2016 Credit Card Year in Review

Last year, I posted a recap of credit card annual fees paid across 2015.  If you're interested, checkout my other 2016 year in review posts:

• Top 5 flights
• Flying overview
• Hotel overview
• Miles earned

This year, I'm going to provide a recap of all cards acquired in 2016.  There are 25 so grab a cup of coffee (or a cocktail) before you sit down to read this one.

Summary:
In total, we acquired 25 new cards generating 1,659,500 miles and points from sign-up bonuses.  We paid $2,448 in annual fees but received $1,200 in travel credits.  Since we spend more than $1,200 a year on travel, I value the credits as cash.  That means we paid $1,248 out of pocket.  That doesn't include another $800 in travel credits we'll receive in 2017 from annual fees paid in 2016.  If you include that, our out of pocket expense for nearly 1.7M miles and points was less than $450.  If you add the $200 in flight discounts from the Ritz-Carlton Rewards card, our out of pocket expense is down to about $250.


My general approach is to apply for cards, earn the sign-up bonus, and cancel prior to the fee coming due in year 2.  If there isn't an annual fee, I'll keep the card.  There are certain exceptions (Chase Hyatt, Chase Sapphire Reserve) where the benefits outweigh the annual fee, so I'll keep the card.  There are 5 cards that I'm keeping at least for a bit:

• Amex EveryDay - no annual fee, great Amex Offers
• JPM Reserve - best card on the market, likely keeping forever
• Ritz-Carlton Rewards - not sure yet.  Visa Infinite airline benefit is outstanding so may keep
• Citi Hilton - no annual fee so will probably keep to help credit score
• Hyatt Visa - free Hyatt night (cat 1 - 4) which is easily worth $200.  No brainer to keep for $75

Here's the breakdown of my earning vs. Emily's:

Evan:
In total, I was approved for 13 new cards in 2016 which generated 997,500 miles and points from sign-up bonuses.  Annual fees for the 14 cards for the first year were $1,558.  That was offset by $800 in travel credits (first year only) which I value as cash.  That drops the out of pocket expense to $758. Here's the full overview along with the annual fee and my decision on whether to keep or cancel:

Emily:
In total, Emily was approved for 12 new cards in 2016 which generated 662,000 miles and points from sign-up bonuses.  Annual fees for the first year were $890.  That was offset by $400 in travel credits (first year only) which I value as cash.  That drops the out of pocket expense to $490.  Here's the full overview along with the annual fee and my decision on whether to keep or cancel: