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Compare the Features and Benefits of Chase Freedom Unlimited® and
Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card

Detailed Comparison Overview

Key Facts
Annual Fee
Avg. Min. Credit Score
APR on purchases
APR on balance transfers
Ongoing APR
Balance transfers fees
Best Multiplier
Avg. Point Value
(Learn More)
Bonus Offer
Rating
Review
Key features
Unique Card Benefits
Secondary Car Rental CDW Waiver
Purchase Protection
Extended Warranty
Trip Protections
Free Access to Credit Score
0% Intro APR on Purchases
0% Intro APR on Balance Transfers
Airport Lounge Access
Annual Statement Credits
Free Checked Bags
Global Entry / TSA PreCheck Reimbursement
Grants Car Rental Status
Cell Phone Protection
No Foreign Transaction Fees
Return Protection
Travel and Emergency Assistance Services
Concierge Services
Metal Card
Amex Offers
Annual Fee
$0
Avg. Min. Credit Score
670-850
APR on purchases
0% Intro APR (on purchases for 15 months, 19.99%-28.74% thereafter)
APR on balance transfers
0% Intro APR (on balance transfers for 15 months, 19.99%-28.74% thereafter)
Ongoing APR
19.99%-28.74% (Variable)
Balance transfers fees
Either $5 or 5% of the amount of each transfer, whichever is greater.
Best Multiplier
5x Airfare

Earn this multiplier when you purchase via Chase Travel℠. If you purchase any other way, you will earn 1.5X points.

5x Car Rentals

Earn this multiplier when you purchase via Chase Travel℠. If you purchase any other way, you will earn 1.5X points.

5x Hotels

Earn this multiplier when you purchase via Chase Travel℠. If you purchase any other way, you will earn 1.5X points.

5x Lyft
3x Dining Out / Food Delivery
3x Drugstores
1.5x Everything Else
Avg. Point Value
(Learn More)
$0.01 - $0.0175
Bonus Offer
Earn an extra 1.5% on everything you buy (on up to $20,000 spent in the first year) — worth up to $300 cash back. That's 6.5% on travel purchased through Chase Travel℠, 4.5% on dining and drugstores, and 3% on all other purchases.
Rating
YBCC Card Rate Stars Filled
YBCC Card Rate Stars Empty
(4.25) Our Review

Our ratings are determined by the authors and editors on our team. Each individual card feature is compared against all other cards we offer and the total score is an average of those 4 ratings.

Review

This is a staple card in the Chase Trifecta, which includes a Chase Sapphire Preferred or Chase Sapphire Reserve, a Chase Freedom Flex, and this card, the Chase Freedom Unlimited.

The primary benefit of this card, from a bonus category perspective, is the ability to earn 1.5% on all purchases that don’t have a bonus category. So while you earn 3% on dining and drugstore purchases with the Freedom Unlimited, you’ll earn 1.5% cash back on anything else, like insurance or utilities.

drugstores-chase-freedom-unlimited

But since the Chase Freedom Unlimited is a pure cash back credit card unless you also have a Chase Sapphire Preferred®, Sapphire Reserve®, or Ink Business Preferred® with which to combine your Chase Ultimate Rewards points, it’s ideally used as a combo.

When you hold one of these premium Ultimate Rewards-earning credit cards, you can transfer points earned on the Freedom Unlimited to the premium card. Once you’ve moved the Ultimate Rewards over to the premium credit card, you can take advantage of points transfers to 12 Chase airline and hotel partners or book travel through the travel portal.

If you book through Chase Travel℠ and have a Sapphire Reserve, your points redeem for 1.5 cents each, meaning that you earn 1.5X points or cash back per dollar and redeem them for 1.5X, giving you an effective 2.25% return on your spend.

If you book through Chase Travel℠ and have a Sapphire Preferred, or Ink Business Preferred, your points redeem for 1.25 cents each, meaning that you earn 1.5X per dollar and redeem for 1.5X, giving you an effective 1.875% return on your spend.

But our absolute favorite way to redeem is always via airline and hotel transfer partners. The easiest high-value redemption is usually Hyatt. We often get better than 2 cents per World of Hyatt point. Keep in mind that Hyatt doesn’t charge any resort fees when you stay on a free night award. So let’s say you are looking at a hotel with a cash price of $259 and a $25 a night resort fee and 8% tax. That would come to $307 a night. But if that same room costs 8,000 or 12,000 Hyatt points, you could be using your points (which transfer at an even 1:1 ratio to all airline and hotel partners) with a rate of return of 3 – 4 cents.

That said, even without a card combo, it’s still a solid card to earn 1.5% cash back (plus 3% on dining, including takeout and eligible delivery services, and drugstores) since it has no annual fee. Best of all, you can accrue cash back on this card and decide to add a Chase Sapphire Preferred®, Sapphire Reserve®, or Ink Business Preferred® later on – if you suddenly decide that you’d like to delve into the world of credit card rewards that transfer to frequent flyer and hotel programs to book free award flights and hotel nights.

It comes with a solid range of benefits for a card with no annual fee, too. You’ll get Purchase Protection and Extended Warranty on the shopping side and you’ll be taken care of on canceled or shortened pre-paid trips if a covered reason arises. with the included Trip Cancellation/Interruption Insurance.

