currently using it to help meet the SUB, but after that it will probably go into the sock drawer. It’s a total shame. I guess it’s US Bank’s way of encouraging you to unoptimize your spend. 
garveytom said:
@Farley
It’s always been funny to me that the Altitude Reserve, a card whose reward structure encourages you not to use it physically, is made of premium materials.
Same for the Apple Card.
That’s pretty funny, same with the Chase Amazon Prime card, it’s metal, but nearly all spend is on Amazon.com since that’s where the highest reward.
@Farley
US Bank Shopper Cash is less than 17g I believe.
Candy said:
@Farley
US Bank Shopper Cash is less than 17g I believe.
You are 100% correct. My bad. I completely forgot about the Shopper Cash card, but I do recall reading that it was significantly less than 17 grams.
@Farley
Yes, no problem. As another comment mentioned, plastic and metal US Bank cards sound like the Lego video game lol. Or hitting a skeleton in Minecraft.
I personally love metal cards. I would like to add a few to my wallet including USBAR if it returns, USB Smartly, Ritz, Amex Brilliant, BILT, and United Infinite. Infinite and Ritz will be down the line when my travel picks up.
@Candy
I didn’t know that. I got the USBAR a few weeks ago, but have yet to drop it. I’ll have to do it later, just for the novelty of course. 
Do US Bank’s plastic cards sound different than other plastic cards?
I love metal cards too, despite the fact that I try to run as many transactions through Apple Pay as possible. They just feel so nice. The USBAR physical card is great (though not as great as the physical Apple Card), and it is a shame that it makes little sense to use it. I’m using the physical card now to help meet the SUB, but after that I might stop carrying it.
That’s a nice collection of cards you’ve got on your list! I hope you get them all. I’m not too familiar with the United Infinite though. As for the Smartly, I’m thinking of picking it up at some point for non-Apple Pay spend, but that will be down the line and depend on whether or not I open up some other accounts with USB, I guess.
@Farley
I can’t speak for USBAR but USB Shopper Cash sounds like what I described lol.
The plastic cards are otherwise the same lol.
Yeah carrying metal cards is just a flex, though it does feel premium. Metal Apple Card is useless rewards-wise, as is the USBAR (not entirely though).
Yeah I’m trying to catch-em all as long as my spending continues to justify it. Will drop my Amex Platinum for CSR as soon as I’m under 5/24 in a few years lol. CSR and United Infinite has really good lounge access, a lot of overlap but super OP. Also overlaps with Ritz and pretty much any other travel card, but they each have their own super OP rewards.
Literally for anyone trying to keep it simple, Smartly + USBAR is a no-brainer lol. Or even Smartly alone. (Except foreign transaction fees).
@Candy
I feel like metal cards used to be a flex, but with so many issued these days I feel like it has lost its luster a little bit. As you said, they still feel premium, but plastic cards have gotten so flimsy that metal cards feel even better by comparison IMO. It’s a good thing that my BoA CCR is for online shopping only, because that thing feels like a prepaid Visa gift card.
Personally, I can’t think of any reason to use the physical USBAR card besides to help meet the SUB. Am I missing something?
I think your card plan sounds good! I know that the Ritz is a super desirable card. How are you going to get it since you can only product change to it? I’ve never had a CSR, but I have had a CSP for the past five years. I’m thinking of downgrading it to a Freedom (OG, not Flex) before the next AF hits.
I like simple, so Smartly + USBAR sounds like a winner, but I don’t have any other USB products besides the Altitude Reserve, and I am not sure I want to go all in with checking accounts and investments just for the cash back multiplier. Are you going all in?
@Farley
Yes, they aren’t so special anymore but very premium feeling, and people not aware are often impressed lol. They just feel better IMO overall. Almost all my other cards feel like Visa gift cards lol, so useless. USBAR is useless to carry tbh.
I’m just collecting cards tbh. Probably Marriott Boundless then PC to Ritz whenever I get below 5/24 (same with CSR). I’m not planning on going all in on USBank but I do appreciate their platform and I’d like to dip my toes into the benefits when it makes more sense. I’d just open all the accounts, keep $50 in each, and put Roth or Brokerage (passive investments) in their ecosystem.
Aside from that, it’s a headache lol, I have so many accounts bro it’s a bit annoying.
@Farley
Only thing I can think of is if you rent a car and pay in person, that should code for 3x like at Hertz, but I haven’t tried it. Same with buying train tickets at a kiosk… maybe?
US Bank’s travel category is so narrow it’s hard to know.
Candy said:
@Farley
US Bank Shopper Cash is less than 17g I believe.
According to this site, USBAR weighs 16 grams and Shopper Cash Rewards is 14 grams. The USBAR card that it shows is the old design though.
I wish it didn’t have foreign transaction fees.
Kirin said:
I wish it didn’t have foreign transaction fees.
Sure, but it feels like it hardly matters given how much of foreign spending is airfare, hotel, restaurants. Whip out the USBAR for mobile pay when picking up Hermes and Rolex overseas.