Pay Yourself Back with Disney Visa vs. using a Rewards Card

[BunsenH]

Hello,

We have a trip coming up in 2 weeks. In the past, I have loaded a Rewards Card with points ($$) and then used it towards the hotel balance when checking in. Is it easier to use the Disney Visa and then Pay Myself Back when the monthly statement arrives?

Do the charges I make before the payback count towards more rewards? Are they removed if I use the payback?

I'm not sure which is the most efficient method to use. Thanks for any insight.

 

[dtnrhi]

This is exactly what I did and found it easier. You use your credit card, the rewards dollars balance updates when your statement is issued, and you can use those to pay yourself back.

I didn't have to worry about another card in my wallet and also wasn't worried about splitting payment methods at any point.

 

[DCL58]

I also do this. Much easier than keeping up with a rewards card, transferring points and trying to use in the parks.

 

[gottalovepluto]

So much easier to PYB for Disney purchases that you’ll never look back.

 

[VGCgroupie]

I dont like to mess around with the card, TBH I dont know why they even still offer that. Just make a purchase and PYB later.

 

[BunsenH]

Thanks everyone. That settles it.

 

[eticketplease]

Is it easier to use the Disney Visa and then Pay Myself Back when the monthly statement arrives?

Yes it is easier, you continue to earn Disney Dollars by swiping the credit card as opposed to the redemption card and you don't have to wait until the statement arrives to use PYB either.

However if you do wait until the statement loads you will then have more rewards as Chase issues the disney dollars at statement close.

Do the charges I make before the payback count towards more rewards?

Ultimately yes but the dollars will not post until your statement posts.

Are they removed if I use the payback?

The charges still appear but you will receive a statement credit as another item on your statement.



Things to note with PYB

You do not have to have all of the Disney dollars to wipe out a purchase you can apply a portion to it.
Please note that while this is possible you can not go back in and apply disney dollars to that purchase again as you can only do PYB once per transaction.
Currently I have $64.93 in Disney Dollars that I could apply to a purchase but if I wait until the statement closes I will have $69.53 that I can apply to a purchase.
You have 90 days from the date of the transaction in which to wipe off a charge so you would have 2 statements of extra rewards (possibly 3 based on timing of transaction and statement close) to apply your Disney dollars towards the transaction.

 

[Bellex917]

Sorry, silly Q, but I've never done this...

So if I'm reading this correctly, I'd go to Disney and just charge all my meals/purchases to my Disney Visa. Then when I get home, I'd select "Pay Yourself Back" and I'd be able to select the transactions I want to cover with my rewards dollars, until I exhaust the balance?

And, in doing in this way, I earn the 2% (I have the paid version) on all of those purchases, as opposed to my rewards card which earns nothing? They don't remove the rewards for paying yourself back, like a return?

 

[eticketplease]

Sorry, silly Q, but I've never done this...

So if I'm reading this correctly, I'd go to Disney and just charge all my meals/purchases to my Disney Visa. Then when I get home, I'd select "Pay Yourself Back" and I'd be able to select the transactions I want to cover with my rewards dollars, until I exhaust the balance?

And, in doing in this way, I earn the 2% (I have the paid version) on all of those purchases, as opposed to my rewards card which earns nothing? They don't remove the rewards for paying yourself back, like a return?

Yes that is correct as long as it is a qualifying transaction you can wipe it off.

So if you eat at Disney Springs since you have the premier you would earn the 2% back for dining but it might not be eligible to be wiped off if it isn't an actual Disney restaurant but if you can charge the meal to your room with your hotel key or magicband then it would count.

Of course all dining and shops inside the parks would qualify along with hotels so those would be able to be wiped and also receive the 2% back in rewards for "Disney location"

 

[Bellex917]

Yes that is correct as long as it is a qualifying transaction you can wipe it off.

So if you eat at Disney Springs since you have the premier you would earn the 2% back for dining but it might not be eligible to be wiped off if it isn't an actual Disney restaurant but if you can charge the meal to your room with your hotel key or magicband then it would count.

Of course all dining and shops inside the parks would qualify along with hotels so those would be able to be wiped and also receive the 2% back in rewards for "Disney location"

View attachment 1038944

Thank you. I am going to do this. I didn't realize that you earned the rewards dollars this way... I assumed you lost them once you paid yourself back. That's a game changer.

