Best Chase credit cards: Review and compare

Chase carries dozens of different credit cards. It’s pretty likely that this massive bank, one of the largest in the world, has at least one card for everybody. So how do you choose?

A handful stand out from other Chase credit cards and competitor cards for their value, benefits, and unique features.

In this article, we’ll cover the best Chase credit cards for every category, including travel cards, rewards cards, cash back cards, business cards, and more. For each one, we’ll help you decide if you’re a good fit, if the fees are worth it, and what perks to take advantage of if you apply.

Best Chase credit cards by category

Best for travel: Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card

Best for cash back: Chase Freedom Unlimited®

Best for rotating rewards: Chase Freedom Flex℠

Best for students: Chase Freedom® Student credit card

Best premium card: Chase Sapphire Reserve®

Best business card: Ink Business Unlimited® Credit Card

Best for business travel: Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card

Best cash back business card: Ink Business Cash® Credit Card

Best for travel: Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card

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Pros

• No foreign transaction fee
• 5X points per dollar on travel purchased through Chase Ultimate Rewards®
• 3X points per dollar on all other travel, dining, online grocery purchases, and select streaming
• 1X points per dollar on everything else
• Sign up bonus of 80,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. That's $1,000 when you redeem through Chase Ultimate Rewards®.

Cons

• $95 annual fee
• 20.74% - 27.74% Variable APR
• Either $5 or 5% of the amount of each transfer, whichever is greater.
• Must use the Chase Ultimate Rewards® platform to earn 5X points when purchasing travel

Features and benefits

The Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card is one of the most popular Chase credit cards available and the best card for frequent travelers. Besides earning competitive rewards rates on everything from travel to everyday spending, it also comes with the following features:

• 1:1 point transfer to 14 different travel partners including JetBlue TrueBlue, United MileagePlus, Marriott Bonvoy, and World of Hyatt
• Complimentary travel and purchase coverage including trip cancellation insurance, trip delay reimbursement, travel, and emergency assistance services, and more
• $50 Annual Ultimate Rewards Hotel Credit
• 25% boost in points when you redeem rewards for travel through Chase Ultimate Rewards®

Plus, cardholders can access free subscriptions and statement credits with select partners. If you take advantage of all the perks and credits, the $95 annual fee is worth it – easily.

Related: Is an annual fee credit card ever worth it?

Who is it good for?

The Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card is a good choice for people who want to “sample” premium travel rewards without paying a premium price tag. Although $95 is not a small annual fee, it is average for a mid-tier rewards card and far less than the triple-digit fees that come with truly premium cards. So if you want to save on travel but don’t need luxury, this card could be great for you. This Chase credit card is ideal for people who travel somewhat frequently because the rewards program puts heavy emphasis on travel rewards. 

Also, the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card will require you to be comfortable with using the Chase Ultimate Rewards® travel and rewards portal. If you don’t mind this, this card might be for you.

Who is it not ideal for?

First and foremost, this card is not designed for anyone with a credit score of less than 750, the minimum required to qualify. Because of the requirements to qualify, this does not make a good starter card and it’s not for anyone who’s working on building their credit.

We don’t recommend this card to people who are just after the welcome bonus. Although a 80,000-point sign-up bonus is tempting, it’s not a gift that keeps on giving, so to speak. A one-time cash reward isn’t enough to justify getting a new credit card, which is a big deal for your credit and money. Instead, take a look at your spending habits and see if they match up with the rewards this card offers. 

Also, you’ll want to avoid carrying or transferring a balance with this card as the variable interest rate and balance transfer fee are high.

Read our full review.

Best for cash back: Chase Freedom Unlimited®

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Pros

• No annual fee
• 5% cash back on travel purchased through Chase Ultimate Rewards®
• 3% cash back on dining (including delivery services) and drugstore purchases
• 1.5% cash back on all other purchases
• 0% Intro APR on Purchases for 15 months & 0% Intro APR on Balance Transfers for 15 months (followed by an APR of 19.74% - 28.49% Variable)
• Intro offer: Earn an additional 1.5% on all purchases (up to $20,000 spent in the first year)

Cons

• 3% of each transaction in U.S. dollars
• $5 or 5% balance transfer fee (whichever is greater) on transfers made within 60 days of account opening and $5 or 5% of the amount of each transfer, whichever is greater. on transfers made after that

Features and benefits

One of the best Chase credit cards overall. You can use it for all of your everyday spending and earn a higher rewards rate than most credit cards offer without having to think about bonus categories or activate offers. There is no cap on the amount of cash back you can earn in a year or lifetime.

