Credit Cards

Credit Card Rewards Report: How Much Are Consumers Getting?

Updated Mar 22, 2018

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Find out how much banks are spending on credit card rewards, and where in the country people are using those rewards most.

Graph of total rewards spending Source: Getty Images

Banks have been spending an exuberant amount of money on credit card rewards over the last several years. This trend has had a positive impact on consumers who are in the market for a new payment card. We took a dive into the data behind the credit card rewards market to develop a better understanding of how it's evolving and how much consumers are benefiting from this trend.

How Much are Banks Spending on Credit Card Rewards?
Cities With the Most and Least Credit Card Rewards Participation
Advice for Consumers
Methodology

How Much In Rewards Have Consumers Collected from Banks?

American Express, Discover and Capital One—some of the largest credit card issuers in the country—spent a combined $12.9 billion on credit card rewards in 2017. This marks a 59% increase over 2011, and it speaks to the increasing rewards war that has been raging among card issuers this decade. However, this is just a small part of the money spent on rewards throughout the industry. Other large issuers, like Citibank and JPMorgan Chase, do not disclose how much they are spending on rewards per year. But in a recent SEC filing, Chase did disclose its total rewards liability—that is, how much its cardmembers have accumulated in rewards and are waiting to redeem. As of 2017, Chase users have a combined worth of $4.9 billion in unredeemed credit card points.

A graph showing the total annual spending on credit card rewards from 2011 to 2017, among the major card issuers.

Our analysis also included a look at spending per cardmember. Last year, the banks we examined above spent, on average, $78 per active account. American Express lead the pack, with an annual cardmember spend of $121 per account, while Discover put up just $41 per account. While this shows a positive gain for card users, it is presently unclear whether consumers are being charged more in interest and card fees than they are gaining.

Cities With the Most and Least Credit Card Rewards Participation

Nationally, 69% of households are estimated to participate in at least one credit card rewards program. This can encompass any credit card account that provides a sign-up bonus, ongoing rewards or promotions to its cardholders. Select parts of the country have far more households participating in credit card rewards than others. We examined data for 318 cities across the U.S. where the population was above 100,000. Californians seemed the most rewards-obsessed. For example, more than 70% of households in Fremont, San Mateo and Santa Clarita enrolled in at least one credit card rewards program.

For the most part, cities in southern states like Texas, Florida, Georgia and Mississippi saw lower participation. However, a few northern cities also saw low participation—namely, Detroit along with a few cities in Ohio. Detroit placed last, with just 43% of households using rewards.

