Which card is better, the Chase Sapphire Reserve card or the Freedom Unlimited card?

If you travel frequently, value premium travel benefits, and don’t mind paying an annual fee, the Chase Sapphire Reserve card could offer better value. However, the Freedom Unlimited card works well as an everyday card and has no annual fee. The better card for you will depend on the mix of your spending, which redemption options work best for you, and whether you value premium travel benefits.

How do Ultimate Rewards Points work?

Both the Freedom Unlimited card and the Chase Sapphire Reserve card earn rewards in the form of points, on each eligible purchase. Rewards earned on the Freedom Unlimited card can be redeemed directly for cash-back, so the card is marketed as a cash-back card. Rewards earned on the Chase Sapphire Reserve card are earned as Ultimate Rewards points that offer greater options and value at redemption time compared to the Freedom Unlimited card. Points, however, can be transferred between the 2 cards (with limitations), allowing you to take advantage of the greater value offered on the Chase Sapphire Reserve card at redemption time.

Can I transfer points from the Freedom Unlimited card to airlines?

You can redeem points earned on the Freedom Unlimited card for flights via the Ultimate Rewards travel portal, but you cannot transfer points to airline (or hotel) programs. To do so, you must first transfer points to a Chase premium card that has the ability to transfer to travel partners.

How does Chase cash-back work on the Freedom Unlimited card?

Each purchase you make on the Freedom Unlimited card earns a percentage of the purchase price back in the form of points. These points can then be redeemed in several ways, including cash-back. The points can also be transferred to Chase premium cards to be redeemed for potentially even greater value.

Chase Freedom Unlimited vs. Chase Sapphire Reserve [2023]

Chase stands out as a highly-respected card issuer that continually enhances its credit card products to reflect the demands and preferences of today’s consumers.

When shopping habits shifted to everyday purchases, for example, Chase responded by adding bonus categories for everyday purchases to a number of its products.

Additionally, to acknowledge the need for and encourage charitable giving, Chase added the ability to redeem points earned on several cards for statement credits for eligible charitable donations.

As the issuer’s portfolio of cards continues to evolve, so do your choices. You can select an everyday no-annual-fee card that still earns well on every purchase you make or a premium Chase card that comes with all the travel benefits you’ll ever need.

No 2 Chase cards illustrate your range of choices much better than the Chase Freedom Unlimited® and the Chase Sapphire Reserve®. And, while you might feel you have to decide which card is better for you at this moment in time, keep your mind open to the possibility that these cards may work best in tandem.

Let’s take a look at these 2 popular Chase credit cards, how they earn rewards, redemption options you can expect, benefits and protections that come with each card, and how the cards can complement each other.

Table of contents

Freedom Unlimited Card vs. Chase Sapphire Reserve Card — Overview
The Value of a Welcome Offer
Earning Potential
Redemption Options
Travel Benefits and Protections
Additional Travel Benefits and Protections — Chase Sapphire Reserve Card
Shopping Benefits and Protections
Annual Fees and Adding Authorized Users
Final Thoughts

Table of Contents

Freedom Unlimited Card vs. Chase Sapphire Reserve Card — Overview
The Value of a Welcome Offer
Earning Potential
Redemption Options
Travel Benefits and Protections
Additional Travel Benefits and Protections — Chase Sapphire Reserve Card
Shopping Benefits and Protections
Annual Fees and Adding Authorized Users
Final Thoughts

Freedom Unlimited Card vs. Chase Sapphire Reserve Card — Overview

Before we dig deeper into the key attributes of the Freedom Unlimited card and the Chase Sapphire Reserve card, let’s glance at a high-level overview of the 2 cards.

Here’s an abbreviated comparison of the key features and benefits of both of our featured cards.

