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Yahoo
15-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
The 20 best Chase Sapphire Preferred Card benefits
Take an in-depth look at the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card's perks and benefits — along with its massive welcome offer — to see if it aligns with your lifestyle, preferences, and financial goals. You can earn 60,000 bonus points after spending $5,000 on purchases in the first three months from account opening. Here's the full Sapphire Preferred rewards rate: 5x points on travel purchased through Chase Travel℠ 3x points on dining, select streaming services, and online groceries 2x points on all other travel purchases 1x points on all other purchases General travel expenses, including flights and hotel stays, provide 2x points. That's useful when planning upcoming trips, but the true hero may be the 3x dining, select streaming services, and online grocery categories. With these categories, you can earn rewards for a future vacation when you grab a bite to eat or pay for your monthly entertainment subscription, such as Disney+ or Netflix. One of our favorite Sapphire Preferred features is that you don't have to pay an excessive annual fee. For $95 per year, you can access one of the top travel credit cards available and earn flexible Chase points. Considering this card's many benefits, it's more than a reasonable fee. The Sapphire Preferred doesn't charge foreign transaction fees. This means you don't have to pay an extra 3% when purchasing from a foreign merchant or retailer. Credit cards with no foreign transaction fees are essential if you travel internationally. The Sapphire Preferred works on the Visa card network to process transactions. It typically doesn't matter which major card network — including American Express, Discover, Visa, and Mastercard — you use in the U.S. because they're all widely accepted. However, international travelers prefer Visa and Mastercard because they're more accepted worldwide than Amex and Discover. Visa credit cards are accepted in more than 200 countries and territories globally. You can earn up to $50 in statement credits each anniversary year for hotel stays you purchase through Chase Travel. Taking advantage of this benefit each year can immediately offset over half of the $95 annual fee. As a Chase Sapphire Preferred cardholder, you get a 25% bonus on points you redeem for travel through Chase Travel. That's a quick and easy way to increase the value of your points if you prefer using Chase Travel to make your travel bookings. With this 25% bonus on award travel redemptions through Chase Travel, 60,000 points would be worth $750. Chase transfer partners are one of the reasons we think Chase points are so valuable. As a redemption option, you can transfer points to one of over a dozen travel partners, including Southwest Airlines, United, and World of Hyatt. You can often get more value from your rewards by transferring them to travel partners than redeeming them through Chase Travel. However, it depends on the specific redemption, and Chase Travel is typically easier to navigate. Here's the complete list of Chase transfer partners: Aer Lingus, AerClub Air Canada Aeroplan British Airways Executive Club Emirates Skywards Air France-KLM Flying Blue Iberia Plus IHG Rewards Club JetBlue TrueBlue Marriott Bonvoy Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards United MileagePlus Virgin Atlantic Flying Club World of Hyatt Part of the appeal of the Chase Ultimate Rewards program is being able to combine points between eligible Chase credit cards that earn Ultimate Rewards. Depending on the situation, this provides opportunities to get more value from your points. For example, you might use the Chase Freedom Unlimited® card to make certain everyday purchases. You can move points from the Freedom Unlimited to your Sapphire Preferred, and they're immediately worth 25% more if you plan to redeem them for travel through Chase Travel. Using the same strategy, you can move points from another eligible card to your Sapphire Preferred and then transfer them to an available travel partner. Depending on your needs, you can redeem points for these redemption options: Transfers to airline and hotel partners Chase Travel redemptions, including flights, cruises, rental cars, and hotel stays Combine points between eligible Chase cards Cash back (statement credit or electronic deposit into an eligible U.S. bank account) Gift cards Chase Dining program Experiences Pay Yourself Back program Pay with Points program ( and PayPal) Each account anniversary, you earn a bonus of 10% of your previous year's total purchases. This likely won't be a huge bonus for most