The Most Popular Frequent Miler Posts of 2016

As 2016 winds down, I figured it would be interesting to see which Frequent Miler posts and pages grabbed the most eyeballs this year.  Rather than a single Top 10 list, I broke the results into two categories: The “Top 5 Overall” category includes all posts and pages even if they were originally posted prior to 2016.  And the second category, “Top 5 Posts Written in 2016,” is self-explanatory.

Top 5 Overall

#1 Best credit card offers

180,000 Page Views

This is the go-to page for finding the best current public credit card offers.  We always show the best offers even if it means forgoing affiliate revenue.

#2 Best Options for Buying Visa and MasterCard Gift Cards

56,000 Page Views

A key step towards manufacturing spend is to buy Visa or MasterCard debit gift cards with a credit card.  This post is updated regularly with the latest and greatest options.

#3 Complete Guide to Plastiq Credit Card Payments

42,000 Page Views

Plastiq is far from perfect, but if you want to pay bills with a credit card you should give Plastiq a look.

#4 Complete Guide to Citi Prestige 4th Night Free

42,000 Page Views

The Citi Prestige card has one of the most potentially lucrative benefits among high end credit cards.  Book a 4 night stay through Citi and you’ll get back the amount paid for the 4th night.  Those who frequently pay for 4 night or longer hotel stays can do very well with this benefit!  Note that the details of how this works will change in July of 2017.

#5 How to get approved for the Sapphire Reserve 100K offer [NEW]

39,000 Page Views

The biggest credit card news of 2016 was undoubtedly the release of Chase’s new high-end Sapphire Reserve card.  The card is pretty compelling by itself, but it’s huge 100,000 point signup offer is absolutely drool-worthy.  This post highlights options for getting approved even if you are above “5/24” (Chase often doesn’t approve applicants who have opened 5 or more cards in the past 24 months).

Top 5 Posts Written in 2016

#1 How to get approved for the Sapphire Reserve 100K offer [NEW]

39,000 Page Views

The 5th most popular page in 2016 also happened to be the #1 most popular page that was written and published in 2016.

#2 More Awesome News About the Sapphire Reserve

36,000 Page Views

Details of the new Sapphire Reserve card leaked out before its official introduction.  In this post I noted that the card’s annual $300 travel credits would be amazingly easy to earn: simply use the card for any travel purchases!  I also revealed that some of my predictions from an earlier post were correct (1.5 cents per point travel redemptions, and global entry fee credits), but the Sapphire Reserve would not offer free Gogo passes or the Discount air benefit offered by other Visa Infinite cards.

#3 Credit Card Spend in 2016 and Beyond

34,000 Page Views

This post was sort of a “state of manufactured spend” address.  I gave an overview of the ever shifting sands of manufactured spend (the art of increasing credit card spend, to earn rewards, and getting your money back).  I argued that the future of manufactured spend involves either accepting higher fees or taking on more risk.

#4 Chase Private Client and Sapphire Preferred 65K

34,000 Page Views

This post gave an overview of Chase’s Private Client program.  Here I revealed that Private Client members sometimes have access to better credit card signup offers, and they were not (at the time) subject to Chase’s 5/24 rule.

#5 Marriott 5 Night Travel Packages Exist, but They’re Secret

33,000 Page Views

Marriott Travel Packages, which offer 7 night stays plus your choice of airline miles, can be an awesome deal, but they have one big drawback: 7 nights in one place isn’t always a feasible option.  That’s why I was incredibly excited to learn that 5 Night packages exist.  They are meant only for Marriott Vacation Club (timeshare) owners, but when I called Marriott to inquire, I was told that they would let me book them.  Unfortunately, since this post published, most Marriott Rewards call center staff members seem to have been trained not to allow this.  Every now and then a reader reports success, but many more report being unable to book these packages.

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