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Benefits and Differences Between Mastercard World and World Elite

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Mastercard credit and debit cards have different benefits depending on the type of card, the bank it was issued at, and which category it falls into. Mastercard’s categories include World and World Elite. We’ll take a look here into what the different benefits include.

Note that some foundational benefits are expected at all times, like Visa cards. If your card is lost or stolen, you can lock it and/or you won’t be held liable for unauthorized transactions. Most modern cards should also have EMV chips, a tap-to-pay (NFC) feature, and mobile wallet compatibility.

Standard Mastercard

Standard Mastercards have limited benefits. Little more than the basics you’d expect from all cards.

Basic/security benefits:

  • Mastercard ID Theft Protection: “Monitor your credit file for fraud, receive alert notifications about suspicious activity and get assistance from a resolution specialist.”
  • Mastercard Zero Liability Protection: “you’re not responsible in the event someone makes unauthorized purchases with your card.”
  • Mastercard Global Services: “Get emergency assistance virtually anytime, anywhere and in any language. Report a lost or stolen card, get an emergency replacement and more.”

Partner benefits:

  • McAfee: 30-day free trial to McAfee Total Protection and discounted rate for the first year of your subscription.

Other potential benefits:

  • Price Protection (if you find a better price after purchasing something, you may be refunded the difference.)
  • Purchase Protection (if your purchase becomes lost or damaged, you may be refunded some or all of its value.)
  • Extended Warranty Protection (if your purchase has a warranty, it may be extended for a term of up to 3 years.)
  • Return Protection (if you need to return a purchase but the merchant won’t accept the return, you may be refunded some or all of its value.)

World Mastercard

World Mastercards add a lot of benefits and perks compared to the Standard tier. They’re often roughly equivalent to Visa Signature cards and rarely have annual fees.

Basic/security benefits:

  • Mastercard ID Theft Protection: “Monitor your credit file for fraud, receive alert notifications about suspicious activity and get assistance from a resolution specialist.”
  • Mastercard Zero Liability Protection: “you’re not responsible in the event someone makes unauthorized purchases with your card.”
  • Mastercard Global Services: “Get emergency assistance virtually anytime, anywhere and in any language. Report a lost or stolen card, get an emergency replacement and more.”

Travel benefits:

  • Priceless Experiences: Access to tickets to various events
  • Mastercard Golf: Access to various golf events, tee times, and tips
  • Complimentary travel services
  • Mastercard Hotel Stay Guarantee: “Book a three-star or higher hotel stay through the Mastercard Travel & Lifestyle Services program, and should you encounter problems with the hotel, a Lifestyle Manager will work to make it right.”
  • Lowest Hotel Rate Guarantee: “If you book a qualifying prepaid hotel rate through Mastercard Travel & Lifestyle Service and you find the same exact hotel stay for less, we will refund the difference.”
  • Mastercard luxury hotel and resorts portfolio: “Amenities and upgrades at more than 3,000+ properties around the globe, like complimentary breakfast for two daily, amenity credits up to $100 and more.”
  • Free nights, car, RV, air: “Enjoy free nights at partner hotels, status upgrades on car rentals, savings on air and private jets.”
  • Mastercard Airport Concierge: “Dedicated meet-and-greet agent to escort you and your loved ones through the airport at 700+ locations worldwide.”

Partner benefits:

  • Lyft: If you take 3+ Lyft rides in a month, you’ll get a $5 credit towards a future ride.
  • DoorDash: $5 discount on your first order each month, plus a 3-month free trial of DashPass membership.
  • ShopRunner: Free “online membership that unlocks free 2-day shipping and free returns at dozens of top stores, including Under Armour, Cole Hann, Bloomingdale’s and more.“
  • McAfee: 30-day free trial to McAfee Total Protection and discounted rate for the first year of your subscription.

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The 10 Best Credit Cards for Global Entry or TSA PreCheck

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What is Global Entry and TSA PreCheck?

