While plenty of retailers have their own credit cards to earn a percentage back on a purchase or 0% interest for 6 to 12 months (along with astronomical interest rates if you don’t pay it off each month), many third party cards offer expanded options for rewards at your everyday retailers and other companies.

Here’s a collection of the top 5 cards you should be looking at as we move into Fall & Winter 2020.

1. Chase Freedom

Between October 1, 2020 and December 31, 2020, the Chase Freedom card offers 5% back (up to $75 back on $1,500 in purchases) at Walmart and PayPal. This can be particularly good for Black Friday deals at Walmart as well as deals on eBay that require PayPal.

Regarding Walmart, this covers all purchases at regular Walmart stores, Walmart SuperCenters, Walmart Neighborhood Markets, online Walmart.com purchases, and Walmart branded gas stations operated by Walmart. However, it does not include merchants that operate withing a Walmart store (like a McDonalds), nor does it work in Walmart-owned businesses like Sam’s Club.

Regarding PayPal, you simply have to checkout with your Chase card rather than from a bank account when using PayPal. Payments made through the Xoom transfer service do not count, nor to Friends and Family or Person-to-Person (P2P) transactions.

2. Discover it Cashback

Between October 1, 2020 and December 31, 2020, the Discover it Cashback card offers 5% back (up to $75 back on $1,500 in purchases) at Amazon.com, Walmart.com and Target.com. Discover is mainly focusing on online shoppers spending money at big online retailers this year.

Regarding Amazon, this will work on purchases like Amazon gift cards or Amazon Prime subscriptions. In addition, it will work on Amazon Go, Amazon Bookstore, and Amazon 4-Star in-store purchases as well.

Regarding Walmart and Target, this is only good for purchases made on the sites. However, you can make purchases online (through the site or apps), then pick up the item in a nearby store. This could be an ideal option for those that want to avoid crowds.

3. Citi Dividend Card

Between October 1, 2020 and December 31, 2020, the Citi Dividend Card offers 5% back (up to $300 back on $6,000 in purchases) at Best Buy as well as online purchases at warehouse clubs.

Be aware that the $300 on $6,000 in purchases is specific to the calendar year. If you already earned $200 in rewards using the card during the first 9 months of the year, you would only be able to earn $100 back in the last 3 months. Sadly, Citi has closed out the card for new signups, but existing users can still take advantage.

Regarding Best Buy, the 5% cashback offer works both on Bestbuy.com as well as in Best Buy stores. Citi doesn’t specify which warehouse clubs are covered, but Sam’s Club and Costco are likely both in the program.

4. AMEX Blue Cash Preferred Card (Annual Fee Required)

Between October 1, 2020 and December 31, 2020, the American Express Blue Cash Preferred Card offers 6% Cash Back at U.S. supermarkets (up to $360 back on $6,000 in purchases) as well as 6% on streaming subscriptions & 3% on transit.

This card can be particularly useful for anyone with large families that spends quite a bit at the supermarket each month. It’s also good for the entire year (not specific to Q4), thus you can continue to save at the grocery store for 12 months.

The only downside is the $95 annual fee, but that’s easily mitigated with the $250 back on $1000 of purchases for new customers. If you don’t want the annual fee, you can move to the Blue Cash Everyday card (which offers 3% back at grocery stores, same cap on total purchases).

5. US Bank Cash Plus

The US Bank Cash Plus card is unique due to the fact that you can select the cashback categories that you want each quarter. After you sign up, you can select two different 5% cashback categories as well as one 2% cashback category.

For instance, if you know you want to buy a new couch soon, you can select the furniture store category to get 5% back on your purchase. Other 5% categories this quarter include electronics stores, utilities, gyms, department stores and fast food. The 2% categories include grocery stores, gas stations and restaurants.

Bonus: The Best Retailer Cards

As mentioned earlier, the best store cards are offered by Amazon and Target. Both retailers offer cards that offer 5% cashback without any cap on total purchases for the year. Other benefits include:

• Amazon Prime Rewards Visa Signature Card: 5% back on Whole Foods purchases, 2% back at restaurants / gas / drugstores, 1% back on everything else. (There’s also a $100 sign-up bonus as of 10/01/20).
• Target RedCard: Free shipping on all Target.com purchases and additional 30 days for returning items. (There’s also a $40 off $40 signup bonus as of 10/01/20.)

Other popular Store Cards include:

• Lowe’s Advantage Card: Offers 5% cashback on all purchases. 6 months special financing on $299 or more purchases
• Costco Anywhere Visa Card: Offers 2% back on all Costco purchases, 4% back on gas, 3% back at restaurants

Here’s the Top 5 Credit Card Rewards for October – December 2020