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One of the cards I love to use and max out each quarter is the Chase Freedom card. I can earn 5x Ultimate Rewards points per dollar up to $1500 and then transfer those points to my Chase Sapphire Reserve® card to net out 7.5% cash back on travel – amazing.
But there is one problem for most folks with the Freedom card – the 5/24 rule. That is, Chase will, no matter how good your credit score is, turn you down for the card if you have applied for more than 5 cards over the past 24 months. Frustrating? You bet. But there is another great option for so many of us. Take a look:
- 0% Intro APR on Purchases and Balance Transfers for 12 months; after that the variable APR will be 15.15% – 25.15%, based on your creditworthiness
- Earn $150 Statement Credit after you spend $1,200 on purchases within the first 90 days from account opening
- Earn 5x rewards on up to $1,500 in combined purchases each quarter in popular categories such as dining, groceries, travel, and automotive
- No upper limit on the points you can accumulate, and since points never expire, you can save up for a big award!
- Earn Points on Every Purchase! It’s simple: $1 = 1 Point
- No Annual Fee
The Amalgamated Bank of Chicago Mastercard (Learn more about Mastercard offers) is a very similar program to the Chase Freedom card in that they offer each quarter rotating rewards categories that yield 5x points per dollar spent vs. the normal 1 point per dollar up to $1500 in spending.
You can cash out your rewards in the form of a statement credit, airline miles, merchandise, gift cards, or even a combination of rewards types. Simple sometimes is just what we are looking for in the often complicated rewards space.
Also, like the Freedom card the ABOC Mastercard has no annual fee so this could be another long term hold card and use when the rewards are best for you and your spending needs.
The only downside with this card is they do charge a 3% international transaction fee so ONLY use this card in the United States. For travel outside the USA I always use my Barclays Arrival+ card anyway because it is a true “chip and pin” card that works even in automated ticket machines, gas pumps and more.
Have you ever considered the Amalgamated Bank of Chicago Mastercard (Learn more about Mastercard offers) for your card mix? – René
Advertiser Disclosure: Eye of the Flyer, a division of Chatterbox Entertainment, Inc., is part of an affiliate sales network and receives compensation for sending traffic to partner sites, such as CreditCards.com. Some or all of the card offers that appear on the website are from advertisers. Compensation may impact how and where card products appear on the site. This site does not include all card companies or all available card offers. Opinions, reviews, analyses & recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed, or approved by any of these entities. Some of the links on this page are affiliate or referral links. We may receive a commission or referral bonus for purchases or successful applications made during shopping sessions or signups initiated from clicking those links.
Responses are not provided or commissioned by the bank advertiser. Responses have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by the bank advertiser. It is not the bank advertiser's responsibility to ensure all posts and/or questions are answered.
Thank you for the review! Does this card have airline transfer partners, or did I misunderstand?