You can earn 9x on groceries when you apply for the Chase Freedom Flex right now
Update: Some offers mentioned below are no longer available. View the current offers here.
If you don't already carry the Chase Freedom Flex in your wallet, now is one of the best times to apply.
This no-annual-fee card earns 5% cash back on everyday bonus categories that change each quarter you activate on the first $1,500 spent. Besides this profitable rewards rate, cardholders will earn 5% on travel booked through the Chase Ultimate Rewards portal, 3% on dining and drugstore purchases and 1% on all other eligible purchases.
If you're able to maximize the 5% earning rate on the rotating categories alone, that can garner up to $300 in cash back annually.
While $300 sounds great in theory, savvy TPG readers know that they can stretch the value of these rewards even further.
Since the Freedom Flex belongs to the Chase card family, you can easily pair it with the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card, Chase Sapphire Reserve or the Ink Business Preferred Credit Card to transform your cash-back rewards into fully transferable Ultimate Rewards points and unlock outsize value.
TPG values Ultimate Rewards points at 2 cents each, so you're looking at doubling the value of your rewards from the Freedom Flex — turning that $300 into an estimated $600 in value.
Related: How to transfer Chase Ultimate Rewards points between accounts
How to earn 9x on groceries
From now until March 31, 2022, the Freedom Flex's first-quarter rotating categories include grocery stores (excluding Target or Walmart) and eBay purchases.
That's exactly why it's the best time to apply for the Freedom Flex. Besides the generous sign-up bonus of $200 (or 20,000 Ultimate Rewards points) after spending $500 within the first three months of account opening that new cardholders can earn, they'll also earn 5% cash back on grocery store purchases (excluding Target or Walmart), on up to the first $12,000 spent in the first year of account opening.
These earning rates stack to offer up a whopping 9% back on the first $1,500 spent in groceries this first quarter of 2022:
- 5% on first-quarter 2022 rotating categories (4% bonus plus the existing 1% earning rate on all purchases).
- 5% on grocery stores from the sign-up bonus.
Grocery store purchases are typically one of the easiest bonus categories for cardholders to maximize. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, American households spent $4,942 on groceries in 2020, or roughly $1,236 per quarter.
Even if you can't spend $1,500 at grocery stores this quarter, remember that you can also purchase gift cards at grocery stores for future use. After all, you don't want to waste the potential of earning 13,500 Ultimate Rewards points this quarter — or a value of $270.
And even beyond the first-quarter rotating categories, earning a 5% rate on up to $12,000 on groceries throughout your first year of account is quite compelling.
Related: Chase Freedom Flex card review
Bottom line
We're always looking for more ways to earn Ultimate Rewards points, as we can redeem them for business-class flights or stays at luxurious properties. If you don't already carry the Freedom Flex, you should highly consider applying while there's this unique opportunity to stack the grocery earning rates this quarter.
Official application link: Chase Freedom Flex.