Why the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card is the Best Beginner Credit Card

The Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card has been one of the most popular credit cards among consumers in the U.S. for years. With a manageable annual fee of $95, excellent spending bonuses in popular categories, an annual $50 hotel credit and the ability to transfer points to 14 different hotel and airline rewards programs, it’s easy to see why this card has such mass appeal.

So, if you’re looking to get into the world of credit card rewards, then the Chase Sapphire Preferred is an excellent place to start (as well as a great card to hold onto long-term). In this article, we’re going to go through all of the different features of the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card, explain why this card is excellent for those who are just getting into the world of credit card rewards and also mention some alternatives to the Chase Sapphire Preferred that you may want to consider.

The Chase Sapphire Preferred Has a Consistently High Welcome Offer

One reason that the Chase Sapphire Preferred is a great card for beginners in the world of credit card rewards is that it allows you to rack up many points quickly due to its consistently high welcome bonus. These bonuses work because cardmembers need to spend a certain amount of money on their card in a certain amount of time after account opening to a large sum of points.

Almost all rewards credit cards for major issuers (except some credit cards for bad credit and other similar products) offer these welcome bonuses. However, the welcome bonus offered by the Chase Sapphire Preferred has been consistently high over time, fluctuating between 60,000 and 100,000 points. These are excellent welcome bonuses for a card that charges an annual fee of just $95.

These welcome bonuses change fairly frequently, so it’s important to check the latest welcome offer from a credit card before signing up. Here’s the latest welcome offer from the Chase Sapphire Preferred:

This welcome bonus is enough for you to purchase several flights, hotel stays or car rentals. And this is just one of the many ways that the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card provides value to cardholders.

Chase Sapphire Preferred Card Has a Reasonable Annual Fee

As a general rule, you’ll get better bonuses and benefits if you’re willing to pay a higher annual fee. However, if you’re a beginner, you probably don’t want to sign up for a credit card with a huge annual fee. But, you also want to find a credit card that offers solid bonuses and benefits. The Chase Sapphire preferred sits right in that middle ground with an annual fee of $95.

Many U.S. consumers can afford to pay an annual fee of $95, which is charged on the first statement after account opening. And, it’s worth paying that fee instead of going with a no-annual-fee credit card for the added benefits and improved spending bonuses that the Chase Sapphire Preferred provides.

For example, the Chase Freedom Unlimited® is a no-annual-fee card that earns Chase Ultimate Rewards points. However, this card offers a much smaller welcome bonus, inferior spending bonuses and lacks many of the benefits offered by the Sapphire Preferred, such as a $50 annual statement credit for hotel stays. These improved benefits and bonuses from the Sapphire Preferred are worth far more than $95 per year, making this card a better value proposition.

Likewise, if you’re new to the world of rewards credit cards, you may not want to sign up for a card with a high annual fee even though these cards tend to offer better bonuses and benefits than the Sapphire Preferred.

For instance, the Chase Sapphire Reserve® charges an annual fee of $550 but offers valuable benefits like a $300 travel credit, airport lounge access and an application fee credit for TSA Precheck, Global Entry or NEXUS. However, if beginners don’t use all of these benefits, then it’s probably not worth it to pay the $550 annual fee.

The Chase Sapphire Preferred Earns Excellent Rewards on Travel and Dining

In terms of credit cards with annual fees under $100, the Chase Sapphire Preferred earns some of the best spending bonuses in the industry. This card earns particularly impressive spending bonuses on travel, dining and online grocery purchases, which are two large spending categories for many U.S. consumers. Here are the spending bonuses you’ll earn with the Chase Sapphire Preferred:

• 5X points on travel purchased in the Chase Travel℠ portal
• 3X points on dining (including eligible delivery services, takeout and dining out)
• 3X points on online grocery purchases (excluding Target, Walmart and wholesale clubs)
• 3X points on select streaming services
• 2X points on other travel purchases
• 1X point on all other purchases

So, for instance, if you were to purchase a $400 flight through the Chase Travel℠ portal, you’d earn 2,000 Chase Ultimate Rewards points ($400 x 5 = 2,000 points). Or, if you were to spend $200 at a restaurant, you would earn 600 points ($200 x 3 = 600 points). These are impressive spending in common categories for a card with an annual fee of just $95, making it easy to rack up points quickly.

There Are Many Ways to Redeem Chase Ultimate Rewards Points

Another great aspect of the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card (and the Chase Ultimate Rewards program in general) is the fact that Chase points can be redeemed in a wide variety of ways. It’s worth noting, though, that you can get more value out of your Chase points by redeeming them in some ways than others.

One easy way to get good value out of your Chase Ultimate Rewards points is by redeeming them through the Chase Travel℠ portal. Through this portal, you can book flights, hotel stays, rental cars and experiences. And, if you have the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card, your points are worth 1.25 cents apiece when redeemed through this portal. So, for instance, if you wanted to book a flight that cost $400, you’d have to redeem 32,000 points, which is a pretty good value.

Chase Ultimate Reward points can also be transferred to 14 partner travel rewards programs at a 1:1 ratio. These programs include:

• Aer Lingus AerClub
• Air Canada Aeroplan
• Air France-KLM Flying Blue
• British Airways Executive Club
• Iberia Plus
• Emirates Skywards
• JetBlue TrueBlue
• Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer
• Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards
• United MileagePlus
• Virgin Atlantic Flying Club
• IHG One Rewards
• Marriott Bonvoy
• World of Hyatt

So, you could transfer 50,000 Chase Ultimate Rewards points to any of the programs listed above and receive 50,000 hotel points or airline miles in that program.

