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MMS loves Chase Ultimate Rewards points. They’re responsible for tidying up our lengthy bucket lists, like trips to the Maldives, lie-flat business class flights to Europe, and regular ol’ domestic jaunts to see grandma for Thanksgiving. They serve all purposes.
So if there’s ever an opportunity to earn more of them, it’s a no-brainer. If you make any kind of purchases online, you should know about Shop Through Chase. You could earn tons of extra points for purchases you planned to make anyway.
I’ll tell you everything you need to know about this valuable Chase feature.
What is Shop Through Chase?
Shop Through Chase is exactly what it sounds like – an online shopping portal. If you don’t already use shopping portals with regularity, read our post on how to earn bonus miles and points shopping online.
With Chase’s proprietary shopping portal, you can earn bonus Chase Ultimate Rewards points at hundreds of stores. Making purchases through the Chase portal will not disrupt or alter your experience with each retailer in any way. You’ll be shopping on the store’s official website.
Depending on which merchant you use, you may receive 15+ Chase points per dollar for your order (though it’s much more common to earn 5 points or less per dollar). We estimate that Chase points value averages around 1.7 cents each. If you’re getting 15 points per dollar, that’s like getting 25.5% back for your purchase!
How to access the Chase Shopping Portal
If you’ve got a card that earns Chase Ultimate Rewards points, you have access to Shop Through Chase. Cards that earn Ultimate Rewards include:
- Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
- Chase Sapphire Reserve®
- Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card
- Ink Business Cash Credit Card
- Ink Business Unlimited Credit Card
- Chase Freedom Flex℠
- Chase Freedom Unlimited®
Many cards that Chase markets as cash back cards actually earn Chase points (for which you have the option of redeeming for cash). If you’ve got one of the above cards, here’s how to find Shop Through Chase.
Step 1. Head to the Chase Ultimate Rewards site
Sign in to the Chase Ultimate Rewards website. If you’ve got more than one Ultimate Rewards earning card, you’ll have to choose one to continue. I’ll go with my Chase Freedom Unlimited.
Step 2. Click “Earn Bonus Points”
Once at the landing page of your account, you’ll see an “Earn/Use” drop-down menu at the top. Click that, and you’ll be presented with over a dozen buttons. Select the shopping bag, which says “Earn Bonus Points.”
Step 3. Choose a merchant
You’re in! You can now browse the multiple hundreds of retailers to find stores that you regularly shop at. When you click a store, the site will take you to the official merchant website. You’ll get the bonus points Chase specifies as long as you checkout during the same session you entered from the Chase shopping portal.
How to use Shop Through Chase
Using the portal is largely self-explanatory, though there are a couple of tips to mention:
You can use pretty much any card with Shop Through Chase
Just because this shopping portal is owned by Chase doesn’t mean you have to use a Chase card for your purchase. A lot of merchants will trigger bonus points with your credit card. Use whichever rewards credit card will benefit you the most – you’ll earn bonus Chase points on top of the rewards you’ll earn with your credit card.
For example, if you make a $100 purchase with an Amex credit card that earns 2 points per dollar, and you shop through a merchant that offers 5 Chase points per dollar, you’ll earn a total of 700 points – 200 Amex points and 500 Chase points.
Compare each store’s bonus
It’s easy to develop a one-track-mind when shopping online. If you’re after an item you saw at Staples, you may head directly from the Chase shopping portal to the Staples website. But just as you compare prices from different merchants, be sure to compare portal bonuses, too.
For example, if you want to buy a Samsung TV, make sure to look at all sites that sell electronics. You’ll probably find that you’ll earn more bonus points from a site like Overstock.com than Samsung.com. Just make sure the price isn’t higher!
You should also read our post on Cashback Monitor to see if the Chase portal is even the best option for your purchase.
Let Chase help you
When you first access the Shop Through Chase, you’ll be given the chance to choose stores you frequent so Chase can keep you updated on them, and help them to recommend things that are relevant to your lifestyle. You can also opt in to emails from Chase when promotions arise.
