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CapOne Platinum Card vs. Chase Freedom Cards [Detailed Comparison]

BY 

Christine Krzyszton

- UPDATED: August 18, 2021

1. Credit Cards

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We’re all about earning credit card rewards, however, today’s card comparison has a twist. We’re going to be looking at an excellent example of a card that works for building or rebuilding credit but doesn’t earn rewards, and 2 cards that do earn rewards but require good, or better, credit.

If you have good credit and are looking at the Capital One Platinum Credit Card as a consideration, we’ll show you how you might do better with a rewards-earning card. Or, if you’ve had the CapOne Platinum card for a while and managed it well, you might be ready for the next level of rewards-earning cards, the Chase Freedom Unlimited® card or the Chase Freedom Flex℠ Credit Card.

With this perspective as a foundation, let’s look at our 3 featured cards, how the cards stack up against each other, and under which circumstances you would want to consider each card.

The Power of Approval

If you have just fair credit or no credit history at all, you’ll find the CapOne Platinum card the only card of our 3 featured cards for which you’d potentially qualify. If, however, you have good credit, or better, you may qualify for the Freedom cards we’re about to discuss.

Regardless of which position you’re in, you’ll find value in learning about these entry-level credit cards and how you might transition between the options.

Determine Your Credit Score

The first step in determining where you stand currently is to order a copy of your credit report and check it for accuracy. You can order a free credit report from each of the major credit bureaus at annualcreditreport.com.

A credit report is not the same as a credit score, and your report may or may not show your score. To view your credit score for free, we recommend using either Credit Karma or Credit Sesame.

Find Your Qualifying Offers

For a risk-free way to find out if you might have card offers waiting for you, you can try using the CardMatch tool. No hard inquiry is done on your credit report and the process takes just a minute to complete.

Our guide to how to find the best prequalified and preapproved credit card offers online details more about Capital One’s risk-free approval tool and offers from Chase. You’ll need to enter your name, address, and last 4 digits of your Social Security number, but your credit report will not be hit with a hard inquiry by using the form.

Neither option is an actual credit card application, just simply a search tool to find out if you may have card offers waiting.

To learn more about the minimum requirements for Chase cards, we’ve put together an informative article.

Bottom Line: If you have no credit or less-than-perfect credit, your choices are limited for rewards-earning credit cards. However, there are plenty of options still available to build or rebuild your credit. And, once you’ve improved your credit, entry-level rewards-earning cards such as the Freedom Unlimited card and Freedom Flex card are both stellar cards worth considering. 

The Value of a Welcome Bonus

While the CapOne Platinum card does not offer a welcome bonus, the Freedom cards come with initial welcome bonuses that can be earned after meeting minimum spending requirements within the first 3 months after card approval.

Check out these card snapshots, including the welcome bonus offering (where available) and a summary of the cards’ features.

Credit Card

Benefits & Info

Chase Freedom Unlimited® card Learn More (at Chase's secure site)

Earn a $200 Bonus after you spend $500 on purchases in your first 3 months from account opening. Earn 5% cash back on grocery store purchases (not including Target® or Walmart® purchases) on up to $12,000 spent in the first year. Earn unlimited 1.5% cash back on all other purchases. Earn 5% on Chase travel purchased through Ultimate Rewards®, 3% on dining and drugstores, and 1.5% on all other purchases. 0% Intro APR for 15 months from account opening on purchases, then a variable APR of 14.99 - 23.74%. No minimum to redeem for cash back. Cash Back rewards do not expire as long as your account is open. Annual Fee: $0 Must Reads: For more info on the Chase Freedom Unlimited, see our thoughts on its benefits and our full review.

Credit Card

Benefits & Info

Chase Freedom Flex℠ Credit Card Learn More (at Chase's secure site)

Earn a $200 Bonus after you spend $500 on purchases in your first 3 months from account opening. Earn 5% cash back on grocery store purchases (not including Target® or Walmart® purchases) on up to $12,000 spent in the first year. Earn 5% cash back on up to $1,500 in combined purchases in bonus categories each quarter you activate. Enjoy new 5% categories each quarter! Earn 5% on Chase travel purchased through Ultimate Rewards®, 3% on dining and drugstores, and 1% on all other purchases. 0% Intro APR for 15 months from account opening on purchases, then a variable APR of 14.99 - 23.74%. No minimum to redeem for cash back. Cash Back rewards do not expire as long as your account is open. Good to Excellent Credit Recommendation (670-850) Annual Fee: $0

The welcome bonus that is offered on the Freedom cards, at face value, is worth $200. Cash-back, however, is initially earned as Ultimate Rewards points, which can subsequently be redeemed for cash, or for 1 cent each towards travel. If you have a premium Chase Ultimate Rewards-earning card, points can be worth much more (we’ll cover that shortly).

Earning Potential

Freedom cards earn cash-back in the form of Ultimate Rewards points on every purchase and bonus-level earnings in specific purchase categories. These Ultimate Rewards points can then be redeemed for cash-back, travel, statement credits, gift cards, and more.

The CapOne Platinum card is not a rewards-earning card. Its primary purpose is for building or rebuilding credit. 

