25. Points Earning in Disguise: How Cash-Back Cards Earn Transferable Points

Welcome to Point Me to First Class, the only show for employed professionals, entrepreneurs, and business owners who are looking to optimize their higher-than-average expenses to travel the world. I'm your host, Devon Gimbel, and I believe that your expenses are your greatest untapped asset if you know how to leverage them. Ready to dive into the world of credit card points and miles so you can travel more, travel better, and travel often? Let's get started.

Hey everybody. Welcome back to the podcast. I hope you're all having a fabulous summer earning points, using points, or doing a combination of both. Today, I wanted to lift the veil on an area of points earning that has the potential to have a significant impact on maximizing the number of points that you can earn for your everyday expenses. Because this is an area that credit card companies don't make really clear in their marketing, which means that many people aren't earning as many points as easily as they could be. I definitely don't want you to fall into that category.

One of my main goals with this podcast is to help you all earn more points as easily as possible for the things that you're already spending money on. If you don't understand this particular nuance of rewards credit cards that I'm going to be covering today, I can guarantee that you are leaving tons of potential points on the table. 

Today's episode is about clarifying a crucial aspect of rewards credit cards, which is that some cash-back rewards cards can actually function as points earning cards as well. Yes, there are rewards cards on the market that are called cash-back cards that are marketed as cash-back cards that earn cash-back rewards, but you can actually earn points with them instead. 

I'm not talking about cash-back cards that can earn some obscure, not so useful type of points. I'm talking about using cash-back cards to earn those very valuable, flexible or transferable points that can be combined with the transferable points you might already be earning with some of the most popular rewards cards on the market today. 

Within three of the major transferable points, currencies, Chase, Citi, and Capital One, there are rewards credit cards that are marketed as being cash-back cards, and that function as cash-back rewards cards, but it is also possible to use them to earn flexible transferable points instead. If you were not aware of this, it is not your fault. 

If you're listening to this podcast, it's probably because you favor earning points over earning cash-back with your credit cards. So it's likely that you haven't spent much time exploring rewards cards that are marketed as cash-back cards, and instead you've been focusing on getting points earning credit cards. It's also possible that you actually have one of these cash-back cards in your wallet without realizing that they are actually capable of earning you valuable points that have the potential to be used as transferable points. 

Here is why being able to use a cash-back card to earn points instead of cash-back is so valuable. When you have a cash-back rewards card, the value of the cash-back rewards you earn is fixed and clearly defined. For example, if you have a cash-back card that earns 2% cash-back on all purchases, you know that whether you spend $100 on that cash-back card or $100,000 on that cash-back card, you're going to be earning 2% of the amount that you put on the card as a cash-back reward. 

But if instead of earning cash-back with a rewards credit card, you instead earn a transferable points, say two points for every dollar spent on a rewards card instead of 2% cash-back, you can potentially get much more cash equivalent value from those points that you earn than what you would receive as a cash-back reward. 

The way to get this increased value from rewards points is not to redeem them for things through your credit card account itself. Whether that's for travel, or exchanging your points for gift cards, or using them as a credit to decrease your statement balance, but rather to transfer them out of your credit card account entirely and into the loyalty account of an airline or hotel that is a direct transfer partner of your credit card points currency. 

I talk about this important difference between the value that you can potentially get from points earning cards compared to cash-back rewards cards in much more detail back in episodes number four and number five. So be sure to go back and check those out if you haven't listened to them already. 

Now, here is why it might be news to you that some cash-back rewards cards can actually earn points. Credit card issuers are terrible at explaining in their marketing that some specific cash-back rewards cards can actually function as points earning cards. So there's really no way that you would know this unless you have a friend or someone in the points world to let you in on the secret and explain exactly how it works. 

This episode is going to be that friend to you. In this episode, I'm going to break down for you all exactly which cash-back cards can also function as points earning cards, what you need to know and do in order to get them to earn points instead of cash-back, and highlight how valuable these cards can be as part of an overall rewards card portfolio. 

But before I go into which specific cash-back cards can function as points earning cards, I first want to give you the general principle for how this works, which is going to apply to all of the cash-back rewards cards that I'm going to tell you about later in the episode. 

