Chase Freedom Unlimited Review: Is It Good?

With a cash back offer and no annual fee, does Chase Freedom Unlimited® live up to the hype? Read this in-depth review to see how it stacks up.

	Overall Score	3.8
	Rewards	4.0
	Interest Rates	4.0
	Fees	4.0
	Benefits	3.0

5-point scale (the higher, the better)

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Pros and Cons

• Intro Cash Back Offer
• Intro APR
• No annual fee

• Foreign transaction fee

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Bottom Line

Great cash back credit card for everyday purchases

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Chase Freedom Unlimited card stands out by offering a higher-than-average cash back for every single purchase. Plus, there is no annual fee and an introductory APR.

How does it compare against other popular cash back cards? Read on to see how it compares against Chase Freedom, Citi Double Cash, and Capital One Quicksilver Cash Rewards Credit Card. Each one works a little bit differently.

We'll take you through the pros and cons to help you determine if Chase Freedom Unlimited is a good card.

Who This Card is Good For

If any of these things describe you, you may like Chase Freedom Unlimited:

• You want a simple cash back card. This card gives cardholders cash back on all purchases without the hassle of having to keep up with different category tiers.

• You tend to spread your spending between gas, groceries, movies, shopping, dining out, etc. (Keep reading for the best ways to maximize cash back.)

• You're planning on making large purchases because this card has an introductory APR.

Reasons to Get This Card

1. Earn an extra 1.5% on everything you buy (on up to $20,000 spent in the first year) — worth up to $300 cash back. That's 6.5% on travel purchased through Chase Travel℠, 4.5% on dining and drugstores, and 3% on all other purchases. Enjoy 5% cash back on travel purchased through Chase Travel℠, our premier rewards program that lets you redeem rewards for cash back, travel, gift cards and more; 3% cash back on drugstore purchases and dining at restaurants, including takeout and eligible delivery service, and 1.5% on all other purchases. Plus, you don't even have to worry about enrolling in bonus categories.

2. No annual fee: Always a plus.

3. Pool your points with Chase Sapphire Preferred® or Ink Business Preferred®: Like to travel? Go on a lot of business trips? Freedom Unlimited isn't a travel rewards card per se, but you can get more out of your Freedom Unlimited points if you have a premier Ultimate Rewards-earning card as well.

   Instead of redeeming your points for cash, pool your points with your Chase Sapphire Preferred points. Then you can either transfer the points 1:1 to a travel partner such as Hyatt Hotels and United Airlines OR get 20% off travel when you redeem your points for airfare, hotels, and car rentals through Chase Travel℠.

   Have a business? You can also pool your Ultimate Rewards points with the Chase Ink Business Preferred. You would then be able to redeem points toward travel through Chase Travel℠ portal at a 20% discount or transfer to Chase's airline and hotel partners at a 1:1 ratio.
   

4. Get a break with an introductory APR: This card offers 0% Intro APR for 15 months from account opening on purchases and balance transfers, then a 19.74% - 28.49% Variable APR after that.

   There is a 3% intro balance transfer fee when you transfer a balance during the first 60 days your account is open, with a minimum of $5. After that, the balance transfer fee is 5% of the amount transferred with a $5 minimum.

   The introductory APR is great if you need to make a large purchase soon or if you are trying to pay off the balance on another card.

5. No waiting for your rewards: You don't have to wait to hit a required benchmark, such as $25 or $50, to start redeeming your rewards. There's no minimum amount required, so cardholders can redeem at any time.

6. Your cash back rewards do not expire as long as your account is open: Your points never expire as long as you keep the account open and it stays in good standing, so don't worry about losing them if you forget to redeem.
   Tip: Earn more rewards by referring your friends. The "Refer A Friend" program gives you bonus points if your friends and family sign up for the card through you. You can get up to $500 cash back per year through this program. Read our detailed Chase Refer A Friend guide to learn how to get your personalized referral link.
   

7. Just carry one card: Not all cards are accepted everywhere (we're talking to you, Amex and Discover). But Chase Freedom Unlimited card offers widespread acceptance, which will serve you well if this is the credit card you choose to use. Plus, you get peace of mind as you're protected with $0 fraud liability, chip-enabled security, purchase protection, and auto rental collision damage waiver.

Which is the Best Chase Credit Card to Get?

REASONS TO CONSIDER OTHER CARDS

• You'll pay a foreign transaction fee: Chase Freedom Unlimited will charge a foreign transaction fee of 3% of each transaction in U.S. dollars every time you make a purchase in another country. If you travel frequently, you'd want a card that has no foreign transaction fee.

• You'll pay a balance transfer fee: With Freedom Unlimited, a balance transfer fee applies. If your goal is paying off debt and you have a large balance to transfer, you may want to consider card with a no balance transfer fee promotion.

• You could potentially earn more cash back with other cards:
  • Chase Freedom (see Chase Freedom Unlimited vs Freedom) gives you 5% on rotating categories that change every three months.
    
  • Discover has one too, Discover It (see Chase Freedom Unlimited vs Discover It).

  With those two cards, cardholders have the potential to earn more than the Chase Freedom Unlimited if their spending falls in line with their bonus categories.

