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One of my favorite services is Rakuten. I'd heard about it for years and regret that I didn't join earlier. Rakuten lets you earn money on purchases you are already making. I have earned anywhere from 1-60% cash back. The cash back percentage changes regularly. As of this writing, I could earn 12% cash back at Petsmart and RayBan. Rakuten also often shares various promo codes to ensure you are also getting the best deal. Quarterly, they send you a check or deposit your earnings into your PayPal account.

• Get $30 cash back with your first purchase of $30 or more via Rakuten. Insider tip: If you don't currently check Rakuten before your purchases, you are missing out! Seriously, open an account today!

Another favorite is my American Express Blue Cash Preferred card. It comes with a $95 annual fee. However, the cash back incentives more than make up for it. The card gives you 6% cash back on select U.S. streaming subscriptions and 6% cash back at grocery stores (up to $6,000 per year). You also get 3% cash back at U.S. gas stations and on taxis, rideshare, trains, and more.

• Earn $250 statement credit after spending $3,000 in your first six months. Terms Apply.

As long as you remember to activate the 5% cash back quarterly bonuses, you'll get one of the best cash back deals currently available - with no annual fee. Quarterly cash back bonus examples include

1. grocery stores, drug stores, select streaming services (see American Express above, I would only use Discover at a drug store during this quarter).
2. restaurants and wholesale clubs
3. gas stations and digital wallets
4. restaurants and drug stores 

• Get $100 statement credit when you make your first purchase within three months.

I'm a new convert to the X1 card. I opened it because I was travelling internationally, and the card has no foreign transaction fees. You earn 2x points on every purchase. When your monthly spend hits $1,000, you start earning 3x points on every purchase. Every week, the app offers new boosts that you can apply to your next purchase. Boosts include such things as 5x points on your next restaurant purchase or 4x points the next time you pay with your phone. Similar to Discover, you need to remember to activate the boosts to benefit from the bonus points. You can use your points to pay off purchases (some points go further for certain merchants), get a gift card, buy stock, or get cash back. I found that paying off certain purchases provided a bigger cash back benefit than if I had used a credit card that offered a straight 2% cash back for all purchases. No annual fee. There is no impact to your credit to apply.

• X1 was recently acquired by Robinhood. As such, you cannot currently apply for the credit card. A visit to X1's website indicates "The Smartest Credit Card Ever Made" is "Arriving Spring 2024." Stay tuned for a referral link. Previously, the referral link offered a great boost to cash back so I am hoping that will be the case again!

Rates and bonuses listed are current as of February 8, 2024 and subject to change.