Do you dream about lounging on the beach with a fruity cocktail in hand? Or maybe you can’t stop thinking about skiing the snow-capped mountains in the Alps.
If that’s you, then keep reading! Because today we are going to continue on our journey to learn everything you need to know about credit card hacking!
If you missed the Ultimate Guide to Credit Card Hacking Part 1, check that out first! And if you are brand new to credit cards in general, check out my post on how credit cards work and how to avoid interest.
I have saved thousands of dollars and flown hundreds of times by using credit card hacking to my advantage! And you can too!
And so today we are going to cover my favorite credit card issuer – Chase!
Rules for Applying for Chase Credit Cards
There are a few “rules” to be aware of when getting started with Chase credit cards.
You won’t find any official information from Chase on these “rules”, but they are well-known in the credit card industry and the information has been compiled from tons of people and their experiences over time.
Chase’s 5/24 Rule
The 5/24 rule means that you cannot be approved for a new Chase credit card if you have opened 5 or more new credit accounts in the last 24 months.
Now all credit cards apply here (except most business credit cards). So it doesn’t matter if all the cards you opened in the last 2 years were American Express or Discover or another issuer, they all count towards this number.
This is why I stressed in Credit Card Hacking Part 1 that keeping track of your applications and dates is extremely important! You need to know if you have hit this number before applying for a Chase credit card.
If you have opened some cards but have not kept track up until this point, then I suggest you make an Experian account (it’s free, you never need to pay for this account but they will make it look like you do every time you log in. You can just skip it).
From your Experian account, you can see your credit report and it should list all of the credit cards you have opened and the approximate dates.
Chase’s 2/30 Rule for Personal Cards
The 2/30 rule means that you generally cannot be approved for more than 2 Chase credit cards in a 30-day period. If you do apply for more, then your application may be automatically rejected.
Now keep in mind, none of these rules are in writing and there can be exceptions to the rules. But the majority of data collected over time confirms these 2 rules are in place with Chase.
I have personal experience with both of these rules. I have been rejected in the past because of the 5/24 rule, so I started keeping track of all of my applications in a spreadsheet.
Recently I hurt myself with this 2/30 rule as well. I applied for a Chase Business credit card and was denied because my blogging business was considered “too new”. So I applied again using my other business information (Instacart driver which I was approved for previously for a different business card) and was denied again because they felt it was a “duplicate application”.
So I still wanted to get a new Chase credit card since I had an open spot in my 5/24, I applied for a personal and was denied again because of too many applications!
This was so frustrating but a situation I probably could have avoided! So now I am just chilling on Chase’s cards and focusing on some others instead. You win some, you lose some. But don’t make the same mistake as me!
Chase Bonus Rules
Chase also has a pretty consistent introductory bonus rule of one bonus on each card every 24 months. You can find this language highlighted in the bonus information for all Chase credit cards:
This product is not available to either (i) current cardmembers of this credit card, or (ii) previous cardmembers of this credit card who received a new cardmember bonus for this credit card within the last 24 months.
This means that you must first close your existing card (at any point in that 24 month period) and wait until after the 24 months from the date you received the bonus to reapply and receive a new bonus.
The only exception to this rule is the Chase Sapphire Preferred and the Chase Sapphire Reserve cards. Their bonus language states you must wait 48 months between bonuses instead of 24 months:
The product is not available to either (i) current cardmembers of any Sapphire credit card, or (ii) previous cardmembers of any Sapphire credit card who received a new cardmember bonus within the last 48 months.
Below we will get into each card that Chase offers at the moment and the benefits of each. If you look at the offers on Chase’s site you will see some say earn 5x points and others say earn 5% cashback.
But with the way Chase’s Ultimate Rewards work, these are essentially the same thing, so below I will just call them all points but wanted you to know that they are the same thing.
The Core Chase Credit Cards (Personal)
So let’s dive into each of the cards and the benefits you can get! Since bonus offers change regularly, I will not include those for most cards. But you can click on each link to see the current offers!
