Thanks to user Lockus_Maximus from reddit we now know what the 5% rotating cashback categories for the Chase Freedom will be. He was able to find this information by changing the filename on a image from 2014 to 2015 (e.g if you go to https://creditcards.chase.com/freedom/bonuscalendar it automatically redirects to https://cdn.f9client.com/api2/file/1190007/inline/Bonus-2014Calendar.pdf, previously if you changed it to https://cdn.f9client.com/api2/file/1190007/inline/Bonus-2015Calendar.pdf the below image would appear. Chase has since taken it down)
Below are the cashback categories for the Discover it & Citi Dividend cards as well in an easy to read format so you can view the overlaps.
| Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | Q4 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chase Freedom | Grocery Stores, Movie Theatres & Starbucks | Restaurants & more | Gas stations & more | Amazon & more |
| Discover it | Gas & ground transportation | Food & fun | Summer spruce up & fun | Holiday shopping & more |
| Citi Dividend | Macys & Home Furnishing | Home Depot & Home/Garden Stores | Hilton & Airlines | Best Buy & Department stores |
The worst overlapping occurs in quarter two when Chase & Discover offer 5% cash back on restaurants/food. This is particularly bad now that you cannot select restaurants as a 5% category on the U.S Bank Cash+ card [View: best credit cards for restaurant spend]. It’s important to know that the Freedom 2015 categories are not official yet. Chase may still make changes to their categories.
Every quarter when the cashback categories are available to activate we will make a dedicated post letting you know, inside this post we will also give you tips on how to maximize the full $1,500 in spend without making frivolous purchases. You can view our post for Q4 2014 5% cash back categories here to get a feel for how these posts will look.
[Did you know? Discover offers a secured version of their “it” card]
