Today, Walmart launched their new Capital One Walmart Rewards Mastercard (credit card) and Walmart Rewards Card (store card that only works at Walmart). Here are the highlights, which unfortunately include some hoops and hurdles to jump through.

• Intro offer: 5% back at Walmart in-store when using Walmart Pay during the first 12 months.
• 5% back on purchases at Walmart.com and Walmart app (includes Walmart Grocery Pickup and Delivery).
• 2% back on Walmart purchases in stores after the introductory offer.
• 2% back on restaurants and travel.
• 1% back on all other purchases.
• No foreign transaction fee.
• No annual fee.

You can redeem your rewards during online checkout at Walmart.com, for recent purchases, and statement credits. (Gift cards and travel are listed as options too, but why would you choose that over cash unless they offer some sort of bonus?)

The only long-lasting benefit is the 5% back at Walmart.com and Walmart app (includes Walmart Grocery Pickup and Delivery). If you spent $1,000 a year at Walmart.com, then that’ll get you $50 in cashback. I might spend that much at Walmart in-store over a year, but definitely not Walmart.com at this time. If they released Walmart’s in-store sales volume compared to their online sales, I think you’d see a large disparity.

I was disappointed to see that 5% back in-store only works (1) if you remember to set up and use their Walmart iOS or Andriod app and (2) it only lasts for the first 12 months. After a year, it’s back down to only 2% back on Walmart purchases which really isn’t very appealing with multiple 2% cash back on everything alternatives. Did they not realize that nobody liked their old Synchrony card because it only offered a super-sad 1% back at Walmart stores?

Why is Walmart so stingy with the cash back? Perhaps Walmart’s profit margins are too slim to match Target REDcard’s 5% cash back on both in-store and online purchases. I suppose you could see that as a good thing. But still, it gives me little reason to get this card. Costco only offers 2% back via their self-branded credit card, but at least throws in 4% back on gas and 3% back on travel and restaurants. Meanwhile, Amazon offers 5% back if you have Prime and includes Whole Foods purchases.

Bottom line. Walmart has a new co-branded credit card. The only long-lasting benefit is the 5% back at Walmart.com and Walmart app (includes Walmart Grocery Pickup and Delivery). It’s not very good any place outside of Walmart, and not even especially good at Walmart stores after the first year. If Walmart.com steps up their game to include better delivery options, perhaps it will be worth a second look.

Update. As many of you correctly pointed out, only $31 million was allotted to the $125 alternative payment if you opted out of the free credit monitoring. The FTC has provided an update encouraging people to pick the free monitoring:

I thought I could choose $125 instead of free credit monitoring. What happened?

The public response to the settlement has been overwhelming. Millions of people have visited this site in just the first week. Because the total amount available for these alternative payments is $31 million, each person who takes the money option is going to get a very small amount. Nowhere near the $125 they could have gotten if there hadn’t been such an enormous number of claims filed.

The free credit monitoring provides a much better value, and everyone whose information was exposed can take advantage of it. If your information was exposed in the data breach, and you file a valid claim before the deadline, you are guaranteed at least four years of free monitoring at all three credit bureaus (Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion) and $1,000,000 of identity theft insurance, among other benefits. The market value of this product is hundreds of dollars per year.

You can still choose the cash option on the claim form, but you will be disappointed with the amount you receive and you won’t get the free credit monitoring.

My perspective is that data breaches are happening all the time. (Capital One was breached just this week.) All of them just say “oh my, we’re sorry, here’s some free credit monitoring”. I’ve probably got about 8 different credit monitoring services going on right now, and I’m sure more will be offered shortly. I do NOT value their free monitoring at some “retail value” of hundreds of dollars. You may feel differently. I think that people should be rightly angry if they end up with a few bucks in the end, which hopefully will spur further change and make future penalties more severe. If all these companies care about is money, then isn’t a huge cash penalty a better deterrent to lazy security practices?

