The Most Detailed Comparison of Chase Sapphire Preferred and Sapphire Reserve: Fully Updated!

CSP is currently offering a record-high 100,000-point welcome bonus, and the card has also seen some changes. So this article has been updated based on the latest information. To emphasize again: CSP and CSR can now be held at the same time, and you can earn both welcome bonuses without one affecting the other, so it may make sense to carry both!

Why compare them?

Sapphire Preferred and Sapphire Reserve are both credit cards issued by Chase, and both are designed for people who travel frequently. Strong benefits, consistently solid service, and attractive card design have made many people willing to pay the annual fee and keep these cards long term. Of course, their benefits and features overlap to some extent, so here we’ll compare them in detail.

• Application restrictions: Chase has the 5/24 rule, so you may be denied for either card if you have opened too many cards in the past two years. In addition, Chase now limits each card’s welcome bonus to once per card, so it can make sense to get both cards once and then decide later. (Again, CSP and CSR can now be held at the same time, and their welcome bonuses do not affect each other, so you can consider holding both!)
• Benefit coverage: For major benefits, Sapphire Reserve does overlap with and outperform Sapphire Preferred in some areas. For example, in Chase Travel, CSR earns up to 8x while CSP earns 5x; for airfare booked directly through airline websites, CSR earns 4x while CSP earns 2x; and CSR points can be worth 2c/p when redeemed for business class or luxury hotels, while CSP is a flat 1c/p.
• Feature overlap: Both cards allow you to transfer points to airline miles or hotel points (the ratios are the same except for Hyatt, where CSP is a bit worse). Both are made of metal and have a premium look and feel. Welcome bonuses generally range from 60,000 to 150,000 points, and after holding either card for one year, both can be downgraded to no-annual-fee cards such as Freedom Unlimited and Freedom Flex.

Most people will usually keep only one of these cards long term, or hold both for a year and then downgrade or close one. Aside from similar benefits and features, the biggest difference between them is of course the annual fee: Sapphire Reserve charges a hefty $795 annual fee, while Sapphire Preferred charges only $95. So in the comparison below, the main question is whether that extra annual fee is really worth it.

Key feature comparison

Before getting into the details, here’s a table showing the most important differences between the two cards.

		Sapphire Preferred	Sapphire Reserve
Welcome bonus		100,000 (standard 60,000)	100,000
Annual fee		$95	$795
Authorized user fee		$0	$195/card
Earning rates	Restaurants, takeout, gas, Airbnb, and similar categories	3x	1x
	Select streaming services	3x	1x
	Bookings through UR Travel	5x on travel	8x on airfare, hotels, car rentals, and activities
	Other travel	2x	4x on airfare and hotels booked directly through official websites
	Other	1x	1x
Point value		1.75c in Chase Travel for business class and luxury hotels, 1c for other redemptions; airline miles at 1:1; Hyatt at 4:3	2c in Chase Travel for business class and luxury hotels, 1c for other redemptions; airline miles at 1:1; Hyatt at 1:1
Credits		$100 hotel credit, must be booked through Chase Travel; TSA/Global Entry application fee	$300 travel credit; $500 Edit, $300 upscale dining, $300 StubHub, $300 DoorDash, $250 Apple streaming; TSA/Global Entry application fee
Airport lounge access		None	Free Priority Pass membership, with separate access for authorized users
Approval difficulty		Minimum credit line $5,000	Minimum credit line $10,000
Card review		CSP full review	CSR full review

A few quick notes on the table above:

• Chase Travel: Chase’s own travel booking portal, where you can book flights, hotels, rental cars, and various activities, and also pay directly with points.
• 1.75c: 1.75c means 1 Ultimate Rewards point can be redeemed for 1.75 cents in value, equivalent to 10,000 points = $125.
• Credits: CSR currently offers a large number of merchant-specific credits with a total value of $2,300. See the full article for details and how to use them.
• Minimum credit line: Both cards have a minimum approved credit line, meaning if you are approved, the card will come with at least a $5,000/$10,000 limit. In practice, a $5,000 limit usually means at least one year of credit history plus some annual income (above 10,000), while a $10,000 limit generally requires higher income.

Beyond the differences above, Chase Sapphire Reserve is also a step ahead across the board in Travel Protection and Purchase Protection. However, those benefits are more insurance-like and used less often, so we won’t list them one by one here.

Comparing them over the first year

Under the new rules, you can earn the welcome bonus on both cards. So if you’re eligible, getting both is a good option, since the bonuses are still very attractive. Even if you do not plan to keep them long term, downgrading to Freedom Unlimited and Freedom Flex is still a solid move. That said, for some people, which card to apply for first matters more, so below we’ll compare which one has higher priority if you plan to keep each card for only one year.

