Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card vs. The Platinum Card® from American Express

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Frequent travelers will eventually be in the market for a premium travel rewards credit card. You can earn travel rewards and access perks and extra benefits that make travel easier and more comfortable. Two cards that fit this bill are the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card and The Platinum Card® from American Express. We compare these cards so you can make the best choice for you.

Welcome Offer

Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card: Earn 60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. That's $750 when you redeem through Chase Travel℠. They could be worth more if you transfer them to Chase’s travel partners. Chase has 11 airline partners, including Air Canada Aeroplan, which was added in 2022. Chase has three hotel partners, including Marriott and Hyatt, so with a little effort, your points could be worth more than $1,000.

The Platinum Card® from American Express: Earn 80,000 Membership Rewards® Points after you spend $8,000 on purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership. Terms Apply.

This offer is worth about $800, or about 0.01 per point, but could be worth twice as much if you transfer them to Amex’s airline or travel partners. Amex has 17 airline partners and three hotel partners, plus American Express often has travel bonuses, such as a 35% airline bonus, where you get 35% of your points back after you spend them. American Express wins this round.

Cash Back Rewards

Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card gets you 5x on travel purchased through Chase Ultimate Rewards plus 2x on all other travel-related purchases. In addition to the rewards listed below, you also get a $50 hotel credit, 5x points on Lyft rides (3x extra points added to the 2x you already earn on travel) until March of 2025, a DoorDash DashPass subscription, and a complimentary Instacart subscription. There’s also a 10% anniversary points boost, so if you earned 10,000 points through purchases, you’ll get 1,000 extra points.

The Platinum Card® from American Express has a whole slew of travel and other related benefits. In addition to the 5x you get on travel, you get $200 cash back in statement credits on certain prepaid hotel bookings; $240 ($20 a month) cash back on select streaming; a $200 airline credit; a $155 Walmart+ credit; $200 in Uber cash; $300 on Equinox club memberships or the Equinox+ digital fitness app; and $189 credit towards CLEAR so you can breeze through airline security without a hassle. Also, American Express now has more than 40 Centurion lounges, so that could be a great benefit for frequent travelers.

Here are the rewards for each card:

Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card 

Rewards:

The Platinum Card® from American Express 

Rewards:

Which card is better for you depends on what benefits you’ll actually use, but Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card offers rewards on everyday things most people spend money on, like dining, groceries and streaming. The Platinum Card® from American Express has great shopping benefits, but they appeal to a narrower slice of the population. Chase gets the win in this category.

Rates and Fees

Regarding the annual fee, there is a huge difference between these cards. Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card has an annual fee of $95. The Platinum Card® from American Express has an annual fee of $695. That’s quite a big difference. You’ll need to evaluate whether or not the benefits justify American Express’s high fee. For most people, the benefits of the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card outweigh the benefits of The Platinum Card® from American Express, and at a bargain basement price.

Neither card has a 0% introductory offer at this time. There are certain purchases that can be paid over time with The Platinum Card® from American Express, but for the most part, it works like you’d expect an American Express card to work: you pay your balance at the end of every month.

Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card has a broader appeal for a much lower fee, so Chase gets the win here.

Who the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card is Best For

Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card is a great card that offers solid rewards, a generous welcome bonus and great travel benefits, all for an annual fee of only $95. Anyone who travels will find value in this card, even if you travel only once a year. You collect rewards on dining, grocery, and streaming when you’re not traveling.

If you travel a great deal and want a more premium experience, consider the Chase Sapphire Reserve®. You’ll get a more valuable signup bonus, a $300 travel credit, a $100 Global Entry/TSA PreCheck credit, and a DoorDash subscription. The annual fee is higher, of course, but if you travel even twice a year the annual fee can be worth it.

Who the The Platinum Card® from American Express is Best For

If you value the comfort of Centurion Lounges when you travel, The Platinum Card® from American Express can be a good fit for you. Currently, there are 13 Centurion lounges in the U.S. and 14 internationally, but American Express is planning to open another three lounges in the U.S. If you live near an airport that has a Centurion Lounge, you can enjoy things like semi-private workspaces, spas, complimentary drinks and snacks, and outdoor terraces. If there isn’t a Centurion Lounge that you can use, you also have access to more than 1,400 Global Lounges.

The Platinum Card® from American Express also has many shopping and travel benefits. The key is figuring out which ones you’ll use. A $200 Uber credit sounds nice, but it’s useless if you never take an Uber. Some of the benefits of the card will only appeal to a small sample of the population, but if that’s you, this is an excellent card.

If you don’t want to spend quite so much money but still want a suite of great travel benefits including airport lounge access, consider the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card. You get 10x miles per dollar on all travel-related purchases and 2x miles per dollar on everything else. Plus you get a $300 annual travel credit and 10,000 bonus miles on your cardmember anniversary.

Does It Make Sense to Get Both Cards?

If you value the benefits and will use Centurion Lounges, you could get both cards. You can use the American Express card for the lounges and travel perks, and for just $95 more, you can earn rewards for dining, grocery, and streaming with the Chase card. Keep in mind that if you have a partner you often travel with, such as a spouse, they will need their own Platinum card to get the Centurion Lounge benefits.

Approval Odds

The credit score data listed below comes from publicly available information in several forums. The accuracy of the information cannot be verified. Keep in mind that credit card issuers consider more than an applicant’s credit score and that underwriting standards change over time.

Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card

The Platinum Card® from American Express

Since American Express requires you to pay your balance each month, they seem willing to consider lower credit scores than more traditional cards. There are no published salary requirements to be approved, but the general consensus is the more you earn, the easier your approval will be. The Chase card requires excellent credit, so if you don’t have that consider waiting until your credit improves.