I Did the Math
By Four Walls
@FourWalls (86778)
United States
November 28, 2021 8:12pm CST
Most Americans loathe math. I don't know what "America's favorite school subject" might be, but I know that math is NOT it.
So most Americans probably ran away when I put the word math in the discussion title. 
Anyway....
You used to be able to get a pretty penny in interest on your savings account. Now? HA. I checked my statement today, and I'm earning a whopping 1/4% interest on my savings.
ONE QUARTER OF ONE PERCENT.
In other words, for every $1,000 I have in there, they're giving me two dollars and fifty cents. (In contrast, for every $1,000 I borrow from them, they charge me $50!) No wonder financial gurus tell people that it's better to pay off high-interest accounts than save money, because one's costing and the other one isn't paying!!!
So, I did the math.
It seems that a number of credit cards offer a much bigger cash back percentage for spending on things than I get for saving. One credit card I saw has a 2% cash back offer, plus a $200 introductory offer.
That's quite a bit of money to give someone for paying their bills!
Fear not, I'm not going to clean my savings account out just because they aren't paying interest out the wazoo right now. But I'm definitely transferring my regularly scheduled monthly payments (like the cell phone and the cable internet) to one of those 2% cash back cards. Heck, that's nearly three dollars a month they'll give me to pay my bills!!
No more math for this evening, at least not from me. But here's Jimmy Buffett with a sentiment shared by many:
Anyway....
You used to be able to get a pretty penny in interest on your savings account. Now? HA. I checked my statement today, and I'm earning a whopping 1/4% interest on my savings.
ONE QUARTER OF ONE PERCENT.
In other words, for every $1,000 I have in there, they're giving me two dollars and fifty cents. (In contrast, for every $1,000 I borrow from them, they charge me $50!) No wonder financial gurus tell people that it's better to pay off high-interest accounts than save money, because one's costing and the other one isn't paying!!!
So, I did the math.
It seems that a number of credit cards offer a much bigger cash back percentage for spending on things than I get for saving. One credit card I saw has a 2% cash back offer, plus a $200 introductory offer.
That's quite a bit of money to give someone for paying their bills!
Fear not, I'm not going to clean my savings account out just because they aren't paying interest out the wazoo right now. But I'm definitely transferring my regularly scheduled monthly payments (like the cell phone and the cable internet) to one of those 2% cash back cards. Heck, that's nearly three dollars a month they'll give me to pay my bills!!
No more math for this evening, at least not from me. But here's Jimmy Buffett with a sentiment shared by many:
12 people like this
10 responses
@wolfgirl569 (135881)
• Marion, Ohio
29 Nov 21
I always enjoyed math class but most did not. I use a credit card from Amazon to pay for almost everything. It earns me points that I then use when I buy through Amazon which I do a lot anyways
1 person likes this
@FourWalls (86778)
• United States
29 Nov 21
The rewards cards are the best. Especially when you pay the card off every month!
1 person likes this
@FourWalls (86778)
• United States
29 Nov 21
@wolfgirl569 — that’s okay. They figure for every one person who does pay things off monthly they have a thousand paying 2% per month on a balance. 
1 person likes this
@wolfgirl569 (135881)
• Marion, Ohio
29 Nov 21
@FourWalls I always do. They make nothing from me and still give me rewards
1 person likes this
@BarBaraPrz (51837)
• St. Catharines, Ontario
29 Nov 21
I was always good in math. So I try not to owe anything other than regular bills and my mortgage. I got a total of 29 cents interest last month on my current and savings accounts. The current account pays 0.05%, the savings pays 0.1%, my mortgage charges 2.27% and I'm not sure what my credit card charges but I ended up paying $35.87 interest on it when I misread the amount due one month last year and underpaid by a couple hundred dollars.
1 person likes this
@FourWalls (86778)
• United States
29 Nov 21
I loved math, too, and at one point I wanted to be a math teacher.
Those interest rates are ridiculous, aren’t they! 
1 person likes this
@BarBaraPrz (51837)
• St. Catharines, Ontario
29 Nov 21
@FourWalls Better than a kick in the pants, though (for the incoming rate).
1 person likes this
@RasmaSandra (98026)
• Daytona Beach, Florida
30 Nov 21
I never heard this before but I agree with Jimmy math sucks and was never a friend of mine,
1 person likes this
@DocAndersen (54399)
• United States
29 Nov 21
ah the interest game. in the end, we cannot win. you have to be moving massive amounts of money and even then, the system is designed for those with even more money.
1 person likes this
@FourWalls (86778)
• United States
29 Nov 21
Unless we buy savings bonds, where the interest rate is tied to the inflation rate. Right now series I bonds pay 7.12%, which is good for the bond holders but bad for everyone….because THAT is the inflation rate.
1 person likes this
@DocAndersen (54399)
• United States
29 Nov 21
@FourWalls that is only one of the legs of the inflation triad, but that is a bad price honestly. way too high for inflation not to hit.
1 person likes this
@DaddyEvil (174590)
• United States
29 Nov 21
I remember when I was getting 3% on money in my savings account. I can't believe how little they pay now.
1 person likes this
@LindaOHio (222624)
• United States
29 Nov 21
We are in the process of applying for a credit card that gives 3% back on 5 selected categories. Our old credit card gave 1% back. Good luck!
1 person likes this
