When applying for a new credit card, you always want to find the best welcome offer. It’s the one that offers the best value for money, the most points, and the most cash back.
But what happens when you get a potentially very lucrative welcome offer that prevents you from signing up for any other cards for a year?
I’m in exactly that situation after getting Chase Freedom Unlimited last September. Let me explain.
Best sign up bonus ever
In the fall of 2023, I took advantage of the awesome (now expired). Here’s the welcome offer for Chase Freedom Unlimited, one of Chase’s most popular cash back cards. At the end of my first year, Chase will give me back an amount equal to all the cash back I earned on the card during my first 12 months of owning the card.
This means that during your first year with Freedom Unlimited, your card’s rate of return is effectively doubled. Instead of earning 5% on travel purchased through Chase Ultimate Rewards, you earn 10% total. Instead of 3% back at restaurants and drugstores, you earn 6% back. Instead of getting 1.5% back on all other purchases, you’ll earn a solid 3%.
These high return rates are probably some of the best cashback cards of all time. And these are (or were) available to you if you’ve owned your card for a year.
The return rate was not bad even though it was my third credit card in my life. But why would I wait for another person to pull the trigger?
why are you waiting
I think the answer to that question is yes. There are plenty of other cards you can sign up for that offer luxury travel perks and more, but nothing beats his 10% cash back on travel booked through Chase. Also, given my personal spending habits (hint: I eat out a lot), a total of 6% back on dining is also a great return.
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Note that this spending category also includes takeout and eligible delivery services. This is all the encouragement I need to use DoorDash several times a week (my Freedom Unlimited also came with 3 months of free Dash passes).
Sure, you can also buy a premium travel card in the meantime and take advantage of the welcome offer you like. But if you want to get the most value out of your daily spending, Freedom Unlimited will almost always be your best option, at least until that amount of cash back hits my account in the fall.
Fortunately, after the first 12 months, you already know what your next move will be. If you can believe it, it will help me further maximize my Freedom Unlimited rewards.
my next card
during the first 12 months Freedom Unlimited has ended. I plan to apply for another popular and valuable service offered by Chase, the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card.
There are several reasons for that. First, Chase’s 5/24 rule states that Chase will not approve new card applicants who have opened five or more personal credit cards with any bank in the past 24 months. That said, other card issuers don’t have such rules, so as a general rule, you should prioritize getting a Chase card first when filling out your wallet.
But more importantly, the Sapphire Preferred is one of the few cards, along with the Chase Sapphire Reserve and Ink Business Preferred, that lets you convert Freedom Unlimited cash back into fully transferable Chase Ultimate Rewards points.
That means you’ll have access to all 14 of Chase’s airline and hotel transportation partners. This means that every cent earned in Freedom Unlimited becomes his 1 Ultimate Reward point, worth 2.05 cents per TPG rating. This means that on all travel purchases he will earn more than 20% profit, and on meals and drug stores he will earn more than 12% profit.
In summary, you can get 4x standard returns on Freedom Unlimited for the first 12 months of card ownership by taking advantage of Freedom Unlimited’s matching cash back offer and converting your cash back into points on another Chase card .
conclusion
Matching cashback offers Freedom Unlimited was unusual. You definitely don’t see a welcome offer with unlimited rewards on a popular cashback card every day.
But this is a great example of the need for flexibility in the credit card rewards game. I originally planned to get the Sapphire Preferred fairly early in my card journey. Now I put this into action to maximize my return on spending up until that point.
This offer also works for me, especially considering my spending habits. I don’t travel much, but I spend a lot of money eating out, so his 6% return in that category has been a huge boon to my bottom line.
So, if you get something out of this article, here’s what you should do. All credit card benefits are worth it to you. Find the cards, perks and welcome offers that best fit your lifestyle and spending habits. And if there is really money to be made, be prepared to take advantage of it. Next, think about which cards to combine.
Read our full Chase Freedom Unlimited review to learn more.
Apply here: Chase Freedom Unlimited
