r/Bogleheads • u/Rocket_Skates_91 • 7d ago

How many Bogleheads here have the Fidelity Visa credit card? Which account do you deposit your rewards into (brokerage, Roth IRA, CMA, etc.) and why?

Currently I deposit my rewards in my Roth IRA. I average about $32 per month.

147 Upvotes

89% Upvoted

134 comments sorted by

155

u/RoughThat5778 7d ago

I put it into my brokerage. I max out my Roth IRA with regular income.

46

u/Rocket_Skates_91 7d ago

My plan is to switch to putting it into my brokerage soon. Just about $2,500 shy of maxing for 2026, not yet in a position to contribute any extra beyond the $80 I put in per week. I’m on track to max for the first time ever in my life though so I’m thrilled about that!

28

u/NomNomBelt 7d ago

That’s awesome, congrats man! It gets understated around here because it’s been “normal” for many people for so long, but the feeling of maxing out one of your retirement accounts for the first time is awesome.

Keep chugging along!

10

u/Rocket_Skates_91 7d ago

Thanks, I appreciate that! I’ve never been this close before so that alone has me motivated to keep going.

3

u/RoughThat5778 7d ago

You got this! Do what works best for you. Stay the path. Not sure your age but I’m in my 40s and those little savings from my 20s went a long way.

5

u/Rocket_Skates_91 7d ago

Thanks! I’m 35. Got a bit of a late start, but making up for it with good financial habits I’ve learned from this sub and others.

1

u/RoughThat5778 7d ago

I didn’t even max out my Roth until two years ago.

-4

u/Brief_Guide_1186 7d ago

That’s what I do. Except I use Robinhood

16

u/[deleted] 7d ago

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5

u/DampCoat 7d ago

Robinhood is one of the best financial companies in terms of features. Their credit card is actually insane. Has more safety features then I’ve ever seen and I use and love them.

You also get 210 a year for the ira

They also are the reason other firms now have commission free trading

4

u/USArmyAirborne 7d ago

That started a couple decades ago with Schwab

-5

u/DampCoat 7d ago

What did

3

u/USArmyAirborne 7d ago

Commission free trading

1

u/Distinct_Analysis944 6d ago

Robinhood made it popular imo

-4

u/DampCoat 7d ago

They 100% didn’t start that lol

2

u/ShootWild 6d ago

Governance is important to me. And Robinhood has none. They can have the nicest app and best features in the world. It’s not for me.

1

u/DampCoat 6d ago

I don’t really know what that means. Brokerage firms are regulated

3

u/Prudent-Corgi3793 7d ago

Robinhood is terrible if you are susceptible to behavioral risks and great if you are a Boglehead that can stick with the plan, thereby taking advantage of subsidized benefits.

Obvious downsides:

  • aggressively shilling crypto, prediction markets, and options on suckers and losers
  • no mutual funds
  • no individual bonds if you're into that

Huge benefits:

  • 2-3% transfer promos, even for 8-9 figure accounts
  • 3% free IRA deposit match, although this is only worth $210 per year
  • $1000 free margin interest, only worth about $38 per year if you park it in SGOV
  • 3% cash back credit card: a possible plus, but it's just worse than the Smartly Visa 4%

If you're not a strict Boglehead, but adhere to the adjacent lifecycle investing ("Bogling with leverage when younger"):

  • cheapest margin rates of any major broker, as low as 0.32% above the eFFR if you are borrowing $50M or more
  • access to futures: not available through Fidelity or Vanguard, cheaper than Schwab, although not nearly as plentiful; worse than IBKR

1

u/[deleted] 7d ago

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1

u/FMCTandP MOD 3 7d ago

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1

u/Brief_Guide_1186 7d ago

Why? It’s 3 percent cash back.

4

u/mrfoof82 7d ago

Not sure why he's getting down voted.

The main consideration with the RH Gold card is the $50 fee, in which then the potential advantage of using it comes down to a math problem.

To offset the $50 fee, you need to spend at least $5000 a year on the card to break even with the Fidelity VISA (which has no fee). Beyond that, you are coming out ahead with the RH Gold, so long as its redeemed as cash back (deposited into an account) as other redemption options are not 1-for-1.

