Chase Ultimate Rewards is one of the most popular credit card rewards programs. If you’re not a Chase Ultimate Rewards user, here’s what you should know before you join. And for current Chase cardholders, learn how to maximize your rewards. Here’s our comprehensive guide to Chase Ultimate Rewards.
- What Is Chase Ultimate Rewards
- How to Earn Chase Ultimate Rewards
- How Much Are Chase Ultimate Rewards Points Worth?
- Cards That Earn Chase Ultimate Rewards
- Business Cards That Earn Chase Ultimate Rewards
- How to Redeem Chase Ultimate Rewards
- How To Transfer Your Points
- How to Keep Track of Your Chase Ultimate Rewards
- FAQS
- Final Thoughts
What Is Chase Ultimate Rewards
Chase Ultimate Rewards is the points program Chase uses for its rewards credit cards. Many cards fall under the Chase Ultimate Rewards program, including travel and cash back credit cards.
All Chase Ultimate Rewards credit cards earn at least 1 point per dollar spent, plus more points on certain purchases. For example, some cards offer 5 points per dollar spent on travel and 3 points per dollar on dining.
You can redeem your points for various rewards, including cash back and travel rewards. Some Chase credit cards also offer the option to trade your points for experiences or special culinary reservations. We’ll list all the ways you can redeem your points further down below.
Most rewards are the equivalent of 1 cent per point, but a few may be worth a little less than that, such as Amazon payments. If you use your Chase rewards to ‘Shop with Points’ on Amazon, you’ll get about 0.8 cents per point. All other rewards, including cash back, gift cards, and Apple purchases are worth 1 cent per point.
You can get the best value using your points for travel booked through the Chase Ultimate Rewards Travel portal. With certain cards, such as the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card and Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card, you can get 1.25 cents per point for travel booked through Chase. The Chase Sapphire Reserve® gets 1.5 cents per point redeemed.
You can also transfer your points to any of Chase’s travel partners (hotels and airlines) to pay your travel expenses. We’ll dive further into how much Chase Ultimate Rewards are worth below.
How to Earn Chase Ultimate Rewards
There are a few ways to earn Chase Ultimate Rewards in addition to standard purchases. Here’s how to collect Chase Ultimate Rewards.
Signup Bonuses
Each of the Chase Ultimate Rewards credit cards offers a signup bonus. Some bonuses are cash bonuses of $50 – $200. Other cards offer bonus points ranging from 60,000 – 140,000 points, and some travel cards offer 3 – 5 free nights in a hotel. Make sure you read through the terms for earning the signup bonus, so you don’t miss out on earning your cash back or rewards.
Also keep in mind that Chase offers increased signup bonuses on select cards from time to time. We keep track of credit cards with signup bonuses here.
Purchases
Most purchases earn points with Chase Ultimate Rewards. For example, the Chase Freedom Unlimited card earns 5% back on travel, 3% on dining and drugstores, and 1.5% on everything else. Other cards, like the Chase Sapphire Preferred card, earn points for travel (5x), dining (3x), and all other purchases (2x).
Authorized Users
Some Chase cards offer a one-time bonus, kind of like a sign-up bonus, when you add an authorized user at sign up. Other cards offer incentives periodically to add users to your card for a bonus.
Referring Friends
The Chase Refer-A-Friend Bonus offers bonus points when your friends use your link to sign up for a card and get approved. You can share your link on social media, email, or send your unique link directly from your Chase Mobile app. There is a maximum number of points you can earn per year, which varies by card.
How Much Are Chase Ultimate Rewards Points Worth?
The value of your Chase Ultimate Rewards points varies based on how you redeem them. If you choose cash back, gift cards, or a statement credit, the points are worth about the same across all cards.
If you use points to book travel, it will depend on which card you redeem the points from and where you book your travel. Transferring your points to a Chase travel partner usually has a higher redemption value than points used to book travel elsewhere. And travel booked through Chase can have an even higher redemption value. Travel can vary from 1 penny per point to 1.5 pennies per point if you book using your Chase Sapphire Reserve points and book your travel through Chase.
- Cashback is equal to 1 penny per point or 100 points per $1
- Gift cards are usually 1 penny per point, but some gift cards are sold at a slightly higher redemption level, giving you more bang for your buck
- Apple purchases are worth 1 penny per point
- Amazon purchases are worth 0.8 pennies per point
Cards That Earn Chase Ultimate Rewards
Chase Freedom Flex(SM)
Rewards:
The Chase Freedom Flex(SM) also has no annual fee.
Chase Freedom Unlimited®
Rewards:
The Chase Freedom Unlimited® has no annual fee.
Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
Offers 25% more value when redeeming rewards for travel through Chase Ultimate Rewards
Rewards:
The Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card has a $95 annual fee.
Chase Sapphire Reserve®
Offers 50% more value when redeeming rewards for travel through Chase Ultimate Rewards
Rewards:
The Chase Sapphire Reserve® has a $550 annual fee.
Business Cards That Earn Chase Ultimate Rewards
New Business Card! Ink Business Premier(SM) Credit Card
Rewards:
The New Business Card! Ink Business Premier(SM) Credit Card has a $195 annual fee.
Ink Business Cash® Credit Card
Rewards:
The Ink Business Cash® Credit Card has no annual fee.
Ink Business Unlimited® Credit Card
Rewards:
The Ink Business Unlimited® Credit Card has no annual fee.
Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card
Offers 25% more value when redeeming rewards for travel through Chase Ultimate Rewards
Rewards:
The Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card has a $95 annual fee.
How to Redeem Chase Ultimate Rewards
You have multiple options to redeem your Chase Ultimate Rewards, including:
- Cash back
- Gift cards
- Shop with Points on Amazon
- Pay with Points with PayPal
- Booking travel reservations through Chase Travel or Chase Experiences which include entertainment and dining opportunities
- Transfer points to partner airlines and hotels
- Statement credit
Which ways to redeem offers the most value?
The Chase credit cards with an annual fee usually provide the highest payouts for your purchases. Transferring points to a Chase travel partner can increase the value of your points, but booking through Chase Travel can get you the highest value. You’ll have access to exclusive trip options, and you’ll get 1.25 – 1.5 cents per point rather than 1 cent per point for most other rewards.
Which ways to redeem offer the least value?
If you pay with points with any of the Chase partners, including Amazon, PayPal, and Apple, you’ll get the least amount of reward per cent. On average, the payouts are worth 0.8 cents per point rather than as much as 1.5 cents per point when you use the points to book travel through Chase.
How To Transfer Your Points
Transferring Points to Another Chase Card
Remember, if you have any of the Chase rewards credit cards that pay bonus points for booking travel through Chase Travel, you can transfer your points from other Chase cards to the card that pays the bonus to book your travel using points. Again, the bonus cards are the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card, Chase Sapphire Reserve®, and Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card.
To transfer your points, log into your Chase dashboard and choose the card that you want to transfer points from. Choose “Combine Points” and select the card you want to transfer the points to, following the prompts.
Transferring Points to a Travel Partner
You also have the option to transfer your points to a travel partner. To transfer points to a travel partner, log in to your credit card account and access your Chase Ultimate Rewards portal. In the menu dropdown, select ‘Transfer to Travel Partners’ and select the airline and/or hotel travel partners you’d like to transfer your rewards to. Then, follow the prompts to log into your account with the travel partner and deposit the rewards. Please note that you must have at least 1,000 points in order to make a transfer.
Chase partners with the following airlines:
- United
- Southwest
- Air Canada
- Singapore Airlines
- Emirates
- JetBlue
- Iberia
- Flying Blue
- Aer Lingus
- British Airways
Chase also partners with World of Hyatt, IHG Rewards, and Marriott Bonvoy.
How to Keep Track of Your Chase Ultimate Rewards
It may sound confusing to keep track of your Chase Ultimate Rewards, especially if you have multiple cards, but Chase makes it easy.
Log into your Chase account and click on ‘Ultimate Rewards.’ Next, select ‘Rewards Activity’ to see how many points you have. You can then compare your points to their redemption value with the current card.
If you aren’t getting the maximum value for your points, you can consider transferring them to another card. If you don’t have another Chase card, you can apply for one with a higher redemption value or transfer them to a travel partner if you prefer to travel. If you want to use your points for other purposes, most of the rewards have the same redemption value.
FAQS
Can your Chase Ultimate Rewards points expire?
Your Chase Ultimate Rewards can expire if you close your Chase Ultimate Rewards credit card. Your account must remain open and in good standing for you to keep your points without any expiration dates.
How many Chase Ultimate Rewards points equal a dollar?
On average, Chase Ultimate Rewards points are equal to 100 points for every $1, but some redemptions offer slightly more or less depending on what you use them for and what card you use to redeem them.
Is there a limit on how many rewards you can redeem?
Chase doesn’t have a limit regarding how many rewards you can redeem. You can redeem rewards from one card or combine them and redeem points from multiple cards in one transaction.
Final Thoughts
The Chase Ultimate Rewards program is easy to use and offers many ways to maximize your earnings. Most cards have a low annual fee (if any), making it an easy way to learn how the credit card rewards program works and earn great rewards. If you travel often and if you already travel with Chase Ultimate Rewards partner airlines, this may be an excellent rewards program for you.
