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Official Chase Freedom Signature or Dynamic Rewards Merchant Coding List

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rated:
   posted: Jul. 11, 2007 @ 10:06p
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With all the new Chase Freedom cardholders that are changing to the Signature version or Dynamic Rewards programs, I thought it would be helpful to create a thread that lists stores that count for the 3% Cash Back. The Chase Freedom Thread is approaching 2k posts, and will be too crowded to start including such info in an organized manner. As many already know, this rewards program can be quite advantagous in that the top three spending categories can change for the cardholder each month, and the 200 point redemption for $250 check effectively nets you 3.75% Cash Back.

The RBS CustomCash Category Thread(link) could provide a good base, but I suspect there will be many more users involved with the Chase Freedom, and there are several differences between the categories. Of particular interest to me is how they will code some restuarants as fast food versus "full service" restaurant and if online apparel and department stores will be coded the same as their B&M counterparts.

Feel free to update the quick summary with your confirmed experiences with merchant coding. It may be a bit early, but some have been switched for a few weeks, and I'm hoping they can begin to share their info soon.

Message edited by: djspray on 2007-07-12 08:05:19 CDT
   posted: Jul. 11, 2007 @ 10:06p

Grocery stores
Qualifies:
Acme
Albertsons
Assi Plaza
Columbus Asia Market (Huaxin)
Dominick's
EE Mart (Virginia)
Food Lion
Fred Meyer
Garden Fresh Market
Giant (Ahold)
Gordon Food Services (GFS)
Grandmart
Grocery Outlet
Hannaford
Harris Teeter
HEB (HEB counts for me at College Station, #541)
Hy-Vee
Jewel-Osco
Joe Caputo & Sons
Kroger
Lotte Plaza
Lowes Foods
Market Basket
Meijer
Pathmark
Price Chopper
Ralphs
Ranch 99
Redner's
Safeway
Savemart
Shaws
Shopper
Shoprite
Stop and Shop
Super EE Mart/Freshworld (Virginia)
Super Fresh
Trader Joe's
Vons
Weis Markets
Whole Foods

Doesn't:
BJ Wholesale
Columbus Sunrise Asian Super Market
Lindt Chocolate
Super Target
WalMart


Gas & convenience stores
Qualifies:
7-Eleven
76
Butler's Orchard (<-- not a mistake, It doesn't count as grocery, but as gas/convenience in Germantown, MD)
Chevron Gas
Diamond Shamrock
Exxon
Getty
Hess
Irving
Marathon
Mobil
Shell Gas
Texaco
Innovative Vitality (supplements at a doctor's office in No. VA)

Doesn't:
Jiffy Lube (not a gas station, but their services don't qualify for the 3% rewards)


Quick service payment/Fast food restaurants
Qualifies:
AMC Foodcourt (Tyson Corner)
Arby's
Baja Fresh
Boston Market
Burger King
California Crisp
California Pizza Kitchen ASAP (in airport terminal)
Camille's Sidewalk Cafe
Centerplate concession stand at AT&T Park (in SF)
Chartwells at the University of Utah
Chick-Fil-A
Chipotle
Culver's Frozen Custard
Daphne's Greek Cafe
Denny's
Domino's Pizza
Don Pedro
Dunkin Donuts
Fazoli's
Freebirds
Great Steak & Fry Company
Hot Dog on a Stick
In N Out
Jack in the Box
Jamba Juice
Jimmy Johns
KFC
Krispy Kreme
McDonalds
Murphy's Deli
Nation's Giant Burgers
Noodles & Co.
Panera Bread
Pho Hoa Noodle Soup
Pick Up Stix
Pinkberry
Pizza Hut
Pizza Schmizza
Qdoba
Quiznos
Ritter's Frozen Custard
Round Table Pizza
Soda Vending Machine (particularly at Loews Hotel Philadelphia)
Sonic
Starbucks
Steak Escape
Subway
Taco Bell
Tokyo Joe's (Denver/Boulder CO chain)
Tom's Drive-In
Una Mas
Washington Nationals concessions (Hard Time cafe)
Wendy's
Which Wich
White Castle
Wow Deli (Rockville, MD)
Zo Sushi & Thai (Broomfield, CO)

Doesn't:
Asqew Grill
Boudin Bakery
California Pizza
Cantina Grill (Denver International Airport)
Canyon Dining & Bar (Yellowstone Nat'l Park, Wy)
China Star Restaurant (Bountiful UT)
China Taste (Ashburn VA)
Hunan Wing (Chinese takeout)
Ikea Restaurant
Kentucky Fried Chicken
King's BBQ Pit (Inside the Lancaster County Market in Germantown, MD...it's considered as a "Restaurant")
Marco's Pizza
Papa Johns
Pei Wei
Popeyes
Pronto Pizza Marcello's (Bountiful UT)
Ranch 1
Sweet Tomatoes
Sizzler


