BofA Rewards™: Bank of America’s Rewards Program Guide (2026)

BofA Rewards program overview

Bank of America’s current consumer loyalty program is BofA Rewards™. It replaced Preferred Rewards in May 2026 and rewards an eligible banking and investing relationship with higher earnings on eligible credit cards and other benefits. Enrollment is available with an eligible personal checking account, including at the Member tier with no minimum balance.

BofA Rewards determines your relationship benefits. Each eligible credit card has its own rewards and redemption rules. For AskSebby readers, the useful question is how much extra value your existing balances and spending can produce. A bigger rewards percentage can help, but it needs to outweigh account costs, card fees and any cost of changing where you keep your money. Our Bank of America® Customized Cash Rewards credit card review shows how the relationship bonus interacts with a card’s earning and redemption rules.

Our take: Start with the tier you already qualify for, calculate the rewards on purchases you would make anyway, and give credits value only when they replace expenses you already have.

BofA Rewards tiers at a glance

The standard tiers use your qualifying combined three-month average balance across Bank of America and Merrill accounts.

These are the standard publicly listed requirements.

What changed from Preferred Rewards

BofA Rewards opened consumer enrollment to eligible checking customers without a minimum balance. Existing Preferred Rewards members were automatically moved into the new program: Gold and Platinum became Preferred Plus, Platinum Honors became Preferred Honors, and Diamond Honors became Premier.

Preferred Honors and Platinum Honors are different tiers with different standard card bonuses. Under the current structure, $100,000 in qualifying average balances corresponds to Preferred Honors and a 50% eligible card bonus. The standard 75% bonus requires Premier.

Some credit card accounts belonging to customers enrolled in Preferred Rewards before May 26, 2026 may qualify for an extended card benefit. Check your signed-in BofA Rewards details for your account’s applicable bonus and timing.

If your statement still reflects a higher legacy bonus, calculate your current rewards using that account benefit. Use the standard current tier when evaluating what you could earn after that benefit ends.

Which balances count toward BofA Rewards

Qualifying balances can include personal Bank of America deposit accounts, eligible Merrill and Private Bank investment and IRA accounts, and 529 plans appearing on Merrill statements. Eligible jointly owned accounts count. Employee benefit plans such as 401(k)s, annuities and business-owned accounts do not. Fiduciary accounts generally do not count, subject to the specified revocable grantor trust exception.

You do not need to hold the entire qualifying amount as cash in checking. For example, assume you have $5,000 in eligible deposits and $95,000 in eligible Merrill investments. That totals $100,000, which meets the Preferred Honors balance threshold if your qualifying average and other membership requirements are satisfied.

That example concerns account eligibility. It does not make investments equivalent to insured bank deposits. Investment products are not FDIC insured, are not bank guaranteed and may lose value.

How the average balance works

Bank of America uses a rolling three-calendar-month average of monthly average end-of-day collected balances. During the first 30 calendar days after first enrollment, a separate qualification path uses daily balances maintained above the required amount for at least three business days. Later upgrades use monthly balance checks; new benefits may take up to 30 days to become effective.

For a simplified illustration, monthly qualifying averages of $80,000, $100,000 and $120,000 produce a three-month average of $100,000:

($80,000 + $100,000 + $120,000) ÷ 3 = $100,000.

A recent transfer and a qualifying average are different measurements. Check the balance and tier shown in your account before assuming a larger deposit has activated a larger bonus.

How the credit card rewards bonus works

For the standard purchase rates illustrated below:

Boosted rewards = eligible standard purchase rewards × (1 + tier bonus).

A 50% bonus multiplies eligible rewards by 1.50. On a purchase earning 1.5% cash back before the relationship bonus, the result is 2.25%:

1.5% × 1.50 = 2.25%.

Here are the ongoing rates for common earning categories.

These rates illustrate the eligible ongoing standard earning rate multiplied by the tier bonus. The Customized Cash Rewards choice-category, grocery store and wholesale club bonus rates share a $2,500 cap in combined qualifying purchases each quarter. After that cap, those purchases earn the 1% standard rate plus any applicable relationship bonus. Point earnings are points per $1 spent, and their cash value depends on redemption. Promotional rewards and account-specific benefits can differ. Actual reward posting and rounding follow each card’s program rules.