The Sapphire Preferred Card
The Chase Sapphire Preferred card is like their flagship intro premium card. You need one of Chase’s premium cards to be able to transfer points to Chase’s travel partners and to receive the increased redemption value on Chase travel.
The travel insurance items also come in handy quite a bit, I personally love the auto rental coverage! So I think the Sapphire Preferred is one you should always have in your wallet and right now is the best time to apply because the offer is an all-time high of 100,000 points!
Here are the details and benefits:
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- $95 annual fee
- Earn 2x points on dining and travel
- Earn 5x points on Lyft through March 2022
- 25% increased redemption value when you redeem your points on Chase Travel
- You can combine points from other Ultimate Rewards cards
- You are able to transfer Ultimate Rewards points to multiple Chase partners
- Trip Cancellation/Interruption Insurance
- Trip Delay Reimbursement
- Baggage Delay Insurance
- Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver (primary coverage)
- Travel and Emergency Assitance Services
- Purchase Protection
- Extended Warranty Protection
- No Foreign Transaction Fees
- Free Doordash Dashpass subscription for 1 year when activated by 12/31/21
- Get up to $60 back on eligible Peloton Digital or All-Access membership thru 12/31/21
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If you want to learn more about each of these benefits check out this post from Nerd Wallet.
Also note, you cannot hold the Sapphire Preferred and the Sapphire Reserve at the same time.
The Sapphire Reserve Card
The Sapphire Reserve card is Chase’s top-of-the-line premium card. It is a step up from the Sapphire Preferred and offers a lot more benefits for the annual fee of $550.
Here are the benefits:
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- Earn 3x points on travel and dining worldwide
- 10x points on Lyft through March 2022 and a year of Lyft Pink Membership
- 50% more value when you redeem your Ultimate Rewards on Chase Travel
- You can transfer your points to Chase’s travel partners
- $300 Annual Travel Credit
- TSA Precheck or Global Entry Credit of $100 every 4 years
- Complimentary Airport Lounge Access
- Access to Chase’s Luxury & Resort Collection
- Trip Cancellation/Interruption Insurance
- Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver (primary coverage)
- Lost Luggage Reimbursement
- Trip Delay Reimbursement
- Emergency Evacuation & Transportation
- Purchase Protection
- Return Protection
- Extended Warranty Protection
- No Foreign Transaction Fees
- Free Doordash Dashpass subscription for 1 year when activated by 12/31/21
- Earn up to $60 in statement credits on Doordash purchases thru 12/31/21
- Get up to $120 back on eligible Peloton Digital or All-Access membership thru 12/31/21
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As you can see, you definitely get a ton of value with this premium card! The credits you can get every year add up and really bring down the total cost of the annual fee.
To see more details about all of these benefits, check out this post.
Also note, you cannot hold the Sapphire Reserve and the Sapphire Preferred at the same time.
The Freedom Unlimited Card
The Freedom Unlimited card is one of the best first cards you can get when you are starting out with credit card hacking! It has a decent bonus and comes with some great benefits along with no annual fee and an introductory 0% interest rate for 15 months!
Here are the benefits:
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- Earn 5x points on travel purchased through Chase Travel
- Earn 5x points on Lyft through March 2022
- Earn 3x points on dining at restaurants, including takeout and eligible delivery
- Earn 3x points on drugstore purchases
- Earn 1.5x points on all other purchases
- 0% APR for the first 15 months the account is open
- No annual fee
- Trip Cancellation/Interruption Insurance
- Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver (secondary coverage)
- Travel and Emergency Assistance Services
- Purchase Protection
- Extended Warranty Protection
- Complimentary 3-month Dashpass membership when activated by 12/31/21
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As you can see you still get some of the great benefits but for no annual fee and 0% interest! It pairs great with either the Sapphire Preferred or the Sapphire Reserve since you can combine points balances!
The Freedom Flex Card
The Freedom Flex card is fairly new and replaced the old Chase Freedom card. The only difference for this card is the earning structure and the addition of cell phone protection and Mastercard World elite benefits, which I will cover below.
