Early Beginnings

I have some nostalgia for Flexperks, as it was my first reward earning credit card and points program.  It’s not the best point program or reward currency out there, but I’ve been able to take advantage of some of the opportunities that it presents.  I don’t recommend any Flexperks cards for people just getting into points because there are much better options available.  Those cards are really more of a mid to late term rewards card for those just starting, meaning people should explore other cards and get this one later in their earning cycle.  But the simplicity of the program is nice, and if you already have gotten into points with a small stack of credit cards, Flexperks could be a nice fallback option for you.

Flexperks in Brief

There are lots of flashy points programs out there.  Points enthusiasts and bloggers generally focus on the big 3 programs:  Chase Ultimate Rewards, American Express Membership Rewards, and Citibank Thank You Rewards.  Add SPG to that mix and the splashy ads on television from Capital One, and you’ve covered a big chunk of the major rewards programs out there covered.

Then there’s Flexperks from US Bank.  It’s not flashy or sexy, and in the points and miles world it doesn’t get a lot of press, time or accolades.  In the points community, it’s basically the winner of the best personality in a swimsuit competition.  But there are a few programs where I have different opinions than many points pros, and one of them is the Flexperks program.

Flexperks started in 2009 after Northwest Airlines (NWA) and Delta merged.  Those people who had the US Bank Northwest Airlines WorldPerks VISA at the time were automatically plugged into the Flexperks program as a replacement, while Delta and American Express cobranded frequent flyer credit cards of their own.

Flexperks is a proprietary fixed point program from US Bank.  US Bank offers three different Flexperks cards, each with different sign up bonuses and category spending bonuses.  You can click here to view the cards and category bonus information.  I have the Travel Rewards Visa Signature Card (black colored card) because the category bonuses of supermarkets and gas stations can be taken advantage of.

Flexperks Award Chart & Value

Each Flexperk point earned can be redeemed for airline travel, hotels, car rentals, merchandise, gift cards, cruise gift cards, statement credit, or cash deposited into your checking or savings account.  However, when redeeming points the best bang for the buck with Flexperks is for travel.  For people that may be interested in the math here, you can increase the value of the points from the fixed 1 cent per point, such as redeeming for cash, to around 1.33 to 2 cents per point when redeeming for travel.  Flexperks travel redemptions are based on the value of a ticket, not on geographic zone or other variables, and tickets are slotted into dollar-value tiers:

20,000 FlexPoints = Up to $400 ticket value
30,000 FlexPoints = Up to $600 ticket value
40,000 FlexPoints = Up to $800 ticket value
50,000 FlexPoints = Up to $1,000 ticket value
70,000 FlexPoints = Up to $1,400 ticket value
100,000 FlexPoints = Up to $2,000 ticket value
150,000 FlexPoints = Up to $3,000 ticket value
225,000 FlexPoints = Up to $4,500 ticket value
350,000 FlexPoints = Up to $7,000 ticket value
500,000 FlexPoints = Up to $10,000 ticket value

Basically to get the most value, you want to find a flight that’s closest to the top end of the dollar value as you can when redeeming.  Let’s say I find a flight to Rio de Janeiro, Brasil for $789.  That flight would ‘cost’ 40,000 Flexperks.

$789 / 40,000 = $0.019725

or 1.97 cents per point of value (or almost 2 cents per point)

I generally also combine distance with dollar value, so I look to find destinations that are as far away from me as I can for the lowest price.  As an example, I might be able to fly to Bozeman, Montana for the same price as Barcelona, Spain.  In that case, I’d probably take the flight to Spain, as I’m going much farther for the same price.  It’s simply more bang for the buck.  But still, a nearly free flight is a nearly free flight!

A nice perk is that when you call (Flexperks Travel Center 888-229-8864) or redeem online you can choose the airline that you want to fly with.  There are at least 150 different airlines that Flexperks can be redeemed for, so they’ve got you covered.  I recommend searching on your own for a good value flight, then calling in so that you have a good idea of what the price ranges are for the destination that you want to travel to.  That booking with an agent will cost you $25, but it’s not avoidable over the phone unless you can’t book the ticket yourself but that is rare.

