As you browse BestCard.io’s hundreds of merchants and spending categories and view the lists of suggested credit cards for each, you may be wondering how we decide what credit card to put at the top of the list. This blog post aims to answer that question.
To provide the most accurate information and quickly get you the answers you need, we have simplified the algorithm for sorting credit cards.
Credit Cards
We regularly add new cards to our database. We have developed a process for extracting the information directly from the credit card issuer’s website to keep the details of each card accurate. We collect the following facts about each card and keep it updated:
- Official credit card name
- Type of credit card: Personal or Business
- Type of earning: Cash, Points, Miles
- Annual fee
- Network: Visa, MasterCard, Amex, Discover
- Issuing Bank
- The learn more and application URL
- Top categories where the card earns points
- Top merchants where the card earns points
On top of collecting accurate information about each credit card, we also assign a value to each point/mile earned. If the credit card earns cash back, the value is fixed at 1 cent per dollar. But if the card earns points or miles, we use our ever-evolving formula to assign an accurate value per dollar spent.
A few notes about lists of best credit cards for each category/merchant:
Portal earnings: Because of the complexities of how each portal (Capital One Travel, Amex Travel, etc.) operates, we have decided only to include regular credit card spending in our sorting algorithm.
Annual fees: Many premium credit cards have high annual fees (The Amex Platinum Card® has a $695 annual fee). We do not use this metric in our sorting calculations because many of these cards come with other benefits that offset the annual fee, but the value of those perks is highly personal. We will explore these perks in future blog posts so you can make an educated guess about which card is right for you. For now, we have included a filtering option to exclude credit cards with an annual fee.
Spending Categories & Merchants
Based on the credit cards in our database, we activate the appropriate spending categories and merchants and then connect each credit card that qualifies to earn more than 1 cent, point, or mile for every dollar spent.
If there’s an exception or a limit (i.e., only earns 5x points for the first $5,000), it is noted next to the earning potential for each card.
Improving our recommendations
We are constantly improving our process for collecting the most up-to-date information. New credit card factors may be added and used in our sorting calculations. Our formulas will change over time and we will make those changes public through this blog so that we can stay as transparent as possible.
Our goal is to create an unbiased database for all available credit cards for you to maximize your earning potential from the cards you currently hold or, if necessary, apply for new credit cards to earn the highest amount of points, miles, or cash back for every purchase.
Credit cards and credit rewards systems are a great tool (if used correctly) for earning points, miles, or cashback on purchases you were already going to make. The goal of our website is not to encourage you to spend more or accumulate credit card debt but to get the most out of your purchases.
If you have suggestions, comments, or questions on how we can improve BestCard.io, please drop us a note via hello@bestcard.io!
