Why I'm not applying for any new credit cards for a year

10.02.2024 - 17:27 / thepointsguy.com

When applying for a new credit card, you always want to find the best welcome offer — the one that offers the most bang for your buck, the most points, the most cash back.

But what if there's a welcome offer so potentially lucrative that it keeps you from signing up for other cards for an entire year?

After getting the Chase Freedom Unlimited in September of last year, that's the situation I find myself in. Let me explain.

In the fall of 2023, I took advantage of a fantastic (now-expired) welcome offer on one of Chase's most popular cash-back cards, the Chase Freedom Unlimited. At the end of my first year, Chase will match all the cash back earned on the card in my first 12 months of card ownership.

This means the card's earnings rates are essentially doubled for the first year of the Freedom Unlimited. Instead of earning 5% back on travel purchased through Chase Ultimate Rewards, I'll earn a total of 10% back. Instead of 3% back on dining and drugstores, I'll earn 6%. And instead of 1.5% back on all other purchases, I'll earn a solid 3%.

Those elevated earnings rates are some of the best you'll find on any cash-back card, perhaps ever. And they are (or were) available for a full year of card ownership.

Not a bad return on just my third-ever credit card. But why am I waiting to pull the trigger on another?

It goes without saying that the welcome offer I jumped on is pretty lucrative. But is it so lucrative that I've boxed myself out of getting other cards for the time being if my ultimate goal is maximizing value?

I think the answer to that question is yes. Plenty of other cards I could sign up for offer lavish travel perks and the like, but it's hard to beat 10% cash back on travel booked through Chase. And given my personal spending habits (hint: I eat out a lot), a total of 6% back on dining is also a fantastic return.

Note that this spending category also includes takeout and eligible delivery services, which is all the encouragement I need to use DoorDash a few more times a week (my Freedom Unlimited also came with three months of complimentary DashPass).

Sure, I could go for a premium travel card in the meantime and take advantage of a welcome offer I like there. But when maximizing value on day-to-day spending, the Freedom Unlimited will almost always be my best bet, at least until that lump sum of matched cash back hits my account in the fall.

Luckily, I already know what my next move will be when those first 12 months are up — and it will help me maximize the rewards on my Freedom Unlimited even further, if you can believe it.

When my first 12 months on the Freedom Unlimited are over, I plan to apply for another popular and valuable offering from Chase: the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card.

That