Chase Trifecta
Whether you are just starting out, or have been in the miles and points world for a minute, we are all shooting for the same goal. We want to realize our travel dreams, and do that with as little out of pocket spend as possible. A big key to that is having the right award travel card(s). And a part of that is putting together the right toolbelt for each type of transferrable currency. That is where something like the Chase trifecta comes it. Ultimate Rewards are the currency we encourage everyone to start with first, in part because of that pesky & annoying 5/24 rule. One of the important keys of earning valuable Ultimate Rewards is having the right set up to achieve long term success. So, let's go over just how you do that with the Chase trifecta!
Step One In The Trifecta: Choosing A Sapphire Card
As we often shout from the rooftops in the ToP Facebook Group, everyone should have a Chase Sapphire Preferred or Chase Sapphire Reserve when starting out. It is the very first decision every new award traveler should make. It is also the bedrock foundation of the Chase trifecta set up. Let's take a quick look at each card.
Chase Sapphire Preferred
- Earn 5x Ultimate Rewards on
- Travel booked through the Chase Travel Portal
- Rides with Lyft (through March 2025)
- Earn 3x Ultimate Rewards on
- Dining
- Select streaming services
- Online grocery (excluding Target, Walmart and wholesale clubs)
- Earn 2x Ultimate Rewards on all other travel
- Earn 1x Ultimate Rewards on everything else
- Plus, get 10% annual points bonus (meaning add 0.1x to all categories above)
- $95 annual fee
- $50 per cardmember year hotel credit when booked through Chase Travel
Chase Sapphire Reserve
- Earn 10x Ultimate Rewards on
- Car rentals & hotels booked through the Chase Travel Portal
- Rides with Lyft (through March 2025)
- Chase dining
- Earn 5x Ultimate Rewards on airfare booked through Chase Portal
- Earn 3x Ultimate Rewards on
- All other dining
- All other travel
- Earn 1x Ultimate Rewards on everything else
- $550 annual fee
- $300 per cardmember year travel credit
You first need to decide which one fits your needs best? Do you need the perks and lounge access that the Sapphire Reserve offers? Or, do you prefer the no frills, and less expensive, Sapphire Preferred? Maybe one of the cards' earning structure works better for your spending habits long term? This isn't the easiest decision for some, and that is why we put together a detailed guide for deciding between the two. You should know that either card is a very good option though, and you really can't go wrong here.
Step Two: A Chase Freedom Flex
The second piece of the Chase trifecta is getting set up with the Chase Freedom Flex. This is arguably the second best card in the trifecta. The Flex's standard welcome offer is for 20,000 Ultimate Rewards after spending $500 spend within the first 3 months. Although, sometimes the welcome offer comes with a 5x spending kicker on gas or grocery which is nice.
Either way, the welcome offer is not the main goal with the Freedom Flex card, although it doesn't hurt either. The real winner is the card's 5x rotating categories each quarter on up to $1,500 in spend. That is up to 30,000 Ultimate Rewards in earnings each and every year, for just $6,000 in spend. Nuts! These are often in areas of high spend like gas, grocery, Amazon etc.
The card also earns 3x back at restaurants and pharmacies (which can be huge for some), and 5x back on Chase Travel bookings. The best part? The Freedom Flex has no annual fee!
The card normally earns cash back, but that cash back can be turned into fully transferrable Ultimate Rewards. That is possible when you have an Ultimate Rewards earning card with an annual fee and combine the points. Guess what? You should already have that with the Sapphire Preferred or Sapphire Reserve, since you should have done that first in step one. Right? Right!? You better – we are watching you! Totally kidding.
Step Three: Get One Of The Unlimited Cards
The last step in the Chase trifecta is the Chase Freedom Unlimited or the Chase Ink Business Unlimited. Both of the Unlimited cards offer a pretty good return on your every day non bonus spend. That is because you earn at least 1.5x on every purchase. Well, it is 1.5% in cash back but you can unlock it by combining the points it with one of those cards in step one. Just like you can with the Freedom Flex.
We should also note that the Freedom Unlimited personal card earns 3x back on restaurant spend and pharmacies, plus 5x on Chase Travel, also just like the Flex. Since those overlap, it is the 1.5x earning that we want to focus on here. That is 50% more than what you get with the cards in step one and step two when talking about non bonus spend (areas that don't earn multipliers on purchases like utilities and car repair). That is why the Unlimited card(s) are the perfect capstone to the Chase trifecta. You get all of this with no annual fee once again.
What Is This Ink Unlimited You Speak Of?
But, what about that Ink Unlimited you mentioned about above? That is another option to earn 1.5x on all non bonus spend. Plus, the card always has a much more rewarding welcome offer (details on the current offer here) compared to the Freedom Unlimited personal card. The Ink Unlimited also comes with no annual fee, just like the personal card. It is missing the 3x and 5x earning options of the personal card, but you already have that covered with the Freedom Flex anyway that you grabbed in step 2.
I should also note that while you need to be under 5/24 to be approved for this card, it won't count towards your 5/24 count. That is because it is a business card and does not post to your personal credit report.
You are telling me this card offers the same great earning structure as the personal Unlimited on non bonus spend, has a better welcome offer AND it doesn't count towards 5/24 … so where is the catch? The catch is that it is a business card, so you need to have a business to apply for one. That is why we list the personal card first, which everyone is eligible for. The real interesting thing here, though, is that many people are eligible for business cards and don't even realize it.
Chase Trifecta: ToP Thoughts
One, two, three and you're out! Out there racking up all kinds of Ultimate Rewards with your new super power called the Chase trifecta. Was that just corny as h – e – double hockey sticks? You bet! That doesn't mean it isn't true though.
If you follow these steps you will have earned three nice welcome offers – but more than that – you would have a lineup for racking up tons of Ultimate Rewards long into the future. The best part? It can all be had for as low as $95 per year in annual fees!
For quick reference, here are our full reviews for each card discussed in this Chase trifecta guide:
And, as always, should you have any questions please feel free to come over to the ToP Facebook Group and we can help you out with this process. Happy traveling everyone!
