The 5% Cash Back Everything Credit Card

In this post, I’ll go over the ultimate credit card setup that you can earn 5% back on everything. Most cash back credit cards earn 1% or 2% back on general purchases. They may provide a higher percentage in very specific categories, but they won’t be able to compete with this credit card that can get you 5% back on all of your spending.

I’ll tell you which credit card to use, how to apply for it, and the method I use to get 5% back on everything. On top of all this, you’ll also receive a $750 sign-up bonus with no annual fee! Let’s go!

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The Credit Card I Use To Get 5% Back

The credit card I use to get 5% back on everything is the Chase Ink Business Cash^® Credit Card. There are several variations of the Chase Ink cards, but the “Cash” version is the one that works for this setup.

While it’s a business credit card, many people are eligible to get this card. Do you sell things on eBay for a profit? Drive for Uber? Intend to start something soon? Then you have a business. If you have any side hustle, you’re considered a self-employed business owner.

If you fit the description above and decide to get this card, then in the credit card application:

Select “Owner” for your officer title
Use your Social Security number (SSN)
Use your first and last name as the business name
Select “Sole proprietorship” as your legal business structure

You can guess your total gross annual income, even if it’s $1,000 for the year.

Contrary to popular belief, using a business credit card has no bearing whatsoever on your tax liability or filing requirements. You are no more or less likely to face an audit for simply having the account.

Earning 5% Back with Ink Business Cash

The Ink Business Cash earns:

5% cash back on the first $25,000 spent on combined purchases at office supply stores and on internet, cable, and phone services for each account anniversary year.
2% cash back on the first $25,000 spent on combined purchases at gas stations and restaurants for each account anniversary year.
1% cash back on all other purchases with no limit to the amount you can earn.

While the 5% cash back is only available at office supply stores and some utilities, this neat little trick I’ll share with you focuses on the “office supply stores” aspect.

Staples, which is an office supply store, often sells fee-free Visa gift cards and Mastercard gift cards in $200 denominations. For the past several years, they have offered this once or twice a month.

When you buy these gift cards from Staples or another office supply store, you’ll earn 5% cash back. Here’s a screenshot of one of my Chase Ink credit card statements to show that it works:

For example, if you buy 1 of these Visa gift cards, you’ll earn $10 cash back ($200 x 5% cash back). If you buy 100 of these cards over time, you’ll get a whopping $1,000 cash back ($20,000 x 5% cash back).

Treat these gift cards like cash and use it anywhere that accepts Visa or Mastercard – use the gift cards for all of your day-to-day purchases. You’ve already earned the 5% upfront.

Yes, the more gift cards you buy, the longer it will take to use them all. However, if you’re creative, you can liquidate your gift cards quickly.

You can pay your mortgage, rent, insurance, or utility bill with them. You can also reload your Amazon.com account. Another angle is pre-paying your taxes – you can do this 2x a quarter or 8x a year. Others have somewhat secretive ways of spending the cards in no time at all.

The Ink Business Cash card is crazy good, but it’s currently even more unbelievably good by offering a huge $750 sign-up bonus.

You can get $350 if you spend a total of $3,000 on purchases within the first 3 months of account opening. You’ll get an additional $400 if you spend a total of $6,000 within the first 6 months of account opening.

Moreover, there is no annual fee to worry about.

The ONE THING you shouldn’t do, however, is to buy gift cards to meet the sign-up bonus spending requirements. Chase and many other card issuers really frown upon non-organic spending to get welcome bonuses.

Instead, use the card to earn 5% back on internet, cable, and phone services. Many streaming services will count as “cable”, like:

AMC+
Apple Music
Apple TV+
Crunchyroll
DIRECTV Stream
Discovery+
Disney+
ESPN+
Fubo
GoDaddy
Hulu
Linode
Netflix
Pandora
Paramount+
PayRange Peacock
Showtime
SiriusXM
Sling
Spotify
Starz
Tidal
Vudu
Zoom

Or just use it to earn 2% back at gas stations/restaurants and 1% back on everything else until you meet the spending requirements.

The Bottom Line

Overall, the Chase Ink Business Cash is an excellent credit card that deserves to be in your wallet. It has an incredible cash back earnings structure, a juicy $750 sign-up bonus, and carries no annual fee.

I have the legacy version of this card that has an increased spending cap of $50,000 in the 5% back categories. Unfortunately, while this is no longer available, the $25,000 cap per account anniversary year should be more than enough for most people.

Head over to my credit card portal for more information on my top recommend credit cards (and its welcome bonus, if any).