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Cash back cards don't get much better than the Chase Freedom Flex®. It has a fantastic rewards program, including multiple 5% back categories. There's also a large welcome offer, and all for no annual fee. Find out if it's right for you in this Chase Freedom Flex® review.
On Chase's Secure Website.
On Chase's Secure Website.
Good/Excellent (670-850)
Intro APR 0% Intro APR on Purchases
Purchases: 0% Intro APR on Purchases, 15 months
Balance Transfers: 0% Intro APR on Balance Transfers, 15 months
Regular APR
20.49%-29.24% Variable
Rewards 5% cash back on up to $1,500 in combined purchases in bonus categories each quarter you activate. Enjoy new 5% categories each quarter! Plus, earn 5% cash back on travel purchased through Chase Travel℠, 3% on dining and drugstores, and 1% on all other purchases.
5% cash back offer
Annual Fee N/A
$0
Welcome Offer Earn a $200 Bonus after you spend $500 on purchases in your first 3 months from account opening!
$200 bonus
This Chase card is one of our favorites, and with good reason. You earn 5% cash back on up to $1,500 in combined purchases in bonus categories each quarter you activate, alongside other standout perks (and at least 1% on all purchases). Plus, this one comes without an annual fee and with a generous welcome bonus.
This credit card is a good fit for: Consumers who want to earn lots of cash back in a variety of bonus categories. Everyone from budget-conscious shoppers to big spenders can get plenty of value from this versatile rewards card.
The Chase Freedom Flex® is loaded with benefits, starting with the opportunity to earn lots of cash rewards.
You earn a sign-up bonus after spending just $500 on purchases in the first 3 months. It's a large amount of cash back, and it doesn't require you to spend that much. Overall, it's in line with the best sign-up bonuses for no annual fee credit cards.
The Chase Freedom Flex® has a long list of bonus categories. Here are the card's cash back rates:
With so many bonus opportunities, this Chase card outperforms most of the competition. For example, there are other cash back cards with rotating 5% back categories, but those are their only bonus categories. The Chase Freedom Flex® has those and several other areas where it earns 3% to 5% back. That makes it great for maximizing your credit card rewards.
MORE TOP PICKS: Best Cash Back Credit Cards
For the first 15 months, this Chase credit card has a 0% intro APR on purchases and balance transfers. After the intro period, the go-to variable APR applies.
A 0% intro APR can be useful if you have large expenses coming up that you can't pay in full right away. Or, if you have debt, you could transfer it to this card to pay it down while avoiding interest charges (for a small balance transfer fee, see pricing and terms for details). Do your best to pay off your full balance within the first 15 months to avoid interest charges entirely.
A helpful and underrated perk of Chase credit cards is that you can redeem any amount of rewards you want, even as little as $0.01 in cash back. There are credit cards that make redemptions more inconvenient by requiring you to hit a minimum amount of cash back first, such as $20 or $25.
The Chase Freedom Flex® has some valuable benefits beyond its flagship lineup of perks. These include:
LEARN MORE: A Guide to Chase Freedom Flex Card Benefits
While this Chase cash back card doesn't have any major problems, there are a couple of small drawbacks.
The Chase Freedom Flex® has a foreign transaction fee of 3% of each transaction in U.S. dollars. Considering so many of the top credit cards have done away with these types of fees, we'd like to see Chase do the same.
On purchases that don't fit into its bonus categories, this card earns 1% back. That's understandable -- 1% is the standard rate for credit cards with bonus categories. But there are also cards that earn a flat rate of 2% on purchases in all categories. A card like that may be a better choice if your spending is more balanced, and you don't expect to spend a large amount in this card's bonus categories.
Compare credit card rewards, fees, APRs, and more using our side-by-side comparison tool.
A FICO® Score of 670 or higher is recommended to apply for the Chase Freedom Flex®. Most of Chase's credit cards are targeted at consumers with good credit or excellent credit, and this one is no different. Keep in mind that your credit score doesn't guarantee approval or denial.
Another important factor any time you apply for a Chase credit card is the number of credit cards you've opened recently. If you've already opened five or more cards in the last 24 months, you'll likely get an automatic denial due to what's known as Chase's 5/24 rule.
RELATED: How to Build Credit Fast
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Chase's credit cards are popular, and one benefit that people love is being able to carry multiple Chase cards and combine rewards. This is a good way to earn bonuses across a wider range of categories. You can even move rewards earned on a Chase cash back card to a Chase travel card. One common rewards strategy built around this is called the Chase Trifecta.
There's another Chase Freedom card, the Chase Freedom Unlimited®, that shares many of the same features. They also have similar cash back rates, with 5% back on travel purchased through Chase Travel and 3% on dining and at drugstores. Here's what makes these two cards different:
Deciding between the Chase Freedom credit cards ultimately depends on which cash back setup you prefer. If you want 5% in rotating quarterly categories, then the Chase Freedom Flex® is the way to go. If you don't need that and would rather earn 1.5% on non-bonus spending, get the Chase Freedom Unlimited®.
