Is my annual fee card worth it?
Put in the fee and what you spend in a year. You'll see whether the card beats a free card that pays 2% on everything, and by how much.
Rates and credits: 3 points per $1 on bonus spending, 1 elsewhere, 1¢ a point, $60 in credits, vs a free 2% card
Cash back is usually 1¢.
$63
a year less than a free card
On these numbers a free 2% card pays you $63 more a year. After the $95 fee this card pays you $418 a year, against $481 from the flat card. It would come out ahead if your points are worth more than 1.14¢ each. Before closing it, the cheaper moves come first: a retention offer, then a switch to the bank's no-fee card, which keeps your credit line. Closing comes last.
Show the math
$319 + $134 + $60 − $95 = $418 vs 2% × $24,033 = $481
$63 a year to the free card
Break-even: points worth 1.14¢
Bonus spending earns 3 points per $1 ($319), everything else earns 1 ($134), at 1¢ a point, plus $60 of credits you'd use anyway, minus the $95 fee. The bar is a free 2% card, not zero, because you'd carry some card either way. The welcome bonus stays out: it's paid once, and the fee comes back in year two. Count a credit only at what you'd spend anyway, so a $120 credit you use half of counts as $60.
An estimate for education, not advice.
How this works
A fee card has to beat the best free card you could use instead, not beat nothing. So the test compares a year on your fee card (rewards in its bonus categories, the base rate on everything else, credits you'd really use, minus the fee) against the same spending on a no-fee card paying a flat 2%.
If the fee card loses, cancelling isn't the first move. Ask for a retention offer, then ask about switching to the issuer's no-fee version, and close the account last, because closing can raise your utilization.
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