A five-part series that teaches credit card rewards from the ground up: what a point is worth, what a multiplier means, and how to build a three-card wallet.
Five short guides that build on each other, starting from the basics: what a point or mile is actually worth, what an annual fee needs to earn back, and how to combine two or three cards into a wallet that covers every purchase. Read them in order.
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- $6 Back or 600 Points? What Credit Card Rewards Really Pay — Rewards, Explained (No. 1): 600 points sounds bigger than $6, but on the same $100 of groceries the points are worth less than half as much. Learn what the labels mean and how to check any card in 5 steps.
- The Same 10,000 Points Are Worth $14 or $40. Here Is Why. — Rewards, Explained (No. 2): a point has no fixed price. The same 10,000 Hilton points buy about $14 at Amazon checkout or about $40 of hotel stays. Learn the one-line division and the floor rule.
- $180 or $708? How a Three-Card Cash-Back Wallet Works — The same $18,000 of everyday spending earns $180, $360, or $708 depending only on the wallet. Episode 3 of Rewards, Explained builds the three-card cash-back wallet, shows the caps and fees that shrink it, and covers the 3% Robinhood Gold Card upgrade.
- $95 or $795? What a Travel Card's Annual Fee Actually Buys — An annual fee is a price tag on a box of earn rates, credits, and perks. Episode 4 of Rewards, Explained prices the Sapphire Reserve's $795 box and the Sapphire Preferred's $95 box honestly, with the 5-step test that works on any card.
- $2 or $29? How Stacking Credit Card Rewards Actually Works — Three companies can each pay you on one purchase: the store loyalty program, a cash-back site, and your credit card. Episode 5 of Rewards, Explained shows the exact order and the traps that void it.