Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
Earn 5x on travel purchased through Chase Travel℠, 3x on dining, select streaming services and online groceries, 2x on all other travel purchases, 1x on all other purchases, plus more.
Welcome Bonus
75,000 bonus points
Annual Fee
$95
Credit Score
Excellent, Good
Regular APR
21.49%-28.49% Variable
Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card
Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card
Earn 5X miles on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel. Earn 5X miles on Capital One Entertainment purchases through 12/31/25. Earn unlimited 2X miles on every purchase, every day
Welcome Bonus
Earn 75,000 bonus miles
Annual Fee
$95
Credit Score
Excellent, Good
Regular APR
19.99% - 29.99% (Variable)
The mid-tier travel credit card space is crowded. While many airlines and hotels offer their own co-branded credit cards, having a card with more versatility may be an optimal route. The Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card and the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card are two cards that offer substantial perks and benefits. We’ll break down their differences to help you determine which may be the best fit for you.
Chase Sapphire Preferred Credit Card vs. Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card Overview
Welcome Bonus
The exact welcome offers for both cards vary based on when you apply, but typically both offers are worthwhile.
Right now, you can earn 75,000 bonus points after spending $4,000 on purchases in the first three months from account opening with the Sapphire Preferred. With the Venture Rewards, new members can earn 75,000 miles once you spend $4,000 on purchases within 3 months from account opening.
Though they aren’t equal, both welcome bonuses are enticing and have tons of flexibility on how you redeem your points.
Annual Fee
The annual fee on both cards is the same at $95 (see Venture Rewards rates & fees). In each case, you’ll want to review the card’s benefits, potential statement credits, bonuses and points redemption opportunities to see which one is better suited to your spending habits and interests.
Earning Rewards
These two cards have different earning structures. On the Sapphire Preferred, you’ll snag more points per dollar spent on some types of purchases, though you’ll have to keep track of category bonuses. That’s because you’ll earn 5 points per dollar on travel purchased through Chase Travel℠, 3 points per dollar on dining, select streaming services, and online grocery purchases (excluding Walmart, Target and wholesale clubs), 2 points per dollar on all other travel purchases and 1 point per dollar on other purchases.
On the other hand, the Venture Rewards card keeps things simple because all purchases earn at the same rate, with the exception of travel booked through their portal: 5 miles per dollar on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel, 5 miles per dollar spent on Capital One Entertainment purchases through 12/31/25 and an unlimited 2 miles per dollar spent on other purchases.
Cardmembers who spend a lot on dining, online groceries or streaming services may do better with the Sapphire Preferred. Everyone else may appreciate the flat earnings of 2 miles per dollar spent on the Venture, especially if you don’t feel like keeping track of bonus categories.
Another advantage of the Sapphire Preferred: On your account anniversary, Chase will reward you with bonus points equaling 10% of the total purchases made in the previous account year (not the amount of points you earned). That means if you spend $25,000 on your card, you’ll earn 2,500 bonus points.
BEST ENTRY-LEVEL TRAVEL CARD
Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
Up to 5x Reward Rate
Earn 5x on travel purchased through Chase Travel℠, 3x on dining, select streaming services and online groceries, 2x on allRead More
Welcome Bonus
75,000 bonus points
Annual Fee
$95
Regular APR
21.49%-28.49% Variable
Credit Score
Excellent, Good (700 - 749)
Offering a rare mix of high rewards rates and redemption flexibility, this card is a dream for frequent spenders on travel & dining – while charging a modest annual fee.
It’s the granddaddy of travel credit cards, but it still earns its reputation as one of the best around with solid bonus categories, strong travel protections, a great set of domestic and international transfer partners and a reasonable annual fee to boot. You can’t go wrong with it as your first travel credit card.
- Earn high rewards on several areas of spending
- Transfer points to travel partners at 1:1 rate
- Many travel and shopping protections
- Annual fee
- No intro APR offer
- Best travel earning rates are only for bookings through Chase
- Earn 75,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. That’s over $900 when you redeem through Chase Travel℠.