So here's the general idea. There are a number of cash-back rewards credit cards that by themselves will earn rewards in the form of cash-back. This applies to both the welcome bonus that you can earn when you first get approved for the card and meet the published minimum spend requirement. It also applies to the rewards earning structure of the card when you use it to pay for things.

For example, there might be a cash-back rewards card that is offering a welcome bonus of $200 after you spend $500 on purchases the first three months after you open the account, and that earns rewards at a rate of 1.5% cash-back on all purchases that you make on the card. If you spend $10,000 on that card over the course of a year, you'll earn 1.5% of that, or $150 in rewards. Spend $100,000 on the card over the course of a year, you'll earn 1.5% of that or $1,500 in rewards. Pretty straightforward. 

So how do these cash-back rewards cards end up being able to earn points instead? If you have one of these cash-back rewards credit cards, how do you get it to function like a point earning credit card? Here is the key to doing that. 

In order for a cash-back credit card to earn points instead of cash-back as rewards, you have to also hold a traditional transferable points earning credit card in the same points currency as the cash-back credit card. Here is why this is key. Because rewards earned on a cash-back credit card cannot be transferred directly to an airline or hotel transfer partner of the points currency of that credit card. 

As I mentioned before, that is where the potential increased value of points rewards lies, specifically in being able to earn transferable points that you can move out of your credit card account and into the airline frequent flier account or the hotel loyalty account of one of the transfer partners of your points currency. In order for a cash-back rewards card to function like a points earning card, you need to also hold a transferable points earning credit card in the same points currency. 

This transferable points earning credit card is necessary because it acts like a bridge between the cash-back credit card and being able to transfer points to airline and hotel transfer partners. Without that bridge, rewards earned on a cash-back rewards card cannot function as points. 

So you can move rewards earned on a cash-back credit card to a transferable points earning credit card in the same points currency ecosystem. Then from there, you can move points to an airline or hotel transfer partner, but you need the bridge of the transferable points earning rewards credit card to turn the cash-back rewards credit card into a points earning credit card. 

Here is the first takeaway for this episode. That a cash-back rewards card by itself cannot earn transferable points. You always need a second rewards credit card in the same points ecosystem, a card that is able to earn transferable points by itself. This second card will act like a bridge that allows you to move rewards from the cash-back card to the transferable points earning card and eventually to airline and hotel transfer partners of your points currency. By themselves, these cash-back rewards cards cannot earn transferable points. But with a companion card, or what I've been describing as a bridge card, they can. 

Okay, so let's say that you have one of these combinations of cards, a cash-back rewards card that can function as a points earning card and a transferable points earning card in the same points category or currency that will act as the bridge. At what rate, then, does the cash-back card and earning points?

It's really simple. If a cash-back rewards card is advertised as earning 1.5% cash-back on all purchases then when it functions as a point earning credit card instead, it will earn 1.5 points for every dollar that you spend. So spend $10,000 on a cash-back card that earns 1.5% cash-back, and you get $150 in rewards. Use that same cash-back card as a points earning card, and it will earn 15,000 points for the same $10,000 of spend. 

If you have a cash-back rewards card that earns 2% back on all purchases, when it functions as a points earning credit card instead, it will earn two points for every dollar spent on the card. If you spend $10,000 on a cash-back card that earns 2% cash-back, you'll get $200 in rewards. Use that same cash-back card as a point earning card, and it will earn 20,000 points for the same $10,000 of spend.

If you have a cash-back rewards card that earns 4% cash-back on certain defined categories of expenses, say on groceries, then it will earn four points for every dollar spent on the card on groceries when it's functioning as a points earning credit card instead of a cash-back credit card. Spend $10,000 on groceries on a cash-back card that rewards grocery spend with 4% cash-back, and you'll earn $400 in rewards. Use that same cash-back card as a points earning card, and it will earn 40,000 points for that $10,000 spent on groceries.

Here is a really important point. You as the cardholder don't have to do anything special in order to activate your cash-back card so that it earns points instead. As long as you have a companion card in the same points currency ecosystem that earns transferable points in that points currency, then your cash-back rewards card will automatically have the option or the ability to earn rewards as points. 

