pes2013 Posted October 31, 2012 Share Posted October 31, 2012 I previously had (credit card) a Mastercard but I got changed to Visa. I can change back but I wanted to know which to stay with and why. I have no alternatives. Its between those 2. Thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Japlabot Posted October 31, 2012 Share Posted October 31, 2012 It makes no difference, whichever the bank offers the deal that is better. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xpablo Posted October 31, 2012 Share Posted October 31, 2012 why not have both? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Draconian Guppy Posted October 31, 2012 Share Posted October 31, 2012 No love for amex? Platinum ftw :shiftyninja: Edit: visa... if you check online it supposed to be accepted "everywhere". In the end, you gotta chose whichever gives you more benefits? Be it points, free services, etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Growled Member Posted November 1, 2012 Member Share Posted November 1, 2012 I prefer Visa myself but there probably ain't enough difference between the two to count. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Draconian Guppy Posted November 1, 2012 Share Posted November 1, 2012 I prefer Visa myself but there probably ain't enough difference between the two to count. Agreed, it comes down to the benefits E.g. 1. Cash back offers 2. double or triple points 3. included benefits like concierge 4. Lower APRs 5. Is it a charge card or will the balance carry over? Those usually vary from bank to bank. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ILikeTobacco Posted November 1, 2012 Share Posted November 1, 2012 I have Visa and Mastercard. I use the Mastercard when given the chance since it gives me better rewards. I use Visa everywhere else because I have yet to run into a place that doesn't except Visa, unless they don't except any cards at all. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raa Posted November 1, 2012 Share Posted November 1, 2012 I've had both (and Amex), and find that it's down to the bank making the offer, rather than the actual type of card that I worry about. Except for Amex. It's not widely accepted here in Australia, and most places that do accept it add a ~3% surcharge on it. :( Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xilo Posted November 1, 2012 Share Posted November 1, 2012 I prefer Visa. Every place takes Visa. I'm always running into places that don't take one of Amex or Mastercard. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DeadEndAccount Posted November 1, 2012 Share Posted November 1, 2012 I previously had (credit card) a Mastercard but I got changed to Visa. I can change back but I wanted to know which to stay with and why.I have no alternatives. Its between those 2. Thanks. Depends on whether you're travelling overseas because I've found that certain countries favour one more than another; for example when I was in Fiji it was wall to wall Mastercard but I guess that is he exception rather than the norm. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Draconian Guppy Posted November 1, 2012 Share Posted November 1, 2012 I've had both (and Amex), and find that it's down to the bank making the offer, rather than the actual type of card that I worry about. Except for Amex. It's not widely accepted here in Australia, and most places that do accept it add a ~3% surcharge on it. :( Man being charged to use a credit card is just absurd :/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Argi Posted November 1, 2012 Share Posted November 1, 2012 There is no difference between those two. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pes2013 Posted November 1, 2012 Author Share Posted November 1, 2012 I thought Mastercard WAS accepted everywhere. But from what you guys comment Visa is more accepted? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pes2013 Posted November 1, 2012 Author Share Posted November 1, 2012 I was given a Visa Electron and before I had a plain Mastercard (text printed on the card). Ive read that Visa Electron isnt accepeted in all parts of the world and to top that off I cant use it at offline POS such as trains and airplanes because (since they are offline) they cant check if I have cash in my account. I always pay everything with my card (if it was possible, even a 2 dollar gum; everyone has their own personal opinion with this and it is not up to debate for me) plus I do a lot of online purchasing. Should I change to another type of Visa o (once again) to Mastercard? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Japlabot Posted November 1, 2012 Share Posted November 1, 2012 Get a plain old Visa card or Visa Debit, or a plain old Mastercard or Debit Mastercard. They are practically identical, accepted at exactly the same places. Avoid the Visa Electron or Mastercard Maestro if you plan on using it overseas as these are not accepted in many countries because they don't support 'credit authorisations' for when the balance can't be immediately verified - they are pure debit cards & the balance needs to be checked before being approved. With the Visa Debit and Debit Mastercard they are debit cards because they draw from your own funds, but still have a credit element by allowing 'credit authorisation' on the card even without checking your bank balance. 'Credit authorisation' is what makes things work everywhere. If Visa Debit or Mastercard Maestro is giving you a better deal locally, get one of those, and get a Visa or Mastercard credit card as a backup, even better get a travel one that gives you 0 currency conversion fees and as long as you top up the credit card so that there are actually some funds in the account, not owing on the account, you won't have to pay any interest (ie. use it as a Debit Card even though it is a Credit Card). Fantastic for travelling. Mine even gives me insurance which costs a certain % of the balance, but because I always keep the funds topped up in DEBIT, I get free insurance on purchases. