Chase Sapphire Preferred Review
A big welcome bonus plus flexible points that stretch further on travel.
Pay around $95 a year and get a welcome bonus that often covers a flight, plus points that punch above their weight on travel. For most people dipping into travel rewards, this is where you start.
What the Chase Sapphire Preferred actually is
This is Chase's mid-tier travel rewards card, the one people recommend when a friend asks how to start earning points without overthinking it. Annual fee lands around $95. In return you get the Ultimate Rewards points system, which is the real draw here, not the card itself.
Points earn at 5x on travel booked through Chase, 3x on dining and select streaming, 2x on other travel, and 1x on everything else. The headline is the welcome bonus, which has hovered around 60,000 to 75,000 points for new cardholders who hit a spending requirement in the first few months. That alone is worth several hundred dollars.
How it performs day to day
The magic is in how points redeem. Through the Chase travel portal, Ultimate Rewards are worth 25% more, so 60,000 points becomes $750 toward travel. Transfer them to partners like United, Hyatt, or Southwest and savvy users squeeze out even more, sometimes well over 2 cents per point on the right redemption.
Outside of that, it behaves like a competent everyday card. The 3x on dining is genuinely useful if you eat out or order in often. There's no foreign transaction fee, which matters the moment you leave the country. You also get decent travel protections: trip cancellation coverage, primary rental car insurance, and purchase protection. These are the kind of perks nobody thinks about until a flight gets canceled and the card quietly pays out.
The good and the annoying
Pros: a fat welcome bonus, that 25% portal boost, strong transfer partners, no foreign transaction fees, and travel insurance that actually holds up. The annual fee is low enough that the rewards cover it easily if you spend even moderately on dining and travel.
Cons: the base 1x earn rate on regular spending is unremarkable. If you don't travel or eat out much, the points pile up slowly. The portal redemption rate is nice but not exceptional compared to cards that hit 1.5 cents flat. And the 5/24 rule applies, meaning Chase will likely reject you if you've opened five or more cards across all banks in the past 24 months. That trips up a lot of applicants.
Who should buy it, and who should skip it
Get it if you're newer to travel rewards and want one card that does most things well. It's the obvious pick for someone who spends on dining and the occasional trip and wants flexible points without juggling a complicated setup. Pair it later with a no-fee Chase Freedom card and the value climbs.
Skip it if you barely travel, in which case a flat-rate 2% cash back card returns more with zero effort. Heavy travelers who spend big should look at the Sapphire Reserve instead, which costs far more but adds lounge access and a higher portal multiplier. And if you've opened a stack of cards recently, save yourself the hard pull until you're back under 5/24.
The verdict
The Sapphire Preferred remains the default recommendation in this category for a reason. The fee is reasonable, the welcome bonus pays for itself, and the points system is flexible enough to grow with you. It's not the flashiest card and it won't win on raw cash back, but as a first real travel card it's hard to beat.
Apply when the welcome bonus is at its higher end and when you can comfortably hit the spending requirement on stuff you'd buy anyway. Don't chase the bonus with purchases you don't need.
Frequently asked questions
- Is the Chase Sapphire Preferred worth the annual fee?
- For most people who spend on dining and travel, yes. The roughly $95 fee is easily offset by the welcome bonus and ongoing 3x dining rewards. If you rarely travel or eat out, a no-fee cash back card makes more sense.
- How much are Chase Ultimate Rewards points worth?
- Redeemed through the Chase travel portal they're worth 1.25 cents each. Transfer them to airline and hotel partners like United or Hyatt and the right redemptions can push past 2 cents per point.
- What is the 5/24 rule and does it affect this card?
- Yes. Chase generally denies applicants who've opened five or more credit cards from any bank in the past 24 months. Check your recent card history before applying for the Sapphire Preferred.
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