For not having an annual fee, the Chase Freedom Unlimited® comes with more features and benefits than you might expect. It offers trip cancellation/interruption insurance for up to $6,000 per trip, a generous sign-up bonus with a low spending requirement, and a $100 cash back bonus for every friend you successfully refer.

Who is it good for?

The Chase Freedom Unlimited® is an excellent choice for anyone with some experience with credit cards who wants to save money without changing their spending habits. This card requires a credit score of at least 700, so it’s not for everyone, but anyone who meets this credit score requirement should consider this card if they think they’d be able to use most of its benefits. help you continue working on your credit with the Chase Credit Journey feature, which lets you check and monitor your score with no negative effect on your credit.

This is also a decent credit card for people thinking about transferring a balance. While 15 months isn’t the longest 0% intro APR period available by any means, it is decent for a rewards card that isn’t specifically designed for balance transfers.

Who is it not ideal for?

If you’re looking for a credit card with travel benefits, this offers some, but not as many as you can find with other cards including Chase credit cards (e.g. the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card). The Chase Freedom Unlimited® does carry a foreign transaction fee. 

So unless your credit is good to excellent, you may not be approved. And even if approved, you may not get the credit limit you’re hoping for. Consider a different card if this is your first one.

You’ll want to avoid carrying a balance with this card as well. After the first 15 months, you’ll pay 19.74% - 28.49% Variable APR on balance transfers and purchases.

Read our full review.

Best for rotating rewards: Chase Freedom Flex℠

Pros

• No annual fee
• 5% cash back on combined purchases in bonus categories per quarter (up to $1,500)
• 5% cash back on travel purchased through Chase Ultimate Rewards®
• 3% cash back on dining (including delivery services) and drugstore purchases
• 1% cash back on everything else
• 0% Intro APR on Balance Transfers for 15 months and 0% Intro APR on Purchases for 15 months (followed by an APR of 19.74% - 28.49% Variable)
• $200 bonus after you spend $500 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening.

Cons

• 3% of each transaction in U.S. dollars
• $5 or 5% balance transfer fee (whichever is greater) on transfers made within 60 days of account opening and $5 or 5% of the amount of each transfer, whichever is greater. on transfers made after that
• 5% cash back capped at $1,500 each quarter

Features and benefits

Like many cards with rotating bonus categories, the Chase Freedom Flex℠ caps how many points you can earn at the highest rewards rate. But unlike other cards, the Chase Freedom Flex℠ lets you choose a category for yourself each quarter from popular spending categories like groceries and gas. Plus, the flat rewards rate for dining and drugstore purchases is nothing to scoff at. 

And if you’ve ever had a rotating rewards card, you probably know that they require you to be more hands-on to make the most of them. You need to remember to activate available offers, which can take a bit of practice but is worth it when you pull it off. This card includes complimentary purchase protection and select travel insurance benefits.

Who is it good for?

If you don’t mind changing your spending habits a bit here and there to maximize your points-earning, this could be the perfect cash back card for you. You’ll have to keep an eye on the categories in the calendar and make sure to choose your bonus categories in time before the activation periods close, but you should find this to be pretty easy since they only rotate quarterly instead of monthly.

This card is not a bad option for balance transfers. Like the Chase Freedom Unlimited®, it comes with 19.74% - 28.49% Variable where you can pay off your debt interest-free. But there’s still a balance transfer fee, so think about a dedicated balance transfer credit card if you have a significant amount of debt you want to transfer.

Related: Best balance transfer credit cards

Who is it not ideal for?

We tend to find that people either love rotating rewards credit cards or don’t. You may enjoy activating new offers and strategizing your spending to take advantage of the best rewards rates, or you may find this to be tedious. 

If you’d prefer a straightforward cash back card that will earn a great rate no matter how you use it, Chase has plenty of other options (including several on this list). And if you’re looking for a travel credit card, the Chase Freedom Flex℠ is not for you either. This card carries a foreign transaction fee and very few travel benefits, making it a better general-purpose card than a travel companion.