Rank	City	Rewards Participation	Households with Rewards	Average Card Debt 1	Fremont, CA	80%	62,358	11,931 2	San Mateo, CA	78%	32,535	10,512 3	Honolulu, HI	77%	105,011	5,619 4	Daly City, CA	76%	25,118	9,787 5	Santa Clarita, CA	76%	47,780	11,731 6	Highlands Ranch, CO	76%	29,426	9,994 7	Naperville, IL	75%	39,047	7,855 8	Huntington Beach, CA	75%	58,520	10,482 9	Concord, CA	75%	35,130	9,274 10	Centennial, CO	74%	31,068	8,082 11	Thousand Oaks, CA	74%	35,131	8,293 12	Antioch, CA	74%	26,065	9,502 13	San Francisco, CA	74%	281,868	10,273 14	Irvine, CA	73%	68,417	12,219 15	Torrance, CA	73%	42,727	10,555 16	Simi Valley, CA	73%	31,312	8,787 17	Orange, CA	73%	33,132	10,931 18	Arlington, VA	73%	82,268	8,593 19	Hayward, CA	72%	36,904	9,400 20	Sunnyvale, CA	72%	42,343	10,298 21	West Covina, CA	72%	23,800	10,287 22	Carlsbad, CA	72%	33,145	9,163 23	Pembroke Pines, FL	72%	44,527	10,156 24	Elk Grove, CA	72%	37,961	9,921 25	Berkeley, CA	72%	35,919	8,805 26	Gilbert town, AZ	71%	58,560	8,846 27	Roseville, CA	71%	35,882	9,416 28	Miramar, FL	71%	30,000	11,558 29	Pearland, TX	71%	27,218	8,660 30	Santa Clara, CA	71%	33,455	10,292 31	Bellevue, WA	71%	39,857	6,731 32	Frisco, TX	71%	37,665	13,172 33	Fullerton, CA	70%	33,693	10,111 34	Columbia, MD	70%	29,770	9,005 35	Davie, FL	70%	26,521	10,298 36	Alexandria, VA	70%	54,531	7,613 37	Scottsdale, AZ	70%	78,887	6,469 38	Coral Springs, FL	70%	31,574	10,539 39	San Jose, CA	70%	232,893	9,322 40	Pasadena, CA	70%	40,732	10,143 41	Norwalk, CA	70%	19,367	10,412 42	Allen, TX	70%	23,055	12,101 43	League City, TX	70%	24,582	7,819 44	The Woodlands, TX	69%	29,913	7,199 45	Arvada, CO	69%	32,982	7,333 46	West Jordan, UT	69%	22,830	8,626 47	Richmond, CA	69%	26,717	7,920 48	Costa Mesa, CA	69%	29,233	10,439 49	Burbank, CA	69%	30,169	10,345 50	Surprise, AZ	69%	35,417	6,495 51	Oakland, CA	68%	116,776	8,347 52	Chandler, AZ	68%	66,552	7,877 53	Peoria, AZ	68%	44,408	6,842 54	Stamford, CT	68%	33,913	7,853 55	Thornton, CO	68%	32,256	8,361 56	Joliet, IL	67%	33,022	7,127 57	Anaheim, CA	67%	70,557	10,242 58	Garden Grove, CA	67%	32,367	9,816 59	Downey, CA	67%	23,630	9,775 60	Elgin, IL	67%	24,859	6,719 61	Westminster, CO	67%	31,826	7,544 62	Anchorage, AK	67%	74,518	10,475 63	Aurora, IL	67%	43,515	7,230 64	Cambridge, MA	67%	32,119	6,153 65	Oceanside, CA	67%	42,795	7,882 66	Palmdale, CA	67%	31,431	10,012 67	Cary town, NC	67%	40,809	8,368 68	San Diego, CA	67%	348,321	8,665 69	McKinney, TX	67%	38,300	11,570 70	San Buenaventura, CA	67%	27,968	7,159 71	Clovis, CA	67%	24,411	7,961 72	Enterprise, NV	66%	33,044	8,281 73	Henderson, NV	66%	74,857	6,721 74	Chula Vista, CA	66%	54,946	9,108 75	Olathe, KS	66%	32,249	8,094 76	Overland Park, KS	66%	51,691	7,062 77	Yonkers, NY	66%	50,930	7,546 78	Fort Lauderdale, FL	66%	53,501	8,301 79	Temecula, CA	65%	22,883	9,552 80	Plano, TX	65%	73,295	9,761 