Chase Freedom Review

Who is the Chase Freedom Card for?

The Chase Freedom Card is an excellent option for a credit card for a variety of cardholders. It offers some unbeatable features, including how users can earn up to 5% cash back on $1,500 spent within a quarter on a particular set of goods. These goods are known as bonus categories, which would appeal to the shopper that likes to buy similar items for a certain period of time. This differentiates the Chase Freedom card from the Chase Freedom Unlimited. While the Chase Freedom Unlimited targets an audience that buys an assortment of goods through its flat rate of 1.5% cash back, the Chase Freedom allows for its users to benefit from purchasing a more specified list of items. Therefore, this card will be attractive to consumers who like to track their spending in order to obtain a quarterly bonus.

The Chase Freedom card is also for any users who are fee-averse, as it offers a $0 annual fee. Additionally, people who are just starting to earn rewards from their credit cards, or simply want to maximize the rewards they receive will be interested in opening this card.

Quarterly Bonus

As mentioned before, the main feature of the card is its quarterly bonus. Cardholders earn 5% cash back on the first $1,500 of purchases within the quarterly promotional category. For example, from April to June of 2020 the categories are groceries (excluding Target and Walmart) and gym membership fees. This means that it would be in the best interest of Chase Freedom card holders to coordinate their spending in these two areas to maximize the bonus they will receive.

Besides the quarterly bonus, users also earn 1% cash back on every other purchase. This bonus is automatic and unlimited, allowing for the cardholder to have additional perks regardless of whether or not they purchase the quarterly category goods.

Similarities and Differences to Chase Freedom Unlimited

Consumers often confuse The Chase Freedom and Chase Freedom Unlimited offerings due to their similar names and rewards. Both are cash back cards and have a signup bonus of $200 if you spend $500 in the first three months. For a card without an annual fee, this bonus is a very generous offer, since spending $500 within 3 months is a very achievable transaction amount.

Furthermore, both cards allow their cardholders to have 0% APR (or 0% interest) on their purchases, for the first 15 months. Each month thereafter, the APR is between 14.99% and 23.74%, depending on your credit score.

Another similarity is the balance transfer fee. Both cards offer an introductory balance transfer fee of $5 or 3% for the first 60 days of the account being open. After that, the fee increases to $5 or 5%. In both scenarios, the card charges the higher of the two fees. There is also a $0 annual fee for both cards.

These similarities make both cards an excellent choice for fee-averse individuals, people who want to initiate large financial transfers or anyone who wants a satisfactory rewards program. 

However, the feature that sets the two apart is the bonus feature of each card. The Chase Freedom offers greater benefits to those who maximize their quarterly category bonuses. 5% cash back is a considerable sum of money, making this card especially stand out if you usually spend less than $1,500 on your monthly card. 

Benefits

The Chase Freedom card can be best summarized by the following benefits:

1. Your rewards will not expire as long as your account is open. This is beneficial to people who want to save their rewards to maximize their amount over time.
2. The card offers a contactless feature in which cardholders can simply tap their card to pay.
3. There is a 0% APR on balance transfers for the first year
4. DashPash offers a free food delivery fee on orders over $12 for the first three months. The following months you will still receive 50% off of delivery fees for the rest of the year.
5. Until March 2022, cardholders can receive 5% cash back on Lyft rides.
6. The Visa Signature concierge service is free.
7. The card also offers roadside assistance accessibility and travel and emergency assistance, however; these funds will need to be covered by the cardholder.

It is evident that the Chase Freedom card offers many benefits to its users. It allows for a series of travel benefits as well.

Travel Benefits

The Chase Freedom card permits its users to transfer the rewards they earn another Chase Card, such as the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card or Chase Sapphire Reserve card. By opening an account with one of these additional cards, it will grant the cardholder an abundance of travel rewards, giving them the ability to maximize the value of their reward points.

Owning the Chase Sapphire Preferred in tandem with the Chase Freedom allows you to earn 2x rewards on dining and travel, making it easy to rotate cards depending on the purchase. For restaurants and travel, it is best to use the Sapphire Prefered. For all other purchases, use your Freedom card (which costs you nothing to open) in order to get 50% more reward value. As you earn maximum cash back rewards through rotating cards, simply convert these rewards to travel points.

Chase Travel Partners include:

Airline Partners:

1. Aer Lingus 
2. British Airways
3. Air France
4. Emirates
5. Iberia
6. Jetblue
7. Singapore Airlines
8. Southwest
9. United Airlines
10. Virgin Atlantic

Hotel Partners:

1. Marriott
2. Hyatt Hotels
3. IHG (International Hotel Group)

Besides adding to the value of your rewards the Chase Freedom card offers other travel benefits. They offer trip insurance for up to $1,500 per person or $6,000 per trip if you need to cancel a non-refundable vacation for a covered reason, such as sickness or injury. The card also includes embedded chip technology, allowing cardholders to feel more comfortable during their travels.

Conclusion

The Chase Freedom card is a solid choice for most cardholders. It offers extensive travel benefits, low fees, and a relatively outstanding rewards and bonus system for a card with no annual fee. This card is best for users who are willing to engage in the quarterly bonus program and buy one of the Chase travel cards as well in order to maximize the value of the rewards they receive.