 TITLE: How Credit Card Issuers Classify Purchases for Bonus Rewards CONTENT: What Are Merchant Category Codes?\n---------------------------------\nMerchant category codes can include groupings like restaurants, airlines, telecommunications services and more. The IRS even publishes a full listing of merchant category codes to help consumers understand which businesses tend to fall into which categories.\nAside from simple classification purposes, credit card issuers use merchant category codes for a variety of reasons, including tracking customer behavior, tax reporting and determining if certain purchases are eligible to earn bonus points.\nIn general, merchants are responsible for reporting their own category code to issuers, but ultimately it's up to the card company to determine which category a merchant falls under. If you find that you did not earn bonus points at a merchant where you think you should have, you might be able to call your credit card and ask for a correction.\nBut you don't necessarily need to drill down to the specific merchant category code of every business you patronize. In fact, it might be better not to do so. For example, Citi publishes its merchant category codes, and if you look for restaurants, they're actually under \"miscellaneous stores,\" which won't tell you much about how your purchase will code rewards-wise. Instead, review the rewards FAQ page for your bank and follow the categories listed there. END