Newly approved cardholders of the Chase Freedom Unlimited® can earn a bonus that doesn’t delay gratification or require much spending.
As of March 20, 2025, the Chase Freedom Unlimited® was dangling the following bonus for new cardholders: Limited Time Intro Offer: Earn a $250 Bonus after you spend $500 on purchases in your first 3 months from account opening.
How this bonus differs from what was available before:
It’s larger than the previous offer available on Chase’s website. Those who applied directly with Chase could earn $200 after spending $500 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening.
It requires less spending than the previous offer available on NerdWallet and some other sites. That offer gave you an additional 1.5% cash back on all purchases in the first year, on up to $20,000 in spending, a potential value of $300 if you maxed it out.
Although the new bonus is $50 smaller than the maximum of $300 you could have earned with the extra-1.5% offer, you won’t have to wait a whole year to earn your bonus, nor will you have to spend nearly as much. You can pocket the $250 bonus with just $500 in spending, compared with the $16,667 you would have had to spend to earn $250 with an extra 1.5%. And compared with the previous offer available on Chase’s own site, it’s $50 more for the same amount of spending.
Either way, for a $0-annual-fee card, this bonus is a solid deal that can defray the cost of purchases or free up money in your budget.
The card continues to offer 5% back on travel booked through Chase; 3% back at restaurants, including takeout and eligible delivery services; 3% back on drugstore purchases and 1.5% cash back on everything else. In addition to the sign-up bonus, it also has an introductory APR offer: Get a 0% intro APR on purchases and Balance Transfers for 15 months, and then the ongoing APR of 18.99%-28.49% Variable APR.