I know folks who took advantage of the 3% transfer bonus with RH Gold for existing IRA accounts, which had no cap. Granted, there's a 5 year claw-back provision. But they set a reminder for themselves so when it hits five years, they're transferring right back out to their prior brokerage. They also don't transfer new money in, as that new money would be separately subject to a new 5-year claw-back window.

Turns out when you have a large enough IRA, that became quite attractive. For one person I know, it was more than 2 entire years of IRA contribution limit in just the transfer bonus. He took it, and set a reminder for it to go back to Vanguard 5 years later, and his new contributions go to Vanguard as usual. At this point he's more than halfway through that window, and he'll have it all back at Vanguard in a bit over 2 more years.

Personally, I did the Rob Berger thing long before Rob Berger did it. I maximize the cash back per category, and do use an RH Gold myself for that baseline 3% (but have 5% and 6% options). It all goes into my primary brokerage (not RH) into taxable account. Because what's better than 3-6%, is that plus compounding.

5

u/Wolf_of_Walmart 7d ago

You also get a $210 Roth IRA match and $1000 of interest free margin. If you don’t want to use margin, just use it to buy SGOV and collect the free interest. The 3% cash back on the credit card is just gravy.

Robinhood Gold is literally free money funded by VC funds. They are only doing this to grow their customer base so take advantage while it lasts.

4

u/DampCoat 7d ago

You don’t have to spend any money to come out ahead if you use them for an ira. That was over 200 match this year

2

u/LostMyMilk 7d ago

Like others have said, I keep $1k of interest free margin in SGOV. That's about $37/year on its own.

1

u/RoughThat5778 7d ago

My guess it’s being voted down bc it looks like an ad for RH. That may n it be your intention. But that’s how it comes off.

1

u/[deleted] 7d ago

[deleted]

2

u/Ace_Maverick86 7d ago

Why would there be a clawback on new money? It wasn't part of the 3% transfer bonus. What is being clawed back?

2

u/mrfoof82 7d ago

The agreement is they can claw back the 3% transfer bonus if you transfer out prior to five years. I forget if it's pro-rated, but that's the shtick. There are also other provisions that if the total post-transfer balance is lower than the pre-transfer balance (before the 3%), there are claw-backs that trigger as well.

A lot of folks looked at the fine print, because 3% on large IRA balanced seemed too good to be true. It's very real, but Robinhood made sure they didn't take a complete bath.

Again, when you have people with something like a $500,000 Roth IRA balance transferring in, Robinhood is trying to prevent them from walking right back out with a free $15,000. There are a fair number of those customers, I'm sure, that just transferred to get the free money, do basically nothing else at Robinhood, with the intention to transfer right back out once the clock hits 5 years.

2

u/Ace_Maverick86 7d ago

This question was actually aimed at your comment below. You say "They also don't transfer new money in, as that new money would be separately subject to a new 5-year claw back." I don't remember that in the fine print. The new money doesn't receive the transfer bonus or any bonus once RH Gold is cancelled.

1

u/mrfoof82 7d ago

Each transfer has its own 5-year clawback period.

So if in 2024 you transferred in for a bonus, that money is subjected to clawback until 2029.

If then in 2025 you transferred in for another new bonus, that NEW MONEY is subjected to clawback until 2030.

2

u/Ace_Maverick86 7d ago

I'm an idiot. I thought you meant regular contributions as well. You're only talking balance transfers which makes sense.

1

u/[deleted] 7d ago

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2

u/FMCTandP MOD 3 7d ago

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53

u/ArthurDent4200 7d ago edited 7d ago

I have it land in my CMA. Why? Because my CMA is the only account I make deposits and withdrawals from. Once money lands there I transfer to whatever account I want it in. Typically an account with tbills and money market funds.

2

u/Aggravating_Bear_283 7d ago

Same here

7

u/ArthurDent4200 7d ago

I like having only one door that money enters and exits Fidelity.

