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The Chase Freedom Flex® is one of those cards that quietly does a lot of heavy lifting. It has no annual fee, a low spending requirement, bonus categories that change every quarter, and it earns Ultimate Rewards®, which is where the real magic happens.

Plus, now is a great time to pay attention to it. There’s a limited-time welcome offer, a brand-new perk for anyone who travels, and the next two quarters of bonus categories are things we all spend money on constantly. Here’s everything you need to know.

Chase Freedom Flex Details

NEW: The Freedom Flex no longer has foreign transaction fees.

This card is marketed as a cash-back card, however it actually earns Ultimate Rewards®.

The catch is that you need an additional card to make these points flexible. Any of the following work:

• Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
• Chase Sapphire Reserve®
• Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card
• Sapphire Reserve for Business℠ Card

When you move your points to one of these cards, you can easily double or triple their value by accessing Chase’s transfer partners.

But if all you want is the cash back, this card is a great option for that, too!

The Freedom Flex has no annual fee, making it a great keeper card. It will count toward Chase’s 5/24 rule, but with a low spending requirement and a big list of everyday bonus categories, it’s worth a spot in your wallet.

It’s also a very easy way to dip your toes into points and miles.

<All information about the Chase Freedom Flex®, Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card, Chase Sapphire Reserve®, Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card, and Sapphire Reserve for Business℠ Card has been collected independently by The Traveling Hansens. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.>

Freedom Flex® Credit Card Benefits

• 5x on up to $1,500 in combined purchases in bonus categories that change every quarter (activation required)
• 5x on travel purchased through Chase Travel℠
• 3x on dining, including takeout and eligible delivery services
• 3x on drugstore purchases
• 1x on all other purchases
• No foreign transaction fees
• Extended warranty
• Trip cancellation/interruption

How the Quarterly Bonus Categories Work

This is the part that makes the Freedom Flex different from a lot of other no annual fee cards, so it’s worth understanding.

Every quarter, Chase announces new 5x categories. You need to activate them each quarter to earn the bonus, so set a phone reminder. Then you earn 5x on up to $1,500 in combined purchases in those categories. After that, purchases earn the regular rate.

Here’s what’s coming up:

• Q4 2026 (October to December): Grocery stores (excluding Target and Walmart), dining, and American Red Cross donations
• Q1 2027 (January to March): Grocery stores (excluding Target and Walmart) and top streaming services

Previously, Chase only announced the upcoming quarter’s categories a few weeks ahead of time. Now they are announced more than three months out, making it easier to plan ahead.

Why The Freedom Flex Matters Right Now

Okay, here’s why I’m so excited about this card right now.

The limited-time bonus

Earn a $250 Bonus after you spend $500 on purchases in your first 3 months from account opening. For most families, $500 is a normal week or two of groceries, gas, and life, so this one is easy to hit without changing how you spend.

7x on dining this quarter

Dining is one of the Q4 bonus categories, and the Freedom Flex already earns 3x on dining. Those stack, so you can earn 7x (!!!) on dining through the end of the year. This is for up to $1,500 in combined bonus-category spending, then after that it goes back down to the regular 3x on dining.

There’s another potential boost on top of that. Through 2026, if you pay at a participating restaurant using Paze, you can earn up to 17x. Yes, seventeen! This is because Chase is running a promo through the end of 2026 that Sapphire and Freedom cardholders can earn 10x when you use Paze at checkout for select online retailers.

Many restaurants that use Clover for online orders accept Paze at checkout. This map shows all of the restaurants that use Clover for online ordering.

5x on groceries for six months

Grocery stores are a bonus category in both Q4 2026 and Q1 2027. That means you can earn 5x on grocery spending for the next six months (excluding Target and Walmart). If you’re feeding a family, this one adds up fast!

No foreign transaction fees

This is a brand new benefit. You can now earn rewards worldwide with no foreign transaction fees, which makes the Freedom Flex a great card to have in your wallet when you travel.

