The majority of consumers spend a great deal of time trying to save money. After all, who doesn’t want to save money? One of the many ways to do that involves using credit cards, so here are a few tips on how credit cards save you money.
One major way that credit cards save you money is via the power they give you over your purchases and the merchants, whether in-person or online, that you buy things from. This is called the “power of the chargeback”. When you pay by cash or check, you don’t have much power over an unscrupulous seller, or one who is reticent to give you a refund or a replacement when a product is defective, or you simply don’t receive it. When you pay by credit card, you can simply tell the merchant that you will have the price of the item charged back. You’d be surprised how cooperative they can become.
Another way that credit cards save you money is through those oh- so-enticing sign-up bonuses that some credit card issuers offer. To maximize that bonus, you can either have your spouse apply for the same credit card or apply for a business credit card from the same company. That way you can get double or triple the sign-up bonus. What have you got to lose? Nothing, as long as you don’t over-spend just because you have those additional cards.
If you take advantage of gift cards, credit cards save you money. Many credit card companies give cash back, miles or points, but many only reward their cardholders after spending a certain amount. Even some sign-up bonuses don’t kick in until after you spend. Buying gift cards for places that you would shop anyway to satisfy that minimum can help. You can even buy gift cards at a discount and save yourself still more money. There are a number of sites online that sell gift cards at 2% to 50% off the face value and sometimes more. You can also buy gift cards at your local grocery store if your credit card offers special bonuses or extra points for money spent on groceries.
Using any one or all of these strategies can be beneficial to your bottom line and show you just how much credit cards can save you money. Give them a try and then tally up the savings each month. You could be pleasantly surprised by the result.
*Editorial Note: Any opinions, analysis, reviews, or recommendations expressed in this article are those of the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any card issuer.
