For the first quarter of 2023, the Freedom Flex Card is offering 5x points on the first $1,500 spent with grocery stores (excluding Walmart), Target, and fitness clubs and gym memberships. As far as key dates go:
You need to register before March 14, 2023
If you register, you earn 5x points between January 1 and March 31, 2023
If you do not yet have this high paying cash back credit card then follow the link to collect $200 Sign-up bonus here
Why we recommend the Chase Freedom Flex
Not only are you beating the high prices of inflation of groceries with this 5% cash back category you are saving money on things such as eggs.
The Chase Freedom Flex Card is easily one of the best no annual fee cards out there, as it offers 5x points in rotating quarterly categories, for up to $1,500 of spending per quarter. Most people use this as a cashback card, meaning the 5x points really translates into 5% cashback in these categories.
The card has other bonus categories as well, as it offers 3x points (or 3% cash back) at drugstores and on dining.
The Chase Freedom Flex is an incredible no annual fee card belonging to Chase’s Freedom portfolio, which can help you maximize your points thanks to its quarterly bonus categories.
With it now being a new quarter Chase has just launched its Q1 2023 bonus categories, allowing you to earn 5x points on the first $1,500 spent in new categories. Note that these same bonus categories are also valid for the Chase Freedom Card, which is no longer open to new applicants.
What’s included with Chase Freedom Flex Q1 2023 bonus categories?
There’s often some confusion about what purchases qualify with the bonus categories, so let me recap Chase’s definitions.
Here’s whats included with the grocery store bonus category:
Merchants in the Grocery Stores category include supermarkets, merchants that offer a full service grocery line of merchandise including a deli and bakery as well as smaller grocery stores. Some merchants that sell grocery items are not included in this category; for example, larger stores that sell a wide variety of goods, such as Target, Walmart, discount stores, warehouse clubs, and some smaller merchants such as drugstores and merchants that specialize in only a few grocery items. Purchases made at gas stations from merchants who also operate grocery stores are not included in this category. Delivery service merchants will not be included in this category unless the merchant has set up such purchases to be classified in the grocery stores category.
Here’s what’s included with the Target bonus category:
Purchases in the ‘Target’ category include purchases at Target stores, Target.com, Target branded gas stations operated by Target, and any other Target branded retail stores operated by Target. Please note, merchants operating within or on Target premises such as merchants that sell fast food, beauty services, and gas stations that are not Target branded are not included in this category. Target affiliate businesses and local delivery merchants are also not included in this category. Purchases in the Target category, including grocery purchases, will earn a total of 5% cash back.
Here’s what’s included with the fitness clubs and gym memberships category:
Merchants in the Fitness Clubs and Gym Memberships category include health clubs, exercise, or athletic facilities requiring membership and offering access to services related to physical fitness, such as fitness clubs, fitness centers, fitness studios, gyms, aerobics, cardio fitness and other services such as yoga and cross fit training. Merchants that specialize in offering personalized or therapeutic services such as massage therapy, dietary and weight management counseling and personal training are not included in this category. In addition, some merchants that sell a wide variety of general goods, which may include fitness or athletic apparel, sporting goods, dietary food, health food or similar supplements are not included in this category.
Also, certain lodging, hotel, motel, resort and central reservation services offering access to third party facilities that include fitness clubs or gyms are not included in this category unless the merchant has set up such purchases to be classified in this category.
The Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card was launched roughly a year ago, and has proven to be an incredibly popular product. We normally look at credit card values in the context of what a card has to offer for the primary cardmember as you’ll see in our top cards of 2022. However, sometimes it makes sense to look at the overall value of a card for a family.
Is there such a thing as a perfect credit card for families? Well, I’d argue the Capital One Venture X is unbeatable in that regard.