Here are the benefits:
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- Earn 5x points on up to $1,500 on combined purchases in bonus categories each quarter you activate. So far this year, these were the categories:
- January to March: Wholesale Clubs, cable, internet, phone services, and select streaming services
- April to June: Gas stations and home improvement store
- Earn 5x points on travel purchased through Chase Travel
- Earn 5x points on Lyft through March 2022
- Earn 3x points on dining at restaurants, including takeout and eligible delivery
- Earn 3x points on drugstore purchases
- Earn 1 point on all other purchases
- 0% APR for the first 15 months the account is open
- No annual fee
- Trip Cancellation/Interruption Insurance
- Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver (secondary coverage)
- Travel and Emergency Assistance Services
- Purchase Protection
- Extended Warranty Protection
- Cell Phone Protection
- Complimentary 3-month Dashpass membership when activated by 12/31/21
- Mastercard World Elite Benefits:
- Take 3 rides in one calendar month and earn a $5 Lyft credit
- Spend $20 at Fandango or on their streaming service and get a $5 Fandango Reward
- Complimentary Shop Runner Membership for 1 year
- Purchase a HelloFresh Meal kit delivery plan and receive 5% back to use towards your next delivery
- Earn 5x points on up to $1,500 on combined purchases in bonus categories each quarter you activate. So far this year, these were the categories:
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This is another great card that comes with some awesome and unique benefits!
The Freedom Student Card
Chase also offers a Freedom Student card and this could be a good option if you are recently 18 and going to school. However, the benefits just aren’t as great so I would go for another card if possible.
Here are the benefits:
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- Earn 1x points on all purchases
- Earn 5x points on Lyft rides thru March 2022
- $20 Good Standing Rewards after each anniversary year for up to 5 years
- Credit limit increase after making 5 monthly payments on time within 10 months
- No Annual Fee
- Trip Cancellation/Interruption Insurance
- Purchase Protection
- Extended Warranty Protection
- Complimentary 3-month Dashpass membership when activated by 12/31/21
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The Core Chase Credit Cards (Business)
In Part 1 of the credit card hacking series, I talk about how business credit cards can be useful in this game. Most people don’t even realize that they can qualify for a business credit card!
But it really opens up more doors to be able to earn more and bypass some of the strict application rules that Chase has.
Most business cards opened at other institutions do not hit your personal credit report so they will not affect your 5/24 limit to be approved for a Chase card. Check out this post about which companies’ business cards you can get.
When applying for a Chase Business card, you will need to be under 5 cards in 24 months, BUT when approved, the business card will not add to that 5/24 number, which is great!
The Ink Business Unlimited Card
The Ink Business Unlimited works similarly to the Freedom Unlimited card, but it comes with a much higher bonus offer. It also has no annual fee and 0% interest for 12 months! This is like the ultimate option if you ask me!
Here are the benefits:
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- Earn unlimited 1.5x points on all purchases
- 0% intro APR for 12 months after opening
- No Annual Fee
- Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver (primary coverage when renting for business purposes)
- Travel and Emergency Assistance Services
- Roadside Dispatch
- Purchase Protection
- Extended Warranty Protection
- Employee Cards at no additional cost
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The Ink Business Cash Card
The Ink Business Cash card works in a similar way to the Freedom Flex card where you earn 5x points in specific categories. But it also comes with a much higher bonus, no annual fee, and 0% interest for the first 12 months!
Here are the benefits:
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- Earn 5x points on the first $25,000 spent in combined purchases at office supply stores and on internet, cable, and phone services each account anniversary year
- Earn 2x points on the first $25,000 spent in combined purchases at gas stations and restaurants each account anniversary year
- 0% intro APR for 12 months after opening
- No Annual Fee
- Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver (primary coverage when renting for business purposes)
- Travel and Emergency Assistance Services
- Roadside Dispatch
- Purchase Protection
- Extended Warranty Protection
- Employee Cards at no additional cost
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The Ink Business Preferred Card
And finally, the Ink Business Preferred card is the “premium” version of the Ink business cards as there is an annual fee that unlocks that ability to transfer to Chase’s Travel Partners.
