Dear Clever Credit,
I know almost nothing about credit cards. I got the first one that seemed decent after getting a solid job in college — the Capital One QuicksilverOne Cash Rewards Credit Card — and have had it for about three and a half years.
Now I have a 758 credit score but am quickly overwhelmed by choice paralysis whenever I look into adding a new credit card. I know I won’t keep track of rotating categories, but I’d like something with travel rewards and better rewards for daily spending.
Signed,
Graduate But Not Graduated
Dear Graduate,
You have no idea how excited I am to dig into this. First off, kudos to you for your credit score! And all on a QuicksilverOne card!
I can understand why you initially chose it, but you’ve definitely outgrown paying that pesky $39 annual fee. If you’re thinking about travel rewards, there are a couple of routes you can go.
Capital One Duo
First off, call Capital One and see if you qualify for an upgrade. Depending on what you’re preapproved for, you could employ the Capital One Duo strategy. That’s when you pair the Capital One Savor Cash Rewards Credit Card with one of Capital One’s Venture cards.
Now, full disclosure, you might not be able to upgrade all the way to the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card from the Capital One QuicksilverOne Cash Rewards Credit Card. Which isn’t necessarily a bad thing, because you’d go from an annual fee of $39 to $395. Since this will be your first travel card, you might want to ease into a high fee and make sure it’s worth it. See Rates & Fees
If you’re OK with the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card (with a $95 annual fee) See Rates & Fees or the Capital One VentureOne Rewards Credit Card (with no annual fee) See Rates & Fees, then you’re halfway to the Capital One Duo. And you did it without submitting to a hard inquiry.
You can treat your Savor card as your daily spending card since it earns:
— 8% cash back on Capital One Entertainment purchases
— 5% cash back on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One
— 3% cash back at grocery stores (excluding superstores like Walmart and Target)
— 3% cash back on dining, entertainment and popular streaming services
— 1% cash back on all other purchases
It comes with no annual fee, and you can convert your cash back rewards into miles, transferring the rewards to your Venture card.
[Read: Best Travel Rewards Credit Cards.]
Chase Trifecta
If you want to branch out from Capital One, another popular option is the Chase Trifecta. You’ll need patience for this route, because it requires three hard inquiries for three new credit cards. You don’t want to get flagged by Chase for applying for multiple cards at once.
As you’ve probably heard, the Chase Sapphire Reserve® is a great premium travel rewards card. And it comes with a premium annual fee of $550.
But with it, you can earn:
— 10 points per dollar on hotels and car rentals when you purchase travel through Chase Travel? immediately after the first $300 is spent on travel purchases annually
— Five points per dollar on flights
— Three points per dollar on other travel and dining
— One point per dollar on all other purchases
If you go this route, make sure to space your applications at least three months apart. This gives you the opportunity to earn the sign-up bonuses (without overspending) and won’t flag you to Chase as a risky borrower.
Your Chase Sapphire Reserve® could serve as your travel card, and the Chase Freedom Unlimited® could be your daily spending card. It has no annual fee and earns:
— 5% cash back on travel purchased through Chase Travel
— 3% cash back on drugstore purchases
— 3% cash back on dining at restaurants (including takeout and eligible delivery service)
— 1.5% on all other purchases
From there, you can choose whatever third Chase credit card that best suits your financial needs and lifestyle. But remember, space apart your applications. So this option is best if you don’t have a trip coming up anytime soon.
Bottom Line
The worst thing you can do is let your Capital One QuicksilverOne Cash Rewards Credit Card collect dust in your wallet when you can be earning more rewards. Now that you’re ready to graduate and transition into the rewards game, you’ll need a hard-hitting card to match. Good luck!
More from U.S. News
How to Upgrade and Downgrade Your Capital One Credit Card
The Difference Between Hard and Soft Inquiries
Clever Credit: I Graduated From College. What Should Be My Next Credit Card? originally appeared on usnews.com