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Equifax has reached a settlement with the Federal Trade Commission, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, and 48 out of 50 states over their huge data breach that was discovered in 2017. You can find full details at FTC.gov, where you can confirm the official claim website. You can check your eligibility at this lookup tool. You will need to provide your last name and last 6 digits of SSN.

First, you can get up to 10 years of free credit monitoring or $125 if you decide not to enroll because you already have credit monitoring. No supporting documentation necessary. I am already using these free daily credit monitoring services and they have been working well for me, so I am definitely filing a claim for the cash payment of $125. However, some people may prefer the monitoring. You can file a claim for every person in your household that is 18 or older.

Next, you can be compensated for the time you spent dealing with the claim, at a rate of $25 per hour up to 20 hours. Supporting documentation requirements vary as follows:

• If you submit a claim for 10 hours or less, you must describe the actions you took and the time you spent doing those things.
• If you claim more than 10 hours, you must describe the actions you took AND provide documents that show identity theft, fraud, or other misuse of your information.

If you are the type of person that read this website, you probably did spend at least some amount of time dealing with the data breach. For me, these activities mostly happened near the time the breach was discovered in September 2017.

• You might have spent time reading press releases and news articles about the data breach and how it might impact your financial life and how to avoid identity theft.
• You might have spent time reading official websites about all of the many differences between a credit freeze and fraud alert.
• You might have spent time on the phone or online in order to place and/or removing those credit freezes and fraud alerts.
• Finally, you probably checked all of your credit reports from all three credit bureaus, probably multiple times, in order to make sure there was no fraudulent activity.

For example, if you spent 5 hours doing this total, you can file a claim for an additional $125 (5 times $25) by listing and attesting to your activities but without having to provide physical documentation.

You can also file claims for direct expenses that you paid as a result of the breach (supporting documentation required), including:

• Losses from unauthorized charges to your accounts
• The cost of freezing or unfreezing your credit report
• The cost of credit monitoring
• Fees you paid to professionals like an accountant or attorney
• Other expenses like notary fees, document shipping fees and postage, mileage, and phone charges

As with many such settlements, the final amounts may be reduced depending on the number of people who make a claim.

Finally, starting in 2020, all US consumers can get 6 free credit reports per year for 7 years from the Equifax website. That’s in addition to the one free Equifax report (plus your Experian and TransUnion reports) you can get at AnnualCreditReport.com. You can sign up for an email reminder if you want.

The World of Hyatt credit card is a Hyatt consumer credit card issued by Chase that offers several perks for those that enjoy Hyatt hotels. There is a current sign-up bonus of up to 65,000 Hyatt points. Here are the highlights:

• 30,000 Bonus Hyatt Points after you spend $3,000 on purchases in your first 3 months from account opening. Plus, up to 30,000 More Bonus Points by earning 2 Bonus Points total per $1 spent in the first 6 months from account opening on purchases that normally earn 1 Bonus Point, on up to $15,000 spent.
• Enjoy complimentary World of Hyatt Discoverist status for as long as your account is open.
• 1 Free Night award each year after your Cardmember anniversary at any Category 1-4 Hyatt hotel or resort.
• 1 Additional Free Night award at any Category 1-4 Hyatt hotel or resort if you spend $15,000 during your cardmember anniversary year.
• Receive 5 tier qualifying night credits towards status after account opening, and each year after that for as long as your account is open.
• Earn 2 qualifying night credits towards your next tier status every time you spend $5,000 on your card.
• Earn up to 9 points total for Hyatt stays – 4 Bonus Points per $1 spent at Hyatt hotels & 5 Base Points per $1 from Hyatt as a World of Hyatt member
• Earn 2 Bonus Points per $1 spent at restaurants, on airline tickets purchased directly from the airlines, on local transit and commuting and on fitness club and gym memberships
• $95 annual fee.

