Amazon CC Yes or No?

[Tangler]

I am not a debt person. Zero debt. No mortgage, car loans, CC debt, student loans etc.

I have not used CCs very often (almost never). I only own 1 and I think I have used it 3 times in the last 15 years.

I Like simplicity. Dave Ramsey fan (got me out of student loan debt and on the path in 2005 before WCI....)

Anyway, I use amazon. I am an amazon prime member. I am considering getting an amazon CC which I will pay off every month (I think).

The only complicating factor is as follows. In 2020 I had my ID stollen (someone filled for unemployment in my name and I got the tax bill).

After ID stollen I went to credit agencies and froze my credit.

So, to get approved for this card I would need to go to Experian and unfreeze my credit. This is not a huge deal. I could freeze it again, but it is a little bit of a hassle.

Also, the total savings (in CC amazon purchases according to a message I got from amazon.com is around 500. So for 500 a year would you unfreeze credit, apply for a card and go through the hassle of paying off cc every month?

I am on the fence. Really, I filled out the paperwork only to get an email saying I needed to unfreeze credit and a 1 800 number to call after I did it.

On the fence. I really am considering it, but I also have concerns.

I might just let sleeping dogs lie. CC points be danged.

I guesss the things that makes me think this are as follows:

1. Am I really that much smarter / better than the average American consumer?
Hmmmm maybe? Or maybe this is overconfidence bias.
I mean on average these companies pay cash back & points & still have $ = profit left over for ubiquitous advertising, nice buildings (never seen a bank that looks like a crack house) in nice neighborhoods (never seen a bank near the pay day loans / bail bonds / pawn shops area of town.)

They make $ on the average dude. Can I really make $ off of them? Why am I special?

2. Do I really want to risk ID theft again?
It was a bit of a hassle to deal with and I was sorta pissed that our amazing federal system could not spend the ATP necessary to look and see if the same people who applied for unemployment were also paying SS, medicare, federal withholdings etc.

How hard would it be to say.....hey.....look Dr. Tangler is working for hospital X and paying taxes and also he is getting unemployment income.....a lot of covid unemployment $ ?

3. People spend more when they buy with CC because it does not activate pain centers in brain. Functional MRI study below is scary (at least to me).

Would I spend more on amazon if I was getting "cash back"? Would I buy that fishing lure that I instead put into the wish list?
https://www.cmu.edu/homepage/practic...it-hurts.shtml


Anyway.........sorry if this is inappropriate for the lounge. Not sure where it should go.

After writing this I am thinking No. What do you think? Why?

[Lordosis]

I have the Amazon CC. Got it several years ago as our sole CC but last year got a new one which gave 2% for all purchases because I was putting 30-40K on it for daycare. Now they charge a CC fee so I do not do that.

I left the amazon card just on the amazon account. It gets me an extra 5% back on everything you buy there. It is not much but it is something. You care going to use a CC when you buy from amazon anyway so why not use their card?

[Hatton]

I use several credit cards. I recently got an Apple Card. I had my credit frozen so I went thru that process with experian to unfreeze and refreeze. It is a hassle but worth the peace of mind. The Apple card is 3% cash back for apple purchases, 2% for applepay purchases and 1% for all else. So I using applepay alot now. The card is secure i think. It is titanium and does not even have the numbers printed on it. If you need the CC number it is in your phone. I use a target card since they have 5% cash back on target purchases and recently added 2% for gas and dining. I also have a capital one card which has 1.5% cash back. I do not even use amazon. I do not personally think someone who is disciplined enough to save and invest will likely overspend on CCs.

[zlandar]

If you pay off a CC debt in full every month it's 0%. That is the only way I have used CC.

The Amazon CC is a no-brainer if you are a Prime member and shop a lot on Amazon. It's 5% cashback. I have my CC set to autodebit from my bank account. I review all my transactions periodically on Mint if the CC issuer doesn't catch a questionable transaction first.

You have already frozen your credit which blocks most attempts to fraudulently open new lines of credit.

Your personal info can be stolen by hospital office staff with access to personnel records or someone digging through your mailbox or trash. It's why I prefer all my CC statements and other sensitive financial info delivered electronically.

