Chase Freedom Credit Card Review

I got a pleasant surprise in the mail a couple of week ago. My old basic rewards credit card from Chase (that I’d used for a 0% purchase a long time ago) has been converted to the Chase Freedom® Visa – $100 Bonus Cash Back. I actually used my old Chase card to pay for our wedding. We quickly paid it off. Therefore we didn’t pay any interest and we earned a lot of nice points, which we cashed in and used to pay off more debt. Since that point, the card has gone unused.

Anyway, Chase sent out the new Chase Freedom Visa – $100 Bonus Cash Back and now I’m evaluating whether to use this card as my main rewards card.

Chase Freedom Visa – $100 Bonus Cash Back Review

I’ve seen the ads for this card all around. I’m sure you have too. Chase proudly displays their 5% cash back feature. If you’re looking for a good rewards card, this is definitely one to consider. Let’s dive a bit deeper and look at what this card has to offer. Let’s see how it will rank in my list of the best cash back credit cards available today. Here are the main features:

This offer is for people with a good to excellent credit history which means, among other things, that your credit history is clear of bankruptcy and seriously delinquent accounts
Earn $100 Bonus Cash Back after you make $500 in purchases in your first 3 months
0% Intro APR for 15 months on balance transfers and purchases.
5% Cash Back on up to $1,500 spent at Grocery Stores and Movie Theaters from 4/1/12 – 6/30/12
You’ll enjoy new 5% categories every 3 months like supermarkets, gas, drugstores and even home improvement stores. It’s free and easy to activate your bonus each quarter!
Unlimited 1% Cash Back on all other purchases without limits on what you can earn
Up to an additional 10% Cash Back when you shop online at select merchants through Chase
No annual fee and rewards never expire

Chase Freedom Categories 2012

The Chase Freedom 5% cash back is earned on rotating categories. Here are the categories for 2012.

January – March: Gas Stations and Amazon.com
April – June: Grocery Stores and Movie Theaters
July – September: Gas Stations and Restaurants
October – December: Hotels, Airlines, Best Buy and Kohl’s

The rest of your spending earns rewards at the standard 1%. Considering this rotation of different percentages, it’s hard to make a calculation of what your potential earning could be. Therefore, I think it’s wise to consider this card if you spend a lot in each and every category. Factoring the 5% on certain categories, I think it’s safe to say that you’d come out averaging around 2% for the year.

I think the bottom line on the Chase Freedom® Visa – $100 Bonus Cash Back is that it’s a solid, no annual fee rewards card with a great up front 0% promotion and a nice $100 bonus. And depending on your spending type, it’s likely you could beat the rewards offered by other cards. Not your card? Compare the Chase Freedom Visa – $100 Bonus Cash Back with some of the best cash back credit cards available today.

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Last Edited: April 19, 2012 @ 1:50 pm

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Grrrrr

I have this card. I've had fraudulent charges on this account twice in the last sixth months. In the most recent instance I called a week ago when I received a notification that there had been questionable activity. I was told there was no issue with my account. Someone proceeded to charge my account from all over the country all week long. The last time this happened Chase sent me three different letters telling me they were reversing fraudulent charges that were not fraudulent. Terrible customer service. Terrible security. The good cash awards don't make it worth it.

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DealsSeeker 5 pts

Have you guys heard about the fact that you can gain lots of points/miles by combining a Chase Checking + Chase Freedom + Chase Sapphire Preferred or Ink Bold. This way you have access to the Ultimate Rewards, you receive 10 bonus points per transaction on the Freedom, you can roll over all those points to the Sapphire. People have racked up TONS of miles/points this way. Being able to transfer all these points to airlines/hotels etc.. in my book is very valuable.

John

I just signed up for the next quarter (July-September) online. It says the following:
Sign up now and earn 5% Cash Back on every eligible dollar you spend up to $1,500 between July 1st and September 30th, 2010 in the following categories:

Gas
Airlines
Auto Rentals
Hotels

Thanks for the update, joe. Glad they worked with you.

JoeTaxpayer

An update - I called again and the service rep had no issue flipping me over to the Freedom card (from an old Wamu card).
I read elsewhere, and verified, the 5% is limited to $800 in spending ($40 bonus) per quarter. Quite a bit lower than the potential. Gas alone we'd hit $1200/qtr. As mentioned, I could easily blow through a couple $K at HD.
The WaMu card was just mine, and I'd not bother my wife with a copy, I'll just pay attention to the schedule of rewards, and grab the $40/qtr.

Jo/Gaelicwench

I have the DiscoverMore card, which does mirror the Chase Freedom card. No point having two CCs that do the same thing....and yes, I'll take Discover over Chase any day of the week.

I appreciate the complement PT. Genius to you, OCD to my wife.
At its simplest - on last day of grocery store bonus QTR buy enough cards to take you as far out as you're comfortable. 5% here is a better return (and tax free) than the banks are paying on you money.
For big projects, buying the Home Depot card at the grocery store is fine, so long as you don't over estimate and are stuck with a card you might not use for a while.
Gas is predictable, if the store carries the card of the Gas you like.
For me the $50 in my pocket is worth the effort.
(this comes from my experience when I had a card that gave 5% at drug stores, and my CVS had a great card rack)
/Joe

@Joe - Sorry to hear that. Genius idea regarding the gift cards. Never would have thought of that one.

@money green life - agree. as for rewards it mirrors the discover more card.

money green life

I think chase freedom's ultimate rewards program is very good. but honestly, it's a ripoff from Discover's ShopDiscover rewards program. they're 99% same!

I am happy for you, really, but pissed at Chase.
I have a card issued by WaMu (Washington Mutual) which of course was taken over by Chase. As part of the take over, I lost access to see my FICO whenever I wished.
I called Chase and asked if this card can be converted to the Freedom Card. Nope. I'd need to cancel (if I want) this card, and apply for the new one. Of course, that's:
a) a hard inquiry on my credit report
b) a loss of that history and new card starts the clock

On the other hand, the grocery stores sell gift cards, which I hate, but certain ones make sense, as in pick up $1000 of HD cards, wait a day and go buy your stuff. For large purchases, it's a way of getting that bonus. If I got the card I would only use it for the 5% category.