THE CHASE TRIFECTA: HOW TO MAXIMIZE EARNING CHASE POINTS
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Chase Ultimate Rewards® points are some of the most valuable travel points you can earn. With multiple travel transfer partners like United Airlines, Southwest, British Air and hotels like Hyatt and IHG, the options for free travel are endless. Did you know that there is more than one credit card that earns Chase points? That’s right! And by having a combination of these cards, you can maximize your point earnings fast.
WHAT IS THE CHASE TRIFECTA?
As you can gather from the title, the Chase Trifecta means that you will have three cards from Chase that all earn Ultimate Rewards points. The key card in this plan is the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card. The other key is having cards that earn more than 1x Chase point per dollar. While other Chase cards are marketed as cash back cards, if you hold the Chase Sapphire card as well, that cash back amount can be converted to Ultimate Rewards points. Without the Chase Sapphire card those points cannot be transferred to travel partners (where you’ll get the most value). There are two versions of the Chase Trifecta. One that includes a business card and one that doesn’t. I highly encourage you to look into applying for a business card. There are many side hustles that qualify as a business, like blogging, reselling items on eBay or FaceBook, driving for Uber, dog sitting, etc. Here are the three cards that make up the Trifecta, only one has an annual fee.
CHASE TRIFECTA
Chase Sapphire Preferred Card Earn 60,000 Ultimate Rewards points after making $4,000 in purchases within three months of account opening. The annual fee is $95.
Highlights and Rewards Rates:
Earns 5x points on travel booked through the portal
Earns 3x points on dining and online grocery (excluding Wal-Mart, Target)
Earns 2x points on travel related purchases
$50 credit on any hotel booked through the portal
Primary rental car insurance (so you can deny the insurance when you rent a car)
No foreign transaction fees
Chase Freedom Flex℠ You will earn $200 Bonus Cash Back after you spend $500 on purchases in your first 3 months from account opening. If you hold the Chase Sapphire card, that $200 cash back is equal to 20,000 Ultimate Rewards points. No annual fee. (This is my most used card and in my opinion should be one of the first cards that you get)
Earn 5x points on rotating categories with the Chase Freedom Flex
Highlights and Rewards Rates:
Earns 5% cash back (or 5x points if you have the Chase Sapphire) on rotating categories every quarter up to $1500. This is my favorite way to earn Chase points. If you maximize the categories you’ll earn 22.5k points annually. You must register your card for the promotion every quarter.
Earns 3x points on dining and drug stores
Cell phone protection
Chase Freedom Unlimited® You will earn an additional 1.5% cash back on everything you buy, up to $20,000 spent in the first year (or 1.5x points on ALL purchases). You only earn 1x points on regular purchases with the Chase Sapphire. No Annual Fee.
Highlights and Rewards Rates:
Earns 3x points on dining and drug store
Purchase protection and extended warranty protection
DO I REALLY QUALIFY FOR A BUSINESS CARD?
As I mentioned above, adding a Chase Business card that earns Ultimate Rewards points is a great way to supercharge your point earnings. You don’t have to have a brick and mortar business or an LLC. If you are self-employed and provide a service for money, this is considered a business and you would qualify as a sole proprietor. There are several Chase Business cards that earn Ultimate Rewards points, but for many the minimum spend requirement is very high. I applied for the card below when I had a big purchase coming up and was able to meet the minimum spend without spending above my means.
Chase Ink Business Cash® Credit Card You will earn $750 Bonus Cash Back after you spend $6,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. This is equal to 75,000 Chase Ultimate Rewards points that you can transfer to your Chase Sapphire to book travel. No Annual Fee.
Highlights and Reward Rates:
Earn 5% cash back (or 5x points) on the first $25,000 spent in combined purchases at office supply stores and on internet, cable and phone services each account anniversary year. This is 5x points when you pay for your internet and phone bill with your card.
Earn 2% cash back (or 2x points) on the first $25,000 in combined purchases at gas stations and restaurants
HONORABLE MENTION
Another card that can be a part of your Chase Trifecta is the Chase Sapphire Reserve®. You will earn 60,000 Chase Ultimate Rewards® Points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. This is a premium card that also earns Ultimate Rewards points. I don’t mention it often because Chase only allows you to have either the Sapphire Preferred or the Sapphire Reserve at one time. The Sapphire Reserve has a high annual fee that I don’t think most beginner travelers could justify. Annual Fee: $550
Highlights and Reward Rates:
Earn 3x points on dining
Earn 5x points on air travel booked through the Chase portal after the first $300 is spent on travel annually.
Earn 10x points on hotels and car rentals when you purchase through the Chase portal
$300 travel credit (making the $550 annual fee $250)
Complimentary Priority Pass Membership giving you access to over 1,300 airport lounges worldwide.
$100 credit towards purchase Global Entry/TSA PreCheck
Trip Delay and Primary Car rental insurance
Complimentary DashPass and Lyft Pink subscription
Pro Tip: If you’re looking for a premium card with lounge access, I recommend the Capital One Venture X Rewards card. It has the same Priority Pass membership with an annual fee of only $395 which is off-set with a $300 travel credit .
MY STRATEGY
When I’m not meeting a minimum spend on a new card I’m maximizing my point earnings with these four cards:
I use my Chase Ink to purchase Visa gift cards at the office supply store once a month for 5x points. I use those gift cards to pay for my groceries at Wal-Mart, pay for gas and to make any general purchases that accept Visa gift cards. I also pay for my internet, cable and wireless bill with my Chase Ink to earn 5x points per dollar.
I use my Freedom Flex to max out the 5x rotating categories. This quarter it was gas, car rentals and entertainment. We took two road trips this summer and were able to earn a lot of points by paying for gas with this card. I also use my Freedom Flex to pay for all of our prescriptions and drug store purchases as well as dining out to earn 3x points.
I pay for all my travel related purchases and car rentals with my Chase Sapphire for the trip insurance that it provides. The Chase Sapphire is also that card I take when I travel out of the country because it doesn’t have any foreign transaction fees.
I use my Freedom Unlimited when I make a purchase that doesn’t fit any of the above categories, like paying for my daughter’s cheer online. Earning 1.5x points is better than 1x and that extra .5 adds up.
GOOD TO KNOW
All of these cards are subject to the Chase 5/24 Rule. That is, Chase will not approve you for one of their cards if you have received more than 5 cards (from any bank) in the past 24 months.
The Chase Ink Business Cash does not count towards your 5/24 slot, but you must be under 5/24 to be approved.
All points from these four cards above can be transferred to your Chase Sapphire account so that points can be transferred to travel partners like United and Hyatt
You will always get the highest value from your points by transferring points to travel partners. More often than not, booking the Chase portal is not a good value.
Happy Travels!
See how we stayed four nights FREE in Paris with points earned from the Chase Sapphire card here.
Opinions expressed here are the author's alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, hotel, airline, or other entity. This content has not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of the entities included within the post.
