Chase Sapphire Preferred: The Ultimate Starter Card for Travel Rewards

The right travel rewards credit card can fuel your travels in style.

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In our personal travel, whenever I have flights of, say 5 hours or more, I’m looking for those business and first class seats.

Our necks and backs are just too old to deal with being crumpled up in coach on long-haul flights. We always seek out the elusive free upgrades on these flights.

However, I would never pay for them.

To upgrade usually costs 5 to 10 times as much as your ticket price. That coach fare for $700 might end up being $5,000 if you pay for the upgrade.

Upgrading with Credit Card Points

Instead, I use credit card points, a few tools (which we’ll share in a future post that automates much of this process), and some flexibility.

We’ve probably taken 50 different business-class flights over the years for free (outside of some taxes and airport fees) and you arrive rested and ready to hit the ground running, or at least not just as a shadow of your former self.

The key is to just get started, but it’s very difficult to earn enough points on your regular spending alone. It helps, but it’s very difficult to accumulate enough points without spending hundreds of thousands of dollars per year.

So how do you do it?

The secret is sign-up bonuses on new cards. Banks are so eager to get you to apply for their card that they throw points at you. But how do you choose a card? And which card is the best?

Let’s get you started with a great first choice (yes, there are dozens of options but the purpose here is to jump-start your journey into travel hacking and points).

Chase Sapphire Preferred Card for Travel Rewards

The Chase Sapphire Preferred Card is the perfect entry point, as Chase designed this card for travel rewards. Here’s what makes it so great:

➡️ Sign-Up Offer

The current deal offers 60,000 Ultimate Rewards points after spending $4,000 in the first three months. If you maximize your use of these points (which I’ll be helping you with), you can expect the value to be between $1,200 and even up to $1,800 or more. Even if you redeem directly through Chase, you get a value of $750 from this bonus. Even at the lowest, that’s a 7x return on the annual fee!

➡️ Transfer Partners

The Chase Sapphire Preferred has an impressive array of transfer partners, including Air Canada Aeroplan, British Airways, Emirates, Air France-KLM, Marriott, Southwest, United, and Hyatt. All transfers maintain a 1:1 ratio, ensuring value. Sometimes they even run bonuses where you get 25% – 50% more points for transferring to them (powering up your returns on the annual fee). There are numerous other partners, so whether you want to use the points at excellent hotels, on flights, or for those coveted business class tickets, this is how you do it.

➡️ Low Annual Fee with Perks

The card has a reasonable $95 annual fee, which is minimal when weighed against its lucrative sign-up offer. The card offers a $50 annual hotel credit and 10% points back each year based on spending. This means your ROI at the lowest level before any other benefits is 14X!!

➡️ Flexible Earning Rates

You can earn:

5 points per dollar on travel through the Chase portal and on Lyft rides till 2025.
3 points on dining, select streaming services, and certain online grocery stores.
2 points on other travel.
1 point on all other purchases.

➡️ Easy Rewards Redemption

No need to transfer if you don’t want to! Book flights and hotels directly through the Chase portal where points are worth 1.25 cents each, (although I do suggest transferring for maximum value).

Chase’s Approval Strategy

If you’re new to rewards cards, Chase generally favors those who have yet to open multiple cards in the recent past. The Chase 5/24 Rule is often invoked: They may not approve you if you’ve opened 5 or more cards across all banks in the last 24 months. If this isn’t you, then the Sapphire Preferred card is a smart starting choice.

Conclusion: Chase Sapphire Preferred Card for Travel Rewards

The Chase Sapphire Preferred Card is both versatile and beginner-friendly. With a substantial sign-up bonus and multiple ways to earn and redeem points, it’s an ideal card to kickstart your travel rewards journey. Whether you dive deep into points strategies or just want simple rewards, this card has you covered.

I believe if you do not yet hold this credit card, it is the perfect entry into the travel hacking game, and with a few minutes of effort applying, you can be sitting on a 14x return or much more in the first year 🙂

➡️ Go Here to Learn More and Apply