Nov. 2015 Update: Earn 10X on all Amazon spend with the Chase Freedom
Get 5X points on all Amazon spend with your Chase Freedom October to December 2013, after you activate the Q4 5X bonus for Amazon.com and select department stores.
1. Activate Your Chase Freedom 5X Q4 Bonus
Go to Chase Freedom: Activate 5% Cash Back
If you only travel domestically and in coach, you may well want to choose 5% cash back. But if you want to be able to transfer points out to Ultimate Rewards partners such as United MileagePlus to book first and business class award tickets, including Lufthansa First Class, Lufthansa Business Class, SWISS Business Class, Asiana Suites, etc., make sure you have a fee paying card such as the Sapphire Preferred, Ink Bold or Ink Plus so that you'll be able to consolidate the Freedom points with your other Ultimate Rewards points and transfer out to airline and hotel partners.
2. Spend $1500 per Chase Freedom Card at Amazon.com or Department Stores in Q4 for 7500 Points
The maximum amount per Chase Freedom card that will receive the 5X bonus per quarter is $1500. The great thing about the Amazon 5X bonus is that you do NOT have to spend it all on actual goods at Amazon.com; you can front load your spend and buy Amazon gift cards that you later use for Amazon purchases. Digital downloads and Amazon Fresh orders (if you're in the Seattle or other area with that service) also qualify. You can also buy goods from third party sellers as long as you checkout at Amazon.com. Here are the terms, bolding mine:
“All purchases you make through the checkout at Amazon.com, including digital downloads, Amazon.com Gift Cards, Amazon Fresh orders and Amazon Prime subscriptions are included and items sold by third party merchants through Amazon.com's marketplace.”
There's so much we buy from Amazon, from food (especially cereal) to personal care items to toys and birthday presents and the occasional electronics or peripherals purchase. See some of my recommendations at Maximize the Chase Freedom Amazon 5X Bonus.
You can also get 5X for department store spend, but note that clubs such as Costco etc. are excluded–see terms below. Personally, I'll be maxing out my husband's and my Freedom cards at Amazon.com, since we'll definitely use the Amazon gift cards towards our Amazon spend later this year and into next year.
Also, note that with a number of department stores, you'll be better off buying gift cards with your Ink at an office supply store for 5X, then double dipping by going through the Ultimate Rewards Mall for additional bonus points. See Ultimate Rewards Mall Deals.
3. If You Have Amazon Gift Cards, Make Sure to Select Your Freedom Card as Payment
If, as I do, you already have several hundred dollars worth of Amazon gift cards loaded in your Amazon account from buying gift cards at office supply stores with your Ink card in order to get 5X on all Amazon spend and want to get 5X for actual purchases with your Freedom, don't forget to specifically select your Chase Freedom card as payment to avoid your gift card balance being charged automatically.
Of course, if you know you'll spend it, it could be easier to simply buy $1500 in Amazon gift cards since that way you can max out the 5X bonus and receive your points sooner.
4. Receive a 10% Year End Points Dividend as a Chase Checking Account Customer
If you also have a Chase checking account, you qualify for the new Chase Exclusives (note that even Chase Exclusives grandfathered members have been moved over or will be moved over by the end of 2013) and you'll receive an extra 10% points bonus on all points earned with your Freedom (excluding the signup bonus), including 5X bonus points. So, if you maxed out the 5X bonus for each quarter and earned 30,000 points during the year, you'll get an additional 3000 points after the end of the year, assuming you're still a Chase Freedom cardholder and have a Chase checking account.
Related Posts
5X Points for all Amazon Spend
Maximize the Chase Freedom Amazon 5X Bonus
Chase Freedom 2013 5X Categories and Calendar
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