When I was a resident one of the hospital secretaries was stealing the personal info of residents and giving them to her "friends". One of the crooks took a particular liking to one resident's ID and bought a BMW SUV in his name lol.

[HikingDO]

I have the Amazon CC, 5% off on Amazon and Whole Food purchases are nice, but honestly for you I wouldn’t do it. The stress it would seem to cause you isn’t worth the $500 savings, in my opinion.

[StarTrekDoc]

Overthinking it. Get Amazon card if you shop Amazon. Easy 5% savings.

[Tangler]

. You are going to use a CC when you buy from amazon anyway so why not use their card?

I use debit cards on amazon. Is there any difference? Would it “feel” different to use a CC? Is it worth 5% cash back (which seems pretty great honestly) ? Would I spend more?
Worth the hassle?
Truly on the fence.
thanks for input.

[Tangler]

I use several credit cards. I recently got an Apple Card. I had my credit frozen so I went thru that process with experian to unfreeze and refreeze. It is a hassle but worth the peace of mind. The Apple card is 3% cash back for apple purchases, 2% for applepay purchases and 1% for all else. So I using applepay alot now. The card is secure i think. It is titanium and does not even have the numbers printed on it. If you need the CC number it is in your phone. I use a target card since they have 5% cash back on target purchases and recently added 2% for gas and dining. I also have a capital one card which has 1.5% cash back. I do not even use amazon. I do not personally think someone who is disciplined enough to save and invest will likely overspend on CCs.

Thanks, wow, you don’t use amazon. I wonder what % of USA never uses amazon? I know i buy too much stuff period, and amazon is not always great in terms of waste, hurting mom & pop stores etc. but i use amazon a lot.

[Tangler]

Overthinking it. Get Amazon card if you shop Amazon. Easy 5% savings.

Probably right.

[Tangler]

I have the Amazon CC, 5% off on Amazon and Whole Food purchases are nice, but honestly for you I wouldn’t do it. The stress it would seem to cause you isn’t worth the $500 savings, in my opinion.

Sounds convincing to me.
Truly on the fence.

[Tangler]

If you pay off a CC debt in full every month it's 0%. That is the only way I have used CC.

The Amazon CC is a no-brainer if you are a Prime member and shop a lot on Amazon. It's 5% cashback. I have my CC set to autodebit from my bank account. I review all my transactions periodically on Mint if the CC issuer doesn't catch a questionable transaction first.

You have already frozen your credit which blocks most attempts to fraudulently open new lines of credit.

Your personal info can be stolen by hospital office staff with access to personnel records or someone digging through your mailbox or trash. It's why I prefer all my CC statements and other sensitive financial info delivered electronically.

When I was a resident one of the hospital secretaries was stealing the personal info of residents and giving them to her "friends". One of the crooks took a particular liking to one resident's ID and bought a BMW SUV in his name lol.

Great story, but I imagine if your credit was frozen they would have a hard time buying a BMW. My point: freezing credit does not stop ID theft, it prevents the crook from buying with it. The fact that i could not open a CC account because of credit freeze is more evidence of this.
But, i love the story.
Sucks for the residents. Residency is hard enough without that!

[CordMcNally]

I have completely gotten away from using debit cards. I don’t even carry one. Minimal protection whereas you have much more protection with a credit card.

[Hatton]

I do not use debit cards really. I used to use amazon but my account got messed up and customer service told me to use a different email and open a new account. Why bother?

[Lordosis]

I use debit cards on amazon. Is there any difference? Would it “feel” different to use a CC? Is it worth 5% cash back (which seems pretty great honestly) ? Would I spend more?
Worth the hassle?
Truly on the fence.
thanks for input.

I do not use debit cards. I cannot imagine it feels any different to spend with one or the other. Handing over cash is different. But types of cards? Probably not. It is a small hassle and 500a year really is not that much. It might be nice to have a 2nd CC in case one has issues but that is minor.

[zlandar]

I have completely gotten away from using debit cards. I don’t even carry one. Minimal protection whereas you have much more protection with a credit card.

I listen to Clark Howard for years before finding WCI. Clark has always hated debit cards as a payment method:

https://clark.com/personal-finance-c...ebit-card-pay/