Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card Review: Why It’s the One Travel Card I Can’t Live Without

While I write about nearly every rewards card under the sun each year, there’s one card I recommend more than any other. The Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card continually stands out due to its lucrative rewards program, fair fee structure, and versatility.

With the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card, you’ll earn points good for numerous travel experiences, from travel you can book directly through the Chase portal to lucrative transfers to hotel and airline partners.

Personally, I’ve used Chase Ultimate Rewards® points for everything from flights for my family of four to Europe to snorkel sessions in the Caribbean Sea and day trips through Greece. For our family trip this summer, I cashed in points from my Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card for day trips all around Italy, from Cinque Terre to Pompeii and the Amalfi Coast. We also cashed in points for a cooking class in Florence, Italy on my daughter’s 6th birthday, and on a rental car to drive through the Swiss Alps.

If you can dream it, you can make it happen through Chase Ultimate Rewards®. And the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card just so happens to be the perfect card to utilize this lucrative program.

Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card Details

We’ve already covered just how flexible this rewards card can be, yet it’s important to share all the details as well.

Here’s the current offer on this card, including information on APRs, bonus offers, and annual fees:

• Get up to $1,050 in Chase Travel℠ value. Earn 60,000 bonus points after $4,000 in purchases in your first 3 months from account opening. That's worth $750 when redeemed through Chase Travel. Plus, get up to $300 in statement credits on Chase Travel purchases within your first year.
• Enjoy benefits such as 5x on travel purchased through Chase Travel℠, 3x on dining, select streaming services and online groceries, 2x on all other travel purchases, 1x on all other purchases, $50 Annual Chase Travel Hotel Credit, plus more.
• Get 25% more value when you redeem for airfare, hotels, car rentals and cruises through Chase Travel℠. For example, 60,000 points are worth $750 toward travel.
• Get complimentary access to DashPass which unlocks $0 delivery fees and lower service fees for a minimum of one year when you activate by December 31, 2027.
• Count on Trip Cancellation/Interruption Insurance, Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver, Lost Luggage Insurance and more.

Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card Perks Worth Mentioning

Year after year, the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card is listed as one of the most versatile rewards cards on the market. This is mainly due to the fact there are so many ways to redeem your points. Unlike other cards who may dole out points that are difficult to use, the sheer number of redemption options available makes it easy to use Chase Travel℠.

For starters, you can use the points you earn to book travel directly through the Chase Ultimate Rewards® with 25 percent more travel for using the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card.

If you don’t see anything you like in the Chase travel portal, you can transfer Chase points to a slew of popular airline and hotel transfer partners at a 1:1 ratio. Options include:

• Aer Lingus, AerClub
• British Airways Executive Club
• Emirates Skywards®
• Flying Blue AIR FRANCE KLM
• Iberia Plus
• JetBlue TrueBlue
• Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards®
• United MileagePlus®
• Virgin Atlantic Flying Club
• Marriott Bonvoy™
• World of Hyatt®

As a third redemption option, you can also cash in your Chase points for cash back, gift cards, or merchandise. The 60,000-point signup bonus is worth $750 in cash back, creating a situation where you simply cannot lose.

Also, you’ll qualify for a bevy of benefits from Chase just for being a cardholder. Those benefits include:

• Trip Cancellation/Interruption Insurance
• Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver
• Baggage Delay Insurance
• Trip Delay Reimbursement
• Travel and Emergency Assistance Services
• Purchase Protection
• Extended Warranty Protection
  
  

Where the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card Really Shines

This card’s biggest benefit is just how versatile and flexible the points you earn can be. Sure, you can cash them in for a gift card or statement credit, but the real fun is the many ways you can redeem them for travel.

While any of the Chase transfer partners can be lucrative, here are a few ways you can stretch your signup bonus to the max:

With 60,000 Chase Travel℠ points, you could:

• Fly round-trip to Europe on Flying Blue AIR FRANCE KLM
• Book two round-trip flights to the Caribbean on Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards®
• Book two nights at an all-inclusive World of Hyatt® Resort in Jamaica or Mexico
• Book 5-6 short-haul, domestic flights with British Airways Executive Club

Of course, those are just some of the options available. Depending on your goals and travel style, you can do just about anything with your points. The important factor to celebrate is just how many options you have.

For example, you don’t have to transfer your points anywhere. While it’s usually advantageous (fewer points) to book flights or hotels through a partner, that isn’t always the case. Plus, there are times when your favorite travel program doesn’t have availability due to overbooking or blackout dates. What then?

When you have the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card, you aren’t tied down to a specific redemption. If you’re not finding an award seat on the flight you want, you can bypass the system and book any travel you want through the Chase portal.

The travel portal works a lot like Expedia or Priceline due to the fact you can search for airfare, hotels, rental cars, and excursions with your own destinations and dates. You then have the option to pay with points, pay with money, or pay with a combination of Chase Travel℠ points and cash.

Sometimes, the Chase travel portal can be an especially good deal. I recently booked one-way flights from Barcelona to Paris this fall for 3,500 Chase points per person! If I had booked the same flights through a travel partner, they would have cost at least 11,000 miles each.

Another benefit that helps this card stand out is its annual fee. It does come with a $95 charge after the first year, but that pales in comparison to the $400+ fees many top travel cards charge.

The fact that it’s waived the first year also lets you try it out for 12 months before you commit. Among top travel credit cards, this is almost unheard of.

Where the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card Comes Up Short

While it’s difficult to find anything wrong with the Chase Sapphire Preferred®, it’s important to compare it to other top travel cards. If you’re a big spender who spends a ton on travel and dining, for example, you may be better off with the new Chase Sapphire Reserve® card instead.

While the Chase Sapphire Reserve® card does come with a $550 annual fee, it does let you earn 35x total points on flights and 10x total points on hotels and car rentals when you purchase travel through Chase Travel℠ immediately after the first $300 is spent on travel purchases annually. Earn 3x points on other travel and dining & 1 point per $1 spent on all other purchases. You’ll also get other perks such as airport lounge membership and discounts on car rentals.

Another area where the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card could be lacking is the fact you only earn 3x points on other travel and dining & 1 point per $1 spent on all other purchases. If you’re in it just for the cash back, you may be better off selecting a card with a higher rate of earning.

The Discover it® Miles, for example, offers unlimited 1.5x Miles for every dollar spent on all purchases, and Discover® promises to match ALL the Miles you've earned at the end of your first year, automatically. For example, if you earn 30,000 Miles, you get 60,000 Miles. That's $600 towards travel! Then again, the Discover it® Miles doesn’t offer a signup bonus, either.

Conclusion

While the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card may not be the ideal cash back card, it’s one heck of a travel credit card. With a 60,000 bonus points offer, popular partners to transfer to, and a low annual fee that’s waived the first year, what do you have to lose?

Having access to the Chase Ultimate Rewards® program is enough to keep this card in my wallet year after year. Since the points are easy to earn and fun to redeem, the $95 annual fee is well worth it.