Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card has earned its place as a top travel rewards card over the past decade as consumers increasingly prioritize credit card points and miles to subsidize vacations. Allowing cardholders to accrue points on everyday purchases redeemable on flights, hotels, and trip expenses, Sapphire Preferred® stands out for its flexible rewards structure, enabling members to maximize value from bonus category spending and transfers to partners.
Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card rewards structure concentrates bonuses on travel and dining categories where consumer spending is significant. New members earn 80,000 points worth $750 after minimum spend. Ongoing 2x bonuses tally up; points gain 25% value when used on Chase’s travel portal. Between robust redemption powers, a $95 annual fee effectively offset by credits and protections, plus a hefty sign-up bonus, Sapphire Preferred® gives savvy travelers formidable tools for reaping travel rewards from natural spending patterns.
Earning Points with the Sapphire Preferred
The Chase Sapphire Preferred allows cardholders to earn accelerated points on common purchase categories, specifically dining and travel spending. With a 2x points earning rate applying to these categories, frequent travelers and foodies can really rack up points over time through their normal expenditures.
Broad Bonus Categories
The Chase Sapphire Preferred offers 2x points on all dining purchases. This encompasses restaurants, cafes, bars, bakeries, food trucks, delivery services like Seamless, and even grocery stores. As long as the merchant codes as a dining establishment, you’ll earn double points. This makes the Sapphire Preferred tremendously valuable for those who dine out frequently for meals on the road or local bites near home. Over the span of a year, these charges add up. Based on the average American household’s annual restaurant spend of $3,365, you would earn 6,730 points worth $84 in statement credits when redeemed through the Chase Travel Portal.
You’ll also accrue 2x points per dollar on a wide spectrum of travel purchases, including mass transit, tolls, parking garages, trains, taxis, ride shares, buses, airfare, hotels, car rentals, cruises, travel agencies, campgrounds, tourism experiences, and more. Commuter transportation like subway passes qualifies, making this an excellent card for daily travelers. Again, the average household spends around $2,000 annually on such transport, which is equivalent to 4,000 Sapphire points valued at $50 when redeemed for travel, between dining and travel bonuses, that tallies nearly 12,000 points or $150 yearly for popular expenses.
Definition of what counts as “dining” and “travel.”
One tip for maximizing the Sapphire Preferred’s bonus categories is utilizing Chase’s travel and dining merchants lists available online to identify qualifying purchases. For example, bakeries often code as grocery stores instead of dining locations. By checking merchants first, you can pinpoint establishments that will earn 2x. Meanwhile, it’s good to know when transit agencies, hotels, parking apps, event ticket agents, and other travel-related merchants code correctly to capture those double points, too. Search “Chase dining merchants” and “Chase travel merchants” for the latest official results.
What is the current sign-up bonus for the Chase Sapphire Preferred?
The current sign-up bonus for new Chase Sapphire Preferred cardholders is 60,000 points after spending $4,000 on purchases within the first 3 months of account opening. At a redemption value of 1.25 cents per point in the Chase travel portal, those 60,000 points are worth $750 towards flights, hotels, rental cars, and more.
Redeeming Rewards Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
One of the most compelling components of the Sapphire Preferred card is the redemption side. With Chase Ultimate Rewards points earned from card spending, you have two stellar options – transfer points to a wide array of travel partners or cash them in for bookings via the Chase travel portal, where points get a 25% bump. Both routes provide huge value.
Extensive Transfer Partners
By linking the Chase Sapphire Preferred to your Chase account, earned points can move to any of 16 airline and hotel loyalty programs on an equal 1:1 basis. Virtually every major global brand participates, including United Airlines MileagePlus, Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards, British Airways Executive Club, Air France/KLM Flying Blue, Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer, Hyatt World of Hyatt, Marriott Bonvoy, and IHG Rewards. This flexibility opens the door to aspirational award travel, especially lucrative business and first-class seats that are unattainable through cash bookings.
Chase points transfers are instant, with no fees or delays in moving them to your desired mileage or hotel account. This facilitates booking award tickets fast before award space disappears. Transferring also locks in high redemption values not always possible through the travel portal.
