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The Chase Freedom Flex will have no foreign transaction fees starting September 20, 2026. That's the good news. The bad news is that the credit card will eliminate its Cell Phone Protection benefit on 9/20/26.
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We have mixed feelings about this. On the one hand, it's great for those without a premium travel credit card to enjoy no foreign transaction fees while earning 3X points per dollar on restaurants for international travel. 3X is the same category bonus that the Chase Sapphire Reserve earns, which comes with a $795 annual fee, while the Chase Freedom Flex is a no annual fee card.
On the other hand, we just got our college-age teen a Chase Freedom Flex, in part because of the Cell Phone Protection benefit, so it's disappointing to see that taken away.
The Chase Freedom 5X categories have also been disappointing recently. The current Q3 2026 categories are Gas Stations, Public Transit, EV Charging, and Select Live Entertainment, which we'll barely use, since we charge our EV at home. We really missed not having the 5X grocery store bonus, which should have been a Q1 2026 bonus category but wasn't; this was only partly made up for with the Chase Freedom 5X for Whole Foods and Amazon in Q2 2026.
View the complete Chase Freedom Flex travel and purchase protection benefits pdf.
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