Also see: 

• The 4 Best Credit Cards for Holiday Season 2016

Let (Chase) Freedom ring!

I love this card. 5X Chase Ultimate Rewards points on up to $1,5000 in spending per quarter – 7,500 bonus points – in rotating categories? And useful ones to boot? OK!

That’s why I called it the best card for shopping this holiday season. 

This card has been a bastion in my arsenal for years by now. 

And why not? It’s free to keep forever. In fact, it’s my oldest card – I’ve had this account since 2002. So it’s been almost 15 years!

Chase Freedom provides an easy way to rack up an extra 30,000 Chase Ultimate Rewards points per year. That’s worth $300 on its own, which is awesome for a card with no annual fee.

Its power lies in pairing though, so be aware. However, 5% cash back – on its own – is nothing to sniff at, either.

The short

If you spend a lot in the rotating bonus categories, this card is an ace in hand. 

The long

• Link: Honest Reviews

You can earn up to $75 cash back per quarter AKA $300 cash back per year. There’s no annual fee. 

For a card that’s free to keep, an extra $300 per year from everyday purchases is kinda great. Hold on to it – that’ll also help to age your overall credit accounts and help to boost your credit score. Again, for free. 

In fact, there’s little reason to ever cancel a card with no annual fee. I mean, just keep it forever, right? 

If you have the: 

• Chase Sapphire Reserve OR 
• Chase Sapphire Preferred OR
• Chase Ink Plus

Then you gain superpowers with the Chase Freedom. That’s because you can combine all your points in one place and then transfer them to valuable travel transfer partners, like United, Hyatt, or British Airways. 

30,000 Chase Ultimate Rewards points a year can get you:

• A round-trip coach award flight anywhere in the US – 25K points– transfer to United
• A round-trip coach award flight to Hawaii – 30K points – transfer to Flying Blue
• One-way coach award flight from New York to Frankfurt – 17K points – transfer to Singapore
• 2 round-trip coach award flights from Dallas to Cancun (this works on MANY other routes) – 30K points – transfer to British Airways
• A night at a top-tier Category 7 Hyatt – 30K points – transfer to Hyatt

Any of these options is easily worth much more than $300.

Grade: A

The ability to earn 5X United miles or 5X Hyatt points at the grocery store, for dining, or on Amazon (all previous bonus categories) is pretty dang great. 

I max the categories out every quarter. Instead of $300 cash back, I get 30,000 extra Chase Ultimate Rewards points per year. 

At my base rate of 2 cents per point, that means $600 to me (or 10% back). Again, for a card that’s free to keep. 

A word of caution: don’t even bother if you’ve had more than 5 cards opened in the previous 2 years. You have little hope of being approved. 

This card is also a good “gateway card” for beginners (slash did I just compare earning points to drugs? It really is addictive!). 

Because once you see the points starting to rack up, you’ll finally feel like hey, I really can earn these things! And use them! It’s a nice boost to your balance.  

Also, earning 5X or 5% cash back on routine purchases is as good as it gets. No other bonus category tops this earning rate. For that reason alone, this card is worth it. 

Keep or DTMFA: Keep.

Never dump a card with no annual fee. ‘Nuff said. 

While I wouldn’t make this my first card to apply for if you’re starting out, it should definitely be in your first 5. Definitely have a look at the current cashback calendar and decide if it’s right for you. 

You can apply for points cards here – thank you for using my links!

* If you liked this post, consider signing up to receive free blog posts in an RSS reader and you’ll never miss an update!