Earn More Points with New Cards, Bonuses, and Challenges in 2025

All the Hacks with Chris Hutchins

Chris Hutchins

Business, Education, Investing, Society & Culture, Places & Travel, Self-improvement

4.7 • 1.4K Ratings

🗓️ 13 August 2025

⏱️ 60 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

#241: We cover new credit cards, increased welcome bonuses, and major changes to existing cards and their benefits. Plus, learn how to rack up thousands of points through airline and hotel challenges and giveaways. Link to Full Show Notes: https://chrishutchins.com/new-cards-increased-offers-points-challenges Partner Deals Copilot Money: Free 2 months access to my favorite personal finance app with code HACKS2 DeleteMe: 20% off removing your personal info from the web Gelt: Skip the waitlist on personalized tax guidance to maximize your wealth Fabric: Affordable term life insurance for you and your family MasterClass: Learn from the world's best with 15% off For all the deals, discounts and promo codes from our partners, go to: chrishutchins.com/deals Resources Mentioned Credit Cards Chris' Cards Page Citi Strata Elite℠ (100,000 point offer) Citi Strata℠ Citi Double Cash® Card Citi Strata Premier℠ Card U.S. Bank Smartly™ Visa Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant® American Express® Card Marriott Bonvoy Bevy® American Express® Card Marriott Bonvoy Business® American Express® Card American Express® Gold Card The Platinum Card® from American Express Bilt World Elite Mastercard® (Rates and Fees here) Mesa Homeowners Card (Referral code: FCRGNB) Nibbles Credit Card Rakuten American Express® Card Gemini Credit Card Coinbase One Card "Weird Al" Yankovic Rakuten: Free $30 here Airline & Hotel Challenges Frequent Miler: Million Mile Madness Recap Etihad: The Extraordinary Challenge JetBlue: 25 for 25 JetBlue: TrueBlue Partner Passport Challenge Choice Hotels: 1-Million Points Sweepstakes ATH Podcast Ep #228: Deep Dive on Citi Credit Cards and ThankYou Points (Best 2-Card Combo) Ep #236: Deep Dive on Amex Credit Cards and Membership Rewards Points Ep #234: Earn Points on Mortgage, 100k+ Card Bonuses, New 4% Card, Devaluations and More Southwest Cards Refresh Mesa Homeowners Card Membership Newsletter Leave a review: Apple Podcasts | Spotify Email for questions, hacks, deals, and feedback: [email protected] Full Show Notes (00:00) Introduction (00:51) Citi Strata Elite Card Perks & Earnings (05:24) 100K Welcome Offer (10:42) U.S. Bank Card Changes (15:48) Southwest Card Refresh (17:27) How to Earn a Southwest Companion Pass (20:10) Increased Bonuses on Marriott Bonvoy Cards (21:33) Elevated Amex Welcome Offers (23:56) Bilt Card & Benefits (28:20) Mesa Homeowners Card for Mortgage Payments (31:44) The Nibbles Card for Pets (33:33) The New Rakuten Card (36:08) Gemini Credit Card (40:15) The Coinbase One Card (46:28) Etihad & Turkish Airlines Points Challenge (48:50) Latest JetBlue Challenges (56:15) Choice Hotel 1M Sweepstake (57:07) Upcoming Changes to the Podcast (57:58) Chris’ Birthday Request Connect with Chris Newsletter | Membership | X | Instagram | LinkedIn Editor’s Note: The content on this page is accurate as of the posting date; however, some of our partner offers may have expired. Opinions expressed here are the author's alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, hotel, airline, or other entity. This content has not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of the entities included within the post. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	If you're looking to maximize your points, this episode is packed with so much you want to know about a ton of changes to credit cards the past few weeks.
0:06.6	We've got seven new cards, two major changes to cards, eight elevated offers, and then I'm going to do a deep dive into some of the wild points challenges that could net you hundreds of thousands of points of miles, or even a decade of elite status.
0:19.7	I'll break down what's worth your attention, what's a hard pass, and what might be a surprising
0:23.6	win for your points game.
0:25.6	Whether you're considering a new premium card navigating the negative changes to existing cards,
0:29.6	evaluating some new crypto cards, wanting to earn points on your mortgage, looking to fly free with a companion through 2027,
0:36.6	or trying to rack up millions of points.
0:38.9	We have so much to cover today.
0:40.8	But first, I'm Chris Hutchins.
0:42.2	If you enjoy this episode, please share it with a friend or leave a comment or review.
0:46.0	And if you want to keep upgrading your life, money, and travel, click follow or subscribe.
0:51.5	Okay, so first I want to talk about Citibank because there's a lot of changes going on.
0:56.4	And the first one is the launch of the new City Strata Elite card.
1:00.3	It's their premium travel card.
1:02.5	A long time ago, they used to have the City Prestige card.
1:05.3	In fact, everyone thought this card would replace it.
1:07.6	But thankfully, if you still have that old card, it doesn't look like it's getting
1:10.9	changed. But let's break it down. So it's a $595 annual fee, though if you have assets at city,
1:17.9	whether your city gold or city private client, that annual fee might be discounted or even
1:22.3	completely waived the first year. And as for earnings, gets 12x on hotel and car rental bookings through city travel.
1:30.6	Get 6x on flights booked through city travel. And then the most confusing one, you get 6x on dining,
1:37.3	but only Friday and Saturday from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. Eastern. Otherwise, it's just 3x on dining. Now, they say it's going to be based
	...

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