Chase Sapphire Preferred VS Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card

If you’re interested in earning points or miles through credit card spending but aren’t willing to pay the multi-hundred-dollar annual fees carried by ultra-premium travel cards, some great mid-tier options will cost you less than $100 in annual fees. Two of the best cards in this category are the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card and the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card.

Both of these cards have a modest annual fee of $95 that you can easily offset within the first few months of spending, particularly if you qualify for the lucrative sign-up bonuses offered by both cards.

In general, the Capital One Venture Card is a bit easier to use while the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card has more valuable points when you redeem them through the Chase Ultimate Rewards travel portal.

Let’s take a look at the differences between these two cards and figure out which is a better fit for you.

Overview

Let’s compare the basic features of both cards at a glance before going deeper into the different drawbacks and benefits of each card.

As you can see, the rewards structure for the Capital One Venture Card is far easier to understand than for the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card. However, the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card has a higher points-earning potential when used correctly.

Earning Potential

When it comes to rewards earned, the Capital One Venture Card comes out on top in everyday spending. On the other hand, the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card shines brighter in specific categories.

Chase Sapphire Preferred Card Earning

The Chase Sapphire Preferred Card earns rewards at the following rates:

• 5X points per dollar on travel booked through the Chase Ultimate Rewards portal
• 2X points on all other travel purchases
• 3X points on dining, including eligible takeout and delivery services
• 3X points on select streaming services, including Netflix, Spotify, Hulu, Disney+, ESPN+, YouTube TV, Apple Music and others
• 3X points on online grocery purchases, excluding Walmart, Target and wholesale clubs
• 1X point on all other purchases

Chase defines travel broadly to include things like tolls, public transport, parking and parking tickets. Dining also includes most restaurants, bars, coffee shops, delivery services and even some vending machines.

Capital One Venture Card Earning

The Capital One Venture Rewards Card earns rewards at the following rates:

• 5X miles per dollar on hotels and rental cars booked through the Capital One Travel portal
• 5X miles on rental cars through Turo
• 2X miles on all other purchases

As you can see, the bonus structure for the Venture card is simple and makes it easy to rack up points without paying too much attention to spending categories.

Redemption Opportunities

Whichever card you go with, the best way to get the most out of your miles or points is by using them toward travel. However, there are other non-travel rewards that you can redeem your points or miles for at an inferior rate.

Chase Sapphire Preferred Card Redemption Options

Chase Ultimate Rewards points are best used for travel purchases through the Chase Ultimate Rewards portal or transferred to one of the partner loyalty programs.

When redeemed for travel through the Chase portal, Ultimate Rewards points are worth 1.25 cents apiece. You can also transfer your points to one of Chase’s 14 airline and hotel transfer partners, all at a 1:1 ratio.

One of the best aspects of Chase Ultimate Rewards points is that they can be transferred into the United MileagePlus and World of Hyatt programs, which don’t accept any other transferable currencies.

Chase’s 14 airline and hotel transfer partners include:

Instead of redeeming your points for flights or hotels, you can also redeem them for cash rewards or statement credits at a rate of 1 cent per point.

Capital One Venture Card Redemption Options

Capital One has been improving on its redemption options and adding to the list of transfer partners, so Capital One miles have become a lot more valuable in the last few years. They also have a simple redemption structure.

Capital One miles are worth 1 cent each when used to book travel through Capital One Travel. You can also use your miles as a statement credit towards any travel spending made in the last 90 days at a rate of 1 cent apiece.

One of the places that Capital One miles really shine is when they’re transferred to partner airlines for high-value premium cabin awards or luxury hotel suites. Most transfers are now at a 1:1 ratio. And, since you’re earning 2X miles per dollar on everyday purchases, you’re basically earning at least 2X airline or hotel points every time you spend with your card.

Capital One’s 17 airline and hotel transfer partners include:

If you’re not interested in redeeming for travel rewards, you can also use your miles for gift cards, cash back or purchases through Amazon and PayPal. Unfortunately, none of these redemptions offer good value.

Other Benefits

Of course, you’re not going to get as many benefits with these two cards as you would with their multi-hundred-dollar-per-year premium alternatives, the Chase Sapphire Reserve® and the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card. However, both the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card and the Capital One Venture Card offer some great benefits for just $95 annually.

While the Capital One Venture Card boasts a longer list of extra benefits, the value of the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card’s benefits is probably greater for travelers.

Chase Sapphire Preferred Card Benefits

The Chase Sapphire Preferred Card has no foreign transaction fees.

The card comes with primary rental car insurance that could end up saving you a ton of money if you experience a collision or a theft of a rental car. It also comes with 24-hour travel and emergency assistance services.

You’re also covered by trip cancellation and interruption insurance up to $10,000 per person and $20,000 per trip, baggage delay insurance up to $100 for five days if you baggage gets lost, trip delay reimbursement up to $500 per ticket in expenses if your trip is delayed more than 12 hours or overnight, purchase protection for 120 days up to $500 per item and $50,000 per account, and extended warranties.

Chase will also give you a 10% points boost to your account every account anniversary and a $50 statement credit toward hotel bookings made through the Ultimate Rewards travel portal each year.

Capital One Venture Card Benefits

The Capital One Venture Card has no foreign transaction fees.

The card comes with secondary auto rental insurance, meaning it will cover you in the event of a collision or theft only if you don’t already have primary rental car insurance. It also comes with 24-hour travel and roadside assistance.

This card also offers travel accident insurance coverage if you or a direct family member gets injured or dies while aboard a common carrier, lost luggage reimbursement up to $1,500 and price protection.

The Capital One Venture also comes with two free visits to Capital One Lounges or to Plaza Premium Lounges per year. You’ll get a statement credit of up to $120 for Global Entry or TSA PreCheck application fees. You also can get exclusive presale tickets to concerts and sporting events through Capital One Access.

Bottom Line

Overall, I would say that the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card is the better option of the two for most people. First of all, the primary rental car insurance offered by the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card could save you a ton more money if you get in a collision compared to the secondary insurance offered by the Capital One Venture Card.

The Chase Sapphire Preferred Card also has more points-earning potential if you consider all of the generous category bonuses. The opportunity to earn 5X points on Lyft rides through March 2025 is particularly good for people who often take Lyfts to work. Plus, when you can redeem your Chase Ultimate Rewards points for 1.25 cents per point through the Chase Ultimate Rewards portal, these points become valuable.

Honestly, both cards complement each other nicely. If you have room in your wallet for both cards, use the Capital One Venture Card for everyday purchases and use the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card for dining and travel spending and watch the points add up. You’ll also benefit from having access to both lists of travel partners as some don’t overlap.