The Chase Sapphire Preferred just had its biggest refresh in years. On June 15, 2026, Chase added new bonus categories, bigger annual credits, and a limited-time 100,000-point welcome offer — while keeping the $95 annual fee unchanged since the card launched in 2009. There’s also a less-publicized change buried in the update: a real devaluation to how points transfer to World of Hyatt. This review covers exactly what’s new, what the card actually costs and earns, and who it makes sense for.
In This Review
- The Card at a Glance
- New to Points? Start Here
- What Changed in the June 2026 Refresh
- Earning Rates
- Credits, Protections & Other Benefits
- The Hidden Change: World of Hyatt Transfers
- Who This Card Is For
- How It Compares
- Frequently Asked Questions
The Card at a Glance
| Annual Fee | $95 (See Rates & Fees) |
| Welcome Offer | 100,000 points after $5,000 spend in 3 months (limited-time offer) |
| Rewards Currency | Chase Ultimate Rewards points |
| Foreign Transaction Fees | None |
| Issuer | Chase |
Terms current as of this writing (July 2026). Chase updated this card significantly on June 15, 2026, and welcome offers in particular change frequently — always confirm current terms directly on Chase’s site before applying.
A $95 annual fee that hasn’t moved since 2009, paired with a welcome bonus TPG values north of $2,000, is why this card has stayed the standard starting point for travel rewards for over 15 years.
New to Points? Start Here
If you’re new to travel rewards, here’s the short version of how this card’s points actually work — because “worth 2 cents each” or “worth 1 cent each” can mean very different things depending on how you redeem.
What a Chase Ultimate Rewards point actually is
Think of it less like cash back and more like a flexible currency. Unlike a program tied to one specific airline or hotel, Ultimate Rewards points can be used several different ways, and the value you get out of them depends entirely on which way you choose.
Option 1: Book directly through the Chase Travel portal
This is the simplest option — no research required, just use points like cash inside Chase’s own booking site for flights, hotels, rental cars, and more. Here’s the part that’s easy to get wrong if you’ve read older articles about this card: **the portal used to guarantee a fixed 25% bonus** (1.25 cents per point) for Sapphire Preferred holders. That changed in June 2025 with a new system called Points Boost. If you got this card after June 23, 2025, your baseline portal value is **1 cent per point**, with select flights and hotels occasionally boosted up to 1.5–1.75 cents per point — but that boost isn’t guaranteed on every booking the way the old fixed rate was.
In plain terms: 60,000 points might get you $600 in travel through the portal at baseline value, or more if a Points Boost offer applies to what you’re booking — but don’t assume every booking automatically gets the boosted rate.
Option 2: Transfer to airline or hotel partners
This takes more effort — you’re moving points to a specific airline or hotel program (like World of Hyatt or a Chase airline partner) and booking directly with them — but it’s typically where the real value lives. Experienced points users often get 1.5 to 2+ cents of value per point this way, sometimes considerably more on premium cabin flights or well-chosen hotel redemptions. This is also the path where the World of Hyatt transfer change we cover below actually matters.
Option 3: Cash back / statement credit
Points can also be redeemed for a plain statement credit, but this is consistently the lowest-value option — generally around 1 cent per point, the same as the unboosted portal rate. If you’re not ready to learn transfer partners yet, using the portal directly is a better default than cashing out.
Our honest take for beginners: don’t feel like you need to master transfer partners on day one. Booking through the Chase Travel portal is a perfectly reasonable way to start, and you can always learn transfer strategy later once you’re comfortable — the points don’t expire as long as your account stays open.
What Changed in the June 2026 Refresh
This is only the second major refresh in the card’s history, and it applies to both new and existing cardholders as of June 15, 2026, with no change to the $95 annual fee (See Rates & Fees):
- New 3x categories on gas, EV charging, and vacation home rentals (Airbnb, Vrbo, Plum Guide, HomeAway, Homestay.com, and Vacasa) — none of these earned bonus points before this update.
- The Chase Travel hotel credit doubled, from $50 to $100 per year.
- A new $120 credit every four years toward Global Entry, TSA PreCheck, or NEXUS application fees — a benefit competing cards have offered for years that this card previously lacked entirely.
- A complimentary one-year Apple TV subscription (worth up to $156), available if activated by December 31, 2026.
- New travel protections, including emergency evacuation and transportation coverage.
Two things are going away, mainly affecting cardholders who had the card before the refresh:
- The 10% anniversary points bonus is being discontinued. New applicants after June 15, 2026 never had it to begin with. Existing cardholders keep earning it on eligible purchases only through October 1, 2026.
- World of Hyatt transfers are getting a worse ratio — covered in detail below, since it’s easy to miss and genuinely matters if you value Hyatt redemptions.
