Amazon Prime Days 2026 is now live from June 23-26, 2026. Look for sales on the brands you like such as Apple, LEGO, Eero WiFi, Away luggage, Darn Tough socks, Osprey backpacks, YETI. Discounted gift cards, $5 pizzas, and $200 bonus on Amazon Prime card now live. I always look out for reset points credits and extended free trials to try out again. As usual, I recommend checking for discounts on the things you already like to buy but rarely go on sale, like Darn Tough socks. Check your “Buy Again” past purchases here. I’ve listed a few of my favorite things below as well.

(Note: If you are reading this in an email/RSS reader, unfortunately I am not allowed to include any Amazon affiliate links in e-mails, so they have been removed. Please click here to view the links.)

As the name suggests, most deals require a Prime membership. New members can sign up for a 30-day free trial. Amazon Prime for Students (age 18-24) has a 7-day trial for 99 cents and $7.49/month after that (50% off regular). If you’ve already done the trial, you can simply buy a single month of Prime for $14.99 ($6.99 with SNAP, EBT or Medicaid card).

Deals and Offers

• List of all current product-specific Prime deals (updated constantly). This list appears to be targeted to your browsing history.
• Live Amazon Device Deals (Echo, Blink, Eero, Ring, Kindle, Fire, etc).
• Gift Card deals including Starbucks, Instacart, Old Navy, Roblox, and many more.
• Eero WiFi router deals.
• Apple deals including Apple Watch SE 3 starting at $199.
• Away Luggage deals including the Bigger 23-inch Carry-On at $236. Look for “Amazon Exclusive” versions.
• Dyson deals including the classic Animal Ball (corded) for $199.
• YETI deals including the Rambler 20 oz for $24.
• $5 Large Pizza from Little Caesars. Live 6/15-6/26. Up to 5 redemptions. Once per order, per day.
• $200 Instant Amazon Gift card bonus with Prime Visa. Live 6/11-7/9. “Get a $200 Amazon gift card instantly upon approval for Prime Visa (June 11–July 9) or $120 for Prime Store Card (June 23–26). Earn 10% back or more on exclusive deals, plus unlimited 5% back year-round at Amazon.com, Whole Foods Market, and more—with no annual fees. During Prime Day, cardmembers can also earn 7% back on eligible Amazon.com purchases (June 23-26) when they choose No-Rush Delivery.”

Amazon Free Trials

• Kindle Unlimited – 3 month free trial. Usually $11.99 a month. Might be a different length for you. Targeted.
• Amazon Music – 4 month free trial. Usually $11.99 a month. Targeted.
• Audible Standard – 3 month free trial. Usually $8.99 a month. This is the basic plan that doesn’t allow you to keep any audiobooks, but you can stream during the trial. Targeted.
• Remember that you can cancel these trials immediately after activation, and they will still work until the end of the trial period. This avoids you forgetting to cancel.

“Shop with Points” Promos (Check again if reset/targeted)

• Discover Cash Back.
• Chase Ultimate Rewards points.
• American Express Membership Rewards points.
• American Express Rewards Dollars (Ex. Blue Cash, Blue Cash Preferred).
• U.S. Bank Rewards points.
• Capital One Rewards points
• Citi Thank You points.

Random Favorite Things & Recent Discoveries

• Darn Tough wool socks. These live up to the hype and are my favorite brand with their high quality and lifetime warranty, but they can be pricey so I still try to buy them when they are on sale during Prime Day. #buyitforlife
• Osprey bags and backpacks. Another high-quality brand with a lifetime warranty. I just sent in a claim on got replacement zipper pulls for a 10+ year-old Osprey bag. #buyitforlife
• Bose Headphones – I have two, the QC15 corded from several years back, and a QC35 from a few years back. Both still work great, I keep one at my desk and the other in my travel bag. I’ve even gone through several replacement ear cushions, but the original Bose branded ones are still the best.
• Vitamix blenders – I bought one and it’s also probably on Year 10 now. Honestly, I still don’t know if you need a $300+ blender, but it’s a solid blender.
• Amazon Eero 6E mesh WiFi router system 3-pack (sale). If you have WiFi coverage issues and haven’t upgraded your router recently, I do recommend an upgrade. It just makes WiFi something you don’t worry about anymore. No more dead spots. This “6E” model supports speeds up to 2.5Gbps and up to 6,000 sf, while the cheaper “6” version supports up to 500 Mbps and 4,500 sf.
• COSORI Air Fryer. We still use our air fryer nearly every day; heats things up like a microwave, except it keeps them crispy instead of soggy. Easy to clean in dishwasher.
• Coway Airmega AP-1512HH True HEPA Air Purifier. I have two of these air purifiers, one in each of the kids’ rooms. I think they are over 5 years old now and still going fine. Simple design, reliable, and easy to change filters. I use these cheaper VEVA brand replacement filters that are still of good quality.
• Bosch ICON windshield wipers. These are the most expensive, but they are also the best and longest-lasting in my experience. No lifetime warranty or anything crazy like that, but I no longer mess with the rest.
• Tiptree Passion Fruit Curd. Delicious on so many things, their lemon curd is excellent as well but the passionfruit (aka “lilikoi butter”) flavor is one of those things that I can only find easily on Amazon.