- Enjoy benefits such as 5x on travel purchased through Chase Travel℠, 3x on dining, select streaming services and online groceries, 2x on all other travel purchases, 1x on all other purchases, $50 Annual Chase Travel Hotel Credit, plus more.
- Get 25% more value when you redeem for airfare, hotels, car rentals and cruises through Chase Travel℠. For example, 75,000 points are worth $937.50 toward travel.
- Count on Trip Cancellation/Interruption Insurance, Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver, Lost Luggage Insurance and more.
- Get complimentary access to DashPass which unlocks $0 delivery fees and lower service fees for a minimum of one year when you activate by December 31, 2024.
- Member FDIC
Travel Benefits
Both cards include several benefits valuable to travelers and neither has foreign transaction fees (see Venture Rewards rates & fees). However, the perks differ between the cards, and the better fit for you will depend on your priorities.
The Sapphire Preferred comes with two main travel benefits. First, there’s an annual $50 statement credit each account anniversary year toward hotel stays purchased through Chase Travel. The card also comes with a wide variety of travel protections, including primary auto rental insurance coverage, delayed or lost baggage coverage, roadside assistance and emergency assistance.
You can leverage Chase’s trip cancellation and trip interruption benefits when you use your Chase Sapphire Preferred or Chase Ultimate Rewards® to pay for your trip. This benefit extends to immediate family members when paying from your account. Beyond trip cancellation and trip interruption coverage, trip delay reimbursement also comes with the card. Terms and limits apply.
The Venture card doesn’t offer an annual statement credit for travel purchases. Instead, you’ll receive up to $100 in Global Entry or TSA PreCheck application credits every four years.
The Venture also includes several protections for travelers, such as auto rental collision damage waiver, travel accident insurance and travel and emergency services. Terms apply¹.
Transfer Partners
Both types of rewards currencies, Chase Ultimate Rewards® and Capital One Rewards, are valuable because they’re so flexible. In addition to redeeming them for cash-back rewards or toward travel booked through your card portal, you can also transfer them to partnering travel programs. A few loyalty programs are transfer partners with both Chase and Capital One, such as Air France/KLM Flying Blue—but not all partners overlap.
Chase Ultimate Rewards® transfer partners are:
Capital One Rewards transfer partners are:
Nearly all transfers are at a 1:1 ratio and are processed within one business day (and often instantly). Because both programs have a large number of partners, the cards offer awesome flexibility to collect points and later decide how you wish to redeem them.
BEST FOR FLAT-RATE TRAVEL REWARDS
Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card
Up to 5X Reward Rate
Earn 5X miles on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel. Earn 5X miles on Capital One EntertainmentRead More
Welcome Bonus
Earn 75,000 bonus miles
Annual Fee
$95
Regular APR
19.99% - 29.99% (Variable)
Credit Score
Excellent, Good (700 - 749)
Casual travelers who don’t plan to carry a balance will find good value in this card’s rewards rate.
The Capital One Venture Rewards card is extremely low maintenance as far as travel reward cards go. It provides consistent value and flexibility when it comes to earning and redeeming points for travel and is an excellent alternative for anyone a bit leery of the high Venture X annual fee (rates & fees).
