How Many Points Did We Earn in Q2? Plus, Q3 Bonus Categories
Points Recap & Prepare for Gas Stations in Q3
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Good morning,
With the end of June in sight, we’re sharing a quick recap of where and how we earned points in Q2, and preparing for Q3 bonus categories.
Q2 Points Earned Recap
Our March honeymoon in Japan ended up being a little less costly from a points perspective than we thought it would be. Nonetheless, we still wanted to replenish our reserves and netted out at 405,000 points. We put some of these to work by booking business class flights and Hyatt stays for our upcoming month-long trip to France — more on that in an upcoming post!
Card Signups (235,000 points)
Chase Ink Cash Card (160,000)
Annette referred me to the Ink Cash Card. She earned 40k points for that referral, and I earned 90k points upon completing the signup bonus spend required. Better yet, I made all $6,000 of that spend at Staples during their $200 Visa promotional periods, meaning it earned 5x, netting an additional 30k points.
That’s 160k points from one card that has no annual fee!
Referral Link: Earn 100,000 bonus points with the Ink Business Preferred® card or up to $1,000 bonus cash back with the Ink Business Premier® card, Ink Business Unlimited® card or Ink Business Cash® card. I can be rewarded too, learn more.
Wyndham Rewards Earner Business Card (75,000)
I signed up for the Wyndham card via Barclays and plan to share more about the card along with a full review once we have a reason to use the points either through Wyndham or via their partnership with Vacasa Home Rentals.
Card Referrals (170,000 points)
Chase Ink Cash Cards (120,000)
Three readers signed up for the Ink Cash Card given the popularity of the 9.30% Cash Back on Everything post (same referral link as above).
Chase Sapphire Cards (30,000)
Two readers signed up for Preferred Cards, netting 15k points each
Referral Link: Earn 60,000 bonus points with Chase Sapphire Preferred. I can be rewarded, learn more.
American Express Blue Business Plus Card (20,000)
A friend wanted to get rid of his Platinum Card without sacrificing his stash of Membership Rewards points. I recommended he sign up for the Blue Business Plus before canceling his Platinum Card.
Referral Link: Apply for an American Express Card with this link. With your new card, you could earn a welcome bonus and I could earn a referral bonus. Terms Apply.
Thanks to all of those who used our referral links, we really appreciate your support!
Q3 Bonus Categories
While these don’t start until July 1st, I recommend taking a minute to register for any promotions that are relevant to your cards.
Chase Freedom: 5x up to $1,500 in spend at gas stations, EV charging, and select live entertainment
The easiest way to hack this bonus is through the purchase of gift cards at gas stations
Citi Dividend: 5x up to $1,500 in spend at gas stations and home improvement stores
Same as above
Discover IT: 5x up to $1,500 in spend at gas stations and with digital wallets
Again, same as above. Summer is a big season for road trips, hence the focus on gas stations. If you somehow have all three of these cards, I wouldn’t bother with gas here, and instead click through to learn more about the digital wallets promotion.
US Bank Cash+: 5x up to $2,000 in spend at in two categories of your choice
US Bank provides a few options for you to choose where you’ll get 5x, one of those options is Utilities and that’s what I would recommend. For those in New York, you should note that since Covid, Con Edison has been waiving the fee to pay with your credit card. Furthermore, you can prepay any amount that you want. So if you want to play it smart, you can set a calendar reminder for the end of September and calculate how far along you are towards your $2k max spend. From there, you can charge the rest over to ConEd to max out the bonus and prepay your utility bill for the months or year ahead.
Keep in mind all of these promotions require registration and do not take effect until July 1st. While these offers may sound enticing, don’t feel bad if you don’t have any of these cards. Over time, you’ll naturally start collecting cards like the Chase Freedom since they offer a smooth downgrade path from the more premium cards that you should be focusing on.
❤️ A&A
We want to know: What did you earn in Q2 and how can we help?
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