Debt is a useful tool if you use it to buy something with a positive net present value. Revolving debt is so very rarely used for that though.
I can't count the number of smart, successful people I've personally seen hit a minor bump in the road and then get behind on their revolving debt. Just a few months of penalties and interest quickly eclipses anything you'll gain through incentives, and makes it progressively harder to get back to even.
A checking account autopay would only have added an NSF fee to their problems!
For me, it isn't worth the gamble. You have to take enough risks to get ahead in life as it is. Why reduce your odds with unnecessary risks of convenience?
If you always pay off your credit card in full on time, then it's effectively the same as a debit card that has fraud protection and cashback built into it.
There is a really simple way to avoid getting behind on your payments: don't buy things that you can't cover with the money in your checking account, and pay your bills on time. Heck, if you can't do this with a debit card, you'll get socked with overdraft fees that are on par with what the credit card would get you for.
The problem isn't the logisitics of paying the balance on time. The problem is how easy it is to get into a situation where you get (even slightly) behind the ball.
I don't want to argue with you about it here. This isn't the right place and maybe the debt trap is something you have to witness firsthand to appreciate. I would submit that if it were as easy as a checking autopay, then this wouldn't be happening: http://www.mybudget360.com/american-middle-class-debt-serfdo...
I can't count the number of smart, successful people I've personally seen hit a minor bump in the road and then get behind on their revolving debt. Just a few months of penalties and interest quickly eclipses anything you'll gain through incentives, and makes it progressively harder to get back to even.
A checking account autopay would only have added an NSF fee to their problems!
For me, it isn't worth the gamble. You have to take enough risks to get ahead in life as it is. Why reduce your odds with unnecessary risks of convenience?