Cards refreshed. The Wyndham Rewards Earner credit cards have a refreshed line-up with some limited-time sign-up offers as well. However, to get the full sign-up bonus you now need to spend a certain amount at Wyndham Hotels. Free nights start at 7,500 points and go as high as 30,000 points. Reminder that as of 2026, Vacasa home rentals are no longer a partner of Wyndham Rewards.

Wyndham Rewards Earner Card highlights:

• Up to 75,000 total bonus points. 30,000 bonus points after spending $1,000 on purchases in the first 90 days and also earn 45,000 bonus points after spending $500 at Hotels by Wyndham in the first 180 days.
• 5X points per $1 spent on eligible purchases made at Hotels by Wyndham, including hotels through Wyndham Travel Bundles.
• 3X points per $1 spent on eligible Vacation Club, dining and grocery store purchases (excluding Target® and Walmart®), as well as eligible gas and EV charging purchases.
• 1 point per $1 spent on all other purchases (excluding Vacation Club down payments).
• Automatic upgrade to Wyndham Rewards Gold status.
• 10% fewer Wyndham Rewards points required for go free® awards.
• 7,500 bonus points each anniversary year if you spend $15,000 on eligible purchases.
• No annual fee.

Wyndham Rewards Earner Plus Card highlights:

• Up to 100,000 total bonus points. Earn 45,000 bonus points after spending $1,000 on purchases in the first 90 days and also earn 55,000 bonus points after spending $500 at Hotels by Wyndham in the first 180 days.
• 6X points per $1 spent on eligible purchases made at Hotels by Wyndham, including hotels through Wyndham Travel Bundles.
• 4X points per $1 spent on eligible Vacation Club, dining and grocery store purchases (excluding Target® and Walmart®), as well as eligible gas and EV charging purchases.
• 1X point per $1 spent on all other purchases (excluding Vacation Club down payments).
• Automatic upgrade to Wyndham Rewards Platinum status.
• 10% fewer Wyndham Rewards points required for go free® awards.
• 15,000 bonus points each anniversary year after payment of your annual fee.
• $50 Meal Delivery Credit. Enjoy up to $25 in statement credits back every 6 months on eligible meal delivery purchases when you pay with your card—up to $50 each calendar year.
• $95 annual fee.

Wyndham Rewards Earner Premier Card highlights:

• Up to 120,000 total bonus points. Earn 90,000 bonus points after spending $6,000 on purchases and paying the annual fee in full, both within the first 120 days, and also earn 30,000 bonus points after spending $750 at Hotels by Wyndham in the first 180 days.
• 8X points per $1 spent on eligible purchases made at Hotels by Wyndham, including hotels through Wyndham Travel Bundles.
• 4X points per $1 spent on eligible Vacation Club, dining and grocery store purchases (excluding Target® and Walmart®), as well as eligible gas and EV charging purchases.
• 1X point per $1 spent on all other purchases (excluding Vacation Club down payments).
• Automatic upgrade to Wyndham Rewards Diamond status.
• 10% fewer Wyndham Rewards points required for go free® awards.
• 15,000 bonus points each anniversary year after annual fee renewal.
• $100 Wyndham Hotels annual credit. You are eligible to receive a single statement credit of $100 back after spending $100 or more in the aggregate at Wyndham® hotels, Wyndham Grand® hotels, Dolce Hotels and Resorts® by Wyndham, Trademark Collection® by Wyndham and/or Registry Collection Hotels® each calendar year.
• $65 Wholesale Club annual credit. Receive a $65 statement credit back each calendar year after making qualifying wholesale club membership purchases with your card.
• $120 in Meal Delivery credits annually. Enjoy up to $10 in statement credits back each month–up to $120 each calendar year–after making qualifying meal delivery purchases with your card.
• $100 in Streaming annual credits. Receive statement credits on qualifying streaming subscriptions—stream more of what you love.
• $120 TSA PreCheck/Global Entry credit, once every 4 years.
• Free Wyndham Insider membership ($95/year value).
• $395 annual fee.

Wyndham hotels have a relatively simple system that charges 7,500, 15,000, or 30,000 points for a “Go Free” award hotel night with no blackout dates (as long as a standard room is available for cash, you can book it with points). You can also redeem toward a discounted “Go Fast” cash and points rate. Resort fees may apply and cannot be paid with points. Note that when you have one of these credit cards, you get a 10% discount, so for example the 15,000 points tier would be actually be reduced down to 13,500 points.

Wyndham points expiration – Important!

• Wyndham Rewards points will expire if you have no activity on your account for a period of 18 months.
• In addition, all Wyndham Rewards points expire 4 years after being earned — regardless of account activity.
• NEW: The only exception to this is if you are a Wyndham Rewards Earner® Premier Card Cardmember.