If you’ve gotten a bonus from any Hyatt Card within the last 2 years, please note the following:

The product is not available to either (i) current Cardmembers of any Hyatt Credit Card, or (ii) previous Cardmembers of any Hyatt Credit Card who received a new Cardmember bonus within the last 24 months.

If you have the old Chase Hyatt card, you can call them up and ask for upgrade options.

The 5/24 rule applies to this card. On many Chase cards, there is an unofficial rule that they will automatically deny approval on new credit cards if you have 5 or more new credit cards from any issuer on your credit report within the past 2 years (aka the 5/24 rule). This rule is designed to discourage folks that apply for high numbers of sign-up bonuses. This is applied on a per-person basis, so in our household one applies to Chase while the other applies at other card issuers. The 5/24 rule is now believed to apply to this card.

What can you get with 50,000 Hyatt points? Here are all the Hyatt redemption options, but the most popular options are for free hotel nights, points+cash hotel combinations, or room upgrades. Hyatt allows you the flexibility of combining your points with any other World of Hyatt member to redeem an award.

After the recent Marriott/Starwood merger, I believe that Hyatt points are now the most valuable hotel points on a per-point basis. In general, I would rather convert my Chase Ultimate Rewards points into Hyatt points than any other hotel program.

Below is their points award chart, and here is their award search tool. Free rooms start at 5,000 points. A suite upgrade is 6,000 points.

For example, 50,000 points can get you two free nights at the Category 6 properties like the Hyatt Regency Maui or Grand Hyatt Kauai (25,000 pts/night). You also avoid the resort fees of up to $45 per night with an award redemption. Alternatively, 50,000 points would get you 4 nights at a Category 3 like the Hyatt Regency Grand Cypress in Orlando (12,000 pts/night) with some points left over. Finally, you could get 10 nights at 5,000 points per Category 1 night like the Hyatt Place Austin/Round Rock.

If you compare with the cash cost of these hotels, the number varies you are nearly always getting between 1 cent and 2 cents per point value, sometimes more. We are staying at the Grand Hyatt Kauai this summer on Hyatt points from this card, where the cash value is $701 per night when you include all taxes and the $35/night resort fee. That works out to 2.8 cents per Hyatt point.

Annual fee and free anniversary night. This card does have a $95 annual fee, but in exchange you get a Free Night Certificate good at any Category 1-4 hotel or resort. I can easily get $95 of value out of this certificate, so this card is a keeper card for me. Your travel situation may be different.

You can also earn an additional free night at any Category 1-4 Hyatt hotel if you spend $15,000 during your cardmember anniversary year. I had to spend $6,000 to reach the sign-up bonus the first year, so I went ahead and reached this hurdle to reach a total of 2 free Cat 1-4 nights + 50,000 points after the first year. I probably won’t go for it in future years, though.

Hyatt points expire after 24 months of inactivity, but earning points via this credit card counts as activity. Chase Ultimate Rewards points also convert to Hyatt points and the transfer counts as activity.

Ongoing rewards structure. I might book my Hyatt nights on this card, but the rest of the rewards aren’t terribly exciting to me.

• 9 points total per $1 spent at Hyatt – 4 Bonus Points per $1 when you use your card at Hyatt hotels & 5 Base Points per $1 you can earn as a World of Hyatt member.
• 2 points per $1 spent at restaurants, on airlines tickets purchased directly from the airlines, on local transit and commuting and on fitness club and gym memberships.
• 1 point per $1 spent on all other card purchasesoffer details reference link*

The free Discoverist status from this card gets you a free bottle of water daily, a free upgrade to premium WiFi internet, dedicated check-in area, and a 2pm late checkout upon request at participating locations. You are also eligible for a minor room upgrade within your type booked.

Bottom line. The World of Hyatt credit card is the new co-branded Hyatt credit card. As with most of these types of card, the best value is obtained by folks like like to stay at Hyatt properties. World of Hyatt is my favorite hotel rewards program, and thus my favorite hotel point to earn.

Also see: Top 10 Best Credit Card Bonus Offers.