  But of course, cardholders have to keep up with the categories in order to get this benefit. With Freedom Unlimited, there's nothing to keep track of every quarter.

• You may be better off with a travel rewards card: If you travel but don't want to play the airline miles and points game, consider the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card, which earns 2X the miles on every purchase. But be aware - there's an annual fee.

• You don't have good credit: Chase usually requires good to excellent credit for their cards. If you know your credit isn't quite there, focus on building credit first.

CASH BACK REWARDS

Earn an extra 1.5% on everything you buy (on up to $20,000 spent in the first year) — worth up to $300 cash back. That's 6.5% on travel purchased through Chase Travel℠, 4.5% on dining and drugstores, and 3% on all other purchases.

Other similar cards only offer 1% on everyday purchases. You can easily see the benefit of 1.5% rewards rate.

If you spend $1,000 on average per month on your card, you will earn $15 in cashback per month, which is $180 in a year. Not too bad.

But you can make your rewards go even further, which we'll explain next.

Best Ways to Use This Card

© CreditDonkey

So, is Chase Freedom Unlimited a good credit card? A flat 1.5% reward rate is decent. But to really get the most out of this card, it's best to pair it with another Chase Ultimate Rewards (UR) credit card like the Chase Sapphire Preferred. You can pool your points between your Ultimate Reward cards. That allows you to use them on the card that gives the highest redemption value.

Earning travel rewards: The Freedom Unlimited alone will only get you cash back. But you can use the points you earn with it toward travel (at a higher redemption rate) if you have one of the premier UR cards (Chase Sapphire Preferred®, Chase Sapphire Reserve®, or Chase Ink Business Preferred). After you pool your points with these cards, you can then transfer them 1:1 to a travel partner program.

Maximizing cash back: Chase Freedom offers 5% cash back on up to $1,500 on purchases in rotating bonus categories and 1% on everything else. Past categories have included grocery stores, restaurants, and gas. To get the most cash back possible, use Chase Freedom Unlimited as your primary card and Chase Freedom when you're purchasing something that falls within the 5% bonus categories.

HOW IT COMPARES

You might want to consider other popular cards if you're not sure Chase Freedom Unlimited works for your lifestyle.

If you want the potential for more cash back:
Chase Freedom. Same family, different reward percentages. Chase Freedom offers only 1% back on most purchases (vs Chase Freedom Unlimited at 1.5%). But with Freedom, the rotating bonus categories offer 5% back when you make a purchase in that category (keep in mind there's a $1,500 per quarter limit and requires free activation). If you think earning another 3.5% back on specific quarterly purchases is more beneficial, you might want to opt for Chase Freedom card instead.

If you want to earn cash back twice:
Citi Double Cash. If you just want cash back and don't really travel, you'd be wise to consider this card. You'll get 1% cash back when you buy and another 1% when you pay for those purchases. However, your rewards expire in 12 months if there's no activity on your account. There's no sign-up bonus either.

If you want to travel abroad:
Capital One Quicksilver. You get a flat 1.5% cash back on every purchase and a $200 bonus when you spend $500 within the first 3 months. A major advantage of the Capital One Quicksilver is that there are no foreign transaction fees, so you can take this card with you on vacations abroad.

Keep in mind that even though the rewards seem similar, your points could be worth more with Chase Freedom Unlimited if you also have the Chase Sapphire Preferred (or get it later down the line). Think about if you would like to be in the Ultimate Rewards family.

If you're a frequent traveler:
Chase Sapphire Preferred. Another sibling in the Chase brood, Chase Sapphire Preferred is a fantastic card for frequent travelers.

If you do opt for this travel-rich rewards card, you'll be able to transfer your rewards points to popular travel partners such as United and Southwest at a 1:1 ratio. Keep in mind, there is an annual fee.

If you want a travel card with no annual fee:
Discover It Miles: Do you travel often? Discover It Miles offers 1.5% rewards with no foreign transaction fees. And you wouldn't need to play the airline transfer game. You simply redeem points for a statement credit on travel-related purchases. One major downside is you lose the widespread acceptance of Visa.

If your expenses are mostly on groceries and gas:
Blue Cash Everyday from American Express makes sense if your monthly expenses are mostly on groceries and gas. You get 3% Cash Back at U.S. supermarkets on up to $6,000 per year in purchases, then 1%.
3% Cash Back on U.S. online retail purchases, on up to $6,000 per year, then 1%.
3% Cash Back at U.S. gas stations, on up to $6,000 per year, then 1%.
Cash back is received in the form of Reward Dollars that can be redeemed as a statement credit or at Amazon.com checkout.

BOTTOM LINE

© Moyan Brenn (CC BY 2.0) via Flickr

Chase Freedom Unlimited is a very solid cash back card. The main drawback is the foreign transaction fee.

Whether you're buying groceries or paying bills, the cash back you'll accrue along with the great introductory APR period makes this card worth it.

And if you have the Chase Sapphire Preferred working in tandem, then you must seriously consider getting this card. The travel perks you'll acquire by pooling your points from both cards is off the charts. You can then transfer them to airline travel partners, making Chase Freedom Unlimited one of the best no annual fee rewards credit cards we've seen.

Next Step: View the issuer's official application, terms, and details