Card benefits change often, and this page may be out of date by the time you read it. Always check the bank’s page and your card’s guide to benefits for the current terms before you rely on a benefit.
The Freedom Unlimited is Chase’s no-annual-fee everyday card: 1.5% back on everything, 3% on dining and drugstores, 5% on Chase Travel, a 0% intro APR for 15 months, and a $200 bonus for new cardmembers.
On its own it’s a decent cash back card. Its real value is that the “cash back” is actually Ultimate Rewards points, so if you also hold a Sapphire Preferred, Sapphire Reserve or Ink Business Preferred, everything it earns can be moved over and transferred to airlines and hotels. Below is how it earns, what the DoorDash and Lyft perks take, the protections, and my verdict.
Freedom Unlimited at a glance
- Annual fee: $0
- Current public offer: $200 (20,000 points) after $500 in purchases in the first 3 months (as of October 14, 2026, per Frequent Miler)
- Is it the best ever?: Not quite. In Chase branches the offer is currently $200 plus 5% on gas and grocery purchases for the first year (per Doctor of Credit), so if you’re near a branch that’s the better way to apply.
- Foreign transaction fee: 3% (per Chase’s Pricing & Terms)
- Best for: Anyone who wants a no-fee card for everything that isn’t in a bonus category, and especially anyone with a Sapphire card, because the points become transferable when you combine them.
- Skip it if: You’re close to 5/24 and would rather spend the slot on a card with a bigger bonus, or you want a card to use abroad (it charges a 3% foreign transaction fee).
- Bank’s page: Chase Freedom Unlimited on chase.com
Jump to: Highlights · Earning · Credits · Other perks · Insurance · Transfers · Application rules · My take · The catch · Keep it? · Offer history · Quick Answers
The highlights
- 1.5% on everything, 3% on dining and drugstores, 5% on Chase Travel; no annual fee
- 0% intro APR for 15 months on purchases and balance transfers (balance transfer fee applies)
- 6 months of DashPass (then it auto-renews at the paid rate) plus $10 off one non-restaurant DoorDash order per quarter, through 12/31/2027
- 2% total on Lyft rides through 9/30/2027
- Points become transferable to airlines and hotels only when combined with a Sapphire Preferred, Sapphire Reserve or Ink Business Preferred
- Trip cancellation up to $1,500 per traveler, secondary rental car coverage in the U.S., purchase protection and extended warranty; 3% foreign transaction fee
How it earns
| Category | Rate | Caps and fine print |
|---|---|---|
| Chase Travel | 5% | No cap. |
| Dining | 3% | Includes takeout and eligible delivery. |
| Drugstores | 3% | — |
| Lyft rides | 2% | Through 9/30/2027, booked in the Lyft app. |
| Everything else | 1.5% | No cap. |
Chase tracks the cash back as points (1% = 1 point per dollar), so 1.5% is really 1.5 Ultimate Rewards points per dollar. On their own they’re worth 1 cent each as cash, a statement credit or in Chase Travel (only 0.8 cents at Amazon checkout, which I’d avoid). They don’t expire while the account is open, and there’s no minimum to redeem.
Credits and how to use them
There’s no travel credit on a no-fee card. These are the extras, and both DoorDash pieces have a catch.
| Credit | Amount | How often | Where / how | The catch |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DashPass membership | 6 months free | Once | Activate by 12/31/2027 with the card as your DoorDash payment method | After 6 months you’re automatically enrolled at the then-current monthly DashPass rate until you cancel, so set a reminder if you don’t want to pay for it. |
| DoorDash promo (non-restaurant) | $10 off one order a quarter | Each calendar quarter | One grocery, convenience or other non-restaurant order, while enrolled in DashPass | Restaurant orders don’t qualify, unused value is forfeited, and it doesn’t roll over. Through 12/31/2027. |
Other perks
- No lounges, status or travel credits; this is an everyday spending card.
- 0% intro APR for 15 months from account opening on purchases and balance transfers, then a variable APR (a balance transfer fee applies).
- Chase Offers: targeted cash back deals in the Chase app or on chase.com; you activate an offer, pay with the card at that merchant and get a statement credit within 30 days.
- Refer friends: $50 for each friend who gets a participating Freedom card, up to $500 a year.
