The Chase Freedom card offers 5X the points on rotating quarterly categories. You can earn 5X on up to $1,500 worth of spend on these categories which means you can net up to 7,500 points each quarter. Since you can earn all of these points while not ever paying an annual fee the Chase Freedom is one of my most recommended credit cards.
The new Freedom Q1 categories
Chase just announced that the new first quarter category will consist of the following:
- Gas stations
- Internet/Cable/Phone Services
- Chase Pay, Android Pay, Apple Pay, Samsung Pay
It’s interesting to see that Chase has stacked so many categories together this quarter but this should make it a lot easier for many people to max out these categories.
If you have an older Chase Ink Plus it’s a bit of a let down to see internet, cable, and phone services earn 5X since you already earn that year-round.
However, the addition of mobile wallet payments, such as Chase Pay, Android Pay, Samsung Pay, and Apple Pay is pretty huge.
Samsung Pay can often be used at more merchants since it mimics the magnetic strip on a credit card utilizing MST technology. The Altitude Reserve offers 3X when using Samsung Pay (among other mobile wallet purchases) and that made the card extremely popular, so 5X on Samsung Pay is very nice.
Even though Apple Pay and Chase Pay may not be accepted as broadly, you should still be able to find plenty of places that take mobile payments. Grocery stores, pharmacies, and some public transport stations often accept mobile payments as do a number of department stores and restaurants.
These type of categories make it very tempting to utilize two Chase Freedom cards (or more). Now that Chase limits you to one Sapphire card this is harder to do, but you could always inquire with Chase about downgrading your Sapphire or product changing a Freedom Unlimited to a Freedom so that you could earn up to 15,000 points per quarter. If Chase continues to make it this easy to max out the 5X categories with new additions, this could be worth it for some, especially couples who only need one of each Chase card.
Daniel Gillaspia is the Founder of UponArriving.com and the credit card app, WalletFlo. He is a former attorney turned travel expert covering destinations along with TSA, airline, and hotel policies. Since 2014, his content has been featured in publications such as National Geographic, Smithsonian Magazine, and CNBC. Read my bio.
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