Read our full review.

Best for students: Chase Freedom® Student credit card

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Pros

• No annual fee
• 1% cash back all purchases
• $50 bonus after first purchase made within the first 3 months from account opening
• $20 Good Standing Rewards for each account anniversary (up to five years)

Cons

• 3% foreign transaction fee
• $5 or 5% of the amount of each transfer, whichever is greater.

Features and benefits

Another Chase Freedom card, the Chase Freedom® Student Credit Card packs in a lot of perks without tacking on a fee. It’s specifically designed to support young adults in building their credit and rewards responsible use. For a student card, 1% cash back on everything is not bad, and there’s no limit to how much you can earn. But this card stands out most for its credit-building features.

First, you’ll have access to Chase Credit Journey which helps you monitor your credit score to better understand how it changes with your activity. If you pay your credit card in full and on time each month, you can watch your credit health improve. Another way this card supports cardholders in building their credit is with a credit limit after 10 months. To qualify, you need to make at least five on-time bill payments of the minimum payment or more within 10 months from account opening.

Finally, the Chase Freedom® Student credit card includes basic security features like fraud monitoring and purchase protection.

Related: How to use a credit card responsibly 

Who is it good for?

This is the perfect first credit card for college students. It’s good for beginners with limited or no credit and at least a fair credit score. If you’ve taken out any student loans to help pay for college or have used a secured credit card, you may have enough of a credit history to qualify. But you may also be able to qualify without any borrowing history at all, depending on your income and the rest of your application.

Related: Best credit cards for college students

Who is it not ideal for?

If your credit score is at 700 or more, you can probably qualify for a better card with more benefits. Although the Chase Freedom® Student credit card is a good all-around card with no annual fee and cash back, cards with higher credit requirements can offer you better cash back rates, interest rates, sign-up bonuses, and more. Plus, more complimentary features like travel and purchase protection.

You need to be a student enrolled in college to qualify for this card, so unfortunately it’s not a good starter credit card for everyone. But don’t worry. If you need a credit-building card but you’re not in college, you have more than enough options to choose from.

Read our full review.

Best business card: Ink Business Unlimited® Credit Card

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Pros

• No annual fee
• 1.5% cash back on everything
• 0% Intro APR on Purchases for 12 Months (followed by an APR of 17.99% - 23.99% Variable)
• $750 bonus cash back after you spend $6,000 on purchases in the first 3 months after account opening.

Cons

• 3% of each transaction in U.S. dollars.
• $5 or 5% of the amount of each transfer, whichever is greater.

Features and benefits

The Ink Business Unlimited® Credit Card is an all-around great credit card for anyone who owns a business. You’ll probably notice that it closely mirrors the Chase Freedom Unlimited® with a simple, flat rewards rate on everything. This card is about as fuss-free as it gets for business owners looking to maximize their savings with little to no extra effort. 

A valuable feature of this card is the ability to set up multiple employee cards at no extra cost and set a separate spending limit for each one. This lets you earn even more rewards and there’s no cap on how much you can earn in total.

Who is it good for?

If you’re looking to save money on your business expenses but don’t want to commit to a credit card that charges an annual fee, the Ink Business Unlimited® Credit Card is a terrific option. Its basic rewards structure and wide range of redemption options give it the perfect balance of value and flexibility. It also includes travel benefits like emergency assistance services and roadside dispatch, which could come in handy if you travel even a few times a year.

The Ink Business Unlimited® Credit Card is an especially good option for new and small business owners. If you’ve never had a business credit card before, this can serve as an introductory card until you understand your spending habits well enough to decide if a more premium or specialized option would suit you better. Or you may find that it’s plenty rewarding.

Who is it not ideal for?

If you think you could rack up enough spending in a particular category to justify a cash back card with rotating categories, this card might not be your best first choice. You could possibly save more on a card with higher rates on fewer categories if planning ahead is an option.

Also, while this card does offer some travel benefits, it is not a good fit for business owners who find themselves traveling a lot. It carries a 3% foreign transaction fee and doesn’t come with cash-saving perks beyond a few types of travel insurance.

Read our full review.

