Don’t Forget! Earn 5X in New Bonus Categories With These Cards
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Update: One or more card offers in this post are no longer available. Check our Hot Deals for the latest offers. This page includes information about the Discover products that are not currently available on Million Mile Secrets and may be out of date.If you have a Chase Freedom, Discover it® Cash Back, or US Bank Cash+ card, don’t forget to activate these bonuses to earn more points and cash back on your everyday spending!
You’ll be able to earn bonuses for spending at grocery stores, warehouse clubs, home improvement stores, and more, depending on which card you have.
I’ll share this quarter’s categories. And show you how to register your cards!
Cards That Earn 5X Points Spring 2017
1. Chase Freedom
Link: Chase Freedom
Link: My Review of the Chase Freedom
Link: Activate the Chase Freedom Bonus
Through June 30, 2017, you’ll earn 5X Chase Ultimate Rewards points (5% cash back) on up to $1,500 in combined spending at grocery stores and drugstores, with the Chase Freedom card when you activate the bonus by June 14, 2017.
Unfortunately, purchases at department stores that sell groceries, like Walmart and Target, do NOT qualify.
When you have the Chase Sapphire Reserve, Sapphire Preferred, Ink Business Preferred Credit Card, Ink Bold (no longer available), or the Ink Plus (no longer available), you can transfer your Chase Ultimate Rewards points to airline and hotel partners like United Airlines and Hyatt for Big Travel!
Here’s my full review of the Chase Freedom card.
2. Discover it Cash Back
Link: Discover it Cash Back
Through June 30, 2017, you’ll earn 5% cash back on up to $1,500 in purchases at home improvement stores and wholesale clubs (like Costco!) with the Discover it Cash Back card.
Just remember, you must activate the bonus before you shop. And if you shop at wholesale clubs, make sure you know if you can use the card in-store or if you must buy items online to pay with your Discover it Cash Back card. Because, for example, Costco does NOT accept Discover cards in-store, only online.
And if you’re a new cardmember, Discover will automatically match all the cash back you’ve earned after the first 12 billing cycles.
So you can effectively earn 10% cash back on the rotating bonus categories, which is a great deal!
For folks who already have the card, you’re eligible to get a 2nd card if you’ve had the 1st card at least 1 year.
3. US Bank Cash+
Link: US Bank Cash+
Link: US Bank Cash+ Categories
Each quarter with the US Bank Cash+ card, you can choose new bonus spending categories. And it’s important to pick your categories, because if you don’t, you’ll only earn 1% cash back on all spending until next quarter!
You can pick two 5% cash back categories and one 2% cash back category (gas stations, groceries, or restaurants).
There are lots of 5% cash back categories, including a new travel category for ground transportation! Here are a few ideas, but check the merchant examples for others:
- Bookstores – Barnes & Noble, Amazon Kindle Books, and some university bookstores. Note: Some folks say they’ve received 5% back on many Amazon purchases besides books with this category.
- Car Rental – Avis, Budget, National Car Rental
- Cell Phone – AT&T, T-Mobile, Verizon
- Department Stores – Bloomingdales, JC Penney, Nordstrom Rack
- Electronics Stores – Best Buy, Fry’s Electronics, TigerDirect
- Fast Food – Chipotle, Panera Bread, Starbucks, and Cold Stone Creamery
- Furniture Stores – American Furniture, Ethan Allen, IKEA
- Ground Transportation – Amtrak, Metro Transit, Uber, and NYC Taxis
- Gyms – 24 Hour Fitness, Gold’s Gym, LA Fitness
- Movie Theaters – AMC Theatres, Fandango.com, Regal Cinemas
- Select Clothing Stores – Ann Taylor, Eddie Bauer, Old Navy
- Sporting Good Stores – Big 5 Sporting Goods, REI, Sports Authority
Don’t Want the Hassle of Tracking Rotating Bonus Categories?
Some cards have terrific cash back bonuses all the time at stores where you can pick up a variety of items!
For example:
- Blue Cash Preferred® Card from American Express – 6% cash back at US supermarkets; then 1% (on up to $6,000 in spending per year) and 3% cash back at US gas stations. Terms apply.
- SimplyCash® Plus Business Credit Card from American Express – 5% cash back at US office supply stores. Terms apply.
Or consider cards which offer bonus miles, points, or cash back on all spending, like:
- Barclaycard Arrival Plus World Elite Mastercard – 2X Arrival miles on all purchases, worth 2.1% back when redeemed for $100+ travel expenses
- Discover it® Miles – 1.5 miles per $1 you spend (worth 1.5% back), matched at the end of the first year, for an effective 3% back on all purchases
Bottom Line
You can earn extra points & cash back in categories like grocery stores, home improvement stores, and wholesale clubs, with Chase Freedom, Discover it Cash Back, and US Bank Cash+. The bonus categories vary depending on which card you have, and are good through June 30, 2017.
Just remember you must activate the new bonus categories to earn the extra points or cash back!
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