Chase Freedom Card Review (discontinued to new applications)
Updated September 13, 2020. For the new product introduced in September 2020, see our review for Chase Freedom Flex.
The Facts
April-June: groceries, fitness and gym, select streaming services
July-September: Amazon.com, Whole Foods Market
October-December: Walmart, PayPal
* including Netflix, Hulu, Sling, Vudu, FuboTV, Apple Music, SiriusXM, Pandora, Spotify, YouTube and ESPN+
April-June: groceries, home improvements
July-September: gas stations, select streaming service
October-December: department stores, Chase Pay
April-June: groceries, Chase Pay, PayPal
July-September: gas stations, Lyft, Walgreens
October-December: department stores, wholesale clubs, Chase Pay
April-June: groceries, drug stores
July-September: restaurants, movie theatres
October-December: Walmart, department stores
April-June: groceries, wholesale clubs
July-September: restaurants, wholesale clubs
October-December: department stores, wholesale clubs, and drugstores
April-June: restaurants, Bed, Bath & Beyond, H&M, and Overstock.com
July-September: gas stations and Kohl's
October-December: Amazon.com, Zappos.com, Audible.com, Diapers.com (increased to 10% between 11/23/15 to 12/31/15)
April-June: restaurants, Lowe's
July-September: gas, Kohl's
October-December: Amazon.com, Zappos.com, select department stores
April-June: restaurants, movie theaters, Lowe's
July-September: gas, theme parks, Kohl's
October-December: Amazon.com, select department stores
April-June: groceries, movies
July-September: gas, dining
October-December: hotels, airlines, Best Buy, Kohl's
April-June: home improvement, home furnishings, lawn and garden
July-September: gas, airlines, hotels
October-December: dining, department stores, movies, charities
The Math
Obviously this card is best for bonus categories, and you'd better use other cards for general spending. So not much math here. However, we do want to provide a comparison among three similar cashback cards that offer 5% on quarterly rotating categories.
Chase Freedom vs. Discover it: Both cards offer 5% quarterly rotating category bonus. It comes down to the 5% calendars and your spending pattern to decide which card is better for you. However, when paired with a premium UR card with fixed value travel redemption feature (up to 1.5 cents per point) and point transfer feature, Chase Freedom offers much higher value than Discover it.
The Conclusion
Chase Freedom is one of the two cards in the market that offer 5% cash back on rotating categories. When paired with a premium UR card such as Sapphire Reserve, Sapphire Preferred, or Ink Plus, it is even more valuable than you may think.
The Facts
- Annual Fee: None
- Signup Bonus: 20,000 points (advertised as $200) after spending $500 within 3 months of new account opening, and 5x points on groceries up to $12,000 in purchase for the first year. This bonus is not available if you currently have this card or have received a signup bonus for this card in the past 24 months. Based on anecdotal reports, this card is subject to Chase's 5/24 rule (you won't be approved for this card if you have opened 5 or more new accounts within the past 24 months; any new account with any issuer will count, not just with Chase; new accounts include most credit cards and charge cards but exclude non-Chase business cards and store charge cards). Historical best bonus of this card: $300 in 2012; $200 + 5x points on groceries for the first year in 2020.