From the official Terms & Conditions:

Except as may otherwise be required under applicable law or set forth herein with respect to Wyndham Rewards Earner® Premier Cardmembers, Wyndham Rewards points expire four (4) years after the date on which the applicable points are posted to the Member’s account (the “Four Year Rule”), unless the points are forfeited or cancelled earlier due to membership inactivity (as more particularly described below), or otherwise in accordance with these Terms and Conditions. For clarity, posting dates vary based on the type of activity for which they were earned. Except as may otherwise be set forth herein with respect to Wyndham Rewards Earner® Premier Cardmembers, all accrued points in a Member’s Wyndham Rewards account may be cancelled or forfeited if the Member has no Account Activity (as defined below) for a period of approximately, but never less than, eighteen (18) consecutive months. For purposes of these Terms and Conditions, “Account Activity” means any (i) point earning, and (ii) redemption or transfer activity involving a change in the Member’s Wyndham Rewards point balance, in each case, conducted in accordance with these Terms and Conditions.

Without limiting any other section of these Terms and Conditions, points earned by a Wyndham Rewards Earner® Premier Card Cardmember do not expire under this Section I(14) as long as Cardmember’s account is open and in good standing.

For example, earning points via this credit card will only reset the 18-month inactivity clock. Look for the exact date in your online account page. Again, there is a new exception for the top-tier Premier credit card.

Wyndham Rewards includes over 9,000 hotels worldwide – from Days Inn motels to Wyndham Grand hotels. You can use this link to filter locations easily by country, state, and/or point level. Participating hotel chains include:

• AmericInn by Wyndham®
• Dolce Hotels and Resorts® by Wyndham
• Hawthorn Suites by Wyndham®
• Howard Johnson by Wyndham®
• La Quinta by Wyndham®
• Ramada by Wyndham®
• Days Inn by Wyndham®
• Super 8 by Wyndham®
• Travelodge by Wyndham®
• Wingate by Wyndham®
• Wyndham Grand®
• Wyndham Hotels and Resorts®
• Wyndham Garden®

I don’t like that the sign-up bonuses now include a requirement for a paid stay at a Wyndham hotel first, so I will probably be skipping this card.

The Ink Business Cash Card has an all-time high sign-up bonus offering $1,000 total cash bonus (or 100,000 Ultimate Rewards points) for new cardholders that meet the spending requirements, along with 5%/2% cash back on select small business categories, all with no annual fee. Here are the details:

• $1,000 bonus. Earn $1,000 cash back after you spend $8,000 on purchases in the first 4 months after account opening. This matches the all-time high; previous offer was $750.
• 5% cash back (or 5X Ultimate Rewards per dollar) on the first $25,000 spent in combined purchases at office supply stores and on internet, cable and phone services each account anniversary year.
• 2% cash back (or 2X Ultimate Rewards per dollar) on the first $25,000 spent in combined purchases at gas stations and restaurants each account anniversary year.
• 1% cash back on all other card purchases with no limit to the amount you can earn.
• Free additional cards for employees.
• No annual fee.

Ultimate Rewards points. The cash sign-up bonus actually comes in the form of Ultimate Rewards points at 1 point = 1 cent in cash. 100,000 points = $1,000 cash.

You can pool all of your Ultimate Rewards points from other Chase cards together (even with your spouse in the same household) with cards like the Chase Sapphire Preferred to take advantage of all the excellent transfer options to programs like Hyatt hotels and United Airlines.

Leveraging the 5% back bonus categories. Putting all of your small business cell phone, landline, and internet bills on the card and getting 5% back is pretty handy. For example, even just $200 a month x 12 months x 5% back is $120 back a year without changing your spending habits. Now let’s take the office supply store category and the fact that you can buy gifts cards to Amazon.com and other retailers at such office supply stores like Staples and OfficeMax… now you can effectively discount many of your other purchasing needs by 5% as well. Putting those purchases on such gift cards upfront can also help you meet the spending requirement for the bonus.

Many people aren’t aware of the fact that they can apply for business credit cards, even if they are not a corporation or LLC. The business type is called a sole proprietorship, and these days many people are full-time or part-time consultants, freelancers, eBay/Amazon/Etsy sellers, or other one-person business owners. This is the simplest business entity, but it is fully legit and recognized by the IRS. On a business credit card application, you should use your own legal name as the business name, and your Social Security Number as the Tax ID.

Note that Chase has 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 rule applies on a per-person basis, so in our household one applies to Chase while the other applies at other card issuers.

Bottom line. The Ink Business Cash Card has a large sign-up bonus and ongoing features of 5X/2X categories with no annual fee. This card is best if you have significant expenses in the special 5% and 2% categories above. If you have certain other Chase credit cards, you can transfer Ultimate Rewards points over to those cards and increase your value.

Offer is back for Summer 2026. Planet Fitness is running the High School Summer Pass again in 2026, which is a free gym membership for teens ages 14-19 to work out at any of its more than 2,500+ locations throughout the US and Canada. Valid Monday, June 1 through Saturday, August 31. Participants must work out at the “home” location they sign up at and are not permitted to use other locations. Here is a gym locator.

This year, you also get a code for 20% off Gymshark clothing, sent to your e-mail 2-3 days after signing up. Parents can also get one free Day Pass.

