US Bank Triple Cash Gas Earning
You all have heard the saying, fool me once shame on your, fool me twice shame on me. Well, that is the predicament I find myself in with US Bank. They got me with some crafty language a year or two ago on a new business credit card offer. That was mostly my fault though, I was moving too fast. This latest issues with the US Bank Triple Cash gas earning structure is all on them though, at least I think that. I have to tell you they play the game well, better than pretty much any other bank. They definitely took me to task here. They buried it oh so deep down in the terms too.
US Bank Triple Cash Earning Structure
Here is what shows when you go to the US Bank application page for the card’s earning structure and perks:
- Earn 3% cash back on eligible purchases at
- gas stations
- office supply stores
- cell phone service providers
- restaurants
- Earn 1% cash back on all other eligible purchases.
- No limits on the total rewards you can earn and your rewards never expire.
- Annual $100 statement credit for recurring software subscription expenses such as FreshBooks or QuickBooks.
I signed up for the US Bank Triple Cash a few months back because it comes with a rewarding welcome offer and earning structure for a no fee card. The welcome offer is $500 after spending $4500 within the first 150 days. My plan was to maximize this offer in the gas category for an additional 3% back on a chunk of my spend.
I met the spending required before the statement cut last week but my rewards balance was lower than expected. With the 3% earning at gas stations on quite a bit of the $4500 in spend I expected the rewards balance to be a little over $600. However, my balance was around $550…what gives? I pulled up my statement and that is when I saw this:
US Bank Triple Cash Gas Earning Capped
Whoa, how did I miss this? I must have been going too fast again, right? I pulled up our review of the card (updated now), nothing there. Then I went to the US Bank website thinking it must be prominently displayed there. Nope!
There is a link to more terms there (the 2 after restaurants) though. When you click it you are taken way down the page and you see a large paragraph that includes this:
Purchases of gasoline greater than $200 will not be deemed to be a purchase of automotive gasoline and as such will earn a reward of 1%.
Well played US Bank, well played. I don’t have a problem with them having this terminology and I get why it is there. But, to bury it in the terms that pretty much NO ONE saw until now seems deceptive to me.
Final Thoughts
I still think the US Bank Triple Cash is a worthy card with one of the better cash welcome offers out there. I just wish I had known the gas category was capped at purchases of $200 or less for earning 3%. If I had known I would have been able to adjust accordingly. If using the gas category was your plan as well then you should be aware of it. The office supply store category may be a better fit overall for most anyway.
What do you think? Is the US Bank Triple Cash gas earning structure a bit deceptive or do you think I should have read the terms closer?
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The $200 terminology been there at least 3-4 years, not new, just more awareness now.
The card is only a few months old, or are you talking about the older / similar versions?
Use costco citi card for Gas. 4 percent all gas stations up to 7500 spend I think – read fine print. It sucks because cheapest gas closest to me is BJS though and none of my costcos near me have Gas.
I usually use Amex Business Gold for my gas purchases for 4X MR points but the Costco card is a great option too. Was doing this for the min spend really. Going forward I would only use it as a back up card personally.
The Costco Citi card pays you 4% at any gas station; doesn’t have to be Costco.
Watch out though. Can’t be a store affiliated gas stations, such as Kroger gas stations, which I primarily use. So I switched to a 2% card there. Same for Amex Simply Cash Business. No 3% at non-gas stations.
3% for gas stations and 1% for everything else is dreadful. One, most of the gas stations where I live charge a 3% premium for CC use, so that negates any gain. Secondly, if you can’t find a gas station gift card for at least a 5% discount, you aren’t trying. I aim for 8-10% off with my GC purchases. Oh, and there’s no annual fee for that.
Hey Mark, sorry the $200 gas station limit got you. I noticed that language too when I got this CC a few months ago: https://travelwithgrant.boardingarea.com/2021/10/19/us-bank-business-triple-cash-credit-card-application-process-welcome-documents/
Why didn’t you email me then Grant? Haha 🙂
Happy New Year brother!
Better late than never 🙂
Happy New Year to you to Mark 🙂