Feature or Benefit	Freedom Unlimited Card	Chase Sapphire Reserve Card
Welcome Offer	INTRO OFFER: Earn an additional 1.5% cash back on everything you buy (on up to $20,000 spent in the first year) – worth up to $300 cash back!	Earn 60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months.
Earning Potential	5% cash-back on travel via the Chase Ultimate Rewards travel portal 5% cash-back on Lyft rides 3% cash-back on dining and drugstore purchases 1.5% cash-back on all other purchases	10x points per dollar spent on car rentals, hotels, and dining booked via the Chase Ultimate Rewards travel portal 10x points on Lyft (through March 31, 2025) 10x points on Peloton equipment and accessory purchases over $250 (through March 31, 2025) 5x points for flights purchased via the Chase Ultimate Rewards travel portal 5x points on Lyft rides 3x points on all other travel and dining 1x points on all other purchases
Redemption Options	Redeem for travel via the Ultimate Rewards travel portal Transfer points to premium Chase cards Statement credits Pay Yourself Back Gift cards, merchandise, shopping at select retailers	Redeem for travel via the Ultimate Rewards travel portal Transfer points to hotel and airline partners Statement credits Pay Yourself Back Gift cards, merchandise, shopping at select retailers
Statement Credits	Quarterly $10 Instacart credit	Up to $300 travel credit at each account anniversary Monthly $15 Instacart credit
Travel Benefits and Protections	Secondary car rental insurance Trip cancellation, trip interruption Travel emergency assistance	Primary car rental insurance Trip cancellation, trip interruption, trip delay Travel emergency assistance Evacuation and limited emergency medical/dental coverage Global Entry, TSA PreCheck, or NEXUS fee reimbursement Luxury Hotel & Resort Collection Benefits Relais & Chateaux hotel benefits Car rental program benefits Baggage insurance No foreign transaction fees
Shopping Benefits and Protections	Shop through Chase shopping portal Chase Offers Purchase protection, extended warranty
Additional Shopping Benefits and Protections	N/A	Return protection
Annual Fees and Authorized Users	$0 No fee to add authorized users	$550 $75 fee per year to add each authorized user

The Value of a Welcome Offer

Immediately after approval for either the Freedom Unlimited card or the Chase Sapphire Reserve card, you’ll have an opportunity to earn a welcome bonus.

Here are the current welcome offers:

Earning Potential

Each of our featured cards earns rewards on every purchase you make and bonus earnings on specific category purchases. The Freedom Unlimited card earns rewards first as points that can be redeemed for cash-back. The Chase Sapphire Reserve card earns Ultimate Rewards points directly.

Here’s how the earning potential compares between our featured cards:

Earnings Category	Freedom Unlimited Card	Chase Sapphire Reserve Card
Flights Purchased via Ultimate Rewards Travel Portal	5% cash-back	5x points per dollar spent
Car Rentals, Hotels, and Dining Booked via Ultimate Rewards Travel Portal	5% cash-back	10x points per dollar spent
All Other Travel	1.5% cash-back	3x points per dollar spent
Restaurants Worldwide, Takeout, and Eligible Delivery Services	1.5% cash-back	3x points per dollar spent
Lyft Rides	5% cash-back	5x points per dollar spent
Select Peloton Purchases	1.5% cash-back	10x points per dollar spent
All Other Purchases	1.5% cash-back	1x points per dollar spent

A key strength of the Freedom Unlimited card is its elevated earnings on non-bonus category purchases, but you’ll also earn well when using the Ultimate Rewards portal to book travel. The Chase Sapphire Reserve card functions more as a premium travel rewards card, delivering strong earnings on travel purchases and restaurants worldwide.

Redemption Options

Traveler reading newspaper on plane — Transferring Ultimate Rewards points to airline partners may result in the best value for your rewards points. Image Credit: cottonbro via Pexels

Both the Freedom Unlimited card and the Chase Sapphire Reserve card earn points that can be redeemed in several ways. Here are the choices you’ll have at redemption time with each of our featured cards.

Redemption Option	Freedom Unlimited Card	Chase Sapphire Reserve Card
Redeem for Travel via Ultimate Rewards Travel Portal	Yes, at a value of 1 cent per point	Yes, at a value of 1.5 cents per point
Transfer Points to Hotel and Airline Partners	No, only when paired with a premium Ultimate Rewards-earning card	Yes
Pay Yourself Back	Yes, on select charity donations at a value of 1.25 cents per point	Yes, on various rotating categories at a value of 1.25 to 1.5 cents per point
Statement Credits/Cash	Yes, at a value of 1 cent per point
Gift Cards, Merchandise, Shopping at Select Retailers	Yes	Yes

Bottom Line: The Chase Sapphire Reserve card offers greater flexibility and better value at redemption time. One notable point, however, is that if you have both cards, you can transfer points earned on the Freedom Unlimited card to the Chase Sapphire Reserve card to take advantage of the higher value at redemption time and to have the ability to transfer to travel partners for even greater potential value.

Travel Benefits and Protections

friends at airport looking at departure board — Travel insurance benefits can deliver peace of mind during your journey. Image Credit: leungchopan via Adobe Stock

Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver

Rental car insurance can be secondary (you must first file a claim with other applicable insurance) or primary insurance that kicks in right away at the time of loss. The Freedom Unlimited card comes with secondary car rental insurance while the Chase Sapphire Reserve card comes with primary car rental insurance.

