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If you’re looking for a no-annual-fee cash-back credit card, the Chase Freedom Unlimited® and Citi® Double Cash Card are worth considering. They come with good welcome bonus offers, high earning rates on purchases, and benefits including introductory 0% APR offers.
Both cards earn points you can redeem for cash back, travel, or gift cards. However, there are some key differences in the way Chase Freedom Unlimited® and Citi® Double Cash Card earn and redeem points you should consider before applying. And only one of these cards comes with benefits like travel insurance and purchase protection.
Here’s how the Chase Freedom Unlimited® and the Citi® Double Cash Card stack up.
We’re focused here on the rewards and perks that come with each card. These cards won’t be worth it if you’re paying interest or late fees. When using a credit card, it’s important to pay your balance in full each month, make payments on time, and only spend what you can afford to pay.
Welcome bonus offers
Citi just added a limited-time welcome bonus offer to the Citi® Double Cash Card (which doesn’t normally come with a bonus). Although the Chase Freedom Unlimited® has the potential to earn a slightly higher bonus (with double the amount of time), if you’re wanting to earn your bonus all at once, the Citi® Double Cash Card is a better fit.
Chase Freedom Unlimited and Citi Double Cash offers:
Citi® Double Cash Card: Citi® Double Cash CardChase Freedom Unlimited®: Chase Freedom Unlimited®
Another thing to consider if you’re thinking about applying for Chase Freedom Unlimited® is to be aware that the intro bonus you’ll receive depends on the link you use to apply. The welcome bonus listed above is available through Insider, but there’s an alternative offer available if you apply directly with Chase ($200 after spending $500 on purchases in the first three months from account opening).
Winner: Chase Freedom Unlimited®
Rewards rates
The Citi® Double Cash Card is a good option if you’re looking for solid rewards and don’t want to keep track of bonus categories. It effectively earns 2 points per dollar (2% cash back) on all purchases — 1 point per dollar (1%) when you make a purchase, and another 1 point per dollar (1%) when you pay it off. Each point is worth 1 cent when you redeem for cash back, travel booked through the Citi portal, or gift cards.
Keep in mind that if you make a purchase and carry a balance on your card, the delayed rewards (1x point when you pay off your purchase) could be inconvenient.
The Chase Freedom Unlimited® earns unlimited cash back in multiple spending categories, which is great for folks who spend big on certain purchases and want to maximize their rewards earning.
The Chase Freedom Unlimited® earns:
5% cash back (5x points) on travel purchased through Chase Ultimate Rewards3% cash back (3x points) on dining, restaurant, and drugstore purchases1.5% cash back (1.5x points) on all other purchases
Winner: Chase Freedom Unlimited®
Redeeming rewards
The Chase Freedom Unlimited® issues rewards as Chase Ultimate Rewards points. You can redeem Chase Ultimate Rewards points (valued at 1 cent each) for statement credits, gift cards, or travel booked through Chase.
But if you have an annual-fee Chase credit card (such as the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card, Chase Sapphire Reserve®, or Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card) you can combine Ultimate Rewards points and get more valuable redemption opportunities, including transfers to Chase’s airline and hotel partners.
If you’re looking for flexible rewards, the Citi® Double Cash Card is a great option now that it earns Citi ThankYou points instead of cash back directly. You can redeem your points for cash back (as a check or statement credits), gift cards, charitable contributions, travel booked through the Citi travel portal, or credit to a linked account at a rate of 1 cent per point.
You can also transfer Citi ThankYou points to a handful of partners, like JetBlue (5:4 transfer ratio, so 1,000 Citi ThankYou points equals 800 JetBlue points), Wyndham (5:4 ratio), Choice Privileges (2:3 ratio), and Sears Shop Your Way Rewards (1:10 ratio).
If you also have the Citi Premier® Card or Citi Prestige® Card (no longer available to new applicants), you can combine rewards between your accounts and transfer points to Citi’s full range of airline and hotel transfer partners like Cathay Pacific, Singapore Airlines, and Emirates.
