The Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card and Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card* are two of the best travel credit cards. They both have a $95 annual fee and good welcome bonuses, but the reward structures and redemption methods differ considerably.
While the Venture Rewards card may be better for users who prefer simplicity -- thanks to its flat rewards rate on purchases -- most cardholders will be able to net more overall value from the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card due to its unique rewards and redemption structures. And while the Venture card may have some travel perks that look appealing on first glance -- like Capital One Lounge access -- there are some stipulations to consider.
Comparing annual fees
Winner: Tie
Both the Venture and Sapphire Preferred have a $95 annual fee, so this is a clear tie. These cards are cheaper than "premium" cards with annual fees in the $500-$700 range, but $95 is still a significant chunk of change. You should expect better value than credit cards with no annual fee, and you'll get it if you're intentional. Just make sure you're getting your money's worth by comparing your projected rewards with a no-annual-fee option by reviewing your past two to three months of expenses.
Welcome offer
Winner: Chase Sapphire Preferred
With the Venture, you'll earn 75,000 bonus miles after spending $4,000 on purchases within the first three months of account opening. That’s equal to $750 in travel.
The Sapphire Preferred, in comparison, offers 60,000 points after spending $4,000 in the first three months. If you redeem that for travel through Chase Travel℠, it's worth $750, according to Chase. Plus, new cardholders also get $300 in statement credits to use with Chase Travel, which pushes the bonus' total value with Chase Travel to $1,050.
However, you could potentially find an even higher per-point value if you take advantage of a point transfer to one of Chase's travel partners, if you feel like doing that legwork.
Rewards
Winner: Chase Sapphire Preferred
The nice thing about the Capital One Venture's rewards is that they're consistent -- 2x miles on all purchases. Yes, you get a boost (5x miles) on hotels, vacation rentals and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel, but other than that, you don't have to worry about categories.
However, the Chase Sapphire Preferred's reward categories are broad enough that the benefit is worth the minor hassle of remembering which categories have which rewards. Earning 3x points on dining, online grocery purchases (excluding Target, Walmart and wholesale clubs) and select streaming services, and 5x points on travel booked through Chase Travel℠ -- not to mention the 2x on all other travel -- makes it easy to earn outsized reward rates.
Redemption
Winner: Chase Sapphire Preferred
If you're like me and you value consistent cash redemptions, both cards allow you to redeem rewards as a statement credit. With the Venture Rewards, however, the best value for a statement credit will be for travel purchases from the last 90 days, while Chase Ultimate Rewards can be redeemed consistently toward any purchase.
If you redeem your points toward travel, the Sapphire Preferred offers a nice 25% boost on redemption value as an incentive to do so (when redeeming through Chase Travel℠). This means your points could be worth 1.25 cents each instead of 1 cent.
Finally, keep in mind that both cards offer the option for transferring points or miles to affiliate travel partners at a 1:1 ratio, where some consumers can sometimes find better than 1 cent per point of value. And as it happens, the partner lists are quite similar between Capital One and Chase.
Conclusion
Both cards are solid $95 rewards credit cards, but the Sapphire Preferred offers a significantly higher ceiling for those who spend a lot on travel and dining.
FAQs
You can transfer Capital One Miles to one of 15+ Capital One travel partners, including Air France, British Airways, Emirates, Virgin and more. To do so, simply choose the “Transfer Your Rewards” option on the Capital One rewards page.
The transfer option is almost the same, too, and Chase has 14 travel partners currently, including British Airways, JetBlue, Southwest, United, Virgin and more. To transfer Ultimate Rewards points, select your rewards card in the Ultimate Rewards portal and choose “Transfer to Travel Partners” as the redemption option.
For every $1,000 you spend, 1% of rewards is worth $10 (and 0.5% of rewards is worth $5). So for each additional 1% of rewards, you earn an extra $10 for every $1,000. If you’re comparing a $95 annual fee credit card with a no-annual-fee card, you’d need to spend $9,500 per year at a 1% reward rate to make up for the annual fee. Welcome bonuses and other perks may also put the card’s value over the cost.
All information about the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card has been collected independently by CNET and has not been reviewed by the issuer.
