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What was initially rolled out as a temporary redemption option during the pandemic has been continuously extended. Chase Pay Yourself Back has just been extended yet again, albeit with fewer options. Chase Pay Yourself Back allows eligible cardholders to redeem Ultimate Rewards points to offset certain purchases.
Until recently, cashing out your Ultimate Rewards through Chase’s Pay Yourself Back netted you up to 1.5 cents per point, depending on which Chase card you have. But unfortunately, Chase devalued the Pay Yourself Back feature for 2023 — eliminating popular redemption options like dining and Airbnb from eligible purchases.
Still, Pay Yourself Back can be a valuable tool for getting cashback on your purchases. Let's dive into the latest categories and details of which cards are eligible.
Page Contents
Chase Pay Yourself Back Eligible Categories
Pay Yourself Back works similarly to how you redeem Chase points for cashback, but with a few key differences. Only purchases in a rotating list of categories or select charities are eligible, and you’ll have to manually select the purchases you’d like to reimburse.
Pay Yourself Back is available on all Chase Ultimate Rewards credit cards — including credit cards in the Sapphire, Freedom, and Ink portfolios. Plus, Pay Yourself Back was recently added to Southwest Rapids Rewards, Aeroplan, and United cards. However, the eligible categories vary by card.
Typically, cashing out your Ultimate Rewards points is done at 1 cent per point. Redemptions through Pay Yourself Back add an additional 10%-50% in redemption value. Chase Sapphire Reserve® cardholders can redeem points at the highest rates and for the broadest categories.
Sapphire Cards
Both the Sapphire Preferred and the Sapphire Reserve are eligible for Pay Yourself Back. However, the rate depends on the category.
Here are the latest categories for these cards:
- Eligible purchases:
- Gas stations
- Grocery stores
- Annual membership fee
- Select charities (redeem by December 31, 2023)
- Redeem by: September 30, 2023.
- Redemption rates:
- 1.25 cents per point for gas stations, grocery stores, and the card's annual fee
- 1.5 cents per point for select charities
Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
- Eligible purchases:
- Gas stations
- Grocery stores
- Select charities (redeem by December 31, 2023)
- Redeem by: September 30, 2023
- Redemption rates:
- 1 cent per point for gas stations and grocery stores
- 1.25 cents per point for select charities
Chase Freedom Cards
The Freedom family of cards continues to have only one option for Pay Yourself Back redemptions through December 31, 2023: Select charities.
- Eligible purchases: Select charities
- Redeem by: December 31, 2023
- Redemption rate: 1.25 cents per point
Ink Cards
All Chase Ink-branded business credit cards have one eligible Pay Yourself Back category: Select charities.
Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card, Ink Business Cash® Credit Card, Ink Business Unlimited® Credit Card, and Ink Business Premier℠ Credit Card
- Eligible purchases: Select charities
- Redeem by: December 31, 2023
- Redemption rate: 1.25 cents per point
Southwest Rapids Rewards Cards
On Southwest Rapid Rewards cards, Rapid Rewards points are worth less than one cent per point for dining purchases and exactly 1 cent per point towards the annual fee. For example, you can use 1,000 Rapid Rewards points to pay yourself back $8 on an eligible dining purchase or $10 towards your annual fee with any of the Southwest Rapid Rewards cards.
Here are the latest categories for these cards:
- Eligible purchases:
- Dining (up to $300 in purchases)
- Annual membership fee
- Redeem by: September 30, 2023.
- Redemption rates:
- 0.8 cents per point for dining
- 1 cent per point for the annual fee
Aeroplan Card
Aeroplan Card cardholders can redeem Aeroplan points for 1.25 cents per point for travel purchases. That means you can use 1,000 points to pay yourself back $12.50 on eligible travel purchases with the Aeroplan Card. There is no limit on how many points you can use to pay yourself back (though an annual limit of 50,000 points will begin in 2024).
Here are the latest categories for this card:
Aeroplan® Credit Card- Redeem by: No end date
- Redemption rates: 1.25 cents per point
- Eligible purchases: Travel
United MileagePlus Cards
On United cards, United miles are 1.5 to 1.75 cents towards the card's annual fee, depending on the card. That means you can use 1,000 miles to offset between $15 and $17.50 of your annual fee.
Here are the redemption rates for these cards:
- Eligible purchases: Annual membership fee
- Redeem by: No end date
- Redemption rates for the annual fee:
- 1.5 cents per mile
- United℠ Business Card
- United Club℠ Business Card
- United MileagePlus® Awards Card (not open to new applicants)
- United MileagePlus® Select Card (not open to new applicants)
- United℠ Presidential Plus℠ Card (not open to new applicants)
- United℠ Presidential Plus℠ Business Card (not open to new applicants)
- 1.52 cents per mile
- 1.6 cents per mile
- 1.75 cents per mile
- 1.5 cents per mile
Full or Partial Redemptions
You can redeem points for up to 90 days after purchase via the Chase website or Chase app and redeem your points for the entire transaction.
Say for example that you make a $125 grocery store purchase using a Sapphire Reserve. It would cost you 10,000 Ultimate Rewards points to Pay Yourself Back for that purchase.
However, you're not out of luck if you don't have enough points to cover the full purchase. If you can only spare 5,000 points, you’ll be able to Pay Yourself Back $62.50 from that grocery store purchase. That flexibility is clutch!