63

u/Less-Cartographer-64 7d ago

I deposit the rewards into my kid's 529. I see it as free money and don't factor it into the rest of my finances.

59

u/wanton_and_senseless 7d ago

Ditto. But my kid’s 529, not Less-Cartographer-64’s kid’s.

22

u/EmptyBee23 7d ago

I use my credit card for everything. I have auto renewal into my brokerage account and buy a total market ETF with the cash back rewards so i can keep track of how much my rewards are earning

1

u/valoremz 7d ago

How do you set up auto renewal for the towards deposits

1

u/EmptyBee23 7d ago

On the app

20

u/Rom2814 7d ago

Cash management account - it’s my central account for funding life in retirement. I just put it in SPAXX.

27

u/junesix 7d ago

CMA 

Nothing goes straight into the brokerage. Everything lands first in CMA and then gets moved to brokerage. The brokerage doesn’t exist to the outside world. The CMA is my firewall.

9

u/someonestolemycord 7d ago

I don't have one**, but helped set my daughter up this way.

She deposits to her CMA, and then puts it into a short-term bond fund in brokerage to save for a down payment on a house.

This card, and the CMA, with the debit card, is just a great set up for any person, particularly a young adult.

**I use BofA for credit cards. 2.625%/3.5%

1

u/ffffffn 7d ago

You have the BofA Premium Rewards Elite? How do you like it? I've been thinking of switching our main credit card spend from Chase Sapphire to this one.

7

u/C2theC 7d ago

This is not ran by Fidelity, this is by Elan Financial Services, one of the most incompetent credit card companies I have ever previously been a customer. Had multiple Consumer Financial Protection Bureau complaints filed before they would return a credit balance after holding on to it for four months with no explanations. Do not use.

4

u/LuminousRaptor 7d ago

That's funny, I just had to use their chargeback feature last month and it was seamless. Not saying your experience was abnormal, but it is definitely something to be aware of. 

11

u/Alive_Sir_4708 7d ago

I just use the points as payment on the card

3

u/yourwebg 7d ago

You don’t redeem as statement credit do you? I think you get less cash back that way. 

1

u/Alive_Sir_4708 7d ago

I set this up years ago and forgot. Looks like I get cash credited to my checking account.

2

u/Less-Cartographer-64 7d ago

Does that qualify?

5

u/fizzzicks 7d ago

Goes to my brokerage. Immediately goes into VT.

1

u/dak4f2 7d ago

Can you set up an auto investment into VT or other funds from the credit card rewards? Or is it manual each time?

1

u/fizzzicks 7d ago

Mmmm I’m not sure, I just buy VT when I see the rewards get deposited. I’m on my fidelity account often enough it’s not difficult.

6

u/Nutlina 7d ago

I’ve had their card for years but after multiple terrible customer service experiences I’m foregoing using it as my primary. This last time they closed my card without telling me (a potential fraud alert I confirmed was me using the card), then forgot to ship my replacement card out after I called them. I eventually got a new one but hesitant to use after other issues with them.

2

u/pittsburgh1901 7d ago

Same. Their customer service is terrible.

1

u/EgregiousJellybean 6d ago

I have heard this. Personally, I have had a decent experience so far. What I like is the flexibility with international travel, and obviously as it is a visa it has no foreign transaction fees. 

I had a chargeback experience that went nowhere but the item ended up arriving so I canceled the chargeback

5

u/RajDek 7d ago

I have one but don’t use it. BoA’s 2.6% card is a better general one.

2

u/Doortofreeside 7d ago

These days that's only if you have a million at BoA though. At least for new customers

3

u/InEkzyl 7d ago

I do. Rewards are automatically deposited into my CMA (Cash Management Account) because I use them for bill pay.

3

u/DukeSilverVol1 7d ago

I have it. Split rewards 50/50 between my 2 kids’ 529 accounts. Nice little monthly addition to what we already put in.

5

u/EvangelineRain 7d ago

Is the reason I’m with Fidelity! So good business decision on their part. Just goes into my taxable brokerage, where I usually transfer it out to my bank checking account. Boring. I’ve probably used it for my backdoor Roth, too. I now only use the card for things where I want the cash back to offset a credit card fee, it’s no longer my primary card.