people, as 10% of a whopping $25,000 is only 2,500 total points, but it's an extra perk that doesn't require additional thinking. The Chase Sapphire Preferred provides various types of travel coverage: Auto rental collision damage waiver: Provides primary coverage for damages caused by theft or collision on eligible car rentals. Baggage delay insurance: Reimburses for essential purchases on eligible delays of over six hours. Lost luggage reimbursement: Reimburses for replacing or repairing eligible baggage due to loss, damage, or theft during a covered trip. Travel accident insurance: Covers the cardholder and eligible family members on eligible trips against different types of accidents. Trip cancellation and interruption insurance: Covers you against cancellations or interruptions on eligible trips due to covered situations, such as sickness or severe weather. Trip delay reimbursement: Covers unreimbursed expenses, such as meals and lodging, for eligible delays of 12 hours or more or delays requiring an overnight stay. Travel and emergency assistance services: Provides access to travel and emergency assistance services for various situations, including medical referrals, emergency transportation, and more. Note that benefits administrators can help you locate the services you need, but the costs of any services you decide to use are your responsibility. Any eligible new purchases you make with your card can receive these benefits: Purchase protection: Covers against damage or theft of eligible new purchases. Extended warranty protection: Extends eligible warranties on covered purchases by one additional a Sapphire Preferred cardmember, you can receive early access to tickets and priority seating. The events and experiences vary but could include festivals, concerts, dining experiences, and more. You can get a complimentary one-year DashPass membership for $0 delivery fees and lower service fees on eligible orders. After you activate this offer by Dec. 31, 2027, you can receive a $10 discount each calendar month on one qualifying non-restaurant DoorDash order. This offer continues as long as you're enrolled in the Chase Sapphire Preferred DashPass membership. You can contact the Visa Signature Concierge (1-800-953-7392) for help with restaurant reservations, tickets to various events, and more. Eligible Chase customers can break up purchases into multiple ways using the Chase Pay Over Time feature. If eligible and available, you can use Chase Pay Over Time after your purchase or during the checkout process with participating online retailers. Your rewards don't expire as long as your account is active. Chase Sapphire Preferred cardholders can refer friends and family to one of the Chase Sapphire products, including the Chase Sapphire Reserve® or Sapphire Preferred. You can earn bonus points for each approved person, up to a yearly limit. You can call the number on the back of your card for 2/47 customer service assistance. The Chase Sapphire Preferred is a great rewards credit card for people who want to travel more for less. Its low $95 annual fee is easily offset by its generous welcome bonus, high rewards rate, and additional perks, including extensive travel and purchase coverage. The Chase Sapphire Preferred is an excellent travel rewards card, but a no-annual-fee card may make more sense depending on your preferences. Consider these Sapphire Preferred disadvantages: $95 annual fee No airport lounge access No TSA PreCheck or Global Entry fee credit No introductory APR offer Typically requires a good or excellent credit score No, the Chase Sapphire Preferred doesn't provide an application fee credit for TSA PreCheck or Global Entry. For a travel credit card with a similar annual fee that does have this credit, consider the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card. You must make applicable purchases with your Chase Sapphire Preferred card to be eligible for travel insurance coverage. For example, you can receive auto rental coverage if you decline the rental company's collision insurance and charge the entire rental car cost to your card. The Chase Sapphire Preferred doesn't provide a free Lyft Pink membership. Editorial Disclosure: The information in this article has not been reviewed or approved by any advertiser. All opinions belong solely to the Yahoo Finance and are not those of any other entity. The details on financial products, including card rates and fees, are accurate as of the publish date. All products or services are presented without warranty. Check the bank's website for the most current information. This site doesn't include all currently available offers. Credit score alone does not guarantee or imply approval for any financial product.
