Chase Sapphire Preferred credit card review 2024
Updated 8:49 AM EDT, Thu July 11, 2024
The CNN Underscored Money editorial team has developed a star rating so you can see the best card for specific categories. While we believe this card excels in this category, its overall star rating may differ.
CNNU Money awarded this card 4.2 stars as the best travel card for beginners.
Pros:
- Earn 5 total points per dollar on travel purchased through Chase Travel?, and 2 points per dollar on other travel
- Earn 3 points for every dollar spent on dining, select streaming services and select online grocery purchases
- Points can be redeemed for travel through the Chase Travel portal at a rate of 1.25 cents per point (so the welcome bonus is worth over $750 through Chase Travel)
- Points can be transferred to any of Chase’s over a dozen airline and hotel partners
- Earn a 10% point bonus on all purchases each year on your account anniversary (so if you spent $10,000, you’ll get 1,000 bonus points)
- $50 annual credit on hotel stays purchased through Chase Travel
- Strong travel and purchase protections
Cons:
- $95 annual fee isn’t waived for the first year
- No introductory 0% annual percentage rate (APR) on purchases or balance transfers
- No Global Entry, TSA PreCheck or NEXUS fee credit
Current welcome bonus: Earn 60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first three months from account opening.
Best for: People with larger than average travel, dining and/or other bonus category expenses who want basic transferable travel points.
Digging into the Chase Sapphire Preferred card
If you’ve done any research on credit cards, then the Sapphire Preferred may sound familiar. At close to 15 years old, it’s practically the granddaddy of travel rewards credit cards.
The Sapphire Preferred offers 2 points per dollar on travel or, for travel purchased through Chase Travel, you’ll earn 5 total points per dollar spent. You’ll also earn 3 points per dollar on dining, select streaming services, and online grocery purchases (not including Walmart, Target or wholesale club orders). Everything else earns 1 point per dollar. Plus, you’ll receive a $50 annual credit on hotel stays purchased through Chase Travel.
You’ll also get discounts on DoorDash food delivery orders with a DashPass membership that’s valid for at least 12 months as long as you activate it by Dec. 31, 2024 and if you use Lyft, you’ll earn 5 points per dollar on Lyft rides (through March 2025).
You’ll get all this for a reasonable $95 annual fee.
The Chase points you earn with this card are among the most valuable credit card points around. The Sapphire Preferred also offers solid purchase and travel protections.
But is that enough for the card to justify a spot in your wallet? The credit card market has evolved immensely since the Sapphire Preferred was first introduced. Other cards now offer bonus points or cash back in those same categories — in some cases at higher rates — as well as other notable benefits like annual travel credits and airport lounge access.
The key difference, however, is that those other cards are typically accompanied by higher annual fees. So if you aren’t ready to shell out a lot of money for an expensive credit card, the Sapphire Preferred is an excellent starting point.
Advantages of the Chase Sapphire Preferred card
Strong welcome bonus
The Sapphire Preferred offers new card holders 60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first three months from account opening. With this generous offer, you can get off on the right foot for your next vacation.
This is the same number of points that you’ll earn with the welcome offer for the more luxurious Chase Sapphire Reserve?, which has the same spending requirement.
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Earn 60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening.
Credit Score ranges are based on FICO? credit scoring. This is just one scoring method and a credit card issuer may use another method when considering your application. These are provided as guidelines only and approval is not guaranteed.
Points earned with the Sapphire Preferred card can be redeemed for travel through the Chase Travel portal at a rate of 1.25 cents per point, so you’re guaranteed at least $937.50 in travel right off the bat.
Excellent transfer partners
You can potentially get even more value by taking some time and effort to maximize Chase’s airline and hotel loyalty program partners. In fact, the Chase Ultimate Rewards? program features some of the best transfer partners around, including United MileagePlus, Southwest Rapid Rewards and World of Hyatt.