A welcome bonus, a temporary purchase promotion and the tier bonus are separate benefits. Apply the rules for each rather than multiplying every advertised number by the tier percentage.

Which Bank of America cards work with BofA Rewards

Bank of America® Unlimited Cash Rewards credit card

Unlimited Cash Rewards earns an ongoing 1.5% cash back on eligible purchases, with no annual fee and no quarterly rewards cap. At the standard Preferred Honors tier, that becomes 2.25%; at Premier, it becomes 2.625%.

It is a straightforward option for spending outside bonus categories. You can redeem cash rewards for a statement credit or a deposit into an eligible Bank of America checking or savings account. Cash rewards do not expire while the account remains open with active charging privileges.

Illustrative annual rewards on $30,000 in eligible purchases:

This example excludes welcome offers, temporary promotions, interest and account fees. The difference between Preferred Honors and Premier is $112.50 a year on this spending assumption. For an everyday-spending comparison, see our Chase Freedom Unlimited review.

Bank of America® Customized Cash Rewards credit card

The Bank of America® Customized Cash Rewards credit card has no annual fee and earns an ongoing 3% in one choice category, 2% at grocery stores and wholesale clubs, and 1% on other purchases. The higher category rates apply to the first $2,500 in combined qualifying category purchases each quarter; those categories then earn the 1% standard rate, plus any applicable relationship bonus.

You can change the choice category once each calendar month. Options include gas and EV charging, online shopping, dining, travel, drug stores and pharmacies, and home improvement and furnishings. Merchant coding and category exclusions matter.

At Preferred Honors, the ongoing choice-category rate is 4.50%. If all $2,500 of a quarter’s shared cap goes to qualifying choice-category purchases, that produces $112.50. At Premier’s 5.25%, the same purchases produce $131.25. Grocery and wholesale club purchases reduce the remaining cap available for choice-category purchases. Eligible new accounts earn 6% cash back in the choice category for the first year from account opening, then 3%.

The additional 3% first-year bonus does not receive the BofA Rewards bonus.

For more detail, read AskSebby’s Customized Cash Rewards review.

Bank of America® Travel Rewards credit card

Travel Rewards earns an ongoing 1.5 points per $1 spent on everyday eligible purchases and has no annual fee or foreign transaction fees. With Preferred Honors, that standard earning becomes 2.25 points per $1 spent.

For eligible travel and dining statement credits, points are worth 1 cent each. Cash redemptions are worth 0.6 cent each. Travel-credit redemptions start at 2,500 points and can offset qualifying purchases from the preceding 12 months, subject to the program rules.

For example, $10,000 in eligible everyday purchases at 2.25 points per $1 spent produces 22,500 points. That is $225 toward eligible travel and dining statement credits, or $135 as a cash redemption.

Choose the card based on how you expect to redeem. Earning 2.25 points per $1 spent is equivalent to a 2.25% return only when those points are redeemed at 1 cent each. If you are comparing another travel rewards option, our Chase Sapphire Preferred calculator lets you use your own spending and redemption assumptions.

Bank of America® Premium Rewards® credit card

Premium Rewards earns 2 points per $1 spent on eligible travel and dining and 1.5 points per $1 spent on other eligible purchases. Its annual fee is $95, and it has no foreign transaction fees. Preferred Honors raises those ongoing rates to 3 and 2.25 points per $1 spent, respectively.

Cash redemptions are worth 1 cent per point. An airline incidental statement credit of up to $100 per calendar year can add value when you pay qualifying, separately charged incidental fees with the card on flights originating domestically with select U.S. domestic airlines. Airline ticket purchases are excluded. If checked bag fees are part of your travel budget, see our guide to avoiding airline bag fees before deciding how much an incidental credit would save you.

To compare it with Unlimited Cash Rewards at Preferred Honors, the extra return on qualifying travel and dining is 0.75 percentage point: 3% versus 2.25%.

If you assign no value to the incidental credit or other benefits, approximately $12,667 in annual qualifying travel and dining purchases would produce $95 in extra rewards:

$95 ÷ 0.0075 = $12,666.67.

