Thread: rewards induced spending

So, lately I've noticed that my spending has been a little off due to 2x points on this 3x ponts on that. Does this happen to anyone else with rewards cards (cash back, points, miles, etc.)?

I wouldn't say my spending is higher, but I'll notice myself going to stores/restaurants etc that give bonus points or cashback over those that don't pretty often. If I can get 5% cash back at Old Navy and only 1% at Walmart, for example, you can make a pretty good guess as to where I'm buying my next pair of jeans.

At first I did but now it is just regular spending.

I can't say that I spend more money because of the rewards that come with higher spending, but I'm in the same boat as c0Ld, as I am more likely to purchase products from stores that give me more points/actually accept credit (there are quite a few places in my city that charge an extra 50 cents for credit cards, so I end up paying with cash :/)

I believe the entire purpose of credit card rewards is to get us to spend more. Duh. Why else would we be given free money if they weren't getting something in return for it? If there were no rewards offered the growth of credit cards over the last 20 years would not have happened. It was the rewards that motivated us to start using cards and pushed more stores to accept for small transactions, because the customer wanted it to get their points.

Originally Posted by parli

I believe the entire purpose of credit card rewards is to get us to spend more. Duh. Why else would we be given free money if they weren't getting something in return for it? If there were no rewards offered the growth of credit cards over the last 20 years would not have happened. It was the rewards that motivated us to start using cards and pushed more stores to accept for small transactions, because the customer wanted it to get their points.

But the question is this: Do the rewards merely make you use your credit card more often as choice of payment, or do you spend more money simply because of the rewards? I would say that I'm the former--I don't go out of my way to earn points, simply because I know I'm losing more money than I'm making. But I do try to shop only at places that accept my credit card, because if I'm spending a ton of money I'd at least like to gain something in return. The other day I went shopping at Cosco with my friends--I don't personally have a membership there and thus couldn't use my credit card to purchase my items--and I was pretty upset that I had spent all that money and not received a single cent back

Originally Posted by AmanteDecor

But the question is this: Do the rewards merely make you use your credit card more often as choice of payment, or do you spend more money simply because of the rewards? I would say that I'm the former--I don't go out of my way to earn points, simply because I know I'm losing more money than I'm making. But I do try to shop only at places that accept my credit card, because if I'm spending a ton of money I'd at least like to gain something in return. The other day I went shopping at Cosco with my friends--I don't personally have a membership there and thus couldn't use my credit card to purchase my items--and I was pretty upset that I had spent all that money and not received a single cent back

Exactly, my point. I eat more at restaurants when I can benefit from the points. I shop less elsewhere when I don't get anything. I'm not a wild spender period, but the rewards induce me to shop certain places and less at others that I don't benefit from. Thanks for clarifying the question I think parli misunderstood.

I can conclusively say that rewards do not cause me to spend more.