Fancy getting rewarded for your credit card spending? Then you might want to check out the Barclaycard has launched the Freedom Rewards card. But is it any good?
Barclaycard has launched the Barclaycard Freedom Rewards credit card, a card which rewards users with points for their spending which can then be redeemed in one of 70 retail partners.
Earning points
The number of points you earn depends on where you spend using the card. There’s three points for every £1 spent at selected stores (so-called Lifestyle Booster partners), two points for every £1 spent in supermarkets and petrol stations and one point for each £1 spent everywhere else.
The LifeStyle Boosters include Strada, Bella Italia, Currys, PC World, Goldsmiths, Café Rouge and BHS.
Rewards start with a £5 voucher for 1,750 points. And if you spend £500 on the card in the first three months, you’ll get £30 of bonus vouchers!
There’s a handy slider tool on the Barclaycard website which helps you work out what you’d get based on your typical monthly spend. I spend about £600 a month on my credit card, so I’d pocket £25 in vouchers a year, with the £30 bonus vouchers on top.
That comes to a £55 return for a £7,200 spend – less than a 1% return.
Where can I spend the vouchers?
Barclaycard has partnered with a wide range of stores where you can spend those points. You can see the full selection on this section of the Barclaycard website, but I’ve picked out a few below.
- M&S
- Boots
- TOPSHOP
- HMV
- Next
- Debenhams
- Waterstones
- LA Fitness
- Cineworld
- Legoland Windsor
- Homebase
- Wallis
- Premier Inn
- Odeon
- Marriot
- Champneys
- Haven
- Sealife Centre
- Madam Tussaud’s
To be honest, I’m a little underwhelmed by the Barclaycard Freedom Rewards card. The variable points reward makes it tricky to work out how many points you’ll be earning on your spending, and the actual conversion of the points to rewards vouchers is not exactly generous.
So what are your alternatives if you want a reward on your spending? Here are a couple of crackers to check out.
American Express Preferred Rewards Gold card
The American Express Preferred Rewards Gold card is normally one just for big spenders, since it comes with an annual fee of a whopping £125. However, Amex is currently waiving that fee, making it far more attractive.
You get roughly one point per £1 spent, though if you spent £2,000 in the first three months you get 20,000 bonus points, which is enough to get you two return flights to European destinations. You can also spend the points on things like hotel stays, shopping vouchers and experiences.
[SPOTLIGHT]Read Get the American Express Preferred Rewards Gold Card fee free for a year for more.
Tesco Clubcard credit card
I do all of my spending at Tesco, and have had the Clubcard credit card for three years, so I know just how useful it can be.
For every £4 you spend, you earn one Clubcard point. And for spending in Tesco (including at the supermarket’s petrol stations) you earn five points for every £4 spent. Those points are then converted into vouchers – 100 points equals a £1 voucher.
Those vouchers can be used in store for money off your shopping, or converted into vouchers for days out, restaurants, experiences, all sorts of different things.
And when you convert them in this way, you could increase their value by as much as four times – so a £5 Clubcard voucher becomes a £20 voucher in a restaurant like ASK or Prezzo for example.
As if that isn’t enough, the Tesco Clubcard credit card also offers 16 months of 0% on purchases, making it the market leader.
AA Rewards Visa
The AA Rewards Visa is a great card for motorists. You earn one reward point for every £1 you spend on motoring purchases (things like fuel, repairs, servicing) and one point for every £2 spent elsewhere. That return is doubled if you’re an AA member.
Those points can then be redeemed on AA products, motoring products, days out or even cashback.
For a full guide to rewards cards, check out The best reward credit cards.
The Barclaycard Cashback card
Speaking of cashback, Barclaycard has also launched a Cashback card, and it’s excellent, paying 6% cashback in the first three months. After that you earn 2% on your five biggest transactions of the month and 0.5% on all other purchases.
You will need to make 15 purchases a month to get the 2% rate, which doubles to 4% for your anniversary month with the card.
For more, read Barclaycard launches 6% cashback card.
Paying off your bill in full
Whether you go for a rewards card or a cashback credit card, it’s really important that you pay off your bill in full each month. Otherwise the interest on your outstanding debt will soon wipe out those rewards!
And while you should put as much of your spending on the card as possible to maximise your return, that doesn’t mean you should increase your spending.
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