The Capital One Venture X pays for itself
First for some background, the Capital One Venture X has a $395 annual fee. However, in reality the card shouldn’t cost anyone nearly that much, as there are endless reasons to pick up this card. Among other things, the card offers:
A $300 annual travel credit redeemable through Capital One Travel; this should be good as cash to most cardmembers, as it can be used for flights, hotels, or rental cars
10,000 anniversary bonus miles, which can be redeemed for $100 toward a travel purchase, or can be transfered to airline and hotel partners
Amazing airport lounge access, including a Priority Pass membership, Plaza Premium lounge access, and access to Capital One Lounges
Primary rental car coverage
Cell phone protection
Hertz President’s Circle elite status
2x Venture miles per dollar spent with no caps on earnings and no foreign transaction fees, making this one of the best cards for everyday spending, and one of the best cards for foreign purchases
The card is also offering an excellent welcome bonus of 75,000 Venture miles upon completing minimum spending, and anecdotally lots of people are having success getting approved.
This is truly a card that pays for itself — the $300 annual travel credit and 10,000 anniversary bonus miles should more than cover the annual fee on an ongoing basis, and then the rest is just having your cake and eating it. Did we even mention you get early access to concerts such as Taylor Swift?
Why the Capital One Venture X is perfect for families
While the value of the Capital One Venture X is there for just a single user, what makes this card exceptional is the unrivaled value it offers to families. Capital One lets you add up to four authorized users to the Venture X at no extra cost, and best of all, each authorized user gets many of the same perks as the primary cardmember.
This is ideal for families who want to add their significant other, children, parents, etc., to their credit card (Capital One also doesn’t have a minimum age to add authorized users). Authorized users receive:
All the same lounge access perks as the primary cardmember, including a Priority Pass membership, access to Plaza Premium Lounges, and access to Capital One Lounges
Earn 2x Venture miles on spending with no foreign transaction fees; the primary cardmember is on the hook for paying and racks up the points, but this is a great everyday spending card to give to a spouse or children if you’re looking to maximize rewards in an easy way
The same protections, including cell phone protection, primary rental car coverage, etc.
Hertz President’s Circle elite status
In one example you can add your parents to the Capital One Venture X, so that they can get airport lounge access. If you have teens you can add them.
While there are several good premium credit cards, other popular options don’t let you add authorized users for free:
The Chase Sapphire Reserve Card (review) charges $75 per authorized user
The Platinum Card from American Express charges $175 to add a total of up to three authorized users (Rates & Fees)
So by comparison, being able to add four authorized users at no cost on the Capital One Venture X is unbelievably generous.
Bottom line
The Capital One Venture X has an amazing value proposition in general, but the area where the card really shines is for families. That’s because you can add four authorized users to the card at no extra cost, and they get many of the same perks as the primary cardmember, including airport lounge access. You also get to bring up to 3 people into a lounge with you when you fly at any Priority Club lounge (some are saying more than that). They are also adding a new Capital One Lounge in Denver and Las Vegas!
Being able to gift airport lounge access to family and close friends is an awesome opportunity, especially since it doesn’t come at any sort of opportunity cost. So if you are considering this card, be sure to think of it beyond just the value to the primary cardmember.
Event Summary: Get a $100 reward when you share your MaxRebates experience on TikTok.. If you are not familiar with MaxRebates they are cash back program where you shop online or with an app and earn rewards you can redeem with Paypal or gift cards by spending most anywhere you shop already. They are comparable to the Ibotta app but much more generous offering a $50 bonus for spending $25 .and a $5 free Starbucks drink.
Event Date: August 26 – September 15, 2022
MaxRebates Highlights:
100% Cash Back: MaxRebates is an online shopping Cash Back platform with a network of thousands of top brands and merchants. Users enjoy 100% of the total Cash Back straight from the merchants, with no hidden commission fees.
Upload Receipts and Redeem Cash Back: MaxRebates offers $1 Cash Back for many popular offline and online stores like Starbucks, Apple, T.J. Maxx, Target, and more. >>
2. To submit an entry, the user must publish MaxRebates-related promotional content on the TikTok platform and upload the link to their video in the comments section below. We are open to submissions starting from August 26 until September 15. The total number of views for every video entry will be finalized on September 16.
