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Chase Freedom Unlimited® Review: The Best 1.5% Cash Back Card on the Market

Choose FI has partnered with CardRatings for our coverage of credit card products. Choose FI and CardRatings may receive a commission from card issuers. Opinions, reviews, analyses & recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed or approved by any of these entities. Disclosures.

The Chase Freedom Unlimited® card is a straightforward, no annual fee, cash back credit card with a welcome offer worth up to $300.

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If you’re a fan of Chase’s other credit cards, but want one for everyday use, the Chase Freedom Unlimited® credit card is definitely the one for you.

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Details: $95 annual fee | Earn 100,000 bonus points after you spend $15,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening.

Here’s a quick overview of what the Chase Freedom Unlimited® offers:

  • An unlimited 1.5% cashback on all purchases
  • 5% cashback on travel purchased through the Chase Ultimate Rewards® booking portal
  • 3% cashback on drugstore, restaurant dining, including takeout and eligible delivery service
  • An introductory offer of an additional 1.5% cashback on every purchase up to $20,000 in spending during the first year (worth up to $300)
  • $0 annual fee

Chase Freedom Unlimited® features

The Chase Freedom Unlimited® card is the perfect card for anyone who wants a straightforward cashback credit card. Here are the details.

Annual fee

There’s a $0 annual fee for using the Chase Freedom Unlimited® credit card.

Rewards

The Chase Freedom Unlimited® card offers 1.5% cashback on all your purchases. These are unlimited rewards, meaning there’s no limit to the amount of rewards points you can earn, plus, your rewards never expire! So save them up for that family vacation you’ve been dying to go on.

You can also redeem your rewards at any time. There are no minimum rewards required to start redeeming.

Sign-up bonus

The Chase Freedom Unlimited® card offers an introductory bonus of an additional 1.5% cashback on every purchase during the first year on up to $20,000. 

Contactless pay

If you want to check out quickly using your Chase Freedom Unlimited® credit card, you can set up contactless and all you’ll have to do is tap your card at any checkout counter that has the contactless symbol.

Extra features offered by the Chase Freedom Unlimited®

Invite a friend

If you already have the Chase Freedom Unlimited® card, you can suggest it to friends, and you’ll receive $100 for everyone who signs up for the card.

You can earn up to $500 a year by doing this.

Free credit score

Chase has joined many of the credit card companies that offer you a free credit score, updated weekly. All you have to do is click on the ‘Your Credit Score’ section once you’ve logged into your Chase account.

Security

The Chase Freedom Unlimited® card (and all Chase cards) offer great security features to keep your account safe. They offer the following:

  • Fraud protection
  • Fraud alerts
  • Zero liability protection–meaning you’ll never have to pay for any fraudulent charges made with your card
  • Purchase protection–This covers any new purchases for 120 days against damage or theft up to $500 per claim

Redemption option #1—Cash

If you get the Chase Freedom Unlimited® credit card, you likely want simple cash back. So, we’ll start the redemption process by talking about how you can redeem your rewards for straight cash back.

Like other Chase credit cards, the Chase Freedom Unlimited® earns Chase Ultimate Rewards® points. Unlike other cards, however, there’s no minimum needed to start redeeming rewards. To get cash back, you can choose to receive a statement credit or do direct deposit into most U.S. banks.

Redemption option #2—Book Travel

While we don’t recommend the Chase Freedom Unlimited® as the best travel rewards credit card, you can redeem your rewards through the Chase Ultimate Rewards® travel portal.

If you looking to earn more travel rewards than the Chase Freedom Unlimited® can offer, check out the Chase Sapphire Preferred® or Chase Sapphire Reserve®.

If you book through Chase Ultimate Rewards®, your points can go towards:

  • Flights
  • Hotel stays
  • Car rentals
  • Vacation rentals
  • Cruises

Chase’s portal makes it easy to find flights and lodging, and they’ll tell you next to each flight/hotel/etc. how many points equals a free flight/stay.

You can transfer points to the following airlines:

  • British Airways Avios
  • Aer Lingus AerClub
  • Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer
  • Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards
  • JetBlue TrueBlue
  • United MileagePlus
  • Virgin Atlantic Flying Club
  • World Of Hyatt
  • IHG Rewards Club
  • Marriott Rewards
  • The Ritz-Carlton Rewards
  • Flying Blue
  • Iberia Plus

If you’d like to learn more about Chase Ultimate Rewards® here’s a full explanation.

Redemption option #3—Amazon

If you’re a frequent Amazon shopper, you can use your rewards through Amazon. All you have to do is link your Chase card to Amazon and you can use your points at checkout.

Your points can even count towards shipping and tax. 

Redemption option #4—Apple

You can now use your Chase Freedom Unlimited® rewards through Apple to pay for any purchases. Currently, 100 Chase points is equal to $1 at Apple.

Redemption option #5—Gift cards

Finally, if you want a simpler way to use your points, you can get your points credited to your account, or you can buy gift cards.

The Bottom Line

If you’re looking for a card that gives you the most bang for your buck and doesn’t require much work, the Chase Freedom Unlimited® card is what you’ve been looking for. It has no activation requirement, so you start earning cashback as soon as you get your card.

Many credit cards also limit the amount of rewards you can earn, but the Chase Freedom Unlimited® card lets you earn unlimited rewards. And finally, there’s no annual fee!

Click here for more details on how to apply for the Chase Freedom Unlimited®.

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Choose FI has partnered with CardRatings for our coverage of credit card products. Choose FI and CardRatings may receive a commission from card issuers. Opinions, reviews, analyses & recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed or approved by any of these entities. Disclosures.
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