Contents
Chase is offering a $200 cash bonus after spending $500 in the first three months of opening a Chase Freedom FlexSM card account. This bonus can be worth more when you pool this card with certain other cards from Chase. Compare this with other top card bonuses here.
Earn 5% cash back on up to $1,500 in combined purchases in bonus categories each quarter you activate, 5% on travel purchased through Chase, 3% on dining at restaurants and drugstores, and 1% on all other purchases.
Chase Freedom Flex is the new and improved version of Chase Freedom®. It comes with many of the same benefits, like rotating bonus categories and no annual fee, but now holds a lot more value and has access to World Elite Mastercard benefits. Existing Chase Freedom cardholders can keep their current card or switch to Freedom Flex.
The Chase Freedom Flex card earns rewards in the form of Ultimate Rewards points. This means you can pool points with other Chase cards that earn Ultimate Rewards points as well. Read more about this here.
Let’s go over Chase Freedom Flex features and offers below.
Keep in mind, Chase also has great bonuses for their Checking and Savings accounts.
| Bonus Available | Earn a $200 Bonus after you spend $500 on purchases in your first 3 months from account opening. |
| *Bonus Value | $400 |
| Ongoing Rewards | Earn 5% cash back on up to $1,500 in combined purchases in bonus categories each quarter you activate. Earn 5% on travel purchased through Chase, 3% on dining at restaurants and drugstores, and 1% on all other purchases. |
| Other Benefits | Complimentary DashPass subscription for 3 months on DoorDash and Caviar. After that, you are automatically enrolled in DashPass at 50% off for the next 9 months – activate by 12/31/2021. 5% total cash back on Lyft rides through 3/31/2022. Free credit score and monitoring. Enjoy a free ShopRunner membership and get 2-day shipping at hundreds of retailers. |
| Foreign Transaction Fees | 3% |
| Airport Lounge Access | N/A |
| Annual Fee | $0 |
*Bonus value is an estimated value calculated by MoneysMyLife and not the card issuer. Read our card review for more details.
View our latest valuations here.
Recommended Credit Score (Get Your Free Score)
PROS
- No annual fee
- Earns Ultimate Rewards points
- Bonus cash back categories
- World Elite Mastercard benefits
CONS
- Has foreign transaction fees
- Rotating categories activation
CHASE SAPPHIRE PREFERRED® CARD
The Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card currently has an offer for 80,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. Plus earn up to $50 in statement credits towards grocery store purchases.
Redeeming the 80,000 bonus points through the Chase Ultimate Rewards program, which is praised by users, will get you $1,000 in value towards travel. The 80K bonus points are worth $1,000 because you get 25% more value whenever you redeem for airfare, hotels, car rentals and cruises through Chase Ultimate Rewards.
Even better, strategize with Chase Ultimate Rewards points transfer partners to potentially get even more value. Each point can be worth up to 2 cents apiece (80k points = ~$1,600). Read more on this here.
Pool the Ultimate Rewards points earned from this card with Chase’s other Ultimate Rewards cards for a great strategy. Other Ultimate Rewards cards include the Chase Freedom Unlimited®, Chase Sapphire Reserve® and the Ink Business cards.
Ongoing rewards with this card include earning 2 points per $1 on Dining at restaurants (including eligible delivery and takeout) and Travel. It’s 1 point per dollar spent on all other purchases.
You’ll now also get unlimited deliveries with a $0 delivery fee and reduced fees on eligible orders over $12 for a minimaum of one year with DashPass, DoorDash’s subscription service. You must activate by 12/31/21.
There are no foreign transaction fees and the annual fee is $95 for this card.
$200 Sign-Up Bonus
Chase is offering a $200 cash bonus if you spend at least $500 within your first three months as a Freedom Flex cardmember.
Freedom Flex is considered a different product from Freedom and Freedom Unlimited. Existing Freedom cardholders can request a product change without a hard credit pull or affecting your 5/24 status and still receive the welcome bonus if you haven’t claimed a Freedom credit card bonus within the last 24 months.
You’ll need to spend at least $167 per month for your first three months to reach the $500 spending threshold. If you think you’ll have a tough time hitting that mark, here are some tips:
Earning With Chase Freedom Flex
Chase Freedom Flex makes its grand debut with an impressive amount of earning power, especially for a no-annual-fee credit card. Not only does it come with bonus rewards on the rotating categories you activate, Freedom Flex also offers elevated cash back rates on travel purchased through Chase, dining at restaurants and drugstore spending. You’ll earn:
- 5% cash back on quarterly rotating bonus categories, on up to $1,500 in combined purchases
- 5% on travel booked through the Ultimate Rewards travel portal, including car rentals and vacation bookings
- 3% on dining at restaurants, including takeout and eligible delivery services
- 3% on drugstore purchases
- 1% on all other purchases
As you might have noticed, the Freedom Flex rewards structure competes with, and in some cases outperforms, Chase Sapphire Reserve® and Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card when it comes to earning potential. Again, an admirable feat for a card with no annual fee. For quick reference:
| Chase Sapphire Reserve | Chase Sapphire Preferred |
| $550 annual fee | $95 annual fee |
| 3x points on travel & dining 1x points on all other spending | 2x points on travel & dining 1x points on all other spending |
Redeeming With Chase Freedom Flex
The cash back you earn with Freedom Flex comes in the form of Ultimate Rewards points, and Ultimate Rewards is one of the most beneficial programs out there.
