Chase’s Pay Yourself Back: How to maximize your rewards – The Points Guy
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Augusta StoneCredit cards writer
Augusta Stone is a credit cards writer for TPG. She joined the TPG team in 2023 and is excited to take points and miles beginners with her on a journey toward maximizing rewards.
October 5, 2026 • 8 min read
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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 does this potentially lucrative option include a broad list of Chase cards, but some redemption rates are also eye-catching.
Chase offers its Pay Yourself Back benefit on some cobranded credit cards, including Southwest Airlines cards, United Airlines cards, the Chase Air Canada Aeroplan® Credit Card (see ) and the Marriott Bonvoy Bold® Credit Card (see ).
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?
Pay Yourself Back is a unique redemption option within Chase’s Ultimate Rewards program, offering cardmembers an alternative to redeeming rewards for travel.
The categories have evolved over time, and it’s worth checking them each quarter to see if they’re a good use of your rewards.
In short, the Pay Yourself Back option allows many Chase cardholders to redeem rewards at a value similar to what they would pay when booking travel. This won’t typically yield the same maximum value for your Ultimate Rewards points as strategic use of transfer partners can, but it can get pretty close.
Find your best card with CardMatch™
Guides
Star 3
Star 4
Star 5
4
at American Express’s secure site.
Terms & restrictions apply. See rates & fees.
| Rate | Category |
|---|---|
| 4X | Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on purchases at restaurants worldwide, on up to $50,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year. |
| 4X | Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent at US supermarkets, on up to $25,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year. |
| 5X | Earn 5X Membership Rewards® points on prepaid hotel stays booked through AmexTravel.com or the Amex Travel App™. |
| 3X | Earn 3X Membership Rewards® points on flights booked through AmexTravel.com, the Amex Travel App™, or purchased directly from airlines. |
| 2X | Earn 2X Membership Rewards® points on prepaid car rentals booked through AmexTravel.com or the Amex Travel App™ and cruises booked and paid through AmexTravel.com. |
| 1X | Earn 1X Membership Rewards® point per dollar spent on all other eligible purchases. |
Intro offer
As High As 100,000 points. Find Out Your Offer.
Annual fee
$325
Regular APR
See Pay Over Time APR
Recommended credit
Excellent to Good
Star 3
Star 4
Star 5
4
at American Express’s secure site.
Terms & restrictions apply. See rates & fees.
| Rate | Category |
|---|---|
| 4X | Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on purchases at restaurants worldwide, on up to $50,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year. |
| 4X | Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent at US supermarkets, on up to $25,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year. |
| 5X | Earn 5X Membership Rewards® points on prepaid hotel stays booked through AmexTravel.com or the Amex Travel App™. |
| 3X | Earn 3X Membership Rewards® points on flights booked through AmexTravel.com, the Amex Travel App™, or purchased directly from airlines. |
| 2X | Earn 2X Membership Rewards® points on prepaid car rentals booked through AmexTravel.com or the Amex Travel App™ and cruises booked and paid through AmexTravel.com. |
| 1X | Earn 1X Membership Rewards® point per dollar spent on all other eligible purchases. |
Intro offer
As High As 100,000 points. Find Out Your Offer.
Annual fee
$325
Regular APR
See Pay Over Time APR
Recommended credit
Excellent to Good
Star 3
Star 4
Star 5
4
at American Express’s secure site.
Terms & restrictions apply. See rates & fees.
| Rate | Category |
|---|---|
| 4X | Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on purchases at restaurants worldwide, on up to $50,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year. |
| 4X | Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent at US supermarkets, on up to $25,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year. |
| 5X | Earn 5X Membership Rewards® points on prepaid hotel stays booked through AmexTravel.com or the Amex Travel App™. |
| 3X | Earn 3X Membership Rewards® points on flights booked through AmexTravel.com, the Amex Travel App™, or purchased directly from airlines. |
| 2X | Earn 2X Membership Rewards® points on prepaid car rentals booked through AmexTravel.com or the Amex Travel App™ and cruises booked and paid through AmexTravel.com. |
| 1X | Earn 1X Membership Rewards® point per dollar spent on all other eligible purchases. |
Intro offer
As High As 100,000 points. Find Out Your Offer.
Annual fee
$325
Regular APR
See Pay Over Time APR
Recommended credit
Excellent to Good
Star 3
Star 4
Star 5
4
at American Express’s secure site.
Terms & restrictions apply. See rates & fees.
| Rate | Category |
|---|---|
| 4X | Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on purchases at restaurants worldwide, on up to $50,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year. |
| 4X | Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent at US supermarkets, on up to $25,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year. |
| 5X | Earn 5X Membership Rewards® points on prepaid hotel stays booked through AmexTravel.com or the Amex Travel App™. |
| 3X | Earn 3X Membership Rewards® points on flights booked through AmexTravel.com, the Amex Travel App™, or purchased directly from airlines. |
| 2X | Earn 2X Membership Rewards® points on prepaid car rentals booked through AmexTravel.com or the Amex Travel App™ and cruises booked and paid through AmexTravel.com. |
| 1X | Earn 1X Membership Rewards® point per dollar spent on all other eligible purchases. |
Intro offer
As High As 100,000 points. Find Out Your Offer.
Annual fee
$325
Regular APR
See Pay Over Time APR
Recommended credit
Excellent to Good
It could be a good choice if you’re looking for a simple redemption or have a pile of rewards that you cannot immediately use.
Some Chase-cobranded airline cards (and a Marriott card) are also eligible for Pay Yourself Back. The rate at which you can redeem for some categories with these cards’ rewards is over the average return you’ll likely get when using your rewards to book travel.
What purchases are eligible for Pay Yourself Back?
Here are the current categories eligible for Pay Yourself Back:
| Card | Redemption value | Current end date |
|---|---|---|
|
|
Dec. 31 |
| Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card (see rates and fees) |
|
Dec. 31 |
|
Qualifying charities: 1.25 cents per point | Dec. 31 |
| Qualifying charities: 1.25 cents per point | Dec. 31 | |
| Air Canada Aeroplan Credit Card |
|
Ongoing perk |
| United Airlines personal and business credit cards |
|
Ongoing perk |
| Southwest Airlines personal and business credit cards | Cardholder annual fee (within 90 days of the transaction date): 1 cent per point | Ongoing perk |
| Marriott Bonvoy Bold Credit Card | Travel purchases made directly with airlines or Marriott Bonvoy hotels (up to $750 total per year): 0.8 cents per point | Ongoing perk |
| Disney credit cards |
|
Ongoing perk |
The information for the J.P. Morgan Reserve and Chase Freedom 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:
- Alzheimer’s Association
- 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.
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 rewards. Rewards can be redeemed for purchases dating back 90 days. It typically indicates whether more value is available.
You can offset all or part of an eligible purchase (subject to any redemption caps).
From there, you can confirm the redemption value and the required number of rewards, then choose to complete the transaction. Your statement credit should post within a week or so.
Chase has long offered the option to redeem rewards for a statement credit. To do this, log in to 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, which is a little less than half of TPG’s October 2026 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.
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 rewards, how many you currently have and whether or not you’d benefit significantly from the statement credits.
If the categories for the fourth quarter of 2026 don’t work out for you, be sure to check back in for the first quarter of 2027 to see if you should use this benefit then.
