Glossary

Credit card rewards glossary

The vocabulary of credit-card rewards and best-card results, defined in plain English. Each term links to a full explanation of how it affects which card you should swipe.

Routing

01: Reward RoutingReward routing is naming, at the moment of purchase, the credit card in your wallet that earns the most on that store and category. You still pay with your own card.
02: Sign-Up Bonus Spend RequirementA minimum spend requirement is the amount you must charge to a new card within a set window to earn its sign-up bonus — e.g. $4,000 in the first three months.

Rewards

03: Fair Point ComparisonPikt converts every card's points, miles, and cash back into a single dollar figure so different reward types can be compared fairly.
04: Category MultiplierA category multiplier is the rate at which a card earns rewards in a given spending category — e.g. 4× points on dining or 6% back at U.S. supermarkets.
05: Cash-Equivalent ValueCash-equivalent value is the dollar amount a points or miles balance is worth at a chosen redemption rate, used to compare reward currencies against plain cash back.
06: Cents-Per-Point (CPP)Cents-per-point (CPP) is the dollar value assigned to one point or mile — a redemption's cash value divided by the points it cost — and it's the standard way to compare points or miles against flat cash back.
07: Catch-All RateA catch-all rate is the flat reward rate a card earns on purchases that do not qualify for any category bonus — for example 2% back or 1.5× points on everything else.

Payments

08: Best-Card Recommendation at CheckoutPikt looks at where you're paying and estimates which card in your wallet is likely to earn the most. Online, Pikt Checkout shows it before you click pay. In a store, run Card Check on your phone before you pay.
09: Merchant CategoryA merchant category is how card networks classify what a store sells — for example, restaurants, grocery stores, or gas stations.
10: Checkout ApprovalCheckout approval is the instant yes-or-no when you pay with a card, before the money actually moves hours or days later.
11: InterchangeInterchange is the fee a merchant's bank pays the card-issuing bank on each transaction; it is the primary funding source for most credit-card rewards.

Product

12: Card VelocityCard velocity is the pace at which you open new credit cards over a rolling window, which issuers use to approve or deny applications (for example, Chase's 5/24 rule).
13: Wallet FitWallet Fit is Pikt's free tool for deciding whether a new card is worth adding — it weighs the extra rewards and benefits a candidate card would bring against its annual fee, using the cards you already carry.

Credit card rewards glossary

The vocabulary of credit-card rewards and best-card results, defined in plain English. Each term links to a full explanation of how it affects which card you should swipe.

Routing

01: Reward RoutingReward routing is naming, at the moment of purchase, the credit card in your wallet that earns the most on that store and category. You still pay with your own card.
02: Sign-Up Bonus Spend RequirementA minimum spend requirement is the amount you must charge to a new card within a set window to earn its sign-up bonus — e.g. $4,000 in the first three months.

Rewards

03: Fair Point ComparisonPikt converts every card's points, miles, and cash back into a single dollar figure so different reward types can be compared fairly.
04: Category MultiplierA category multiplier is the rate at which a card earns rewards in a given spending category — e.g. 4× points on dining or 6% back at U.S. supermarkets.
05: Cash-Equivalent ValueCash-equivalent value is the dollar amount a points or miles balance is worth at a chosen redemption rate, used to compare reward currencies against plain cash back.
06: Cents-Per-Point (CPP)Cents-per-point (CPP) is the dollar value assigned to one point or mile — a redemption's cash value divided by the points it cost — and it's the standard way to compare points or miles against flat cash back.
07: Catch-All RateA catch-all rate is the flat reward rate a card earns on purchases that do not qualify for any category bonus — for example 2% back or 1.5× points on everything else.

Payments

08: Best-Card Recommendation at CheckoutPikt looks at where you're paying and estimates which card in your wallet is likely to earn the most. Online, Pikt Checkout shows it before you click pay. In a store, run Card Check on your phone before you pay.
09: Merchant CategoryA merchant category is how card networks classify what a store sells — for example, restaurants, grocery stores, or gas stations.
10: Checkout ApprovalCheckout approval is the instant yes-or-no when you pay with a card, before the money actually moves hours or days later.
11: InterchangeInterchange is the fee a merchant's bank pays the card-issuing bank on each transaction; it is the primary funding source for most credit-card rewards.

Product

12: Card VelocityCard velocity is the pace at which you open new credit cards over a rolling window, which issuers use to approve or deny applications (for example, Chase's 5/24 rule).
13: Wallet FitWallet Fit is Pikt's free tool for deciding whether a new card is worth adding — it weighs the extra rewards and benefits a candidate card would bring against its annual fee, using the cards you already carry.