Best Card to Pair with the Chase Sapphire Preferred: Strike the Balance of Rewards and Benefits
Updated April 23, 2024 at 2:44 pm
The Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card is considered one of the best travel credit cards, ideal for newbies and seasoned travel experts alike. It is renowned for its valuable rewards and generous points on travel and dining purchases. While the card has many notable benefits, it may not be sufficient on its own for consumers who want to maximize their rewards on every purchase. Pairing the Chase Sapphire Preferred with another credit card can improve your overall rewards potential.
By strategically pairing the Chase Sapphire Preferred with other credit cards, you can create a well-rounded rewards portfolio tailored to your spending habits and rewards goals. Here’s a look at the best credit cards to pair with the Sapphire Preferred:
Methodology Understanding the value of cash back is simple, but valuing airline miles or points redeemable for travel requires digging a bit deeper. At Newsweek, we’ve developed a common language to talk about the value of points and miles: our valuations.
Our valuations translate points into dollars and cents in a way that reflects reality. They are based on actual data across a balance of accessible redemption options, not just the aspirational first and business class redemptions that require a PhD in miles and points to book. The upshot is that our valuations help you understand the actual value you can easily get from your miles and points.
Vault’s Viewpoint
- Pairing another credit card with the Chase Sapphire Preferred can help you earn more rewards on everyday purchases.
- The best card pairing will align with your spending habits and rewards goals.
- Having more than one credit card in your wallet can also improve your credit score.
Chase Sapphire Preferred and Chase Freedom Unlimited®
The Chase Freedom Unlimited® is an ideal companion to the Chase Sapphire Preferred, thanks to its complementary rewards and lack of an annual fee. The Freedom Unlimited earns cash back that comes in the form of Ultimate Rewards points, which can be transferred if you have a Sapphire Preferred Card and combined. Here’s a closer look at why the Chase Freedom Unlimited stands out as the perfect companion to the Chase Sapphire Preferred:
Competitive Flat-Rate Rewards
While the Sapphire Preferred earns bonus points in specific categories such as travel and dining, the Freedom Unlimited offers a flat earning rate across all purchases that fall outside of its own bonus categories. Cardholders earn a base rate of an unlimited 1.5% cash back on every purchase, making it an ideal option for expenses not covered by the Sapphire Preferred. The card also offers 3% cash back on drugstore purchases, helping you maximize rewards on even more purchases. You can convert the 1.5% and 3% cash back to 1 and 3 Ultimate Rewards points per dollar spent, respectively.
Welcome Bonus
Both cards offer generous welcome bonuses to new applicants. The Sapphire Preferred earns 75,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 within the first three months of account opening. The Freedom Unlimited earns an additional 1.5% cash back on everything you buy (on up to $20,000 spent in the first year), worth up to $300 cash back. Plus, you could convert the cash back to 30,000 Ultimate Rewards points.
Loyalty Program
Pairing the Chase Freedom Unlimited with the Chase Sapphire Preferred lets you leverage Chase’s Ultimate Rewards program across both cards. You can pool the points into a single Ultimate Rewards account, giving you greater flexibility and redemption options.
Sapphire Preferred cardholders can redeem points through the Chase Travel portal at 1.25 cents each. You can unlock even greater value by transferring points to one of 14 travel partners at a 1:1 ratio. Popular options include luxury hotel stays with the World of Hyatt program and business class tickets through programs like Flying Blue and Avianca Lifemiles.
Annual Fee
Another compelling reason to pair these two cards is their combined value proposition in terms of annual fees. While the Chase Sapphire Preferred comes with a $95 annual fee, the Freedom Unlimited has no annual fee, making it a cost-effective addition to your wallet. The Freedom Unlimited’s lack of an annual fee means you can keep it open indefinitely, helping to build a long-term relationship with Chase and improve your credit score over time with responsible use.
Earn an extra 1.5% on everything you buy with your card (on up to $20,000 spent in the first year) — worth up to $300 cash back. That's 6.5% on travel purchased through Chase Travel, 4.5% on dining and drugstores, and 3% on all other purchases.
Why Would You Want to Pair One Card with Another?
Pairing one credit card with another offers higher reward potential and a more extensive suite of benefits, allowing you to capitalize on the strengths of each card. Different cards often offer varying bonus categories to reward your daily spending. By strategically choosing which card to use for each purchase, you can earn the highest rewards rate possible. For example, you might use a card that offers bonus points on groceries for your grocery shopping and another card that rewards dining expenses when eating out.
Pairing cards can also help you diversify your rewards portfolio. If one card’s transfer partners have limited award inventory, the other card might come through. Or, if you want to stock up on points quickly for a specific award, applying for a second card with the same transfer partner options can help you save up the points faster.
Other Cards to Consider
If the Freedom Unlimited doesn’t quite align with your spending habits, you have plenty of other cards you can pair with the Sapphire Preferred. We’ve picked a few alternatives that balance out the Sapphire Preferred card’s category bonuses and benefits.
Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card
Pairing the Chase Sapphire Preferred with the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card allows you to diversify beyond Chase Ultimate Rewards. The Venture X card stands out with its straightforward rewards, earning 2X miles on every purchase, regardless of category. Cardholders can also earn 10X miles on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel as well as 5X miles on flights booked through Capital One Travel. This factor makes it an excellent choice, allowing you to earn above-average rewards for spending outside of the Sapphire Preferred’s bonus categories.
Pairing the Capital One Venture X with the Chase Sapphire Preferred also presents a compelling strategy for travelers seeking premium benefits. The Venture X’s $395 annual fee is reasonable compared to other premium credit cards and includes an annual $300 travel credit, extensive airport lounge access and an annual 10,000-mile anniversary bonus each year you pay the annual fee and renew your card. These perks alone make the card worth keeping long-term.
The card also offers a generous welcome bonus where you can earn 75,000 miles after spending $4,000 within the first three months of account opening. These miles equal to $750 towards direct travel redemptions or you can transfer them to 18 different airline and hotel programs. This diverse pool of transfer partners alone is enough to add this card to your wallet.
Bilt Mastercard®
While the Chase Sapphire Preferred offers bonus points on various spending categories, the Bilt Mastercard® has the notable distinction of earning Bilt Points on rent payments. Earn 1X points on rent paid through the Bilt app or website, with no transaction fee, for up to 100,000 points each calendar year. Rent is a significant expense for many people. If you happen to be one of them, combining the Sapphire Preferred with the Bilt Mastercard is an excellent way to earn rewards on every possible dollar spent.
The Bilt Mastercard earns 3X points on dining, 2X points on travel and 1X points on other purchases. Use the card five times each statement period to earn points. See rewards & benefits. While this earning rate is lower than the rewards earned with the Sapphire Preferred, Bilt doubles these points on purchases not including rent up to a max of 10,000 bonus points on the first day of each month (dubbed “Rent Day”). By being strategic with big purchases and bill pay, you can potentially earn a lot more rewards with the Bilt Mastercard than your Sapphire Preferred.
Bilt and Chase have ten transfer partners in common. This detail makes combining points for an award much easier. Furthermore, the Bilt Card offers similar transfer partners to the Sapphire Preferred, including airlines and hotel loyalty programs, allowing cardholders to maximize the value of their points through strategic redemptions.
Ink Business Cash® Credit Card
Pairing the Ink Business Cash® Credit Card with the Chase Sapphire Preferred is a good move for business owners seeking to optimize their spending and maximize rewards. The Ink Business Cash earns 5% cash back on the first $25,000 spent in combined purchases at office supply stores and on internet, cable and phone services each account anniversary year (then 1% back). Cardholders also earn 2% cash back on the first $25,000 spent (then 1%) in combined purchases each account anniversary at restaurants at gas stations–the latter a category that doesn’t earn bonus points with the Sapphire Preferred.
Cardholders with a Chase Business Checking account on their first card anniversary also receive a one-time 10% Business Relationship Bonus on eligible cash back earned in the first year. This perk can be pretty lucrative for businesses with large expenditures. While the Ink Business Cash card earns cash back, these rewards can be converted into valuable Ultimate Rewards points when paired with the Sapphire Preferred. This conversion unlocks a world of redemption possibilities, including premium travel bookings.
The Ink Business Cash is also an excellent option because it has no annual fee. Cardholders can earn a cash back bonus of up to up to $750. Earn $350 cash back after spending $3,000 within the first three months of account opening, plus $400 more after spending $6,000 in the first six months.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the Best Chase Card to Combine Points?
The best Chase card to combine points depends on your spending habits. You should choose a card that complements the reward structure of the Sapphire Preferred. The Chase Freedom Unlimited is a great choice since it earns a base of 1.5% cash back on all purchases. If you want a business card, the Chase Ink Business Cash’s rewards structure could be a good fit.
Should You Have Both Amex Gold and Chase Sapphire Preferred?
You can have both an American Express® Gold Card and Chase Sapphire Preferred. Since many of their category bonuses overlap, it might not be the best pairing. However, it could be worthwhile if you want to diversify your rewards and are willing to pay $250 for an Amex Gold card (see rates and fees).
What Are the Disadvantages of Chase Sapphire Preferred?
The main disadvantages of the Chase Sapphire Preferred are the $95 annual fee and that its 3X rewards rate on groceries is limited to online only. Chase credit cards are also subject to the unofficial 5/24 rule, meaning if you’ve opened five or more accounts in 24 months (with any bank), you likely won’t be approved for a Sapphire Preferred.
Editorial Note: Opinions expressed here are author’s alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, hotel, airline or other entity. This content has not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of the entities included within the post. We may earn a commission from partner links on Newsweek, but commissions do not affect our editors’ opinions or evaluations.
