As a full-time traveler who's spent two years traveling across 40+ countries, a good travel credit card is a necessity for me. I've opened half a dozen travel cards over the years, ranging from no-annual-fee cards like the Bilt Mastercard® (see rates and fees) to premium options like the Chase Sapphire Reserve® (see rates and fees) and Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card.
I've pared down my collection over time, keeping only the cards that combine good value with benefits I actually use. This led to me cancelling all my annual-fee cards except one: the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card (See rates and fees).
What makes the Chase Sapphire Preferred the only card I'm willing to pay to keep? And why is it the one I recommend to all my friends looking for their first travel card? Let me explain.
The Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card packs a punch for a $95 annual fee card, offering annual travel credits, comprehensive travel protections, flexible rewards and more.
- You can transfer rewards to all of Chase's travel partners including World of Hyatt, Southwest Rapid Rewards and many more
- Long list of travel and shopping protections
- Annual Chase Travel hotel credit
- Has an annual fee
- Requires a high credit score
Highlights
Highlights shown here are provided by the issuer and have not been reviewed by CNBC Select's editorial staff.
- Earn 75,000 bonus points after you spend $5,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening.
- Enjoy benefits such as 5x on travel purchased through Chase TravelSM, 3x on dining, 3x on vacation homes, 3x on gas & EV charging, 3x on top streaming services and online groceries (excluding Walmart, Target, and wholesale clubs), 2x on all other travel purchases, 1x on all other purchases
- Earn up to $100 in statement credits each account anniversary year for hotel stays through Chase Travel
- Count on Trip Cancellation/Interruption Insurance, Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver, Emergency Evacuation and Transportation and more
- Get a year of complimentary Apple TV when activated by December 31, 2026 - a value of $156.
- Complimentary DashPass which unlocks $0 delivery fees & lower service fees for 12 months when you activate by 12/31/27. Plus, a $10 promo each month on non-restaurant orders.
- Receive one statement credit of up to $120 every four years as reimbursement for the application fee charged to your card for a Global Entry, TSA Precheck® or NEXUS application.
- Transfer points to leading airline and hotel loyalty programs
- Member FDIC
Balance transfer fee
Either $5 or 5% of the amount of each transfer, whichever is greater
Excellent value without the "coupon book" trap
Given all the cards I've had personally, and the dozens more I've researched as a credit cards writer, I like to think I'm pretty familiar with all the options out there. For me, the Chase Sapphire Preferred stands out among the competition in terms of value for money.
The $95 annual fee is reasonable, and it buys you two major upgrades compared to Chase's no-annual-fee cards: access to 1:1 or more point transfers and robust travel protections. It's hard to put a tangible value on these perks, but in my experience, one good points redemption or trip gone wrong and the card earns its keep for the year.
The card also comes with a $100 annual hotel credit for stays booked through Chase Travel, which has relatively few restrictions and actually makes sense for the card's target audience — travelers. I have no trouble using the credit every year, which fully covers the cost of the annual fee.
Compare that to other premium cards with significantly higher annual fees and a "coupon book" of various credits that are often restrictive, doled out in inconveniently-small monthly increments or don't fit the main theme of the card. (Answer me this, Chase Sapphire Reserve: do Peloton and Apple TV+ credits really make sense for a travel card?) I don't want to need a spreadsheet to keep track of my card benefits and make sure I'm getting my money's worth. With the Chase Sapphire Preferred, I don't.
Flexible points and useful transfer partners
Chase has 13 hotel and airline transfer partners, which isn't the absolute highest among all the major issuers. But it does have several high-value partners and a great balance between domestic airlines, international airlines and hotels.
The best ways to book domestic flights with Chase points include, transferring to JetBlue TrueBlue, Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards, United MileagePlus or Air Canada Aeroplan to fly around the U.S. and much of the Americas. KLM-Air France Flying Blue frequently offers great deals to Europe, while Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer is a solid choice for flying to Asia. In terms of hotels, Hyatt offers excellent value for your points and has properties across the globe.
Despite being a travel card, the Chase Sapphire Preferred's points can also be redeemed for cash back for one cent per point. That's different from cards like the American Express Platinum Card® or Capital One Venture X, whose points are worth significantly less when redeemed for non-travel options. While I personally prefer to redeem my rewards for travel, it's nice to have a way to liquidate my points without gutting their value.