Participants can work out for FREE at participating Planet Fitness locations (U.S. and Canada, excluding Puerto Rico) starting Monday, June 1 through Monday, August 31. Participants must work out at the location they sign up at and are not permitted to use other locations.

Paze is a new online checkout shortcut where you don’t have to type in your credit card number and billing address details repeatedly (think of how “Apple Pay” or “Google Pay” are so convenient), this time backed by a bunch of different banks and credit unions. In order to build a habit, Paze is running a Spend $10, Get $10 promo that works up to 10 times per linked card. That means it could be worth $100 per linked card, and so if you have 5 linked cards for example, that’s up to $500 in credits. Here is a list of current Paze merchants.

Between June 15, 2026 and September 10, 2026, each time you spend $10 or more using Paze® in a single transaction at a participating merchant, you’ll receive a $10 statement credit.

You can earn this credit up to 10 times, for up to $100 back per card in your Paze wallet. Paze is accepted at a growing list of online merchants – see the full list here.

Note: Chase Sapphire and Freedom cards are also offering a separate promo for 10X points per $1 spent on Paze purchases right now. You can verify this in your Chase App under the Benefits section for your Sapphire Preferred/Reserve and Freedom Flex/Unlimited cards. A nice stacking opportunity. You can also link them to Paze directly in your Chase App under “More” in the bottom right corner and then “Digital Wallets”.

Here are a few ideas on how to spend this credit efficiently. Remember, each purchase just has to total $10 to trigger the credit, so you want to get as close to that minimum as possible.

• $10 Dunkin gift cards. Dunkin App, Scan/Pay, Pay Another Way, Add A Dunkin Card, No, Next, $10, Paze. You can merge balances up to $120. Worked for me.
• $10.99 Domino’s pizza for carry-out. Right now, Domino’s has a promo for $10.99 pizzas of any size, any toppings. You can’t buy a $10 gift card through their app, but you can make multiple orders for $10.99 pizzas and just pick them up all at once. Worked for me.
• $10 Fanatics gift card (limited). I was able to buy one but not a second immediately after. According to a commenter on Reddit who contacted customer support, there is a cooldown period. But since this promo lasts until September, you could still accumulate a decent amount of gift cards over time.
• Meals just over $10 from Wendy’s. Order in the app or online.
• Items just over $10 from Sephora. Order in the app or online.
• Items just over $10 from Newegg.com Gift cards are no longer a good option.
• Any other ideas?

The Chase Sapphire Preferred Card has been a big hit for Chase since it came out, and they recently announced (press release) several positive changes that will come into effect on June 15th, 2026 for both new and existing applicants and some negative changes (notable Hyatt points transfers) that will be grandfathered for existing cardholders until October 1st, 2026.

Additions / Positive Changes

• $100 Chase Travel Hotel Credit each account anniversary (increased from $50).
• 3X points on gas and EV charging.
• 3X points on vacation rentals (Airbnb, Vrbo, Plum Guide, HomeAway, Homestay.com and Vacasa).
• $120 credit toward Global Entry, TSA PreCheck or NEXUS every four years.
• “Emergency Evacuation and Transportation coverage” added to their existing list of travel protections.
• One-time 12-month Apple TV subscription for free when activated by December 31, 2026.

Removals / Negative Changes

• Hyatt points transfers devalued by 25%. Before, Ultimate Rewards points transferred to Hyatt at a 1:1 ratio for Sapphire Preferred and Ink Business Preferred cards. Now, it is a 4:3 ratio, which is the same as a 1:0.75 ratio. (Chase Sapphire *Reserve* cardholders will keep the 1:1 ratio.) So every 1,000 Ultimate Rewards points only becomes 750 Hyatt points now, instead of the previous 1,000.

  “Sapphire Preferred and Ink Business Preferred cardmembers’ Ultimate Rewards points will transfer to World of Hyatt at a rate of 4:3. For Sapphire Preferred cardmembers, this is effective immediately for new cardmembers who apply on or after June 15, 2026, and effective October 1, 2026, for cardmembers who applied prior to June 15, 2026. For Ink Business Preferred cardmembers, this is effective October 1, 2026, for existing cardmembers and for new cardmembers who apply on or after October 1, 2026.”

• 10% anniversary points bonus removed. “The 10% Anniversary Bonus Benefit is being discontinued, effective immediately for cardmembers who apply on or after June 15, 2026. For cardmembers who applied prior to June 15, 2026, eligible purchases made through October 1, 2026, will continue to earn the 10% bonus, which will be awarded by January 31, 2027.”

No change

• $95 annual fee.
• 5X points on Chase Travel portal purchases (flights, hotels, car rentals, etc).
• 2X points on all other travel worldwide.
• 3X points on dining worldwide, including takeout and eligible delivery services
• 3X points on select streaming services (Apple Music, Apple TV, Disney+, ESPN+, Fubo TV, Max, Hulu, Netflix, Pandora, Paramount+, Peacock, Showtime, SiriusXM, Sling, Spotify, YouTube Premium, YouTube TV and Vudu)
• 3X points on online grocery purchases (excludes Target, Walmart, and wholesale clubs).
• 5X points on Lyft rides through September 30, 2027
• 5X total points on eligible Peloton equipment and accessory purchases over $150 through December 31, 2027
• 1X points on all other purchases

The Hyatt points transfer change is a double-whammy. Ultimate Rewards points to Hyatt transfers used to be a relatively hassle-free way to easily get over 2 cents per point value. But not only has Hyatt devalued their own points a lot recently (most of their hotels now cost more points to book), but now the transfer rate from Ultimate Rewards also dropped by 25% for this card. That nudges the value of an Ultimate Rewards points much closer to the basic sad value of 1 cent per point. Now it will take more work to find other transfer partners like a United Airlines redemption to get good value.

