Chase Sapphire Preferred Credit Card Review 2025: Low-Cost, High-Value Travel Rewards

• Is the Chase Sapphire Preferred Worth It?
• Complementary Cards for the Chase Sapphire Preferred
• Chase Sapphire Preferred Quick Facts
• Chase Sapphire Preferred Rewards
• How To Maximize Chase Sapphire Preferred Rewards
• Chase Sapphire Preferred Benefits
• Chase Sapphire Preferred Fine Print
• Our Experiences With the Chase Sapphire Preferred
• How the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card Stacks Up
• Is the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card for You?
• Methodology
• Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Chances are you already know someone with a Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card. It’s one of the best credit cards in the world of travel rewards because it offers top-notch value at a modest $95 annual fee that’s more than worth it.

Right off the bat, you can earn 5 points per dollar on travel purchased through Chase Travel℠, 3 points per dollar on dining, select streaming services, and online grocery purchases (excluding Walmart, Target and wholesale clubs), 2 points per dollar on all other travel purchases and 1 point per dollar on other purchases. With emphasis on travel and dining, cardholders will find a reason to prioritize pulling out this card for purchases they’re making anyway. At the end of the year, your rewards grow even more. A points bonus equal to 10% of your total annual purchase amount is added to your balance after your account anniversary.

While the rewards make using the card a daily habit, the plush extras keep people renewing their card year after year. A $50 annual credit toward eligible hotel stays booked through Chase Travel℠ is practically instant savings for frequent travelers, and the travel protections, while not the most luxurious add-ons, can save you quite a bit compared to buying separately purchased policies.

Redeeming your rewards is the most satisfying part of having this card. The Sapphire Preferred sits within the Ultimate Rewards ecosystem and allows you to transfer your points to more than a dozen travel partners, including fan favorites like World of Hyatt and United Airlines. When that sounds like more trouble than it’s worth, cardholders can also use rewards to book trips through Chase Travel℠ at a 25% increase in value or select from several forms of nontravel redemptions, including good, old-fashioned cash back.

The card is a strong option entirely on its own, but for those inclined, it flies even higher when paired with other Ultimate Rewards cards. That’s because points can be pooled into a single account. For example, combine this card with the Chase Freedom Flex® to earn elevated rewards on different bonus categories and grow your balance faster, or pair it with the Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card so your business can earn rewards toward the same goals.

Pairing the Chase Sapphire Preferred with another Ultimate Rewards-earning card makes it one of the top credit card combinations since it allows you to combine points and maximize redemptions for their best usage. Each of these cards offers higher earnings in categories that complement the Sapphire Preferred, and all but one (the Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card) need to be paired with a card like the Sapphire Preferred to add the ability to transfer points to travel partners. Cards that pair well with the Sapphire Preferred include:

Complementary Card	Why It Pairs Well With Sapphire Preferred
Chase Freedom Flex®	Earn 5% cash back on up to $1,500 in combined purchases in categories that rotate quarterly (requires activation), 5% cash back on travel purchased through Chase Travel℠, 3% cash back on dining and drugstores and 1% cash back on all other purchases.
Chase Freedom Unlimited®	Earn 5% cash back on travel purchased through Chase Travel℠, 3% cash back on eligible dining and drugstores and 1.5% on all other purchases.
Ink Business Cash® Credit Card	Earn 5% cash back on the first $25,000 spent in combined purchases at office supply stores and on internet, cable and phone services each account anniversary year and 2% cash back on the first $25,000 spent in combined purchases at gas stations and restaurants each account anniversary year. Earn 1% cash back on all other purchases.
Ink Business Unlimited® Credit Card	Earn unlimited 1.5% cash back rewards on every business purchase and an intro APR offer.
Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card	Earn bonus points in rotating business categories like shipping, internet, cable, phone and advertising services.