Here are the benefits of the Ink Business Preferred:
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- $95 Annual Fee
- Earn 3x points on the first $150,000 spent in combined purchases in the following categories each account anniversary year:
- Shipping purchases
- Advertising purchases made with social media sites and search engines
- Internet, cable, and phone services
- Travel
- 25% increased redemption value when you redeem your points on Chase Travel
- Employee cards at no additional cost
- You are able to transfer Ultimate Rewards points to multiple Chase partners
- Trip Cancellation/Trip Interruption Insurance
- Roadside Dispatch
- Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver (primary coverage when renting for business purposes)
- Cell Phone Protection
- Purchase Protection
- Extended Warranty Protection
- No Foreign Transaction Fees
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Now that we have gone through all of the Chase credit cards you should have a good idea of the options available and the benefits you can get!
When choosing a card make sure you choose the best options for what you spend money on. If you don’t spend very much in the bonus categories on some of the cards, maybe the other cards that have an earning structure for all purchases will work best!
These cards all compliment each other very well too, so you can create a full wallet of Chase credit cards over time and continuously replenish your Ultimate Rewards balance!
The Partner Chase Credit Cards
Chase offers a wide range of partner credit cards as well! While I’m not going to go into all of the benefits of these cards, I will go through the highlights below!
The Southwest Airlines Cards
I love Southwest because they offer so many perks such as 2 free checked bags, no change fees, and more! They are really different from other airlines!
The Southwest credit cards are also great because they help you get the Southwest Companion Pass. Check out my post to see all the details.
Keep in mind for the companion pass you can only get 1 personal Southwest card so you have to get a business Southwest card to make up the rest!
Right now is a great time to apply though because they have increased offers on all of the personal cards!
Southwest Plus Card
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- $69 annual fee
- Earn 2x Southwest points on Southwest purchases
- Earn 1x points on all other purchases
- 3,000 bonus points after your cardmember anniversary every year
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Southwest Premier Card
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- $99 annual fee
- Earn 2x Southwest points on Southwest purchases
- Earn 1x points on all other purchases
- 6,000 bonus points after your cardmember anniversary every year
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Southwest Priority Card
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- $149 annual fee
- Earn 2x Southwest points on Southwest purchases
- Earn 1x points on all other purchases
- 7,500 bonus points after your cardmember anniversary every year
- $75 Southwest annual travel credit
- 4 upgraded boardings per year when available
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Southwest Premier Business Card
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- $99 annual fee
- Earn 2x Southwest points on Southwest purchases
- Earn 1x points on all other purchases
- 6,000 bonus points after your cardmember anniversary every year
- No foreign transaction fees
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Southwest Performance Business Card
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- $149 annual fee
- Earn 3x points on Southwest purchases
- Earn 2x points on social media and search engine advertising, internet, cable, and phone services
- 9,000 bonus points after your cardmember anniversary every year
- 4 upgraded boardings per year when available
- Inflight Wifi Credit
- Global Entry or TSA Pre-Check credit up to $100 every 4 years
- No foreign transaction fees
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The United Airlines Cards
I am also a fan of United airlines. When I was planning my trip to Europe last year, I chose United as our airline of choice because they had a wide range of flights and they offer the Excursionist perk!