That comparison assumes 1-cent cash redemptions, the same relationship tier, no temporary promotions and payment in full. Spending outside travel and dining does not improve this particular comparison because the ongoing return is the same.

Bank of America® Premium Rewards® Elite credit card

Premium Rewards Elite is also eligible for the relationship bonus and has a $550 annual fee. Its standard earning is 2 points per $1 spent on travel and dining and 1.5 points per $1 spent elsewhere. A separate benefit provides 20% savings on airfare paid with points through BofA Travel or the Concierge.

The higher fee makes the value of its travel benefits and redemption options important. Evaluate those against trips you already expect to book, then compare the result with the lower-fee cards. Card-specific benefits have their own terms. Confirm the current benefit terms for your account before assigning value to them.

Do Atmos Rewards cards receive the same tier bonus

Atmos™ Rewards credit cards are excluded from the standard BofA Rewards tier bonus. Their separate relationship benefits have their own eligibility rules, which we explain in our Atmos™ Rewards Ascent Visa Signature® credit card review. Do not apply the standard consumer tier multiplier to Atmos points.

Likewise, confirm eligibility for any co-branded or business card rather than assuming that every Bank of America-issued card receives the consumer tier bonus. For airline points, status and redemption options, see our Atmos Rewards guide.

Other BofA Rewards benefits

Banking fee benefits

Preferred Plus and higher tiers receive monthly maintenance fee waivers on eligible checking and savings accounts. For domestic non-Bank of America ATMs, Preferred Plus covers one withdrawal and one transfer per statement cycle, including the applicable ATM operator fee refunds. Preferred Honors and Premier provide unlimited qualifying domestic withdrawals and transfers with the applicable refunds. Premier also waives Bank of America’s specified international ATM fee; third-party international ATM or network charges may still apply.

Only count a fee waiver as savings when you would otherwise pay that fee. If your checking account already qualifies for a waiver another way, the extra membership value from that waiver is zero.

Subscription credits

Eligible Preferred Honors members can receive up to $8 per month; Premier members can receive up to $15. Enrollment in the benefit is required, and payments must go directly to eligible merchants using the Bank of America debit card linked to the designated checking account. Eligible merchants can change.

The monthly maximums equal $96 or $180 over 12 fully used months. Treat those as maximums. A subscription you would otherwise cancel has little value just because it helps use a credit.

Deals and additional relationship benefits

The program also includes cash back deals, fraud and identity monitoring, and tier-dependent lifestyle, lending and investing benefits. Each benefit has its own terms.

Check activation requirements before a purchase. For lending, compare the full loan offer and total cost; a relationship benefit does not establish that the offer is your least expensive option.

Is BofA Rewards worth it

BofA Rewards can be useful when the qualifying relationship already fits your banking and investing needs. The tier bonus becomes more meaningful when you regularly use eligible cards and redeem their rewards well.

Moving money just to increase a card bonus requires a different calculation. Compare the additional benefit of the higher tier with the additional cost of qualifying for it.

An example of moving from Preferred Honors to Premier

Assume you already qualify for Preferred Honors and would need $900,000 in additional qualifying balances to reach Premier. Also assume:

• $30,000 a year in eligible Unlimited Cash Rewards purchases.
• $10,000 a year in qualifying Customized Cash Rewards choice-category purchases, spread evenly across the four quarterly caps, with no other purchases using those caps.
• Full use of the subscription credit at either tier.
• Ongoing rewards with no temporary promotions or extended legacy benefits.

The annual increase would be:

The $271.50 total is about 0.030% of the additional $900,000 in this example.

That does not mean Premier is unattractive for someone who already qualifies or uses additional benefits. It means these three benefits alone are a small return on the extra qualifying balance. A difference in investment costs or the return on cash could exceed it.

For perspective, an assumed 0.10-percentage-point annual cost difference on $900,000 is $900 a year. That is an illustration, not a quoted fee or rate.

A practical card setup

One approach is to use Customized Cash Rewards for qualifying choice-category purchases within the first $2,500 in combined choice-category, grocery store and wholesale club purchases each quarter, then use an uncapped card for other purchases.