- Rewards: 5x quarterly rotating categories (up to $1,500 spent each quarter), and 1x everything else
- Best Use of Ultimate Rewards (UR) points: Even though Chase advertises Freedom as a cash back card, it actually earns UR points. You can redeem UR points for merchandise, gift cards, cash or travel, at up to 1 cent per point. Unlike Citi ThankYou, BofA WorldPoints, and Amex Membership Rewards whose cash redemption rate is worse than other options, the cash redemption in UR is at exactly 1% starting at 2,000 points = $20 with increments of 1,000 points. So undoubtedly cash back is the best redemption of Chase Freedom for most cardholders. However, if you have a premium UR card (Sapphire Reserve, Sapphire Preferred, Ink Preferred), you can move the UR points earned from Freedom to the premium UR account and take advantage of two premium redemption features: (1) transfer UR points to miles/points of frequent traveler programs at 1:1 ratio, or (2) fixed value travel redemption when booking through UR at 1.25 cents/point for Sapphire Preferred / Ink Preferred and 1.5 cents/point for Sapphire Reserve. This obviously increases Chase Freedom's value quite a bit. Please see our review on SPG vs. MR vs. UR vs. TY vs. CR for detailed analysis of the five programs that allow mile/point transfer. In addition, per Freedom's UR Terms, there is another option which is little know - to redeem 25K points for a round trip air ticket up to $335 and if your ticket value is greater than $335 you just need to pay the difference with an UR card, making 1 point = 1.34 cents. This option is rarely used by members since Chase never advertised it and you need to call the toll free number to redeem.
- Other Facts: Chase Freedom was offered in both Visa and MasterCard before 2015. Now it is either a Visa Platinum or Visa Signature.
- 2020 Freedom 5% Bonus Calendar:
April-June: groceries, fitness and gym, select streaming services
July-September: Amazon.com, Whole Foods Market
October-December: Walmart, PayPal
* including Netflix, Hulu, Sling, Vudu, FuboTV, Apple Music, SiriusXM, Pandora, Spotify, YouTube and ESPN+
- 2019 Freedom 5% Bonus Calendar:
April-June: groceries, home improvements
July-September: gas stations, select streaming service
October-December: department stores, Chase Pay
- 2018 Freedom 5% Bonus Calendar:
April-June: groceries, Chase Pay, PayPal
July-September: gas stations, Lyft, Walgreens
October-December: department stores, wholesale clubs, Chase Pay
- 2017 Freedom 5% Bonus Calendar:
April-June: groceries, drug stores
July-September: restaurants, movie theatres
October-December: Walmart, department stores
- 2016 Freedom 5% Bonus Calendar:
April-June: groceries, wholesale clubs
July-September: restaurants, wholesale clubs
October-December: department stores, wholesale clubs, and drugstores
- 2015 Freedom 5% Bonus Calendar:
April-June: restaurants, Bed, Bath & Beyond, H&M, and Overstock.com
July-September: gas stations and Kohl's
October-December: Amazon.com, Zappos.com, Audible.com, Diapers.com (increased to 10% between 11/23/15 to 12/31/15)
- 2014 Freedom 5% Bonus Calendar:
April-June: restaurants, Lowe's
July-September: gas, Kohl's
October-December: Amazon.com, Zappos.com, select department stores
- 2013 Freedom 5% Bonus Calendar:
April-June: restaurants, movie theaters, Lowe's
July-September: gas, theme parks, Kohl's
October-December: Amazon.com, select department stores
- 2012 Freedom 5% Bonus Calendar:
April-June: groceries, movies
July-September: gas, dining
October-December: hotels, airlines, Best Buy, Kohl's
- 2011 Freedom 5% Bonus Calendar:
April-June: home improvement, home furnishings, lawn and garden
July-September: gas, airlines, hotels
October-December: dining, department stores, movies, charities
The Math
Obviously this card is best for bonus categories, and you'd better use other cards for general spending. So not much math here. However, we do want to provide a comparison among three similar cashback cards that offer 5% on quarterly rotating categories.
Chase Freedom vs. Discover it: Both cards offer 5% quarterly rotating category bonus. It comes down to the 5% calendars and your spending pattern to decide which card is better for you. However, when paired with a premium UR card with fixed value travel redemption feature (up to 1.5 cents per point) and point transfer feature, Chase Freedom offers much higher value than Discover it.
The Conclusion
Chase Freedom is one of the two cards in the market that offer 5% cash back on rotating categories. When paired with a premium UR card such as Sapphire Reserve, Sapphire Preferred, or Ink Plus, it is even more valuable than you may think.