There are no award travel blackout dates, capacity controls, and frequent flyer miles can be earned on award flights of participating airlines.  FlexPerks award travel redemption is powered by Travelocity and customers earn frequent flyer miles on the flights too, which is a great little value add.  Taxes and fees are included in the price of you ticket/points redemption, however you may incur fees for checked baggage but that depends on your airline  of choice and elite status.  Card owners get 12 GoGo Inflight wi-fi passes each year with your membership, and also a $25 refundable travel credit too.  The GoGo wi-fi passes are nice for longer and international flights.

Redeeming Points

Go to www.usbank.com and go to My Rewards.  Click Redeem Rewards under your Flexperks credit card.

Then click on Travel Rewards in the center of the screen.  You will be able to see your current Flexperks balance in the upper right corner.

Enter your destinations into the search box.  You can book round trips, one way trips, or multi-destination trips. This is a nice option for two one ways if you want to max out the value of your FlexPerks.  Then click Search Flights at the bottom and the results should come back with how many points it takes for your destination and flight type (for example 50,000 points from Chicago to Budapest, Hungary)

If you’d like to see all of the current promotions for Flexperks and you already have the card, go to www.flexperkspromos.usbank.com.  You will need your FlexPerks loyalty number and the last 4 digits of your credit card.  This page will show all current promotions and points info offers for the program.  A few times a year I’ll get 1,000-3,000 point spending promotions.

Many seasoned miles collectors are also using Flexperks points to buy cheap domestic and international flights with specific airlines to gain elite level status.  So while status isn’t for everyone (including myself), Flexperks is an outstanding way to help earn that if it’s an interest for you.  And it’s possible to manufacture spend to get lots of Flexperks for free.

Manufactured Spend and Flexperks

There are opportunities to Manufactured Spend (MS) any program, especially those programs with category bonuses.  Flexperks has category bonuses of either gas stations, grocery stores – whichever one you spend most on each statement.

When I see a category bonus, I look to see how I might be able to maximize the points (at the least amount of cost).  Results for MS vary dramatically by geography because some MS friendly stores exist in certain areas and not in others.  A large supermarket chain in my area had a deal that allowed people to MS Flexperks for free for at least a year.  Basically the store has a fuel rewards program and was giving 2x points for all store purchases, even for gift and debit card purchases.  In short, the fuel rewards that you could earn not only offset the debit card fees, but actually gave you extra money for fuel rewards in the process.  In total, I was able to earn Flexpoints essentially for free and earn nice chunks of gas money in the process.  In less than 6 months, I earned around 100,000 free Flexperks for essentially for no cost.  It was tremendous!

But that deal is dead now.  I don’t know exactly why, but I do know that some others in my area knew about the opportunity and got in on it too.  While I know I was very careful and respectful of the opportunity – as not to raise any red flags and scare the deal away – I can’t say the same for others.  Specifically one individual who seems to leave a trail of burnt deals behind him, who’s name I will not mention.  I’ll never know if he dusted the deal for sure, but I’d put cash on that bet.

While that deal is gone, there is still opportunity to MS Flexperks and other programs with category bonuses.  You may be paying for points, or earning points en masse but paying a cost that is much less than they are actually worth.  Let’s say you want to fly to Europe and there is a low fare that pops up for $597 to Rome, Italy from your city.  Using the award chart, you’ll need:

30,000 FlexPoints for your trip which gives you up to $600 in travel (see award chart above)
To earn 30,000 FlexPoints, you need to spend $15,000 in grocery stores, remember you’re receiving 2x points on all grocery store purchases
30 debit cards worth $500 each = $15,000 total
30 debit cards x $5-$6 activation fee = $150 to $180 out of pocket expense
Result is $600 in travel for $150 to $180 out of pocket expense
Savings of $450 to $420, which is basically free money

The normal cost of that flight might be $850 to $1,000 so you’re saving even more money if you look at it that way.

If you do purchase debit cards for MS in grocery or other stores, make sure you have a proven way to unload them.  You don’t want to be left with thousands of dollars worth of cards.  Also some supermarkets have restrictions on the amounts you can spend on debit cards so keep that in mind too.

Summary

In general, of all of the points reward programs out there, I would not choose Flexperks as a top program, especially if you’re just starting out collecting miles and points.  The changes to the program set for January 1, 2018 devalue the program too.  Apply for other cards, especially Chase cards, first.  But I still like Flexperks, probably because I’ve had such success with it, and because there still is some value there especially for elite status runs.  If you have significant grocery or fuel spending, then it’s also a nice card to pad your wallet with.