[2024.10 Update] The fourth quarter has started, so remember to update the quarterly 5x cards in your wallet too. It’s a good idea to activate all of the 5x offers. Detailed analysis and activation links for the Freedom series, Discover, and Dividend are below

  • Freedom series cards (activation link): PayPal, Pet Shop, McDonald’s, and donations all earn 5x points. Honestly, only giving us PayPal for the holiday shopping season is really not enough. Still, PayPal is fairly widely accepted, and many merchants also let you use PayPal to buy third-party gift cards, such as Staples and Target.
  • Discover it series (Discover 2024 quarterly 5% cashback categories): Amazon and Target. Amazon is very familiar to everyone; besides shopping directly, you can also use this 5% category to stock up on some Amazon gift cards in your account. In addition, they also sell various third-party gift cards and even Visa gift cards, which are worth considering. Target is similar: you can also stock up on Target gift cards, and there are many third-party gift cards sold in store. That said, with this 5% category, I’d still recommend using it at Amazon first.
  • Citi Dividend (check link) has 5% cashback categories for restaurants and Citi Travel, which aren’t very exciting. But I’m sure cardholders have probably already maxed out the 5% cap in the first three quarters.

2024 quarterly 5x cashback summary

Some credit cards offer 1% cashback on everyday spending, plus rotating quarterly 5x rewards—that is, 1%×5=5% cashback. Using the right multipliers in the right categories helps us maximize savings. Of course, with a little flexibility, these quarterly rewards can even cover every spending category. Today I’m summarizing the credit cards with quarterly 5x cashback and their corresponding categories, plus how to make the most of this 5x cashback. This article mainly covers the most common cards with quarterly multipliers:

  • Discover it (no annual fee, $100 welcome bonus, double cashback in the first year)
  • Chase Freedom (discontinued, same categories as Flex)
  • Chase Freedom Flex (no annual fee, $200 welcome bonus, quarterly 5x Ultimate Rewards)
  • US Bank Cash+ (no annual fee, $200 welcome bonus, choose 2 categories for quarterly 5% cashback, 1 category for 2%)
  • Citi Dividend (no annual fee, not open to applications)

Discover it

Discover no longer announces the full year’s 5% cashback categories all at once; instead, it announces them on the first day of the month before the quarter begins.

  • First quarter: restaurants, drugstores. Drugstores such as CVS and Walgreens may not be places everyone goes often, but they both sell lots of third-party gift cards, such as Amazon and gas cards, so you can buy some and easily max out the 5%. Restaurants are also everyday spending, so I don’t recommend stockpiling too many restaurant gift cards; first, they’re slow to use up and can be stolen, and second, restaurant gift cards are sometimes discounted, and the discount can be greater than 5%.
  • Second quarter: gas and EV charging, home improvement stores, transit
  • Third quarter: Grocery and Walmart spending. Grocery stores: regular grocery shopping is self-explanatory, but if useful, you can stock up on the grocery store’s own gift cards. If you really can’t use it all up, for example the Kroger family of stores often sells lots of third-party gift cards, such as Amazon and Visa gift cards. Note that Target and Costco are discount stores; even though they sell groceries, they are classified as discount stores and do not count. Walmart: regular grocery shopping and online shopping are self-explanatory; if you go often, you can buy some Walmart gift cards and keep them around, and Sam’s Club can also accept Walmart gift cards. Walmart stores also sell a large number of third-party gift cards, such as Amazon and Visa gift cards.
  • Fourth quarter: Amazon and Target. Amazon is very familiar to everyone; besides shopping directly, you can also use this 5% category to stock up on some Amazon gift cards in your account. In addition, they also sell various third-party gift cards and even Visa gift cards, which are worth considering. Target is similar: you can also stock up on Target gift cards, and there are many third-party gift cards sold in store. That said, with this 5% category, I’d still recommend using it at Amazon first.
  • Quarterly 5x activation link: log in to your Discover account to activate, or sign in here: activation link
  • Latest activation deadline: you only start earning 5% cashback after activation
  • 5x cashback limit: up to $1,500 per quarter earns 5%, then 1%
  • Cashback posting time: after each statement is issued
  • Inquiry link: check how much of the $1,500 limit has been used (login required)
  • Card intro: Discover it card introduction
  • Advantage: no annual fee. If you’re a new applicant, the 5% quarterly cashback can also be doubled, effectively making it 10% cashback for the quarter