81	Virginia Beach, VA	65%	114,243	7,444 82	Washington, DC	65%	202,938	7,175 83	Glendale, CA	65%	48,879	9,159 84	Hillsboro, OR	65%	25,260	7,586 85	Murrieta, CA	65%	22,602	8,870 86	Hollywood, FL	65%	40,743	8,502 87	Seattle, WA	65%	207,666	6,153 88	Long Beach, CA	65%	110,245	9,320 89	Lancaster, CA	65%	33,149	9,417 90	Oxnard, CA	65%	34,114	7,701 91	Chesapeake, VA	65%	55,846	7,407 92	Pomona, CA	65%	26,106	9,030 93	Rancho Cucamonga, CA	65%	37,017	8,872 94	Fairfield, CA	64%	24,534	9,767 95	Renton, WA	64%	26,280	6,083 96	Lakewood, CO	64%	44,214	6,647 97	Santa Ana, CA	64%	49,681	9,516 98	Jersey City, NJ	64%	68,749	8,802 99	West Palm Beach, FL	64%	30,399	8,082 100	Corona, CA	64%	29,965	9,321 101	Bakersfield, CA	64%	75,629	7,899 102	Pompano Beach, FL	64%	29,217	7,204 103	Santa Rosa, CA	63%	43,109	8,504 104	Round Rock, TX	63%	26,713	6,872 105	Rochester, MN	63%	29,444	7,310 106	West Valley City, UT	63%	25,414	6,968 107	Los Angeles, CA	63%	876,282	9,161 108	Colorado Springs, CO	63%	118,364	6,615 109	Beaverton, OR	63%	26,670	6,707 110	Carrollton, TX	63%	30,511	9,272 111	Sterling Heights, MI	63%	31,759	5,667 112	Richardson, TX	63%	26,737	8,956 113	Boise City, ID	62%	58,623	6,234 114	New York, NY	62%	2,060,291	7,789 115	Aurora, CO	62%	87,352	6,834 116	Madison, WI	62%	69,768	5,501 117	Mesa, AZ	62%	113,987	5,794 118	Sandy Springs, GA	62%	29,728	6,849 119	Boulder, CO	62%	28,912	8,983 120	Sacramento, CA	62%	114,363	7,461 121	Brandon, FL	62%	27,363	8,022 122	Portland, OR	62%	169,316	6,616 123	Denver, CO	62%	194,106	7,202 124	Cape Coral, FL	62%	43,704	5,148 125	Midland, TX	62%	31,419	9,592 126	Vista, CA	62%	19,442	7,188 127	Compton, CA	62%	15,067	8,399 128	Billings, MT	62%	29,700	8,344 129	Escondido, CA	62%	29,908	7,427 130	Miami Gardens, FL	62%	21,397	7,627 131	Spring Hill, FL	62%	25,289	6,026 132	Boston, MA	61%	172,352	5,436	United States Average	61%	75,678,710	6,750 133	Fort Collins, CO	61%	40,837	8,720 134	Vancouver, WA	61%	44,392	5,922 135	Fontana, CA	61%	31,323	9,188 136	Vallejo, CA	61%	26,278	8,332 137	Broken Arrow, OK	61%	24,864	10,587 138	Cedar Rapids, IA	61%	34,354	6,649 139	Greeley, CO	61%	23,398	8,383 140	North Las Vegas, NV	61%	45,525	6,808 141	Albuquerque, NM	60%	139,812	6,213 142	Las Vegas, NV	60%	137,841	6,250 143	Des Moines, IA	60%	52,677	4,757 144	Minneapolis, MN	60%	107,484	5,861 145	Lowell, MA	60%	24,546	4,824 146	Kent, WA	60%	22,786	5,438 147	Wichita, KS	60%	93,524	5,988 148	Visalia, CA	60%	25,958	8,782 149	Tacoma, WA	60%	50,253	5,114 150	Spring Valley, NV	60%	47,558	6,058 151	Chicago, IL	60%	642,976	6,103 152	Palm Bay, FL	60%	25,840	5,027 153	Saint Petersburg, FL	60%	69,338	6,842 154	Omaha, NE	60%	101,606	4,717 155	Tempe, AZ	59%	42,946	5,842 156	Inglewood, CA	59%	22,650	7,819 157	Phoenix, AZ	59%	336,667	6,144 158	Gresham, OR	59%	24,960	5,824 159	Salt Lake