Chase Pay Yourself Back Q4 categories — is it a good use of your rewards?
Editor's Note
If Chase's Pay Yourself Back hasn't been on your radar in a while, it may be worth brushing up on it.
Not only has this potentially lucrative option continued to expand to a broader list of Chase cards, but some redemption rates aren't to be sneezed at.
Chase offers its Pay Yourself Back benefit on some cobranded credit cards, including Southwest Airlines cards, United Airlines cards, the Aeroplan® Credit Card (see rates and fees) and the Marriott Bonvoy Bold® Credit Card (see rates and fees).
Many of these current offers are valid now through Dec. 31.
Here's everything you need to know about using Chase Pay Yourself Back.
What is Chase Pay Yourself Back?
In 2020, when most of the world wasn't traveling, Chase introduced Pay Yourself Back as an ongoing redemption option within its Ultimate Rewards program to give cardmembers an alternative to redeeming points for travel. The categories have evolved over time, but the core purpose of the program has remained pretty much unchanged.
In short, the Pay Yourself Back option allows cardholders of many Chase cards to use points at a redemption value similar to booking travel. This won't typically give you the same maximum value for your Ultimate Rewards points that you can get with strategic use of transfer partners.
However, it could be a good choice if you're looking for a simple redemption or have a pile of points that you cannot immediately use.
With some airline cards now eligible for Pay Yourself Back, the rate at which you can redeem for some categories is over the average return you'll likely get when using your rewards to book travel.
Related: The best Chase credit cards
What purchases are eligible for Pay Yourself Back?
Here are the current categories eligible for Pay Yourself Back:
| Card | Redemption value | Current end date |
|---|---|---|
| Qualifying charities: 1.5 cents per point
Department stores, gas stations, groceries, home improvement stores and cardholder annual fee: 1.25 cents per point | Dec. 31 |
Qualifying charities: 1.25 cents per point
Cardholder annual fee: 1.1 cents per point | Dec. 31 | |
| Qualifying charities: 1.25 cents per point | Dec. 31 |
Travel purchases (up to 200,000 points or $2,500 annually) and cardholder annual fee (only purchases made at select merchants within 90 days before the redemption request date are eligible): 1.25 cents per point
Amazon.com purchases (including Whole Foods Market), dining at restaurants, gas stations, grocery stores (excluding Target, Walmart and wholesale clubs), home improvement stores, select department stores and select utilities: 0.8 cents per point | Dec. 31 for Amazon, gas, home improvement stores, select department stores and select utilities (dining at restaurants, grocery stores and travel are ongoing categories) | |
United Airlines personal and business credit cards | Cardholder annual fee: 1.35-1.5 cents per mile (based on which card you have)
United airfare purchases made directly with the airline of at least $50: 1 cent per mile | Dec. 31 |
Southwest Airlines personal and business credit cards | Cardholder annual fee within 90 days of transaction date: 1 cent per point | Dec. 31 |
Travel purchases made directly with airlines or Marriott Bonvoy hotels (up to $750 total per year): 1 cent per point | Ongoing perk of the card | |
Disney credit cards | Purchases made at select U.S. Disney locations in Disney Parks and Resorts, Disney store and outlet locations in the U.S., DisneyStore.com, DisneyPlus.com, Hulu.com and Plus.ESPN.com in the past 90 days: 1 Disney Rewards Dollar per dollar
Those with a Disney® Premier Visa® Card (see rates and fees) can redeem Disney Rewards Dollars toward airline purchases in the past 90 days with any airline at the rate of 1 Disney Rewards Dollar per dollar | Ongoing; no specific end date |
The information for the J.P. Morgan Reserve, Chase Freedom, Ink Business Preferred and Ink Business Premier has been collected independently by The Points Guy. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.
The list of charities for Pay Yourself Back includes:
- American Heart Association
- American Red Cross
- Equal Justice Initiative
- Feeding America
- GLSEN
- Habitat for Humanity
- International Medical Corps
- International Rescue Committee
- Leadership Conference Education Fund
- Make-A-Wish America
- NAACP Legal Defense and Education Fund
- National Urban League
- Out and Equal Workplace Advocates
- SAGE
- Thurgood Marshall College Fund
- United Negro College Fund
- UNICEF USA
- United Way
- World Central Kitchen
Let's say you wanted to redeem 10,000 points on your Chase Sapphire Reserve. For most purchases, you'll get a $100 statement credit when redeeming 10,000 points.