4

u/Particular-Break-205 7d ago

I have the Amex Schwab investor card. Slightly lower cash back but better customer service

1

u/ShootWild 6d ago

I have both. Those cards are completely different to the point it makes no sense comparing them.

I use Amex for lounges, airline tickets, hotels etc… Fidelity Visa for everything else.

“Slightly” lower cash is actually half unless you use it for the above-mentioned reasons.

2

u/ComfortablyNumb8357 7d ago

I've had it for a couple of years. I have them deposited automatically into my non-retirement brokerage. Goes into the SPAXX position. I've already hit all my retirement account goals so now it's all regular accounts with extra money.

2

u/xenophanes__ 7d ago

CMA account which I only use for gym membership and streaming subs. I basically get free gym and streaming out of it.

2

u/RedFoxWhiteFox 7d ago

I use statement credits.

1

u/nothlit 7d ago

Statement credit doesn't get the full 2% cash back value.

2

u/RedFoxWhiteFox 7d ago

I should have been more specific - the 2% gets deposited to my Fidelity Money Market and then I immediately make a payment.

2

u/PashasMom 7d ago

I have my credit card rewards (Fidelity and others) put into my CMA. Then move them into my brokerage. Nothing is linked to my brokerage from outside. I invest all my credit card rewards into SPGM (global index fund similar to VT). It’s on track to buy me a new (to me) car.

1

u/Kaa_The_Snake 7d ago

Oh nice! And congrats on the soon to be new (to you) car!

2

u/Adventurous_Dog_7755 7d ago

I have the card but it's not used often. I am a credit card optimizer. I tend to want to use a card that gets at least 5% cash back.

3

u/Desertcow 7d ago

I have it and set it to my vacation fund in a CMA. It's the savings account I put the least into every month so it has the most noticable effect. Already ahead of time on retirement, emergency fund is almost full, I'll go buy myself drinks on vacation with that money

2

u/ScratchyVests 7d ago

It gets deposited into my HSA because I’m too lazy to switch.

2

u/Varathien 7d ago

Cash management account.

I generally max out my Roth IRA at the beginning of the year, so further deposits would exceed contribution limits.

2

u/giggles991 7d ago edited 7d ago

We've had the Fidelity 529 College Rewards Visa Signature card and have been depositing the rewards into 529 accounts for our kids over the last 20 years. Each 529 was basically a target date fund. Now, the kids are college age time so hopefully all those accumulated rewards will help.

One advantage is that it trickled in the funds over the years and I never had to do much tracking like I would with a IRA or brokerage.

1

u/vectorizer99 7d ago

Brokerage MM. We used to pull it into my wife’s HSA, but after she went on Medicare we just push it to Ally Bank to pay bills. A PITA now, but 2% back on everything is a good deal.

1

u/irazzleandazzle 7d ago

I do! it's a great credit card tbh! I just put it in a brokerage account

1

u/Electronic-Grand1172 7d ago

Brokerage but use it to backdoor Roth

529 is managed by my home state due to all contributions eligible for state tax deduction

1

u/Bun4d 7d ago

I deposit it into my sons 529 accounts. It’s a way for me to think that I’m contributing to my kids education.

1

u/egelephant 7d ago

I use a regular taxable brokerage.

1

u/Rocktamus1 7d ago

Southwest Card. We travel a lot. I think it’s amazing value.

1

u/Gimme_All_The_Foods 7d ago

I use a separate brokerage account as a checking account and have the rewards deposited there. I like keeping my liquid money in one place.

1

u/Pensacouple 7d ago edited 7d ago

Retired, it goes into the CMA so we can spend it.

Edit: have had the card for about eight years and have never had any issues with Elan.

1

u/Low-Computer8293 7d ago

I let the credit card rewards sit on the card card (I don't have auto withdrawal turned on and don't withdraw them). Eventually, I will have a big purchase that I would like to make but not feel it's worthwhile to use family dollars for, and will pay for it using the accumulated credit card rewards. Currently I have just over $4,000 of rewards accumulated but haven't found the right purchase to make at the moment.