Insurance and protections
| Benefit | What the bank says |
|---|---|
| Trip cancellation / interruption | Up to $1,500 per covered traveler and $6,000 per trip for prepaid, non-refundable fares from the carrier One-way and award tickets: Yes to both: the guide covers a round-trip or one-way common carrier fare charged all or in part to the card or paid with points, so award taxes on the card count. |
| Auto rental collision damage waiver | Secondary to your personal insurance in the U.S.; the guide says it’s primary outside the U.S., up to $60,000 |
| Purchase protection | 120 days, up to $500 per item (90 days for New York residents) |
| Extended warranty | Adds one year to U.S. warranties of three years or less |
| Travel and emergency assistance | Legal and medical referrals while traveling (you pay for the services) |
There is no trip delay, baggage delay or lost luggage coverage on this card. Coverage rules for one-way and award tickets come from Chase’s Guide to Benefits for the Freedom cards (effective 10/1/24).
For how this compares with other cards, see my card travel benefits comparison.
Transfer partners
On its own, the Freedom Unlimited can’t transfer points to airlines or hotels. Chase lets you combine Ultimate Rewards points between your cards, though, so if you also have a Sapphire Preferred, Sapphire Reserve or Ink Business Preferred, you can move the Freedom points to that card and transfer them from there to United, Southwest, Hyatt, Flying Blue, Aeroplan, Avios and the rest. The ratio is whatever that card gets: World of Hyatt is 4:3 from a Sapphire Preferred or Ink Business Preferred, and still 1:1 from a Sapphire Reserve. Ratios and transfer times are in my transfer partners guide.
That’s why the 1.5% here is better than it looks: 1.5 transferable points per dollar on everything is a strong return if you use transfers well.
Application rules for this card
- You can’t get this card if you have it open now, and the bonus isn’t available if you received a Freedom Unlimited bonus in the last 24 months (per the card page). Holding a Freedom Flex or a Sapphire doesn’t stop you.
- Chase’s 5/24 rule applies: you’ll be denied if you’ve opened 5 or more personal cards from any bank in the last 24 months, and this card counts as one of the five once you have it.
The full rules for every bank are in my credit card application rules guide.
My take
There’s no fee, so there’s no fee math: anything it earns is a win. On its own, 1.5% everywhere and 3% on dining and drugstores is fine but not special, since several no-fee cards pay 2% on everything.
Paired with a Sapphire Preferred or Reserve it’s a different card: everything becomes 1.5 transferable points per dollar, which is why I’d call it the best “everything else” card in the Chase lineup. If you have a Sapphire and no Freedom Unlimited, this is the obvious second card.
The weak spot is that a $200 bonus uses one of your five 5/24 slots, just like a Sapphire with a much bigger bonus would, so think about order: get the cards with bigger bonuses first if you’re planning several Chase cards.
In any case, I personally would hate to sign up online at $200 when the branch offer adds 5% on gas and groceries for the first year.
The catch
It charges a 3% foreign transaction fee, so leave it at home when you travel abroad (the Freedom Flex and every Sapphire don’t charge one). The rental coverage is secondary in the U.S., there’s no trip delay or baggage coverage, and without a Sapphire or Ink Preferred the points are just 1-cent cash back.
The DashPass membership quietly turns into a paid subscription after 6 months, and the $10 quarterly DoorDash promo only works on non-restaurant orders. Chase, like other banks with these kinds of hard-to-use perks, hopes that you forget about them.
Keep it after year one?
There’s no annual fee, so the fee math is $0 and I’d keep it forever: it helps the age of your credit history, and if you ever get a Sapphire later your points become transferable. If you don’t want it anymore, product-changing to another no-fee Chase card is usually better than closing it.
Offer history
| Offer | Ended |
|---|---|
| $200 + 5% on gas and groceries for a year (in branch) | Current |
The standard online offer, $200 after $500 in 3 months, runs alongside the branch offer above.
Quick Answers
No. It has no annual fee as of October 2026. It does charge a 3% foreign transaction fee.
As of October 14, 2026 the online offer is $200 (20,000 points) after $500 in purchases in the first 3 months. In Chase branches the offer is $200 plus 5% on gas and grocery purchases for the first year.
Only if you also have a Sapphire Preferred, Sapphire Reserve or Ink Business Preferred. Combine the points into that card’s account and transfer from there; Hyatt is 4:3 from the Preferred cards and 1:1 from the Sapphire Reserve.
Yes. They’re separate products, and each has its own 24-month bonus rule. Both count toward Chase’s 5/24 rule.
No. It charges a 3% foreign transaction fee, and its rental car coverage is secondary in the U.S. Use a Sapphire card or the Freedom Flex abroad instead.
Last checked: October 14, 2026. Card terms change often, so confirm on the bank’s page before you apply. There are no affiliate or referral links on this site, ever; links go to the bank’s own page.