What’s in My Wallet (and Why)

I’ve talked about how travel miles/points are like an additional portfolio that can supplement your FI portfolio.

Over the years, I’ve tracked how much value I’ve gotten from my miles/points, and here are my totals:

2019	$2,614	2021	$6,080	2023	$648	2025	$4,253
2020	$4,401	2022	$6,192	2024	$10,593	2026	$5,917

That’s over $5,000 per year in value!

Using FI math, that’s $127,175 that I didn’t have to have in my FI portfolio (at a 4% withdrawal rate).

How I Build Up My Other Portfolio

A few years ago, I showed you what’s in my FI portfolio (and how I manage it).

Today, I want to share what’s in my wallet (and why).

My wallet hasn’t changed for many years now. That’s partly because I want to “simplify” rather than “optimize” these days. But it’s also because I’m really happy with everything I have, so there’s been no need to look for anything else.

Chase Sapphire Reserve

My favorite card of all time, and the one I use for over 95% of my purchases, is the Chase Sapphire Reserve.

I applied for this when it first came out in 2016, and it’s been my go-to card ever since.

It currently has the highest signup bonus it’s ever had, which is what prompted me to finally get around to writing this post!

Here are the main details:

• 150,000 points after spending $6k in 3 months
• 4 points per dollar on flights/hotels booked direct
• 3 points per dollar on dining
• Airport lounge access for you and up to two guests
• No foreign transaction fees
• Primary auto rental coverage

The Points Guy values these points at 2.05 cents per point, so that makes the signup bonus worth over $3,000!

And 4x on flights/hotels and 3x on dining is like getting over 8% and 6% back on my two biggest expense categories!

The lounge access saves us ~$100 every time we’re in an airport (based on how much we spent when we traveled through TPA, which didn’t have a lounge), and makes our travel days more relaxed/enjoyable.

The card has a hefty annual fee ($795), but that comes with a $300 annual travel credit (so it’s effectively $495 if you spend more than $300 on travel every year).

New perks were recently introduced when the annual fee changed last year, and I’ve received over $2,000 in value from them since they were announced (see Addendum at the bottom of this post for all the details).

The Chase Sapphire Reserve is the best travel credit card ever released. If you’ve ever thought about getting it, now is definitely the time (this best-ever offer expires at 9 AM EST on 6/15/2026, so act quickly)!

Note: The welcome bonus is subject to a once-per-lifetime rule, so if you have previously earned a Sapphire Reserve bonus, you sadly are not eligible.

Fidelity Cash Management Debit Card

The Fidelity Cash Management Debit Card doesn’t earn miles/points, but it’s the second most-essential card in my wallet for two reasons:

• No Foreign Transaction fees
• No ATM fees

So when I go abroad, there’s no need to change money over (or get traveler’s checks, if they’re still a thing?) because I just take local currency out of the ATM as soon as I get there.

The exchange rate this card gives me at the ATM is better than I’d get at an FX place anyway, and it’s far easier to just find an ATM when we land.

The fact that all ATM fees get refunded means this debit card is great to use in the States as well! I don’t need to hunt for my bank’s ATM, because I can just take money out of any ATM and I know Fidelity will reimburse me for any ATM fees incurred (no matter how high).

Checking Account Debit Card

For some reason, I still carry my bank’s debit card too (to get cash out when near one of their banks).

Chase Freedom Unlimited

The Chase Freedom Unlimited is the card I use for non travel/dining purchases when in the States. It gets 1.5 points per dollar back on all purchases, and since these points are worth 2.05 cents per point (according to The Points Guy), that’s like 3% cashback on everything!

The card doesn’t have an annual fee, so it’s one I plan to keep forever.

Amex Everyday

This card gives 2 points per dollar back on supermarket spending, so I use this one in US grocery stores.

IHG Select

This card is no longer available, but so far Chase hasn’t made me upgrade yet. I only use it at IHG hotels, but I keep it because it gives a free night every year for only a $49 annual fee.

