We are an independent publisher. Our reporters create honest, accurate, and objective content to help you make decisions. To support our work, we are paid for providing advertising services. Many, but not all, of the offers and clickable hyperlinks (such as a “Next” button) that appear on this site are from companies that compensate us. The compensation we receive and other factors, such as your location, may impact what ads and links appear on our site, and how, where, and in what order ads and links appear. While we strive to provide a wide range of offers, our site does not include information about every product or service that may be available to you. We strive to keep our information accurate and up-to-date, but some information may not be current. So, your actual offer terms from an advertiser may be different than the offer terms on this site. And the advertised offers may be subject to additional terms and conditions of the advertiser. All information is presented without any warranty or guarantee to you.

This page may include: credit card ads that we may be paid for (“advertiser listing”); and general information about credit card products (“editorial content”). Many, but not all, of the offers and clickable hyperlinks (such as a “Apply Now” button or “Learn More” button) that appear on this site are from companies that compensate us. When you click on that hyperlink or button, you may be directed to the credit card issuer’s website where you can review the terms and conditions for your selected offer. Each advertiser is responsible for the accuracy and availability of its ad offer details, but we attempt to verify those offer details. We have partnerships with advertisers such as Brex, Capital One, Chase, Citi, Wells Fargo and Discover. We also include editorial content to educate consumers about financial products and services. Some of that content may also contain ads, including links to advertisers’ sites, and we may be paid on those ads or links.

For more information, please see How we make money.

Is the No Annual Fee Chase Freedom Unlimited Worth It? The Answer Is OBVIOUS – I Use Mine Almost Every Day

  • Joseph Hostetler

    • Signing up for credit cards through partner links earns us a commission. Terms apply to the offers listed on this page. Here’s our full advertising policy: How we make money.

    Update: One or more card offers in this post are no longer available. Check our Hot Deals for the latest offers.

    INSIDER SECRET: The Chase Freedom Unlimited is THE best card to use for any spending that doesn’t fall into a bonus category on your other cards.

    The Chase Freedom Unlimited is a key player in the world of miles and points. It’s one of best tools for earning our favorite kind of credit card rewards, Chase Ultimate Rewards points — and it has NO annual fee.

    While you might overlook this card because it doesn’t come with a sign-up bonus, that would be a grave mistake. This card deserves a place in your free travel strategy. I’ve had it for years, and I use it almost every single day.

    Is the no-annual-fee Chase Freedom Unlimited worth it? Take three minutes and read this post to see why the answer is HECK YES.

    The Chase Freedom Unlimited has no annual fee – so it’s definitely worth it. You can use the points you earn for a trip to France.

    The No Annual Fee Chase Freedom Unlimited Is Worth It

    You can apply here for the Chase Freedom Unlimited

    Read our review of the Chase Freedom Unlimited

    It’s true, the Chase Freedom Unlimited doesn’t offer a sign-up bonus that awards you a bunch of bonus points after you meet a minimum spending level — but it does come with a welcome offer.

    You’ll receive 3% cash back (3 Chase Ultimate Rewards points per $1) on all purchases for the first year, up to $20,000 spent; then 1.5% cash back (1.5 Chase Ultimate Rewards points per $1) on all additional purchases. So, for example, if you were to spend $20,000 on the card in the first year, you’d earn up to $600 cash back (or 60,000 Chase Ultimate Rewards points).

    I opened this card SOLELY because of its earning rate. The ability to receive 1.5 Chase Ultimate Rewards points per $1 on all purchases is a big deal to me.

    Here’s Why the Chase Freedom Unlimited Is a Keeper

    1.5 Chase Ultimate Rewards points per $1 may not sound like a lot. After all, other cards earn much more than that:

     

    For spending outside each card’s bonus categories, you’ll receive just 1 Chase Ultimate Rewards points per $1.

    That means the Chase Freedom Unlimited is the perfect card to use when you’re making a boring old purchase that doesn’t fall into a bonus category. I use mine all the time. When I broke a bone, I paid the doctor’s bill with my Chase Freedom Unlimited. When I bought a new car battery, I swiped my Chase Freedom Unlimited. When tummy trouble forced me down to the corner store for Kaopectate, I used my Chase Freedom Unlimited.

    Important Notes

    The Chase Freedom Unlimited is subject to the Chase “5/24 rule.” Chase will not approve you for most of their cards if you’ve opened 5+ cards from any bank (not counting Chase business cards and other business cards) in the past 24 months.

    Another important point is that if you have only the Chase Freedom Unlimited, the points you earn are only worth 1 cent each towards cash back or travel. But if you have any of the below Chase Ultimate Rewards point earning credit cards, you can get lots more value:

    The information for the Chase Freedom has been collected independently by Million Mile Secrets. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.

    Depending on which card(s) you have, the Chase Ultimate Rewards points you earn with your Chase Freedom Unlimited will be worth between 1.25 cents and 1.5 cents for travel through the Chase Travel Portal, plus, you can transfer your points to valuable airline and hotel partners, like Hyatt and United Airlines. Here’s a guide on how to combine your Chase Ultimate Rewards points to another card, and here’s everything you need to know about Chase transfer partners.

    I’m personally transferring the points I’ve earned with my Chase Freedom Unlimited to Hyatt for a stay at the Hyatt Zilara all-inclusive resort in Cancun next month. (I’ll let you know how it is.)

    There’s no cheaper vacation than using points at an all-inclusive resort.

    The Hyatt Zilara Cancun costs $425 a night for a double occupancy room, but just 25,000 Hyatt points. By opening the Chase Freedom Unlimited, spending $16,667 in the first year, and transferring those earned points to Hyatt, you’d have enough to spend a weekend at this 5-star all-inclusive resort while saving $850. That’s like getting a return of 5 cents per $1 on your spending ($850 savings / $16,667 in spending)!

    Bottom Line

    With no annual fee and and a flat earning rate, the Chase Freedom Unlimited is excellent for two reasons:

    If you’re a miles and points fiend like me, and you love Chase Ultimate Rewards points, you’ll be wanting this card.

    Let me know what you think of the Chase Freedom Unlimited. And read these posts to become a Chase Ultimate Rewards points wizard:

    Also, don’t forget to subscribe to our newsletter for more helpful credit card analysis like this.

    Editorial Note: We're the Million Mile Secrets team. And we're proud of our content, opinions and analysis, and of our reader's comments. These haven’t been reviewed, approved or endorsed by any of the airlines, hotels, or credit card issuers which we often write about. And that’s just how we like it! :)