United Gateway Card
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- Earn 2x miles on United purchases, gas stations, and local transit and commuting
- Earn 1x miles on all other purchases
- 25% back on United inflight purchases
- No annual fee
- No foreign transaction fees
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United Explorer Card
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- $0 intro annual fee for the first year, then $95
- Earn 2x miles on United purchases, dining and hotel stays
- Earn 1x miles on all other purchases
- Global Entry or TSA Pre-check credit up to $100 every 4 years
- 25% back on United inflight purchases
- Free first checked bag for the cardholder and one companion traveling on the same reservation
- Priority boarding
- 2 United Club Passes each anniversary
- No foreign transaction fees
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United Quest Card
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- $250 annual fee
- $125 annual United purchase credit each anniversary year
- Earn 3x miles on United purchases immediately after earning your $125 travel credit
- Earn 2x miles on all other travel, dining, and select streaming services
- Two 5,000 miles anniversary award flight credits
- Free first and second checked bags for the primary cardmember and one companion on the same reservation
- No foreign transaction fees
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United Club Infinite Card
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- $525 annual fee
- United Club membership – up to $650 value per year
- Earn 4x miles on United purchases
- Earn 2x miles on all other travel purchases and dining purchases
- Global Entry or TSA Pre-check credit up to $100 every 4 years
- 25% back on United inflight purchases
- Free first and second checked bags for the primary cardmember and one companion on the same reservation
- No foreign transaction fees
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United Business Card
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- $0 intro annual fee for the first year, then $99
- Earn 2x miles on all United purchases
- Earn 2x miles on dining, gas stations, office supply stores and on local transit and commuting
- Free first checked bag for the cardholder and one companion traveling on the same reservation
- Earn $100 United travel credit after qualifying flight purchases
- 5,000 bonus miles when you have the United Business card and a personal United card
- 25% back on inflight purchases
- Priority boarding
- Employee cards at no additional cost
- No foreign transaction fees
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British Airways Visa Signature Card
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- $95 annual fee
- Earn 5x Avios for every $1 spent on British Airways, Aer Lingus and Iberia flight purchases within the first 12 months from account opening, then 3x Avios thereafter
- Earn 3x Avios for every $1 spent on hotel accommodations within the first 12 months from account opening, then 2x Avios thereafter
- 10% off British Airways flights starting in the US when you book thru the specified website
- Up to $600 in Reward Flight Statement Credits
- Earn a Travel Together Ticket every calendar year you make $30,000 in purchases on your card
- No foreign transaction fees
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Aer Lingus Visa Signature Card
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- $95 annual fee
- Earn 5x Avios for every $1 spent on British Airways, Aer Lingus, and Iberia flight purchases within the first 12 months from account opening, then 3x Avios thereafter
- Earn 3x Avios for every $1 spent on hotel accommodations within the first 12 months from account opening, then 2x Avios thereafter
- Commercial Airline Companion Ticket each year you make $30,000 in purchases on your card
- Priority boarding for you and any authorized users
- No foreign transactions fees
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Iberia Visa Signature Card
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- $95 annual fee
- Earn 5x Avios for every $1 spent on British Airways, Aer Lingus and Iberia flight purchases within the first 12 months from account opening, then 3x Avios thereafter
- Earn 3x Avios for every $1 spent on hotel accommodations within the first 12 months from account opening, then 2x Avios thereafter
- $1,000 Airfare Discount Voucher each calendar year
- 10% discount on airfare
- No foreign transaction fees
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The Marriott Cards
Marriott Bonvoy Bold Card
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- No annual fee
- Earn up to 14x points on Marriott purchases
- Earn 2x points on other travel purchases
- 15 Elite Night Credits annually
- No foreign transaction fees
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Marriott Bonvoy Boundless Card
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- $95 annual fee
- Earn up to 17x points on Marriott Purchases
- Earn 2x points on all other purchases
- Free Night Award every anniversary
- No foreign transaction fees
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World of Hyatt Credit Card
This is one of my favorite cards right now because they have made it easier to earn their elite status recently! Great hotels and they offer some great benefits!
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- $95 Annual Fee
- Earn up to 9x points on Hyatt purchases
- Earn 2x points on dining, airline tickets purchased from the airline, local transit and commuting as well as fitness club and gym memberships
- Get a free night every year after your cardmember anniversary
- No foreign transaction fees
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IHG Rewards Club Premier Card
This card has a great bonus offer right now worth checking out!