Telecommunications
Qualifies:
AT&T
Cingular Wireless (AT&T)
CallVantage (AT&T) Voip service
Earthlink
onesuite (recharged phone card)
Qwest
Reliance India Call
Sprint - qualified for my monthly bill on monthly autopay through the Sprint website, also for phone purchase through Sprint phone CSR
T-Mobile
USA Telephone (Teleblend)
Verizon (SoCal)
Verizon Wireless (at least in the Illinois market)
Verizon Wireless (Atlanta)
Vonage

Doesn't:
ResponsiveWeb VoIP
Sprint


Cable/satellite TV/Internet Service Providers
Qualifies:
1and1.com
Astound
Charter Communications
Comcast
Cox
DirecTV
DishNetwork
Qwest
Time Warner
TiVo
Verizon DSL (VERIZON INTERNET SOL)

Doesn't:


Video rentals
Qualifies:
Blockbuster
NetFlix

Doesn't:


Department stores
Qualifies:
Chicos
Dillard's
Filene's Basement
JcPenney (both in-store and online)
Kohl's & (www.Kohls.com ...)
Macy's
Mervyn's
Nordstroms
Nordstrom Rack
Sears
Sears Hardware
Sports Basement
Urban Behavior
While House Black Market


Doesn't:
Many (all?) boutique mall stores (Ann Taylor, Guess, etc).
Altrec (online)
Amazon.com
Bebe Outlet
Bed Bath and Beyond
Charlotte Russe
Finish Line
Forever 21
Fry's (Online)
FYE.com
Ikea
J Crew
Joann Fabric
Lands End (online)
Linens N Things
Marshalls
Newegg (Online)
Old Navy
Overstock(.com)
Rack Room Shoes
Ross Dress For Less
SuperMediaStore (Online)
Target
WalMart


Dry cleaners
Qualifies:
Bountiful Family Cleaners (UT)
Holiday Cleaners
Pure Cleaners (Kildeer, IL)

Doesn't:


Drugstores
Qualifies:
CVS
Drugstore.com
Kaiser Permanente's pharmacy
Medco (mail order Rx)
Prime Therapeutics (mail order Rx)
RiteAid
Roadrunner Pharmacy (specialty veterinary pharmacy)
Walgreens
ULTA

Doesn't:
Pro Health Inc.
ClinicalGuard


Movie theatres
Qualifies:
AMC (Austin, TX)
AMC IMAX (specifically the one in SF)
Century Cinemas 16
Century Cinemas (via Fandango)

Doesn't:


Local and suburban commuter passenger transportation
Qualifies:
Ferries, Bridges, Tolls, Parking Garages, Taxi's, Limo's, etc.
Long Island Railroad (LIRR TVM ...)
Metro-North Railroad (METRO-NORTH TVM ...)
NYC Subway (MTA MVM ...)
Washington Metro (WASH METRO ...)
Las Vegas Monorail
Boston Subway (MBTA)
Portland, OR TriMet
Southeastern PA Trans. Auth. - SEPTA (Philadelphia & suburbs)
Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) Ticket vending machines
Park Ride Fly (airport parking and shuttle service)
DULLES GREENWAY (Parking ticket)
Bay Area Rapid Transit - BART
Cherry Creek Kiosks (parking kiosks in Cherry Creek, CO)

Doesn't:
Academy Bus (NY/NJ)
Amtrak parking lot
FasTrak (Bay Area Toll Tags)
Greyhound Bus
MARC Commuter Rail (probably because ticketing is handled by Amtrak)
SFMTA (prepaid parking meter cards and muni passes from their website)
Boulder Parking (parking kiosks in Boulder, CO)

Pet supply stores and Veterinary services
Qualifies:
Animal Care Center in West Bountiful, UT
Petco
Southwest Animal Hospital (Beaverton, OR)
PETsMART
Knightswood Animal Hospital (Philadelphia, PA) part of VCA network
Pender Ventrinary (No. VA)
VCA Allpets Clinic (Boulder, CO)
Boulder Emergency Vet Clinic (Boulder, CO)

Doesn't:
Houston Humane Society


Utilities
Qualifies:
Eastern Propane and Oil
NJNG $5.95 fee
PG&E - with my chase freedom visa (not signature) with the points option - got ~75 points on ~25 points charge
PSNH
Waste Management
MXEnergy (natural gas)
City of Austin Utilities
JCP&L(First Energy) $3.95 fee
City of Peoria Water/Sewer/Trash (Arizona)
City of Phoenix Water/Sewer/Trash
Commonwealth Edison (charged a $3.50 fee)

Doesn't:
Seattle City Light ("SEA LIGHT WEB")
Santa Clara Muni Utilities (Silicon Valley Power)---considered to be govt services, not utility


Gym/recreation memberships
Qualifies:
Ballroom Dancing (to my surprise - this could potentially work for kids' dance lessons and such, which I'm sure would be a huge benefit to parents)
Gold's Gym
LA Fitness

Doesn't:
Bally's Sports Clubs

Beauty salons/spas
Qualifies:
Great Clips
Sport Clips
Supercuts
The Barbershop and Compa (Springfield Mall, VA)
Hot Sulphur Springs Resort (Hot Sulphur Springs, CO)
Northern VA Massage Center
Hair Cuttery
Paradise Cuts (No. VA)

Doesn't:

Message edited by: VivYip on 2008-10-03 09:10:33 CDT
rated:
   posted: Jul. 12, 2007 @ 10:29a
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Cofirmed for Local Commuter Transit category:
Washington Metro (WASH METRO ...)
NYC Subway (MTA MVM ...)
Metro-North Railroad (METRO-NORTH TVM ...)
Long Island Railroad (LIRR TVM ...)

