💳 Best basic card: the Chase Freedom

An excellent companion to the Sapphire Preferred; the Freedom card offers a lower bonus and fewer perks like rental car insurance but no annual fees. It's basically a stripped-down Sapphire card. Important note: it works together with the Sapphire card to allow you to transfer Chase Ultimate Rewards points to transfer partners like United, Hyatt, etc. In the interests of disclosure, I'll mention that I get a referral bonus if you apply here, so thanks!