Welcome bonus and credits

Many readers probably apply for these two cards mainly for the welcome bonus, plus the chance to try the so-called premium experience. After that, they may downgrade the card to a no-annual-fee option such as Freedom Unlimited and Freedom Flex. So it’s very worthwhile to discuss the first-year value. Below, UR points are valued at 1.5c each.

• CSP: 100,000-point welcome bonus ($1,500) - $95 annual fee + $100 hotel credit = $1,505
• CSR: 100,000-point welcome bonus ($1,500) - $795 annual fee + $300 + various credits = $1,005 + various credits
• Double-dipping CSR credits: Some CSR credits are based on the calendar year, while others are based on your cardmember year, so in theory you may be able to use certain credits 2-3 times.

CSP is straightforward: the welcome bonus minus the annual fee, plus the $100 discount on hotel bookings made through Chase Travel. The Sapphire Reserve $300 travel credit is very easy to use and is available once per cardmember year. It applies to virtually all travel-related purchases, including airfare, hotels, rental cars, and even parking and tolls. Better yet, it posts automatically—you just need to put the charge on the card. With $300 available each year, most people should have no trouble using the full amount after just one trip.

Now let’s also consider CSR’s various other credits.

• $500 The Edit credit: Up to $250 per use, up to $500 per year ( details ). It requires a minimum two-night stay, and hotels are generally at least $200 + taxes per night, so you’ll still have to pay some out of pocket
• $300 dining credit: Must be used through Sapphire Reserve Tables, with $150 every six months. Basically free nice meals
• $300 StubHub credit: $150 every six months. You can use it yourself, or buy popular tickets and resell them
• $300 DoorDash credit: $25 per month, but split into three parts: $5 + $10*2. Very annoying, but still usable
• $120 DoorDash membership credit
• $250 Apple streaming credit: Apple TV+ and Apple Music. Basically free
• $120 Lyft credit: $10 per month, basically one free ride each month. If you can’t use it, there’s not much you can do
• $120 Peloton credit: $10 per month
• Global Entry/TSA Pre credit $100: This is a standard perk on premium cards and should cover the application fee. Once every four years

These are all based on the calendar year, so you can get them at least twice. For example, if you open the card in March, you can use them once from March to December of that year, and again from January to March of the following year. If your timing is good, you may even get them 3 times. For more details, see

• Which credit cards should you apply for at the end of 2025? [It’s December! The best time is here!]

In short, CSR’s first-year value is far higher than CSP’s. Even though the annual fee is indeed $700 higher, once you factor in the welcome bonus and all the credits, it already comes out ahead of CSP. But if you don’t want to deal with credits, CSP clearly beats CSR.

Earning points on spending (CSP for everyday spend, CSR for travel)

After the recent refreshes to CSP and CSR, the two cards now emphasize different spending categories. CSP is more focused on everyday spending, adding 3x on online grocery and streaming service purchases, while restaurants, delivery, gas, and EV charging also increased to 3x, making it a better fit for daily use. CSR, on the other hand, leans into travel spending, offering up to 8x points on airfare, hotels, and rental cars, and at least 4x even when booking directly through provider websites. Those major travel expenses are all covered.

So on this front, it really depends on your spending mix and proportions.

Benefits

So are CSR’s extra perks worth opening the card for?

• Point value: If you mainly use your UR points by transferring to airline miles or hotel points, and Hyatt is your main transfer partner, then CSR is the better choice. After all, 4:3 versus 1:1 is a meaningful difference. If you mainly transfer to partners like UA, then it doesn’t matter as much. If you’re new to points, or you want to redeem directly through Chase Travel at 1.75c-2c for business-class flights, CSR’s 2c redemption value is still pretty competitive, since it gives roughly 15% more value
• Priority Pass: If you fly and often have layovers, then the free airport lounge access from Priority Pass is very useful. Lounges offer free Wi-Fi, food, drinks, and large couches or similar seating, which is great for resting during a connection or when you get to the airport early. Especially if you travel with family, the Sapphire Reserve Priority Pass lets you bring in 2 accompanying guests, which can make travel much more comfortable for everyone. As someone who doesn’t travel that often, I still think this is worth at least $50.

