So You Want to Get Free Airline Tickets: Should You Choose a Reward or Cash Back Credit Card?

If you want to use a reward credit card for getting free airline tickets, you have a choice of choosing a dedicated airline credit card, a travel reward credit card or a cash back credit card. A dedicated airline credit credit card has hefty annual fees and may not be worth it if you are not a very frequent traveller or do not spend enough on your credit card.

If you decide to get either a no annual fee travel reward or cash back credit card, how would you decide which is better? This article examines how you should go about making this decision.

Let us assume we now have one reward credit card and one cash back credit card to choose from. The reward credit card pays one point for every dollar you spend on purchases. The cash back credit card pays a 1% rebate. Essentially, they both have identical payout formula of 1%. Let us assume both have no annual fee (very realistic) and both have identical apr. Would there be any difference between the two credit cards? Should we be indifferent? How do we decide which is better?

How much does your typical vacation airline ticket cost?

The most important factor that in this decision is actually the average cost of your airline ticket when you take your vacation. Why? Because most travel reward program (in fact, most frequent flyer program) require that you earn 25,000 miles or points to redeem a roundtrip restricted economy ticket within continental US. You are required to purchase the ticket either through the specific airline directly (in the case of a specific frequent flyer program) or through the reward program's agent. If you have a cash back credit card, 25,000 points will get you a $250 cash rebate (assuming a 1% formula).

But we all know that a domestic economy ticket cost can vary anywhere from about $99.00 to $350.00. If you are flying short haul, you can get a $99.00 ticket from a low cost discount carrier. If you fly from coast to coast, you are likely to have to folk out over $300 for a ticket. If you use get a special deal from expedia or priceline, you may get it cheaper.

Choose a cash back credit card if you airline ticket cost less than $250

Hence, it is very important to know your vacation habits. Where do you tend to go for your vacations? How much does your average airline ticket cost you? If you tend to fly short haul to a nearby place for your vacation and your airline ticket cost about less than $250 (say for example $150), you are better off using cash rebates from a cash back credit card. This is because you only need to spend $15,000 on your credit card to get a $150 cash rebate. Spending $15,000 on a reward credit card only earns you 15,000 points, not enough on most reward program to earn a free domestic economy flight.

Choose a travel credit card if your airline ticket cost more than $250

However, if you fly long distance (New York to LA for example) and your airline ticket tends to cost over $300, then using a reward credit card makes more sense. This is because if you use a cash rebate credit card, you need to earn over $300 in cash rebates (ie spend over $30,000). However, with a regular reward program credit card, you only need to spend $25,000 to earn your 25,000 points.

So if you tend to take vacations that require long haul flights that cost more than $250, use a travel reward card. If your vacation flights cost less than $250, use a cash rebate credit instead. Some reward program only require 22,000 points to redeem a domestic roundtrip flight. In that case, use $220 or 22,000 points as your guide when you are choosing between a travel or cash back credit card.

Nick Lian
http://www.compare-apply-credit-card-online.c om
Credit Card Tips, Articles and Reviews for those looking for a credit card

---

PARLOT.COM: Turnkey Money Making websites

How to Save on Airfare

The Internet has provided a revolution in the way people... Read More

Automated Satellite Following System for UAV Swarms

Much work is being done and the USAF has implemented... Read More

International Corporate Catering Guide

One of the more challenging aspects of being a flight... Read More

How to Get a Free Airline Upgrade on Your Flight

Everyone wants to buy a cheap economy ticket and get... Read More

Static Electricity to Flap UAV Material Memory Wings

How can we keep aircraft and UAVs aloft longer and... Read More

Cheap Airline Tickets! With Internet Access, The Skies The Limit For Great Deals

With easy access to the Internet, the convenience of finding... Read More

Cleaning Air Cargo Containers

If you own a pressure washing business, janitorial service or... Read More

Whos Paying for the Private Jet?

One of the major perks of being a celebrity is... Read More

The History of the Aircraft Wash Guys, Part Three

As we study this grass roots history of a franchise... Read More

Airline Security; Stewardesses The Last Line Of Defense!

Introduction:It might come as a chock to many people, including... Read More

Cactus Fly-In, Casa Grande AZ

Every year in Arizona is the Cactus Fly-in which is... Read More

Tactile Strip Sensors on Leading Edge of Material Memory Airfoils

Aircraft designers have always tried to figure out the best... Read More

The History of the Aircraft Wash Guys, Part One

Business scholars and students throughout recent periods have studied the... Read More

Aerodynamic Inflatable Wing Gates for STOL

Low speed flight characteristic are crucial to safety. Those aircraft... Read More

Entering Business Aviation, Part I: Types of Aircraft

The jets that people fly in corporate aviation are usually... Read More

Concorde Crash Conspiracy - It Could Have Been Prevented

In studying the Concorde crash the investigators determined it was... Read More

Fuel Costs and Air Fares Set To Rocket After Hurricane Katrina Punishes The US

It now looks certain that Hurricane Katrina will push fuel... Read More

Point to Point VS Spoke and Hub? Air Taxi

Boeing it is said took a big gamble in predicting... Read More

Starting an Aircraft Washing Business

So you love airplanes and you want to start an... Read More

Lockheed Loitering Missile Expandable Wing Concept

Smart Missiles are expensive, but effective. Efficiency in the the... Read More

Entering Business Aviation, Part V: Tips on Finding Work

I will not pretend that this is the easiest topic... Read More

5 Tips for Stress Free Long Haul Flights

The world is becoming smaller by the day. Flying long... Read More

Secrets to Finding Really Cheap Airline Tickets Online

Knowing where to find really cheap airline tickets is the... Read More

Young Men Trying to Imitate the 9-11 Scenario, Part I

Why did the young man near Tampa, FL fly a... Read More

Top Ten Secrets to Saving Big Money in the Airline Flights

Do you know that some people travel around the country... Read More