How to redeem Ultimate Rewards

Use them with Chase Travel℠

One way to use your Ultimate Rewards® is by booking travel through Chase Travel℠. It works like any other travel search portal, so you can search across airlines and hotels to find the best option for you.

When you do this, your points are worth a standard one cent per point, meaning every 10,000 points is worth $100. This can be a good option for boutique hotels that aren’t part of a larger program like Hyatt or Marriott, or when you don’t want to figure out how to transfer to travel partners (although that’s easier than you think and is worth learning!)

Cash them out

You can also cash out your points as a statement credit, which is also worth one cent per point. This is an easy way to cover travel purchases made on your card. Charge your hotel room or airfare (or anything else) to your card, then use your points as a statement credit to cover some or all of the cost.

You don’t have to use them on travel, either. Points can be used as a statement credit to offset any charges made on the card.

Transfer them

This is my favorite way to use Ultimate Rewards® because it generally gives you the most value.

With the Freedom Flex by itself, you do not have access to Chase’s transfer partners. However, if you also have any of these cards — Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card, Chase Sapphire Reserve®, Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card, Sapphire Reserve for Business℠ Card — you can combine your points onto one of those. Then you can access Chase’s 11 airline and 3 hotel partners.

Most points transfer at a 1:1 ratio in increments of 1,000. The exception is the Hyatt transfer ratio, which has changed to 4:5 if you don’t hold a premium card.

Here are the partners:

• Aer Lingus
• Air Canada
• Air France-KLM Flying Blue
• British Airways
• Emirates
• Iberia
• JetBlue
• Singapore
• Southwest
• United
• Virgin Atlantic
• Hyatt
• IHG
• Marriott

Transferring points to airlines and hotels is the main way that we book our award trips.

Combining Points

So, once you have points on the Freedom Flex, how do you combine them with another card to make them transferable to airlines and hotels? It’s pretty simple!

Log in to your Chase account and go to your Ultimate Rewards. Click Rewards Details, then click “combine points.”

Choose which cards you want to move points from and to, enter how many points you want to move, and hit confirm. It’s easy and instant!

Who is This Card For?

• Beginners: No annual fee, a low $500 spending requirement, and bonus categories on things you regularly spend money on.
• Families: Groceries, dining, and drugstores are big family expenses, and this card rewards all three over the next six months, plus this card often has other high-spend categories like gas and Amazon.
• College students/young adults: This is an excellent starter card for young adults looking to start earning points. It’s especially helpful if they have previously been added to a parent’s credit card, so they have some established credit before applying.
• People building credit: It’s a good option for those with limited credit history or who want to expand their borrowing power by opening new beginner-friendly cards.
• Those with a Sapphire or Ink card: Combine your Freedom Flex points with your Sapphire Preferred, Sapphire Reserve, Ink Preferred, or Sapphire for Business to use transfer partners.
• Frequent travelers: No foreign transaction fees means you can earn rewards abroad.

Freedom Flex or Chase Freedom Unlimited®?

Here’s the good news: you don’t have to pick. Many people hold both, since they earn the same Ultimate Rewards and you can combine them.

The Freedom Flex shines when you activate the quarterly categories and max them out. The Freedom Unlimited earns 1.5x on everything else, which is better than the Flex’s 1x, so it’s a great catch-all for the spending that doesn’t fall into a bonus category.

<All information about the Chase Freedom Unlimited® has been collected independently by The Traveling Hansens. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.>

What To Do After One Year

The Freedom Flex has no annual fee, so it doesn’t hurt to keep it open long-term. As with all cards, always keep them open for a full year. After that, you can decide what to do.

This card is a long-term keeper in our book. It’s free to hold and the bonus categories keep rotating, helping us continuously earn points. You can move any points you earn to Sapphire Preferred to keep them flexible.

Wrapping It Up

The Freedom Flex is a fantastic no annual fee card, and this is one of the best times to get it. Between the limited time $250 bonus, 7x on dining, 5x on groceries for the next six months, and no foreign transaction fees, there’s a lot to love. It’s a great way to stock up on Ultimate Rewards, boost your stash, or start your points and miles journey.