See More See Less

• 10% anniversary points bonus
• Annual $50 credit on hotel stays booked through Chase Travel℠
• Rewards can be redeemed for travel at a 25% increase in value booked through Chase Travel
• 1:1 point transfer to select airline and hotel travel partners
• Redeem points toward cash back or gift cards at 1 cent each
• No foreign transaction fees
• No introductory APR offers

Earning Rewards

The Chase Sapphire Preferred earns 5 points per dollar on travel purchased through Chase Travel℠, 3 points per dollar on dining, select streaming services, and online grocery purchases (excluding Walmart, Target and wholesale clubs), 2 points per dollar on all other travel purchases and 1 point per dollar on other purchases. You’ll find that these earnings are particularly generous when accounting for broad definitions of dining and travel. Dining can include restaurants, fast food, coffee shops and takeout. Similarly, travel spans a wide range, including but not limited to airlines, hotels, car rentals, cruises, campgrounds and even parking lots and toll roads.

There are two other fantastic ways to earn rewards with the Sapphire Preferred. First, you’ll earn a strong one-time bonus as a new cardholder: 100,000 bonus points after spending $5,000 on purchases in the first three months from account opening. Each year thereafter, you’ll earn a 10% bonus after your anniversary based on how much you spent in the previous year. If you spent $25,000, you’d earn 2,500 bonus points.

Redeeming Rewards

All Sapphire Preferred rewards are Chase Ultimate Rewards points, a form of flexible points that can be redeemed in the following ways:

• Transfer to travel partners. Transfer Ultimate Rewards points at a 1:1 rate to over a dozen partner airlines and hotels.
• Chase Travel. Book trips through your card travel portal with a 25% bonus—that’s an effective value of 1.25 cents per point.
• Statement credit. Redeem points as cash back as a statement credit at 1 cent per point.
• Pay Yourself Back. Redeem points to cover all or part of qualifying prior charges. Some purchase types may be eligible for a 25% bonus, though most are worth 1 cent per point.
• Gift cards. Apply points toward gift card purchases. Some merchants may be available on promotion for a higher yield per point.
• Pay with points. Redeem points directly to pay for online purchases at merchant partners, like Amazon, for a value of 0.8 cents per point.

Rewards Potential

The following table represents an example of how many Ultimate Rewards points you could earn with the Sapphire Preferred over a single calendar year.

We used estimated spending amounts based on data from multiple government agencies to calculate the card’s rewards potential. Our research showed that a household earning in the 70th percentile brings in $127,200 and charges $40,398 to credit cards.

Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card Rewards Potential

Category	Earning Rate	Estimated Annual Spend	Estimated Annual Earnings
Travel Purchased Through Chase Travel	5X	$3,768	18,840
Dining	3X	$4,995	14,985
Online Grocery Store Purchases	3X	$1,537	4,611
Select Streaming Services	3X	$685	2,055
All Other Travel Purchases	2X	$4,973	9,946
All Other Purchases	1X	$24,440	24,440
10% Anniversary Bonus			4,040
			Total: 78,917 Chase Ultimate Rewards Points

See More See Less

Read more. How To Find the Best Chase Sapphire Preferred Bonus Offer

As a travel credit card, the best way to maximize your Chase Sapphire Preferred rewards is to redeem them for travel. There are two ways to do this, both leading to a higher value per point than using your points for cash back or other redemptions.

The most straightforward way to redeem your points for travel is by making trip reservations—including flights, hotels, rental cars, cruises, tours and activities—through Chase Travel. When checking out, you can apply your points to pay for the reservation. You’ll receive a 25% increase in value when doing so, meaning that each point will reduce the cost of your trip by 1.25 cents (compared to 1 cent each as a statement credit).

You might get even more than 1.25 cents each by making a 1:1 points transfer. This means you’re transferring (or converting) your Ultimate Rewards points to a designated airline or hotel. You’ll then be able to redeem points directly with the hotel or airline for your preferred reward. Though each redemption will vary in value, getting a value of two cents per point or even higher is not unusual.

Chase Transfer Partners

The Chase Sapphire Preferred permits cardholders to transfer points 1:1 to many loyalty program partners, including popular airline and hotel programs. These include:

Airline Partners

• Aer Lingus AerClub (1:1)
• Air Canada Aeroplan (1:1)
• Air France-KLM Flying Blue (1:1)
• British Airways Executive Club (1:1)
• Emirates Skywards (1:1)
• Iberia Plus (1:1)
• JetBlue TrueBlue (1:1)
• Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer (1:1)
• Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards (1:1)
• United MileagePlus (1:1)
• Virgin Atlantic Flying Club (1:1)

Hotel Partners

• IHG One Rewards (1:1)
• Marriott Bonvoy (1:1)
• World of Hyatt (1:1)

The robust package of Chase Sapphire Preferred benefits helps it snag a position as one of the top credit cards for travel.

