Travel

How (and why) to mix your Chase Ultimate Rewards factors right into a single account

January 24, 2023

171

Editor’s word: This is a recurring submit, repeatedly up to date with new info.

Chase’s Ultimate Rewards program can supply some unimaginable worth. It’s no shock that the forex repeatedly seems close to the highest of TPG’s month-to-month valuations, checking in at 2 cents per level in our most up-to-date iteration.

One of the very best issues concerning the Ultimate Rewards program is how versatile the factors are, not solely in the case of your redemption choices but additionally if you’re trying to switch factors between your Chase bank cards.

Looking for a handy solution to see all your transferable Chase factors in a single place? Download the free TPG app!

In truth, it’s among the many most customer-friendly transferable factors applications alongside these traces. And by combining Ultimate Rewards factors in a single account, you’ll be able to successfully add as much as 50% in worth to a few of your playing cards. This is especially interesting given the present best-ever welcome bonuses on a pair of no-annual-fee playing cards: the Ink Business Cash Credit Card and the Ink Business Unlimited Credit Card.

So, at this time I’ll undergo a tutorial on the way to switch Ultimate Rewards factors between accounts and talk about when to contemplate doing so.

Overview of the Chase Ultimate Rewards program

Before we get began, right here’s a listing of the most important playing cards that take part within the Ultimate Rewards program:

The savvy readers on the market could discover that there are 5 cash-back playing cards included on this listing (the three Freedom merchandise together with the Ink Cash and Ink Unlimited). While it’s true that these playing cards formally earn cash-back rewards, they do nonetheless fall underneath the Ultimate Rewards program. And they turn out to be notably beneficial if you maintain them at the side of the Chase Sapphire Reserve, Chase Sapphire Preferred or Ink Business Preferred.

That’s as a result of you’ll be able to mix the rewards you earn throughout all your Ultimate Rewards playing cards right into a single account. As such, you’ll be able to convert all the rewards earned by these cash-back playing cards into absolutely transferable Ultimate Rewards factors when you’ve got a Chase Sapphire Reserve, Chase Sapphire Preferred or Ink Business Preferred. This is the enduring energy of my favourite mixture of bank cards, what I name the “good Chase quartet,” which consists of the next:

However, the flexibility to mix your factors is not restricted to your individual accounts. You can do that with a family member as properly.

When it involves combining Ultimate Rewards factors, there are two various kinds of transfers you may make:

Transfer factors between two accounts the place you’re the first cardholder.
Transfer factors between an account the place you’re the first cardholder and one the place another person is the first cardholder.

We’ll take a step-by-step take a look at every of those situations.

How to arrange your Ultimate Rewards account

The very first thing you’ll have to do is be sure that your Ultimate Rewards-earning bank cards are all related to the identical on-line account. If you haven’t arrange on-line entry, begin at Chase.com and click on on “Not enrolled? Sign up now” on the right-hand facet of the web page.

If you have already got a Chase account and utilized for a brand new Ultimate Rewards card, it ought to robotically seem shortly after getting accepted. To ensure, log in to your account and click on on “Account Activity.” Scroll down and search for the brand new card.

Note that you would be able to produce other (non-Ultimate Rewards) accounts related to the identical Chase username. I presently have a number of others on the identical on-line account, making it simpler to handle all my playing cards.

How to mix Ultimate Rewards factors

Once you’ve arrange your on-line account, the method for each sorts of transfers begins the identical. Start by logging in to the Chase account from which you wish to switch factors — be it yours or a family member’s account. Click on an Ultimate Rewards card from the homepage after which click on “Redeem” subsequent to your rewards stability.

Clicking on “Redeem” will launch the Ultimate Rewards portal. At this level, when you’ve got a couple of card on the account, you’ll want to pick the one from which you wish to switch your factors (you’ll be able to skip to the following step in case you or your family member solely has one card).

This will convey you to the cardboard’s homepage. At the highest, you’ll possible have to click on the “Earn / Use” tab to develop the menu and see the assorted icons for what you are able to do. From there, discover and click on on the “Combine Points” choice:

Here is the place issues begin to differ, relying on whether or not you’re combining factors from two of your accounts or if you wish to switch your factors to another person. The simpler of the 2 entails combining factors on two accounts the place you’re the first cardholder on each accounts.

Transferring factors between your accounts

After clicking the “Combine Points” choice, select the account from which you wish to switch your factors and the account into which you’d just like the factors deposited. Note that on this screenshot, I’m transferring factors from my Ink Business Cash to my Chase Sapphire Reserve.

Then click on “Next” on the backside.

On the following web page, you may have to kind within the actual variety of factors you wish to transfer. Note that, not like transferring Ultimate Rewards factors to journey companions, you don’t have to stay to multiples of 1,000 factors. You can transfer any variety of factors between your accounts.

When you’re prepared, click on “Review” on the backside of the web page.

Review the main points (together with the phrases and situations on the backside), then click on “Submit” if you find yourself able to course of the switch.

