What Is an Earn Rate or Points Multiplier?
This guide explains earn rates and multipliers, base versus bonus rates, and how to read them.
What an earn rate means
An earn rate, or multiplier, tells you how much you get back per dollar. On a points card it is shown as a multiplier, 3x means three points for every dollar spent, and on a cash back card as a percentage, 5 percent means five cents back per dollar. It is the single most important number for comparing how much a card earns.
Base rates versus bonus rates
Most cards have two kinds of rates. A base rate, often 1x or 1 to 2 percent, applies to all spending, and higher bonus rates apply only in specific categories like dining or groceries. So a card might earn 3x on dining and 1x on everything else. Knowing both tells you what a card really earns across your spending, not just the headline number.
How to use multipliers
A high multiplier only pays off where you use it, so match bonus rates to your biggest spending categories and cover the rest with a solid base rate from a flat-rate card. Comparing cards by their earn rates in the categories you actually spend, rather than the flashiest advertised multiplier, is the heart of maximizing rewards.
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