Forbes
02-05-2025
- Business
- Forbes
You Won't Believe These 3 Weekend Getaways You Can Fund With Chase's 100k Welcome Bonus
Imagine unlocking a world of travel with a single decision. Right now, the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card is giving you the chance to turn everyday spending into your next vacation with a staggering new bonus worth at least $1,250 in travel. You might already have more than a few redemptions in mind for a hefty sum like that, but if not, we have a few exceptional suggestions on how to maximize your next weekend getaway. Earn 100,000 bonus points after you spend $5,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account ... More opening. Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card - See Rates & Fees Hundreds of credit cards offer bonuses to new cardholders, but the Sapphire Preferred is essentially handing you a free ticket to adventure. If you apply soon, you can earn 100,000 bonus points after spending $5,000 on purchases in the first three months from account opening. With its 100,000 point offer on the market for a limited time, this single credit card sign-up could translate into memorable experiences without breaking the bank. There are two primary ways to use your Sapphire Preferred welcome bonus to pay for travel. The more intuitive of the two is using Chase Ultimate Rewards® to make reservations through Chase Travel℠ with a 25% bonus (in other words, each point is worth 1.25 cents when making these redemptions). The booking interface works similarly to most other travel booking websites, except that you'll have the option to pay with points at checkout (in addition to the typical option to charge your card). For these reasons, Chase Travel offers simplicity and nearly limitless travel options. The other option is the ability to transfer Ultimate Rewards to travel partners. Partners include: Airline Partners Hotel Partners The act of moving your points from Chase to your preferred program is quick, but it can take a little more finesse to find available awards and determine if you're getting a good deal. That extra effort can pay off, though: Some hot deals could significantly boost your redemption value. If a weekend chasing thrills at the theme park sounds like a good time, you can make it possible using your Sapphire Preferred bonus, and likely have enough points to bring the kids along too. Competition across airlines keeps most flights to Orlando reasonably priced, including when paying in miles. Southwest Airlines, an Ultimate Rewards transfer partner, has more service to Orlando than any other airline and can be a great option for families booking rewards since every seat available for sale is also available for point redemptions. Use its low-fare calendar to seek out cheaper travel dates and score round-trip flights in economy for about 20,000 points per person. Even after redeeming 80,000 points for a family of four's airfare, the Sapphire Preferred welcome offer would still leave you with 20,000 remaining points. Amazingly, that's enough leftover to pay for a hotel stay. Transfer your remaining points to World of Hyatt, another 1:1 transfer partner, and look for two nights at a Category 2 hotel. The Hyatt Place across from Universal Orlando Resort is a solid choice with an obviously convenient location, plus rooms fit for families with two queen beds plus a pull-out couch. If you book off-peak nights, the award rate drops to 6,500 points per night, meaning you'd have the budget to extend your stay a third night. Tulum is Mexico's current hot spot, and a weekend of fun in the sun can be yours when redeeming your Sapphire Preferred offer for a getaway. It's easier to reach than ever, with new nonstop flights from the U.S. right into Felipe Carrillo Puerto International Airport (TQO) or comfortable rides on the recently finished Tren Maya route from Cancun's airport station to Tulum. With so many accessible options, you can shop around for the best prices on airfare to stretch your points further. Transferring points to United, Southwest or JetBlue are all familiar ways to lock in an award flight without a steep learning curve. Then, transfer Ultimate Rewards to IHG One Rewards to book a stay at the Kimpton Aluna Resort Tulum. You'll frequently find award nights priced under 30,000 points per night—and sometimes cheaper. For both your flight and hotel stay, do some quick math before transferring points. Occasionally, it may require fewer points to book your trip components via Chase Travel with a 25% points bonus. This extra versatility is one of the reasons we love the Sapphire Preferred. You're not beholden to a specific type of redemption and instead can pick the option that suits you best. Pro Tip: At 1.25 cents per point, you'd need 24,000 Ultimate Rewards points to pay for a $300 flight booked through Chase Travel. Similarly, you'd need 16,000 points to pay for a $200 hotel. With two different strategies to book, your 100,000-point Sapphire Preferred bonus should easily cover a round-trip flight and a two-night stay. With flexible dates, you can likely squeeze in a second passenger, too. A weekend jaunt to London might seem cheeky, but if you live in a hub city on the East Coast, the flight's not so bad. And, believe it or not, 100,000 Chase Ultimate Rewards is enough to cover your flight and three nights at a desirable hotel, helping you plan a European getaway from a single credit card offer. Start by transferring Ultimate Rewards to Virgin Atlantic and looking for dates with affordable economy reward flights. Unless you're traveling over the summer or a major holiday, there's a good chance you'll find rewards under 10,000 points each way. To fund your hotel stay, move Ultimate Rewards into your World of Hyatt account. The Category 5 Hyatt Regency London Albert Embankment costs 20,000 points per night and is within walking distance to major sites like Westminster Abbey or the Tate Britain. Since the cost of a flight and three nights in a hotel is under 100,000 points, you'll have some rewards left to spare. You can cash some out as a statement credit to offset the taxes and fees on your award flight or pay for meals and attractions in London. Alternatively, treat yourself: Upgrade one or both directions of your trip to premium economy, choose a more luxurious hotel or bring a friend. Chase Ultimate Rewards is an incredible currency when it comes to travel. While 100,000 points can be an excellent starting budget for major trips, it could also fund a weekend trip in full. Either way, turn those points into unforgettable memories and start planning your next adventure. Information provided on Forbes Advisor is for educational purposes only. Your financial situation is unique and the products and services we review may not be right for your circumstances. We do not offer financial advice, advisory or brokerage services, nor do we recommend or advise individuals or to buy or sell particular stocks or securities. Performance information may have changed since the time of publication. Past performance is not indicative of future results. Forbes Advisor adheres to strict editorial integrity standards. To the best of our knowledge, all content is accurate as of the date posted, though offers contained herein may no longer be available. The opinions expressed are the author's alone and have not been provided, approved, or otherwise endorsed by our partners.