Even though these are “improvements” to the Sapphire Preferred, this actually shifts my personal preference a bit more to the Chase Sapphire Reserve, which has its own set of complications, but at least I can still get full 1:1 value to Hyatt points with my large bank of points. You can also transfer your other points over to the Reserve from your other cards and household family members. Right now, I am still in the middle of my first year with the Chase Sapphire Reserve and trying to figure out what I’m really able to get out of all those annual credits. The sign-up bonus is also increased to 150,000 Ultimate Rewards points until 6/15.

Our household strategy in the past has been for at least one person to have the Chase Sapphire Preferred to keep our Ultimate Rewards balance going, sometimes transferring back and forth as needed, and then the other person might have the Reserve for a while.

Focusing on income rather than account balances can lead to clearer decision-making in retirement.

Without a defined income plan, investors may spend too cautiously or risk drawing down their assets too quickly. With an income-focused framework, you can better understand how to turn your savings into spending by having a clearer view of:

– How much you can withdraw over time.
– How long your assets may need to last.
– How different risks can affect outcomes.

As a start, you have your sources of guaranteed income (pensions, annuities, Social Security) and roughly 3.5% to 4% of your portfolio, based on historical numbers:

Here are some of the recommended strategies to help stretch things further to create enough income for the rest of your lifetime. Some are more for those that really need to make some big, hard decisions in order to not run out of money, while others are more about marginal improvements.

• Work longer. Not ideal, but powerful. You earn more, you also delay the start of Social Security claiming, and you have a shorter retirement period to cover.
• Dynamic spending. Rather than a fixed percentage withdrawal rate, dynamic spending extends the life of the portfolio by reducing withdrawals if there are poor market returns. There are many ways to implement this.
• Convert some assets to SPIA (single-premium income annuity). If you need to support a hard floor in your income to support essentials, an SPIA can help provide the reliable income needed.
• Tapping home equity. Something to consider if necessary to provide for essentials, especially later in retirement.
• Roth conversions. Converting tax-deferred investments to Roth when your marginal tax brackets are lower (like right after you stop working) can reduce your overall tax paid.
• Tax-efficient withdrawal strategy. In general, you should withdraw from taxable accounts
  first, then tax-deferred, then save Roth for last.

If anything, this paper provides some good places to dig deeper when the time comes.

Plynk is a standalone brokerage app that is quietly a subsidiary of a subsidiary of Fidelity Investments. It seems to be a place where they can experiment with a younger target audience with tools like automatic recurring investments, simulated trading, educational tools, etc. They’ve also offered a few worthwhile bonuses in the app. Plynk just underwent another design reboot, and – surprise! – the interface now looks a lot more like Robinhood.

Plynk also just added a new promotion called Dividend Match (hat tip DoC), which pays you a bonus of 25% of the dividends your taxable brokerage account holdings earn each calendar month, up to $250 max per year. Important highlights:

• Dividend match is available to both existing and new customers. No opt-in required.
• Eligible shares. For common stock and non-daily accrual mutual funds and ETFs, you must hold for at least 30 calendar days prior to the ex-dividend date to receive the Bonus. For mutual funds and ETFs that accrue daily interest and generally pay a dividend at the end of each month, there is no required holding period.
• Formula: Eligible_Shares × Dividend_Per_Share × 25% subject to the $250 annual cap on Bonus amount.
• The annual cap resets on January 1 of each year.

An interesting bonus that would seem to incentivize customers to maintain their (dividend-paying) holdings at Plynk. The S&P 500 dividend yield is only around 1% now, but if you moved over around $100,000 and normally would get $1,000 in annual dividends, now you could get an extra $250 in dividends.

iShares 0-3 Month Treasury Bond ETF (SGOV) is a daily accrual ETF that holds short-term Treasury bills and can be a useful approximation of cash. Right now, SGOV has a 30-day SEC yield of 3.54%. If you got a 25% bonus on that yield, you would be getting 4.43%.

You could also do this with Vanguard 0-3 Month Treasury Bill ETF (VBIL) which has a slightly lower expense ratio and thus slightly higher SEC yields, but a tiny bit higher bid/ask spread at times (although it is pretty much one cent like SGOV).

You’d have to hold a little over $28,000 in SGOV/VBIL in order to reach the $1,000 in annual dividends to max out this promo.

I’m guessing the money would be reported as 1099-MISC, so the tax rate would also be higher than normal interest.

This would be nice if it was a permanent or guaranteed feature. I’m considering it especially as I already have an open account, but I’m afraid Plynk will end the promo quickly even though it is meant as an ongoing offer with no set expiration date.