Best for business travel: Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card

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Pros

• No foreign transaction fee
• 3X points per dollar on the first $150,000 spent on combined purchases each year across the following categories:
  • Travel purchases
  • Shipping purchases
  • Internet, cable, and phone services
  • Social media and search engine advertising
• Unlimited 1X points per dollar on everything else
• 100,000 bonus points after you spend $15,000 on purchases in the first 3 months after account opening. That's $1,000 cash back or $1,250 toward travel rewards when you redeem through Chase Ultimate Rewards®.

Cons

• $95 annual fee
• $5 or 5% of the amount of each transfer, whichever is greater.
• 3X points per dollar capped at $150,000 in combined purchases each year

Features and benefits

The Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card is similar to the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card. It has a high earning rate on a handful of bonus categories that are likely to be relevant for the vast majority of business owners, like advertising costs and travel. And because these bonus categories are fixed rather than rotating, you will not need to change the way you use this card throughout the year to make the most of it or activate points offers.

In addition to points, this card has no foreign transaction fees and several travel benefits including trip cancellation/trip interruption insurance for up to $10,000 per trip or $5,000 per person. And when you use your points to purchase travel through Chase Ultimate Rewards®, they’re worth 25% more. All in all, the annual fee is definitely worth it here.

Who is it good for?

Even if you can only see yourself taking advantage of one of the bonus categories of this card, you may be a good fit for this card. It depends on how much you spend each year and on what. If you take a look at your spending habits, you should be able to easily tell if this makes sense for you.

Another group of candidates is business owners who travel often. This card is something between a travel and general rewards credit card, with a modest annual fee and benefits that can seriously cut back on your business travel expenses (not just travel booked through Chase). And if you’re strategic about how you use your points, like transferring them to a travel partner at a 1:1 rate for freebies like seat upgrades and award nights, you’re likely to save even more with this card.

Who is it not ideal for?

There are going to be some obvious poor fits for this card, and those are any business owners who already know they don’t spend much on any of the 3X points categories. For these people, a general rewards card is likely a better match.

On the other side of the coin, business owners who definitely spend more than $150,000 on expenses a year may find themselves quickly surpassing the 3X point maximum and getting bumped down to 1X points on everything. This is worse than you can do with flat-rate rewards and cash back cards. If this is you, try focusing on finding a card with no point caps.

Read our full review.

Best cash back business card: Ink Business Cash® Credit Card

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Pros

• No annual fee
• 5% cash back on the first $25,000 spent in combined annual purchases at office supply stores and internet, cable, and phone services
• 2% cash back on the first $25,000 spent in combined annual purchases at gas station and restaurants
• 1% cash back on everything else
• 0% Intro APR on Purchases for 12 months (followed by an APR of 17.99% - 23.99% Variable)
• $750 bonus cash back after you spend $6,000 on purchases in the first 3 months after account opening.

Cons

• 3% of each transaction in U.S. dollars.
• 5% cash back capped at $25,000 in combined purchases each year
• 2% cash back capped at $25,000 in combined purchases each year

Features and benefits

The Ink Business Cash® Credit Card is a cash back rewards credit card that can help you maximize your business spending on specific categories. But although this is a category card, the bonus categories do not rotate, so you don’t need to activate any offers to make the most of your spending. You’ll earn the most cash back on popular spending categories for many business owners.

There are a number of ways to redeem your cash back, including statement credits, gift cards, and travel through Chase Ultimate Rewards®. This card comes with the same set of basic travel and purchase protections as the Ink Business Unlimited® Credit Card and the option to add free employee cards. For a free card, it has a lot going for it.

Who is it good for?

If you know most of your business expenses fall under the categories of office supplies, internet, and/or gas and dining, but you don’t think you’ll meet or exceed the spending caps, this could be the perfect business card for you and your employees.

This is also a great card for you if you don’t mind keeping track of your spending a little more than you might with a flat-rate rewards card. Using this card in addition to a general rewards card could be a good strategy for earning as much money back on your spending as possible, but this will only be worth it for business owners who are willing to tag this card in for only some of their spending.

Who is it not ideal for?

The Ink Business Cash® Credit Card is probably not for business owners who spend significantly more than the limits for the highest cash back offers. So if you already know you will quickly exceed $25,000 in spending on office supplies and internet and $25,000 on gas and dining, this card may fall a little flat for you. A fixed-rate rewards card with no caps may be a better choice.