Yahoo
02-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
How to use the Chase Sapphire Preferred 100,000-point bonus before the offer ends
For a limited time, you can earn a whopping 100,000 bonus points when you open a new Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card and spend $5,000 within the first three months of account opening. Chase Ultimate Rewards points are a valuable rewards currency for frequent travelers with several redemption options to fit how you like to travel. With a sum as big as 100,000 points banked in your account, you can guarantee major savings when you book your next vacation. Here's how:The exact value of your 100,000 bonus points will depend on how you redeem them. For most credit card travel rewards, you should aim for a redemption value of around 1 cent per point. That makes 100,000 points worth about $1,000 — not bad for a card with a $95 annual fee. But one of the great things about the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card is its variety of redemption options, including some that can increase your value beyond that standard. For example, Chase itself values the 100,000-point card bonus at $1,250 toward future travel. That's because the issuer offers a 25% boost when you use points to book trips through Chase Travel. So, each point is worth 1.25 cents (or $1,250 total) when you redeem this way. Your points can also increase in value when you transfer them to travel partners. While you won't get any boost just for transferring, travel programs typically have dynamic pricing. That means your points could potentially be worth more than 1 cent each based on your travel details. Dynamic award pricing usually varies depending on when you book, your travel dates, your destination, and other factors. You can get the best value for your points by keeping your plans flexible so you can take advantage of award deals. Read more: Who is eligible for the Chase Sapphire Preferred 100k bonus? These are all your options for using your 100,000 Chase Sapphire Preferred points after you earn the sign-up bonus. One of the most simple and valuable redemptions for your 100,000 welcome bonus points is using them to book travel through Chase Travel℠. Like we said above, each Chase Sapphire Preferred point is worth 1.25 cents through the Chase Travel portal — a 25% boost from the standard redemption value. You can use Chase Travel to book flights, hotels, rental cars, tourist activities and tours, and even cruises with your points. While flights and hotels are a common way to book through the portal, don't forget all of the other parts of your vacation you can cover too. For example, let's say you and a friend want to go to Orlando this fall for a theme park visit. You could use a portion of your points to purchase two-day Park to Park tickets at Universal Orlando, which gives you access to both Universal Studios Florida and Universal Islands of Adventure for two days within a five-day window. After purchasing your Universal tickets, you'll still have 39,682 points of the 100,000-point bonus left to cover more of your vacation. Maybe you live in Dallas and want to fly into Orlando for your trip. You can book round-trip, Main Cabin airfare for two travelers between Oct. 7 and 11 for a total of 59,738 points. Since you don't have that many points left after booking your Universal tickets, you could use the rest of your 39,682 points to cover a portion of the airfare and pay the remaining $249.72 in cash. Or you might instead opt to use the remaining points toward your hotel stay in Orlando. For a four-night stay between Oct. 7 and 11, you could book a room at the Four Points by Sheraton near Universal and cover the cost using points. In total, the hotel cost is $466.85 — but with the 25% boost, you can cover that in full with about 37,300 points. You can use your 100,000 bonus points to cover both your hotel stay and Universal park tickets and still have a couple thousand points left in your account. Related: Best credit cards for Disney vacations Transferring points to Chase's travel partners is another great way to redeem them, especially if you have status with an airline or hotel partner or you simply prefer to book travel directly. Chase Ultimate Rewards points transfer to partners at a 1:1 value, so you'll still have 100,000 points with the partner program after you transfer the welcome bonus. Here's a full list of current Chase transfer partners: Aer Lingus AerClub Air Canada Aeroplan British Airways Executive Club Emirates Skywards Flying Blue Air France KLM Iberia Plus IHG Rewards Club JetBlue TrueBlue Marriott Bonvoy Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards United MileagePlus Virgin Atlantic Flying Club World of Hyatt As an example of how to use transferred partner points, let's say you're planning a summer trip from your home near Atlanta to Boston for the Fourth of July holiday weekend. For a family of four with two children under age 14, you could book a United Airlines flight with a quick layover both ways. That's a total of 84,400 for all four tickets, plus $44.80 in taxes and fees. If you book four tickets on the same flights using dollars, you would pay $1,105 (including taxes and fees) — making this a great redemption to boost the value of your points. For this trip, you could choose to transfer