You don't have to opt into anything. You don't have to click any special buttons in your credit card account to make this switch. You don't have to call your credit card company and tell them that you want to earn points instead of cash-back. The cash-back card will continue to earn rewards. You can choose to move those rewards to the companion or bridge card if you want to turn them into transferable points anytime you want. 

Okay, so now let's talk about which specific cash-back rewards cards can actually function as points earning cards. As I mentioned before, there are three cash-back points currency systems, or three points earning currency systems that offer cards that do this. There's Citi, Chase, and Capital One.

So within Citi, Chase, and Capital One, there are cash-back rewards cards that can also function as points earning cards. I'm going to walk you through which cards those are, and also which cards in the same points ecosystem you're going to need as the companion card that acts like a bridge between the cash-back card and the transfer partners for that points ecosystem. 

Let's start with the simplest one first, which is Citibank. Citibank offers two different cash-back rewards cards that can function as points earning credit cards. The first one is called the Citi Double Cash credit card, and the second one is called the Citi Custom Cash credit card. 

The Citi Double Cash credit card has a very straightforward rewards earning structure. As a cash-back credit card, it earns 2% cash-back on all purchases, and there's no limit on the amount of rewards you can earn. When it functions as a points earning card instead, it earns a flat two points for every dollar spent on the card. Again, with no limit to how many expenses you can put on the card and still earn two points for every dollar that you spend. 

The second Citi card, the Citi Custom Cash credit card has a rewards earning structure that's a little bit more complicated. This card offers cash-back when you put expenses from defined categories on the card, including purchases at restaurants, gas stations, grocery stores, select to travel and transit, streaming services, drugstores, home improvement stores, fitness clubs, and live entertainment.

But you don't earn cash-back for spend on all of those categories every single billing cycle. Instead, each billing cycle you earn 5% cash-back in the one single category that you spent the most on during that billing cycle, but only on up to $500 spent. 

So one month you might spend the most on groceries, and you would get 5% back on that category of expenses, only up to $500 in purchases. For all the other categories of spend, you would only earn 1% cash-back for that one billing cycle. When the Citi Custom Cash card functions as a rewards card that earns points instead of a cash-back card, you would earn five points for every dollar spent on the one category with highest spend each billing cycle. But again, only up to $500 spent. So that's a maximum of 2,500 points earned in your highest category of spend per billing cycle. 

Personally, I think there's a lot to keep track of from billing cycle to billing cycle, especially because the 5% cash-back or the five times points earning is limited to $500 spent per billing cycle. For that reason, I think this card makes less sense for someone with higher average spend in the categories that the Citi Custom Cash card bonuses. For that reason, of these two cards, the Citi Double Cash card may actually be a stronger points earning card. 

Now in order for the Citi Double Cash card or the Citi Custom Cash card to function as points are in cards instead of cash-back cards. Remember that you're also going to have to have a second Citi credit card that by itself earns transferable Citi Thank You points. It's this second card that allows the cash-back cards to function as points earning cards. 

In the Citi bank ecosystem, the cards that earn transferable Citi Thank you points are the Citi Premier card and the Citi Prestige card. The Citi Prestige card is actually an old card that Citi no longer offers to new applicants. So if you don't happen to already have that card, then you're going to need a Citi Premier card as the companion card to your cash-back card. 

The Citi Premier card is a solid points earning rewards card as it earns three points for every dollar that you spend at restaurants, gas stations, grocery stores, air travel, and hotels. So if you had the Citi Double Cash card in tandem with the Citi Premier card, you'd be able to earn three points for every dollar spent on purchases at restaurants, grocery stores, gas stations, air travel, and hotel, and two points for every dollar spent on all other purchases. With just two credit cards, you're guaranteed to be earning at least two points for every dollar you spend, which is really strong points earning.

Let's move on now from cards in the Citi points ecosystem to cards in the Chase Ultimate Rewards points ecosystem. Within the Chase points ecosystem there are two personal cash-back credit cards, and two business cash-back credit cards that can function as points earning cards. The two personal Chase cash-back cards that can function as points earning cards are the Chase Freedom Unlimited credit card and the Chase Freedom Flex credit card. 