 

[eticketplease]

Thank you. I am going to do this. I didn't realize that you earned the rewards dollars this way... I assumed you lost them once you paid yourself back. That's a game changer.

Well you technically do lose them. It's like taking your wallet out of your purse and handing cash to the employee.
When you go to redeem them it lowers your balance. If you look at the screenshot I posted a little bit earlier it shows me redeeming $0.01 and my available Disney dollars balance went down by $0.01 But I had previously earned that $0.01 on the purchase if that makes sense.

The thing is you are earning the dollars on your swipe and then can use those dollars to pay for it with as many or little rewards dollars as you have.

If you go the redemption card route there are limitations.
1. You are transferring to a redemption card and that card is similar to cash or a gift card ie you are not receiving anything extra for your spend.
2. If you don't have a redemption card you have to load a minimum of $20 to the card.
3. Even if you do have a redemption card you must have a minimum of $10 to reload the card.

That is a lot of spending to earn that for me when I can earn so much more on spend with various other cards.

 

[Bellex917]

Right, I know I use them/lose them when I pay myself back for it, but earning points on the new purchases helps towards the next trip! Now I use the rewards cards and lose out on the 2% back... I go down with $600-1000 in rewards each year so it's a lot to not be earning on.

 

[eticketplease]

Right, I know I use them/lose them when I pay myself back for it, but earning points on the new purchases helps towards the next trip! Now I use the rewards cards and lose out on the 2% back... I go down with $600-1000 in rewards each year so it's a lot to not be earning on.

Yes if you are using it with the 2x rate at Disney that $500 in spend at Disney would turn into an additional $10 in rewards dollars. Certainly looks like this will work well for you since you spend on this card.

 

[BunsenH]

eticket........Wow, that is quite the comprehensive tutorial on the PYB process and variables. Thanks for the education and assurance that changing methods will have positive consequences.

 

[cruisehopeful]

I never even noticed that the card had Pay yourself back. I'll definitely be remembering this when I use the card again.

 

[disneychrista]

Thank you. I am going to do this. I didn't realize that you earned the rewards dollars this way... I assumed you lost them once you paid yourself back. That's a game changer.

Yes if you are using it with the 2x rate at Disney that $500 in spend at Disney would turn into an additional $10 in rewards dollars. Certainly looks like this will work well for you since you spend on this card.

The way I read the highlighted if you use your rewards to pay yourself back you won't earn rewards on that purchase.

 

[Bellex917]

The way I read the highlighted if you use your rewards to pay yourself back you won't earn rewards on that purchase.

View attachment 1039364

Yes, that definitely seems you're right.

 

[eticketplease]

The way I read the highlighted if you use your rewards to pay yourself back you won't earn rewards on that purchase.

View attachment 1039364

No that is incorrect.

The purchase must post to your account in order to use Pay Yourself Back to wipe off the purchase.
Once the purchase posts you then earn the points.
The Points don't actually appear in your balance until the next statement however.

What the highlight section is stating is if you use any amount of points to apply to this particular transaction, you will not be able to apply more points to that transaction.
That is why I was stating earlier that you may want to wait a couple of statements to post to build up more points to try and wipe off a larger purchase since you have 90 days from the date of the purchase.

After my statement closed I put down a deposit on a room only vacation package to get the 0% for 6 months (Disclaimer as @VGCgroupie will attest if you go through the Disney call center or online some agents will not know what you are talking about. If you have to pay 1 full night as a deposit then it will not be 0% it should be only $200)
The transaction shows the points I have earned as $4 put that is not yet in my balance as it will not appear until my statement closes.
However I am able to apply any available Disney Dollars towards it but I can only do so once.




So I have only made 2 purchases this statement cycle.

1 WDW 0% Room Package that will net me $4
2 Gift card purchase at a gas station that had a Chase Offer will net me $0.60

So you can see after my next statement I will have $4.60 added to my wallet but I can't use them until that statement posts however if I did have a large amount of points I can go in and apply dollars to the transaction before the statement posts.



Right now I have 5 qualifying transactions that are 90 days or less that I can apply my $64.93 Rewards Dollars to which since I have the premier card are Disney purchases or Airline Purchases.



I will now apply $0.01 towards my monthly Disney+ Subscription that occurred in November but before I do I will show you that I did earn Disney $ on it.



My Rewards Balance has now gone down by $0.01 leaving me with $64.92 Rewards Dollars to other purchases.