Read our full review.

Who is Chase?

Established in 1877, JP Morgan Chase is the largest bank in the U.S. with an asset base of $3.3 trillion. The bank has a large footprint with over 4,800 branches.

When it comes to credit cards, Chase’s products are competitive, but they have high expectations for their applicants. You’ll typically need a good to excellent credit score to qualify for a credit card. But if you know you can qualify, there are a lot of reasons to apply.

Things to love about Chase credit cards

Chase offers some of the best rewards cards currently available. Rewards value and redemption options are two of the main things customers appreciate about Chase credit cards.

The Chase Ultimate Rewards® program stands out for its user-friendly platform and flexibility of redemption. This portal makes it easy to redeem rewards and miles for almost anything, giving consumers more choices than the average bank and often higher rewards value. Chase works with many popular transfer partners to provide more opportunities to maximize rewards, and travel tends to offer the highest rewards value compared to other forms of redemption.

But credit cards are far from the only product Chase offers. This bank also has savings accounts, checking accounts, loans, and investment accounts. So if you like the idea of opening multiple accounts with one bank, you may want to explore the whole product suite.

Finally, Chase is also known for providing an excellent digital experience. In fact, the bank received a J.D. power rating of 855 out of 1,000 for its mobile app experience and 858 for online banking in 2022. The Chase mobile app has a rating of 4.4 out of 5 stars on Google Play and 4.8 out of 5 stars on the App Store.

How to redeem Chase rewards

Whether you earn points, cash back, or miles, all Chase rewards can be redeemed in a few of the same ways through Chase Ultimate Rewards®. So if you have a rewards credit card, here are the base options:

• Redeem rewards for a statement credit applied to your credit card bill
• Use rewards to purchase gift cards
• Redeem rewards for travel including hotel stays, flights, cruises, and more through Chase Ultimate Rewards®
• Request to be mailed a check or transferred cash via direct deposit

Only some cards let you transfer your points to hotel and airline partners. This is only an option for travel credit cards like the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card and Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card. 

If you end up applying for a Chase credit card, you’ll want to spend some time getting to know the Chase Ultimate Rewards® portal and the unique benefits of your card.

What other cards does Chase have?

Our list of the best Chase credit cards only captures a small portion of the credit cards available with this bank. The full lineup also includes many co-branded cards with airlines, hotel brands, and retailers. Just a few other partners include:

• Southwest Airlines
• United Airlines
• Marriott
• IHG
• Hyatt
• Instacart
• Disney
• Amazon

Co-branded credit cards let you earn points for different loyalty programs, usually at higher rates than you would with a regular rewards card. They can also come with other brand-specific benefits like hotel loyalty program access, waived baggage fees, and free upgrades.

The reason we didn’t include co-branded cards in our list is that these are only going to be the best option for a limited number of people. You should only get a co-branded card if you really love a particular brand and shop there a lot, otherwise, you’ll have trouble making the card worth it (especially if it has an annual fee). There’s a time and place for co-branded cards, but these niche cards aren’t a good fit for as many people as more general cards.

FAQs

What’s the easiest Chase credit card to be approved for?

The easiest Chase credit card to get approved for may be the Chase Freedom® Student credit card. This is intended for new borrowers with limited credit histories and does not have strict income requirements. But if you’re not a student, the next easiest cards to qualify for would be the other options in the Chase Freedom line. 

You may be able to qualify for both the Chase Freedom Flex℠ and the Chase Freedom Unlimited® with a credit score of 700 or higher. This is still classified as “good credit,” but it’s the lowest Chase tends to go.

Which Chase credit card has the highest credit limit?

The Chase credit cards with the highest credit limits are the pair of Chase Sapphire credit cards, the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card and the Chase Sapphire Reserve®. Because these are premium cards with high limits and a long list of benefits, they’re also the most difficult to qualify for. You’ll need a relatively high income and great to excellent credit score to be approved, and only a very small percentage of approved applicants will be eligible for that maximum credit limit.

Summary

If you have a good credit score and want a card packed with benefits and rewards, Chase cards are a great place to start. Compare the best Chase credit cards here to decide which one may be a good fit for you.

Read more:

• The unique Chase credit card benefits and rewards
• Chase 5/24 rule: Exceptions and everything else you need to know