The Chase Freedom Unlimited credit card earns 5% cash-back on travel booked through Chase, 3% cash-back on dining at restaurants including takeout and delivery services, 3% cash-back at drugstores, and 1.5% cash-back on all other expenses. When used as a points earning card, that means that it earns five points for every dollar spent on travel books through Chase, three points for every dollar spent at restaurants and drugstores, and 1.5 points for every dollar spent on all other categories of expenses. 

The second Chase cash-back card, the Chase Freedom Flex card, also earns 5% cash-back on travel books through Chase, 3% cash-back on dining at restaurants including takeout and delivery services, and 3% cash-back at drugstores. 

But unlike the Chase Freedom Unlimited card, the Chase Freedom Flex card has an additional bonus points earning category that changes every quarter of the year. Each quarter the Chase Freedom Flex card earns 5% cash-back on the designated quarterly bonus category that might be something like gas stations for one quarter, or grocery stores for one quarter, or Amazon or PayPal purchases for one quarter. Each quarter you can earn 5% cash-back on up to $1,500 spent in the designated bonus category with the Chase Freedom Flex card. 

So when the Chase Freedom Flex card functions as a points earning card instead, it earns five points for every dollar spent in the designated quarterly bonus category, but only up to $1,500 spent. After that, it only earns one point per dollar spent in the bonus category and on any non-category spend. While it will earn five points for every dollar spent on travel book through Chase, and three points for every dollar spent at restaurants and drugstores. 

Those are the two personal cash-back credit cards that Chase offers that can also act as points earning credit cards. But Chase also has two business cash-back credit cards that can act as points earning cards as well. The two business cash-back credit cards offered by Chase that can be points earning cards are the Chase Inc Business Unlimited credit card and the Chase Inc Business Cash credit card. 

The Chase Inc Business Unlimited card has a very straightforward reward structure. As a cash-back card, it earns 5% cash-back on Lyft rides and 1.5% cash-back on all other spend put on the card. That means that when uses a points earning card, the Chase Inc Business Unlimited card earns five points for every dollar spent on Lyft rides, and 1.5 points spent on any other type of expense. 

The other cash-back Chase business card, the Chase Inc Business Cash card, works a little bit differently. It earns 5% cash-back on the first $25,000 spent in combined purchases at office supply stores and on internet, cable, and phone services each year, and 2% cash-back on the first $25,000 spent at gas stations and restaurants each year. This translates to five points for every dollar spent at office supply stores and on internet, cable, and phone services up to $25,000 spent per year, and two points for every dollar spent at gas stations and restaurants up to $25,000 spent per year. 

So overall, Chase has four cash-back credit cards that can function as points earning credit cards, two on the personal side, and two on the business side. You can actually hold all four of these cards if you wanted to, assuming that you're eligible for business credit cards. But in order for any of these four cash-back cards to be able to earn points that can be transferred to Chase’s airline and hotel transfer partners, you need to have at least one rewards credit card that earns transferable Chase Ultimate Rewards points by itself. 

For that you have three different options in the Chase points ecosystem. The three cards that earn transferable Chase points are the Chase Sapphire Preferred card, the Chase Sapphire Reserve card, and the Chase Inc Business Preferred card. That's it. If you don't have one of those three rewards credit cards, your cash-back Chase credit card will not be able to earn transferable Chase points. 

It doesn't matter which of these three transferable points earning cards you have, you just need one of them to turn any of the Chase cash-back rewards cards I mentioned into a points earning card.

One final thing that I want to make sure to mention and explicitly clarify is that not all cash-back credit cards can function as points earning credit cards, even when you do hold what I'm calling a bridge card, or a card that earns transferable points in a particular points currency. It's only specific cash-back rewards cards in each points currency that can also act as points earning credit cards, and it's the ones that I've been telling you about. 

Chase recently released a new business charge card that is a cash-back card called the Chase Inc Business Premier card. This card looked really exciting when it was first announced because it's a business card that earns 2% cash-back on all purchases and 2.5% cash-back on all purchases that are $5,000 or more. This is an incredibly strong cash-back rewards structure, particularly because there are no other Chase business cards or Chase personal cards that offer two to 2.5% cash-back on all spend. 

When I first heard about the Chase Inc Business Premier card, I was really interested in potentially getting this card because I assumed that it would work the way that the other cash-back Chase business cards that I've talked about work in that it could potentially also function as a point earning card which would be huge.

