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Chase Pay Yourself Back is a points redemption option for select Chase cardholders to redeem points for a statement credit to cover eligible purchases. Occasionally, these redemptions can be worth more than simply requesting cash back, though it depends on the type of purchase and the Chase credit card you hold.
What Is Chase’s Pay Yourself Back?
Chase Pay Yourself Back is a way for Chase cardholders to use Chase Ultimate Rewards® at an elevated redemption rate for non-travel redemptions. Not all purchases qualify for Pay Yourself Back, and featured purchase categories may change quarterly.
Pay Yourself Back Cards and Categories
Cards earning Chase Ultimate Rewards points—including those in the Freedom, Sapphire and Ink families—and certain other co-branded cards are eligible to redeem rewards through Chase Pay Yourself Back. Different cards include different purchase categories and redemption rates, so it’s important to confirm options for your card(s) before redeeming points.
Here are the cards eligible for Pay Yourself Back and their current eligible categories:
*There are currently 19 charities eligible for Pay Yourself Back:
- American Heart Association
- American Red Cross
- Equal Justice Initiative
- Feeding America
- GLSEN
- Habitat for Humanity
- International Medical Corporation
- International Rescue Committee
- Leadership Conference Education Fund
- Make-A-Wish America
- NAACP Legal Defense and Education Fund
- National Urban League
- Out & Equal Workplace Advocates
- SAGE
- Thurgood Marshall College Fund
- United Negro College Fund
- UNICEF USA
- United Way
- World Central Kitchen
When giving to these eligible charities, make sure to donate directly to the parent organization. Local chapters may not be eligible for Pay Yourself Back.
Chase’s Pay Yourself Back Redemption Rates
Pay Yourself Back redemptions vary both by credit card and purchase type, but range from 0.8 to 1.5 cents per point. Make sure to compare what you’re getting to other possible redemptions because travel rewards could top that and make your points worth more.
Is Pay Yourself Back Worth It?
Pay Yourself Back redemptions greater than 1 cent each will give you a slight boost compared to redeeming for statement credits. So, if cash back is your preferred redemption type, Pay Yourself Back is a valuable option whenever you have qualifying purchases.
Keep in mind that several cards offer more than 1 cent per point when applying points toward travel booked through Chase Travel℠. For example, points are worth up to 2 cents toward travel booked through Chase Travel℠ on eligible purchases via Points Boost with some Sapphire cards. You might also receive more than 1 cent per point in value when transferring Ultimate Rewards to airlines and hotels and booking award travel through their respective loyalty programs.
If you typically redeem points for travel, you may not feel that Pay Yourself Back is worth it because the redemption values are lower than you’d get through paying for travel with points.
How To Pay Yourself Back
To redeem points through Pay Yourself Back, log in to your card account and enter the rewards section. Since Pay Yourself Back is directly tied to your previous card charges, you’ll need to select a specific Chase card in your online account to redeem points from that card.
Chase will display all purchases eligible for Pay Yourself Back and the points required to Pay Yourself Back for that individual transaction. (Points are redeemable for eligible purchases within the prior 90 days, and you can select up to 12 purchases per order.)
Check the box next to the eligible purchases you want to redeem points toward. Then click “Continue” at the bottom of the page.
On the next page, you’ll be asked for confirmation on the points being redeemed. Note that if your points only partially cover an expense, that expense becomes ineligible for points redemption at a later date.
Pay Yourself Back Statement Credit
When you use Chase Pay Yourself Back, Chase will post a credit to your online card account within three business days of the request. The credit is also typically printed on your next billing statement.
While this statement credit reduces your balance, it doesn’t count as a payment. You’ll still need to make at least the minimum payment as shown on your statement. Ideally, you’ll pay off your balance to avoid any interest charges.
What To Consider Before Using Chase Pay Yourself Back
Before using your points through Chase Pay Yourself Back, consider if you can get even more value from your points through another redemption method. For some Chase cards, your primary redemption option is for cash back at 1 cent per point. Redeeming points through Pay Yourself Back may give you a higher redemption rate for eligible purchases.
However, select Ultimate Rewards-earning cards have the option of transferring points to Chase’s travel partners at a 1:1 ratio. If you know how to maximize these transfer partners, you can get more value by transferring points to airlines and hotel loyalty programs than by redeeming through Pay Yourself Back.
In the case of the Aeroplan® Credit Card*, which allows you to redeem your Aeroplan miles for statement credits for select purchases within 90 days from the transaction date. Aeroplan has a number of sweet spot redemptions that far exceed the 0.8 cents per mile you’d get using Pay Yourself Back. You could get much better value redeeming for a flight award.
Earn Credit Card Rewards With Chase Pay Yourself Back
One of the appealing aspects of Chase Pay Yourself Back is that you’ll still earn credit card rewards on your original purchases.
Say you have the Aeroplan® Credit Card*, which earns 3 points per dollar spent on dining, takeout and eligible delivery services, grocery stores and each dollar spent directly with Air Canada and 1 point per dollar for all other eligible purchases. Since it earns 3 points per dollar on Air Canada purchases, it makes sense to use the card for those charges. A $100 Air Canada transaction would earn 300 points, for example.
If you later choose to use Pay Yourself Back to reimburse yourself for that transaction, since it would count as an eligible travel transaction, you’d need to redeem 8,000 points at 1.25 cents each to cover its cost. Since you earned 300 points on the purchase, your net cost is 7,700 points.
Pair Chase Cards for Even More Value
Chase allows you to combine points across multiple Chase Ultimate Rewards cards. By combining, you can redeem points for even more value through another card.
Say you have both a Chase Freedom Flex® and a Chase Sapphire Reserve®. Instead of limiting your Freedom points to charitable donations when redeeming through Pay Yourself Back, you can move the points into your Sapphire Reserve account to access a wider variety of eligible categories.
For example, you could earn 5 points per dollar spent on featured bonus categories through the Freedom Flex, move those points into your Sapphire Reserve account and then redeem them at 1.25 cents each toward qualifying purchases through Pay Yourself Back. That’s effectively earning 6.25 cents per point when pairing cards strategically.
Bottom Line
Chase’s Pay Yourself Back tool provides card members another way to get value from points earned via credit card spending. While this redemption type might not yield as much value as points redeemed toward travel, it can still provide a boost compared to redeeming points for cash back. When travel redemptions aren’t an option, choosing Pay Yourself Back rewards is a reasonable alternative to get more from your points.