Why we like this card: The Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card stands out for its generous sign-up bonus and robust points system that offers increased travel and dining spending rewards. It also comes with a variety of travel protections and other valuable benefits, making the modest annual fee more than worth it.
Pros
- Substantial sign-up bonus
- No foreign transaction fee
- Competitive rewards rate
Cons
- Annual fee ($95)
- No introductory APR
Chase Sapphire Preferred: Overview
APR:
- Intro: N/A
- Purchase: 21.49%–28.49% Variable
- Balance transfer: 21.49%–28.49% Variable, plus a fee of either $5 or 5% of the amount of each transfer, whichever is greater
- Cash advance: 29.99%, plus a fee of either $10 or 5% of the amount of each transaction, whichever is greater
- Penalty: Up to 29.99%
- Curious how credit card interest rates work? We've got you covered.
Annual fee: $95
Foreign transaction fee: 0%
Late payment fee: Up to $40
My Chase Plan fee: Monthly fee of 1.72% of the amount of each eligible purchase transaction or amount selected to create a My Chase Plan
The Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card is a valuable travel rewards credit card offering a range of features designed to benefit frequent travelers. Cardholders earn points on every purchase, with extra points awarded for dining and travel expenses ranging from airfare and hotels to tolls and parking. When you redeem points through the Chase Ultimate Rewards program, you’ll score a 25% boost in point value. You can also transfer points to several airline and hotel loyalty programs, often at a 1:1 ratio.
The Sapphire Preferred also comes with a not-to-be-ignored sign-up bonus of 60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. When redeemed through Chase Ultimate Rewards, this bonus is worth $750 toward travel.
Cardholders also enjoy benefits such as trip cancellation or interruption insurance, auto rental collision damage waiver, and baggage delay insurance, adding a layer of protection and peace of mind while traveling. Plus, cardmembers also get complimentary DashPass and Instacart+ subscriptions.
These features come with a moderate annual fee ($95), positioning the card as a solid mid-range option for travel rewards.
Chase Sapphire Preferred: Rewards
The Sapphire Preferred card comes with a robust rewards structure:
- 5x points on travel purchased through Chase Ultimate Rewards®, excluding hotel purchases that qualify for the $50 Annual Ultimate Rewards Hotel Credit
- 5x points on Lyft rides through March 31, 2025 (that's 3x points in addition to the 2x points you already earn on travel)
- 5x points on up to $5,000 in total purchases for Peloton equipment and accessory purchases over $150 (through March 31, 2025)
- 2x points on all other travel purchases
- 3x points on dining, including eligible delivery services and takeout
- 3x points on select streaming services and online grocery purchases (excluding Walmart, Target and wholesale clubs)
- 1x points per dollar spent on all other purchases
How to redeem Chase Sapphire Preferred rewards points
The best way to maximize your rewards points is by redeeming them for travel through the Chase Ultimate Rewards portal, which increases their value by 25%. However, you have plenty of other ways to redeem points.
Transfer points to travel partners
Chase’s travel partners include hotels and airlines, including British Airways, JetBlue, Southwest, Singapore Airlines, IHG, and Marriott. You can transfer your points to these loyalty programs at a 1:1 value ratio and use them to book travel.
Get a statement credit
Chase introduced its Pay Yourself Back program in 2020, allowing certain customers with Freedom, Sapphire, and Ink cards to get higher point redemption values for statement credits. You can use this feature on eligible purchases; in all other cases, you can redeem points for statement credits at a 1:1 ratio.
Pay with points
You can use your points to pay for part or all of your purchases directly with specific merchants through Chase’s Pay with Points feature, which requires enrollment. Once you do, you’ll see your available points displayed when checking out, and can then choose the number of points you want to use toward the purchase.
Remember that point values vary with this method and are generally lower than redemption values for statement credits or gift cards when shopping through Amazon and PayPal.
Buy experiences
Chase offers exclusive sporting events, concerts, and other VIP experiences to eligible cardholders that you can purchase with points. You can also redeem points for takeout, reservations, or exclusive culinary experiences.
Redeem for gift cards
Finally, you can redeem points for gift cards from more than 175 popular retailers and restaurants. Point values will vary depending on the particular gift card, but each point is generally worth one cent.
Additional benefits
In addition to earning rewards points on spending, the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card comes with the following perks and benefits:
- $50 annual hotel credit: When you use your card for hotel accommodation purchases made through the Ultimate Rewards program, you automatically receive a statement credit up to an annual maximum of $50.
- 10% anniversary points bonus: Each account anniversary year, you earn a bonus equal to 10% of your total spend in points from purchases made with your credit card during the previous year. Chase awards anniversary bonus points at a rate of one point for each $1 spent.
- Free DashPass membership: You and your authorized users get at least 12 months of complimentary DashPass membership. Cardholders can use this membership on both the DoorDash and Caviar apps during the same membership period. To enjoy this perk, you’ll need to activate this membership with your Chase Sapphire Preferred card by December 31, 2024.