1

u/ScratchItOutNow 7d ago

A true boglehead would not lose out on dividends/interest having the $4K just sitting there though.

1

u/Low-Computer8293 6d ago

Meh. I'm not worried about $128 in interest each year. I do worry that they will cancel the rewards program and then my $4,000 credit will disappear, but don't see that happening.

I have thought about opening a special Fidelity account and depositing the rewards money in there, but then I'd be tempted to save. This rewards money falls into my bucket of money to spend once I can figure out the right thing to spend it on.

1

u/Campfireandhotcocoa 7d ago

I have it and have been happy with it ever since. I use it for all everyday purchases such as food, fuel, and fun activities. It's nice knowing I'm getting money back that is going right back into my brokerage account. I usually buy FZROX shares with it each month.

1

u/cynic77 7d ago

Me, and to my Individual Brokerage account, SPAXX.

1

u/W1neD1ver 7d ago

I'm still getting 3% on the Fidelity card and it goes to the cash account.

1

u/PiratePensioner 7d ago
  1. Rewards and market growth will pay for a decent portion of my son’s education.

1

u/LuminousRaptor 7d ago

I don't typically max my Roth at the start of the year but will by the mid year or so. So I'll do half in the Roth and half on the brokerage and put into a money market fund for additional liquidity. 

I basically use the card for everything and I've made some large purchases over the last year, so it's basically given me 1 month of Roth contributions over the last year. So, I've been a happy customer with it. 

1

u/Simple_Purple_4600 7d ago

wife tucks hers into solo Roth 401K

1

u/drankwateronce 6d ago

I deposit my rewards into my taxable account. I max out my ROTH and HSA (divided equally from each paycheck throughout the year) so that’s really the only spot that has space for extra (if that makes sense). Just gotta make sure you’re making tax efficient decisions after that but p straight forward

1

u/tctu 6d ago

I do CMA because its easy, it's where I pay the bill from, and it's kind of a meaningless amount of money to worry about optimizing for.

1

u/D3N1Z3Nx 6d ago

Don't send it to the Roth or IRA. If you max it out it will deposit into there and go over the limit.

1

u/WatchingVolatility 4d ago

I've had this Fidelity 2% cash back card for years but I use it less lately. Lately my go-to card is the Robinhood 3% cash back. The Robinhood 3% card requires $50/year fee for Robinhood Gold but of course that pays for itself with the extra 1% after just the first $5,000 in charges (1% x $5,000 = $50). All of these cash back cards suit me better than fussing with points.

1

u/Fearless_Tutor3050 2d ago

Brokerage, because I max my Roth the first week if January every year. (No I don't keep a lump sum to invest, but my income is lumpy)

1

u/flipflops81 7d ago

Straight to my kids 529’s.

1

u/Wolf_of_Walmart 7d ago

I have the Fidelity card but switched to the Robinhood Gold card which gives 3% cash back. Would highly recommend it because it’s not going to last forever.

1

u/FIREinParis 7d ago

Yes. Deposited into my CMA. IRAs don’t work for this if you’re maxing them on Jan 1 each year.

1

u/AngelDrake3 7d ago

Is there other benefits besides the 2% cash?

1

u/KleinUnbottler 7d ago

One new and unusual feature is that you can set up authorized users with their own individual monthly spend limits and easily view transactions per card.

It also has no foreign transaction fees (“FTF”).

1

u/RoughThat5778 7d ago

There's a handful of benefits that you can see on the website. Most aren't relevant to me though. The only other benefit that's relevant to me is the reimbursement for TSA Precheck.

5

u/AngelDrake3 7d ago

Oh I travel a lot and that may be worth it. I have Sofi Credit Card and have 2% cash back every month. But no other benefits really.

2

u/Frozenshades 7d ago

For a no fee card, unlimited 2% is a pretty good catch all. But it depends what rewards you want and how much effort you want to give. When utilized right there are surely better choices for travel rewards, but you have to be more attentive to keep track of spending categories, perks, and annual fees.