Open for Summer 2026. If you were a kid in the 80s and 90s, you may remember the Pizza Hut “Book It!” program that rewarded reading books with free pizza. Well, Camp Book It! is again open to free enrollment for the summer (now in iOS/Android app form only):

During the summer months of June, July, and August, any child that meets their parent-set reading goals can earn a free Pizza Hut® single topping Personal Pan Pizza®* from participating locations. Use the BOOK IT!® Mobile App to set goals, track progress, and redeem rewards.

* Limit of 5 Personal Pan Pizza® certificates per family, per month. One certificate may be earned per eligible child, per month, for meeting their reading goal.

This program is usually either run directly through schools or restricted to homeschooling parents during the academic school year, but is open to all age-eligible children from Pre-K to 6th grade during the summer. Once you reach 15 days of reading in one calendar month (our goal is 20 minutes per day per child), you complete the goal and a prize code will be emailed to you. The code works online, so it’s easy to order and simply pick it up or add it to an existing order.

The little Personal Pan Pizza rewards are a novelty to our kids, making it feel like a special treat that they earned. We also stack this with the Summer Reading program at our local library and the Barnes & Noble Summer Reading Program.

Updated for Summer 2026. Parent of a teen? It can be tricky to find a place for your young teens in the summer time. Check your local YMCA chapter as many are offering free summer YMCA membership for teens. Some are for specific grades, like entering 7th or 8th graders. Here are some example locations:

• YMCA Dayton (Ohio)
• YMCA Delaware
• YMCA of Honolulu (Hawaii)
• YMCA High Point (North Carolina)
• YMCA Northwest North Carolina
• YMCA Metro Los Angeles
• YMCA North (Minnesota and Wisconsin)

The YMCA can be a safe space for your teen to socialize as well as have access to gyms, pickleball/basketball courts, heated pools, fitness centers, and in-person and virtual live-stream and on-demand exercise classes.

If this really interests you but nothing is shown online, I would still call your local YMCA, as some locations may not list their participation on their websites. They may also offering discounted teen memberships, along with affordable leadership programs and/or lifeguard training. The YMCA can be a great source of first-time jobs for older teens.

In 2019, I wrote the post Buying The Haystack: Sleeping Well Because I’ll Own The Winners (Needles). Recently, Hendrik Bessembinder updated his previous research with the paper One Hundred Years in the U.S. Stock Markets (SSRN/PDF), which tracked the “investment outcomes for 29,754 common stocks listed on the public U.S. stock markets over the 100-year period from 1926 to 2025”. Some highlights:

• Total Net Wealth created over that period: ~$91 Trillion.
• The 0.2% Needles: Just 46 stocks (roughly 0.2% of the ~30,000 total stocks) were responsible for generating 50% of that $91 trillion.
• The 4% Needles: Only 4% of all stocks accounted for 100% of the net value creation. The other 96% collectively just matched risk-free US Treasury bills – many were complete or nearly complete losses, the rest had smaller gains that only just offset those losses. This means that the top 4% created all of the net wealth creation.

Here is a chart that summarizes this info from a Vanguard Australia article Equity market skewness: The few mega-winners and the case for diversification:

I will simply quote Bogle and myself now, because I am lazy and honestly that’s how investment writing works. You just end up repeating and/or repackaging the same 10-25 rules over and over again.

As the late Jack Bogle told us: “Don’t look for the needle in the haystack. Just buy the haystack.”

I don’t know which will be the most successful US companies in the future, but I know that I will own them via the total US index fund in my portfolio. I will own the next Amazon, Google, Facebook, Apple, or Visa. I’ll also own whoever disrupts them after that. Since I own a big chunk of global stocks inside the Vanguard Total International Stock Index fund, I’ll be covered if they come from the other side of the world.

In 2026, this means I own NVIDIA/Alphabet/Google/Microsoft, but in 10 years, I know that the picture will be at least somewhat different.

Bank of America’s “Preferred Rewards” program officially switched over to the “BofA Rewards” program as of May 27, 2026, although most existing members will be grandfathered into their current tier for up to 11 more months or so. One of the list of program changes was the promised addition of “Subscription credits – Get up to $180 annually in credits for streaming services you use most”. Here’s what the fine print said:

BofA Rewards Subscription Credits. In order to be eligible for the subscription credit benefit, you must:
(1) Be enrolled in the BofA Rewards program’s Preferred Honors or Premier tiers.

(2) Agree to the full terms of the subscription credit benefit from the subscription credit benefit page within BofA Rewards.

(3) Make payments directly to eligible merchants using your Bank of America debit card linked to a checking account that you designate via the subscription credit benefit page.

Preferred Honors tier members may receive statement credits up to $8 per month, and Premier tier members may receive up to $15 per month. Eligible merchants are subject to change without notice. Currently eligible merchants can be found on the subscription credit benefit page.

I could not find a public “subscription credit benefit page”, and it looks like it’s only visible for actual members. I am still on the new “Premier” tier, which is their highest current tier. I logged into my BofA account and navigated to the “Rewards & Deals” tab and then “BofA Rewards”.