City, UT	59%	48,610	6,544 160	Clearwater, FL	59%	30,097	6,491 161	St. Paul, MN	59%	70,710	5,324 162	El Monte, CA	59%	17,062	7,947 163	Raleigh, NC	59%	109,493	6,851 164	Glendale, AZ	59%	51,144	5,805 165	El Cajon, CA	59%	21,098	6,935 166	Stockton, CA	59%	55,778	6,760 167	Salem, OR	58%	36,229	7,448 168	Everett, WA	58%	26,384	5,086 169	Sioux Falls, SD	58%	41,856	6,443 170	Grand Prairie, TX	58%	37,944	8,812 171	Lewisville, TX	58%	25,483	8,877 172	Charlotte, NC	58%	192,959	6,937 173	Modesto, CA	58%	42,084	7,822 174	Hampton, VA	58%	32,175	5,875 175	Austin, TX	58%	221,556	5,819 176	Odessa, TX	58%	25,598	8,562 177	Riverside, CA	58%	56,013	7,493 178	Ann Arbor, MI	58%	28,600	6,506 179	Charleston, SC	58%	36,596	5,271 180	Santa Maria, CA	58%	16,682	8,573 181	Jacksonville, FL	58%	204,072	5,589 182	Moreno Valley, CA	58%	31,958	7,669 183	Spokane, WA	58%	52,392	7,651 184	Elizabeth, NJ	57%	25,025	6,548 185	Garland, TX	57%	46,904	7,693 186	Fresno, CA	57%	95,816	6,401 187	Warren, MI	57%	30,724	4,813 188	Tampa, FL	57%	86,897	7,610 189	Lincoln, NE	57%	64,476	6,161 190	Eugene, OR	57%	40,724	7,344 191	Arlington, TX	57%	81,053	8,197 192	Rialto, CA	57%	14,596	7,513 193	Independence, MO	57%	28,396	5,035 194	Columbus, OH	57%	207,383	4,270 195	Lakeland, FL	57%	25,002	4,705 196	Metairie, LA	57%	34,489	4,779 197	East Los Angeles, CA	57%	17,985	7,636 198	Newport News, VA	57%	40,777	6,089 199	Fort Worth, TX	57%	169,903	8,740 200	Reno, NV	56%	55,309	7,880 201	Springfield, IL	56%	28,948	5,680 202	Ontario, CA	56%	25,981	7,587 203	Manchester, NH	56%	26,290	6,368 204	Paradise, NV	56%	54,182	5,727 205	Mesquite, TX	56%	29,202	7,665 206	Port St. Lucie, FL	56%	37,858	6,279 207	Las Cruces, NM	56%	23,394	7,176 208	Salinas, CA	56%	24,363	8,435 209	Atlanta, GA	56%	118,176	6,722 210	Kansas City, MO	56%	112,539	5,752 211	Davenport, IA	56%	23,741	5,832 212	Pittsburgh, PA	56%	77,259	4,676 213	Fargo, ND	56%	30,915	6,181 214	Hialeah, FL	56%	41,739	6,384 215	Provo, UT	56%	19,141	7,610 216	San Antonio, TX	55%	297,588	5,140 217	Waterbury, CT	55%	23,165	5,527 218	Louisville/Jefferson, KY	55%	142,470	5,413 219	Miami, FL	55%	98,955	7,714 220	Denton, TX	55%	27,297	7,837 221	Durham, NC	55%	59,900	6,093 222	Tucson, AZ	55%	116,473	5,293 223	Pasadena, TX	55%	29,305	5,330 224	Pueblo, CO	55%	24,878	6,502 225	Lehigh Acres, FL	55%	19,443	5,145 226	Philadelphia, PA	55%	342,776	5,351 227	Murfreesboro, TN	55%	27,799	5,571 228	Bridgeport, CT	55%	29,147	5,841 229	Orlando, FL	55%	66,726	7,220 230	Sunrise Manor, NV	55%	35,809	5,353 231	Houston, TX	55%	483,523	5,418 232	Topeka, KS	55%	29,604	5,449 233	Worcester, MA	54%	37,940	5,258 234	Victorville, CA	54%	19,722	7,207 235	Peoria, IL	54%	25,985	5,741 236	Corpus Christi, TX	54%	67,425	7,348 237	Nashville-Davidson, TN	54%	149,622	5,365 238	Fort Wayne, IN	54%	56,963	5,522 239	Amarillo, TX	54%	