Overall Chase Sapphire Preferred is an ideal card for people who spend a lot on dining and airfare and want to earn rewards. This is because of the fact that you earn 2x points dining and with the preferred version you can earn 2x points on dining AND airfare.
This card also currently offers a ton of additional perks for cardholders (including free travel insurance) and is highly recommended for those with excellent credit.
Chase Sapphire Rewards Program
Chase Sapphire Preferred is a rewards credit card that allows you to earn one point for every dollar spent on all of your purchases and 2 points per dollar spent on dining and travel. You also can earn 25% bonus points for all points redeemed for travel through Chase.
Combine this with the 40,000 50,000 bonus points (hurry – this increase may not last!) you can earn if $4,000 or more is spent within the first 3 months, and you have a card that offers the opportunity to earn a lot of travel rewards. That is because, if these points are used for travel expenses, the bonus is actually worth $500 in benefits.
The Chase Sapphire Preferred rewards card normally carries an annual fee of $95, but this fee is waived for the first year.
Travel Benefits and Additional Features
1. Ability to Transfer Points to Leading Loyalty Programs 1:1. The Sapphire Preferred card does give you the option to transfer your rewards points to leading travel loyalty rewards programs like United Airlines and Marriott Hotels on a 1-to-1 basis.
2. Trip Cancellation Insurance: This one is huge – If you purchase your airline tickets, hotel rooms, and certain other travel related items with your Chase Sapphire, you qualify for trip cancellation insurance which reimburses you if you end up canceling the trip due to certain circumstances.
3. Lost Luggage Reimbursement: If you purchase your airline ticket with your Chase Sapphire card you are automatically covered if your luggage is lost or stolen. Also, if your luggage is delayed for more than 18 hours, you’ll be reimbursed for the purchase of any essential items to hold you over.
4. Emergency Coverage: Chase will provide emergency assistance while you are away from home. Examples include medical and legal assistance. So, if you are arrested for some unfortunate reason or become hospitalized, contact Chase to see how they can help.
5. Auto Rental Benefits: If you use this card to rent a vehicle, you’ll be covered in certain situations. If the vehicle is damaged or stolen, Chase will cover up to the full cash value of it.
6. Trip Delay: If you get delayed for more than 12 hours due to an event that’s covered, Chase will reimburse you for meals, hotel rooms and other expenses that occur because of the delay.
Conclusion
Despite it’s advantages, this card does have a drawback. It has a $95 annual fee. However, this fee is waived during the first year. And it offers a generous signup bonus for anyone able to spend $4,000 in 3 months.
However, when you compare the Chase Sapphire Preferred card agains the Capital One Venture Rewards card, as we did here, you will see that you can earn more points with Capital One and have a lower annual fee. (Our complete review of the Venture Rewards card can be found here.)
And, to keep up to date on our current favorite travel rewards cards, check out our Guide to Travel Cards.
Pros:
- Get 50,000 bonus points ($500) after you spend $4,000 during your first 3 months.
- Your points go further when booking with a partner provider thru Chase Ultimate Rewards.
- Your points will never expire.
- The amount of points that you may accumulate is unlimited.
- A customer service representative will answer your call 24/7. So, if you have an emergency at 2AM, you can actually get a hold of someone.
- Identity theft protection.
- No liability for unauthorized purchases.
- Annual fee of $95 waived in the first year.
- No travel restrictions or blackout dates.
Cons:
- Rewards program isn’t as good as some other cards.
- No low introductory APR.