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pes2013 Posted November 1, 2012 Author Share Posted November 1, 2012 Get a plain old Visa card or Visa Debit, or a plain old Mastercard or Debit Mastercard. They are practically identical, accepted at exactly the same places. Avoid the Visa Electron or Mastercard Maestro if you plan on using it overseas as these are not accepted in many countries because they don't support 'credit authorisations' for when the balance can't be immediately verified - they are pure debit cards & the balance needs to be checked before being approved. With the Visa Debit and Debit Mastercard they are debit cards because they draw from your own funds, but still have a credit element by allowing 'credit authorisation' on the card even without checking your bank balance. 'Credit authorisation' is what makes things work everywhere. I have never gone and never plan to go over/spend what I dont have in my account so I dont need that function. Which of these would not have that/not allow it? Thank you for your helpful post :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Japlabot Posted November 1, 2012 Share Posted November 1, 2012 I have never gone and never plan to go over/spend what I dont have in my account so I dont need that function. Which of these would not have that/not allow it? Thank you for your helpful post :) It's the Maestro and Electron that won't let you go over no matter what - they will check the balance before being approved. But this is why they are not accepted everywhere because a lot of systems are only set up to do *authorisations* without even bothering to check the balance, so these systems are not going to work with it, so you a better off putting up with a Debit card or Credit Card that allows authorisations for the sake of ease of use. The Debit Cards that allow authorisations draw from your account as soon as possible, most times putting a hold on the funds straight away to stop you from over spending what you don't have, it's fairly hard to overdraw your account with it but possible, Examples: A. If you have $20 in your account and then get a $50 cab fare, but the cab company don't put the authorisation until the next day, it would overdraw you. B. If you have $20 in your account and then get $50 worth of groceries, grocery store puts through the authorisation on the spot and it will decline because it would overdraw. C. If you have $20 in your account and then buy a $5 coffee at a cafe, the cafe puts through an authorisation on the spot, the bank balance will show that you have $20 but only $15 is 'available', if you then spend $20 on a movie ticket, and they also do an authorisation on the spot, it will decline because it would overdraw, since the $5 coffee has already been deducted from the 'available balance'. Most places do on the spot authorisations, so the chances that you will go over are small. If you don't want to take any chances of being overdrawn, want the flexibility of having a card which is accepted almost anywhere (the only places that don't are cash-only places), and have some self-control that you are not going to spend more than you can afford, get a real Credit Card. Get either (1) a real Credit Card that has no monthly fees and has 45-day interest free, and you just pay the full balance off each month and you will not have to pay a cent for it. That will give you the flexibility to be accepted anywhere. OR (2) a real Credit Card that has no monthly, currency conversion or withdrawal fees if you plan to travel overseas, but these don't have any interest free, you pay interest from the moment you make the purchase. You get around this by putting extra funds on the card (more than what is owed) to put the balance into DEBIT, and with some self control to monitor that you don't spend more than you have put into Debit, you will get a cheap way to access your money when you travel. There are other cards like American Express but these are not accepted everywhere because they charge the merchant (ie the Shop you are buying from) extra fees so that don't like to offer it, but they do offer 'points' to spend on other things if you get into that kind of thing, and usually have a monthly fee. I personally am not into these 'Rewards' cards. Combine the real Credit Card with your Electron/Mastro/Debit which allows you to get cash out/free withdrawal of cash from certain brand ATMs and you can't go wrong to get actual cash when you need it too. I carry a Visa Debit myself (nothing against Debit Mastercard, this is what the bank offered me), this covers most transactions: Credit with authorisation, Debit with balance check ("Savings" - not all countries offer this), PayWave (NFC), Cash Out(A store can add an extra amount on the purchase and give you this extra amount in Cash - not all countries offer this), ATM withdrawal - another option if I need real cash for cash-only places and is available world wide (most ATMs charge a fee if your card is from a different bank, if you use your own bank it is usually free), I also carry a 45-day interest free credit Mastercard (again nothing against Visa, this is what the bank gave me) as a backup, in case of emergency I have run out of funds on the Visa Debit and need to make a purchase - and just pay the balance back within 45 days. When I travel, I load on say $5000 onto a travel credit Mastercard (nothing against Visa), and monitor my spending to make sure I don't spend more than $5000 in my local currency to make sure I don't get into credit and have to pay interest fees. I withdraw the amount I