- Solid rewards rate
- Global Entry or TSA PreCheck® statement credit (up to $100)
- No foreign transaction fees
- Miles are easy to redeem either via partner transfers or by applying against travel purchases
- $95 annual fee
- No introductory APR on purchases or transfers
- Enjoy a one-time bonus of 75,000 miles once you spend $4,000 on purchases within 3 months from account opening, equal to $750 in travel
- Earn unlimited 2X miles on every purchase, every day
- Earn 5X miles on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel, where you’ll get Capital One’s best prices on thousands of trip options
- Miles won’t expire for the life of the account and there’s no limit to how many you can earn
- Receive up to a $100 credit for Global Entry or TSA PreCheck®
- Use your miles to get reimbursed for any travel purchase—or redeem by booking a trip through Capital One Travel
- Enrich every hotel stay from the Lifestyle Collection with a suite of cardholder benefits, like a $50 experience credit, room upgrades, and more
- Transfer your miles to your choice of 15+ travel loyalty programs
Redemption Bonus
Cardholders who prefer to book travel with their rewards are also in luck. Both rewards programs allow you to book hotels, flights, rental cars and other travel through their proprietary platforms. Of the two programs, though, Chase has the advantage.
Chase Ultimate Rewards® points on the Sapphire Preferred are worth 25% more when redeemed for travel through Chase’s travel portal instead of cash back. When using points for travel, 1 point equals 1.25 cents towards travel. So, redeeming 40,000 points for travel purchases will give you $500 off the final cost at booking, but would be worth only $400 in cash back. The Venture card only yields 1 cent per mile when booking travel with your rewards.
Fees and APR
The Sapphire Preferred has a 21.49%-28.49% variable APR on purchases and balance transfers. There are no foreign transaction fees with this card. Those who transfer a balance to the Sapphire Preferred from another credit card will pay a balance transfer fee of $5 or 5%, whichever is greater.
The Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card has a 19.99% - 29.99% variable APR on purchases and balance transfers. As with all U.S.-issued Capital One credit cards, you won’t pay foreign transaction fees when you use the Venture Rewards abroad. You can find the card’s current balance transfer fee information on its rates & fees page.
Consider Neither Chase Sapphire Preferred nor Capital One Venture Rewards For
Annual Fees
The $95 annual fee for the Chase Sapphire Preferred and the $95 annual fee (rates & fees) for Capital One Venture Rewards can reduce your earning potential with either card. This fee may be worth it, depending on how much you spend and how you value the rewards and perks from the card. The welcome offers on both provide more than enough value to cover the annual fee for multiple years. But for those who can’t stomach an annual fee at any price, consider one of these no annual fee travel credit cards instead.
Redeeming Your Rewards for Something Other Than Travel
Outside of cash back or travel, cardholders can use points from either card for gift card redemptions or redeem at Amazon.com. However, these are not great redemptions—you’ll get less than 1 cent per point in value. Cardholders who are interested in cash back that can be used for anything should consider a cash-back credit card instead.
Bottom Line
The Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card and the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card offer similar and unique offers. Both have their place in the crowded mid-tier travel credit space and offer strong welcome bonuses and travel benefits. To decide which card is right for you, look at your spending, consider your travel goals and choose the card perks that will be most valuable to you.
¹For 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.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Which card is better: Venture Rewards or Sapphire Preferred?
Both cards are valuable options for travelers who don’t want to commit to a more expensive, ultra-premium card. If you prefer simplicity, the Venture Rewards card is a better option because all your purchases earn flat-rate rewards. However, the Sapphire Preferred offers elevated earnings in select categories (and a lower flat-rate rewards rate for general purchases). You’ll need to consider your personal circumstances to determine which is better for you.
Is the Capital One Venture Rewards Card metal?
Yes, the Venture card comes in metal for extra durability. The card weighs 16 grams and is made of stainless steel and is made from more than 50% recycled materials.
What credit score do you need for a Chase Sapphire Preferred card?
Chase does not publish required credit scores for their cards because they look at multiple factors when deciding eligibility. To be approved, you’ll likely need excellent credit since this is considered a premium card, but it’s not a hard and fast rule.
Which credit bureau do Chase and Capital One report to?
Card issuers may pull from different credit agencies depending on where you live and if you’ve frozen your credit with any credit bureaus. More often than not, Chase pulls credit reports from Experian and Capital One often pulls reports from all three major agencies (Equifax, Experian and TransUnion).