With either card or coverage level, you must pay for the entire rental with your card and decline the rental agency’s CDW/LDW coverage. You’ll then be eligible for rental car coverage for damage, theft, loss of use, and towing. Terms and conditions apply.

Trip Cancellation, Trip Interruption, and Trip Delay

Chase Sapphire Reserve Card

If your covered trip needs to be canceled or is interrupted due to a covered reason, you could receive up to $10,000 per covered person, up to $20,000 per covered trip. If your trip is delayed more than 6 hours or results in an overnight stay, you could receive up to $500 per ticket for lodging and covered incidentals.

Freedom Unlimited Card

You could receive up to $1,500 per covered person, up to $6,000 per coverage trip, if your trip needs to be canceled or is interrupted due to a covered reason. The Freedom Unlimited card does not offer trip delay coverage.

Travel Emergency Assistance

Have access 24/7 to emergency assistance should something go wrong during your travels. Services include translator, legal, and medical referrals, assistance with emergency transportation, help with ticket replacement, lost luggage, and more.

Additional Travel Benefits and Protections — Chase Sapphire Reserve Card

In addition to the travel benefits and protections listed above, the Chase Sapphire Reserve card offers these additional benefits/protections:

Worldwide Lounge Access

With complimentary Priority Pass Select membership, you’ll have access to over 1,300 locations worldwide. You’ll also be able to bring 2 additional guests. This benefit also applies to authorized users on the card.

Luxury Hotel & Resort Collection Benefits

Enjoy elite-style benefits such as room upgrades, early check-in/late checkout when available, daily breakfast for 2, a special onsite amenity worth up to $100, and complimentary Wi-Fi with each Luxury Hotel & Resort Collection stay. Reservations and payment must be made with your eligible Chase card.

Relais & Chateaux Hotel Benefits

Receive a VIP welcome and complimentary breakfast each day for each member of your party, for up to 7 days. Offer valid at 180 Relais & Chateaux properties.

Car Rental Program Benefits

Enjoy National Emerald Club Executive membership with National, plus discounts and elite-style benefits with Avis and Audi on demand. Log in to your Chase card account and register to receive the benefits.

Emergency Evacuation and Transportation

Pay for your common carrier trip with your card and receive emergency evacuation services, up to $100,000.

Emergency Medical and Dental Coverage

Receive up to $2,500 in coverage for emergency medical or dental coverage and $75 per day for a hotel if recovery is needed (up to 5 days). There is a $50 deductible per claim.

Roadside Assistance

Never worry when you’re stranded roadside — help is on the way. You’ll receive up to 4 service calls each year, for a maximum of up to $50 each. Any remainder will be charged to your card. Services include limited towing, tire changing, lockout service, emergency fuel, and more.

Lost and Delayed Baggage Insurance

If your baggage is lost, you could receive up to $3,000 per covered person. For baggage that is delayed greater than 6 hours, you could receive up to $100 a day for up to 5 days for necessary incidentals.

No Foreign Transaction Fees

While the Freedom Unlimited card is perfect to use while traveling domestically, the card does charge a 3% fee on foreign transactions. The Chase Sapphire Reserve card does not charge these fees, making it the card you’ll want to take with you for international travel.

Bottom Line: While the Freedom Unlimited card does offer secondary rental car coverage, trip cancellation/interruption, and travel emergency services, the Chase Sapphire Reserve card is superior with its long list of travel benefits and protections. The card does, however, come with a much higher annual fee.

Shopping Benefits and Protections

Woman opening package — Save money and enjoy limited protection if something should go wrong with your eligible purchase. Image Credit: Andrea Piacquadio via Pexels

Shop through Chase and Chase Offers

Earn rewards faster and save money with both the Freedom Unlimited card and the Chase Sapphire Reserve card by making purchases via the Chase shopping portal and using Chase Offers.

The Shop through Chase shopping portal offers additional earnings at select retailers that are over and above what you’d normally earn by shopping with your card. Just log in to your Ultimate Rewards online account to see the list of hundreds of stores.

Chase Offers are located in your online card account. Log in to your Chase card account, add the offers to your eligible card, and make the associated purchase to receive the statement credit offer.

DoorDash DashPass

With the Chase Sapphire Reserve card, you’ll receive at least 1 full year of complimentary DoorDash DashPass membership when you activate your membership by December 31, 2024. You’ll receive a $5 monthly DoorDash credit, free delivery, and reduced service fees with your free membership.

