Credit Card Reviews
Chase Sapphire Preferred Credit Card Review
Ever since my financial awakening and my decision to start using credit cards again, an obvious trend has developed. You see, anytime I get a new card and say to myself (and to my wife), “I think we’re all set now,” I inevitably find another card that tempts me with its rewards.
That’s what happened with the Chase Sapphire Preferred — except that it wasn’t the card’s primary rewards that lured me, it was purely the welcome bonus. I actually wrote about this conundrum previously since, on the whole, I’m the type of person who wants to hold a credit card long term and, thus, want it to make sense in my set-up.
Yet, even though the Sapphire Preferred’s ho-hum category multipliers did little to nothing for us, my wife went ahead and applied for the card anyway. Funny enough, a couple of months later, Chase revamped the card with new benefits, rewards categories, and more. Now, after a year of holding the card, we even decided to renew it.
So, what do I think of the new Chase Sapphire Preferred and why has it stayed in my mix? Let’s take a look at what the card entails, how redemptions work, and my thoughts overall.
Chase Sapphire Preferred
Chase Sapphire Preferred Review: A Solid Starter Travel Card
4
Annual fee
$95
Rewards
5x points on travel purchased through the Chase Ultimate Rewards portal, 3x points on dining, 3x points on online grocery purchases (excluding Walmart, Target and wholesale clubs), 3x points on select streaming services, 2x points on all travel purchases, 1x points on all other purchases
The Chase Sapphire Preferred card has long been regarded as a good travel card for starters – and a refresh of the offering has only made it better. Although the rewards categories may not look like much on paper, they’re heightened by the option to redeem them for 1.25 cents each on travel bookings via Chase. Plus, unlike some other travel cards, points can also still be redeemed for cashback for a full cent per point. Finally, while the $95 annual fee is already reasonable, it’s offset in renewal years by a $50 hotel credit and more. All of these factors make for a card that can serve as a great entry point into the Chase ecosystem.
Pros
- Strong list of transfer partners
- Points worth 1.25 cents each toward travel purchases (with Chase portal)
- Point can also be redeemed for cashback at 1 cent each
Cons
- $95 annual fee
- Chase Pay Yourself Back program has been devalued
- Best point earning limited to bookings via Chase
What Chase Sapphire Preferred Has to Offer
About the Chase Sapphire Preferred (including the annual fee)
The Sapphire Preferred is usually regarded as the little sibling to Chase’s incredibly popular Sapphire Reserve card. On that note, it’s important to point out that customers can only hold one Sapphire card at a time. Those who might ‘prefer’ the Preferred over the Reserve include those looking for a lower annual fee, those just getting started in the “point and miles” game, and those who might not travel quite often enough to get the full benefits of the Reserve.
Speaking of annual fees, the Chase Sapphire Reserve comes at a cost of $95 per year. While this is far lower than the Reserve’s $550 annual fee, it’s not insignificant. Finally, I also feel a need to mention that the card is made of metal, which has become quite a trend and especially appeals to a certain demographic.
The welcome bonus we got
As I noted in my intro, my initial interest in the Chase Sapphire Preferred card was limited to the welcome bonus it was pedaling. So what was this amazing bonus? Well, we were able to earn 100,000 Chase Ultimate Rewards points after spending $4,000 on the card in our first three months. This bonus amounts to $1,000 in value for cashback or $1,250 if redeemed for travel (more on that differential later). The $95 annual fee was not waived, so that cut into our reward a bit — but the $1,000+ bonus for spending a reasonable and achievable $4,000 was just too good to pass up.
At the time I’m writing this, the 100,000 welcome bonus is no longer being offered. However, the card is still known to feature lucrative and attractive bonuses that may make it worth consideration.
Reward categories
Even though the welcome bonus was calling to me, one of the reasons I resisted the Sapphire Preferred for as long as I did was because I found the rewards categories to be lackluster. At the time, the card mainly just offered 2x points on dining and 2x points on travel — rates that were beaten by other cards I already owned. However, in August 2021, Chase revamped the Preferred card’s categories and multipliers to make it a bit more attractive.
Here’s what the Chase Sapphire Preferred currently offers in terms of rewards:
- 5x points on travel purchased through the Chase Ultimate Rewards portal
- 3x points on dining (including eligible delivery services, takeout, and dining out)
- 3x points on online grocery purchases (excluding Walmart, Target and wholesale clubs)
- 3x points on select streaming services
- 2x points on all travel purchases (including airfare, hotels, taxis, trains, etc.)
- 1x points on all other purchases
Going through these categories, there’s an obvious improvement over the previous line-up. For one, the 5x category provides a nice incentive to try out the Chase Ultimate Rewards travel portal when possible, while still giving customers 2x points if they chose instead to book travel through other means.
Elsewhere, the boost from 2x on dining to 3x is nice and is instantly more competitive. As for the other two 3x categories, they’re a little less impactful for me. First, limiting it exclusively to “online grocery” seems a bit weird to me and doesn’t move the needle in my case since my Amex Gold Card earns 4x at U.S. supermarkets, including online services like Instacart (in my experience at least).