Here’s how the cards compare in this category.

Bottom Line: With good credit, or better, you can qualify for cards that earn rewards and offer better overall value. Starting with a card for the purpose of building or rebuilding credit, like the CapOne Platinum card, can be a step towards achieving this objective.

Redemption Options

Ultimate Rewards points earned on the Freedom cards are some of the most flexible, and therefore valuable, rewards currencies you can earn. Here’s how our featured cards compare when it’s time to redeem rewards.

Bottom Line: Both Freedom cards earn valuable Ultimate Rewards points that can be redeemed for travel, statement credits, and cash. You can also redeem for gift cards, shopping, and experiences or transfer the points to premium Chase cards for greater potential value at redemption time.

Travel Benefits and Protections

Travel benefits and protections can add significant value, especially when you’re not paying an annual fee on your card. Here are some of the most useful benefits and protections that come on our featured cards.

In addition to the benefits above, the Freedom Unlimited card has access to benefits at the Luxury Resort & Hotel Collection. These benefits include daily breakfast for 2, room upgrades when available, free Wi-Fi, early check-in, late checkout, and a unique property-specific amenity.

Bottom Line: Although the CapOne Platinum card does not earn rewards, you’ll find a few useful travel benefits on the card. Freedom cards, however, come with a longer list of travel benefits and protections.

Shopping Benefits and Protections

When making purchases with any of our featured cards, it’s good to know you’ll have shopping benefits and protections that can save you money or provide coverage should something go wrong with your purchase.

Here’s a sampling of the benefits and protections you can expect from our featured cards.

CapOne Platinum Card

• Extended Warranty — For eligible items purchased with your card that have manufacturer’s warranties of 12 months or less, an additional 12 months will be added. There is a maximum limit of $10,000 coverage per item and purchases with more than 12-month warranties do not qualify.
• Price Protection — Eligible purchases made entirely with your card receive 60 days of protection if you find a lower advertised price. You could receive up to $250 per item for the difference in price.
• No Foreign Transaction Fees — Foreign purchases will not be charged a transaction fee.

Freedom Unlimited Card and Freedom Flex Card

• Purchase Protection — Eligible items purchased with your card receive up to 120 days of protection against theft, damage, and “involuntary and accidental parting.” Coverage is limited to $500 per item, $50,000 per account.
• Extended Warranty — Receive 1 additional year of protection for eligible items purchased with your card that have manufacturer’s warranties of 3 years or less. Coverage limits are $10,000 per item, $50,000 per account.
• Introductory 0% APR Period on Purchases — Receive up to 15 months with no interest charges, from the date of card approval to repay eligible purchases made with your card.
• Chase Offers — Find these offers on the home page of your Chase online card account, add the offer to your card, and receive cash-back after your purchase.
• Chase Shopping Portal — Earn up to $25 per dollar spent when shopping with Chase’s online shopping portal.
• DoorDash DashPass Subscription — Receive $0 delivery fees on orders over $12 for 3 months and 50% off membership for the following 9 months (activate by December 2021).

Freedom Flex Card

• Cell Phone Protection — In addition to the above shopping protections and benefits, the Freedom Flex card also offers cell phone protection. Receive up to $800 per claim for damage or theft of your eligible phone when you pay your monthly bill with your card. There is a limit of 2 claims per 12-month period and a $50 deductible per claim.
• World Elite Mastercard Shopping Benefits — Receive additional benefits such as Shoprunner membership, Lyft credits, Fandango movie ticket discounts, 5% cash rewards on Box wholesale purchases, and more. Minimum purchases may apply and there are limits and conditions.

Bottom Line: Freedom cards come with several shopping benefits and protections. The CapOne Platinum card does not have as many benefits but the card does not charge foreign transaction fees. Freedom cards charge 3% on foreign purchases. 

CapOne Platinum Card vs. Chase Freedom Cards — Summary

It’s time to look at an overall side-by-side comparison of our trio of featured cards.

Hot Tip: Trying to decide which Freedom card to apply for? See our detailed comparison of the Freedom Unlimited card vs. Freedom Flex card.

Final Thoughts

As we mentioned earlier, the CapOne Platinum card is designed for those who wish to build or rebuild their credit. If you have good or better credit, this card is not the best option for your situation, and a next-step rewards earning card would be a better alternative.

If you have had the CapOne Platinum card for more than a year, have managed it well, and have improved to good or better credit, you’ll receive more benefits with a rewards-earning card, making the Freedom cards excellent to consider. To further review Chase rewards-earning card options, you’ll want to review our article that compares the best Chase cards.

Since Chase does not offer a card for bad credit or no credit, the CapOne Platinum card can serve as a good starting point to improve your credit and subsequently qualify for a rewards-earning card. Unlike secured cards that are widely available for bad or no credit, the card does not require a security deposit. And while the card is issued with a low $300 credit limit, after 5 on-time payments you may receive a higher credit limit.

The card also has no annual fee and does not charge foreign transaction fees.

The information regarding the Chase Freedom Unlimited® card, and Chase Freedom Flex℠ Credit Card was independently collected by Upgraded Points and not provided nor reviewed by the issuer.