Freedom Unlimited cardholders receive the same free delivery and reduced service fees with a complimentary 3-month membership but do not receive the $5 monthly credit. After the 3-month membership, cardholders can continue membership for 50% off for the next 9 months, then at full price.

Purchase Protection

If an eligible item purchased with your card is damaged or stolen within the first 120 days after the purchase date, you could receive up to $500 per claim with the Freedom Unlimited card or up to $10,000 per claim with the Chase Sapphire Reserve card. Each card has a limit of $50,000 per account.

Extended Warranty

Eligible items with manufacturer’s warranties of 3 years or less will receive 1 additional year of coverage.

Additional Shopping Benefits and Protections

Chase Sapphire Reserve Card

Return Protection — If a merchant will not accept the return of an eligible item purchased with your card within 90 days from the date of purchase, you could receive up to $500 per item, up to $1,000 per year.
Instacart Benefits — Cardholders are eligible for a free 12-month Instacart+ membership plus a $15 monthly credit.

Freedom Unlimited Card

Instacart Benefits — Cardholders are eligible for a free 3-month Instacart+ membership plus a $10 quarterly credit. Activate by July 31, 2024.

Bottom Line: The Freedom Unlimited card and Chase Sapphire Reserve card offer similar shopping benefits and protections. The Chase Sapphire Reserve card, however, offers a broader DoorDash benefit, increased limits for purchase protection, and return protection. If you have a large upcoming purchase or need to transfer a high-interest credit card balance, the Freedom Unlimited card could save you money with the introductory 0% APR period.

Annual Fees and Adding Authorized Users

The Freedom Unlimited card does not charge an annual fee. The Chase Sapphire Reserve card charges an annual fee of $550.

You can add authorized users to the Freedom Unlimited card for no additional charge. There is a fee of $75 for each authorized user added to the Chase Sapphire Reserve card.

Bottom Line: While the Chase Sapphire Reserve card does come with a high annual fee and a charge to add each authorized user, the card offers a long list of premium travel benefits for the primary cardholder and authorized users. Worldwide lounge access is an example of the added value offered with the card.

Final Thoughts

The Chase Sapphire Reserve card comes with far more benefits than the Freedom Unlimited card but it also has a higher annual fee. If you’re not ready — or comfortable with — paying a higher annual fee, or you won’t use enough of the benefits on the Chase Sapphire Reserve card to validate the expense, the Freedom Unlimited card can still deliver plenty of value.

We mentioned at the beginning of this article that it wasn’t necessary to select from either of these 2 cards because the cards can work very well in tandem. If you can utilize the benefits of the Chase Sapphire Reserve card (and don’t mind the annual fee) but still want to earn at least 1.5% on every purchase, there’s value in having both cards.

For example, you can use the Freedom Unlimited card for purchases that don’t fall within the bonus categories on the Chase Sapphire Reserve card. You can then transfer those points to the Chase Sapphire Reserve card and redeem them for travel for 50% more in value. You’ll also be able to then take advantage of the ability to transfer points to hotel and airline partners for potentially even greater value.

Before considering any Chase credit card, however, you should be aware of Chase’s (unwritten) rule that affects whether you can be approved for any of the issuer’s credit cards. Chase’s 5/24 rule states that you can only have a maximum of 5 credit cards issued from any source in the past 24 months to qualify for approval.

Freedom Unlimited Card vs. Chase Sapphire Reserve Card — Overview

The Value of a Welcome Offer

Earning Potential

Redemption Options

Travel Benefits and Protections

Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver

Trip Cancellation, Trip Interruption, and Trip Delay

Chase Sapphire Reserve Card

Freedom Unlimited Card

Travel Emergency Assistance

Additional Travel Benefits and Protections — Chase Sapphire Reserve Card

Worldwide Lounge Access

Luxury Hotel & Resort Collection Benefits

Relais & Chateaux Hotel Benefits

Car Rental Program Benefits

Emergency Evacuation and Transportation

Emergency Medical and Dental Coverage

Roadside Assistance

Lost and Delayed Baggage Insurance

No Foreign Transaction Fees

Shopping Benefits and Protections

Shop through Chase and Chase Offers

DoorDash DashPass

Purchase Protection

Extended Warranty

Additional Shopping Benefits and Protections

Chase Sapphire Reserve Card

Freedom Unlimited Card

Annual Fees and Adding Authorized Users

Final Thoughts

Frequently asked questions

Which card is better, the Chase Sapphire Reserve card or the Freedom Unlimited card?

How do Ultimate Rewards Points work?

Can I transfer points from the Freedom Unlimited card to airlines?

How does Chase cash-back work on the Freedom Unlimited card?

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