The Chase Sapphire Preferred Card is an outstanding credit card designed specifically to meet the needs of travelers. It provides a generous signup bonus and accelerated points accumulation on travel-related spending, while providing invaluable travel protection that could save hundreds or even thousands over time.
These benefits include primary rental car coverage, trip cancellation/interruption coverage and more. But the value of this card doesn’t stop there!
1. Double Points on Travel and Dining
The Chase Sapphire Preferred Card is one of the most sought-after travel rewards cards on the market, featuring an attractive sign-up bonus and high earning rates on dining and travel-related purchases, along with valuable benefits such as trip cancellation/interruption coverage, primary rental car insurance and baggage delay insurance – all at a moderate annual fee. As such, it makes for an ideal introduction into rewards credit card use without risking too much capital upfront.
The Sapphire Preferred earns two points for every dollar spent on travel (or five when booked via Ultimate Rewards), three points per dollar on dining, online grocery shopping and eligible streaming services, with rewards earning rates between 2.5% to 6.25 (2%-5% cash back), making this card comparable with other premium travel credit cards.
Spending on Chase credit cards provides access to their network of travel partners. When redeeming points in the Ultimate Rewards travel portal, you’ll have access to hundreds of airlines and hotels offering travel packages at 1.25 cents each. Plus you can even use points for gift cards! It’s the perfect way to stretch your dollar further!
For those without the time or interest in more complex redemption strategies, cash back redemption at 1.25 cents apiece may also be suitable. Other features that make the card stand out include an annual hotel credit of $50 plus valuable protections like trip cancellation/interruption insurance and auto rental collision damage waiver coverage.
This card comes with an annual fee of $95, but its benefits easily outweigh this drawback if you plan to take full advantage of its bonus earning categories and travel-related perks and protections. Plus, its no foreign transaction fees offer savings of 3%+ on international purchases, making it an excellent choice for travelers no matter their home country or frequency of international trips.
2. No Foreign Transaction Fees
Foreign transaction fees can be especially helpful to travelers, particularly those who frequently order products from overseas. These charges — typically between 1% and 3% of your purchase amount — quickly add up over time, making cards that don’t charge them the smarter choice when it comes to international travel and spending abroad.
The Chase Sapphire Preferred card doesn’t charge these fees, making it ideal for travelers and people who regularly shop online from foreign retailers. This feature could save them hundreds of dollars annually in fees charged for additional charges.
Not only does the card offer advantages to frequent travelers, it also features other valuable benefits that can help cover expenses. One such perk is travel accident insurance which protects you and your immediate family members up to $500,000 when traveling on common carriers such as airlines, cruise ships or trains – an invaluable way to protect loved ones while you travel and one rarely seen on other cards.
Travel enthusiasts will also appreciate perks such as up to $50 annual Ultimate Rewards hotel credit, primary rental car insurance, trip cancellation/interruption coverage and up to $100 coverage per day for essential items if their flight is delayed more than 6 hours using their card as payment for ticket purchase.
The Chase Sapphire Preferred card also comes equipped with an enhanced version of Chase Offers, providing you with a way to earn extra points when shopping select retailers online. Simply activate them through the Chase app and redeem them for statement credits, trial credit amounts or monthly credits depending on which offer is applicable to you. Take advantage of exclusive shopping portals with partners such as Gopuff, Lyft and DoorDash with this card’s exclusive shopping portals to receive extra rewards when paying with it; use Gopuff Lyft DoorDash portals instead to make purchases while paying with it – they also feature real-time fraud monitoring so they’ll notify them when there is suspicious activity occurring with regards your account – text/email notifications are alerting them of suspicious activity immediately should this occurs so they’ll always know!
3. Zero Liability Protection
Possessing a credit card that doesn’t charge foreign transaction fees can be invaluable when traveling or making online purchases in foreign currencies, like the Chase Sapphire Preferred card does not levy these costs, which can quickly add up when buying things that cost in different amounts than expected.
Chase Sapphire cardholders enjoy additional peace of mind when traveling by taking advantage of benefits such as purchase protection and travel accident insurance coverage, with purchase protection offering reimbursement or replacement in case of damage or theft, while travel accident coverage provides up to $500,000 of protection per covered trip. Furthermore, primary car rental coverage, travel delay reimbursement and more make the Chase Sapphire card an indispensable travel companion.
Chase Sapphire cardholders can redeem their Ultimate Rewards points for up to 25 percent more value when booking travel through its travel portal, or transfer them at a 1:1 ratio into various airline and hotel loyalty programs. Furthermore, this card offers a welcome bonus of 60,000 points after spending $4,000 within three months and annual travel credits and airport lounge access – as well as annual travel credits.
While other cards offer higher rewards rates in specific categories (like dining and travel) as well as additional perks, many also impose higher annual fees than the Chase Sapphire Preferred card. In addition, the Sapphire Preferred card provides real-time fraud monitoring; you’ll receive text or email alerts when suspicious activity takes place on your account and can dispute any unwarranted charges that appear as though they belong to you. For consumers concerned with fraudulent activity on their card, this feature of the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card can be an excellent safeguard – which explains its high ranking on NerdWallet’s best credit cards lists. To apply, visit its official website. You must possess both an adequate credit score and income to qualify for this card, with additional screening measures such as credit pulls or employment verification being conducted as necessary. Approval also depends on factors like debt levels and assets owned.
4. Real-Time Fraud Monitoring
The Chase Sapphire Preferred Card is an ideal travel card and provides plenty of benefits that more than justify its $95 annual fee, such as a generous signup bonus, high points earning rates for travel and dining expenses and key travel features such as primary rental car collision damage waiver and trip cancellation/interruption protection.
This card offers no foreign transaction fees – an invaluable advantage for international travelers. Additionally, it comes equipped with primary auto rental collision damage waiver coverage that many other cards don’t provide – instead relying on you having car insurance policies of your own to cover such damages. In terms of security features it also boasts real-time fraud monitoring and the capability of remotely locking accounts should unauthorized charges occur.
Redeem your Ultimate Rewards points for cash back, gift cards and merchandise; but the best value comes from booking travel through Chase’s Ultimate Rewards travel portal or transferring them at a 1:1 ratio with partners.
Chase also offers an extra 25% bonus when redeeming points for statement credits in select categories every quarter, increasing their value to 1.25 cents each. Plus, on your account anniversary each year you’ll get an additional 10% point bonus for purchases made using your card during that year!
If you prefer cards that provide cash back or luxury travel perks such as airport lounge access, such as Citi Double Cash Card or The Platinum Card from American Express are viable choices for cash back or luxury benefits; casual travelers might find the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card more suitable. Accessing it typically only available to those with good to excellent credit scores; just make sure that before applying you review all terms and conditions carefully!