The US government has five “trusted traveler” programs. They expedite border crossings and airport customs. If you travel at least once a year, this might be worth considering. Even occasional travelers can save a lot of time.

The programs (Global Entry, TSA PreCheck, SENTRI, NEXUS, FAST) are “risk-based programs to facilitate the entry of pre-approved travelers.” After applying for membership to one, the government can look into your background and interview you. It’s a simple process and doesn’t take much time, although it may take a while for the government to process your paperwork. Memberships are valid for 5 years once approved.

A private option is CLEAR. They use biometric data (your face and eyes) to create a touch-free ID pass, which can be used at airports to quickly go through airport security. It can be combined with TSA PreCheck for extra speed. It’s available in 34 cities as of early 2022, and costs up to $180 per year. (It’s free or discounted through Delta, United, or the American Express Platinum card.)

Which program should you enroll in?

The best one depends on where and how you travel. Eligibility also varies between programs.

  • TSA PreCheck is for domestic airline travel within the U.S.
  • NEXUS is for air/land/sea travel within the U.S. and Canada.
  • SENTRI covers air and land travel within the U.S., Canada, and Mexico.
  • Global Entry covers all air/land/sea travel.

SENTRI and FAST don’t apply to most people, and they don’t have their fees covered by credit cards, so we won’t discuss those options here.

If in doubt, apply for Global Entry. It’s the most comprehensive option, and it includes TSA PreCheck. But if you never travel outside of North America, it might be better to get NEXUS or SENTRI (which also include TSA PreCheck).

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10+ Banking Solutions Without Fees or Minimum Balance Requirements

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Checking accounts aren’t always cheap or easy to use, despite their importance. We’ve compiled a quick list of popular solutions. Americans lose billions every year through monthly maintenance fees, overdraft fees, or miscellaneous charges. Banks are starting to eliminate or reduce fees yet it can still add up. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) reported a couple of months ago that “Banks continue to rely heavily on overdraft and non-sufficient funds (NSF) revenue, which reached an estimated $15.47 billion in 2019.” The middle class and lower class are losing out on opportunities. The FDIC says that over 7 million American adults don’t have a bank account. The most-cited reason why: because they can’t afford minimum balance requirements.

The below list has some no-fee options, which can help you avoid the worst outcomes; these accounts don’t require minimum balances either. Some are banks while others are fintechs (financial technology companies) who partner with banks. Note that this isn’t a top 10; it’s a somewhat subjective list, which may change in the future. The below options are in alphabetical order and we don’t recommend or endorse any specific product(s) here. Also be sure to opt out of “overdraft protection” when opening an account, if the option pops up during registration.

And check your local area for alternatives to big banks. Smaller credit unions typically don’t have big fees. This can save a lot of money in the long run.

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Benefits and Differences Between Visa Traditional, Signature, and Infinite

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Visa has a number of different card types. Their website breaks these down into 3 main categories: Traditional, Signature, and Infinite. Although other categories may exist, these are the main consumer cards. Each category of card comes with different perks, although it varies by card issuer. Visa has lists of potential benefits, and it’s up to individual card issuers whether they want to offer a full or partial list.

The base benefits are generally expected from all credit cards. If your card is lost or stolen, you can lock it and/or you won’t be held liable for unauthorized transactions. Other listed benefits can be more or less useful than this. Most modern cards should also have EMV chips, a tap-to-pay feature, and mobile wallet compatibility.

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Cash Back Rates vs Sign Up Bonuses: Which Is Better?

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What’s better to have from a credit card? A high cash back earn rate, or a high sign-up bonus?

It depends mostly on how often you’ll open credit cards. If you only open one new card a year, cash back is generally a better aim. If you want multiple cards, sign-up bonuses (SUBs) are better than cash back earnings. Earn rates are often more long-term oriented, and SUBs are often more short-term oriented. A sign-up bonus is typically equivalent to getting 10-30% cash back, while credit cards usually give 1-5% cash back.