42,007	7,269 240	El Paso, TX	54%	124,680	4,935 241	Norfolk, VA	54%	47,759	6,063 242	Richmond, VA	54%	51,628	6,021 243	High Point, NC	54%	23,615	5,678 244	Norman, OK	54%	26,403	9,216 245	Paterson, NJ	54%	24,352	6,244 246	Huntsville, AL	54%	44,732	6,583 247	Baltimore, MD	54%	134,921	6,296 248	McAllen, TX	54%	24,656	5,226 249	Greensboro, NC	54%	65,081	5,495 250	Irving, TX	54%	48,880	8,198 251	Grand Rapids, MI	54%	41,630	4,282 252	San Angelo, TX	53%	21,188	6,783 253	Oklahoma City, OK	53%	137,722	9,221 254	Newark, NJ	53%	52,592	5,944 255	Indianapolis, IN	53%	183,290	5,276 256	Buffalo, NY	53%	59,434	3,969 257	Green Bay, WI	53%	22,967	5,596 258	Lexington-Fayette, KY	53%	70,037	7,052 259	Lafayette, LA	53%	28,557	7,055 260	Abilene, TX	53%	24,341	6,426 261	Allentown, PA	53%	22,795	4,202 262	Little Rock, AR	52%	44,543	4,792 263	Columbia, MO	52%	24,915	5,863 264	Milwaukee, WI	52%	121,792	4,395 265	Syracuse, NY	52%	30,111	3,934 266	New Haven, CT	52%	25,668	5,587 267	Dallas, TX	52%	262,900	7,627 268	Wichita Falls, TX	52%	20,204	6,401 269	Lubbock, TX	52%	50,508	6,821 270	Rochester, NY	52%	45,386	3,955 271	Kansas City, KS	52%	28,878	4,925 272	Columbia, SC	51%	25,266	4,485 273	Wilmington, NC	51%	27,225	6,451 274	Clarksville, TN	51%	29,439	7,082 275	Rockford, IL	51%	29,690	5,113 276	Chattanooga, TN	51%	39,223	4,539 277	Killeen, TX	51%	27,757	7,421 278	Montgomery, AL	51%	40,055	6,372 279	South Bend, IN	51%	20,275	5,067 280	Tyler, TX	51%	20,640	6,275 281	Evansville, IN	50%	25,638	4,835 282	Springfield, MA	50%	28,850	4,429 283	Akron, OH	50%	41,716	3,622 284	Toledo, OH	50%	58,520	3,635 285	North Charleston, SC	50%	21,684	4,516 286	Tulsa, OK	50%	85,642	8,147 287	Providence, RI	50%	31,396	4,967 288	St. Louis, MO	50%	70,918	5,003 289	Roanoke, VA	50%	21,859	5,917 290	Columbus, GA	50%	39,058	6,479 291	Baton Rouge, LA	50%	45,973	4,560 292	Fayetteville, NC	49%	40,612	6,218 293	San Bernardino, CA	49%	30,044	6,162 294	Winston-Salem, NC	49%	48,545	6,155 295	Mobile, AL	49%	39,143	6,036 296	Springfield, MO	49%	36,554	4,709 297	Lansing, MI	49%	24,519	4,893 298	Augusta-Richmond, GA	49%	37,496	4,076 299	Beaumont, TX	49%	22,747	6,262 300	Tallahassee, FL	49%	38,780	6,217 301	Shreveport, LA	48%	38,226	6,233 302	Knoxville, TN	48%	39,515	4,533 303	New Orleans, LA	48%	81,080	4,672 304	College Station, TX	48%	18,857	6,956 305	Memphis, TN	48%	119,543	4,530 306	Laredo, TX	47%	33,797	7,283 307	Savannah, GA	47%	27,577	5,953 308	Cincinnati, OH	47%	64,352	5,052 309	Hartford, CT	47%	21,130	4,750 310	Gainesville, FL	46%	25,475	5,910 311	Waco, TX	46%	22,887	5,873 312	Jackson, MS	46%	29,028	4,150 313	Cleveland, OH	46%	75,031	3,128 314	Dayton, OH	46%	26,294	3,285 315	Birmingham, AL	45%	40,350	3,953 316	Athens-Clarke County, GA	45%	21,319	5,565 317	Brownsville, TX	44%	23,764	6,494 318	Detroit, MI	43%	109,375	3,860

