You know how much I love FREE money, right? Well, here's another easy way to get cash back on your purchases with just a bit of planning.
It's called Chase offers. You may get an email alerting you of your offers or you can sign in to your account.
How do we do it? We take advantage of the bonus offers on credit cards. And right now, credit cards are coming out strong to lure you into applying. Currently, there are 100,000 plus bonus offers from Chase Sapphire Preferred, Hilton, IHG, and Capital One Venture. So the question is should you jump in and if so, which one?
I'm going to break it down for you and try to make it as simple as possible so you can take advantage of these amazing offers to get FREE travel down the road for your family.
So Many 100,00 Plus Bonus Offers Right Now
Okay here goes. Yes, you definitely should jump in and apply. That's a no-brainer. These offers are too good to pass up, some are the highest bonus offers we have ever seen. And bonus offers translate into FREE travel so yes, do it.
Now, which card or cards should you apply for? That one is more difficult so let me help you.
My number one go-to card is the Chase Sapphire Preferred credit card. So if you don't really know where you want to travel or have a specific need, then apply for this card first. 100,000 Ultimate Reward points equal approximately $1250 in FREE travel or cashback. You can get more value from these points too if you transfer them to more than a dozen airline partners or hotel partners Or if you use them to buy travel through the Chase Travel Portal.
Which one should you choose
The second choice would be a tie for me between the Hilton American Express Surpass card or the Capital One Venture card. Both carry a $95 annual fee, but obviously, the Hilton card earns Hilton points good at only Hilton brand hotels. On our last few trips to Eastern Europe and Panama, we stayed in Hampton by Hilton. This brand is great for families because you can easily get 5 people in a room (2 double/queen beds and a sofa pullout) plus it includes breakfast. Our breakfast in Panama City, Panama and Krakow, Poland were phenomenal. And the price tag for these hotels is 5,000-10,000 per night. Wow!
Now the Capital One Venture card earns Capital One points which are great because you can use them to essentially erase any travel purchase. So there is no fuss with this card. No need to transfer points to partners. You just use the card to make the purchase and then log into your account and erase it. You can erase the whole purchase or a part of it. Super easy. The minimum spend for this one is hefty so be prepared.
You can only get the Capital One Venture card once in your lifetime. If you had the Hilton Ascend card, you are not eligible for the Surpass. American Express will only approve you for two cards in a 90 day period. American Express also offers a tool that will tell you when you apply if you qualify for the bonus before you submit.
My number one choice
The IHG card would be my last choice, but I know people who love IHG and will buy points when they go on sale with the 100% match. IHG points are good within the IHG brand which includes Holiday Inn and Holiday Inn Express.
You can check out the benefits for each card which may sway you one way or the other.
For me, the Chase Sapphire Preferred is my number one choice! If you decide to apply for one of these cards, please consider using my referral link. You get an awesome deal and I get a few points for referring you.
Two great new offers from Chase today! Probably the highest ever bonus offer we have ever seen for the Chase Sapphire Preferred credit card, 80,000 points. Wow! 80,000 Chase Ultimate Rewards points can be worth up to $1,000 in travel or right now, $925 in FREE groceries.
So who is eligible for this card? According to Chase, if you have never held a Sapphire credit card before, you are eligible OR if it's been at least 48 months since you have held a Sapphire credit card, you are eligible.
The fine details include a $95 annual fee which is not waived for the first year and $4,000 minimum spend in the first three months.
The Sapphire Preferred is one of my favorite travel cards because Ultimate Rewards points are so flexible. You can transfer them to dozens of airlines plus several hotel chains. You can also use them in the Chase travel portal with a 25% bonus. Through the end of the month, you can also pay yourself back by using the points at a 25% bonus to erase grocery purchases.
One of the best benefits of the no fee Chase FREEDOM family of cards is the rotating 5% categories. Every quarter, Chase offers bonus points categories where you earn 5x Chase Ultimate Rewards points on those purchases. The categories include streaming services, Amazon, gas purchases, wholesale clubs and more.
Chase Ultimate Rewards points are one of my favorites due to their flexibility. You can transfer them to dozens of airlines, a few hotels including Hyatt, use them to buy FREE travel through the Chase Travel Portal or just get cash back.
Plus if you partner the card with a Chase Sapphire Preferred or Reserve card, you increase the value of the points again. Read about my trick on how to do that here. and which one I prefer.
Now is the time to activate the bonus categories for Q3. You have until September 14th to activate and it is retroactive, but I usually do it right away.
The categories for Q3 are:
Definitely make a note that when I checked the Chase website for clarification on car rental agencies, car rentals booked through travel agencies, discount travel sites, vacation clubs, tour operators or as part of a package will not count.
If you book through Costco.com which is my favorite way to book, I think it should still count since you pay at the car rental agency and not thru Costco.
Live Entertainment includes tickets for in person entertainment like sporting events, zoos aquariums, concerts, theatre, museums, concerts, theatre, tourist attractions, amusement parks, carnivals, bands and entertainers. NOT included in this category are bowling alleys, horse racing, casinos and dance clubs. Ticket agencies selling on behalf of the venue are included.
So live it up this summer and remember to use your Chase FREEDOM card to rack up the points for future FREE travel! Woohoo.
If you do not have a Chase FREEDOM Unlimited or FLEX, use my referral link and you will get a $200 bonus when you spend just $500 in the first 3 months. This is the perfect no annual fee card and a great go to card. Plus if you max out the bonus categories and transfer them to your Chase Sapphire Preferred card, you increase the value of the points.
If you don't have the Chase Sapphire Preferred card yet, it's one of my faves. Right now, you can earn a bonus 60,000 points for a $4,000 minimum spend. Not as great an offer as the 80,000 points I told you about last month, but still worth $750 in the travel portal. Please consider using my referral link if you decide to apply.
I'll run down the difference between the cards in a minute, but first, I have to share with you why I love Chase Ultimate Reward points and what you can do with all those bonus points.
This past summer, I took my family to Ireland, you can check out my blog to read all about this amazing country and people.
But I used Chase Ultimate Reward points to erase the cost of all of our Airbnb stays during the trip, much of our dining and one plane ticket. I love these points because of how flexible they are. You can transfer them to dozens of airlines, Hyatt, Marriott and IHG. You can erase purchases just like a Capital One card. You can buy travel with them in the Chase Travel Portal. Plus if you have a Sapphire Preferred or Reserve card, you can combine your Ink CUR points and get even more value.
So what's this new offer all about? and which card should you choose?
The Chase Ink Business Unlimited - No annual fee! 1.5% cash back or 1.5x points on every purchase.
The Chase Ink Business Cash - No annual fee! 5% cash back or 5x points at office supply stores, phone, internet, and cable. This is the card I have had for years! 2% or 2x points at gas stations and restaurants and 1% or 1x points at everything else.
The Chase Ink Business Preferred - $95 annual fee. 3% cash back or 3x points on shipping, advertising on social media sites, internet, cable and phone services and travel. 1% or 1x points on everything else.
Look at the types of purchases your business makes to determine which credit card makes sense for you to leverage your spending for maximum points. And remember, your "business" doesn't have to be a Fortune 500 company. A business can easily be selling items on Etsy or Ebay, freelance services, property management, vacation rentals and more.
You can hold all of these INK cards at the same time, but you can't get the bonus on any of these cards more than once every 24 months.
And you can transfer your the CUR points from your INK account to your Chase Sapphire Preferred or Reserve card and bam, almostFREEfamilytravel.
Amazing!
Please consider using our referral ink if you apply for any of these credit cards. Thank you for your support.
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