After that, I scrolled down to “Feature Benefits” to the subscription benefit details. I can only assume that they are same for everyone, but this is what I have:

Here are the current merchants along with their regular monthly prices, as the credits can only be earned in monthly increments:

• Paramount+: $8.99/month for the ad-supported Essential tier and $13.99/month for the ad-free Premium tier (which includes Showtime).
• SiriusXM: $11.99/month for the App-Only All Access plan, while an Car+App All Access plan normally lists for $25.99/month.
• Wall Street Journal: Digital access is $11.25/week, but the first year is $8 every 4 weeks right now.
• The Economist: Digital access is $29 every 4 weeks.

I’m rather disappointed with the limited selection. Personally, I don’t pay for Paramount+ right now so I might get it for “free” with this offer, but I doubt I’ll use it very much. WSJ is probably the service I use the most but I already have access via alternative means, and it doesn’t even cover the entire cost anyway. I hope BofA changes up the options regularly. Netflix would have been nice.

Graduation season is here, and here is the 2026 Commencement Speech for George Mason Law School by Luke Nichols, who is a practicing attorney but probably best known as the owner of the popular YouTube Channel Outdoor Boys which includes a lot wilderness hunting, fishing, and bushcraft (“survivalist”) content.

I’m a follower of his channel and I appreciate that he makes content based on his own personal interests and adventures, as opposed to creating trendy content specifically to chase clicks or followers or viral popularity. In fact, he recently stopped making any new videos entirely because he became “too famous” and it started to affect his day-to-day life.

This 9-minute speech has a personal finance tilt and I think it’s worth sending out to any other new grads who might appreciate his perspective. Nichols includes a good personal story about how having some money in the bank can change your life in many ways. Having money isn’t just about living in a nicer place or a nicer car. It’s about having the optionality to take asymmetrical risks and really pursue the life that you want. For example, you might be able to take the lower-paying opportunity with a great mentor.

Updated with new limited-time offers. Hilton Hotels and American Express have co-branded credit cards with special perks for Hilton customers. Each person can typically only get one welcome offer, per card in your entire lifetime, so it’s best to apply during a temporary bump-up and/or limited-time offer.

Hilton Honors American Express Card (No Annual Fee)

• Limited Time Offer: Earn 100,000 Bonus Points and a $100 Statement Credit after you spend $2,000 in purchases on the Card within your first 6 months of Card Membership. Offer ends 7/29/26.
• 7X Hilton Honors Bonus Points for each dollar of eligible purchases charged on your Card directly with hotels and resorts within the Hilton portfolio.
• 5X Hilton Honors Bonus Points per dollar on purchases at US restaurants, US supermarkets, and US gas stations.
• 3X Hilton Honors Bonus Points for all other eligible purchases.
• Hilton Honors(TM) Silver Status comes with this card. Spend $20,000 on eligible purchases on this card within a calendar year and upgrade this benefit to Hilton Honors(TM) Gold Status through the end of the next calendar year.
• No foreign transaction fees.
• No annual fee.

Hilton Honors American Express Surpass Card ($150 Annual Fee, waived first year)

• Limited Time Offer: Limited Time Offer. Earn 130,000 Bonus Points after you spend $3,000 in purchases on the Card within your first 6 months of Card Membership. Offer ends 7/29/26.
• 12X Hilton Honors Bonus Points for each dollar of eligible purchases charged on your Card directly with hotels and resorts within the Hilton portfolio.
• 6X Hilton Honors Bonus Points per dollar on purchases at US restaurants, US supermarkets, and US gas stations.
• 4X Hilton Honors Bonus Points for each dollar on U.S Online Retail Purchases.
• 3X Hilton Honors Bonus Points for all other eligible purchases.
• Hilton Honors(TM) Gold Status comes with this card. Spend $40,000 on eligible purchases on this card within a calendar year and upgrade this benefit to Hilton Honors(TM) Diamond Status through the end of the next calendar year.
• Up to $200 in Hilton Credits annually. Get up to $50 in statement credits each quarter for purchases made directly with a property in the Hilton portfolio on your Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card. That’s up to $200 in statement credits annually.
• No foreign transaction fees.
• Earn an additional Free Night Reward from Hilton Honors after you spend $15,000 on eligible purchases on your Card in a calendar year.
• $0 introductory annual fee for the first year, then $150.

Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card ($550 Annual Fee)

