Should you use 1 credit card or multiple credit cards? Well, it depends on factors like convenience, time, and your desire to manage multiple cards responsibly to earn greater rewards. Learn what happened when I chose 1 card vs. multiple cards! Click “Show More” to see Ad Disclosure.

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If you’re only interested in how to build credit for the first time, then 1-2 credit cards in your first year will work just fine. But if you’re more interested in how many credit cards you should get to maximize your rewards from expenses, then the answer is usually “as many as you need (or want).” :D Of course, this also implies that you’ve built smart financial habits first.

I recently went on 2 trips where I used only 1 credit card per trip.

I then compared my return on spend from using that 1 card vs. using multiple cards to see what my opportunity cost was.

Here were the findings!

TRIP #1: DALLAS, TX

1-Card Setup | Purchases & Rewards
- Transit: $261.96 | 786 points | Amex Green Card, 3X
- Hotels: $660.43 | 1,981 points | Amex Green Card, 3X
- Dining: $98.93 | 297 points | Amex Green Card, 3X
- Other: $8.00 | 8 points | Amex Green Card, 1X
Total Spent: $1,029.32
Total Points: 3,072 points

The Value
- 3,072 points = $61.44 towards Travel (2.0¢ per point, avg.) using transfer partners
- 3,072 points = $38.40 towards Cash Back (1.25¢ per point) via Schwab Platinum Card

3-Card Setup | Purchases & Rewards
- Transit: $261.96 | 786 points | Amex Green Card, 3X
- Hotels: $660.43 | 1,981 points | Amex Green Card, 3X
- Dining: $98.93 | 396 points | Amex Gold Card, 4X
- Other: $8.00 | 16 points | Amex Blue Business Plus, 2X
Total Spent: $1,029.32
Total Points: 3,179 points

The Value
- 3,179 points = $63.58 towards Travel (2.0¢ per point, avg.) using transfer partners
- 3,072 points = $39.74 towards Cash Back (1.25¢ per point) via Schwab Platinum Card

The Opportunity Cost
- Travel: $63.58 - $61.44 = (-$2.14)
- Cash Back: $39.74 - $38.40 = (-$1.34)

------------

TRIP #2: MYRTLE BEACH, SC

1-Card Setup | Purchases & Rewards
- Festival: $227.47 | 909 points | BBVA Select, 4X
- Transit: $59.37 | 59 points | BBVA Select, 1X
- Dining: $317.01 | 951 points | BBVA Select, 3X
- Other: $121.07 | 121 points | BBVA Select, 1X
Total Spent: $724.92
Total Points: 2,040 points

The Value
- 2,040 points = $20.40 towards Travel or Cash Back (1.0¢ per point, avg.)

3-Card Setup | Purchases & Rewards
- Festival: $227.47 | 909 points | BBVA Select, 4X
- Transit: $59.37 | 178 points | Amex Green Card, 3X
- Dining: $317.01 | 1,268 points | Amex Gold Card, 4X
- Other: $121.07 | 242 points | Amex Blue Business Plus, 2X
Total Spent: $724.92
Total Points: 2,597 points

The Value
- 2,597 points = $42.85 towards Travel (1.0¢ per point via BBVA + 2.0¢ per point avg. via Amex transfer partners)
- 2,597 points = $30.19 towards Cash Back (1.0¢ per points via BBVA + 1.25¢ per point via Amex Schwab Platinum Card)

The Opportunity Cost
- Travel: $42.85 - $20.40 = (-$22.45)
- Cash Back: $30.19 - $20.40 = (-$9.79)

SUMMARY

TRIP #1
- Loss (Cash Back): $1.34
- Loss (Travel): $2.14

TRIP #2
- Loss (Cash Back): $9.79
- Loss (Travel): $22.45

GAIN (Both Trips)
- Convenience of using 1 card
- No mental math headaches
- Ease of tracking expenses
- Ease of splitting costs with others

Disclosure: This site is part of an affiliate sales network and receives compensation for sending traffic to partner sites, such as CreditCards.com. This compensation may impact how and where links appear on this site. This site does not include all financial companies or all available financial offers. The content in this video is accurate as of the posting date. Some of the offers mentioned may no longer be available. Mark Reese is not a financial advisor.

#creditcards #travelrewards #cashback