Chase Pay Yourself Back gets you up to 50% more value when you redeem points for gas, groceries, phone, internet, charity donations, and more — here's how it works

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• Chase Pay Yourself Back offers a higher value for your points when you redeem for eligible purchases.
• The bonus value you'll receive depends on the cards you have.
• Chase has extended Pay Yourself Back on some cards and added the feature to the Aeroplan® Credit Card - Product Name Only and Southwest credit cards.
• Read Insider's guide to the best credit cards.

Because of ongoing changes in consumer habits, credit card issuers have been introducing new benefits and features to meet a broader range of customer needs and to account for the fact that travel perks currently aren't as relevant to some cardholders.

The Pay Yourself Back program from Chase was introduced during the pandemic in part to help customers who had quite a few points to burn but weren't ready to travel yet. This feature is especially valuable for those with cards like Chase Sapphire Reserve® and Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card, because it allows you to redeem points toward select everyday purchases at an improved rate.

However, recent updates have made the program far less useful. At the beginning of the year, Chase devalued most Pay Yourself Back redemptions on the Chase Sapphire Reserve® and Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card, despite introducing new eligible categories. With the Chase Sapphire Reserve®, most categories (except eligible charities) now offer a 25% bonus (was 50%), and the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card no longer offers a bonus at all (previously 25%) on most categories.

But on a positive note, the Pay Yourself Back program has expanded to the Aeroplan® Credit Card - Product Name Only and the Chase Southwest credit cards. While the redemption values aren't outstanding, it's always good to have more options for redeeming rewards.

Here's what to know about Pay Yourself Back to help you decide if you want to redeem your points this way.

We're focused here on the rewards and perks that come with each card. These cards won't be worth it if you're paying interest or late fees. When using a credit card, it's important to pay your balance in full each month, make payments on time, and only spend what you can afford to pay.

Chase Pay Yourself Back: How it works

Chase Pay Yourself Back lets certain cardholders redeem rewards for a higher rate than the 1 cent per point normally offered for cash-back redemptions. The eligible categories and bonus value vary depending on the card:

Eligible charities for Chase Pay Yourself Back include:

• American Red Cross
• Equal Justice Initiative
• Feeding America
• GLSEN
• Habitat for Humanity
• International Medical Corps
• International Rescue Committee
• Leadership Conference Education Fund
• 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

Of note are International Medical Corps, International Rescue Committee, UNICEF USA, and World Central Kitchen, which include support for relief efforts in Ukraine. Keep in mind you'll need to donate directly to the charity's parent organization, because local chapters may not be eligible for Pay Yourself Back.

If you have a card that is eligible for Pay Yourself Back, here are the steps you need to take to redeem your points.

You'll receive a statement credit equal to the cash value of the points you redeemed within three business days.

What to consider before you use Pay Yourself Back

Being able to redeem rewards for a higher-than-usual rate is always a good thing, but Chase Ultimate Rewards points, Air Canada Aeroplan points, and Southwest points are more valuable for travel. Here's everything you should consider before using Chase Pay Yourself Back.

If you might travel in the future, consider the value of Chase travel partners

While it may be tempting to cash in Chase points to cover your bills, don't forget about the long-term value of these rewards if you plan to travel in the future.

Let's say for a moment that you have 50,000 Chase Ultimate Rewards points in your Chase Sapphire Reserve® account. You could use the Pay Yourself Back feature to cover $625 in gas or grocery purchases made with your card (1.25 cents per point), but you could also transfer these points to over a dozen airline and hotel partners at a 1:1 ratio to get more value.

For example, 50,000 Chase points are often enough to cover a round-trip flight to Europe when you transfer them to Air France-KLM Flying Blue — and that ticket might cost well over $1,000 otherwise.

That said, the advice to save points for future travel is only applicable if you do plan to travel later. If finances are tight, then it's likely using points for non-travel redemptions would help you considerably more in the short term.

You'll still earn rewards on any purchases you erase with Pay Yourself Back

Remember that the Pay Yourself Back feature is another way to redeem your rewards, so it won't affect your earning rates with your Chase card.

For example, you'll still earn 5x points on flights and 10x points on hotels and car rentals purchased through Chase Ultimate Rewards (after earning the $300 travel credit) and 3x points on all other travel and dining with the Chase Sapphire Reserve® and 5x points on travel purchased through Chase Ultimate Rewards, 2x points on all other travel purchases.

You can also still click through the Chase Ultimate Rewards shopping portal to earn bonus rewards on online purchases made with participating stores. To do this, log into your Chase account, head to the Ultimate Rewards landing page, and click "Earn Bonus Points" under the "Earn/Use" dropdown. Then, select the store you want to make a purchase with, and click through.

Pair Chase Ultimate Rewards cards for even more value

If you have a Chase Sapphire Reserve®, you should also consider applying for another Chase card that could help you maximize this benefit. Chase lets you transfer points between accounts, so by moving all of your points to the card with the best redemption options, you'll get the most value.

For instance, if you have the Chase Sapphire Reserve®, you could pair it with the Chase Freedom Unlimited® to earn 1.5% cash back (1.5x points) on non-bonus category spending, or with the Chase Freedom Flex℠ to earn 5% back (5x points) on up to $1,500 spent (then 1%) in quarterly rotating bonus categories after activation.