Chase Freedom Flex and Freedom are excellent no annual fee cards thanks to their quarterly 5% categories. While the rewards are marketed as 5% cash back, you’ll actually get 5 Ultimate Rewards points per dollar spent which can be worth much more than 5% cash.
If you max out the $1,500 in bonus spending per quarter you will earn at least 30,000 Ultimate Rewards points over the course of a year (7,500 points per quarter at 5 points per dollar spent) per Freedom card.
You can register now and start spending on the Chase Freedom Q3 5% categories which will be valid 7/1-9/30 at:
- EV Charging
- Gas stations
- This includes gas and anything sold inside gas stations as well.
- Select Live Entertainment and movie theaters
- Includes in-person entertainment such as major sporting events, zoos and aquariums, concerts, theatrical productions, museums, tourist attractions and exhibits, amusement parks, circuses, carnivals, bands, and entertainers. Ticket agencies selling on behalf of the entertainment venue are included.
You can track your Freedom bonus spending here.
You can currently earn a $200 signup bonus in the form of 20,000 Ultimate Rewards points for spending $500 on the Freedom Flex Mastercard. Plus you’ll earn 3 points per dollar on drugstore and dining purchases and 5 points per dollar on all Travel purchased through Chase Travel.
While Chase Freedom Flex is a great card for the bonus categories, it’s not a great card for everyday spending. However, the Chase Freedom Unlimited® card also has no annual fee and earns 3-6.5 points per dollar on up to $20K in spending during your first 12 months. Plus it’s excellent for everyday spending thanks to 1.5 points per dollar that can be earned everywhere with no limit, though it doesn’t have rotating 5x categories. Read more about the Freedom Unlimited card here.
The no annual fee business version of Freedom Unlimited is the Ink Business Unlimited® Credit Card, which offers $750 in the form of 75,000 Chase Ultimate Rewards points after spending $6,000 within 3 months plus 1.5 points per dollar spent.
Freedom, Freedom Unlimited, and Ink Unlimited alone can’t transfer points into much more lucrative airline or hotel miles, but if you or your spouse has an Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card, Chase Sapphire Reserve®, or Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card, then you can transfer points from Freedom to one of those cards and from there to your favorite travel currency. Those cards also allow you to redeem your points for paid travel at a value of 1.25 or 1.5 cents per point. The Freedom, Freedom Unlimited, or Ink Unlimited card can also keep your points alive for free if you do close one of those premium cards.
The value of the points will be based on where you use them, but if you use those points for a trip worth where they are worth 2 cents each then you’ll have effectively earned 10% back on those “5 point categories.” The sky is the limit of the value of airline miles as they aren’t tied to the cost of a ticket. That’s good for people in the know and bad for those who are not. 1 mile can be worth 0.25 cents or it can be worth 25 cents, it all just depends on how you use them!
Where will you make your Q3 purchases?
Leave a Reply
10 Comments On "Chase Freedom’s Q3 5x Bonus Categories Are Live"
All opinions expressed below are user generated and the opinions aren’t provided, reviewed or endorsed by any advertiser or DansDeals.
Can someone please verify if the 5% for gas includes Costco gas?
Thank you.
Yes, it should work at the pump.
I’m asking because this quarter Citi Dividend is also giving 5% for gas, but it seems like it doesn’t include wholesale store gas (i.e. Costco & BJs).
It has worked for me in the past on Freedom.
Thanks.
I think the bigger issue with Citi Dividend is that it is a MasterCard and Costco only accepts Visa.
Does the 5% for gas stations include foreign (in Israel)? I know I would pay 3% foreign transaction fee, but it would still be worth it overall.
Yes.
That’s interesting, never thought of that. Especially if you have CSR that’s 7.5% efffective for 3% forex fee, certainly worth it.
If you can find a gas station in Israel that accepts Discover (Diners Club), there is no FTF.