But that is not the case with the Chase Inc Business Premier card. It is a cash-back card only. Currently there is no way to use the card as a point earning card instead, regardless of any other Chase rewards cards that you might have. So as a word of caution, do not apply for the Chase Inc Business Premier card assuming that it will act as a points earning card because that is a cash-back card that, as of now, can only act as a cash-back card. 

So moving on from Chase, there's one final points currency ecosystem that offers cash-back rewards cards that can also act as points earning cards, and that is Capital One. Capital One offers two personal cash-back cards and three business cash-back cards that can act as points earning cards. 

On the personal side, Capital One offers the Saver Rewards credit card, and the Saver One Rewards credit card. Now I, for the life of me, cannot figure out why credit card companies do this where they create different credit card products and give them almost identical names. 

This is just a little bit of an aside, but it drives me crazy. I find it very confusing. If it's confusing for someone like me who really intentionally learns about these cards and knows there's a difference between them, I think it is exponentially more confusing to people who are first just starting to get into this hobby. So I wish I could rename all of these cards. Unfortunately don't have the power to do that. But I will try to be very clear when I'm talking about different credit card products and acknowledge when different credit card products have incredibly similar names to help you try to differentiate between the different cards. 

So again, on the personal side, the Capital One points currency system offers two different personal cash-back credit cards. One is called the Saver Rewards card, and one is, stupidly in my opinion, called the Saver One Rewards credit card.

Now, the Capital One Saver Rewards card is the more premium of the two cash-back credit cards that Capital One offers because it has a higher welcome bonus and also a slightly higher rewards earning structure than the Saver One Rewards card. The Saver Rewards card offers a 30,000 point welcome bonus when you meet the minimum spend requirement versus the Saver One Rewards card, which offers a 20,000 point welcome bonus.

The Saver Rewards card also earns 8% cash-back on Capital One entertainment purchases, 4% cash-back on dining, entertainment, streaming services, and 3% cash-back at grocery stores. In comparison, the Saver One Rewards card also earns 8% cash-back on Capital One entertainment purchases. But instead of earning 4% cash-back on dining, entertainment, and streaming services, it earns 3% cash-back in those categories as well as 3% cash-back at grocery stores. All other categories of expenses earn 1% cash-back with both of those credit cards.

As point earning credit cards, the Capital One Saver Rewards card earns eight points per dollar spent on Capital One entertainment purchases, four points per dollar spent on dining, entertainment, and streaming services, and three points per dollar spent at grocery stores. While the Capital One Saver One Rewards card earns three points per dollar spent on dining, entertainment, and streaming services, but otherwise earn points at the same rate as the Saver Rewards card. 

When it comes to cash-back business credit cards from Capital One that also function as points earning cards, there are three versions of the Capital One Spark Cash business credit card. The first is the Spark Cash Classic card, which has no welcome bonus and earns rewards at a rate of 1% cash-back on purchases, which I would argue is not really a compelling card unless your credit score is fair, and you're not able to qualify for one of the other business cards. 

The second cash-back business card that Capital One offers is the Capital One Spark Cash Select business card, and that has a $650 welcome bonus and earns rewards at a rate of 5% cash-back on hotels and rental cars both through Capital One travel and 1.5% cash-back on all other spend. This equates to a welcome bonus of 65,000 points, and a point earning rate of 1.5 points for every dollar spent other than booking hotels and rental cars directly through Capital One travel, which would earn five points per dollar spent.

The third and final cash-back business card that Capital One offers called the Capital One Spark Cash Plus business credit card is the most rewarding of the cash-back Capital One business credit cards is it offers a welcome bonus of $1,200 in earns rewards at a rate of 5% cash-back on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One travel and 2% cash-back on all other spend. This equates to a welcome bonus of 120,000 points, and a points earning rate of two points for every dollar spent other than booking hotels and rental cars directly through Capital One. 

One other unique aspect of the Capital One Spark Cash Plus business credit card is that it's actually not a credit card. It is a charge card rather than a conventional credit card. If you haven't yet listened to podcast episode number 18 on the difference between charge cards and conventional credit cards, be sure to check that out as there are some distinct benefits that charge cards offer over credit cards. 

