topic Re: Is Chase Trifecta worth it? in Credit Cards

Is Chase Trifecta worth it?

AyaMai — Thu, 20 Feb 2025 04:36:30 GMT

A regular Costco shopper for grocerries and gas, including shopping at different groceries for specific items. Are Chase Triefecta worth the use for daily expenses when other credit cards and PayPal debit card give 5% cashback. SUB is not in the equation, would appreciate your thoughts based on your own daily experience whether you are single, couple and family.

Re: Is Chase Trifecta worth it?

Anonymous — Thu, 20 Feb 2025 05:17:17 GMT

IMO, the Chase Trifecta became a "thing" that has become overblown. Since the advent of the CSR, it's not even that well defined. And Ink cards can also be added to the mix.

So there is no need to go for it, any more than any other three cards, unless it makes sense for your spending and goals. In particular, its value is for those that transfer points to partners (and to a smaller extent, those with especially the CSR who purchase travel through the portal). That was, the CFU guarantees a minimum of 1.5 UR per $ spent, with the other cards offering opportunities for greater earning in certain categories. Then, if you can get at least 2cpp when you transfer, you have a minimum of 3%, and possibly much more.

For those into cash back, it's not a good use for three cards. If you have the flex (so you don't need the 3% categories on the CFU), the CFU is just a 1.5% card, which is bad by cashback standards.

Re: Is Chase Trifecta worth it?

xenon3030 — Thu, 20 Feb 2025 08:28:07 GMT

If you are a frequent traveler, and you have a good plan to justify the high AF of CSR, it might be worth.

Otherwise, for Costco, it might be better to stick to the typical cards in the market without AF or with a reasonable AF (there are several discussions at this forum for shopping at Costco).

Re: Is Chase Trifecta worth it?

Varsity_Lu — Thu, 20 Feb 2025 23:52:05 GMT

Explain to me what the Chase trifecta is again? I'm not in the Chaseisphere.

Re: Is Chase Trifecta worth it?

Anonymous — Fri, 21 Feb 2025 00:57:01 GMT

@Varsity_Lu wrote:
Explain to me what the Chase trifecta is again? I'm not in the Chaseisphere.

"Usually" it consists of

1) Chase Freedom (now probably the Chase Freedom Flex) which gives 5% on various rotating categories

2) Chase Freedom Unlimited which gives 1.5% on everything, and (like the flex) 3% on dining and drug stores

3) CSP or CSR, which add 2 or 3% on travel, but more importantly, allow points earned on all the cards to be transferred to travel partners (e.g. Hyatt reward program, or various airlines)

Re: Is Chase Trifecta worth it?

Varsity_Lu — Fri, 21 Feb 2025 01:31:13 GMT

@Anonymous

Sounds like a Discover paired with a Quicksilver with just a dash of Savor thrown in. But you can use the points on a Chase travel card. Is that about right?

Re: Is Chase Trifecta worth it?

salt_water_swimming — Fri, 21 Feb 2025 06:07:52 GMT

The key to any Chase setup is the points can be worth ~2cpp , so double all the rewards multipliers

Ink preferred + ink cash (x as many as you can get) + freedom unlimited is the real trifecta imo

Re: Is Chase Trifecta worth it?

ptatohed — Fri, 21 Feb 2025 07:22:39 GMT

My bi-fecta is the easy extra $100/yr citi CC + citi R+.

Re: Is Chase Trifecta worth it?

UncleB — Fri, 21 Feb 2025 07:46:16 GMT

@Varsity_Lu wrote:
@Anonymous

Sounds like a Discover paired with a Quicksilver with just a dash of Savor thrown in. But you can use the points on a Chase travel card. Is that about right?

I've never heard it put this way before... it made me laugh, LOL.

(Apologies that I can't contribute otherwise... I'm on team "cash back" so the so-called trifecta isn't for me.)

Re: Is Chase Trifecta worth it?

Anonymous — Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:52:50 GMT

@salt_water_swimming wrote:
The key to any Chase setup is the points can be worth ~2cpp , so double all the rewards multipliers

Ink preferred + ink cash (x as many as you can get) + freedom unlimited is the real trifecta imo

Yes, for those transferring. But there are many with a Chase Freedom (Flex) as first card, which works well as a plain 5% rotator for those cashback players

Re: Is Chase Trifecta worth it?

NoHardLimits — Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:46:46 GMT

In 2015, I built my first Chase Ultimate Rewards trifecta when I added an Ink Plus to my existing Sapphire Preferred and Freedom Visa. This eventually evolved into a short term quadfecta by adding the Sapphire Reserve, and then back to a trifecta by downgrading Ink Plus to Ink Cash and cancelling Sapphire Preferred. The SUBs and rewards categories matched up very nicely to my travel spending patterns at that time.

All was well until early 2020. By then, Chase realized that the CSR was not as profitable as they had anticipated and chose to raise the annual fee by $100. That minor change tipped the balance for me so that the Ultimate Rewards ecosystem was no longer a slam dunk situation for me. Five years later, I now only have a Freedom Flex and Freedom Unlimited which I solely use for cashback rewards. My travel rewards spending migrated to Capital One, then US Bank, and now mostly Wells Fargo. These reward program changes were largely influenced by my travel patterns changing from mostly business travel to totally leisure travel after retirement.

As others have said before, a Chase trifecta can be lucrative if you are looking for specific travel redemptions (transfer partners United and Hyatt spring to mind). However, there are many other trifecta-type options that might be more useful for people in other situations. For Costco, gas, and groceries, Freedom Flex would likely give you one 5% quarter (capped at $1500) per year for each of those categories.

Re: Is Chase Trifecta worth it?

red259 — Sat, 22 Feb 2025 04:36:14 GMT

I have a ton of chase cards (like 11 cards and those are only my Chase cards let alone all the other lenders- its kinda insane when I think about it). Pretty much every flavor of Ink and Freedom plus a CSP and a bunch of co-brands. Is it worth it? ::shrug:: I have had the CSP for years. In fact in the fall it will be over 48 months and I will be able to reapply for another SUB, so I may close the CSP and just keep the ink business preferred in the mean time. I hardly use the CSP since I have an amex gold and I put my dining spend on there. I'll use my freedom card for the 5x points on category spend and i'll use my ink card for 5x point category spend such as internet, phones, office supplies.

Frankly when I am not spending on a card for a SUB I'm much more likely to throw my spend on my amex gold for restaurant and grocery spend. I have a cap one venture X that gives me 2x on everything else as well as lounge access etc. In addition I have an amex business blue plus for non cat business spend which gives me 2x points which makes my freedom unlimited not very useful. I keep it to help with my age of accounts and credit util. If I was starting over would I focus on building a chase trifecta? Probably not. I like UR points but its not the end all be all for point earning. If they simply gave 2 points per dollar spent on the unlimited then I might be tempted to go all in with Chase. As it is this thread has me thinking about maybe doing some pruning of my cards.