didn't spend when I get back to bring it back to a $0 balance until next time. The travel credit Mastercard also lets me withdraw cash from an ATM ("Cash Advance") without any withdrawal fee, currency conversion fee or interest since it is drawing from my account that is actually in DEBIT, but I do have to pay a small withdrawal fee to the ATM owner since it is probably owned by a bank different to my bank I got the card from (They do have reciprocal agreements in SOME countries to not pay withdrawal fees with some banks, still much cheaper than Travellers Cheques/Travelex which are a rip off). Also worth pointing out that almost all banks offer protections and guarantees on their Credit Cards and Visa Debit/Debit Mastercard that promise not to hold you liable for any charges if you didn't make them, they will refund the money in case of a Debit card if you was taken fraudulently, so Credit Card and Debit Card with authorisation are actually safer from this regard, if money is taken from a pure Debit card with no credit authorisation, then usually you are out of luck if someone skims your card number and takes your money. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pes2013 Posted November 1, 2012 Author Share Posted November 1, 2012 First off, great post :) Thank you. C. If you have $20 in your account and then buy a $5 coffee at a cafe, the cafe puts through an authorisation on the spot, the bank balance will show that you have $20 but only $15 is 'available', if you then spend $20 on a movie ticket, and they also do an authorisation on the spot, it will decline because it would overdraw, since the $5 coffee has already been deducted from the 'available balance'. I think my old Mastercard worked this way; I would buy something online (in your example, a 5 dollar mouse pad) and when I entered the bank's online system, it said I had 20 dollars but only 15 were avaliable. Get either (1) a real Credit Card that has no monthly fees and has 45-day interest free, and you just pay the full balance off each month and you will not have to pay a cent for it. That will give you the flexibility to be accepted anywhere. OR (2) a real Credit Card that has no monthly, currency conversion or withdrawal fees if you plan to travel overseas, but these don't have any interest free, you pay interest from the moment you make the purchase. You get around this by putting extra funds on the card (more than what is owed) to put the balance into DEBIT, and with some self control to monitor that you don't spend more than you have put into Debit, you will get a cheap way to access your money when you travel. Thats the thing; The bank ive been switched to allows me to have 0 annual fees the first yeat, but on the second year, charges me 26 dollars (its not about the money; its just 26 bucks) on this Visa Electron ****. If you don't want to take any chances of being overdrawn, want the flexibility of having a card which is accepted almost anywhere (the only places that don't are cash-only places), and have some self-control that you are not going to spend more than you can afford, get a real Credit Card. "Real credit card" from what I understand is either the Visa Debit or the Mastercard (no tag behind/after it). Correct? As you can see I have no idea about this, sorry :( Get either (1) a real Credit Card that has no monthly fees and has 45-day interest free, and you just pay the full balance off each month and you will not have to pay a cent for it. That will give you the flexibility to be accepted anywhere. Not intrested at all on paying the full balance off each month. What is this card to avoid it like the plague at all cost?? OR (2) a real Credit Card that has no monthly, currency conversion or withdrawal fees if you plan to travel overseas, but these don't have any interest free, you pay interest from the moment you make the purchase. You get around this by putting extra funds on the card (more than what is owed) to put the balance into DEBIT, and with some self control to monitor that you don't spend more than you have put into Debit, you will get a cheap way to access your money when you travel. I do withdraw money from ATMs. Currently I do not travel out of the country (hell Ive never withdrawn out of the country) so international is not a issue for me. Combine the real Credit Card with your Electron/Mastro/Debit which allows you to get cash out/free withdrawal of cash from certain brand ATMs and you can't go wrong to get actual cash when you need it too. I perfer to have only ONE card. Ive never had to go to a ATM that charges me for taking out money so not a issue too... I carry a Visa Debit myself (nothing against Debit Mastercard, this is what the bank offered me), this covers most transactions: Credit with authorisation, Debit with balance check ("Savings" - not all countries offer this), PayWave (NFC), Cash Out(A store can add an extra amount on the purchase and give you this extra amount in Cash - not all countries offer this), ATM withdrawal - another option if I need real cash for cash-only places and is available world wide (most ATMs charge a fee if your card is from a different bank, if you use your own bank it is usually free), I like this Visa Debit. Sounds like the best option for me :) I also carry a 45-day interest free credit Mastercard (again nothing against Visa, this is what the bank gave me) as a backup, in case of emergency I have run out of funds on the Visa Debit and need to make a purchase - and just pay the balance back within 45 days. Intresting information for the future :) Thank you. Thank you for much for your post :) Has been very helpful and I will get a Visa Debit as it seems that it is the best card for me. Thank you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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