The subsequent web page will verify that the switch was profitable:

Your new stability must also be mirrored on the high of the web page, as these transfers occur instantaneously.

Transferring to a different individual’s account

In addition to combining your factors in a single account, you may as well use this performance to switch factors to (or from) one other individual’s account.

However, earlier than doing so, learn the phrases and situations of mixing Ultimate Rewards factors (emphasis mine):

You can transfer your factors, however solely to a different Chase card with Ultimate Rewards belonging to you, or one member of your family. If we suspect that you just’ve engaged in fraudulent exercise associated to your bank card account or Ultimate Rewards, or that you just’ve misused Ultimate Rewards in any method (for instance by shopping for or promoting factors, transferring or transferring factors with or to an ineligible third social gathering or account, or repeatedly opening or in any other case sustaining bank card accounts for the only objective of producing rewards or manufacturing spend, repeatedly opening or in any other case sustaining bank card accounts for the only objective of producing rewards) we could briefly prohibit you from incomes factors or utilizing factors you’ve already earned. If we imagine you’ve engaged in any of those acts, we’ll shut your bank card account.

When you switch factors between your individual accounts, you’re clearly throughout the bounds of those phrases. However, if you switch factors to another person’s Ultimate Rewards accounts, they have to be a member of your family (or an proprietor of the enterprise for Chase Ink playing cards).

Currently, the primary time you switch factors to a different particular person’s account, you’ll have to name the quantity on the again of your card. Explain to the agent that you just’d like to mix your factors with a member of your family. The agent will ask for the cardboard variety of your family member, however then you’ll be able to provoke a switch.

After calling, your family member’s account ought to seem as an eligible account to switch factors to on-line. So, it’s best to solely have to name as soon as — until you or your family member resolve to take away the account.

Once you’ve added a family member’s account, the method is an identical to what I outlined above. You’ll select what number of factors to switch, overview the main points after which submit the switch request.

When to switch Ultimate Rewards factors between accounts

You may mix rewards to then e-book a visit to Portland, Maine. WYATT SMITH/THE POINTS GUY

Now that you know the way to mix Ultimate Rewards factors right into a single account, it’s possible you’ll surprise when it is sensible to take action. Here are thrice if you’ll wish to take into account combining Ultimate Rewards factors into one account.

Converting cash-back rewards to Ultimate Rewards factors

As I mentioned earlier, playing cards just like the Chase Freedom Unlimited usually are not merely cash-back playing cards. If you even have a premium card such because the Chase Sapphire Reserve or Chase Sapphire Preferred, you’ll be able to convert your cash-back rewards into Ultimate Rewards factors. Ultimate Rewards factors are price no less than 25% extra when redeemed instantly for journey, however you may as well switch to companions like Hyatt and United for much more worth.

For instance, let’s assume you’ve gotten $300 of cash-back rewards in your Freedom Unlimited. If you’ve gotten the Chase Sapphire Preferred, you will get $375 price of journey by combining the rewards out of your Freedom Unlimited together with your Chase Sapphire Preferred. If you’ve gotten the Chase Sapphire Reserve, the worth jumps to $450.

However, each of those playing cards additionally embrace the flexibility to switch factors to this system’s varied journey companions. If you’ll be able to redeem them for the total quantity of TPG’s most up-to-date valuations, your worth jumps to $600 — double the usual quantity.

This can also be an ideal choice in case your accomplice or partner solely has cash-back playing cards with no annual payment — which is exactly the case with me and my spouse. She can use her Ink Cash and Freedom Unlimited playing cards and periodically switch her rewards into my Chase Sapphire Reserve account. I can then use these factors for extra beneficial redemptions than she’d get on her personal.

Boosting accounts for a particular redemption

Another cause to mix factors is when you’ve got a particular redemption in thoughts. You can e-book some excellent awards with Ultimate Rewards factors, however it’s possible you’ll not have sufficient factors in your account for the one you need. If your designated family member has some additional factors, they may switch these factors to you thru Ultimate Rewards so you’ll be able to then e-book the redemption you need.

When you wish to cancel a card

A ultimate rationale for combining factors is if you wish to cancel a card. For instance, when you’ve got the Chase Sapphire Preferred and wish to decide up the Chase Sapphire Reserve, you can’t have each on the identical time. While it might make extra sense to downgrade to a card such because the Freedom Unlimited, you would possibly wish to cancel as a substitute. But earlier than doing so, switch your rewards to a different of your accounts (or to your designated family member). That method, you don’t lose your rewards.

Bottom line

The Ultimate Rewards program is extremely beneficial, and numerous that worth comes from the pliability of the factors you earn. You can switch to varied journey companions, however you may as well mix factors throughout your accounts or switch factors to a chosen family member.

If you’ve lately signed up for a brand new Ultimate Rewards-earning card just like the Chase Sapphire Reserve or Chase Sapphire Preferred Card, I hope this submit has given you some perception into how one can prolong the worth of your factors even additional.

Additional reporting by Katie Genter.