Top Transfer Partners and Sweet Spots
The ideal transfer partner depends on your travel plans and redemption goals, but these three options consistently offer premium value worth exploring:
- World of Hyatt – Points transfer to Hyatt’s program at 1.7 cents+ per point in outsized value. Book multi-night stays at top-tier luxury resorts around the globe.
- British Airways Avios – Useful for short-haul economy flights on American Airlines and Alaska Airlines partners due to distance-based award charts. Also, score London layovers.
- Singapore KrisFlyer – Great for premium cabin Star Alliance award tickets on Singapore Airlines’ extensive global route network.
At times, you’ll nab airline tickets or hotel rooms worth multiples more than the cash rates by transferring to partners cleverly.
Travel Portal Redemption
Alternatively, points can be redeemed for travel purchases via the Chase travel portal, essentially functioning as cash credits to book whatever flights, hotels, cars, or activities you want. This method doesn’t require any partner transfers. When using Sapphire Preferred points this way, you’ll score an automatic 25% point value boost equaling 1.25 cents each towards travel. 60,000 points would net $750 in statement credits.
Simple Way to Redeem
The Chase portal is highly user-friendly and quick for reservations. Just link your Chase Sapphire Preferred card, log in to Ultimate Rewards, and click through to the portal, then book travel as normal with points applied as credits. If you don’t want to fool with transfers and award availability hurdles, it’s the most straightforward choice.
Pros and Cons
There are merits to each approach depending on travel plans and time/flexibility factors. Transferring to partners takes more effort but can secure luxury experiences out of reach otherwise. The portal is easy for average trips. Mix both strategies based on each redemption scenario to optimize overall rewards.
Sapphire Perks and Protections: Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
The Chase Sapphire Preferred aims to create a worry-free travel experience by packing many comforting benefits and protections. These services add peace of mind while traveling while offsetting the annual fee.
Quality Travel Coverage
An underrated aspect of the Sapphire Preferred Card is the embedded travel insurance it provides when trips are purchased through the card, including:
- Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver – Decline expensive rental company insurance and charge the entire rental to your card for coverage against theft and collision damage. Saves money upfront.
- Trip Cancellation/Interruption Insurance – Get refunded for non-refundable passenger fares if your trip is interrupted or canceled for a covered reason, up to $10,000 per qualifying person. Crucial backup.
- Baggage Delay Insurance – Reimbursed for essential purchases like toiletries and clothing if bags are delayed 6+ hours, up to $100 daily for 5 days.
With no foreign transaction fee, the Sapphire Preferred makes an exceptional travel companion abroad, as your payments won’t incur markup charges.
Luxury Cardholder Benefits
Chase furnishes Sapphire Preferred members with elite status perks via complimentary Lyft Pink membership status for rideshares. That unlocks valuable discounts and upgrades.
Additionally, cardholders gain access to the Chase Luxury Hotel & Resort Collection. When booking participatory hotels, you’ll score an exclusive $100 experience credit for on-site amenities, premium internet, breakfast for two, and a guaranteed 4 PM late checkout, among other pampering perks. Rates are competitive, too. Between the two programs, everyday spending can elevate travel.
What are the top bonus categories to earn accelerated points?
The Chase Sapphire Preferred offers 2x points per $1 spent on all travel and dining purchases. That includes rides, flights, hotels, transit costs, restaurants, delivery services, bars and more. Maximizing expenditures in these popular categories allows you to rapidly rack up valuable rewards.
Annual Fee Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
The Sapphire Preferred card does charge a $95 annual fee, which is mid-range compared to other travel rewards cards. Determine whether the fee seems reasonable based on expected perks/protections utilization and points earning capability.
$95 Annual Fee
Compare the outright cost of the fee versus your total estimated redemption value from the new member bonus and ongoing accelerated point earnings. For example, the 60,000 point sign-up bonus totals $750 in travel redemptions. Hitting the $4,000 minimum spend isn’t unrealistic for most households annually. Factor bonus category potential, too – based on 2% cash back equivalency, you’d need to spend $4,750 annually on dining and travel to recoup the $95 fee.
How To Determine Worthwhileness
The value determination depends wholly on your spending patterns and engagement level. Infrequent travelers won’t maximize benefits as much as road warriors. Make projections based on your monthly dining and travel budgets, plus any one-time large expenditures falling into bonus categories. Crunch the numbers – where do your points earnings minus the fee leave you in redemption capability?