Chase Marriott Bonvoy Boundless

I only use the Chase Marriott Bonvoy Boundless card for Marriott purchases, but I keep it because it gives me an annual free Marriott night (up to 50,000 points) for a $95 annual fee.

Amex Hilton Honors Card

I use the Hilton Honors American Express card for Hilton purchases only. It doesn’t have an annual fee though, so that’s why I keep it open.

Chase Ink Business Unlimited

The Chase Ink Business Unlimited is my go-to business card because it offers 1.5 points per dollar on all purchases (and no annual fee).

Amex Business Blue

This business card earns 2 points per dollar on all purchase (up to $50k) and it doesn’t have an annual fee. I use this one when I want to build up my Amex point balance (which aren’t as useful to me as Chase points, but still valuable).

Chase Ink Business Cash

I don’t really use my Chase Ink Business Cash anymore, now that I got the Chase Ink Business Unlimited mentioned above (I just keep it anyway because it has no annual fee).

Addendum

The perks for the Chase Sapphire Reserve changed last year when the annual fee went up, and I’ve been getting a ton of value from them!

They’ve also been encouraging me to spend more (in the same way having a gift card makes me buy things I probably wouldn’t have otherwise). That may seem like a bad thing in the personal-finance world, but it’s great for someone like me who is learning how to spend money.

Here are some of the new perks I’ve taken advantage of:

• $500 credit for stays at The Edit hotels
• $550+ in value when you stay with The Edit (free breakfast for two, $100 hotel credit, etc.)
• Global Entry, TSA PreCheck®, or NEXUS fee credit (one statement credit of up to $120)
• $300 dining credit
• $288 in Apple TV and Apple Music subscriptions
• $300 in StubHub credits

And if you spend over $75,000 on the card in a year, you’ll get the following additional perks:

• World of Hyatt Explorist status
• IHG Diamond Elite status
• Southwest A-List status
• $500 Southwest credit
• $250 Credit at The Shops at Chase

So here’s how I actually utilized the perks, and how much money I saved:

We stayed two nights at a fancy downtown-Denver hotel ($250 statement credit) where we received $60 vouchers for breakfast each morning in the adjoining restaurant (which was delicious). We also received $100 to use anywhere else on the property, so we used that to get even more fancy food/drinks in the restaurant.

While in Denver, we took a friend out to dinner at a Wagyu steakhouse that we wouldn’t have gone to otherwise ($150 statement credit for that).

I used the Stubhub credit to book tickets to see a Pittsburgh Penguins hockey game, a Deftones concert, and a Kraftwerk concert ($300 total in statement credits).

Once we passed $75k in spending last year, we got the $500 Southwest credit, which we used on a flight from Pittsburgh to Denver. And on that flight, our new A-List status saved us $35 in baggage fees!

• $250 – Denver Hotel
• $120 – Denver Hotel Breakfast
• $100 – Denver Hotel Credit
• $150 – Wagyu Steakhouse Dinner
• $300 – Stubhub tickets
• $288 – Apple Music & Apple TV
• $300 – Annual Travel Credit
• $183 – Function Health Limited-Time Promo
• $500 – Southwest Flight
• $35 – Southwest Luggage

So that’s $2,226 we’ve already saved (mostly on things we would have bought anyway, and a few things that we wouldn’t have normally spent money on, but I’m glad that we did).

Some perks I still haven’t used (but plan to) are the $250 credit at The Shops at Chase, the $250 credit for select Chase Travel Hotels, the $250 credit for The Edit hotels (the second half of my $500/year allowance), and another $150 dining credit (second half of my $300/year allowance).

Add all that up, and we’re talking about over $3,000 of value from a single card (not even accounting for the value of the airport lounge access for you and two guests, the TSA PreCheck® credit, etc.).

Now you can see why the Chase Sapphire Reserve is my favorite card of all time!

How About You?

What’s in your wallet? Do you have a different favorite? If so, what (and why)? Is there anything I’m missing? Let me know in the comments below!

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