Americans Aren’t Having Enough Fun, According to Chase Survey

Are you having enough fun? Chase Bank thinks you might not be.

The latest Chase Freedom Unlimited Card survey showed that even though 97% of respondents said having fun was important to their day-to-day lives, fully 58% of them also say their ability to have a fun and happy life is “limited.”

A little over half of folks (53%) said they were having “enough” fun, but more interestingly, 47% of them said they limit the amount of fun they have, purposely.

The Chase Freedom Unlimited Card, newly launched in March 2016, aims to help people earn more cash back so they can have more fun. “Our customers use their cards for the essentials in life, and enjoy their cash back for fun things,” said president of Chase branded cards Pam Codispoti. “Our new Freedom Unlimited card gives people 1.5% cash back on everything they buy.” Codispoti said folks could use their cash to splurge on back on small pick-me-up items like a fancy coffee, or save up for bigger fun things like a day at a spa.

Having fun is key to reducing stress, say the experts

Stanford University happiness expert Dr. Emma Seppälä consulted on the Chase study. She said that injecting small bits of fun into daily life reduces stress. “If we focus on boosting fun and happiness in our lives, even in little ways, research suggests we can end up more productive, charismatic, energetic, and innovative,” she said.

Dr. Seppälä wrote the book, The Happiness Track and gave a TEDx talk about her happiness research. “The Chase Freedom Unlimited Card survey results suggest that there are unlimited opportunities for fun in everyday moments, experiences, and things.”

Cash back cards let customers choose how they get rewards

Most cash back credit cards allow cardholders to control the way they receive their rewards. They can get them in the form of a statement credit, a check in the mail, or often a gift card. They can also donate the money to charity.

Rotating category rewards cards let people earn extra cash back in certain categories each quarter, usually up to 5% on $1500 of purchases, for a maximum of $75 cash back every three months. This gives and extra opportunity to use that cash back for fun purchases and little indulgences.

The Chase Freedom Unlimited survey was conducted in March 2016 and included responses from 1,000 adults living in the United States.