Earning Rates
- 5x points on travel booked through Chase Travel (flights, hotels, rental cars, vacation homes, cruises, activities, and tours)
- 5x points on Lyft rides (through a promotional period)
- 3x points on dining, including takeout and delivery
- 3x points on online grocery purchases
- 3x points on select streaming services
- 3x points on gas and EV charging (new)
- 3x points on vacation rentals through Airbnb, Vrbo, and similar platforms (new)
- 2x points on all other travel purchases not booked through Chase Travel
- 1x point on everything else
Credits, Protections & Other Benefits
- Up to $100/year in Chase Travel hotel booking credit
- Up to $120 every 4 years toward Global Entry, TSA PreCheck, or NEXUS
- Complimentary DashPass membership (through Dec. 31, 2027, terms apply) — worth noting on its own, since DashPass normally costs $9.99/month or $96/year, which alone can offset most of this card’s annual fee
- Complimentary 1-year Apple TV subscription (activate by Dec. 31, 2026)
- No foreign transaction fees
- Primary rental car coverage, trip delay reimbursement, and emergency evacuation/transportation coverage
Between the hotel credit and DashPass alone, most cardholders can offset the entire $95 annual fee through benefits they’d likely use anyway, before even counting the points earned on spending.
The Hidden Change: World of Hyatt Transfers
Buried in the same announcement as all the positive changes is a real devaluation: Ultimate Rewards points will transfer to World of Hyatt at a reduced 4:3 ratio instead of the long-standing 1:1 rate. Transferring 1,000 Ultimate Rewards points now gets you only 750 Hyatt points, not 1,000. If you applied before June 15, 2026, this takes effect October 1, 2026; if you’re a new applicant, the reduced rate is already in effect. Combined with the real Hyatt award chart devaluation we covered in our World of Hyatt guide, this is a genuine one-two hit if Hyatt redemptions were a big part of why you valued this card’s transfer partners.
Who This Card Is For
Rather than a generic “good for most people,” here’s how this actually breaks down by situation:
A few situations where it’s worth pausing before applying:
- You’re heavily invested in World of Hyatt specifically. The reduced transfer ratio (covered below) is a real hit if Hyatt redemptions were the main reason you valued this card’s transfer partners.
- You want the absolute simplest cash-back card with zero annual fee. If you’re not confident you’ll use enough of the included credits (hotel credit, DashPass, Apple TV) to offset $95, a no-fee card may make more sense until your travel habits justify the switch.
- You’re chasing airport lounge access. This card doesn’t include it — that’s specifically a Sapphire Reserve or premium-tier card benefit, not something to expect here.
How It Compares
The Sapphire Preferred’s closest competitors sit at different price points rather than head-to-head: the no-annual-fee Chase Freedom cards trade away travel-specific perks for zero cost, while premium cards like the Capital One Venture X or Amex Platinum charge significantly more but include airport lounge access and bigger annual credits. The Sapphire Preferred remains the mid-tier standard — enough travel-specific value to be worth a real annual fee, without the four-figure cost of the premium tier above it.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do Chase points still get a 25% bonus through the travel portal?
Not automatically anymore. That fixed 25% bonus (1.25 cents per point) applied to cardholders who got the Sapphire Preferred before June 23, 2025. If you’re applying now, the portal uses a variable “Points Boost” system instead — a baseline of 1 cent per point, with select bookings boosted up to 1.5-1.75 cents. It’s worth checking the actual boost on a specific booking rather than assuming a fixed rate.
Is the Chase Sapphire Preferred worth the $95 annual fee?
For most people, yes — the combined value of the Chase Travel hotel credit, complimentary DashPass, and Apple TV subscription can offset most or all of the $95 annual fee (See Rates & Fees) through benefits many cardholders already use, before even counting points earned.
What changed with the Chase Sapphire Preferred in 2026?
On June 15, 2026, Chase added 3x earning on gas, EV charging, and vacation rentals, doubled the Chase Travel hotel credit to $100/year, added a new Global Entry/TSA PreCheck/NEXUS credit, and added a complimentary Apple TV subscription — all with no change to the $95 annual fee. It also reduced the World of Hyatt transfer ratio and is phasing out the 10% anniversary points bonus.
Where can Chase Ultimate Rewards points transfer?
Chase partners with numerous airline and hotel programs, including World of Hyatt (now at a reduced 4:3 ratio rather than 1:1), plus various airline partners at their standard rates. Always check current transfer ratios before moving points, since they can and do change.
Is the 100,000-point welcome bonus available to everyone?
This is a limited-time offer, and Chase’s standard welcome bonuses on this card have historically ranged from 60,000 to 80,000 points. Eligibility rules (such as not having received a new-cardmember bonus on this card recently) typically apply — confirm your specific eligibility directly with Chase before applying.