TALE OF TWO CARDS

I have two credit cards that I use for shopping. One is for groceries, one is for everything else.

I’ve been debating whether to put every purchase on one card to simply my life.

Each card has its own advantages. One provides points, which I convert to gift cards. The other provides money, which provides dollars to my checking account.

Decisions, decisions.

I swipe my card when I purchase groceries, losing track of how much has accumulated on my account.

Admittedly, it takes awhile to accrue enough points on my grocery credit card to amass increment sums of $25 in money. With a monthly grocery/food budget of $160 for two adults, sometimes a shopping trip will amass only 15 cents towards cash rewards.

 

This week, my credit card paid my checking account $32.05!

 

With an average budget of $40 week for shopping, this deposit of $32 is almost a full week of groceries for my pantry.

I’m still trying to decide if it’s better to use one card or two. For now though, I’ve targeted my $32 and plan to spend it during a month when there are five weeks of shopping instead of four. Looking at the calendar, that is closer than I thought!

SOUND THE BUGLE! Today’s tip: Using a store loyalty card in addition to a credit/debit card that provides “rewards” can be a bonus to savings when shopping for groceries. However, comparison shopping still is Rule #1 as stores that do not offer loyalty cards can often times have better prices.