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Capital One® Venture® Rewards Credit Card vs. Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
Two similar travel credit cards with a $95 annual fee and generous signup bonuses.
Credit Card Guides
The main difference between the Capital One® Venture® and the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card is their rewards rate. The Capital One® Venture® Rewards Credit Card offers unlimited 2x miles on all purchases, while the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card offers 2x points on travel and dining purchases and 1x on everything else.
This may seem like a big difference, but it all depends on your spending. See how these two cards compare in the table and in our credit card breakdown below.
Summary of card features
Capital One® Venture® Rewards Credit Card
- Earn an unlimited 2x miles on all purchases.
- Get a 50,000-mile welcome offer after you spend $3,000 in your first 3 months.
- Earn an additional 100,000 miles after spending $20,000 on purchases within the first 12 months.
- Get various travel benefits, including a TSA PreCheck or Global Entry statement credit worth $100.
Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
- Signup bonus. Earn 80,000 bonus points when you spend $4,000 in your first 3 months when you open your account. That's $1,000 in value when redeemed for travel purchases via the Chase Ultimate Rewards portal.
- Earn reward points. Every time you use your card toward travel and dining purchases, you earn 2x points. All other purchases earn 1x points.
- Point transfer. You can transfer your points in 1:1 ratio with Chase's hotel and airline partners, including British Airways, Air France KLM, Korean Air, Singapore Airlines, Southwest Airlines, United Airlines, Virgin Atlantic, IHG, Marriott and World of Hyatt.
Best for rewards: Capital One® Venture® Rewards Credit Card
The Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card earns 2x points on travel and dining, 5x points on Lyft rides until March 2022, and 1x points on everything else. When you redeem for travel purchases, this can be worth 25% more, or 2.5x on travel and dining, 6.25X on Lyft and 1.25x on everything else.
However, with a flat 2x miles on all purchases and 5x miles on Uber Eats until January 2021, the Capital One® Venture® Rewards Credit Card lets you earn slightly more points than the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card. Here’s how it looks like:
| Annual spending | Capital One® Venture® Rewards Credit Card | Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card |
|---|---|---|
| Travel and dining | $5,000 | $5,000 |
| Lyft | $0 | $1,800 |
| Uber Eats | $1,800 | $0 |
| Everything else | $10,000 | $10,000 |
| Total spent | $16,800 | $16,800 |
| Total miles/points earned | 39,000 (worth $390 on travel redemption) | 29,000 (worth $362 on travel redemption) |
In the example above, the difference is $28 in favor of the Venture card. For some travelers, the difference may be negligible. But if you spend more than $25,000 each year, the difference grows to around $100, which can cover the cost of each card’s annual fee.
Best for signup bonus: Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
With a signup bonus of 80,000 points when you spend $4,000 in your first 3 months, this is one of the highest signup bonuses you can find in a credit card with a $95 annual fee. You can redeem your bonus points on travel purchases worth up to $1,000.
The Venture card comes with 50,000 bonus points after you spend $3,000 in the first 3 months. You can earn an additional 100,000 bonus miles after you spend at least $20,000 within your first 12 months. The threshold to earn the entire bonus is way higher than the Sapphire Preferred, while you get a similar redemption value. This clearly makes the Sapphire Preferred a more valuable choice.
Best for additional perks: Capital One® Venture® Rewards Credit Card
Both these cards let you transfer points to partner airlines and hotels. However, the Capital One® Venture® Rewards Credit Card has something more — an up to $100 Global Entry or TSA PreCheck application fee credit once every four years. This perk is typically offered by more premium travel credit cards.
Best for travel protection: Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
The Venture card offers travel accident insurance and auto rental collision damage waiver. On the other hand, the Sapphire Preferred travel coverage is more extensive. With this card, you get:
- Travel accident insurance
- Trip cancelation/interruption insurance
- Trip delay reimbursement
- Baggage delay insurance
- Lost luggage reimbursement
- Auto rental collision damage waiver
- Travel and emergency assistance
The winner: tie
Considering the two cards are similar, your choice ultimately lies in your preference.
Who should get the Capital One® Venture® Rewards Credit Card?
The Capital One® Venture® Rewards Credit Card is an excellent choice for travelers who don’t want to keep track of categories and who want to earn flat rewards on all purchases.
Who should get the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card?
The Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card offers a higher value for travelers willing to commit. This means getting the Chase Freedom Flex℠ card and/or the Chase Freedom Unlimited® in addition to your Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card. This way you get the Chase trifecta combination, which is one of the most rewarding card combinations you can make.
What’s next?
If you liked the Capital One® Venture® Rewards Credit Card and you think the rewards structure makes sense for your style of spending, you may want to apply. Then again, if putting in a little bit of work with the potential to earn more rewards is your thing, you could consider applying for the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card.
And if neither credit card is coming anywhere near your pocket, keep comparing your options until you catch sight of the credit card with the features you crave.
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