Justifying the Annual Fee
New Sapphire Preferred cardmembers can also earn 7,500-anniversary points each cardmember year when spending $5,000 – that’s worth $94. Additionally, you may utilize up to $60 in annual statement credits for qualifying purchases. When factoring in sign-up bonuses, potential category earnings, and credits, the fee effectively pays for itself several times over.
Calculations on Earning Rates
Don’t forget the redemption side, too – points transferred to Hyatt, Singapore Airlines, and other partners return over 1.25 cents in hotel and flight value. If your bonus travel and dining expenses exceed $7,600 annually, 30,000+ points will secure $400+ in partner redemptions, covering the fee fourfold. Crunch your spending estimates across earnings and redemptions to quantify value beyond the cost.
What is the annual fee and how do you justify it?
There is a $95 annual fee. But between the 60,000 point sign-up bonus worth $750 and category bonuses which effectively offset the fee, plus $60 in annual statement credits, you come out well ahead. Ongoing 2x earning rates in travel and dining return over $95 in redemption value as well based on average yearly expenditures.
Alternatives to the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
The Sapphire Preferred occupies an intriguing space in the premium travel credit card segment. Chase complements it with the more lucrative Sapphire Reserve, while Capital One challenges the Sapphire Preferred with the new Venture X. How do these three heavyweights compare?
Chase Sapphire Reserve
Like the Preferred, the Reserve earns accelerated Ultimate Rewards points on travel and dining, but at a higher 3x rate with a $550 annual fee. However, cardholders receive a $300 annual statement credit towards travel purchases, reducing the effective annual cost to $250. Both Reserve & Venture X cards unlock valuable Priority Pass lounge access.
Direct Comparison
The main differences come down to the earning rates, annual credits, and ancillary perks like lounge membership. If your annual travel and dining spending exceeds $12,000, the extra point per dollar with the Reserve pays off over the Preferred. And the $300 travel credit plus lounge access further offset the $250 effective annual fee difference.
Capital One Venture X
As a new product, Venture X makes a splash with up to 10x miles on Capital One Travel hotel and car bookings and 5x miles on flights. Transferred miles can score outsized value, with new cardholders activating a 100,000-mile bonus worth $1,400+ towards travel.
Standout Benefits
Unlike the Sapphire Preferred, Venture X furnishes cardholders with both a Global Entry/TSA PreCheck application fee credit and access to Capital One’s network of airport lounges. The $395 annual fee is also offset by a $300 annual travel credit redemption.
Which Card Is Best?
There’s no universal “best” card between the Sapphire Preferred, Sapphire Reserve, and Venture X. The decision depends mainly on your annual travel and dining expenses and whether you’d maximize the extra point bonuses and credits on the Reserve or specialized Venture X perks. Crunch the numbers thoroughly.
Summary Conclusion: Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
In closing, the Chase Sapphire Preferred stands distinctly as one of Chase’s most well-rounded travel rewards credit cards. For frequent travelers who dine out regularly, the 2x accelerated points on a broad spectrum of dining and travel purchases deliver tremendous value. These points hold formidable redemption power, scoring 25% more value towards cash-equivalent travel credits when redeemed through Chase or transferred to loyalty programs.
Perks like rental coverage, trip delay insurance, and luxury hotel benefits further complement the rewards. Compared to alternatives like the Sapphire Reserve or Venture X, the Sapphire Preferred strikes an optimal balance between annual fees and benefits for tourists, road warriors, and foodies chasing points toward free travel.
If you were intrigued by this breakdown of the Chase Sapphire Preferred’s flexible 2x bonus categories, exceptional protections, handy redemption processes, and reasonable $95 annual fee, the next step is to apply online for the card. Be sure to grab the ample 60,000 points new member bonus that effectively offsets the annual fee for years while accelerating rewards earnings towards your next memorable vacation.
How can I redeem my earned Chase points for maximum value?
For high redemptions, transfer points 1:1 to Choice Airlines and hotel partners like United, Hyatt, and Southwest. Transfers return over 1.25 cents per point in value frequently. You also get 1.25 cents in value when booking travel in the Chase portal.