Chase Freedom/Flex

  • First quarter: Grocery Stores (excluding Walmart and Target), spa and self-care, gym and membership fees. With the grocery category, I think most people can easily max it out with everyday spending. If you really can’t use it all up, grocery stores usually sell lots of third-party gift cards, such as Amazon and gas cards, so stocking up a bit is fine. The other two are essential categories; if you don’t have them, there’s no need to force it.
  • Second quarter: hotels and activities, restaurant spending, Amazon
  • Third quarter: gas, EV charging, live entertainment, and movie theaters. There aren’t any especially great categories here, and it’s actually pretty hard to max out if you don’t already spend in these areas. The only thing to do is check whether the convenience store attached to the gas station sells third-party gift cards; it’s still best to try a small amount first and see whether the convenience store qualifies for 5x.
  • Fourth quarter: PayPal, Pet Shop, McDonald’s, and donations all earn 5x points. Honestly, only giving us PayPal for the holiday shopping season is really not enough. Still, PayPal is fairly widely accepted, and many merchants also let you use PayPal to buy third-party gift cards, such as Staples and Target.
  • Quarterly 5x activation link: Chase Freedom Flex official site
  • Last activation deadline: Activate before the 14th of the last month of each quarter; all purchases in that quarter made before activation can earn 5x
  • 5x cash back cap: First $1,500 per quarter earns 5x, then 1x
  • Cash back posting time: After each statement is issued
  • Usage check: Quarterly 5x usage checker link (login required)
  • Card intro: Chase Freedom Flex
  • Pros: No annual fee. The 5x earns UR points, and if you have a premium Chase card, you can transfer points to airline miles and hotel points, which can be worth 1.6c per point. That effectively makes quarterly 5x UR equal to 8% cash back.

Citi Dividend

  • First quarter: Amazon.com, Select Streaming Services (Amazon Prime Video, Amazon Music, Apple Music, CBS All Access, Disney, AT&T TV NOW, ESPN+, fuboTV, HBO Max, NBA League Pass, Netflix, Pandora, Showtime, Sling TV, Spotify, Starz, SiriusXM, Vudu, YouTube Red, YouTube TV, and Tidal). Amazon right out of the gate—Citi is really going all out! If you can’t use it all, consider the Visa gift cards above and third-party gift cards. Citi’s annual cap is calculated on a yearly basis; if you have a lot of spending, once you max out this card you can put it in the drawer.
  • Second quarter: Not yet announced
  • Third quarter: Gas. There’s not much to say about this category; if you can’t use it all, consider checking the convenience stores attached to some gas stations for third-party gift cards
  • Fourth quarter: Restaurants and Citi Travel. These two categories are not very useful.
  • Quarterly 5x activation link: Citi official activation link
  • Last activation deadline: 5% cash back starts only after activation
  • 5x cash back cap: Up to $300 cash back total per year, then 1%
  • Cash back posting time: After each statement is issued
  • Card intro: Citi Dividend (no longer directly available)
  • Pros: No annual fee. There is no quarterly limit, so when one quarter has especially good 5% categories, you can easily use up the entire year’s $300.

US Bank Cash+

  • Quarterly 5% category choice: If you have other 5x cards, for the first quarter, choosing Dell iPhone (can overpay), Bookstore (back-to-school books), or fast food is pretty good (covers part of dining spend). Of course, it depends on your spending habits
  • Quarterly 5x activation link: US Bank official website
  • Last activation deadline: Unknown (readers who have this card are welcome to share)
  • 5x cash back cap: First $2,000 per quarter earns 5x, then 1x
  • Cash back posting time: Unknown (readers who have this card are welcome to share)
  • Card intro: US Bank Cash+ card (no annual fee, $125 sign-up bonus, quarterly 5% cash back: choose 2 categories, 2%: choose 1 category)
  • Pros: No annual fee. Flexible category selection, so you can play category swapping

How to best use these quarterly 5x offers

Regular credit card users

For regular credit card users, just understand these 5x categories and bring the corresponding card in the corresponding quarter.

Advanced credit card users

Since quarterly 5x cash back only applies for a given quarter, even if you have the cards above, you still can’t cover all-year spending, such as gas and grocery shopping. In that case, you can use category swapping to achieve 5% cash back in other categories. For example, when supermarkets have 5x, buying gas gift cards to stock up for other quarters can let you get 5x on gas in the remaining quarters. Drugstores also sell gift cards from various other merchants (such as Amazon, eBay, etc.). Department stores like Sears also sell many third-party gift cards, and Best Buy has many too. Use gift cards as a bridge so all your spending earns 5% cash back! For detailed analysis, see:

MS users

  • Gas stations: 7-Eleven may have Vanilla cards, and the in-store code also codes as gas station
  • Drugstores (CVS,walgreen): PayPal My Cash, all kinds of Vanilla cards
  • Sears, Bedbathbeyond, Best Buy: $200 Visa gift cards, with PIN

For Dividend, drugstores are the best choice because the fee is 1%.

Appendix