3. After the event period, rewards will be distributed to participants whose TikToks registered a specific number of views. The rewards will be sent to your MaxRebates account within 15 days after the event ends.
4. Reward amounts will be as follows:
Total Views/ Playbacks
Reward
500 and below
$2
501 – 2,000
$5
2,001 – 5,000
$10
5,001 – 10,000
$20
10,001 – 20,000
$50
20,001 and up
$100
The rewards can only be withdrawn when total Cash Back earnings in your account have reached the required minimum for withdrawal.
5. You can upload more than one video if you choose. However, MaxRebates will only consider the video with the highest number of views for users with multiple submissions.
Show your followers how MaxRebates has helped you get Cash Back and big savings in the most creative way! You can also invite your friends as part of your content and earn additional bonus rewards with the MaxRebates friend referral program.
Bookmark the page so you can post the link to your entry in the comments section. Start uploading your TikTok videos now. Get more views and earn the maximum $100 reward.
Not a member yet? Sign up for a FREE MaxRebates account today and start earning Cash Back every time you shop online.
MaxRebates promotion $50 sign up Bonus (stacks with the $100 Tik Tok Challenge)
MaxRebates new account promotion offer gives a $50 MaxRebates sign up bonus. Open an account to get the best money-saving deals on your shopping.
PGGoodEveryDay and Panera Bread is offering a free Panera Flatbread Pizza. To get FREE Panera Flatbread Pizza and 3-Months of Coffee Sign up for P&G Good Everyday Rewards and you will get 25 rewards points. Through March 31st, they have FREE Panera flatbread as well as 3 months of free coffee for 25 points.
2. Go to Panera to redeem 25 points and receive 3-Month MyPanera+ Coffee Subscription + Free Flatbread Pizza
3. Your unique coupon code should arrive quickly via email.
We tried Panera Flatbread pizza for the first time and it was surprisingly good. We saved a total of $11 on this order because we ordered our free coffee with the free flatbread promo codes as you can see below:
How to Save 10% on Panera Orders
Save more at Panera and other restaurants by signing up for a Chase Freedom Flex card where you can get 10% back at Panera by using Chase Offers. See below for an example:
If you want authentic and incredible “fast food” chicken that beats Chick-fil-A hands down then check out Cowboy’s Chicken. They make some of the best wood fire chicken including sandwiches and enchilada plates.
Cowboy Chicken is celebrating the grand opening of a new location in Fresno, CA so they are giving all the locations a reason to join in and save. Wednesday, Oct 16 they are rolling back prices on the original menu items back to 1981 pricing. This is an app promotion only so you must download the app and then order to get some of these at ridiculous prices: — Half Chicken Meal with signature Twice Baked Potaters and Ranchero Beans for only $3.29 — Homemade Peach Cobbler for only $1.19 Umm can we just live in 1981 again?
Once you download the app you’re one step closer to unlocking rewards!You automatically receive $5 off your first transaction with the app. You will also receive a $5 credit for every $50 spent, pay at the counter, receive birthday treats and other great offers year round. An alternative way to order with Cowboy’s chicken is to use Chase Pay.
The Citi Double Cash is possibly the most versatile no annual fee credit card out there. It’s the credit card I use for everyday spending, and it’s one I recommend regardless of whether you want to earn cash back or travel rewards.
Here are the four reasons that the Citi Double Cash should be in your wallet:
Earn a higher cash back on all spending
The Citi Double Cash has a phenomenal rewards structure if you’re looking to earn cash back. At this point that’s understandably what lots of people are looking to earn, as getting cash towards your daily expenses may be preferable to earning travel rewards.
The card offers:
1% cash back when you make a purchase
1% cash back when you pay for that purchase
By the time you’ve paid for your purchase you’ll get two cents back on every dollar spent. This is more rewarding than a vast majority of cash back credit cards, and is in line with the best cash back return you’ll find on a credit card.