- Free Instacart+ membership: You also get one complimentary 6-month Instacart+ membership per eligible card, which you’ll need to activate by July 31, 2024. Additionally, you can earn up to $15 per calendar quarter in statement credits on qualifying Instacart purchases through that same July 2024 date.
- My Chase Plan: You can choose to pay off eligible purchases of $100 or more in equal installment payments over time through My Chase Plan. Purchases don’t accrue interest once you place them in a plan, but a fixed monthly fee applies. Plan terms can range from 3-24 months.
- Trip cancellation/interruption insurance: Get reimbursed up to $10,000 per person and $20,000 per trip for prepaid, non-refundable travel expenses (including fares, tours, and hotels) if your trip is canceled or cut short by sickness, severe weather, or other covered situations.
- Auto rental collision damage waiver: Get primary rental coverage up to the actual cash value of a rental vehicle if it’s stolen or damaged in a collision. You must decline the rental company's collision insurance and charge the entire rental cost to your card. Coverage applies to most rental cars in the U.S. and abroad.
- Baggage delay insurance: If you have baggage delays of more than six hours, you can get reimbursed for essential purchases, such as toiletries and clothing, up to $100 a day for five days.
- Trip delay reimbursement: If your common carrier travel (not private jet travel) is delayed more than 12 hours or requires an overnight stay, you and your family are covered for unreimbursed expenses, such as meals and lodging, up to $500 per ticket.
- Travel and emergency assistance services: If you encounter problems while traveling, you can contact a benefit administrator for legal and medical referrals or other assistance.
- Purchase protection: New purchases are covered for 120 days against damage or theft up to $500 per claim and $50,000 per account.
- Extended warranty protection: This protection extends the U.S. manufacturer's warranty period by an additional year on eligible warranties of three years or less.
Is the Chase Sapphire Preferred right for you?
Ultimately, the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card may be right for you if you are a frequent traveler who also spends a substantial amount on dining and doesn’t mind paying a moderate annual fee in exchange for valuable extra perks and protections.
Travel rewards credit cards similar to Chase Sapphire Preferred
If you’re looking for a solid travel rewards credit card, the Chase Sapphire Preferred isn’t your only option. Here are some other popular travel cards you may want to consider.
Chase Sapphire Reserve vs. Chase Sapphire Preferred
The Chase Sapphire Reserve® is a premium version of the Sapphire card, with a steep annual fee of $550. However, it justifies this cost with a host of premium benefits, including a $300 annual travel credit as reimbursement for travel purchases charged to your card each account anniversary year, effectively reducing the annual fee to $250 for frequent travelers. Cardholders also earn a whopping 10x total points on hotels and car rentals when you purchase travel through Chase Ultimate Rewards®. Points are also worth 50% more when redeemed through the Chase travel portal versus 25% higher with the Preferred card.
The Reserve also offers complimentary access to over 1,000 airport lounges worldwide through Priority Pass Select, a Global Entry or TSA Precheck fee credit, and higher travel protection levels than the Preferred. The upshot? The Reserve card is more for frequent travelers who can leverage the premium perks to offset the higher annual fee.
American Express Platinum vs. Chase Sapphire Preferred
The Platinum Card® from American Express is another premium travel rewards credit card with a much higher annual fee than the Sapphire Preferred. In addition to a massive welcome bonus of 125,000 points, the Platinum card grants 5x Membership Rewards® Points for flights booked directly with airlines or with American Express Travel (up to $500,000 on these purchases per calendar year).
Among the standout features of the Platinum card are the $200 airline fee credit, $200 in Uber cash, access to various airport lounges globally (including Centurion lounges), and a fee credit for Global Entry or TSA Precheck. If you travel extensively and take full advantage of the premium perks, the card promises value and luxury far exceeding its hefty annual fee.
To view rates and fees of The Platinum Card® from American Express, see this page.
Frequently asked questions
Is Chase Sapphire Preferred a luxury card?
The Chase Sapphire Preferred is considered a mid-range travel rewards credit card. It doesn’t offer the same level of perks and value as its luxury counterpart, the Sapphire Reserve.
Is it worth getting the Chase Sapphire Preferred?
The Chase Sapphire Preferred can be a good choice for casual but frequent travelers who want to earn higher rewards on their travel purchases and enjoy some extra perks and protections that fee-free cards don’t typically offer.
Is the Chase Sapphire Preferred card hard to get?
The Chase Sapphire Preferred card is generally available to applicants with good to excellent credit. That means you will likely need a credit score of around 670 or higher to get approved and receive the lowest interest rate available.
Please note that card details are accurate as of the publish date but are subject to change at any time at the issuer’s discretion. Before applying, please contact the card issuer to verify rates, fees, and benefits.
Terms apply to American Express benefits and offers. Enrollment may be required for select American Express benefits and offers. Visit americanexpress.com to learn more.
