Making the Most of Your Credit Card on Black Friday and Cyber Monday

Boxing Day move over, there’s a new number one shopping day in town. Ever since Black Friday and Cyber Monday arrived in Canada several few years ago, Canadians can’t seem to get enough of them. With another record year expected, we thought it would be the perfect time to talk about credit cards. Here are the ways to make the most of your credit card on Black Friday and Cyber Monday.

Price Protection

Don’t you just hate it when an item you buy on sale is on sale for an even cheaper price only two weeks later? You go from feeling over the moon to feeling down in the dumps.

Well, turn that frown upside down. If you’re buying a big ticket item and you’re afraid of that happening to you, consider using a credit card with price protection. With price protection, if you find a the item for less somewhere else after you purchased it, you can use price protection to get a refund of the difference.

Not all credit cards offer price protection and some conditions apply, so be sure to read the fine print.

Extended Warranty

Hey, big spender! If you’re buying some big ticket items, such as electronics, with limited warranties, you might want to consider buying them with a credit card that offers an extended warranty. With an extended warranty, if your brand-new PS4 conks out right after the manufacturer warranty ends, you’ll be glad you bought it with a credit card with an extended warranty because you’ll be more likely be protected. It’s also often less costly than buying an extended warranty directly from the retailer.

Retail Credit Card

Are you planning to do most of your shopping at one retailer? Then you might consider signing up for a retail credit card, especially if extra perks are offered on items purchased in the store. For example, you might earn extra reward points or cash-back for using your retail credit card at specific retailers. Not only can you buy your presents for the holidays, you can earn some extra cash in your pockets, too. Not bad.

Sign Up Bonus

Are you thinking of signing up for a credit card with a handsome sign up bonus? You might want to do it before Black Friday. By charging all your gifts on your new credit card, you’re more likely to make the most of your sign up bonus.

Often time for a limited time you earn extra reward points for the first few months as a new cardholder. Just don’t go overboard. There’s no credit card in the world where it’s worth earning 5 percent cash-back when you’re paying 19 percent interest (not to mention if you’re using a retail credit card, they tend to come with even higher interest rates).

The Bottom Line

By using your credit card responsibly on Black Friday and Cyber Monday, you’re more likely to come out ahead and earn a boat load of rewards points to boot!