Chase Sapphire Preferred Shopping Protections

• Purchase protection. Covers your new purchases for 120 days against damage or theft up to $500 per claim and $50,000 per account.
• Extended warranty protection. Extends the U.S. manufacturer’s warranty period by an additional year on eligible warranties of three years or less.

Chase Sapphire Preferred Travel Benefits

In addition to the purchase protections mentioned above, the Chase Sapphire has other travel advantages:

• Hotel credit. Each account anniversary year, you will receive a $50 hotel stay statement credit toward stays booked through Chase Travel.
• Trip cancellation and interruption insurance. If your trip is canceled or cut short by a covered situation, you can be reimbursed up to $10,000 per person and $20,000 per trip for eligible prepaid, nonrefundable travel expenses.
• Baggage delay insurance. This coverage reimburses up to $100 per day for five days toward essential purchases like toiletries and clothing if your baggage is delayed by six hours or more.
• Trip delay reimbursement. If your common carrier travel is delayed more than 12 hours or requires an overnight stay, you and your family are covered for qualifying expenses, such as meals and lodging, up to $500 per ticket.
• Auto rental coverage. The card includes primary coverage to provide reimbursement for theft and collision damage for most rental cars. Simply decline the car rental company’s collision insurance policy and use your card to pay for the entire rental.

Chase Sapphire Preferred Partner Benefits

• DashPass subscription. Receive a complimentary DoorDash DashPass subscription for at least one year when activated by December 31, 2027.
• Lyft earnings. Through March 31, 2025, cardholders earn 5 points per dollar on Lyft rides.

Interest Rates

• Regular APR: 19.99% - 28.24% Variable.
• Purchase intro APR: N/A.
• Balance transfer intro APR: N/A.

Chase Sapphire Preferred Fees

• Annual fee: $95.
• Balance transfer fee: Either $5 or 5% of the amount of each transfer, whichever is greater.
• Foreign purchase transaction fee: $0.
• Authorized user fee: None.
• Cash advance fee: Either $10 or 5% of the amount of each transaction, whichever is greater.

I applied for my Chase Sapphire Preferred card in 2013 and am still a satisfied cardholder today. Initially, it was a great card for travel rewards without the commitment of a premium annual fee. Today, even though I’ve mastered the art of travel rewards, I still consider it one of my favorite cards. Here are a few reasons it’s still a fit for my needs.

Increased Earnings With Category Spending Bonuses

The majority of my transactions on the Sapphire Preferred are dining expenses, which earn 3X points per dollar spent. That’s a solid return, especially when you factor in that I get a 10% bonus at the end of my membership year.

I also regularly use my Sapphire Preferred for airfare purchases for 2X points per dollar. Paying with your card is the first step to qualify for trip insurance if needed, so it’s a good way to give myself an extra layer of protection at no extra cost.

Peace of Mind With Travel Insurance and Benefits

I occasionally buy specific travel insurance policies for expensive, bucket-list trips, but for more ordinary travels—think flying in for a family wedding or a weekend jaunt in a favorite city—I rely solely on the protections included by my Sapphire Preferred. Over the years, I’ve had to file two trip delay claims and one baggage delay claim, each of which reimbursed me significant sums.

I also use the primary auto rental coverage when renting a car. Thankfully, I’ve never had to make a claim, but simply waiving the optional coverage offered by the rental agency has saved me hundreds of dollars in premiums.

Transfers to Partner Airlines

Every single point I’ve ever redeemed with my Sapphire Preferred has been as a 1:1 transfer from Ultimate Rewards to a partner airline. That’s where I find the best value for my Ultimate Rewards. Transfers are often instant, allowing me to confirm a flight is available when I need it before initiating the transfer.

