Holidays | Credit Card Topics

6 Credit Strategies to Help You Financially Prepare for the Holidays

By: Andrea Woroch, 10/7/2019

Although we just welcomed fall, it’s time to start planning for the winter holidays. But, if thoughts of holiday shopping make you sweat and feel anxious, you’re not alone. According to a survey from the investment firm Principal Financial Group, 52% of people feel financially stressed from holiday spending. The holiday season is an expensive time of year thanks to everything from buying gifts for family, friends, and co-workers to spending on decorations, travel, and playing... read more »

The Anxiety and Depression Association of America (ADAA) on Healthy Ways to Cope with the Added Financial Stress of the Holiday Season

By: Matt Walker, 12/12/2018

In a Nutshell: During the holiday season, spending money on travel, gifts, and food for a large family gathering puts an added burden on budgets and can send stress levels soaring. The Anxiety and Depression Association of America provides resources — such as blog posts, webinars, podcasts, articles, and more — to help Americans deal with these times of increased stress. ADAA member and psychiatrist Dr. Richa Bhatia said people can resort to negative coping mechanisms around the... read more »

2018 Holiday Gift Shopping Survey

By: Brittney Mayer, 12/6/2018

The holiday shopping season is in full swing, and retailers are already enjoying a record-setting shopping year thanks to big bucks spent during Thanksgiving sales. But consumers are hardly done shopping. In fact, according to CardRates.com's 2018 Holiday Gift Shopping Survey, nearly 80% of shoppers still have to purchase at least some of their gifts — and 1 in 4 consumers said they still have to do all of their holiday gift buying in December. Survey Highlights With so much... read more »

4 Best Credit Cards for Jewelry Purchases (2019)

By: Toby Sembower, 11/19/2015

We've searched the wide world of credit cards and pulled together a list of what we believe are the four best credit cards for jewelry purchases. Shopping for the right piece of jewelry — be it a diamond engagement ring or simple pearl necklace — can be daunting enough. Besides the high cost that may take years to save for, the quality measurements used by jewelers can seem arbitrary and overly complicated. Adding to the complication is how to pay for the purchase. While your... read more »

5 Credit Card Travel Secrets from the Airfarewatchdog

By: CardRates.com Staff, 1/15/2015

Thinking about buying some plane tickets and taking a trip some exotic locale? Or maybe you just want to fly across state to visit some family? Wherever your destination, we assume you want to save as much money on travel as possible. That's where your credit card comes in. To entice their customers to spend more, many credit card issuers offer their customers convenient ways to cut back their travel costs through incentives, reward programs and other perks. I spoke with... read more »

Q&A: Terry Savage’s Tips to Avoid Overspending This Holiday Season

By: CardRates.com Staff, 12/10/2014

Families are stringing up their Christmas lights, Charlie Brown is back on TV and stores are replacing pumpkin-flavored everything with peppermint-flavored everything — we're in the thick of the holiday season. If you're like millions of other Americans, you'll be doing some hardcore holiday shopping this time of year. Practically every retail store will offer you their best deals of the year, hoping to draw you in as their latest customer. Syndicated financial columnist,... read more »