Maximizing credit cards to become points-rich without spending a ton

Editor’s note: This is a recurring post, regularly updated with new information and offers.

If you have big recurring expenses, it’s easy to amass a wealth of points, miles or cash back by using credit cards for all your spending. But what if the opposite is true and your monthly spending is minimal, or you adhere to a strict budget? Is it still possible to earn enough points to cover the cost of travel?

This common question has crossed every credit card beginner’s mind, and the answer is yes: With some planning, you can earn sufficient credit card rewards to put toward travel.

Credit card welcome bonuses

The easiest way to accumulate thousands of points and miles is by signing up for new credit cards and meeting the minimum spend requirements to earn various welcome bonuses.

With increasing competition among card issuers, welcome bonuses are becoming more lucrative than ever. For instance, many cards regularly offer welcome bonuses upward of 60,000 points or miles, and some even cross the 100,000-point threshold.

That’s only the beginning: Plenty more amazing bonuses are out there. We regularly update our roundup of the best current welcome offers on our best rewards cards page, so that’s a good starting point if you need help finding a good card to pick. There are plenty of ways to easily meet minimum spending requirements, even if you have low monthly expenses, such as pre-paying regular expenses like utilities.

Retention and targeted offers

You may even earn bonus points or miles by telling a bank that you’re thinking about canceling your credit card. Issuers pay a lot to acquire customers, so they’re typically willing to offer generous retention bonuses to dissuade you from closing your account.

Retention offers vary by issuer and card type, but they’re an excellent way to top off your point balances while keeping your account open for an additional year.

Another form of bonuses that issuers provide is targeted offers. In some situations, issuers, such as Citi, send out targeted offers via mail and email to earn bonus points on select purchases.

Related: How to use retention offers for extra points and miles

Strategic spending

If you want to maximize your return on spending, it’s crucial that you put as much of your daily spending as possible on your rewards-earning credit cards.

The key is to use cards that earn the most rewards for each spending category. There are many ways for you to get creative with your spending.

For instance, you could pay rent with a credit card and offer to pick up the tab when dining out with friends (and have them pay you back with cash or via a free online service like PayPal or Venmo). Plus, you can sometimes earn even more points by using programs like Amex Offers and online shopping portals like Rakuten.

Shopping portals

One of the best ways to earn bonus points is by leveraging shopping portals. These portals let you earn points on your everyday spending at hundreds of online retailers. Shopping portals are available through airline loyalty programs like AAdvantage and issuers like Chase.

You log into your portal of choice and find the store you want to shop from; upon clicking the link, you will be redirected to the store’s website to shop as you normally would. Not only do you earn bonus points through the portal, but you also earn points on the actual rewards credit card used, making this the easiest way to double dip.

Related: Earn points, miles or cash back: How to maximize online shopping portals for your purchases

Reimbursed travel

While it’s great to get everyone on board with opening a travel credit card, many of your family and friends may still have yet to do it. If you know someone like this looking to book a trip, offer to put their airfare and prepaid hotel expenses on your travel credit card so you can rack up the points for free. TPG credit card writer Danyal Ahmed often accumulates a good amount of points by paying for his extended family’s airfare or prepaid hotel with his credit card.

Additionally, if you ever travel for work, opt to put the travel expense on your credit card and get reimbursed rather than having your company pay for everything directly. Even though the reimbursement may take some time to get back to you, the points you gain will be worth it.

Bottom line

You don’t need to have high monthly expenses to become points-rich. All it takes is some homework and a few new credit cards. There are plenty of resources and methods to boost your point balances; it just requires research and being proactive to ensure opportunities aren’t missed.

Related: How to have a credit card strategy without annual fees