All this makes the Chase Sapphire Preferred a great option for travelers like me who value the flexibility to find good deals anywhere in the world. It's also why I recommend this card to travel card newbies who don't have a specific destination in mind and want to keep their options open.
Pairs well with other Chase cards
I'll admit, I'm a Chase loyalist. I currently hold three Chase cards: the Chase Sapphire Preferred, the Chase Freedom Unlimited® (See rates and fees) and the Ink Business Cash® Credit Card (See rates and fees). I also want to get a Chase Freedom Flex® soon.
The Ink Business Cash® Credit Card is a no-annual-fee cash-back business card that's especially rewarding at office supply stores and gas stations.
- Valuable welcome bonus
- Intro APR for purchases
- No annual fee
- Bonus spending categories have annual limits
- Has a foreign transaction fee
Highlights
Highlights shown here are provided by the issuer and have not been reviewed by CNBC Select's editorial staff.
- Earn $1,000 when you spend $8,000 on purchases in the first four months after account opening
- Earn 5% cash back at office supply stores and on internet, cable and phone services each account anniversary year on the first $25,000 in combined spend
- Earn 2% cash back on dining and gas each account anniversary year on the first $25,000 spent in combined spend.
- Earn 1% cash back on all other purchases with no limit to the amount you can earn.
- Earn 5% total cash back on Lyft rides through 9/30/27.
- As a Chase cardmember, you'll be automatically checked for a credit line increase at least every 6 months.
- Complimentary three-month lnstacart+ membership.
- No Annual Fee
- 0% introductory APR for 12 months on purchases
- Member FDIC
Balance transfer fee
Either $5 or 5% of the amount of each transfer, whichever is greater
Foreign transaction fee
3% of each transaction in U.S. dollars
My Chase Sapphire Preferred is the key to maximizing the usefulness of my other Chase credit cards, thanks to a feature of the Ultimate Rewards® points ecosystem. I can pool points from other Chase cards onto my Sapphire Preferred to access the Preferred's transfer partners, even if the cards that originally earned those points don't have access to point transfers — which is the case for my Freedom Unlimited and Ink Business Cash.
Having the Chase Sapphire Preferred essentially lets me turn those cash-back cards into travel rewards cards, while still benefitting from their higher rewards rates in certain categories. This strategy is known as the Chase Trifecta, and it's a popular way to rack up points quickly.
Plus, the sheer number of different Chase cards available means I have lots of options if I ever want to open a new card — and earn a new welcome bonus — for a quick points infusion.
Top-notch travel protections
The Chase Sapphire Preferred has some of the best credit card travel protections, even beating out luxury cards like the Amex Platinum and Capital One Venture X. When you pay for your trip or common carrier fare with your card (and meet any other conditions stipulated in the cardholder guide to benefits), you'll automatically get:
- Trip cancellation/interruption insurance
- Baggage delay insurance
- Travel and emergency assistance
- Auto rental coverage
- Trip delay reimbursement
- Lost luggage reimbursement
- Roadside dispatch
- Travel accident insurance
While I still keep a separate medical insurance policy, the Sapphire Preferred's travel protections cover all of my other travel insurance needs. This means I don't need to pay for an additional travel insurance policy, while still having the peace of mind of knowing I'll be covered if things go wrong.
The trip delay insurance alone has already saved me enough money to cover the card's annual fee several times over. Chase covered over $300 of food and lodging expenses after a series of flight delays stranded me in New York City for three days.
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Final thoughts
The Chase Sapphire Preferred isn't a perfect card. It doesn't have the high-end perks (like airport lounge access) that more expensive cards do, and its rewards rates are lackluster outside of travel and dining purchases. It can't fully compete with high-end cards with five or six times the annual fees, but it's not meant to.
Instead, it's a jack of all-trades travel card offering extremely flexible rewards and a suite of useful (but not luxury) travel benefits, all for a modest $95 annual fee. This makes it a great starter card for travel rewards newbies or budget-conscious travelers like me.
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For rates and fees of the American Express Platinum Card®, click here.
For Capital One products listed on this page, some of the above benefits are provided by Visa® or Mastercard® and may vary by product. See the respective Guide to Benefits for details, as terms and exclusions apply.