So just like with the Citi cash-back cards and the Chase cash-back cards, in order for the Capital One cash-back cards to function as points earning cards, you're going to need to hold one of the Capital One rewards cards that earns transferable points to act as a bridge between the cash-back card and Capital One's airline and hotel transfer partners. 

Capital One actually has five different transferable points earning rewards cards. Remember that you only need to hold one of these five cards in order to turn the Capital One cash-back cards into points earning cards. So if you hold one of the Capital One Personal Venture credit cards, either the Venture One Rewards card, the Venture Rewards card, or the Venture X Rewards card, you are good to go. These are the three Capital One personal rewards credit cards that each earn transferable points. 

So, again, you only need one of these and your Capital One cash-back card will be able to act as a points earning card. On the business side, Capital One offers two transferable points earning credit cards called the Capital One Spark Miles for Business card and the Capital One Spark Miles Select for Business card. If you do not have one of the personal Capital One credit cards that earns transferable points, then you're going to want to be sure to have one of these two business credit cards that earns transferable points. 

Now that you know the difference between cash-back rewards cards that can actually act as points earning cards and which transferable points earning cards in the same points currency ecosystem that you need in order to make this work, let's talk about why this even matters and the impact that including one or more of these cash-back rewards cards into your credit card portfolio can have. 

One reason that this matters so much is because most people don't even know that this is an option. Because the way that credit card issuers market these cash-back rewards cards as only being cash-back cards, so many people have no idea that they can actually earn points with these cards. So they get overlooked in favor of the traditional points earning cards. That would be a mistake. 

In my opinion, it's potentially a huge mistake because the second reason why it matters that you know about these cash-back rewards cards that can also work as points earning cards is because these cards can be huge points earning powerhouses when they are paired with a traditional transferable points earning rewards card in the same points currency ecosystem. Because they expand the bonus points earning categories available to you when you have two different rewards cards instead of just one. 

For example, if you have the Chase Sapphire Preferred card, which is a fantastic Chase points earning card, you will be able to use that card to earn five points for every dollar spent on Lyft and Peloton purchases, three points for every dollar spent on dining, streaming services, and online grocery purchases, and two points for every dollar spent on travel purchases. Those are really strong bonus points earning categories, but no single rewards credit card gives you great bonus points earning on every single expense category that exists. 

This is where adding in one of those cash-back rewards cards to earn points can be so valuable. When you pair a Chase Sapphire Preferred card with the Chase Freedom Unlimited card, for example, the Chase Freedom Unlimited card can then function as a points earning card too. So in addition to all the bonus points categories that you get with the Chase Sapphire Preferred card, adding in the Chase Freedom Unlimited card will also get you three points for every dollar spent drugstores and 1.5 points for every dollar spent on any purchase that does not fall into another bonus category. 

This is where the real power of many of these cash-back cards lies, in my opinion. In their ability to get you increased points for all of your spend that's considered a non-category or non-bonus spend. For many of us, whether it's our personal expenses or our business expenses, the majority of what we spend money on falls into non-bonus spend. We're spending money on purchases and expenses that don't fall into a defined bonus category, like groceries or dining or travel. 

So having a card that allows you to earn more than one point for every dollar spent on non-bonus category expenses can actually make a huge difference in the amount of points that you can earn month after month and year after year. Many of these cash-back cards they can act as points earning cards have the enormous advantage of offering bonus points for non-category spend. Whether that's 1.5 points for every dollar spent or two points for every dollar spent. These cash-back cards that earn one and a half or two points for every dollar spent can be absolute points earning workhorses for your personal and business expenses if you don't overlook them as cash-back only cards. 

A final reason these cash-back cards sometimes get overlooked in favor of only applying for the traditional points earning rewards cards is because most of the cash-back cards that I mentioned today have relatively small welcome bonuses when you compare them to the points earning credit cards. It may not seem worth it to get a cash-back rewards card that only offers 20,000 or 30,000 points as a signup bonus when the regular rewards credit cards offer 60,000 points, 90,000 points, or more as a signup bonus. 

But as I just described, the power of these cash-back rewards cards isn't in the onetime welcome bonus that you can earn when you first sign up for them. Their power is in the ability to sustainably earn you increased points for your non-bonus spend over time, and the ability to get access to new bonus categories that your other rewards credit cards might not offer. 

