Chase Freedom Unlimited® Review

The Chase Freedom Unlimited® is one of the best no annual fee “catch-all” cards available.

By Mandy H.|Updated on 4/4/2024

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The Chase Freedom Unlimited® is one of the best no annual fee “catch-all” cards available. The card is also a key piece of the Chase Trifecta and a strong earner.

Point Multipliers

With the Chase Freedom Unlimited®, you earn:

5% on travel purchased through Chase Travel℠
3% on dining at restaurants (including takeout and eligible delivery apps)
3% on drugstore purchases
1.5% everywhere else

Chase Freedom Unlimited®

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.

The Chase Freedom Unlimited® is one of the best no annual fee “catch-all” cards available. The card is also a key piece of the Chase Trifecta and a strong earner.

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Optimal Strategy

Many people use the Chase Freedom Unlimited® for the 5% and 3%, but also a 1.5% “catch-all” card for their setups.

If you decide to run a Chase setup (i.e., Chase Trifecta), this can complement the Chase Freedom Flex℠ and the Sapphire card you decide to go with.

Redeeming Points

Despite the “cash back” marketing, you’re technically earning Ultimate Reward (UR) points. At a minimum, you’re getting 1 cent per point (1 CPP) meaning that 5x = 5%, 3x = 3%, 1.5x = 1.5%.

If you end up pairing this with a Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card you can get 1.25 CPP when redeeming points on the Chase Travel Portal. This means that 1.5x * 1.25 CPP = 1.875% in value.

With the Chase Sapphire Reserve®, it’s 1.5 CPP for the Chase Travel Portal, so 1.5x * 1.5 CPP = 2.25% in value.

With both the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card and Chase Sapphire Reserve®, you can transfer to Chase’s airline and hotel partners (both at the same transfer rate; so 1,000 = 1,000 regardless of which one you have). This is useful if you’re interested in aspirational trips (think first and business class).

Alternatives

If you like the idea of the Chase Freedom Unlimited®, but the 1.5% feels low, I would consider the Chase Freedom Flex℠. It replaces the 1.5% with 5% back on up to $1,500 spent every quarter on categories that rotate (decided by Chase).

Note, the Chase Freedom Unlimited® and Chase Freedom Flex℠ are often paired together in addition to either the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card or Chase Sapphire Reserve® to form the Chase Trifecta. Despite the overlap in categories, the two complement each other.

If Chase isn’t your jam, I would consider the Citi Double Cash Card®. This effectively gets you 2% back on everything (1% when you spend and 1% when you pay). If paired with the Citi Premier® Card, this has a similar travel upside for aspirational trips but without the elevated CSP (1.25 CPP) and CSR (1.5 CPP) value.

Citi Double Cash Card®

The Citi Double Cash Card® is a straight forward card that earns 2% cash back on everything. Get 1% when you buy, and 1% as you pay.

Cash back is earned in the form of ThankYou Points, so points can be redeemed at a higher rate for travel when paired with the Citi Premier® Card or Citi Prestige.