If you don’t already know what the Chase Ultimate Rewards program is, now is the time to learn! Ultimate Rewards is offered on certain Chase credit cards and lets you earn points on all your purchases. Then, you can use those points and redeem for a whole variety of different prize options such as: travel, gift cards, cash back, experiences and more. A great feature about this program is that points don’t expire as long as your account is open and it’s easy to redeem whether online or on the Chase Mobile Banking App. Now that you know what this program is, start learning how to make the most of it.
The Best Cards to Earn Chase Ultimate Rewards
 The Chase Freedom FlexSM offers a $150 bonus after you spend $500 on purchases in your first 3 months from account opening. 0% Intro APR for 15 months from account opening on purchases and balance transfers, then a variable APR of 19.24% - 27.99%. You'll earn: • Earn 5% cash back on up to $1,500 in combined purchases in bonus categories each quarter you activate. Enjoy new 5% categories each quarter! • 5% cash back on travel purchased through Chase Travel℠, our premier rewards program that lets you redeem rewards for cash back, travel, gift cards and more • 3% cash back on drugstore purchases and dining at restaurants, including takeout and eligible delivery service • Unlimited 1% cash back on all other purchases You cash back rewards do not expire as long as your account is open and there is no minimum to redeem for cash back. This card has no annual fee. |
 The Chase Freedom Unlimited® Card offers: INTRO OFFER: Earn an additional 1.5% cash back on everything you buy (on up to $20,000 spent in the first year) - worth up to $300 cash back! Enjoy 0% Intro APR for 15 months from account opening on purchases and balance transfers, then a variable APR of 19.49% - 28.24%. In addition, you can earn: • 6.5% cash back on travel purchased through Chase TravelSM, our premier rewards program that lets you redeem rewards for cash back, travel, gift cards and more • 4.5% cash back on drugstore purchases and dining at restaurants, including takeout and eligible delivery service • 3% on all other purchases (on up to $20,000 spent in the first year). After your first year or $20,000 spent, enjoy 5% cash back on travel purchased through Chase TravelSM, 3% cash back on drugstore purchases and dining at restaurants, including takeout and eligible delivery service, and unlimited 1.5% cash back on all other purchases. There is no minimum to redeem for cash back & your cash back rewards do not expire as long as your account is open. This card comes with no annual fee and you'll get a free credit score that is updated weekly with Credit JourneySM. Member FDIC |
 The Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card offers 60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. You'll earn: • 5x on travel purchased through Chase TravelSM • 3x on dining, select streaming services and online groceries • 2x on all other travel purchases • 1x on all other purchases • $50 Annual Chase Travel Hotel Credit • Get complimentary access to DashPass which unlocks $0 delivery fees and lower service fees for a minimum of one year when you activate by December 31, 2027. Get 25% more value when you redeem for airfare, hotels, car rentals and cruises through Chase TravelSM This card carries a $95 annual fee. |
 The Chase Sapphire Reserve offers 60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. That's $900 toward travel when you redeem through Chase TravelSM. You'll earn • 5x total points on flights and 10x total points on hotels and car rentals when you purchase travel through Chase Travel immediately after the first $300 is spent on travel purchases annually. • 3x points on other travel and dining • 1 point per $1 spent on all other purchases Get 50% more value when you redeem your points for travel through Chase Travel. This card does carry a $550 annual fee and there are no foreign transaction fees. However, you're able to earn a $300 Annual Travel Credit as reimbursement for travel purchases charged to your card each account anniversary year & up to $120 application fee credit for Global Entry or TSA Pre✓®. Member FDIC |
 The Ink Business Cash® Credit Card offers $350 when you spend $3,000 on purchases in the first three months and an additional $400 when you spend $6,000 on purchases in the first six months after account opening. You'll earn: • 5% cash back on the first $25,000 spent in combined purchases at office supply stores and on internet, cable and phone services each account anniversary year • 2% cash back on the first $25,000 spent in combined purchases at gas stations and restaurants each account anniversary year • 1% cash back on all other card purchases with no limit to the amount you can earn. This card comes with no annual fee. You'll be able to take advantage of employee cards at no additional cost. |
 The Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card offers 90,000 bonus points after you spend $8,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. That's $900 cash back or $1,125 toward travel when redeemed through Chase TravelSM. You'll earn 3 points per $1 on the first $150,000 spent on travel and select business categories each account anniversary year; 1 point per $1 on all other purchases - with no limit to the amount you can earn. Furthermore, points are worth 25% more when you redeem for travel through Chase TravelSM. This card does come with a $95 annual fee but does not have any foreign transaction fees. |
How to Use Your Chase Ultimate Rewards
Now that you’ve collected your points, it’s time to put them to good use. There’s plenty of different ways you can redeem them, so choose the one that fits your needs the best. You can convert your points into gift cards or statement credits or even use them for travel.
