Capital One sent me a marketing mailer for the Capital One Quicksilver Card. Lately, I’m about racking up points or miles in order to travel first class for free, but a good cash back card is useful for many people. So if Capital One is going to send me credit card offers in the mail, I’ll write up a personal finance article about it. Win-Win!
Capital One Quicksilver Cash Back Card
So, unlike the Capital One Venture Card, or the Capital One VentureOne Rewards card, which are travel rewards cards where you earn Capital One rewards points and redeem them for items on the Capital One rewards chart, the Capital One Quicksilver card is a cash back card.
Current Capital One Quicksilver Offer
Different people get different offers from credit card companies based largely on their credit report and credit score. That’s why it is important to get a look a your free credit score and keep an eye on how your credit is doing.
The offer that came in the mail is a $200 one-time cash bonus and 0% interest rate until December 2022. It would also offer unlimited 1.5% cash back on every purchase, along with no annual fee.
All in all, that’s not a bad offer for the right person.
Compare the Quicksilver Credit Card to Other Credit Cards
The key to really maximizing the rewards you get from earning credit card miles typically involves using the miles earned in a clever way. Taking advantage of transfer bonuses, or being able to buy miles at a discount, and transferring them to partners offering discounted travel rewards can add up to miles that are worth much more than when they are redeemed in a more traditional, direct manner. That being said, for comparison sake, the Capital One Venture Card offers the equivalent of 2% cash back when miles are redeemed for “travel” or other preferred categories. That’s better than the Quicksilver credit card, but the Venture credit card has a $95 annual fee, so you have to out earn that $95 before it is a better deal for you.
The VentureOne credit card has no annual fee, but earns at 1.5 miles per $1, which is approximately equivalent to the Quicksilver 1.5% cash back when the miles are redeemed against the standard rewards miles catalog.
For this particular offer, the Quicksilver card offers a one-time $200 bonus when you spend $500 within 3 months of opening your account. So, now, that is $295 in favor of Quicksilver.
Quicksilver Balance Transfer Offer
Usually, credit card balance transfers are a bad deal that will actually cost you money.
For example, the Quicksilver balance transfer offers 0% interest on your transfer, but there is a 3% fee to make the transfer. Keep in mind that something like a 12% interest rate works out to approximately 1% per month in interest. So, before you get your 0% interest rate, you will basically pay three months worth of interest up front. So, the 0% offer is only worthwhile for those with a large balance that will take several months to pay off.
The smart way to use the 0% interest rate transfer offer if you have a large credit card balance would be to transfer your balance and pay the 3% fee immediately. DO NOT close the old account. Part of your credit score comes from the average age of your accounts. Then, spend $500 on the Quicksilver Card in order to earn the $200 cash bonus. Use the cash bonus to pay down the balance that you transferred. Calculate what it will take to pay off the rest of your balance by December 2022, when the zero percent interest offer ends. Be sure to pay at least that amount each month. Do not use your Quicksilver card for purchases until the balance is zero.
As always, the smart move is to never carry a balance on any credit card. However, life happens. Use the above plan to wipe out your credit card balance without paying any additional fees or interest by using the balance transfer offer.
Is The Quicksilver Card Right For You?
If you prefer cash back, the Quicksilver card is an interesting option with its 1.5% cash back on everything offer. For me, I’m still working on that first class trip to the Maldives with my Capital One Venture Card and Chase Sapphire Rewards card.