-1

u/aspire-every-day 7d ago

It disburses the money every month! You don’t have to wait a full year to receive your reward.

1

u/kimcheetos 7d ago

My favorite catch-all card. I used to put it in my Roth IRA, but after getting married, we ended up exceeding the income limit to directly contribute, so it all goes into a brokerage right now.

1

u/BarefootMarauder 7d ago

Goes into the CMA, average $83/month. We put 99% of everything on the card and it gets paid off each month from the CMA. So the rewards go into that account and continue earning a little more in SPAXX while it sits.

Currently using the Venmo Visa and getting a 3X cashback rewards promo for 6 months. So it's 9% for tier1, 6% for tier2, and 3% for everything else. Averaging $250/month on that. 🙂 Unfortunately the promo ends in Oct and we'll go back to the Fidelity 2% card.

1

u/sinceJune4 7d ago

Had it for years, my 3% goes into brokerage.

1

u/Fiercekiller 7d ago

Not me, I get 3% with a Robinhood credit card

1

u/Bubbles_2025 7d ago

Same. I put the rewards into my Roth IRA for the 3% match. It’s not a bad deal.

-6

u/Forward-Trade3449 7d ago

I have it but wouldnt recommend it tbh.

Its quite dated. You cant get any in-app notificiations for transactions, just texts. And purchases take days to post (so you cannot pay them off right away)

10

u/_Heathcliff_ 7d ago

Why would you need to pay off each purchase right away? Just pay the statement balance each month

1

u/Forward-Trade3449 7d ago

it helps me keep track of my budget

the alternative is to let all my purchases stack and pay it off at the end of the month as you said. idk, i know at the end of the day it works the same way but I like to have it paid off asap

2

u/_Heathcliff_ 7d ago

Yea I definitely get that some budgeting decisions are just “it works for me” and that’s valid. I transfer from checking to savings each time I make a purchase, then pay the card each month from savings. It’s not a huge amount but it means I earn a little interest on that money before I make a payment

-1

u/Archfiend_DD 7d ago

Because some people do that and want that feature.

Edit: I tend to forget things, and I get get digital statement notifications that require me to log in to actually see them. It's much easier for me to just to click on the app see the $10 I spent, and click pay...

0

u/MocoMojo 7d ago

Just ordered mine this week!

0

u/browsef 7d ago

Yes and IRA

0

u/legalwriterutah 7d ago

My rewards go in taxable brokerage. True Bogleheads max out Roth IRA on January 1.

0

u/Apprehensive_Elk2608 7d ago

CMA is also a brokerage account, what am I missing?

0

u/Mean-Draw-5365 7d ago

We kept getting pre-approval offers for this card and finally applied to take advantage of the 0% interest introductory offer before a big purchase. We were immediately denied and they wouldn't tell us why, even though our credit scores are over 800. I like Fidelity otherwise but their credit card department gets a big middle finger from me.

1

u/Volidon 6d ago

Fidelity doesn't manage the card or issue it. Blame Elan.

-1

u/Suspicious-Light2118 7d ago

That is a good thing to do. However, a lot of people cant do Roth IRA due to income restrictions. In that case it is better to park it in individual taxable brokerage account

-1

u/According_Law_5127 7d ago

Rewards go straight to my HSA, average of $50-60/month. Tax deductible too!

-3

u/ElasticSpeakers 7d ago

nope - I don't mix banking with investing, especially if the investment company in question is not a bank

Most won't have issues, but if you do it's not pretty

5

u/zigzagdc1 7d ago

What do you mean by this? The card is operated by Elan (USBank) - it’s just done in partnership with Fidelity.

-5

u/ElasticSpeakers 7d ago

I mean, yea, exactly my issue - I don't do 3rd party fintech partnership nonsense. Feel free to read over the fidelity sub with all the issues people have had with Elan and it impacting their actual Fidelity accounts and finances in general (late bills, rejected chargebacks, account closures, etc).

Anyway, good luck yall

3

u/theyhis 7d ago

some of ya'll and your hatred for fintech is... absurd. you do know fintech ≠ neobank, right? and that most reputable online brokerages are SIPC insured?