• Limited Time Offer: Earn 175,000 Bonus Points after you spend $6,000 in purchases on the Card within your first 6 months of Card Membership. Offer ends 7/29/26.
• 14X Hilton Honors Bonus Points for each dollar of eligible purchases charged on your Card directly with hotels and resorts within the Hilton portfolio.
• 7X Bonus Points for eligible purchases: on flights booked directly with airlines or amextravel.com; on car rentals booked directly from select car rental companies; & at U.S. restaurants.
• 3X Hilton Honors Bonus Points for all other eligible purchases.
• Hilton Honors(TM) Diamond Status comes with this card.
• $400 Hilton Resort Credit. Get up to $200 in statement credits semi-annually for eligible purchases made directly with participating Hilton Resorts on your Hilton Honors Aspire Card. That’s up to $400 back annually.
• $200 Flight Credit. Get up to $50 in statement credits each quarter, for a total of up to $200 back each year, on flight purchases made directly with an airline or through amextravel.com using your Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card.
• $209 CLEAR+ Credit. CLEAR+ helps get you to your gate faster by using your face to verify you are you at 55+ airports nationwide. Receive up to $209 per calendar year in statement credits, when you pay for a CLEAR+ Membership (subject to auto-renewal) with the Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card.
• No foreign transaction fees.
• Multiple Free Night Reward Opportunities. Enjoy an Annual Free Night Reward from Hilton Honors in your first year of Card Membership and every year upon Card renewal. Earn another Free Night Reward from Hilton after you spend $30,000 in purchases on your Card in a calendar year. Plus, you can earn an additional Free Night Reward from Hilton after you spend a total of $60,000 in purchases on the Card within the same calendar year.
• $550 annual fee.

Hilton Honors American Express Business Card ($195 Annual Fee, waived first year)

• Earn 130,000 Hilton Honors Bonus Points after you spend $8,000 in purchases on the Card within your first 6 months of Card Membership. $0 Intro Annual Fee for the first year, then $195. Offer ends July 29, 2026.
• 12X Hilton Honors Bonus Points on eligible purchases made directly with hotels and resorts within the Hilton portfolio.
• 5X Hilton Honors Bonus Points on other purchases made using the Hilton Honors Business Card on the first $100,000 in purchases each calendar year, 3X Points thereafter.
• Up to $240 in Hilton credits annually (Up to $60 per quarter). Get up to $60 in statement credits each quarter for purchases made with this card directly with a Hilton portfolio property.
• Complimentary Hilton Honors(TM) Gold Status (free breakfast, room upgrades based on availability, 5th standard reward night free).
• Upgrade this benefit to Hilton Honors(TM) Diamond Status through the end of the calendar year if the total eligible purchases that you spend on your Card Account during a calendar year reach $40,000 or more.
• $0 introductory annual fee for the first year, then $195.

What are Hilton Honor points worth? The best value is from booking free hotel nights or using their “Points & Money” option where you pay with a combination of Hilton points and cash. Hilton has some really nice properties, but the value varies from hotel to hotel. I just ran a search and for the same 60,000 Hilton points, I could book rooms that cost $320 or $532 cash. I’ve seen some valuations around 0.6 cents per point, which I think is fair on average, but I would be more conservative at 0.5 cents a point. That would make 150,000 points = $750 value and 100,000 points = $500 value towards Hilton hotel stays.

The good part of Hilton points is that they have so many different hotel brands, from business-class DoubleTree to luxury Waldorf Astoria. Hilton also lets you transfer and pool points with other with other family or household members. As long as you are able to keep them active (once every 12 months), I do like to keep some around. These credit cards are handy for creating activity.

Free Night Award details. When it is offered (not all the time), the Free Night Award is valid for a one-night standard room at eligible Hilton properties, and also covers resort fees and taxes. There are many great and valuable options to redeem, but importantly read about the property exclusions here. Here are the full terms. To redeem the Free Night Reward, you must call 1-800-446-6677 (1-800-HHONORS). It’s quite easy and I’ve found the agents to be very helpful if you want to combine multiple certificates, combine a paid stay and a Free Night Award, etc. Free Night Rewards will expire 12 months from date of issuance.

I’ve used this Free Night Award at the Grand Wailea in Maui, and that standard room would have cost 110,000 Hilton Points otherwise. Other fancy possibilities include Conrad New York, Conrad London, Waldorf Astoria Park City, and Waldorf Astoria Beverly Hills.

Bottom line. Hilton American Express cards offer regular Hilton customers a good opportunity to earn additional points towards free Hilton hotel stays as well as additional perks like status upgrades. The best time to apply for a Hilton co-branded American Express card is during a limited-time increase to their welcome offers. This is because American Express has changed their standard policy to only allow each person to get a welcome offer once per card.

Also see: Top 10 Best Credit Card Bonus Offers and Top 10 Best Business Card Offers.

Back for 2026. Barnes & Noble has brought back their Summer Reading Free Book Giveaway for kids in Grades 1-6. You child will need to read any eight books this summer and record them in this Summer Reading Journal [printable PDF]. This year has a “playoff” format.

My family has participated the last two summers, although for 2026 they have added a requirement to visit a Barnes & Noble store four separate times, each time you finish two books:

1. Each time you complete two books (one matchup on your journal), bring your journal to your local Barnes & Noble store. You’ll receive an exclusive Summer Reading sticker and create a recommendation slip for your favorite of the two books — your recommendation slip will be displayed in the store!

2. Return after each completed matchup to collect your sticker and share another recommendation.
Be sure to check out other kids’ recommendation slips for ideas on what to read next.

3. After completing all four matchups on your journal, you’ll complete your full sticker collection and earn a special Barnes & Noble Champion sticker. Keep your journal so you can look back on all the great books you read this summer.

4. Finally, select a book from the list below to receive for free! Thank you for reading with Barnes & Noble this summer.