👋 Hi Reader,

Hope your Saturday is off to a great start! Here's what's included in today's newsletter:

• 🎁 My holiday gift guide (+ ways to save up to 25%)
• 🇮🇸 Video Highlights from our Iceland Trip!!!
• 💳 New 4% cash back card
• 🛍️ Latest gift cards deals (save up to 20%/$50)
• 💰 Free $40 from Rakuten
• 🧾 Are credit card rewards taxable? and more!

One small favor: if you enjoyed reading, please forward this newsletter to someone else who might too! And if that's you, make sure to subscribe here :) Thanks so much in advance!

Chris

🎁 My Holiday Gift Guide and Top Ways to Save

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The holidays are here, and I’ve rounded up over 80 gift ideas across tech, kitchen, clothing, healthcare, games, and more to help you find the perfect gift for everyone on your list. I'll also share tips on how I save 5–25% on almost all my shopping.

💰 Donate Stock/Crypto and Save $$$ on Taxes

Today's newsletter is brought you by... Daffy​

This holiday season, turn your market gains into real impact. Instead of cash, consider donating appreciated assets like stocks or crypto to save up to 37% on taxes while maximizing your giving potential.

So join me in Daffy’s Gains for Good challenge to help raise $10M for charity!

How It Works

1. Donate appreciated investments through Daffy.
2. Every unique donation per day counts as one entry to win Daily Prizes, a $5,000 Grand Prize, and a Limited-Edition T-Shirt for everyone who donates if we hit the $10M goal.

Deadline: Enter by 12/17 at 11:59 pm PST

Save on taxes, maximize your impact, and help raise millions for charity by joining the Gains for Good Challenge today!​

🛫 Travel, Points & Miles

🇮🇸 Check Out Our All the Hacks Iceland Trip!

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Our trip to Iceland this year was so incredible that we’re going to plan another trip (or maybe 2) in the Fall of 2025. We've put together this page with everything you need to know about the trip, including dates, planned itinerary, FAQ's and more.

🧳 Our Iceland & Hawaii Trip Reports and Travel Tips

If you want to go deeper on Iceland, Amy and I did a full episode covering our trip to Iceland (with All the Hacks listeners + readers), as well as our recent trip to the Big Island of Hawaii (with our family).

💳 U.S. Bank's 4% Cash Back Card is Out

The ​U.S. Bank Smartly Card​, which offers up to 4% cash back, is finally open to applications. You earn 2% cash back on all purchases, with an extra 2% if you have ≥$100k in a U.S. Bank Checking, Savings or Investment account. The main downsides are that the card does have foreign transaction fees and offers no sign-up bonus.

🛋️ New U.S. Airport Lounges

Many premium credit cards offer airport lounge access with free food, drinks, showers, and other perks. With all the upcoming holiday travel, here's some new lounge openings:

• Recently opened: Phoenix (PHX) and Washington DC (DCA)​
• Opening soon (12/6): San Diego (SAN)​

🤑 Latest Deals

🛍️ Latest Gift Cards Deals

Discounted gift cards are an easy way to save on holiday shopping. I've recently been finding some amazing gift card deals in the Pepper Rewards app (e.g. 12–20% off Amazon, Sam’s Club, Nike, etc.) Plus, new customers earn $20 back after spending $200 in the first 15 days with a referral code—mine is 612342.

Additionally, here's a bunch of other deals you can take advantage of for your holiday shopping with expirations in parentheses.

• Alaska Airlines: $500 for $449.99 In-Store at Costco​
• Visa/Mastercard Gift Cards
  • ​$15 off $300 at Office Depot (11/23)
  • ​6% off at Giftcards.com w/ code EARLYJOY (11/28)
  • ​Free $10 card w/ $100 card at Giftcards.com w/ GOBBLE (11/27)
  • ​5% off at Kroger w/ code TURKEY2024 (11/26)
  • ​100% off fees at VanillaGift.com w/ code VGTHANKS24 (11/28)
• Delta SkyMiles: Up to 5x bonus miles on Delta gift cards (12/4)
• ​Giftcards.com​: 5% cash back with an eligible card (ends 12/31)
• Lowe’s: $100 for $90 w/ code LOWES1124 (11/30)
• Nordstrom Rack: $100 for $90 w/ code NR1024 (11/30)
• DoorDash: $100 for $90 w/ code DASH1124 (12/15)
• H-E-B Stores: $20 H-E-B gift card with a $100 gift card (11/28)
• Target: $15 gift card with a $100 Apple gift card (starts 11/28)

Also, don't forget to check out these two great apps:

• ​CardPointers Pro to automatically activate your card-linked offers and always pick the right card. Use this link for 50% off.
• ​Savewise to find the best offers from 20+ different shopping portals. Use this link for 20% off.

💰 Easy $40 from Rakuten

My default shopping portal is Rakuten, which also lets you convert cash back to points. Right now, Rakuten is offering $40 for new members after you spend at least $40.

🕵️ Great Finds

🧾 Are Credit Card Rewards Taxable?

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Jasmine DiLucci was recently on Ep #200 to debunk tax myths, and one of the things we couldn't dive deep on was whether credit card rewards are taxable. Thankfully she put together this video that you might enjoy.

📝 Farewell From Morningstar Research VP

I really enjoy John Rekenthaler's writing, so I was sad to see him announce his retirement with this farewell letter. That said it was a great reflection on the U.S. stock market’s strong track record of growth and compounding. While John doesn’t think future returns will be as impressive, he remains optimistic about the U.S. economy’s strengths driving continued growth.

🍔 Shake Shack on Delta Flights

I'm excited to see that Shake Shack has partnered with Delta to offer their cheeseburgers as a first-class meal. I don't fly Delta much, but I'm very curious to see how the in-flight version compares.

💬 Parting Thoughts

As always, thanks so much for reading! I’d love to hear your thoughts on today’s newsletter, and if you enjoyed it, please let me know why!

Chris