Confirmed for Department Stores category:
Kohls.com (WWW.Kohls.com ...)

rated:
   posted: Jul. 12, 2007 @ 10:34a
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djca said:Confirmed for Department Stores category:
Kohls.com (WWW.Kohls.com ...)
They are coding some online departments stores the same as B&M. Spec-tacular.

rated:
   posted: Jul. 12, 2007 @ 11:10a
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I had my Freedom card for long time but I just switched to the Dynamic Rewards. My question is will the statement detail which categories or which charges qualified for the 3%?

rated:
   posted: Jul. 12, 2007 @ 3:55p
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Can some one tell me what is the exact difference between Dynamic reward and normal freedom card ???

rated:
   posted: Jul. 12, 2007 @ 4:04p
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prasanta541 said:Can some one tell me what is the exact difference between Dynamic reward and normal freedom card ???
Normal Chase Freedom:
You'll earn 3% Cash Back for every $1 in eligible Gas, Groceries, and Quick Service Restaurant purchases; you'll earn 1% Cash Back in purchases everywhere else.

Chase Freedom with Dynamic Rewards(or Freedom Signature Version):
You will earn 3% Cash Back per $1 on eligible purchases in the 3 essential categories(listed above) where you’ve spent the most each month. Your essentials may change from month to month — the triple rewards you earn for them will stay the same. You also earn 1% Cash Back per dollar on all other purchases.

rated:
   posted: Jul. 12, 2007 @ 6:25p
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when you converted your visa to visa signature and you have less than a 4k line, did they pull your credit?

rated:
   posted: Jul. 12, 2007 @ 6:49p
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jamesfatwallet said:when you converted your visa to visa signature and you have less than a 4k line, did they pull your credit?

you need to have at least a $5,000 line to get converted to signature....if you have another Chase card, you can have them transfer what you need over to qualify for it...

rated:
   posted: Jul. 13, 2007 @ 2:44p
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Verizon Wireless is coded in Wireless provider
and New York Sports Club is coded in Gym membership
while Whole Food is NOT coded in grocery store
Bed Bath and Beyond is NOT coded as department store

Message edited by: keithwang on 2007-07-13 14:45:22 CDT
rated:
   posted: Jul. 13, 2007 @ 2:57p
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keithwang said:Verizon Wireless is coded in Wireless provider
and New York Sports Club is coded in Gym membership
while Whole Food is NOT coded in grocery store
Bed Bath and Beyond is NOT coded as department store
I modified QS so that we can include places that are surprizingly not included in a given category.

rated:
   posted: Jul. 13, 2007 @ 8:39p
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I pay Verizon home phone + Verizon DSL combined bill on Verizon's website
the payment is NOT coded in either Telecommunication or Internet Provider
no 3% Cash Back

rated:
   posted: Jul. 14, 2007 @ 9:19a
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is the dynamic rewards for MC freedom cards and signature is for visa freedom cards?

rated:
   posted: Jul. 14, 2007 @ 9:39a
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Queenshawtii said:is the dynamic rewards for MC freedom cards and signature is for visa freedom cards?

No dynamic rewards is available for all Chase Freedom Card....a signature visa card is considered one level above the platinum card which is what the standard freedom card is....

switching from a freedom card to a signature freedom card is just one way to get the dynamic program...you can also try calling them up to have your regular freedom card get it...It's just a modification in the existing Freedom reward program....
Some here have also gotten it by switching from cash to points...It doesn't matter whether you have an MC or Visa version of this card...

rated:
   posted: Jul. 14, 2007 @ 12:00p
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Sprint (PCS) Surprisingly NOT coded as Wireless.

rated:
   posted: Jul. 14, 2007 @ 12:06p
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edited QS to reflect Verizon/Sprint disqualifications.

rated:
   posted: Jul. 14, 2007 @ 12:28p
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I have a Freedom Card, I assume I am getting 3% at subway. Are you SURE I am not ?

If so, I will need to use my paypal there and get the 1.5% rather than 1%.

rated:
   posted: Jul. 14, 2007 @ 2:33p
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nuid said:I have a Freedom Card, I assume I am getting 3% at subway. Are you SURE I am not ?

If so, I will need to use my paypal there and get the 1.5% rather than 1%.

Subway is under the "qualifies" section, not the "doesn't" section.

rated:
   posted: Jul. 14, 2007 @ 4:12p
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If it says "dining and entertainment" next to the merchant, does that mean its quick service restaurant good for 3%?

rated:
   posted: Jul. 14, 2007 @ 6:36p