Considering all the perks of the Chase Freedom Flex®, it will work well for you in any of these situations:
We recommend comparing options to ensure the card you're selecting is the best fit for you. To make your search easier, here's a short list of standout credit cards.
Offer | Our Rating | Welcome Offer | Rewards Program | APR | Learn More |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Rating image, 5.00 out of 5 stars.
5.00/5
Our ratings are based on a 5 star scale.
5 stars equals Best.
4 stars equals Excellent.
3 stars equals Good.
2 stars equals Fair.
1 star equals Poor.
We want your money to work harder for you. Which is why our ratings are biased toward offers that deliver versatility while cutting out-of-pocket costs.
|
$200 cash rewards Earn a $200 cash rewards bonus after spending $500 in purchases in the first 3 months. | 2% cash rewards Earn unlimited 2% cash rewards on purchases. |
Intro: 0% intro APR for 12 months from account opening on purchases and qualifying balance transfers Purchases: 0% intro APR, 12 months from account opening Balance Transfers: 0% intro APR, 12 months from account opening on qualifying balance transfers Regular: 20.24%, 25.24%, or 29.99% Variable APR |
||
Rating image, 5.00 out of 5 stars.
5.00/5
Our ratings are based on a 5 star scale.
5 stars equals Best.
4 stars equals Excellent.
3 stars equals Good.
2 stars equals Fair.
1 star equals Poor.
We want your money to work harder for you. Which is why our ratings are biased toward offers that deliver versatility while cutting out-of-pocket costs.
|
Discover will match all the cash back you’ve earned at the end of your first year. N/A | 1% - 5% Cashback Earn 5% cash back on everyday purchases at different places you shop each quarter like grocery stores, restaurants, gas stations, and more, up to the quarterly maximum when you activate. Plus, earn unlimited 1% cash back on all other purchases—automatically. |
Intro: Purchases: 0%, 15 months Balance Transfers: 0%, 15 months Regular: 18.24% - 28.24% Variable APR |
||
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Apply Now for Bank of America® Travel Rewards credit card
On Bank of America's Secure Website. |
Rating image, 4.00 out of 5 stars.
4.00/5
Our ratings are based on a 5 star scale.
5 stars equals Best.
4 stars equals Excellent.
3 stars equals Good.
2 stars equals Fair.
1 star equals Poor.
We want your money to work harder for you. Which is why our ratings are biased toward offers that deliver versatility while cutting out-of-pocket costs.
|
25,000 points 25,000 online bonus points after you make at least $1,000 in purchases in the first 90 days of account opening - that can be a $250 statement credit toward travel purchases | 1.5 points per dollar Earn unlimited 1.5 points per $1 spent on all purchases, with no annual fee and no foreign transaction fees, and your points don't expire as long as your account remains open. |
Intro: 0% Intro APR for 15 billing cycles for purchases. 0% Intro APR for 15 billing cycles for any balance transfers made in the first 60 days. After the intro APR offer ends, 19.24% - 29.24% Variable APR on purchases and balance transfers will apply. A 3% fee for 60 days from account opening, then 4% fee applies to all balance transfers. Purchases: 0% Intro APR for 15 billing cycles for purchases Balance Transfers: 0% Intro APR for 15 billing cycles for any balance transfers made in the first 60 days Regular: 19.24% - 29.24% (Variable) |
Apply Now for Bank of America® Travel Rewards credit card
On Bank of America's Secure Website. |
At The Motley Fool Ascent, we rate credit cards on a five-star scale (1 = poor, 5 = best). Our rating criteria includes rewards rates, welcome bonuses, fees, and perks like travel credits and 0% intro APR offers to evaluate our ratings.
Our highest-rated credit cards have:
We combine these factors with an evaluation of brand reputation and customer satisfaction to ensure you're getting the best card recommendations. Learn more about how The Ascent rates credit cards.
The Chase Freedom Flex® has a minimum credit limit of $500, but it's possible to get a much larger amount, including over $20,000. Chase determines your credit limit based on many factors, with your income and credit history being most important.
The Chase Freedom Flex® is a World Elite Mastercard®.
The Chase Freedom Flex® usually isn't hard to get for qualified applicants. In particular, it helps to have a FICO® Score of at least 670. Make sure you also haven't opened five or more credit cards in the last 24 months. If you have, your application will most likely be denied due to Chase's 5/24 rule.
We're firm believers in the Golden Rule, which is why editorial opinions are ours alone and have not been previously reviewed, approved, or endorsed by included advertisers. The Ascent, a Motley Fool service, does not cover all offers on the market. The Ascent has a dedicated team of editors and analysts focused on personal finance, and they follow the same set of publishing standards and editorial integrity while maintaining professional separation from the analysts and editors on other Motley Fool brands.
The Motley Fool owns shares of and recommends Visa.