As for the 3x on select streaming services, while I definitely see the appeal here, but I don’t think this will be as lucrative for most people as they might think. Also, the no-annual-fee Capital One SavorOne also has 3% back on streaming now, so this addition doesn’t mean much to me personally.
With all that said, the difference here is that Ultimate Rewards points earned with the Chase Sapphire Preferred could be worth 25% more depending on how you redeem them, which does change the math on these categories a bit. We’ll talk much more about redemption options in a moment so just keep that in the back of your mind as we proceed.
Annual hotel credit
One perk that was added to the Chase Sapphire Preferred in 2021 was the annual hotel credit. Now, cardholders can earn up to $50 in statement credits each account anniversary year when they book hotel stays via the Chase Ultimate Rewards portal. To be clear, this credit is only offered after your first renewal and subsequent cardholder anniversaries.
Having renewed, we are now eligible for this benefit. That said, we have yet to actually use it. Writing this updated review actually reminded me that we have this available too — which is convenient since I do have some hotel bookings to make coming up. I’ll be sure to add a note to this post once I do attempt to use this credit and let you know how it goes.
Anniversary point bonus
Yet another new benefit recently added to the card is the anniversary point bonus. Each year, as they reach their account anniversary, cardholders will earn a point bonus equal to 10% of their total spending over the past year. That’s pretty confusing wording, but it works like this: if you spend $25,000 on purchases during the year, you’d earn a 2,500 point bonus.
This is an interesting idea, to be sure, but I don’t see it making too big of an impact for us. So while I certainly won’t turn up my nose at free points, this isn’t one of the top perks I’d mention to try to sell someone on the Sapphire Preferred.
Chase Offers
Finally, before we move on to redemption options, I do want to mention Chase Offers. When you log into your account, you may see different offers from various brands that you can activate. For example, we found one for Best Buy offering 10% off up to $35, which came in handy when I purchased my new camera. Other recent Chase Offers that have popped up for us include 10% back on shopDisney, 15% back on Audible, $5 back on Amazon Music Unlimited, and more.
While Chase Offers don’t seem to be as plentiful or lucrative as Amex Offers, we’ve already made use of a few of them. Thus, I’m inclined to call this an underrated perk. In any case, if I were you, I’d be sure to check out the Chase Offers section regularly to see what ways you can save.
Chase Sapphire Preferred Ultimate Reward Points Redemption Options
While the Chase Sapphire Preferred now has some decent reward multipliers on its own, its superpower comes not from earning points but from redeeming points. With the Sapphire Preferred, cardholders can earn a 25% bonus on their points when they use them for travel bookings on the Chase Ultimate Rewards portal or through Chase’s pandemic-era Pay Yourself Back program. Beyond that, there are even more ways to use your points — so let’s look at just some of the options.
Cashback
Starting off easy, if you just want to cash in your points for, well, cash, that’s certainly an option. Sapphire Preferred customers can elect to redeem their Ultimate Rewards points for statement credits or have the cash deposited into a linked bank account. In either case, your points will be worth 1¢ each with this option.
I want to take moment to mention that this is one of the reasons I might prefer Chase Ultimate Rewards points to American Express Membership Rewards points in general. Although Amex’s currency has its own strengths, the 0.6¢ per point that customers get when redeeming for cashback is pitiful. Thankfully, Chase gives what I think is a fair rate here. Thus, while there may be better and more valuable options, those who just want to claim cash can feel pretty good doing so IMHO.
Travel
One of the advertised perks that come with the Chase Sapphire Preferred is that cardholders can earn ” 25% more value on travel.” This is achieved through the Chase Ultimate Rewards portal. On this portal (on the website or in the app), cardholders can search for flights, hotels, and more. Then, when completing their booking, customers can choose to pay with points instead of cash. When choosing this option, points will be redeemed at a rate of 1.25¢ each.
Obviously this is a pretty significant benefit. In fact, if you were to exclusively use your earned points for Ultimate Rewards travel redemptions, you’d effectively be earning 3.75% back on dining, online grocery, and select streaming purchases as well as 2.5% back on other travel purchases (not to mention 1.25% back on everything else). Because of this, using your Ultimate Rewards points for travel redemptions is one of your best bets.
Pay Yourself Back
With 2020 throwing more than a few curveballs, Chase introduced the Pay Yourself Back program, intended to help cardholders get more value out of their rewards at a time when travel was made more difficult. The program has continued to stick around, allowing Sapphire Preferred customers to earn 25% more for points they redeem toward specific purchases.
Previously, Pay Yourself Back categories for the Sapphire Preferred included just generic options, such as Dining, Grocery Stores, Home Improvement Stores, and Select Charities. Sadly, though, the options have since dwindled… a lot. Currently (as of September 2022), the only options for Preferred are Airbnb and Select Charities.