the full 100,000 points to United MileagePlus and use the rest for your next flight. Or you could transfer only 85,000 points to cover the cost of this trip and keep the rest in your Chase Ultimate Rewards account, since you can choose to transfer any amount in 1,000-point increments. Your points may grow even more valuable when you transfer to a partner program offering a transfer bonus. Through April 30, you can transfer Chase Ultimate Rewards points to IHG One Rewards with an 80% bonus. That increases your 100,000 points to 180,000 points when you make this transfer. IHG doesn't get the greatest redemption value for its rewards points, but this could be a great deal for fans of IHG brands, which include InterContinental, Kimpton, Holiday Inn, Staybridge Suites, and more. Let's say you're planning a trip to Europe in late summer and want to spend a few days in London. You could use those 180,000 points to book three weekend nights at the Hotel Indigo in Kensington for 160,000 IHG One points. If you were to book the same hotel in dollars, you would pay about $905 for the three nights including taxes and fees. This way, you'll cover the full cost and still have 20,000 IHG One Rewards points left over. Related: How I used credit card perks and rewards for a once-in-a-lifetime trip to Japan and South Korea Beyond those valuable travel redemptions, there are a few more ways to use your welcome bonus points. Cash back: Redeem for a statement credit or direct deposit into your bank account for a value of 1 cent per point. Pay yourself back: Put your points toward statement credits for specific purchases on your card. This redemption is generally worth 1 cent per point, but Chase occasionally offers Pay Yourself Back bonuses. Through June 30, for example, you'll get a 25% boost when you redeem your points toward donations with select charities. Gift cards: Redeem points for gift card purchases with Chase. These are typically worth 1 cent per point, but you can find some specific gift cards on sale for a higher redemption value. Pay with points: Use your points to make purchases on or PayPal for a 0.8 cent per point value. Apple purchases: Buy Apple products through Chase Ultimate Rewards using points at a rate of 1 cent per point. Chase Dining: Book prepaid reservations, prepaid take-out orders, and experiences with points for a value of 1 cent per point. Experiences: Redeem points for tickets to live entertainment, sporting events, and more for a 1 cent per point value. This article was edited by Rebecca McCracken Editorial Disclosure: The information in this article has not been reviewed or approved by any advertiser. All opinions belong solely to Yahoo Finance and are not those of any other entity. The details on financial products, including card rates and fees, are accurate as of the publish date. All products or services are presented without warranty. Check the bank's website for the most current information. This site doesn't include all currently available offers. Credit score alone does not guarantee or imply approval for any financial product.
Forbes
30-04-2025
- Business
- Forbes
Maximize Your Wallet: Best Cards To Use With Chase Sapphire Preferred
Batman and Robin, peanut butter and jelly—some things are just better in pairs, including the best credit card combinations. The Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card is one that, while powerful on its own, can give you next-level value when coupled with the right partner. There's a long list of attributes that make the Sapphire Preferred such a stellar product and one of the best rewards cards on the market, so let's get into it: For all the Sapphire Preferred's strengths, there's still room for improvement. For example: This is where pairing the Sapphire Preferred with another credit card can take your points earning to the next level. The Chase Freedom Unlimited® is a no annual fee card with simple yet versatile rewards earning: 5% cash back on travel purchased through Chase Travel℠, 3% cash back on eligible dining and drugstores and 1.5% on all other purchases. It's a solid card on its own, but when paired with the Sapphire Preferred, it becomes a powerful tool for maximizing every dollar you spend. What makes this pairing so effective is how well the two cards complement each other. The Sapphire Preferred shines in categories like travel and dining, while the Freedom Unlimited picks up everything else with a minimum above-average return of 1.5X. Instead of settling for the Sapphire Preferred's underwhelming 1X on nonbonus purchases, you can route that spending through the Freedom Unlimited and boost your base earnings by 50%. Since both cards earn Chase Ultimate Rewards® points, combining them means you not only earn more, you also unlock better redemption value through the Sapphire Preferred's 25% travel portal boost or its valuable airline and hotel transfer partners. The no annual fee Chase Freedom Flex® brings rotating 5% bonus categories to the table, making it a trusty sidekick for your Sapphire Preferred. While it earns just 1% back on most purchases, the real value lies in its quarterly bonus categories, where you can earn 5% back on things like gas, grocery stores and online shopping. You'll earn 5% cash back on up to $1,500 in combined purchases in categories that rotate quarterly (requires activation), 5% cash back on travel purchased through Chase Travel℠, 3% cash back on dining and drugstores and 1% cash back on all other purchases. The Sapphire Preferred doesn't offer rotating categories, so the Flex fills a valuable gap, especially if your spending habits shift throughout the year. And like the Freedom Unlimited, it earns Chase Ultimate Rewards® points that become far more valuable once moved to the Sapphire Preferred. That means you can earn 5X points on select categories and redeem those points at a boosted 1.25 cents through Chase Travel—or transfer them to travel partners for even bigger wins. On the surface, the Sapphire Preferred and Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card (rates & fees) may look like competitors, but together they cover nearly every rewards gap. While the Sapphire Preferred focuses on bonus categories and point transfers, the Venture X offers flat-rate simplicity with 2X miles on every purchase—plus premium travel perks like lounge access and annual credits. Where the Sapphire Preferred lacks luxury travel features, the Venture X delivers: Partner Lounge Network access, Capital One Lounge access and a $300 annual travel credit for bookings through Capital One Travel. That travel credit, plus a 10,000-mile anniversary bonus, help make up for the $395 annual fee (rates & fees). Access to Capital One's transfer partners means you have even more options when it's time to book your dream trip. If you don't mind managing two issuers, this duo gives you premium travel perks, solid base earnings on every purchase and access to two of the most valuable rewards ecosystems. The Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card is an impressive standalone travel card, but it becomes far more powerful when paired with the right partner—or two. Whether you want to earn more on everyday spending, take advantage of rotating bonus categories or enjoy premium travel perks, combining it with cards like the Freedom Unlimited, Freedom Flex or Venture X can help you earn more, redeem better and get the most from every dollar. Find the best Chase credit card for your needs. As long as you pay your cards on time, avoid carrying a balance and practice good credit habits, having multiple credit cards will not negatively impact your credit score. It can even help your score over time. You don't have to stop at two cards to maximize your rewards and benefits. Take the Chase Trifecta, for example, where you can combine some of Chase's best cards, like the Chase Sapphire Reserve® or Preferred, with the Chase Freedom Flex and Chase Freedom Unlimited. Having a premium Ultimate Rewards card paired with no-annual-fee cash-back cards can unlock better earnings and more valuable redemption options. Chase doesn't publish the exact score needed to be eligible for the Sapphire Preferred, but as a premium credit card, you'll need at least a good credit score (at least 670 on the FICO scoring scale).
Forbes
25-04-2025
- Business
- Forbes
Don't Qualify For The Current Chase Sapphire Preferred 100K Offer? Here's Why It's Worth It To Be An Authorized User
The Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card is one of the best travel cards on the market, offering a long list of perks for a modest $95 annual fee. But if you already hold a Sapphire card or you received the welcome bonus within the last 48 months, you won't be eligible for the card's 100,000-point welcome bonus. Becoming an authorized user on someone else's Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card can be a win-win situation for all. Here's why. The Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card earns Chase Ultimate Rewards®, a flexible rewards currency that can be used as cash back, to book travel through Chase Travel℠ at a 25% increase in value or transferred to one of Chase's hotel and airline travel partners. The latter two are some of the best redemption options for those looking to use their rewards for travel and are a main driver behind the card's overall value. The Sapphire Preferred earns rewards at a rate of 5 points per dollar on travel purchased through Chase Travel℠, 3 points per dollar on dining, select streaming services, and online grocery purchases (excluding Walmart, Target and wholesale clubs), 2 points per dollar on all other travel purchases and 1 point per dollar on other purchases. That's a solid rewards rate for a card with a $95 annual fee. If you're added as an authorized user on someone's card, you'll both earn rewards at that same rate, and all the earnings will be combined under the primary cardholder's account. This can streamline your combined rewards-earning strategy and help you work toward a common goal. Chase allows points pooling between two household members, which opens up a lot of ways to make the most of your spending and points redemption strategy. For example, let's say Card Member A has a Chase Sapphire Preferred card and adds Card Member B as an authorized user. Card Member B has a Chase Freedom Unlimited®, which earns 5% cash back on travel purchased through Chase Travel℠, 3% cash back on eligible dining and drugstores and 1.5% on all other purchases. Card Member A is added to Card Member B's Freedom Unlimited as an authorized user. If both parties used their Sapphire Preferred on travel and dining