Watch for different bonuses based on Chase card
OCCASIONALLY, you may see a higher portal bonus on one account as opposed to another. For example, your Chase Freedom card may be showing 2 points per dollar at your favorite merchant, while the Chase Sapphire Preferred may show 3 points per dollar. It’s annoying to have to check all your cards, but if the purchase is big it could be well worth it.
Main stores to buy from
From the Shop Through Chase homepage, you can click “View all stores,” and then sort by earning rate. It’s easy to scan the list of stores to see if you can take advantage of big limited-time bonuses.
If you instead know what you want to buy, you can simply enter your store in the search bar. Top stores (with their current bonuses) include:
- Macy’s – 6 points per dollar
- Banana Republic – 4 points per dollar
- Restaurant.com – 20 points per dollar
- Ray-Ban – 4 points per dollar
- Under Armour – 8 points per dollar
- Bass Pro Shops – 5 points per dollar
- Eagle Creek – 4 points per dollar
Main benefits of Shop through Chase
Again, we estimate Chase points are worth 1.7 cents each. If you were to use the Chase Freedom Unlimited for $100 at Ray-Ban with its current 4x bonus, that would be like getting a return of 9.3% back:
- 4 points per dollar via the shopping portal (estimated 6.8% return)
- 1.5 points per dollar for using the Freedom Unlimited (estimated 2.5% return)
Not bad! Just remember, shopping portals have a way of lulling you into making purchases you weren’t actually planning to make. Don’t fall into this trap, or you’re saving no money at all.
While there is undeniable value in the Shop Through Chase, the feature itself isn’t worth opening a Chase credit card. Other shopping portals often have a more generous return.
However, Chase Ultimate Rewards are our favorite points currency because of their super valuable transfer partners. You should absolutely have an Ultimate Rewards earning card whether you want to use this Shopping portal or not.
If you want to learn more, read our post on the Chase Trifecta. This is the best credit card strategy in the free travel game. And check out the best ways to use Chase points – you’ll be blown away with the value you can receive if you know how to leverage them for free travel.
FAQs
How can I maximize earnings with the Chase shopping portal?
Again, make sure you’re being strategic with the credit card you use for your purchases. Pay attention to bonus categories.
A great example is the Ink Business Cash, which earns 5% back (5x points) at Staples (up to $25,000 in combined purchases each account anniversary year). If you plan to make a purchase at Staples, using your Ink Business Cash will net you 5 points per dollar ON TOP OF your bonus via the Chase portal (2 points per dollar at the time of writing).
How can I find the best deals?
Besides research, you can let Chase notify you when it thinks you’ll be interested in something. When you sign-on, you should see this popup:
Alternately, be sure to use Cashback Monitor every time you’re going to make an online purchase. It will tell you which shopping portal is offering the best return.
Is there a limit of points that I can earn with Shop through Chase?
There’s no limit to the number of points you can earn through the Chase portal. The more you spend, the more you’ll earn. But as stated above, make sure you’re not shopping just to earn points. It’s easy to go broke trying to save money.
Can I use my points for Shop through Chase purchases?
Shop Through Chase is a way to earn points – not redeem. However, there are plenty of ways to redeem your points for merchandise, gift cards, etc. Redemption rates are often very poor, so we recommend using your Chase points exclusively for travel, as you could get two or three times the value for them this way.
One exception is with Chase Pay Yourself Back. You can redeem your points for groceries, home improvement stores, and dining at a decent rate:
- Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card – 1.25 cents per point
- Chase Sapphire Reserve® – 1.5 cents per point
These rates are the same you’d receive when redeeming your points for travel through the Chase Travel Portal.
Read our post on how to use Chase points for tips and tricks. And if you’re trying to decide between the above cards, read our comparison post between the Chase Sapphire Preferred vs the Chase Sapphire Reserve.
Bottom line
Shop Through Chase can earn you tons of points on everyday purchases. It doesn’t always provide the best return between the myriad of online shopping portals, but it does collect our favorite currency, Chase Ultimate Rewards points.
Let us know if you’ve used this portal before! We’d love to hear if we missed any tricks to using the feature.
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