Converting Chase Ultimate Rewards to Cash Equivalents
If you want to convert your rewards points into cash equivalents, you can choose from a couple various options such as gift cards, statement credits, or using them to shop on Amazon. When taking this route, Chase Ultimate Rewards points can be converted into cash at a 1:1 ratio meaning 1 cent per point.
- Gift Cards – For example, if you decide to convert your UR points in the form of a gift card, a $100 gift card are worth 10,000 points, whereas points are worth a 1 cent each. This is a perk as Chase will not short you, so a $15 gift card will be worth 1,500 points. You’ll earn the equivalent regardless of what amount tier you choose. Some gift cards can be redeemed for as low as $5.
- Statement Credit – This open is listed as “Get cash back” in the menu. If you do not choose to redeem your rewards for gift cards, you can redeem it as statement credit or have it deposited into your checking/savings account. With this method, your points are still a 1:1 ratio, meaning 1 point = 1 cent.
- Shop on Amazon – Amazon conversion rates may vary, but generally it’s slightly less than 0.80 cents per point. The perk here is that you’re able to pay fractionally (and not in $15 increments – the lowest Amazon gift card option available). Tip: If I were you, I would just get an Amazon Gift Card or even use your existing one and simply reload it so you aren’t giving up 20% of its value. Just get a gift card and load your Amazon.com gift card balance so you aren’t giving up 20% of its value.
What I’ve discovered about Chase Ultimate Rewards is that they do not tamper around with their consumers rewards. Conversion rates for gift cards do not change based on the face value of the card and they do not make statement credits “expensive.” Also, they do not force you to a statement credit when a deposit to your account is all the same. But now, you’ll see how you can turn that 1 cent per 1 point ratio into a better ratio and get more than just 1 cent per point.
Converting Chase Ultimate Rewards on Travel
If you didn’t know, the Chase Ultimate Rewards program is primarily for travel, so it might be in your best interest to use your points for travel. There are two ways you can redeem your points on travel:
- Transfer points to an airline or hotel partner via their own rewards program
- Book via Chase’s Ultimate Rewards travel portal directly for car rentals, cruises, flights, & hotels
Transferring Points to Partners
With more than 10+ airline and hotel rewards programs that Chase has partnered with, you’re able to transfer your points over. When you transfer your Ultimate Rewards (UR) points over to these partners, you’re able to book your travel on these partners’ portals/website.
The list of current travel partners include:
- Aer Lingus AerClub
- British Airways Executive Club
- Flying Blue AIR FRANCE KLM
- Iberia Plus
- Korean Air SKYPASS
- Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer
- Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards
- United MileagePlus
- Virgin Atlantic Flying Club
- IHG Rewards Club
- Marriott Rewards
- The Ritz-Carlton Rewards
- World of Hyatt
You’ll receive a simple 1:1 ratio conversion rate transfer with no fee involved and this is one-way (meaning you cannot transfer these points back to Chase UR points). Now keep in mind that this rule means that the receiving party is owned by you or a person listed as an authorized user on the account. If this rule is violated (selling points to someone else per say), you might be forced to forfeit the points and/or have your account closed. We do not recommend this or tampering around.
Conclusion
You are now all set to start earning and redeeming Ultimate Rewards points! There are so many possibilities for rewards and it’s up to you to decide which ones you want to redeem. You can redeem for cash equivalents like gift cards, statement credit, and items on Amazon, or you can apply these points towards travel.
Just keep in mind that Chase has a 5/24 rule where if you have opened 5 or more cards in the last 24 months, you will most likely not be approved for a Chase card. However, there are ways to circumvent this rule such as through targeted cards and offers, or applying for cards that bypass this rule. Some business cards don’t apply to this rule, so you could check those out if you really wanted to.
Check out the cards mentioned above in this post, as they are prime candidates to start earning Ultimate Rewards points. While this is not an exhaustive list, it is a great place to start. Once you get the hang of earning UR points, you can start applying for multiple cards and start stacking bonuses. Sooner than you know it, you’ll have earned tons of free flights. Don’t forget to check out our complete list of Chase Credit Cards if you are interested in more Chase products as well as our Credit Card Promotions master list for more general credit cards!