There’s not a single card I can think of that offers a return of better than 2% cash back unless its a business card such as the Capital One Spark Visa and you have to pay a $59 annual fee.
The Citi® Double Cash Card used to just be an excellent cash back credit card, but nowadays it’s also an exceptional credit card for those looking to earn rewards points. So in this post I wanted to provide an updated review of this amazing card.
As far as were concerned, this card has ushered in a new era of credit cards, where you can earn 2x transferable points on all purchases with no caps. So not only is this a great card for those looking for a simple credit card strategy, but it’s also a great card for those who go great lengths to maximize their points.
No Annual Fee The Citi Double Cash has no annual fee, which you can’t beat. A lot of people sacrifice credit card rewards because they don’t want a card with an annual fee, so here you’re getting a valuable card that won’t cost you anything.
0% Intro APR The Citi Double Cash has an offer for 0% intro APR for 18 months on balance transfers from date of first transfer when transfers are completed within 4 months from date of account opening. After that, your APR will be 13.99% to 23.99%, based on your creditworthiness.
This won’t be for everyone, but I know that this is something that some people take advantage of. While some cards offer 12 months 0% APR, 18 months is quite a long time.
Mastercard Benefits The Citi Double Cash is a Mastercard, which is worth mentioning because Mastercard has excellent acceptance with merchants.
The same is true of Visa, though this is an area where American Express is still improving. So there is something to be said for getting a Mastercard that will be accepted virtually everywhere.
Citi is among the most generous issuers in letting people product change between cards:
You can downgrade any personal Citi credit card to the Citi Double Cash; this even includes co-branded cards You can generally only product change if you’ve had a card for at least 12 months, so you can’t do this with a new card You’ll want to call Citi to see all the options available to you The benefit of product-changing rather than applying new is that you can maintain your credit line, and also that it won’t count as a further inquiry on your credit report.
Whether you apply for the card outright or product change to it, you have options.
Earning Rewards With The Citi Double Cash This is where the Citi Double Cash gets truly incredible, especially with the changes that were made to the card recently. When you spend a dollar on the card (and pay the bill) you’re potentially looking at earning two cents of rewards, and those rewards can even be transferred to Citi ThankYou points at a ratio of one cent per point.
Earning Cash Back With The Citi Double Cash The Citi Double Cash offers 1% cash back when you make a purchase, and 1% cash back when you pay for that purchase.
So after paying for your purchase, you’ll earn rewards worth two cents back on every dollar spent, which is great. A lot of people earn 1-1.5% cash back on their credit cards, so this is much better.
HOW TO REDEEM CITI DOUBLE CASH REWARDS AS CASH As explained above, the Citi Double Cash offers a return of two cents on the dollar for your spending (after paying your bill), but how does the actual process of earning cash back work?
The cash back will show in your Citi account after logging in, and will appear in two columns — the 1% cash back you earn from spending, and then the 1% cash back you earn from paying for your purchase.
You’ll need a minimum of a $25 cash back balance to redeem your Citi Double Cash rewards, which is earned after $1,250 of spending. You have four redemption options for Citi Double Cash rewards:
You can redeem for a gift card from a variety of retailers
You can redeem for a statement credit, which will post to your account within 2-3 days
You can redeem for a direct deposit, which can be to a Citi account, or an account with another bank
You can redeem for a check, which will be mailed to you within 7-10 days
Personally, I wouldn’t redeem for a gift card (why limit yourself?), but rather would choose either a direct deposit or check, which gives you the most flexibility.
Earning ThankYou Points With The Citi Double Cash In September 2019, Citi added the functionality to convert Citi Cash Rewards into Citi ThankYou points at the rate of 100 ThankYou points per $1 of Cash Rewards. In other words, 100 cents cashback converts into 100 ThankYou points.