We looked at several metrics to determine whether any factors tied these cities together and whether anything could explain the rewards participation, or lack thereof. The biggest correlation was present between rewards participation and median household income. The two had a strong, positive correlation of 0.85. The more affluent a city was, the more likely it is to have a high number of households with rewards cards. Fremont, the city where most households have a at least one rewards card, had the fourth-highest median income on our list.

It should also be noted that high credit card rewards participation correlates to a high level of debt. There was a 0.72 correlation between average credit card debt in a city and its credit card rewards participation rate. However, it should be noted that higher card debt can be a result of many factors, and it isn't necessarily caused by rewards. For example, more affluent cities may spend more in general, which would inflate the total credit card balances for that region.

Consumer Advice: How to Take Advantage of Rewards Credit Cards

Consumers who want to start using credit card rewards should proceed with caution. While there's an opportunity to earn a free vacation or score hundreds of dollars in cash-back rewards, there are some risks involved. First and foremost, consumers should be careful with accruing debt. Avoid charging purchases to a credit card unless you know you can pay them off by the end of the month.

You should also consider a card's annual fee before signing up for a rewards card. Take time to figure out whether it makes sense to pay it. How much you spend on a card typically determines if it’s worth paying an annual fee. Charge less than $12,000 a year on your card? Then you should stick to a credit card with no annual fee. Those who spend more could consider getting a card that offers benefits and charges an annual fee. The following chart explains how annual spending impacts whether an annual fee is worth paying. In this scenario, Card A charges a $50 annual fee and offers 2% cash back, and Card B does not charge an annual fee and offers 1.5% cash back.

Annual Spending	Card A Net Rewards	Card B Net Rewards	Winner
$5,000	(2% x $5,000) - $50 = $50	(1.5% x $5,000) = $75	Card B
$10,000	(2% x $10,000) - $50 = $150	(1.5% x $10,000) = $150	Tie
$15,000	(2% x $15,000) - $50 = $250	(1.5% x $15,000) = $225	Card A

Finally, consumers need to consider which type of rewards card is best suited for their financial lifestyle. There are three main types of rewards cards: cash back, generic travel and co-branded travel. The last one is only worth considering if you're an avid traveler who is loyal to one particular hotel or airline brand. Generic travel cards excel for consumers who spend a lot on entertainment, travel and restaurants. Cash-back cards typically have no annual fees, and they're best for rewarding everyday purchases, like gas and groceries.

When choosing a card, it's best to focus on specific features and prioritize the ones that are most important to you.

Methodology

Rewards spending by issuer was sourced using balance sheets the companies submit to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). We looked through 10-k and 8-k filings for the largest credit card issuers by loan amount. Ultimately, rewards spend was reported only by three of the top six issuers: Discover, American Express and Capital One. To obtain spending per cardmember, we pulled the number of active cardmembers by bank from PaymentSource.com.

For data on credit card rewards participation by city, we turned to estimates provided by S&P Global Market Intelligence. Participation was obtained by dividing the number of households enrolled in at least one credit card rewards program by the total number of households for that city. We also considered cities where the population was at least 100,000. Median income and debt data were also obtained through the Market Intelligence platform.

These responses are not provided or commissioned by the bank advertiser. Responses have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by the bank advertiser. It is not the bank advertiser's responsibility to ensure all posts and/or questions are answered.

Advertiser Disclosure: The products that appear on this site may be from companies from which ValuePenguin receives compensation. This compensation may impact how and where products appear on this site (including, for example, the order in which they appear). ValuePenguin does not include all financial institutions or all products offered available in the marketplace.

How We Calculate Rewards: ValuePenguin calculates the value of rewards by estimating the dollar value of any points, miles or bonuses earned using the card less any associated annual fees. These estimates here are ValuePenguin's alone, not those of the card issuer, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by the credit card issuer.

Example of how we calculate the rewards rates: When redeemed for travel through Ultimate Rewards, Chase Sapphire Preferred points are worth $0.0125 each. The card awards 2 points on travel and dining and 1 point on everything else. Therefore, we say the card has a 2.5% rewards rate on dining and travel (2 x $0.0125) and a 1.25% rewards rate on everything else (1 x $0.0125).