re: Upromise.com

[Fabrizio2]

Posted: 11/26/06 at 1:42pm

I have just created an account on this website.

Has anyone had any good experiences or bad experiences?

It's a college savings website that basically saves money every time you spend at a retail or online store such as iTunes or Sears, etc...

[Anakela]

Posted: 11/26/06 at 8:22pm

I've had an account since 2002/2003ish, never had a problem. I had the Citibank Upromise credit card for a bit too, never had a problem with that (getting credited for my Upromise dollars, etc.) either.

Make sure you sign up all of those grocery store cards, store cards, etc. at the Upromise site- I never remember what the correct groceries are, and so I just always get surprised 'oh, look- 12 cents from that Diet Coke I bought,' etc. when the money gets credited. I don't shop any differently than before Upromise, and the little 30 cents here and $2.00 there and whatnot all really do add up.

I signed up with them at the recommendation of a friend who has also had great service, no complaints. So that's two recommends for you. :)
Updated On: 11/26/06 at 08:22 PM

[wexy]

Posted: 11/26/06 at 8:27pm

God, you can tell I'm really out of the loop. I thought " What's an up promize?"

[Fabrizio2]

Posted: 11/26/06 at 8:42pm

It's a college funding program.
You get $$ for things you buy everyday.

[wexy]

Posted: 11/26/06 at 8:49pm

Thats cool. I'm so freaking old, we didn't have pcs when I was in college. We had to use typewriters an carbon paper. Spell check is so much easier :).

Its nice to get discounts on stuff that you need.

[MistressoftheHouse]

Posted: 11/26/06 at 9:02pm

My family heard about this program when I was in middle/high school. You either had to spend so much money to get points or got so few points on your purchases that it ended up not being worth it. There was no way we would have been able to get enough points or whatever to make a difference in a few years.

If you start when your child is young you'll probably be able to get a fair amount of money, though.

[mejusthavingfun]

Posted: 11/27/06 at 10:39am

I was always worried Upromise would shut down in the future 2015 and I would lose points (like the air miles cards). Although Upromise is cool because you can use it to pay back current student loans. The credit card pays about 1% on every dollar you spend, sometimes 2% Upromise supported vendors. I have an Amazon Visa that gives 1%, and for every 2500 dollars I spend, I get $25.00 in gift certs. It's great at holiday time because I have saved quite a bit in gift certificates for gifting. If you are good with money, you can buy everything (groceries, gas, clothes, etc.) on the card and pay the FULL balance every month. There are also cards that give you points to buy things like televisions, or blenders, in the end it’s all about the same. If you have to pay an annual fee, it’s probably not any real savings. I wouldn't recommend using a credit card for borrowing money, unless you have a really good reason. The interest is ridiculous and will cancel out any money/points you might be earning. I use my credit card for record keeping, credit building and getting 1% of my dollar back. Never for borrowing.

The reason credit cards give away these minuscule benefits is because most spenders end up paying minimum balances and accruing debt. Avoid that at all costs, if you find yourself not being able to pay back the full amount stop using the card!

[kelzama]

Posted: 11/27/06 at 12:32pm

Something tells me that it's akin to the Discover card program, where the biggest check I ever got was for a whopping $2.42. Might be able to buy a notebook, and I don't mean one that plugs in.

I wouldn't count on financing my college education through it. Better off with mutual funds.