There are lots of ways you can redeem your Citi ThankYou points. You can redeem them for one cent each towards gift cards and other purchases, though that isn’t worth it. At that rate you’re just better off earning cash back outright rather than gift cards.
Where this gets really valuable is if you have the Citi Double Cash in conjunction with either the Citi Premier or Citi Prestige. If that’s the case then you can also transfer these points to Citi’s airline transfer partners, including Etihad Guest, Singapore KrisFlyer, Virgin Atlantic Flying Club, and more. This is a fantastic way to redeem for international first & business class experiences.
Points potentially transfer at the following rates to the following programs:
Citi ThankYou Transfer Partner Transfer Ratio Aeroméxico Club Premier 1000 : 1000 Air France KLM Flying Blue 1000 : 1000 Avianca LifeMiles 1000 : 1000 Cathay Pacific Asia Miles 1000 : 1000 Etihad Guest 1000 : 1000 EVA Air Infinity MileageLands 1000 : 1000 Jet Airways JetPrivilege 1000 : 1000 JetBlue TrueBlue 1000 : 1000 Malaysia Airlines Enrich 1000 : 1000 Qantas Frequent Flyer 1000 : 1000 Qatar Privilege Club 1000 : 1000 Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer 1000 : 1000 Thai Royal Orchid Plus 1000 : 1000 Turkish Airlines Miles & Smiles 1000 : 1000 Virgin Atlantic Flying Club 1000 : 1000 This is the first credit card out there to offer an uncapped return of 2x transferable points per dollar spent. I value ThankYou points at 1.7 cents each, so to me that’s like a return of 3.4% on spending.
In some cases, you can do even better than that. Citi frequently has transfer bonuses, so you can potentially take advantage of those while earning 2x points on this card.
Is The Citi Double Cash Right For You? The Citi Double Cash has long been lucrative. However, historically I’ve thought this card was ideal for those looking to earn simple cash back rewards, rather than true points hobbyists. That’s no longer the case, since major changes were made several months back.
After you spend a dollar on the card and pay the bill you’ll have your choice of earning:
Two cents cash back Two transferable points, assuming you have the card in conjunction with the Citi Premier or Citi Prestige Earning 2x transferable points per dollar spent with no caps on earnings is unrivaled.
Citi Double Cash Card Alternatives The Citi Double Cash is now industry leading when it comes to the return it offers on transferable points, though there are still some other cards that may be worth considering:
If you want a card that has among the best cash back rates in the industry, the Bank of America® Premium Rewards® credit card (review) has a $95 annual fee, a welcome bonus worth $500 of travel, provides great perks, and potentially offers up to 2.625% cash back If you’re looking to earn flexible travel rewards, the Chase Sapphire Reserve® Card (review) and Chase Freedom Unlimited® (review) are an incredible duo that offer a great return on spending and valuable perks If you want a cash back card and spend a lot on dining, the Capital One® Savor® Cash Rewards Credit Card (review) has a $95 annual fee that’s waived for the first year, offers a welcome bonus worth $300 cash back, has no foreign transaction fees, and offers 4% cash back on dining and entertainment If you want a travel rewards card that offers flexible points, the Capital One® Venture® Rewards Credit Card (review) has a $95 annual fee that’s waived for the first year, offers a welcome bonus of 50,000 points, offers 2x Venture miles per dollar spent, has no foreign transaction fees, and more
Citi Double Cash Card Summary The Citi Double Cash has gone from a great cash back credit card, to an unrivaled card for those who are into miles & points. Not only can the card potentially earn up to two cents back per dollar spent, but in conjunction with the Citi Premier or Citi Prestige you can potentially earn 2x ThankYou points per dollar spent, which can be transferred to airlines or hotels.
This card is now a must-have. I picked up the card recently, and it’s now the card I use for my everyday, non-bonused spending.
This card is also a no brainer for paying your taxes with, for example, since you can do so for a fee of 1.87% (which is like acquiring ThankYou points for under a penny each). The same is true for payments through Plastiq.