Read more
Unique Card Benefits
yes
Secondary Car Rental CDW Waiver
yes
Purchase Protection
yes
Extended Warranty
yes
Trip Protections
yes
Free Access to Credit Score
yes
0% Intro APR on Purchases
yes
0% Intro APR on Balance Transfers
yes
Airport Lounge Access
no
Annual Statement Credits
no
Free Checked Bags
no
Global Entry / TSA PreCheck Reimbursement
no
Grants Car Rental Status
no
Cell Phone Protection
no
No Foreign Transaction Fees
no
Return Protection
no
Travel and Emergency Assistance Services
no
Concierge Services
no
Metal Card
no
Amex Offers
no
Annual Fee
$650 (Rates and fees)
Avg. Min. Credit Score
Good-Excellent
APR on purchases
-
APR on balance transfers
-
Ongoing APR
20.24%-29.24% (Variable)
Balance transfers fees
-
Best Multiplier
3x Airfare

Only applies to Delta flights purchased directly from Delta. All other airline purchases will earn 1X miles per dollar

1x All Other Eligible Purchases
Avg. Point Value
(Learn More)
$0.012
Bonus Offer
Earn 70,000 Bonus Miles after you spend $5,000 in eligible purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership. Terms apply.
Rating
YBCC Card Rate Stars Filled
YBCC Card Rate Stars Empty
(3.68) Our Review

Our ratings are determined by the authors and editors on our team. Each individual card feature is compared against all other cards we offer and the total score is an average of those 4 ratings.

Review

There are many reasons why frequent Delta flyers look toward the carrier’s top product: the Delta Reserve card with a $650 annual fee. This rewards card provides outstanding benefits when you’re flying Delta, but be prepared to pay a pretty penny.

First and foremost, you can get complimentary access to the Delta Sky Club, The Centurion Lounge, or Escape Lounge locations when presenting a same-day boarding pass with Delta Air Lines, giving you ample space to rest up, grab a meal or a drink, and get work done in the airport. While guest access isn’t included, you can bring up to two guests for a $50 per-person rate, or you can cash in your two guest passes that you’ll be awarded every card membership year.

Effective 2/1/25, Reserve Card Members will receive 15 Visits per year to the Delta Sky Club; to earn an unlimited number of Visits each year starting on 2/1/25, the total eligible purchases on the Card must equal $75,000 or more between 1/1/24 and 12/31/24, and each calendar year thereafter.

family, hike, travel

The annual companion certificate can also save you hundreds of dollars on Delta flights, as it’s eligible for round trip domestic, Caribbean, or Central American roundtrip flights in any class of service including First Class.

You’ll just need to pay the government imposed taxes and fees of less than $80 for domestic and $250 for international round trips — a steal for a second ticket on Delta Air Lines.

Furthermore, Delta SkyMiles Reserve cardholders receive unmatched status boost benefits for those who can meet the certain benchmarks.

For those that need a hand with reaching the next Delta Medallion® elite status level, this card earns $1 MQD (Medallion Qualifying Dollars) for every $10 spent on eligible purchases with your Card – plus a $2,500 MQD boost each calendar year just for holding the Card.

The Delta Reserve card is also popular for elites as it provides upgrade priority over other Medallion members at the same status tier. Two elite members may be on the same elite status level, but with the Delta Reserve credit card, you’ll get higher priority on the upgrade list — which can mean all the difference in a sea of elite members.

And you’ll also receive up to $560 in statement credits each year with up to $20 per month in statement credits on eligible Resy purchases using your enrolled Card, up to $10 back in statement credits each month on U.S. rideshare purchases with select providers after you pay with your Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card (Enrollment Required) and up to $200 back annually on eligible prepaid Delta Stays bookings on delta.com. (Terms apply)

You may be thinking that the Delta Reserve card is only targeted for those chasing Delta’s frequent flyer status. However, you may be surprised to find that the Delta SkyMiles Reserve card is also a fantastic choice for those without status but who want elite-like benefits.

Case in point: you and up to eight companions on the same reservation can bring your first checked bag free. And you can still get access to complimentary seat upgrades, although you’ll be placed on the bottom of the list after Medallion members.

There’s a long list of benefits that also come with the Delta Reserve card, such as the statement credit for Global Entry/TSA PreCheck, 15% award discount when redeeming for SkyMiles flights and travel and purchase protection benefits.

Simply put: it’s a huge step-up for Delta loyalists.

Rates and Fees for the Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card

Read more
Unique Card Benefits
yes
Secondary Car Rental CDW Waiver
yes
Purchase Protection
yes
Extended Warranty
yes
Trip Protections
yes
Free Access to Credit Score
yes
0% Intro APR on Purchases
no
0% Intro APR on Balance Transfers
no
Airport Lounge Access
yes
Annual Statement Credits
yes
Free Checked Bags
yes
Global Entry / TSA PreCheck Reimbursement
yes
Grants Car Rental Status
yes
Cell Phone Protection
yes
No Foreign Transaction Fees
yes
Return Protection
yes
Travel and Emergency Assistance Services
yes
Concierge Services
yes
Metal Card
yes
Amex Offers
yes

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