Here’s a complete list of Chase’s partners, all of which transfer at a 1:1 ratio — meaning for every 1,000 Chase points, you’ll get 1,000 airline or hotel points or miles when you transfer them:
Airlines
Aer Lingus AerClub
| Air Canada Aeroplan
| Air France-KLM Flying Blue
|
British Airways Executive Club
| Emirates Skywards
| Iberia Plus
|
JetBlue TrueBlue
| Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer
| Southwest Rapid Rewards
|
United MileagePlus
| Virgin Atlantic Flying Club
|
Hotels
World of Hyatt
| IHG Rewards Club
| Marriott Bonvoy
|
Airlines and hotels sometimes sell travel for different rates depending on whether you’re paying in cash or points, which means you can sometimes score fantastic deals by transferring points, especially if you want to fly in first or business class.
Even with many airlines and hotel loyalty programs using dynamic-pricing systems, award redemption rates around high-demand dates and holidays often don’t get the same markups as the cash rates.
You can also find hidden gems when booking award flights on partner airlines, particularly in premium cabins. A little bit of research and due diligence can definitely save you a lot of money (or points) in the long run.
Lucrative ongoing rewards
Beyond the welcome bonus, the 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 all other purchases.
Chase defines travel and dining very broadly. Travel includes purchases like cruises, mass transit, tolls, parking and even ride-shares, while dining includes coffee shops, bars and most food delivery services.
Additionally, you’ll earn a 10% bonus on all purchases made the previous year after your account opening anniversary. So if you spent $10,000 on the card during the previous year, you’ll earn 1,000 bonus points.
Thanks to a partnership with Lyft, through March 2025, Sapphire Preferred card holders earn 3 additional points per dollar on Lyft rides for a whopping total of 5 points per dollar.
Travel and purchase protections
The Sapphire Preferred also has a comprehensive suite of purchase and travel protections. That includes adding a year to eligible manufacturer’s warranties of three years or less; protecting new purchases against damage or theft; covering eligible expenses in the event your trip gets delayed; reimbursing spending to replace some items in eligible delayed or lost baggage; and, most notably, primary rental car coverage.
What does “primary rental car coverage” mean? Whenever you use your card to pay for a car rental, you can safely decline the collision damage waiver (CDW) offered by the rental company. If the rental car is damaged or stolen, you can contact Chase and initiate the claim.
The car rental coverage that’s offered by other credit cards is usually secondary, meaning you have to look to your own auto policy first in the event of an accident. With the Sapphire Preferred, you can skip that step and avoid potentially seeing your car insurance premium increase as a result of a claim.
No foreign transaction fees
To top it all off, the Sapphire Preferred has no foreign transaction fees, so you can safely use it and earn rewards when traveling overseas. Credit cards often charge 3% fees for foreign transactions, so having this benefit can make a big difference to international travelers.
Disadvantages of the Chase Sapphire Preferred card
Limited luxury perks
The Sapphire Preferred doesn’t offer the same luxury travel perks — such as airport lounge access and multiple travel credits — as the Sapphire Reserve. That’s expected, considering the annual fee is also a lot lower, but worth noting given the other similarities between the two cards.
Charges an annual fee
Although the Sapphire Preferred’s $95 annual fee is fairly standard among mid-tier travel credit cards, it won’t be worth it for all consumers. If you’re looking to test out a mid-tier card without paying a fee, the U.S. Bank Altitude? Connect Visa Signature? Card * The information for the U.S. Bank Altitude? Connect Visa Signature? Card has been collected independently by CNN Underscored. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer. charges a $0 introductory annual fee for the first 12 months, after that $95.
While the Sapphire Preferred’s bonus categories cover a wide range of purchases, keep in mind there are cards that earn strong rewards and come with no annual fee at all. For example, the Citi Double Cash? Card * The information for the Citi Double Cash? Card has been collected independently by CNN Underscored. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer. earns 2% cash back on all purchases — 1% when you make a purchase, and another 1% when you pay it off.
So if it’s straight cash back you’re after, you might be better off with another card. But if you spend a lot on dining, travel (including Lyft rides), streaming services and online grocery shopping and could use the travel and shopping protections, you’re likely going to come out ahead with Sapphire Preferred.
No 0% introductory APR
Don’t plan to carry a balance with the card, as there’s no introductory interest rate on purchases or balance transfers. You’ll be charged a 21.49%-28.49% Variable APR on purchases and any balance transfers.