Another great benefit of many of the cash-back cards that can act as points earning cards is that they tend to have low or no annual fees, which makes them fantastic cards to hold on to year after year since you're not going to be having to pay really high annual fees to keep those accounts open. 

All right everybody, I hope that today's episode has shed some light on how you can use some cash-back rewards cards as points earning cards instead. Before we wrap up, I just want to clarify a few common questions or misconceptions that people often have when they first discover that these cash-back cards can actually earn points.

Common question number one is do I have to get the transferable points earning credit card, or what I've been calling a bridge card in this episode, before getting the cash-back card in order for the cash-back card to work as a points earning card? The answer is no. You can get one of these cash-back cards first and earn rewards using it, but you need to get the companion or the bridge card before the rewards earned on the cash-back card can actually be used as transferable points. 

So you can get the transferable points earning card first, or you can get the cash-back card first, and it doesn't matter. You just need to have the transferrable points earning card by the time you want to use the rewards earned on the cash-back card as transferable points. 

This is especially important for those of you who might be walking around right now with one of these cash-back cards that you could have had for years. Whether that is the Chase Freedom Unlimited card, an original Chase Freedom card, or a Citi Double Cash card that maybe you've had for years, and it could already have a bunch of rewards sitting on it. Those rewards can be used as transferable points. All you have to do is get a transferable points earning credit card in the same points currency ecosystem whenever you're ready if you don't already have one. 

Common question number two that I get is something like I already have a transferable points earning card. Let's just say, for example, the Chase Sapphire reserve card. Now that I know that these cash-back cards can actually earn points, I really want to get one or more than one. But when I go to the bank website to apply for the cash-back card, let's say the Chase Freedom Flex card, it only shows the welcome bonus and the rewards earning as cash-back. How can I be sure that the Chase Freedom Flex card will actually earn me points? Is there a separate application for that? 

The answer to that is no. Remember that the cash-back rewards cards that I described today are all marketed only as cash-back cards by the credit card issuers. So don't be surprised or confused when you go to apply for one of them, and all the website talks about is it being a cash-back card. As long as you have a transferable points earning card in the same points currency ecosystem then the cash-back cards I talked about in this episode will be able to earn points. 

Common question number three. If I want to have one of these cash-back cards act as a points earning card, does both the cash-back card and the companion or the bridge card have to be personal credit cards? Or do both the cash-back card and the companion or bridge card have to be business credit cards? 

The answer to that is no. They can both be personal cards. They can both be business cards. Or one can be business and one can be personal. As long as they're in the same points currency ecosystem, you're fine. As an example, you can have the Chase Inc Business Cash card as the cash-back card, and the Chase Sapphire Reserve card, which is a personal card, as the transferable points earning bridge card, and you'll be able to earn points. 

You can have the Chase Freedom Unlimited personal card as the cash-back card and the Chase Inc Business Preferred card, which is a business card, as the transferable points earning bridge card, and you're fine. You'll still be able to earn points. Both cards can be personal or both cards can be business cards. 

Now, I know that that is a lot of information for one episode. Even though I tried to break it down step by step, there are bound to be more questions. So if there's anything about today's episode that you want to chat more about or ask a question about, simply shoot me a message. You can find me on Instagram @pointmeto_firstclass, or you can send me an email to [email protected]. I'll also add those to the show notes so that it's easy for you to find me and get your questions answered. 

Also, if you are a visual person like I am, you should grab a free resource that I made just for this episode called the cash-back credit card cheat sheet. This resource will lay out for you exactly which cash-back cards can function as points earning cards and which bridge cards you'll want to pair them with in order to ensure that you're earning as many points as possible for your purchases. 

To grab your copy of the cash-back credit card cheat sheet, just visit www.pointmetofirstclass.com/cashback, and I will send you a cheat sheet guide straight to your email inbox. I hope that today's episode has expanded your idea of which cards can earn you points. I encourage you to consider whether any of the cash-back cards I mentioned today would be a great addition to your rewards credit card portfolio. Have a great week everyone, and I will see you back here next week. 

Thank you for joining me for this week's episode of Point Me to First Class. If you want more tips on turning your expenses into travel, visit pointmetofirstclass.com to learn more. See you next week.