Good afternoon everyone, happy Friday! I was reviewing my US Bank credit cards and noticed a few upcoming changes to these 4 cards: Altitude Go, Altitude Connect, Cash+, and Shopper Cash. All of these changes go into effect on April 14, 2025.
US Bank Altitude Go Credit Card
Here are the major changes, but click here to see the full details:
- Discount on purchased gift cards: Coming in early 2025! Receive discounts of up to 5% on dozens of name brand gift cards.
- Updated rewards earning: 4X points on dining, takeout and restaurant delivery on your first $2,000 each quarter (then 1X point). You will continue to earn 2X points at grocery stores, at gas stations/EV charging stations and on streaming services and 1X point on all other eligible purchases. Plus, $15 credit for annual streaming service purchases. Excludes discount stores/supercenters and wholesale clubs.
- Reward redemption and expiration changes: Points will not expire as long as you keep your account active. To keep your account active, simply make a purchase, maintain a balance or redeem rewards. Points will expire if there is no activity for 12 consecutive billing cycles. You’ll get the most value when you redeem points as a deposit to an eligible U.S. Bank account, at $0.01 per point—where 10,000 points are equal to $100. And, you can redeem points for a monetary charity contribution to a variety of nonprofits, and U.S. Bank will match your contribution at 100%. When redeeming points for a statement credit, travel, gift cards, merchandise, Real-Time Rewards and U.S. Bank Rewards Card, the point values and redemption minimums may vary over time, and will be disclosed upon redemption.
5% discounts on gift cards is not very exciting. The $2,000 quarterly cap on the 4x categories is new, since there is currently no cap on those categories. US Bank might change the redemption minimums for Real-Time Rewards.
US Bank Altitude Connect Credit Card
Here are the major changes, but click here to see the full details:
- Redeem points for charity and get a 100% match: Redeem points for a monetary charity contribution to a variety of nonprofits, and U.S. Bank will match your contribution at 100%.
- Discount on purchased gift cards: Coming in early 2025! Receive discounts of up to 5% on dozens of name brand gift cards.
- Reward expiration changes: Points will not expire as long as you keep your account active. To keep your account active, simply make a purchase, maintain a balance or redeem rewards. Points will expire if there is no activity for 12 consecutive billing cycles.
5% discounts on gift cards and a 100% match on charity contributions are not very exciting. Make sure you earn or redeem points within 12 months or your entire balance will expire.
US Bank Cash+ Credit Card
Here are the major changes, but click here to see the full details:
- Redeem cash for charity and get a 100% match: Redeem cash for a monetary charity contribution to a variety of nonprofits, and U.S. Bank will match your contribution at 100%.
- Discount on purchased gift cards: Coming in early 2025! Receive discounts of up to 5% on dozens of name brand gift cards.
- Updated rewards earning: 2% cash back on your choice of everyday category (like Gas Stations and EV Charging Stations or Grocery Stores). You will continue to earn 5% cash back on your first $2,000 in combined eligible purchases each quarter on the two categories you choose. 5% cash back on prepaid, air, hotel and car reservations booked directly in the Rewards Travel Center. And 1% cash back on all other eligible purchases. Excludes discount stores/supercenters and wholesale clubs.
- Reward redemption changes: You’ll get the most value when you redeem your Cash Rewards as a statement credit or deposit to an eligible U.S. Bank account. When redeeming Cash Rewards for Real-Time Rewards and U.S. Bank Rewards Card, the Cash Rewards values and redemption minimums may vary over time, and will be disclosed upon redemption.
5% discounts on gift cards and a 100% match on charity contributions are not very exciting. You will not earn 2% cash back on gas, EV charging, or grocery stores if you buy that from discount stores, supercenters, or wholesale clubs (sorry Target, Walmart, and Costco shoppers). US Bank might change the redemption minimums for Real-Time Rewards.
US Bank Shopper Cash Credit Card
Here are the major changes, but click here to see the full details:
- Redeem cash for charity and get a 100% match: Redeem cash for a monetary charity contribution to a variety of nonprofits, and U.S. Bank will match your contribution at 100%.
- Discount on purchased gift cards: Coming in early 2025! Receive discounts of up to 5% on dozens of name brand gift cards.
- Updated rewards earning: 3% cash back on your first $1,500 in eligible purchases on your choice of one everyday category (like wholesale clubs, gas and EV charging stations, bills and utilities). You will continue to earn 6% cash back on your first $1,500 in combined eligible purchases each quarter at two retailers you choose, 6% cash back on prepaid hotel and car reservations booked directly in the Rewards Travel Center. And 1.5% cash back on all other eligible purchases. Excludes discount stores/supercenters and wholesale clubs.
- Reward redemption changes: You’ll get the most value when you redeem your Cash Rewards as a statement credit or deposit to an eligible U.S. Bank account. When redeeming Cash Rewards for Real-Time Rewards and U.S. Bank Rewards Card, the Cash Rewards values and redemption minimums may vary over time, and will be disclosed upon redemption.
5% discounts on gift cards and a 100% match on charity contributions are not very exciting. You will not earn 3% cash back on gas or EV charging if you buy that from discount stores, supercenters, or wholesale clubs (sorry Target, Walmart, and Costco shoppers). US Bank might change the redemption minimums for Real-Time Rewards.
As of right now, none of these changes is earth-shattering, but it would be very disappointing if there are negative changes to Real-Time Rewards. I didn’t notice any changes coming to the US Bank Altitude Reserve or regarding changes to Priority Pass memberships on the Altitude Connect or Altitude Reserve. I expect we will see more changes in the future since US Bank is really trying to move customers to the US Bank Smartly Credit Card. We will need to wait and see. If you have any questions about any of these changes, please leave a comment below. Have a great weekend everyone!