Chase Freedom Announces 1st Quarter Categories for 2018

The Chase Freedom card is easily one of the best cash-back cards on the market, and for more reasons than one. Not only do we love the fact that this card offers 5 percent back on your first $1,500 spent in bonus categories that rotate every quarter, but we love the fact you can pool your points with premier Chase travel cards like the Chase Sapphire Preferred and Chase Sapphire Reserve. Of course, it doesn’t hurt that the Chase Freedom doesn’t have an annual fee, either.

Chase Freedom Announces New Categories

Well now there’s even more good news. After much anticipation, Chase has announced the first bonus category for the first quarter of 2018, which will last from the beginning of January through the end of March.

For the first quarter of next year, you’ll earn 5 percent back on:

• gas stations
• internet, cable, and phone services
• Chase Pay, Samsung Pay, Apple Pay, and Android Pay

Since Chase Freedom categories have been fairly predictable in the past, this new category ushers in some additional ways to rack up rewards.

Get the Most Out of Your Chase Freedom Card

With Chase Pay, Samsung Pay, Apple Pay, and Android Pay on the table, it may be a lot easier to reach the $1,500 spending cap for 5 percent rewards than in the past. Of course, it really depends on your spending style and the type of stores you shop at.

Each app is available to be used at participating stores, which means that, unfortunately, you can’t use them wherever you want. If you have an Apple device and install Apple Pay, for example, there are a little over 100 stores to choose from. You can find your options here. While there are some stores you’d probably never shop at, you can earn 5 percent next quarter using Apple Pay when you shop at Best Buy, Big Lots, GameStop, Kohls, Macys, Old Navy, PetSmart, along with other big brands.

If you have Apple Pay or one of the other apps, make sure to check which stores are participating so you can rack up 5 percent each time you make a purchase there.

Also remember that the 5 percent cash-back is good on your total purchases in all categories, including gas stations, internet, cable, and phone. To make the most of this category, make sure to use your Chase Freedom card for those purchases, too.

Max Out Your Benefit Further

While cash-back credit cards are great on their own, the real benefit of the Chase Freedom card is the fact that you can pair it with a premier travel credit card for optimal travel redemptions. If you have the Chase Sapphire Preferred, Chase Sapphire Reserve, or Ink Preferred Business Card, for example, you can pool all your points in those accounts and use them to book travel through the Chase portal with a discount.

Even better, you can transfer your points 1:1 to popular hotel and airline loyalty programs like Southwest Airlines, World of Hyatt, Marriott Rewards, British Airways, IHG Rewards, and more.

 

Do you have the Chase Freedom card? Why or why not?