Winner: Citi® Double Cash Card
Benefits and features
Chase Freedom Unlimited
The Chase Freedom Unlimited® has a number of decent travel and purchase benefits, such as purchase protection, extended warranty protection, auto rental collision damage waiver, trip cancellation/interruption insurance, and travel and emergency assistance services. Although if you’re looking for premium travel benefits, Chase Freedom Unlimited® won’t get you that.
Citi Double Cash
The Citi® Double Cash Card doesn’t have a lot of perks, and the most notable is Citi Entertainment as it allows you to purchase presale tickets and exclusive experiences to concerts, sporting events, dining experiences, and more. The card also gets you 24/7 customer service, $0 liability on unauthorized charges, fraud protection, an ID theft protection program, and lost wallet service (but most credit cards offer those benefits).
Otherwise, if you’re looking for a card with more perks, a rewards credit card with an annual fee is worth considering instead. The Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card, for example, offers primary car rental insurance, trip cancellation/interruption insurance, trip delay insurance, and additional Doordash, Instacart, and GoPuff benefits.
Winner: Chase Freedom Unlimited®
Fees and costs
The Citi® Double Cash Card has a Citi® Double Cash Card (then a Citi® Double Cash Card APR), which is great for folks looking to pay down credit card debt. However, the intro APR offer is not applicable to new purchases so it’s won’t be a good choice for those looking to pay off large expenses over multiple billing cycles.
The Citi® Double Cash Card does have a balance transfer fee, cash advance fee, and a late payment fee. Also, it charges a foreign transaction fee, which means it’s not a good option for international travel.
The Chase Freedom Unlimited® has a Chase Freedom Unlimited® (then a Chase Freedom Unlimited® APR). If you need a strong 0% APR deal on both balance transfers and purchases, Chase Freedom Unlimited® is definitely a great option. However, the card’s intro APR is slightly shorter than Citi® Double Cash Card’s. So if only need 0% APR on balance transfers, you might want to consider the Citi® Double Cash Card instead.
Chase Freedom Unlimited® also has a balance transfer fee, a cash advance fee, an over-the-credit-limit fee, a late payment fee, and a return payment fee. You’ll also be charged a foreign transaction fee, which means (despite the card’s travel benefits) it’s not a good option overseas.
Winner: Tie
Comparison of the Citi Double Cash and Chase Freedom Unlimited
Citi® Double Cash Card
Chase Freedom Unlimited®Annual Fee
Citi® Double Cash Card
Chase Freedom Unlimited®Rewards rate1 point per dollar when you buy, plus 1 point per dollar when you pay your bill
5% cash back on travel booked through Chase Ultimate Rewards
3% cash back on dining (includes takeout and eligible delivery services)
3% cash back on drugstore purchases
1.5% cash back on all other purchases
Welcome bonus
Citi® Double Cash Card
Chase Freedom Unlimited®Benefits
Citi Entertainment
Purchase protection
Extended warranty protection
Auto rental collision damage waiver
Travel and emergency assistance services
Trip cancellation/interruption insurance
Fraud monitoring
Introductory 0% APR offer
Citi® Double Cash Card (then a Citi® Double Cash Card APR)
Chase Freedom Unlimited® (then a Chase Freedom Unlimited® APR)
Review
Chase Freedom Unlimited review
Bottom line
Both the Citi® Double Cash Card and the Chase Freedom Unlimited® are high-earning no-annual-fee cash-back rewards cards. However, Chase Freedom Unlimited® has slightly higher reward opportunities and better benefits. That said, there are reasons you might still consider the Citi® Double Cash Card.
Folks looking to earn straightforward rewards, without category restrictions, would probably prefer Citi® Double Cash Card’s effective 2% cash back on all purchases. The Citi® Double Cash Card also has a long 0% intro APR on balance transfers. So if you’re looking to pay down debt, and don’t need 0% APR on purchases, the Citi® Double Cash Card is preferable.
That said, there are a good number of cash-back credit cards on the market, so make sure to consider all your options.