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The Top 15 Credit Cards For 0% APR

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0% APR can have a variety of applications. Sometimes you need more than 30 days to pay for something, or need to increase the amount of cash on hand. This is usually the best way to solve that problem while avoiding interest. Credit cards normally have 15-20% APR, and it’s rarely worthwhile to pay interest on card purchases. One of the downsides here is that most of the below cards require a minimum credit score of 650+. People who really need 0% APR often have lower credit scores. If you fall into this category, check to see if you’re prequalified before applying. Most banks have this option. Search “[bank name] prequalification” and their website should pop right up.

Most of the below cards also have 0% APR on balance transfers, but balance transfers almost always have a fee associated with them. It’s better to put new purchases on a 0% APR card instead of trying to do a balance transfer. Note: This list is current as of December 2021 and is subject to change.

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How To Earn More Cash Back With Bank of America Preferred Rewards

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Bank of America’s credit card options are reasonable in general. What sets them apart, however, is the bank’s Preferred Rewards program. The more money you have with BoA, the more you earn with their credit cards. While each tier has a variety of benefits, YMMV in terms of usefulness. We’ll primarily cover the credit card information in this article.

To enroll in Preferred Rewards, the requirements are simple: have a “qualifying” Bank of America deposit account (such as a personal checking account) and/or Merrill investment account(s), with a three-month combined average daily balance of $X or more. Depending on what X is, you’ll gain access to one of the below tiers. You don’t need to keep exact amounts since it’s a combined average.

Once you qualify for a tier, you’ll retain that tier status for at least 12 months. Your balance can temporarily dip without consequence. BoA goes on to say “If after a year you no longer meet the balance requirement, you’ll have a three-month grace period. If you haven’t met the balance requirement after three months, you’ll be moved to a lower tier or lose your Preferred Rewards benefits.”

Note that you have to manually enroll into the program to get any benefits. It isn’t automatically awarded to customers who may qualify.

There’s also a business version of Preferred Rewards with slightly different requirements and benefits.

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Explaining The Chase Trifecta And How To Maximize It

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The “Chase Trifecta” is combining three specific Chase cards to gain more value than using just one of those cards.

Although Chase advertises its two Freedom cards as earning cash back, these cards actually earn points (Chase Ultimate Rewards). These points can be redeemed for cash back at $0.01 each (1 Cent Per Point, or 1 cpp). However, we can increase the value after transferring UR to a Sapphire Preferred or Sapphire Reserve card.

The Preferred makes each point worth $0.0125 each (1.25 cpp or 25% more) and the Reserve makes each point worth $0.015 (1.5 cpp or 50% more) when redeeming points against certain purchases or travel expenses. It might not sound like much, but this quickly adds up. And in some cases, the points can be transferred to Chase’s travel partners for even more value.
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Anti-Churning Rules and Chase 5/24 Explained

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“Churners” seek sign-up bonuses and other rewards by opening lots of credit cards. In most cases, they’re legitimate customers who want extra cash back or free travel. A lot of credit cards offer great rewards and bonuses. As people become more educated about credit cards (CCs) some inevitably want to maximize (or abuse) the system, despite risks to their credit scores.

As a result, banks have implemented rules (sometimes unofficially) to deter churners. They naturally aim for a positive ROI on customers. Here’s a compilation of the most important things to keep in mind. Keep in mind that this isn’t a comprehensive list of all rules/guidelines, and things are subject to change.

As a side note, some banks might shut you down if you go too hard and fast. They can take away points or close your cards. We recommend applying for 1 new card every 3-4 months, to start. If you have higher risk tolerance, maybe apply for a new card every 2-3 months, once your credit history is pretty well-established. Don’t go overboard. Start with credit cards that you’re likely to use on a regular basis, and pay your balance in full every month.

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