and their Freedom Unlimited on everything else, they'd earn between 1.5 points to 5 points on every purchase, allowing them to work together to build up a stash. The Chase Sapphire Preferred makes it easy for novices and experienced travel rewards redeemers alike to squeeze more value out of their points than if those rewards are used for cash back. Choosing to redeem Ultimate Rewards for cash back gives you a value of 1 cent per point. But the Chase Sapphire Preferred gives you two ways to make more out of your stash. Both the primary cardholder and the authorized user can book travel with rewards directly through Chase Travel, and the points will be worth 25% more—a valuable feature that makes it one of the best Chase cards on the market. In other words, book a $125 flight through Chase Travel, and it will only cost 10,000 points. Compare that to using cash back to pay for your flight. In that scenario, it would cost you 12,500 points since a point is worth 1 cent each when taken as cash. The secret sauce to travel rewards is when issuers offer travel transfer partners. The Chase Sapphire Preferred is one of three Chase cards that allow you to transfer your rewards to Chase's travel transfer partners. The other two are the Chase Sapphire Reserve® and the Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card. Transferring rewards directly to travel partners can save you a lot of points, so this is a worthwhile perk for anyone seeking a travel card. For instance, if we compare the price of a JetBlue (one of Chase's partners) flight Thanksgiving week in November 2025, one way from Fort Lauderdale (FLL) to New York's JFK airport, the lowest cash price is $209. Since bookings made through Chase Travel are based on the cash price, it would cost you 16,720 Ultimate Rewards points with the Chase Sapphire Preferred's 25% points boost to book this flight through Chase Travel. That same flight, when booked with points through JetBlue, requires just 13,900 TrueBlue points. This means you can save 2,820 points by transferring your Ultimate Rewards to JetBlue TrueBlue and booking that way. It may not seem like a huge difference, but the savings can really add up across multiple tickets or travel bookings. Good news here for authorized users of the Chase Sapphire Preferred: Both primary users and authorized users can transfer their rewards directly to one of Chase's travel transfer partners. Chase has a widely known (but unpublished) rule known as the '5/24 rule'. This means Chase will not approve you for a new credit card if you have applied for five or more personal credit cards from any issuer within the previous 24 months. If you are over 5/24 but want to utilize the Sapphire Preferred's benefits, it can make sense to become an authorized user on someone else's card. Related to this, you also cannot earn a welcome bonus on either the Chase Sapphire Preferred or the Chase Sapphire Reserve if you've earned a welcome bonus on any Sapphire card within the previous 48 months or currently own a Sapphire card as a primary card member. Someone who appreciates the benefits of their Chase Sapphire Preferred but wants an opportunity to earn a welcome bonus on the card down the line can go the authorized user route. The Chase Sapphire Preferred card charges an annual fee of $95, but there's no charge for authorized user cards. Saving that $95 is a nice perk of adding an authorized user instead of having them get their own card. It's worth noting that most financial institutions no longer offer joint credit card accounts, where both parties share responsibility for the account. So, for couples who want to share a credit card account, having one person as the primary cardholder and the other as an authorized user is the next best thing. The Chase Sapphire Preferred packs valuable travel protections into a card with an annual fee under $100. The card comes with primary auto rental coverage, trip cancellation and interruption coverage, baggage delay insurance and trip delay reimbursement. The card also offers purchase protection and extended warranty coverage. Anyone who travels is likely to experience a delay or an unexpected change in plans at some point, so these perks can add value. Additionally, the purchase protections can also save you a bundle if something you bought while traveling breaks or is stolen and you can't return to the merchant for assistance. Authorized Sapphire Preferred users get to enjoy these benefits on their cards. DoorDash is an online food and grocery delivery service. DashPass is DoorDash's subscription service that offers $0 delivery fees and lower service fees on eligible orders in exchange for a $9.99 monthly plan. The Chase Sapphire Preferred card offers both primary cardholders and authorized users complimentary DashPass access for a minimum of one-year when you activate the subscription by December 31, 2027. That could add up to major savings for those who frequently use the service. Becoming an authorized user on the Chase Sapphire Preferred card has loads of benefits. For those chasing a particular card strategy, it can make sense to become an authorized user rather than applying for the card outright. Plus, the opportunity to save money and work toward a shared rewards-earning strategy can help you and the primary cardholder reach shared travel goals.