Chase 5/24 rule
The one other downside of the Sapphire Preferred pertains to the application process, and it applies to all Chase credit cards. Chase has an unpublished “5/24” rule, which means if you’ve gotten five or more personal credit cards across all issuers in the previous 24 months, your application for a new card from Chase will likely be automatically denied. Given this restriction, it’s important to time your credit card applications well.
Other credit cards similar to the Chase Sapphire Preferred
Aside from the Sapphire Preferred’s older sibling, the Sapphire Reserve, the closest comparison to the Sapphire Preferred would be the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card (terms apply, see ).
It has the same $95 annual fee as the Sapphire Preferred, but it comes with a Global Entry/TSA PreCheck application fee credit worth up to $100 that’s available once every four years. It has a welcome bonus of 75,000 miles once you spend $4,000 on purchases within 3 months from account opening, equal to $750 in travel.
Capital One miles are somewhat less valuable, as they’re worth only 1 cent apiece when redeemed toward travel through Capital One’s portal. They can also transfer to Capital One’s airline and hotel partners mostly at 1:1 ratios, with just one hotel at 2:1 and one airline at 2:1.5.
Wells Fargo recently launched the $95-annual-fee Wells Fargo Autograph Journey? Card * The information for the Wells Fargo Autograph Journey? Card has been collected independently by CNN Underscored. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer. . Card holders get $50 each year to reimburse eligible airline spending, and the card earns strong rewards on travel. It has a welcome bonus of 60,000 bonus points when you spend $4,000 in purchases in the first three months of account opening.
Like with the Capital One Venture card, points are worth 1 cent each when redeemed through the issuer’s portal. Wells Fargo also offers a shorter list of transfer partners than Capital One or Chase.
American Express fields the American Express? Green Card * The information for the American Express? Green Card has been collected independently by CNN Underscored. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer. (terms apply, see rates and fees). That card offers 3 American Express Membership Rewards? points per dollar on travel, transit and dining, and 1 point per dollar on everything else. It also features up to $189 to reimburse an annual CLEAR? Plus membership and up to $100 per year to reimburse spending with LoungeBuddy for airport lounge access.
All information about American Express? Green Card has been collected independently by CNN Underscored.
However, these additional perks come at a cost. The Amex Green has a higher price tag of $150 a year.
Should you get the Chase Sapphire Preferred card?
Having a stash of travel points is extremely useful. But whether the Sapphire Preferred makes sense for you personally ultimately depends on what you spend the majority of your money on, and what you hope to get in return.
Given its bonus categories, the Sapphire Preferred is ideal for those who spend a significant amount of money on travel, dining, online groceries and streaming services. Likewise, while you don’t need to be loyal to a particular airline or hotel chain, you do need to actually travel (or at least want to travel more) to maximize the card’s benefits and redemption opportunities.
While you can get decent value from your points with the card’s fixed-value redemption option, the Sapphire Preferred unlocks access to some of the best transfer partners around, so it’s also an excellent opportunity to dip your toes in the world of travel rewards and grow your knowledge of loyalty programs.
If cash back sounds more appealing to you, a card like the U.S. Bank Cash+? Visa Signature? Card * The information for the U.S. Bank Cash+? Visa Signature? Card has been collected independently by CNN Underscored. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer. or the Citi Double Cash could make more sense. Or if you’re chasing more luxurious travel perks like airport lounge access, you’ll also want to look elsewhere — the premium Sapphire Reserve version of this card is a great alternative for that, and The Platinum Card? from American Express (terms apply) is also a popular option.
But in the end, regardless of which redemption option you pick, the Sapphire Preferred’s welcome bonus is more than sufficient to book your first award trip. So consider whether the card fits your needs, and as always, be sure to pay your balance in full each month to avoid high interest rates.
To view rates and fees of the American Express? Green Card * The information for the American Express? Green Card has been collected independently by CNN Underscored. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer. , please visit rates and fees.
All information about American Express? Green Card, Citi Double Cash? Card, U.S. Bank Altitude? Connect Visa Signature? Card, U.S. Bank Cash+? Visa Signature? Card and Wells Fargo Autograph Journey? Card has been collected independently by CNN Underscored.
