The Chase Freedom Unlimited® has long been a favorite among fans of cash-back credit cards, however, the cardboard could currently hold even bigger attractiveness for rewards-savvy cardholders trying to urge started with Chase final Rewards.
Chase revamped the liberty Unlimited card’s rewards theme last year to supply bonus money back on travel purchased through the final word Rewards portal, also as on feeding and shop purchases. Meanwhile, the 1.5 % cashback rate on general purchases and valuable perks like travel cancellation/interruption insurance and DoorDash DashPass build the cardboard value holding onto for budding travelers and low-maintenance cashback enthusiasts alike.
Just detain mind that you’ll want glorious credit to qualify or prequalify, and, though the cardboard offers a solid average cashback rate, you’ll get the foremost price out of your rewards after you combine the liberty Unlimited with a higher-tier Chase travel MasterCard.
What area unit the benefits and disadvantages?
Pros
- No annual fee
- Boost rewards price after you transfer points to a higher-tier Chase card
- Comes with Associate in Nursing introductory Apr on new purchases and balance transfers
- Great edges for a no annual fee card, together with travel cancellation/interruption insurance and complimentary DoorDash DashPass
Cons
- You’ll solely get five % back on travel if you book through the final word Rewards portal
- The intro three % balance transfer fee ($5 minimum) will increase to five % ($5 minimum) for transfers when your initial sixty days
- The freshman one.5 % reward rate boost to any or all cashback bonus classes (on up to $20,000 in combined purchases) isn’t possible to be as valuable for average spenders because the previous freshman supply
Quick highlights
- Rewards Rate: five % money back on Lyft purchases (through March 2022); five % money back on travel purchased through Chase final Rewards; three % money back on dining; three % money back on shop purchases; one.5 % money back on all purchases
- Welcome Offer: Earn an extra one.5 % cashback on high of all purchases’ original cashback rate (on up to $20,000) for the primary year (offer through Bankrate)
- Annual Fee: $0
- Purchase Intro APR: zero % for fifteen months
- Balance Transfer Intro APR: zero % for fifteen months (Intro Balance Transfer Fee: $5 or three-d of the number of every transfer, whichever is larger within the initial sixty days)
- Regular APR: fifteen.24 % to twenty-three.99 % (variable)
- Current welcome supply
By applying through Bankrate or our CardMatch pre-approval tool, all of your rewards rates are boosted by an extra one.5 % cashback throughout your initial year (on up to $20,000 in combined purchases)—meaning you’ll earn three % to six.5 % on all purchases, supported your bonus category:
- 5 % back on Chase final Rewards travel
- 5 % back on edifice, eligible takeout, and delivery purchases
- 5 % back on shop purchases
- 3 % on all different purchases
This could be improbably appreciated for large spenders since maxing out the $20,000 disbursal limit would pull in $300 of moneyback—more than the quality $200 bonus for disbursal $500 on purchases within the initial 3 months that the Chase Freedom Flex℠ (its relation card) and lots of different no annual fee cash back cards offer. Granted, liberty Unlimited imposes an extended time commitment and better ultimate disbursal demand, but the 1.5 % rewards rate boost is one of the foremost profitable freshman offers in its category if it already aligns along with your disbursal.
It’s even a far better deal if your budget could be a bit minor. we tend to estimate the typical cardholder spends regarding $15,900 p.a., which might still internet you an extra $238 on high of your traditional cashback with the overarching one.5 % rewards boost.
However, the card’s previous supply stacked five % money back at grocery stores (excluding Walmart and Target) on up to $12,000 in purchases throughout your initial year. supported the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) latest client Expenditures report information, you'd have attained a stellar $247 (calculated from the typical $4,942 grocery pay in 2020) from the limited-time market class alone.
The current supply still delivers a generous money backhaul well value considering compared to rival cards’ offerings, however, Chase’s new supply, albeit distinctive, is also a step down from what they’ve bestowed in the past for a few cardholders.
Generous money back
With its recent refresh, the Chase Freedom Unlimited stands out together of the foremost valuable no-annual-fee money-back cards on the market. the liberty Unlimited earns Chase final Rewards points which will be ransomed for money back at a 1:1 rate—which makes the liberty Unlimited unambiguously valuable as a beginner’s rewards MasterCard if you’re trying to travel with a premium Chase card down the road.
How you earn
Freedom Unlimited earns five % money back on all travel purchased via the Chase final Rewards portal and on Lyft purchases (through March 2022), three % back on feeding (including eligible takeout and delivery purchases), and three % back at drugstores. Those bonus classes area unit additionally to the unlimited one.5 % money back the cardboard earns on all different purchases.
This combination of a solid base cashback rate and a generous bonus cashback rate in multiple classes makes the liberty Unlimited a valuable no-annual-fee MasterCard and an excellent entry purpose for frequent travelers UN agency wishes to urge started with MasterCard rewards.
How to redeem
Chase Freedom Unlimited offers plenty of selections for a way you'll redeem your rewards. you'll choose cashback within the style of an announcement credit or direct deposit, redeem for travel or gift cards or search online at Amazon.com. Like several different credit cards, you'll conjointly redeem your rewards for charitable contributions (which presently have a twenty-five % boost in value).
How much area unit are the rewards worth?
The value of Chase Freedom Unlimited rewards can vary looking on how you decide to redeem them. Here’s a glance at what type of price you'll expect on average with every redemption method:
- Cashback (statement credit or deposit): one cent
- Travel: one cent
- Gift cards: one cent
- Apple purchases: one cent
- Amazon.com purchases: zero.8 cents
- Charitable contributions: one.25 cents
Other Chase Freedom Unlimited edges
While the Chase Freedom Unlimited card’s perks can’t contend with those you’ll notice on a luxury travel card just like the Sapphire Reserve, the cardboard still offers some quality client edges that are unit stellar for a no-annual fee card. Here area unit several standouts:
Complimentary DashPass subscription
A great complement to the liberty Unlimited card’s bonus rewards on feeding purchases, DashPass could be a subscription service from the popular food delivery company DoorDash that gets you unlimited deliveries for a $0 delivery fee on orders over $12. the liberty Unlimited comes with 3 months of free DashPass membership, when which—if you don’t cancel beforehand—you’re mechanically listed in DashPass for fifty % off the monthly rate (typically $9.99 per month) for subsequent 9 months. make certain you’re eligible by activating before Mar. 31, 2022.
Purchase protection and extended warranty coverage
If one thing you acquire with the cardboard is broken or taken within a hundred and twenty days of your purchase, liberty Unlimited covers the value of up to $500 per claim and $50,000 per account. Plus, eligible U.S. manufacturer’s warranties of 3 years or less on things you get with the cardboard area unit are extended by a year.
Trip cancellation and interruption insurance
Chase Pay Yourself Back
As of last Oct, Chase extended the Pay Yourself Back tool to the Chase Freedom card series, which may build your rewards a force permanently. Pay Yourself Back helps you to use points to hide purchases you’ve created inside the last ninety days with a twenty-five to fifty % price boost.
As a reminder, if you have got each the liberty Unlimited and Reserve, you'll fancy further price after you redeem purposes for travel through the Chase portal (with the Reserve giving a fifty % higher point price after you redeem this way—the most popular offers a twenty-five % boost).