By transferring points to these programs and then redeeming them for hotel stays or flights, you can often get several cents per point in value. Redeeming Chase points this way is slightly more complicated than purchasing travel through Chase Travel℠, but it’s worth it if you’re willing to do some searching to maximize the value of your points.

Aside from redeeming points for travel, there are many other ways to redeem Chase points, including requesting a check or direct deposit, purchasing gift cards, getting a statement credit and more. These redemption methods all provide a value of 1 cent per point or less. However, if you aren’t interested in redeeming your Chase points for travel, then these are great options.

The Chase Sapphire Preferred Has Even More Travel Benefits

In addition to the welcome bonus and spending bonuses mentioned above, the Chase Sapphire Preferred offers other travel benefits that make this card even more valuable. Beginners who sign up for the Sapphire Preferred Card should familiarize themselves with these benefits so they can get the most value possible out of this card.

For one, the Chase Sapphire Preferred offers a $50 annual statement credit toward hotel stays booked through Chase Travel℠. So, if you were to book a hotel stay through Chase Travel℠ that cost $200, then you could use this statement credit to reduce the cost of that stay to $150. And, since most people spend at least $50 annually on hotel stays, this is a benefit that you’ll use year after year.

Another major benefit of the Chase Sapphire Preferred (which was mentioned above) is that this card offers a 25% value boost for Ultimate Rewards points redeemed through the Chase Travel℠ portal. While most redemption methods offer just 1 cent per point in value, if you have the Sapphire Preferred, any point that you redeem through Chase Travel℠ will be worth 1.25 cents apiece.

Chase also has a partnership with DoorDash that offers Sapphire Preferred cardholders a complimentary membership to DashPass for 12 months after enrollment (available through Dec. 31, 2027). A DashPass membership includes $0 delivery fees and reduced service fees on eligible DoorDash orders. Plus, Sapphire Preferred cardmembers also receive up to $10 off non-restaurant DoorDash orders per month.

Finally, the Chase Sapphire Preferred also comes with a suite of Visa Signature benefits (which are available with all Visa Signature cards). And, while these benefits are common amongst many credit cards, they’re worth paying attention to as they could save you a ton of money in certain situations. Here’s a breakdown of these Visa Signature benefits:

• Visa Signature Concierge service for assistance in booking travel, event tickets, dinners, golf tee times and more
• Visa Signature Luxury Hotel Collection benefits at participating hotels, including:
  • Best available rate guarantee
  • Automatic room upgrade upon arrival, when available
  • Complimentary in-room Wi-Fi, when available
  • Complimentary breakfast for two
  • $25 food and beverage credit
  • VIP guest status
  • Late checkout upon request, when available
• Emergency cash disbursement and card replacement
• Travel and emergency assistance services
• Auto rental collision damage waiver up to $50,000 per claim
• Lost luggage reimbursement up to $3,000 for all covered travelers per trip
• Roadside dispatch service
• Trip cancellation and interruption protection up to $15,000 per covered traveler per trip (and up to $20,000 per year)
• $1,000,000 worldwide automatic common carrier travel accident insurance

As you can see, these benefits could potentially save you lots of money. For example, with the auto rental collision damage waiver benefit, you can decline the rental company’s insurance (which can cost hundreds of dollars on top of the price of the rental). Plus, if you get into a collision in a rental car, this benefit will cover you up to $50,000 in damages.

Trip cancellation and interruption protection can also save you lots of money in the event that your flight gets canceled. In this scenario, this benefit can help cover the cost of a hotel room, food, taxis to and from the airport and more.

So, although these benefits may look like a bunch of fine print, you should familiarize yourself with your Visa Signature coverages because they might just save you lots of money.

Why Should a Beginner Choose the Chase Sapphire Preferred Over Another Card?

There are many credit cards from many issuers that are geared toward beginners, and it’s worth looking into your other options. However, for the majority of credit card beginners, the Chase Sapphire Preferred is an excellent choice because it offers a low annual fee, excellent spending bonuses, a valuable welcome bonus and several other notable benefits (such as a $50 hotel statement credit). In the world of credit cards, it’s difficult to find this combination of low cost and high reward.

Signing up for the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card is also just a great way to gain some momentum in your credit card rewards journey. You can sign up for this card and earn tens of thousands of points within months from this card’s welcome offer. Then, you can start redeeming those points for travel and more, allowing you to learn about maximizing the value of your points.

Then, since this card has a relatively low annual fee, you may still have room in your budget to add more cards to your wallet later on. And you can find other credit cards with spending bonuses and benefits that complement those offered by the Sapphire Preferred. But, as a jumping-off point, it’s hard to find a better card than the Chase Sapphire Preferred.

The Bottom Line

Of course, the question of which credit card is best for you depends on your specific situation, including your budgetary restrictions, your top spending categories, your travel habits and more. However, the Chase Sapphire Preferred is an excellent credit card for most consumers who are just getting their start in the world of credit card rewards. This card has a low annual fee, offers high bonuses in common spending categories, includes a welcome bonus of tens of thousands of points and more. For these reasons, the Chase Sapphire Preferred has become one of the most popular credit cards in the United States.

So, if you don’t yet have a rewards credit card, we highly recommend considering the Chase Sapphire Preferred as your first. Then, once you use this card to learn about how credit card rewards work, you can sign up for other cards and continue to improve your credit card strategy. And, of course, you can always refer to the resources on our website to learn more about maximizing your credit card rewards.

Next up: Learn what to do after earning the welcome offer on the Chase Sapphire Preferred.