Donations to Eligible Charities
Redeem your points through December 31, 2023, with Chase Pay Yourself Back on donations to eligible charities paid for with your card. Here are the redemption rates:
- Chase Sapphire Reserve®: 1.5 cents per point
- Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card: 1.25 cents per point
- Chase Freedom Unlimited®: 1.25 cents per point
- Chase Freedom®: 1.25 cents per point
- Chase Freedom Flex℠: 1.25 cents per point
- Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card: 1.25 cents per point
- Ink Business Premier℠ Credit Card: 1.25 cents per point
- Ink Business Cash® Credit Card: 1.25 cents per point
- Ink Business Unlimited® Credit Card: 1.25 cents per point
Donations to the following charities are eligible for Pay Yourself Back:
- American Red Cross
- Equal Justice Initiative
- Feeding America
- GLSEN
- Habitat for Humanity
- International Medical Corps*
- International Rescue Committee*
- Leadership Conference Education Fund
- NAACP Legal Defense and Education Fund
- National Urban League
- Out & Equal Workplace Advocates
- SAGE
- Thurgood Marshall College Fund
- United Negro College Fund
- UNICEF USA*
- United Way
- World Central Kitchen*
*Includes support for relief efforts in Ukraine.
How to Use Chase Pay Yourself Back
First, log on to the Ultimate Rewards website and choose the card you used to make the purchase. Then click on the arrow next to your points balance, then select “Pay Yourself Back”. Or, try clicking this link.
Then you’ll see a list of all of the eligible purchases. You’ll notice how things are listed based on how many days are left before each transaction is no longer available.
Select a purchase. Once you select a transaction, you’re given the option to enter a dollar amount that you want to get back, and you’ll then see the corresponding amount of points required. You can also choose to pay yourself back for the entire purchase.
Click confirm, and then you’re done. Congratulations! You just paid yourself back! Isn’t payback sweet?
Cobranded Cards
Redeeming points or miles on the cobranded cards is possible through the card's Rewards Dashboard.
- Sign into your account
- Click on “More” on the top right corner the card's account
- Select “Rewards dashboard” from the menu
- Choose “Use MileagePlus miles with Pay Yourself Back”
The only eligible Pay Yourself Back category for the United co-branded cards is the annual fee. In order to redeem miles to offset the annual fee, you'd have to redeem within 90 days from when the annual fee is posted.
Bottom Line
Chase devalued the Pay Yourself Back feature, but I still think it's great that Chase allows people more options to redeem their points. This started when fewer people were traveling, and some questioned whether they should keep their travel cards. Pay Yourself Back allows cardholders to use their points in more relevant ways and has been extended several times. While the categories have changed, the concept of using Pay Yourself Back has remained the same.
Chase Pay Yourself Back stands in addition to and as another option for your points, aside from transferring to Ultimate Rewards travel partners.
Are you redeeming Ultimate Rewards points through Chase's Pay Yourself Back?
The comments on this page are not provided, reviewed, or otherwise approved by the bank advertiser. It is not the bank advertiser's responsibility to ensure all posts and/or questions are answered.
I like that they have extended this. I have not used it and I don’t see myself using it unless I had to. I like to earn points for all the money I charge and use it for travel. However, I haven’t seen a value yet to using the travel area of Chase. I have only seen the price higher than if I go directly with the airline I want. Maybe one day.
I’m excited to see IRC (International Rescue Committee) added. For those that don’t know, helps with people in crises. With over 100 million refugees/displaced people on earth now this can do some real good.
I really appreciate the explanation! I should have read into this more. I could have used it for some purchases. Oh well. It’s good to know this for the future.
Paying the annual fee is one way I can justify having a card with an annual fee. Free points, no matter big or small, are always welcome!
I’m definitely going to pay my annual fee with points. Once I have done that, then I don’t even have to justify the annual fee. I know that all uses of points above those used for the annual fee demonstrate directly that the card’s benefits outweigh the fee. I do this with other travel cards like my Barclay Arrival Plus also.
Glad they didn’t get rid of the feature completely.
Sweet!!
The 1.5 cents Reserve value is great. It adds value to the card despite its high annual fee now.
nothing will be downgraded and removed once the normality returns.
Chase pay yourself back is a great option now that many people are not traveling as much Chase really wants to keep our business
I thought groceries was one of the categories. Was that just temporary?
Yes, this ended for groceries Sept 30th I believe.
Chase really needs to simplify this program, its way too much work to keep track of.
Doing this with airbnb!
Could they make this any more complicated? Only credit card hacks are going to understand this.
Regarding the charities, my understanding is that you have to donate directly from the charity’s website using your chase card. Donating through, say, Paypal or any other service – even if to the approved and listed charity – will void the Chase UR Pay Urself Back.
Chase is always one of the best at rewarding their card holders. Sometimes it easiest to pay yourself.
The only thing that concerns me with the pay yourself back is that I’ll somehow be banned or scrutinized by redeeming so many. The travel portal is useless, unfortunately, but I like seeing the ultimate rewards balance there, too.
There is nothing in the terms to suggest there is any limit on redemption, so you should free yourself from that particular concern. 🙂
Great option to have and one they have been lacking compared to AMEX for a long time…Chase is closing the gap on AMEX while maintaining their advantage in travel partners.
Hopefully, nothing will be downgraded and removed once the normality returns.
I hope this becomes permanent. Cashing out through the travel portal is a no go. Chase’s travel portal is NOT to be used.
Why not? I’ve enjoyed the periodic redemption through the portal. Have you found it frustrating to use? Or is there another reason you wouldn’t recommend it.
Travel prices on the portal are more expensive than other alternatives you can find online.
I Agree but si Not the Best Plan.
I love redeeming Ultimate Rewards points for 1.5 cents since our traveling is down this year with the pandemic and our new edition to the family.
Agree with the general sentiment here. It may not be the best value for me, since I plan trips. But kudos to Chase for not devaluing this option more than their travel portal option.