Luckily for me, back when it was an option for a limited time, I had a chance to redeem some Chase Ultimate Rewards points via Pay Yourself Back for an Away backpack. Seeing as that purchase was a bit of a splurge, it was nice to get a 1.25¢ per point value and not pay cash.
When you head to the Pay Yourself Back portal, you’ll see a list of qualifying transactions made over the past 90 days. In each case, you’ll see the amount of the transaction, the number of points it would typically cost you to claim a statement credit, and the adjusted point amount that you can spend instead. Once you select a transaction, you can then elect to only cover a portion of the purchase in points (assessed at the same rate).
Given the uncertainty ahead, it’s unclear what will become of the Chase Pay Yourself Back program. Personally, I hope it sticks around — and regains some glory — as I’m definitely a fan. To me, this added level of flexibility is another win for the Ultimate Rewards currency and quite honestly makes me more interested in diving deeper into the Chase ecosystem.
Transfer partners
In addition to booking travel directly through the Ultimate Rewards portal, you can also choose to turn your Chase points into points with various airlines and hotel chains. These transfer partners currently include:
- Aer Lingus
- Air Canada
- Air France/KLM
- British Airways
- Emirates
- Iberia
- IHG
- Hyatt
- JetBlue
- Marriott
- Singapore Airlines
- Southwest Airlines
- United Airlines
- Virgin Atlantic
Notably, unlike American Express transfer partners that have varying exchange rates, all of Chase’s current partners transfer at a rate of 1:1. For example, 1,000 Chase Ultimate Rewards points could be turned into 1,000 Air France/KLM Flying Blue points. However, limited-time transfer bonuses may pop up, such as 30% bonus Avios offers when you transfer points to Aer Lingus, British Airways, or Iberia.
Although the standard 1:1 transfer rate makes this a bit easier to comprehend than some other point programs, this is still a more advanced redemption option. That said, some travelers may appreciate the presence of JetBlue and Southwest on this list as these points may prove easier to use directly. In any case, if you really want to get the most value with transfer partners, I’d suggest doing some digging to find the best option — which may even include transfer points to an airline you don’t intend to fly!
Gift cards
Another redemption option I want to mention briefly involves gift cards. Chase offers gift cards from a number of popular brands, with denominations starting at just $10 for some. Nearly all of these options value points at 1¢ each, however there are occasional sales. For example, as of this writing, cardholders can get 10% off Apple gift cards, allowing them to get a $200 card for 18,000 points.
Considering that the regular statement credit redemption rate is also 1¢ per point, there aren’t really very many reasons to go this route instead — unless, perhaps, if you planned on giving the gift card to someone else. Of course, those occasional sales on gift cards could make them worth it if you didn’t want to redeem for travel or Pay Yourself Back categories. Either way, at least it’s better than our final option…
Amazon
Lastly, when I saw that Chase offered integration with Amazon, I was moderately excited. After all, I’ve enjoyed having the option to cash in my Discover or Capital One cashback directly on Amazon while making purchases. However, I then realized that, with Chase, Amazon redemptions only valued Ultimate Rewards points at 0.8¢ each. In other words, you’d be better off just buying the item and requesting a statement credit after the fact.
I’m not sure why the exchange rate is devalued here but I wouldn’t recommend this option. The one exception would be when Chase or other issuers occasionally offer discounts to Amazon shoppers who redeem points for their transactions. In these cases, the loophole is that you can use 1 Ultimate Rewards point to trigger the discount and pay the rest normally so that you can save your points for better redemptions.
Final Thoughts on the Chase Sapphire Preferred
Overall, the Chase Sapphire Preferred still isn’t my favorite card by any stretch, but it did get significantly more interesting after the recent revamp. With more competitive multipliers, the annual anniversary hotel credit, and, yes, that amazing welcome bonus we managed to score, the card does definitely have some attractive features.
Moreover, as I’ve grown more familiar with the Chase Ultimate Rewards currency, the more I’ve come to appreciate it. In particular, I see this ecosystem as being much more approachable for points and miles newbies who want to have a solid backup option in case their premium travel redemptions don’t work out.
When we first got the Sapphire Preferred, my initial plan was to downgrade it to a Freedom card or, counterintuitively, upgrade to a Sapphire Reserve in year two. But, as I mentioned, we decided to keep the card for at least another year. With the $50 hotel credit partially offsetting the $95 annual fee and the 25% boost on travel redemptions still seemingly worthwhile, perhaps I could be persuaded to hold the card beyond that. Of course, I could see the current (sad) state of Pay Yourself Back being a factor as to whether or not the card makes sense for us long term.
Lastly, those with fewer cards in their wallets that would take up tasks that the Chase Sapphire Preferred can do will likely find even more value in the card, once again making it a great starter option. In fact, this is the card a friend of mine recently picked up as her first American credit card, thanks largely to the flexibility of Chase’s ecosystem and having Air Canada as a transfer partner (did I mention she’s Canadian?). I suspect that there are plenty of others who will feel similarly about the Sapphire Preferred, which is surely why it’s been such a staple.
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