At Preferred Honors, that can mean 4.50% on qualifying ongoing choice-category purchases and 2.25% on Unlimited Cash Rewards purchases. Track the cap before relying on the higher rate.

For travel and dining, Premium Rewards may earn more, but include its $95 annual fee in the calculation. For Travel Rewards, include the redemption value. The best setup is the one that produces more usable rewards after your actual costs. If you are comparing a different card ecosystem, our Chase Trifecta guide walks through another way to match cards to spending categories.

How to enroll and use the program

1. Confirm that you have an eligible Bank of America personal checking account.
2. Sign in to Bank of America Online Banking or the Mobile Banking app and open BofA Rewards.
3. Review enrollment, your displayed tier and any extended card benefit.
4. Check which balances and credit cards qualify.
5. Activate benefits that require separate enrollment and follow their payment rules.
6. Compare your statements with the rewards you expected to earn.

Enrollment and benefit access are available through Bank of America’s digital banking experience. Check your signed-in BofA Rewards details and current program rules before enrolling or estimating future rewards.

If a benefit is missing, start with the qualifying account, enrollment status, purchase posting and relevant program rules. For a category purchase, check merchant coding and whether the quarterly cap had already been reached.

Common mistakes that reduce rewards value

• Using an old tier chart. Distinguish current BofA Rewards requirements from an account’s extended legacy benefit.
• Ignoring the shared cap. Grocery and wholesale club purchases use the same Customized Cash Rewards cap as the choice category.
• Multiplying promotional bonuses. Calculate the separate first-year bonus under its own terms.
• Treating points as cash without checking redemption value. Travel Rewards cash and travel-credit redemptions differ.
• Counting unused credits at full value. Use the amount that actually replaces an existing expense.
• Paying more to earn more. Interest, account fees and extra spending can consume the rewards.

BofA Rewards FAQs

Is BofA Rewards free?

There is no membership fee. An eligible checking account can still charge a monthly maintenance fee when its waiver requirements are not met. See Bank of America’s BofA Rewards program overview for eligibility and benefits.

Do you need a credit card to join BofA Rewards?

No. Enrollment is based on an eligible personal checking account, as Bank of America explains in its official BofA Rewards announcement. You need an eligible credit card to receive the card rewards bonus.

How much cash back can Preferred Honors earn?

At the standard current tier, Unlimited Cash Rewards earns 2.25% on eligible ongoing purchases. Customized Cash Rewards earns 4.50% on qualifying ongoing choice-category purchases within the first $2,500 in combined choice-category, grocery store and wholesale club purchases each quarter. Temporary promotions or an extended legacy card benefit can change the applicable rate.

What is the difference between earning points and redeeming points?

Earning determines how many points a purchase produces. Redemption determines what those points are worth. Multiply your point earnings by the value of the redemption you will actually use. Our flexible points guides cover other rewards currencies if you want to compare redemption approaches.

Can a temporary balance drop lower your tier immediately?

Bank of America reviews continued eligibility at your enrollment anniversary. If you no longer meet the qualifying balance requirement, its terms provide a grace period of at least three months to restore eligibility before a downgrade.

Does BofA Rewards guarantee credit card approval?

No. Membership and card approval are separate. Credit applications remain subject to the issuer’s approval requirements.

Does the consumer program apply to business accounts?

No. Preferred Rewards for Business is a separate program. Use the business program’s eligibility and card rules for a business relationship.

Does a rewards statement credit replace your card payment?

No. After redeeming rewards, check your account’s payment amount and make the payment your issuer requires. Include that payment in your budget rather than assuming a rewards redemption removes your payment obligation.

Our take on BofA Rewards

BofA Rewards is most compelling when eligible balances are already part of a banking and investing relationship you want to keep. Calculate the actual dollars your tier adds, use the card whose earning and redemption rules fit your purchases, and include every cost.

For an existing member, start by checking whether your card has an extended legacy benefit. For someone evaluating a new relationship, use the current standard tiers and compare the incremental rewards with the cost of qualifying.

Rewards and benefits are subject to eligibility, enrollment and applicable program rules. Terms can change. Examples assume eligible purchases and exclude interest, fees and temporary promotions unless stated otherwise.