The last few weeks of summer were filled with summer fun. My sister was visiting so I had been attempting to cram in every possible experience to make sure that once back-to-school hit we could look back and reassure ourselves that we did everything we could to maximize this time.
And in the process of all of this I had been using my TrueEarnings Card from Costco and American Express. My test drive has been pretty seamless so far but now is the moment of truth – how much did I earn? Those few weeks had been more jam packed than usual, but it’s money I would have spent anyway so let’s see where I net out and how much I earned!
1. Day trips: We went to Canada’s Wonderland (you MUST ride the Leviathan!), The Royal Ontario Museum (ROM), a Blue Jay’s game, and the CN Tower. I used the card for admission and other general purchases so, based on 1% cash back on these types of purchases (I earn 1% on any amount over $3,000 annually):
I earned a total of $12.11
Walk Like an Egyptian! At the ROM.
2. Restaurants: We enjoyed some fabulous meals and ate out a number of times throughout the last few weeks and all of this was charged to my TrueEarnings Card. At restaurants I earn a higher return of 3% cash back so, how much did I earn?
I earned a total of $18.96
Where to next?
3. Road trips: We did a lot of driving over the last few weeks. Not only were we driving back and forth locally but we drove a few hours north to a cottage and then a few hours north of that to a wedding…and then back again. As I get 2% cash back on my gas purchases for the first $3000 annually (1% on any amount over $3,000):
I earned a total of $4.50
Cottage fun!
4. Miscellaneous: This was not the typical few weeks so there were some other miscellaneous purchases along the way – groceries to feed 10, a gift here, a treat there – and with 1% cash back on those:
I earned a total of $3.75
Grand total earned: $39.32
The way I look at it, I basically got paid almost $40 for spending money I would have spent anyway. Of course, there are periods of time when spending is higher (hello Holidays!) but there will always be regular, everyday expenses so why not get a little back to take the edge off?
Over the next few weeks now that things are back to our regular routine I will get a sense of how much I can earn from those everyday expenses.
Some people search out bargains or cut coupons or collect rewards. What do you do to try and take the edge off some of your spending?
This post is sponsored by American Express. The experiences and opinions are my own.