When we go back to the Pay Yourself Back Screen it now shows 4 eligible transactions that I can use Pay yourself back with and the Disney+ Transaction for November is gone.
This means that I can no longer apply anymore Disney Dollars towards that purchase. So instead of wiping out the transaction for $1.06 I only applied $0.01 and can not go back later and apply more dollars back as it is no longer eligible and has been removed as an option to apply money to it.



This is why I would suggest waiting as late as you can to try and wipe off a purchase if you are anticipating more rewards posting to your account at the end of the next statement or 2.

If you are staying on property and charging back to your room you could also go to the front desk and request to make a payment to your room in smaller increments i.e Day 1 of your stay pay $25, Day 2 another $25 etc as this way if you do make a mistake and applied a smaller amount of rewards towards a purchase that there are more available for you to wipe off. It also gives you 90 days from the purchase so day 3 of your trip might end up being on your 3rd statement so that those dollars could be applied.

Hope this helps you and @Bellex917 and others.

Edit: I just realized I missed the screenshot of being able to apply dollars to a charge that has posted to your account but the statement has not closed yet so here it is

 

[Bellex917]

No that is incorrect.

The purchase must post to your account in order to use Pay Yourself Back to wipe off the purchase.
Once the purchase posts you then earn the points.
The Points don't actually appear in your balance until the next statement however.

What the highlight section is stating is if you use any amount of points to apply to this particular transaction, you will not be able to apply more points to that transaction.
That is why I was stating earlier that you may want to wait a couple of statements to post to build up more points to try and wipe off a larger purchase since you have 90 days from the date of the purchase.

After my statement closed I put down a deposit on a room only vacation package to get the 0% for 6 months (Disclaimer as @VGCgroupie will attest if you go through the Disney call center or online some agents will not know what you are talking about. If you have to pay 1 full night as a deposit then it will not be 0% it should be only $200)
The transaction shows the points I have earned as $4 put that is not yet in my balance as it will not appear until my statement closes.
However I am able to apply any available Disney Dollars towards it but I can only do so once.

View attachment 1039479
View attachment 1039482

So I have only made 2 purchases this statement cycle.

1 WDW 0% Room Package that will net me $4
2 Gift card purchase at a gas station that had a Chase Offer will net me $0.60

So you can see after my next statement I will have $4.60 added to my wallet but I can't use them until that statement posts however if I did have a large amount of points I can go in and apply dollars to the transaction before the statement posts.

View attachment 1039485

Right now I have 5 qualifying transactions that are 90 days or less that I can apply my $64.93 Rewards Dollars to which since I have the premier card are Disney purchases or Airline Purchases.

View attachment 1039512

I will now apply $0.01 towards my monthly Disney+ Subscription that occurred in November but before I do I will show you that I did earn Disney $ on it.

View attachment 1039511

My Rewards Balance has now gone down by $0.01 leaving me with $64.92 Rewards Dollars to other purchases.

View attachment 1039519
When we go back to the Pay Yourself Back Screen it now shows 4 eligible transactions that I can use Pay yourself back with and the Disney+ Transaction for November is gone.
This means that I can no longer apply anymore Disney Dollars towards that purchase. So instead of wiping out the transaction for $1.06 I only applied $0.01 and can not go back later and apply more dollars back as it is no longer eligible and has been removed as an option to apply money to it.

View attachment 1039535

This is why I would suggest waiting as late as you can to try and wipe off a purchase if you are anticipating more rewards posting to your account at the end of the next statement or 2.

If you are staying on property and charging back to your room you could also go to the front desk and request to make a payment to your room in smaller increments i.e Day 1 of your stay pay $25, Day 2 another $25 etc as this way if you do make a mistake and applied a smaller amount of rewards towards a purchase that there are more available for you to wipe off. It also gives you 90 days from the purchase so day 3 of your trip might end up being on your 3rd statement so that those dollars could be applied.

Hope this helps you and @Bellex917 and others.

Edit: I just realized I missed the screenshot of being able to apply dollars to a charge that has posted to your account but the statement has not closed yet so here it is

Wow- thank you! I appreciate this so much.

 

[disneychrista]

@eticketplease The way I understand how this works is that you receive rewards based on your statement total each month. I buy $500 but then have a credit of $200 from applying my rewards my net statement balance is $300 therefore I earn $3.