Bottom line

Based on all of the analysis above, for someone planning to hold the card for only one year, we can summarize it like this:

• If you spend a lot on travel, want premium travel perks, can use the travel benefits, and can use at least some of the credits, choose Sapphire Reserve
• If you transfer all your points to miles and don’t want to deal with a bunch of credits, choose Sapphire Preferred
• If you mainly transfer points to Hyatt, choose Sapphire Reserve

Personally, I think both cards are worth getting at the current welcome offers. Ideally, get both, and then later downgrade one based on how you actually use them.

Long-term holding comparison

If we’re just comparing which card is better to keep long term, then it comes down to CSR with its $795 annual fee versus CSP with its $95 annual fee. As discussed above, the $300 travel credit on CSR is extremely easy to use, so you can subtract that directly. CSP’s $100 hotel discount is also fairly easy to use. So the core question is whether CSR’s extra $500 in annual fee is worth it.

I’ve already gone through the various credits and benefits above. My personal view is:

• $500 The Edit credit: The Edit is hard to use, requires two nights, and the benefits are not that consistent, so I would not count it. If it improves later, it could be added back in
• $300 premium dining credit: This one is subjective. You could stock up on gift cards for restaurants you like. I’d value it at about $100
• $300 StubHub credit: If you can use it, it’s worth face value. If you’re willing to buy popular tickets and resell them, you can also cash out a decent amount. I’d call it $150
• $300 DoorDash credit: $25 per month, but split into three parts: $5 + $10*2. Very annoying, but usable. I’d value it at $50
• $120 DoorDash membership credit
• $250 Apple streaming credit: Apple TV+ and Apple Music. Basically free. If you use it, it’s close to full value. For me, I’d value it at $50
• $120 Lyft credit: $10 per month, basically one free ride each month. If you can’t use it, there’s not much you can do. For me, I’d value it at $30
• $120 Peloton credit: $10 per month. Not worth much
• Global Entry/TSA Pre credit $100: This is a standard premium-card perk and should cover the application fee. Once every four years. Too many cards offer this already, so it’s not worth much.
• Priority Pass: Lots of cards offer this. I’d assign it about $50 in value
• Extra rewards on select airlines and hotels. Worth maybe $30

That comes to about $450 in value for me. That basically offsets the extra annual fee. It really depends on how you personally value each credit and perk.

However, if you already plan to keep other premium credit cards long term, and those cards already provide airport lounge access and better travel rewards, while your only reason for holding either of these cards is to transfer the points you earn each year from Freedom/Freedom Unlimited into airline miles or hotel points, then CSP is still the better long-term card to keep.

Application strategy

First, one thing should be clear: under the current rules, you can earn the welcome bonus on both cards, and they do not conflict with each other. I only recommend getting both bonuses. I do not recommend applying for just one and then upgrading or downgrading to the other. You can apply for both, earn both welcome bonuses, and then downgrade to a no-annual-fee Chase card.

Can you get approved?

Sapphire Reserve is a Visa Infinite card, with a minimum credit line of $10,000. That means you need a solid credit history and a certain level of income, or the bank is unlikely to approve you for a credit card with a $10,000 limit. Sapphire Preferred only requires a $5,000 credit line, so it is much easier to get.

Taking a step back, what if you really want Sapphire Reserve but can’t qualify for Sapphire Reserve because your profile isn’t strong enough? One useful trick is to use Chase’s product-change strategy. To upgrade a Chase card into Sapphire Reserve, the following conditions apply:

• Have one of the following cards: Chase Freedom, Freedom Unlimited, Slate, Sapphire, or Sapphire Preferred
• This card has a credit limit above $10,000

If the credit limit on a single card is not high enough, you can first move credit from your other Chase cards (any personal card works) onto the card above, and then do the product change. By doing this, you can keep the Sapphire Reserve long term. If you do not want to miss out on the Sapphire Preferred welcome bonus, you can simply apply for a Sapphire Preferred to earn the bonus, and then change it to the Sapphire Reserve in the second year.

One-year holding strategy

This strategy assumes that you do not already have either of these two cards and that you are not blocked by the 5/24 rule. If you choose the Sapphire Reserve,

• Apply for it and use the $300 travel credit and other statement credits
• After your card anniversary passes, use the next $300 credit as soon as possible (optional)
• Send a secure message to change the card to a Freedom or Freedom Unlimited, and get most of the annual fee refunded

If you choose the Sapphire Preferred, you can just product change after the annual fee posts.

Summary

Both of these are solid travel cards. If you do not already have one and you are not subject to the Chase 5/24 rule, you may want to consider applying for one. If you enjoy using it, you can keep it long term; if not, you can product change or cancel it after one year. If you have any fresh angles for comparing them, feel free to leave a comment and discuss.