Posts Tagged With: Quarterly Bonus

Activate Q4 Bonus Categories

Posted on September 19, 2026 by 2btravel

It’s time to activate bonus categories for card that have quarterly bonuses for next quarter.  All of these cards offer bonus points or cash back on up to $1500 in purchases during the quarter.

US Bank Cash+

If you’re not already getting 5x Ultimate Rewards points by using a Chase Ink card (and even if you are!) you may want to switch the card you’re using for payment for TV/Internet/Streaming Services and Cell Phones.  You must register your card before December 15th to get the bonus cash-back in the categories you select.  As a reminder, you choose two 5% categories and one 2% category.  I’ll stick with Home Utilities and Fast Food for this quarter.  I’ll pick Grocery Stores for the 2% category just to pick something because I get a better rate from my Amex Gold Card (4x) and this quarter from my Chase Freedom cards (5x).

Discover Card

Discover’s Q4 categories are Restaurants, Entertainment and Utilities.  This is the first time ever Discover has offered 5% back for Utilities!  So if you don’t have the US Bank Cash+ card, you can bill your utilities here.  If your utility company charges a fee to use a credit card, as long as you’re earning more cash back than the fee, you still come out ahead. Register by December 15th to activate your bonuses.

What qualifies as “Entertainment”?  That’s a very good question.  Here’s what the Discover site says:

Entertainment purchases include ticket purchases at movie theaters, sports promoters (professional and semi-professional live events), theatrical promoters, concert promoters, amusement parks, tourist attractions, aquariums, zoos, dance halls, record stores, video rental locations, pool halls and bowling alleys. Tickets for or fees at golf courses, country clubs, some collegiate sporting events, charitable events, as well as cable and digital streaming and subscription services, amusement park tickets purchased on third-party sites, and entertainment and resort packages categorized as “travel” or “hotel” do not qualify.

To activate the bonus, simply log into your Discover account and click on the Activate Now button or look for the email where you can register in one click.

Chase Freedom and Freedom Flex

The Chase Freedom and Freedom Flex card categories are Grocery, Dining, and donations to the Red Cross.  I’ll likely put most of my groceries on a Freedom card since I’m already getting 5x with Dining (with Discover) and I’m always happy to supplement my supply of Chase Ultimate Rewards.

Activate these changes by visiting the Chase registration site by December 14.

In the end

Always register for the bonus categories even if you don’t think you’re going to use them.  You’ll never know when they might come in handy!

Categories: Cash Plus, Chase, Credit Card Promos, Credit Cards, Discover, Freedom, Quarterly Bonuses, US Bank | Tags: , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Register Now for 2018 Q1 Bonus Categories

Posted on December 15, 2017 by 2btravel

Registration is now open for quarterly bonus categories for the Chase Freedom, Discover and US Bank Cash+ cards.

Chase Freedom

Starting today you can register your Chase Freedom card and starting in January you’ll receive 5x Ultimate Rewards points on purchases made at gas stations, for internet/cable/cell phone service and on purchases made through mobile pay systems like Apple Pay, Android Pay, Chase Pay and Samsung Pay.  You must activate by March 14, 2018 to earn 5x during this quarter but you don’t have to activate before you make your purchases.  You can earn the 5x points for up to $1500 in purchases.  After that you’ll earn the usual 1x points per dollar.

Discover Card

Discover has chosen to reveal their entire 2018 calendar and for the first quarter their 5% cash back categories are Gas Stations and Wholesale Clubs.  To register, just log into your Discover account online or visit this link to log in.  Note that to receive the 5% cash back you must register first before making your purchase.  You can earn 5% back on up to $1500 in purchases.

US Bank Cash+

US Bank is always the first to reveal the categories for the next quarter.  As we reported last month, they have their usual array of categories for you to select 1 of the 2% categories and 2 of the 5% categories, based on your needs.  For the 5% category you can earn the 5% on up to $2000 in purchases.  To select your categories, visit the US Bank Cash+ website.

Categories: Cash Plus, Chase, Credit Card Promos, Credit Cards, Discover, Freedom, Quarterly Bonuses, US Bank | Tags: , , , | Leave a comment

Activate Q3 Bonus Categories Now

Posted on June 20, 2016 by 2btravel

There are two great no-annual-fee credit cards that offer quarterly bonus categories.  When you buy products from stores in those categories during the specified time frame, instead of the usual 1% cash back or 1 point per dollar, you’ll earn 5% or 5x points.  Each of these cards offers the bonuses for up to $1500 in purchases each quarter.  You’ll need to be sure to activate these category bonuses before mid-September, so why not go ahead and do it now?

First up, the Discover family of cards.  My Discover card is the oldest one I own and over the years has transitioned to a Discover More card.  But the Discover It card is also eligible to receive the quarterly bonuses.  To register for Q3, either log into your account and look on the right side of the screen where you’ll see a link or go straight to the activation page and sign in there.  This quarter’s bonus categories are home improvement stores (like Ace, Home Depot, Lowe’s and even specialty stores like Benjamin Moore) and Amazon.com, so you can start your holiday shopping early!  (And Amazon is a category for Q4 too!)

2016-06-20 Discover Q3 Bonus

Next, the Chase Freedom card offers 5% cash back – or 5x Freedom points, which can be worth more than 1 penny per point – on spending at Restaurants and Wholesale Clubs.  That comes just in time for those who use Costco as they now only accept Visa.  You can activate your Freedom bonus here.

2016-06-20 Freedom Q3 Bonus

Quarterly bonuses are a great way to increase the amount of points or cash back you earn – just remember to use these cards beginning on July 1!

Categories: Chase, Credit Card Promos, Credit Cards, Discover, Freedom | Tags: , , | Leave a comment

Activate 4th Quarter Bonuses Now

Posted on September 21, 2015 by 2btravel

We’re over halfway through September and that means it’s time to register/activate the bonus categories for the 4th quarter of 2015.

2015-09-21 Discover Q4 Bonus

Discover Card

Discover offers 5% cash back in the following categories:

  • Amazon.com
  • Department Stores
  • Clothing Stores

Those are great categories for holiday shopping. Some department stores also carry gift cards, which means that 5% can last much longer than just the three month period!

You can earn the bonus cash back for up to $1500 in spend throughout the quarter.

Sign up for the Discover cash back bonus HERE. If you don’t sign up, you will NOT get the bonus.

2015-09-21 Freedom Q4 Bonus
Chase Freedom

Chase’s Freedom card also offers 5% back for Q4. There’s an overlap with Discover:

  • Amazon.com
  • Zappos.com
  • Audible.com
  • Diapers.com

The Freedom card actually earns Ultimate Rewards points and you’ll earn 5 points per dollar spent at one of these retailers. If you want to cash those points in, they’re worth a penny apiece. But if you have the Chase Sapphire Preferred or one of the Chase Ink business cards, you can transfer these points to several airlines and hotel programs where you may very well get a value of 2-3 cents per point.

To register for the Freedom Q4 bonus, look for the email sent by Chase (I received mine on 18 SEP) or log into your account on Chase.com and look for the activation link.

Categories: Chase, Credit Card Promos, Discover, Freedom | Tags: , , , | Leave a comment

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