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I recently received the following email from a reader:
- Chase Freedom
- Chase Hyatt
- Chase IHG
- Chase United
- Chase ? (Is there a better Chase card to apply for?)
The reader’s husband opened all of the following Chase cards in the last 24 months:
- Sapphire Reserve
- Sapphire Preferred
- Southwest Plus
- Southwest Premier
- Ink Plus Business
- Freedom
HyattIHG- United
That leaves either the Freedom or the United MileagePlus Explorer Card. The reader asked if there were other Chase cards they should consider that she hand’t listed. I would consider the United MileagePlus Explorer Business Card instead, which has better category bonuses than the personal version of the card.
That leaves us with the…
- United MileagePlus Explorer Business Card
- Freedom Card
Long story short, the better card to choose between those two is probably the Freedom, unless they’re trying to pad their rewards balance ASAP for an impending trip. Keep reading if you want to hear my reasoning behind that answer.
United Business Card VS. Freedom Card
Here’s the bulk of my response to the reader:
Bottom Line
Just getting started in the world of points and miles? The Chase Sapphire Preferred is the best card for you to start with.
With a bonus of 80,000 points after $4,000 spend in the first 3 months, 5x points on travel booked through the Chase Travel Portal and 3x points on restaurants, streaming services, and online groceries (excluding Target, Walmart, and wholesale clubs), this card truly cannot be beat for getting started!
Editorial Disclaimer: The editorial content is not provided or commissioned by the credit card issuers. Opinions expressed here are the author’s alone, not those of the credit card issuers, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by the credit card issuers.
The comments section below is 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 questions are answered.
2st place Boarding ,Free checked bag ,2 lounge passes real close to even on first Flt. on renewal.($95).
better choice is to get the United Business first. Getting that card won’t bump the count up to 5/24, so then he can get the Freedom afterwards. Best to stay under 5/24 as much as possible.
Why not both? If chase business cards don’t count towards 5/24, he should apply for United business and still be at 4/24 and then apply for the freedom.
Your reader should apply for the United Business card, because it will not count against 5/24 (just like the Ink), and she can then get the Freedom at some near-term future point. If she proceeds the way you’re suggesting, the Freedom will count against 5/24 and will preclude her from getting the United Business card. Better to get both rather than choose one.
What about the Business Preferred card? Then possibly the United or Marriott business cards? That way you can remain at 4/24 and then eventually go for a non-business card. That’s what worked for me until recently.
Call them up can’t hurt then apply over phone . I got turned down like 6x in 6 years reapplied got 4 of them 6 months later.
Definitely get the United card over the Freedom card. Since they have the CSR, the Sapphire Preferred is redundant, and they product change it to the Freedom card after a year, so that you can end up with both of the cards, but still have the better sign up bonus with the United card!
Why are bloggers not talking about users protesting to Chase by boycotting their products.
Chase’s 5/24 rule needs to eliminated…otherwise, other credit card issuers are going to follow suit!!!
I refuse to apply for any Chase cards…I will not do business with them specifically because of the 5/24 rule.
I’m going to bet that you won’t publish this due to your inherent conflict of interest with Chase.
I don’t support a boycott of Chase because Chase doesn’t owe us the ability to apply for unlimited cards. What a weird right to believe one has!
I am over 5/24. I spent time pulling my credit history to figure out when I could get below the line. I would of had to wait 7 months to get to 4/24. I quickly decided I was going to miss out on to many great opportunities from other companies. When the barclaycard aviator came out i signed up and took the easy points. Chase cards on the 5/24 list are in the rearview and I don’t plan to spend any more time thinking about them. Plenty of other options out there. If I was at 4/24 with that list of cards already in my wallet I would be moving on to products like the barclaycard aviator red or arrival plus or both. Don’t let 5/25 stop you from taking advantage of all the other great offers.
Yes no worry Don’t bank them SPEND them and their will b a New deal right around the corner . I need a card 4 Comfort INN.
SO… If husband is 4/24 and currently has CSR (I have CSR and Freedom)…. Would he be able to apply for the business ink (waiting for the 100k offer) and then ANOTHER chase card? Same Day? Time Frame to wait?? Thanks in advance.
@Nicole, he could apply for the Ink yes, however, he would still be considered 4/24 after that. So, I would wait a month after that app then apply for 2 chase personal cards at the same time. He’ll likely get approved for both. I was in the same situation and it was recommended that I do that. I applied for CSP and Marriott personal and got them when I was at 4/24.
Theoretically yes, but there’s a chance he’ll get denied. I’ve seen more data points of Chase business cards not counting towards 5/24 rather than counting, but just so you understand the risk, I’ve also seen many data points when it has counted. So it depends… if there’s another Chase card he’s dying to have, perhaps it’s not worth the risk? That’s up to you guys to decide.
Great post. Wanted to eventually get to Park Hyatt Maldives soon using points so I would get Chase Hyattt next in my churns. Got the Chase CSR recently and trying to finish meeting min spend. There is huge bonus from Plastiq lately to use for your minimum spend requirements by using it to pay for your mortgage. You can get $500 FFD (as May 23, 2017). I have been using it as last resort to meet the min spend for my Chase CSR card. Wish me luck!!
Referral code 648787
Link: https://try.plastiq.com/648787