Warning: Do not apply for the Chase Freedom card without reading this review. It is possible for you to get a $200.00 signup promotion but you will not find it everywhere. To access the offer you can apply here and get the $200.00 bonus for a limited time but it’s recommended that you review the benefits below, in order to get the most from it.

Chase Freedom credit card
Over the years many reward cards have come and gone but the Chase Freedom credit card has been going strong for nearly a decade now. During that time it has undergone a few changes, some better than others however at the end of the day, it still remains king of the cash back cards for 3 reasons:

Reason #1: Best program for 5% cash back
The Freedom card gives you a full 5% rebate on multiple categories of spending that rotate each quarter. Now there is one other competing card on the market, Discover More, that offers a similar 5% program but it comes with a big drawback – relatively low caps on the amount of spending that qualifies for the 5% (as little as $300 per quarter).

Contrast that to the Chase Freedom, which has a high ceiling ($1,500 per quarter) and that means you have the ability to earn 5% on up to $6,000 of your spending every year!

Reason #2: You get high cash back on your other purchases too
One of the biggest drawbacks with many credit cards is that they give you great rewards for a couple categories, but a below-average payout on everything else you buy… not cool!

This card gives you an unlimited 1.00% on everything else, including any spending that exceeds the 5% ceiling. This makes it the perfect “all-in-one” choice since you won't have to juggle multiple cards.

Reason #3: There is no annual fee and no inactivity fee
During the entire history of this card, Chase has NEVER charged a fee. So what you are getting is a totally free card and it has the best cash rebate program… as Charlie Sheen would say that combo is winning!


Here are the Chase Freedom 5% cash back categories for 2012:
  • Jan thru March: Gas Stations, Amazon.com
  • April thru June: Grocery Stores, Movie Theaters
  • July thru Sept: Gas Stations, Restaurants
  • Oct thru Dec: Hotels, Airlines, Best Buy, Kohls
As you see gas stations are featured in both the 1st and 3rd quarter. 2012 is the first year they've done gas for 2 quarters and with the high prices at the pump it definitely comes in handy!

Of course it's too early to know the lineup for 2013 but over the years the 5% has been offered on other categories too such as home improvement, home furnishings, lawn and garden, charities, department stores, and drugstores.

Rewards Redemption Without The BS
Did you know with Bank of America’s World Points program, you have to save up a whopping 25,000 points (that’s $25,000 in spending @ 1%) in order to get cash back that’s worth a full 1 cent per point? Redeeming less than that diminishes the point value big time! Many credit card companies play games like that but fortunately, Chase isn’t one of them!
Chase Cash Back Conversion
With the Chase Freedom rewards program you always get a full 1 cent per point value for your cash back. Best of all, you can start cashin’ out with as few as $20 worth.

Want gift cards? Sometimes your points will be worth even more! When you redeem gift cards for rewards, often times there are some available at discounted values:
Gift Cards For Rewards
(This screenshot was taken on August 2011 to show you some of the examples)
But the rewards program is not just cash back and gift cards. You also can redeem your points for:
  • Merchandise - I've never seen a credit card that offers so many choices for merchandise. There are literally tens of thousands of options!
  • Travel - You can use your points for flights, hotels, and car rentals.
  • Experiences - There are all sorts of unique opportunities for concerts, culinary events, the hottest games, safaris/tours and much more.
You also get a number of unique benefits…
What many people don’t realize (probably because most credit card reviews fail to mention these things) is that the Chase Freedom card’s benefits go above and beyond just rewards. You get purchase and travel benefits, some you won’t even find on high-end cards that cost hundreds per year. For example...
Price Protection Benefit (a.k.a. Lowest Price Guarantee)
Now here’s a shocker… none of the American Express cards offer this benefit but the Freedom does!

Don’t you hate it when you buy something and it goes on sale after? Whenever that happens with qualified purchases, you can use Chase Freedom’s Price Protection and get refunded for the difference! This coverage is offered for 90 days from date of purchase, up to $500 per claim/$3,500 annually.

Participation in Chase Ultimate Rewards
What is that you ask? Well, in a nutshell it's a program that gives you a ton of additional ways to save money and earn even more points on your spending.
  • Book your air travel through Ultimate Rewards and get double points on every dollar spent
  • Shop at over 400 popular online stores and get up to 10x the rewards for every dollar spent. For example, you get 3x at Walmart.com, 6x at Drugstore.com, 8x at TurboTax, and 10x at BananaRepublic.com.
Verdict?
As you have seen in this review, the Chase Freedom card packs a lot of punch. You get top-notch rewards, valuable benefits for free, and there’s never an annual fee. You can’t go wrong with this one.

As an advertising partner of Chase, CreditCardForum is proud to offer you this limited time promotion. Don’t miss out on this because normally the bonus on this card is only $100 so this is a great opportunity.