We value our editorial independence, basing our comparison results, content and reviews on objective analysis without bias. But we may receive compensation when you click links on our site. Learn more about how we make money from our partners.
finder.com’s rating: 4.0 / 5.0
★★★★★
60,000
Points as welcome offer
Up to 5x
Points
$95
Annual fee
17.49% to 24.49%
Purchase APR (variable)
| Product Name | Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card |
|---|---|
| Card type | Visa |
| Annual fee | $95 |
| Purchase APR | 17.49% to 24.49% variable |
| Balance transfer APR | 17.49% to 24.49% variable |
| Balance transfer fee | $5 or 5% of the transaction, whichever is greater |
| Cash advance rate | 26.49% variable |
| Cash advance fee | $10 or 5% of the cash advance amount, whichever is greater |
| Foreign transaction fee | None |
| Interest free period | Up to 21 days |
| Late payment fee | Up to $39 |
| Returned payment fee | Up to $39 |
| Additional cardholder fee | $0 |
| Rates & fees | rates & fees |
Review by
Kevin Joey Chen is a credit cards, banking and investments writer whose work and analysis have appeared on CNN, U.S. News & World Report, Lifehacker and CreditCards.com. He's passionate about helping you get your finances in order and expertly navigate the cutting-edge financial tools available -- including credit cards, apps and budgeting software.
When you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months your account is open, you’ll earn 60,000 points. That’s worth $750 when redeemed through Chase Ultimate Rewards.
If you redeem your points through Chase Ultimate Rewards, they’re worth 25% more. This is a big perk that elevates the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card above the rest.
For example, you can redeem 60,000 points for $750 worth of travel purchases, rather than the industry-standard $600 — 1 point equals 1 cent.
Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card increases bonus to 60,000 points
Back to topThe Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card has a $95 annual fee. That’s comparable to fees of other mid-tier travel cards, but is it worth paying?
According to Chase, the card’s points are worth 25% more when redeemed for airfare, hotels, cruises and car rentals through Chase Ultimate Rewards. This gives you a 1.25% redemption rate, which is better than that of most other travel cards.
At that rate, you’d need 7,600 points to break even on the annual fee with rewards alone.
You may need even fewer points to break even if you transfer them to Chase’s travel partners. For example, our January 2019 valuation pegs Southwest Airlines points at 1.6 cents each — a better rate than you’d find through Chase Ultimate Rewards.
You can redeem 60,000 points for $750 of travel through Chase Ultimate Rewards. That’s an excellent signup bonus, and it could pay for your annual fee several times over.
Purchase protection and travel insurance are often the unsung heroes of travel cards. It can be difficult to calculate its value. But if they lead to a successful claim, your card could immediately pay for itself.
How to earn Chase Ultimate Rewards points
Transfer points to airline programs that include British Airways Executive Club, Flying Blue Air France KLM, Korean Air SkyPass, Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer, Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards, United MileagePlus and Virgin Atlantic Flying Club.
Transfer points to hotel programs that include Hyatt Gold Passport, IHG Rewards Club, Marriott Rewards and Ritz-Carlton Rewards.
You wouldn’t expect anything less from a travel card. Many credit cards come with a 3% foreign transaction fee, making the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card an excellent choice when you’re shopping abroad.
Purchase coverage includes purchase protection that insures your purchases against theft or damage and provides price protection, return protection and extended warranties.
Enjoy Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card travel insurance, which includes trip cancellation and interruption insurance, baggage delay insurance and trip delay insurance. You’ll also get access to Chase travel and emergency assistance services.
The Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card has rental car insurance as well — specifically, collision damage waivers. If you charge your rental car to your card and decline the insurance at the counter, your eligible vehicle receives coverage against theft and collision.
Based on a survey of 57 people on finder.com
| Answer choices | Responses |
|---|---|
| 740-850 | 57.89% |
| 670-739 | 35.09% |
| 580-669 | 5.26% |
| 300-579 | 5.26% |
Based on a survey of 203 people on finder.com
| Answer choices | Responses |
|---|---|
| Rewards | 35.47% |
| Signup bonus | 14.78% |
| Features and benefits | 45.81% |
| APR | 3.94% |
The card doesn’t offer these benefits, but you can find them with the Chase Sapphire Reserve®.
If you’re looking for the Global Entry application credit without a premium price, consider the Capital One® Venture® Rewards Credit Card.
The Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card comes with a $95 annual fee.
Depending on your credit, you could be approved for a purchase and balance transfer APR as high as 24.49% variable. The average credit card APR is around 16%.
Cash advances come with a 26.49% variable APR.
Purchases come with a grace period — that is, you’ll have at least 21 days after the close of the billing cycle to pay off your balance before accruing interest. This isn’t the case with balance transfers or cash advances: You’ll start accruing interest on them immediately.
To apply for the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card, you must be at least 18 years old in most places. The minimum age requirement bumps up to 19 for residents of Alabama and Nebraska and 21 in Puerto Rico.
You’ll have a better chance of approval for this card if you apply with a good to excellent credit score of 680 to 850.
Cardholders generally have great things to say about the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card points and travel benefits — even if they’re not thrilled with the annual fee. They say the card is slightly easier to apply for as a Chase customer: Because the bank already has your personal details, you may not have to complete the entire credit card application.
Chase earns a Trustpilot score of 5.5 out of 10 at the time of this writing. Most negative reviews cite slow responses to fraud complaints and less-than-helpful customer service. Positive reviews cite the bank’s great mobile app and quick resolutions to their issues. Overall, your mileage may vary with Chase customer support.
The JPMorgan Chase Credit Card division earns an overall A+ rating from the Better Business Bureau.
Megan Horner
Credit Cards Publisher
Purchasing them was easy through the Chase Ultimate Rewards Portal. It looks like a normal flight search engine, with flight options much like Kayak.
Next time I redeem points, I’ll likely transfer points to a different airline and buy the flights directly from the airline. This option offers more value from my points, but involves doing the math on point values to make sure I’m getting the best deal.
Now that I have this card, I’ll likely upgrade to the Chase Sapphire Reserve®. As long as I use the $300 in travel credit and premium travel perks, I can make the annual fee worth it.
The Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card was a great starting point to see if I would take advantage of a higher-level, premium travel card before I opened a card with a high annual fee.
Because approval is automated on the Chase website, you’re likely to get a decision within minutes. If there are issues with your application, it could take up to a few weeks to hear back.
There’s no fee to add an authorized user. Unfortunately, you won’t earn the 5,000-point authorized user bonus offered previously, but individuals on your card account will earn points for you whenever they spend.
You can redeem rewards by logging in to the Chase Ultimate Rewards portal.
There are several redemption options, including:
Travel is often the best use of your points. According to Chase, they’re worth 25% more when redeemed for eligible travel through Chase Ultimate Rewards. And you can often get an even higher value by transferring points to travel partners.
The Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card is among the best travel cards you’ll find. With its 2x points on travel and dining, it’s a solid credit card for globetrotters and foodies.
Those points go far too, with a 25% boost if you redeem them through Chase Ultimate Rewards. And the 1:1 point transfers to airline and hotel programs means your points are extremely flexible.
Back to top★★★★★ — Excellent
★★★★★ — Good
★★★★★ — Average
★★★★★ — Subpar
★★★★★ — Poor
Our team evaluates credit cards to determine their value against similar cards on the market.
We rank card types — travel, cash back, business — on a set of factors that are most relevant to that type of card. We create these rankings to help you narrow down a credit card that best suits your spending and budget.