But for those same 10,000 points, you'll get a credit of $150 when you redeem them for an eligible charity donation.
Related: How much are Chase Ultimate Rewards points worth?
Requesting a credit
Requesting a credit through Chase's Pay Yourself Back program is relatively straightforward. Log in to your eligible Chase account via the mobile app or desktop and select the "Pay Yourself Back" option in the redemption menu.
Next, you'll see a list of eligible purchases for which you can redeem points. Points can be redeemed for purchases as far back as 90 days.
You can offset the full purchase amount, assuming you have enough points to cover it.
From there, you can confirm the redemption value and amount of points required and then choose to complete the transaction. Your statement credit should post within three business days.
Related: How to use Shop Through Chase to earn more points
Statement credit options on other purchases
Chase has long offered the option to redeem points for a statement credit — that's not new. To do this, log into your Ultimate Rewards account, hit the drop-down menu and select "Cash Back."
You'll be given an option to enter the amount you'd like to redeem and where you'd like your rewards deposited. All cash-back redemptions are fixed at 1 cent per point, a little less than half of TPG's October 2025 valuation of Ultimate Rewards at 2.05 cents per point.
That redemption value is also lower than many of the above Pay Yourself Back options.
Even so, Chase's traditional cash-back option is more generous than what you can expect from some other issuers. You'll get the same value when redeeming Citi ThankYou points for cash back, but Amex only offers 0.6 cents per point for this option. Capital One comes in last place, with cardholders netting just 0.5 cents per mile when redeeming for cash back.
Related: If I cash out my points and miles, do I have to claim it on my taxes?
Bottom line
Chase's Pay Yourself Back feature provides valuable flexibility for many cardholders.
Ultimately, whether you should redeem your balance in this way depends on how you plan to use your points, how many you currently have and whether or not you'd benefit significantly from the statement credits.
Related: Supercharge your Chase Ultimate Rewards balance with these top 5 cards
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Intro Offer
Earn 200K miles when you spend $30K in the first 3 months, and an additional 200K miles when you spend $150K in the first 6 monthsLIMITED-TIME OFFER: Earn up to 400K bonus milesAnnual Fee
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Why We Chose It
The Capital One Venture X Business Card has all the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card has to offer and more. It offers an incredible welcome bonus and requires an equally impressive spend to qualify. In addition, the card comes with premium travel perks like annual travel credit. (Partner offer)Pros
- The Capital One Venture X business card has a very lucrative welcome offer.
- In addition, the card comes with many premium travel perks such as an annual $300 credit for bookings through Capital One Business Travel.
- Business owners are also able to add employee cards for free.
Cons
- The card requires significant spending to earn the welcome offer.
- Another drawback is that the annual travel credit can only be used on bookings made through Capital One Business Travel.
- LIMITED-TIME OFFER: Earn up to 400K bonus miles: 200K miles when you spend $30K in the first 3 months, and an additional 200k miles when you spend $150k in the first 6 months
- Earn unlimited 2X miles on every purchase, everywhere—with no limits or category restrictions
- Earn 10X miles on hotels and rental cars and 5X miles on flights and vacation rentals booked through Capital One Business Travel
- With no preset spending limit, enjoy big purchasing power that adapts so you can spend more and earn more rewards
- Empower your teams to make business purchases while earning rewards on their transactions, with free employee and virtual cards. Plus, automatically sync your transaction data with your accounting software and pay your vendors with ease
- Redeem your miles on flights, hotels and more. Plus, transfer your miles to any of the 15+ travel loyalty programs
- Every year, you'll get 10,000 bonus miles after your account anniversary date. Plus, receive an annual $300 credit for bookings made through Capital One Business Travel
- Receive up to a $120 credit for Global Entry or TSA PreCheck®. Enjoy access to 1,300+ airport lounges worldwide, including Capital One Lounge locations and Priority Pass™ lounges, after enrollment
- Enjoy a $100 experience credit and other premium benefits with every hotel and vacation rental booked from the Premier Collection
- This is a pay-in-full card, so your balance is due in full every month