Take, for example, the card’s sign-up bonus. You’ll be rewarded with 20,000 Ultimate Rewards points, which you can redeem for a $200 statement credit. We recommend going this route because it’s simple and it has decent value. If you want better value for your points, you’ll want to use a multi-card strategy with other Ultimate Rewards cards (more on that later). You can also redeem your points for gift cards, merchandise, travel and more.
Maximizing With Chase Freedom Flex
To get the most out of your Freedom Flex card, use it for purchases that fall under bonus categories. For all other spending, we recommend a higher flat-rate rewards card, like the Capital One® Quicksilver® Cash Rewards Credit Card (1.5% cash back, no annual fee).
But the best pairing strategy is to pool the Ultimate Rewards points you earned with a Chase Sapphire Preferred, Chase Sapphire Reserve or Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card. These three Ultimate Rewards cards offer more value when you use your points to book travel through the Ultimate Rewards travel portal. For example:
- Points are worth 25% more for Ultimate Rewards travel with Sapphire Preferred and Ink Business Preferred. So, 20k points are worth $250 for travel, instead of $200 with the Freedom Flex.
- Points are worth 50% more for Ultimate Rewards travel with Sapphire Reserve. So, 20k points would be worth $300 in travel.
Even better, Sapphire Preferred, Sapphire Reserve and Ink Business Preferred cardmembers can transfer their Ultimate Rewards points to other travel loyalty programs at a 1:1 ratio. This can potentially squeeze even more value out of your rewards, although it will ultimately depend on your booking criteria. A good game plan is to compare a travel booking with Chase’s partners, rather than directly through the Ultimate Rewards portal. We’ve seen point values of 2 cents each (20k points = $400) with certain partners and booking scenarios.
Here’s a list of Chase Ultimate Rewards transfer partners:
Bottom Line
The no-annual-fee Chase Freedom Flex Card is a welcome addition to the Freedom product portfolio, with bonuses on rotating categories, travel, dining and drugstore spending, as well as World Elite Mastercard benefits and more. And with a multi-Chase card strategy, you’ll be able to earn Ultimate Rewards points that’ll get you the most value.
Existing Freedom cardholders can hang onto their account, but we recommend ditching it and making the switch to Freedom Flex.
What’s The Competition?
If you’re looking for alternatives to Chase Freedom Flex, or you want to supplement it, here’s more information on bonuses and rewards rates for other credit cards:
CHASE FREEDOM UNLIMITED®
The Chase Freedom Unlimited® credit card has an offer for $200 bonus cash after you spend $500 on purchases in your first 3 months from account opening.
This card also earns 5% on travel purchased through Chase, 3% on dining at restaurants and drugstores, and 1.5% on all other purchases.
The Chase Freedom Unlimited earns Ultimate Rewards points. Points can be pooled with those from other eligible Chase cards, such as the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card, Chase Sapphire Reserve® and Ink Business Preferred℠ Credit Card. More on this here.
AMERICAN EXPRESS CASH MAGNET CARD
The American Express Cash Magnet Card is offering a $150 statement credit when you spend $1,000 in purchases within the first 3 months of account opening. This is a good bonus offer and is what you’d expect from a competitive no-annual-fee credit card.
This card earns unlimited 1.5% Cash Back on all your purchases. There are no categories to keep up with.
CAPITAL ONE® QUICKSILVER® CASH REWARDS CREDIT CARD
The Capital One® Quicksilver® Cash Rewards Credit Card will earn a $200 bonus when you spend $500 on purchases within the first 3 months. The bonus offer is comparable to its top competitors, but this card earns a respectable 1.5% cash back on every purchase with no limit on how much you can earn. There are no spending categories to keep up with and the cash back won’t expire while the account is open.
People like this card because of the cash back rate, the flexibility to redeem your cash back for any amount, and there’s no annual fee.
| OFFER LINK | OFFER | OUR REVIEW |
| Bank of America Checking | $100 Offer | Review |
| Chase Business Complete Banking℠ | $300 Cash | Review |
| BBVA Free Checking & Savings | Up To $250 | Review |
| TD Bank Beyond Checking | $300 Cash | Review |
| TD Bank Convenience Checking℠ | $150 Cash | Review |
| HSBC Premier Checking | $450 Cash | Review |
| HSBC Premier Checking | Up To $600 | Review |
| Aspiration Checking | $100 Cash | Review |
| Ally Invest | Up To $3,000 | Review |
| Betterment | Up To 1 Year Free | Review |
| Coinbase | $10 In BTC | Review |
| BlockFi | Up To $250 BTC | Review |
Editorial Disclaimer: Opinions expressed here are author's alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, hotel, airline, or other entity. This content has not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of the entities included within the post.
Disclaimer: These responses are not provided or commissioned by the bank advertiser, credit card issuer, hotel, airline or other entity. Responses have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of the entities included within the post. It is not the bank advertiser's or any other entity's responsibility to ensure all posts and/or questions are answered.