{"id":159035,"date":"2021-07-13T08:35:00","date_gmt":"2021-07-13T12:35:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mp-2702.milesopedia.dev\/news\/bye-bye-debit-card\/"},"modified":"2026-05-08T15:52:47","modified_gmt":"2026-05-08T15:52:47","slug":"bye-bye-debit-card","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mp-2702.milesopedia.dev\/en\/personal-finance\/bye-bye-debit-card\/","title":{"rendered":"Bye Bye Debit card!"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Bye Bye debit card!<\/h2>\n\n\n\n\n\n

Explain to me why, when I stand in line at the grocery store, I still see customers presenting their debit card to pay for purchases.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Bye<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Because if you’re one of those people who pays the full amount of their statement every month, then you never pay interest, and you can access credit<\/strong>, you are a good candidate to use a credit card<\/a> and get the rewards associated with it in the process.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Also, if you are able to settle for buying only what you need, you have the right profile.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Would you like cash back<\/a> to reduce your expenses? Hotel nights<\/a>? Airline tickets<\/a>? But why use a debit card, when it’s not giving you any benefit?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Bye<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

In the credit cards world, most lending banks offer generous bonuses<\/a> to attract good customers. Points and miles or cash back. Then they give you some on your daily expenses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yes, the ones from the grocery store too. I’ll give you an example. Some credit cards offer 5% in rewards per dollar spent at the grocery store<\/strong>, such as the American Express Cobalt\u2122 Card.<\/a> That is, on a $100 bill, you get $5 in rewards<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So why settle for a debit card that offers nothing? And depending on the credit card chosen, discounts can be as high as 10%<\/a> for the first three months after joining.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Do you see? It’s worth it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Everything is paid for on credit or almost…<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Except for a few bills such as electricity, my snow removal contract and at my favourite small merchants who do not accept credit, I charge everything to my credit card. Groceries<\/a>, restaurants<\/a>, telephone charges, insurance, school and municipal taxes, gasoline<\/a> and so on. And at the end of the month, I pay the entire balance<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For a middle-class family of four, a single credit card equals at least $1,000 in annual earnings. If you push the envelope with two or three great credit cards<\/a> and their bonuses, which you optimize on the right spending, you’ll easily double the value of your rewards<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I took my first business class flight to South Africa<\/a> that way. A value of $5,000, earned in eighteen months<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Review:<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

But that’s not all<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Credit cards offer several advantages that debit cards do not.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In addition to the membership rewards, here are a few:<\/p>\n\n\n\n