I’ve made transfers to various airlines for quite an assortment of trip styles, ranging from economy flights to Jackson, Wyoming (an expensive airport to fly into) to business-class flights to Chile. I aim to get a minimum of two cents per point when doing so, but business-class redemptions can often be far above that threshold. Occasionally, you can extend your point value even more with monthly transfer bonuses.

Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card vs. Chase Sapphire Reserve®

The Chase Sapphire Reserve® is the higher-end version of the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card. It carries an annual fee of $550, putting it into an entirely different league of travel rewards cards despite several similarities. Both cards earn Ultimate Rewards points at surprisingly similar rates.

The most notable difference between the two cards is the benefits offered by the more expensive Reserve. It comes with a flexible $300 annual travel credit, Priority Pass Select airport lounge access and a TSA PreCheck® or Global Entry application fee credit. You can also redeem points for 50% more value when booking travel through Chase, rather than the 25% boost offered by the Sapphire Preferred.

Get more insight into the similarities and differences in our in-depth overview of the Chase Sapphire Preferred vs. Reserve.

Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card vs. Citi Strata Premier℠ Card

You’ll earn at elevated rates in more spending categories with the Citi Strata Premier℠ Card, another travel rewards card with a $95 annual fee. With the Strata Premier, you can earn 10 points per dollar spent on hotels, car rentals and attractions booked on CitiTravel.com, 3 points per dollar on restaurants, supermarkets, gas & EV stations, air travel and other hotel purchases and 1 point per dollar on all other purchases.

This card offers several trip protections and a hotel discount once per calendar year, giving it a similar package of benefits. The Citi Strata Premier℠ Card’s hotel discount is worth $100 off a purchase of $500 or more (before taxes and fees) when making reservations through CitiTravel.com, so you’ll get a higher discount but with more restrictions. Both cards offer flexible, transferable points at similar ratios but with a different set of partners. If a specific airline or hotel is crucial for you to have access to, you’ll want to peruse each card’s specific list of partners.

Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card vs. Wells Fargo Autograph® Card

If you’re looking for flexible travel rewards with no annual fee, you might want to consider the Wells Fargo Autograph® Card (rates & fees) instead. It earns points at relatively similar rates: 3 points per dollar at restaurants, travel, gas stations, transit, popular streaming services and phone plans, 1 point per dollar on other purchases. Its welcome offer is much smaller than that of the Sapphire Preferred. However, it does have an introductory APR of 0% introductory APR on purchases for 12 months from account opening. A variable APR of 19.24%, 24.24%, or 29.24% applies for purchases after the intro period ends and for balance transfers. The card has a balance transfer fee of up to 5%, minimum $5.

One major disadvantage of this card is that you don’t receive many significant benefits or travel protections. However, you do maintain access to transferable rewards with Wells Fargo’s limited travel partners, and there are no foreign transaction fees. Anyone looking for a basic card at a basic price may find these tradeoffs worthwhile.

The only real benefit the Autograph card has that is missing from the Sapphire Preferred is cellphone protection. Cardholders get up to $600 reimbursed, less a $25 deductible, for theft or damage to their phone.

The Sapphire Preferred won’t be for everyone since it can’t compete with the ultra-luxurious travel cards with higher annual fees. If you’re looking for swanky, high-end perks, consider a different card and be prepared to pay the price. But the Sapphire Preferred is hard to beat if you’re looking for a reliable card with versatile rewards and supplementary benefits.

Forbes Advisor considers a variety of criteria when assigning credit cards a rating. Cards like the Chase Sapphire Preferred are graded compared to other flexible rewards-earning cards. Some of the factors considered include:

• Annual fee
• Welcome bonus offers
• Ongoing earning rates
• Value of individual points or miles
• Included travel or merchant credits
• Additional cardholder benefits

Card features we expect cardholders to use the most often are weighted more heavily in our ratings. For example, the Sapphire Preferred is positioned as a travel card, and therefore we anticipate cardholders will regularly take advantage of its travel perks and protections. Altogether, the factors come together to provide a star rating for each individual card. A strong package of rewards and benefits, along with a low annual fee, give the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card a high rating.

To learn more about our rating and review methodology and editorial process, check out our guide on how Forbes Advisor rates credit cards.