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- $0 intro annual fee, $89 every year after
- Earn up to 25x points at IHG Hotels and Resorts
- Earn 2x points on gas stations, grocery stores, and dining
- Anniversary night every year
- Fourth Reward Night Free
- No foreign transaction fees
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Disney Visa Card
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- No annual fee
- 0% promotional APR for 6 months on select Disney vacation packages from the date of purchase
- Save 10% on select Disney and Star Wars purchases at Disney Store and shopDisney.com
- Earn 1x points on all card purchases
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Disney Premier Visa Card
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- $49 annual fee
- 0% promotional APR for 6 months on select Disney vacation packages from the date of purchase
- Save 10% on select Disney and Star Wars purchases at Disney Store and shopDisney.com
- Earn 2x points on grocery stores, restaurants, gas stations, and Disney locations
- Redeem rewards for a statement credit towards airline travel
- 11 card designs to choose from
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Starbucks Rewards Visa Card
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- $0 annual fee the first year, then $49
- 300 Bonus Stars instantly when you use your card to digitally load your Starbucks card
- Pick your Perk once per month throughout 2021
- Earn up to 3x stars on Starbucks
- Earn 1x star per $2 spent at grocery stores, local transit, internet, cable, and phone services
- Earn 1x star per $4 spent everywhere else
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Amazon Prime Rewards Visa Signature Card
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- No annual fee
- Earn 5% back at Amazon.com and Whole Foods Market with eligible Prime membership
- Earn 2% back at restaurants, gas stations, and drugstore
- No foreign transaction fees
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Chase Ultimate Rewards Program
For me personally, I love Chase’s Ultimate Rewards program! Mainly because of the flexibility it offers! All of the core Chase credit cards will earn you Ultimate Rewards points.
Ultimate Rewards points can be redeemed for the following:
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- Cashback
- Travel
- Gift cards
- Amazon purchases
- Apple purchases
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The value of Ultimate Rewards points varies based on how you redeem them. In general, by redeeming your points for cash back, gift cards, and Apple purchases you will get 1 cent per point, which is the same as 100 points for $1.
However, Chase offers discounts on some gift cards from time to time.
If you use your points for Amazon purchases you will get 0.8 cents per point. This is the worst redemption you can use your points for. And there are other point systems you can redeem on Amazon for 1 cent per point.
Redeeming your points for travel is really where you are going to get the best value for your points.
Transfer to Travel Partners
Transferring your Ultimate Rewards points to travel partners will most likely get you the best value per point.
Value Penguin estimates that you can get anywhere from 2 cents to 4 cents per point when transferring to a travel partner!
One thing to note, though, make sure it is a transfer you are definitely going to use! Because once you transfer the points you can’t move them back.
Book Travel on Chase Travel
I’ve seen a lot of people say recently that this isn’t a great value for redeeming your points. But I actually like it! Especially if you have the Sapphire Preferred and get a 25% boost or the Sapphire Reserve and get a 50% boost!
What I like about the Ultimate Rewards program is that I can adjust how many points I use. It’s not all or nothing like you usually have to book on hotel and flight websites.
I recently booked two one-way flights that would have been $145 per person but used 8,000 points to bring the cost down by $50 per person. This may not make sense to everyone but it works for me in the right situations when I don’t want to use too many points on one flight or hotel!
Strategy for Chase Credit Cards
So if you are brand new to Chase credit cards and/or credit cards in general, I would recommend getting one of the Freedom cards to begin with. This is an easy entry-level credit card that will help boost your Ultimate Rewards balance off the bat! It also has that 0% interest rate for 15 months which is an awesome bonus!
Then I would shoot for the Chase Sapphire Preferred to boost those rewards even higher and to take advantage of the travel-related benefits on any upcoming trips.
Next on the list, I would go for one of the Ink Cards if you have a small business that can qualify. This will give you another big boost in points to use however you want!
From there, I would see what other cards are out there from other issuers or if you want some of the branded Chase cards those are great as well!
Final Thoughts on Chase Credit Cards and Credit Card Hacking
Chase credit cards are the easiest and best credit cards to get started credit card hacking with! And they offer a great long term-value that makes them a no-brainer to carry all the time!
When it comes to redemptions, I used to stress about if I was getting the biggest value or not for my points but it was overwhelming and almost paralyzing me from actually booking anything! But one day I read points are meant to be used, so use them!
That kind of changed my outlook on credit card hacking! While I don’t like redeeming points for cash or gift cards, I try to get as close to 2 cents per point value but don’t fully stress if it’s not the best.
So I hope you found a great card or two to open for Chase! Let me know in the comments what your favorite Chase card is!