Chase Sapphire Preferred Refresh
If this had been the only Chase news of the day, it would have been a good day. I would have been trumpeting the fact that Chase had finally did it. With the Chase Sapphire Preferred refresh they had finally done an update that actually hit the mark. Not an annual fee increase hidden behind a whole bunch of coupons thrown at the wall, but some actual useful updates for cardholders – that made sense! They couldn’t help themselves though, and they paired this with the Chase to Hyatt transfer ratio devalued news too. Let’s take a look at this silver lining for today anyway.
Card Improvements
Here are the changes that are happening with this Chase Sapphire Preferred refresh (coming 6/15/26):
- 3x points on gas and EV charging
- 3x points on vacation homes at top brands like Airbnb, Vrbo and more.
- $100 Chase Travel Hotel Credit each account anniversary, doubled from $50.
- Up to $120 toward Global Entry, TSA PreCheck or NEXUS every four years
- Addition of Emergency Evacuation and Transportation coverage
- Cardmembers will receive a complimentary Apple TV subscription for one year when activated by December 31, 2026.
Maybe most importantly, the $95 annual fee is being left unchanged.
The 3x points on gas and EV charging is the biggest plus listed above in my opinion. I have been saying Chase had a hole in their earning for these categories for years now. Driving is a big part of travel, and this is a travel card after all! I am surprised that it was not just 2x earning to be honest.
That is why adding Airbnb and VRBO as a 3x earner makes a ton of sense too. These have become a larger part of people’s travel patterns the last decade or so. It was a big miss from Chase’s travel card lineup before they addressed it here.
I also like the increase on the Chase Travel hotel credit. That offsets the annual fee if you can use it, and it should be easier to find a hotel the credit (mostly) covers the cost of.
What Else You Get From The Sapphire Preferred
All of these new options with the Chase Sapphire Preferred refresh pair up with the other stuff you already expect from the card.
Earning Structure
In addition to the new 3x earning categories, you still earn at the following rates as well:
- 5x points on all Chase Travel purchases, including flights, hotels, rental cars, cruises, activities and tours
- 2x points on all other travel worldwide
- 3x points on dining worldwide, including takeout and eligible delivery services
- 3x points on top streaming services
- 3x points on online grocery purchases
- 5x points on Lyft rides through September 30, 2027
- 5x total points on eligible Peloton equipment and accessory purchases over $150 through December 31, 2027
- 1x points on all other purchases
Card Perks
Here are the other card perks you still receive after the refresh (to go along with the new ones):
- Points BoostÂ
- Cardmembers can get more value when redeeming Ultimate Rewards® points on thousands of top-booked hotels and on flights with select airlines through Chase Travel
- Complimentary DashPass membership (a $120/ year value)
- $10 off a month on groceries, daily essentials, and more on DoorDash.
- No foreign transaction fees
- Trip delay, cancellation, delay, luggage and primary car rental insurance.
- Access to Chase Offers
Negative Card Changes
There are a couple of things the Chase Sapphire Preferred card is losing. First up, which was announced a little while ago, is the 10% anniversary points bonus. This is not a very big loss in my opinion. Especially since the bonus was based on the total dollars spent on the card, and not on the points earned. If you spent $10,000, which earned 30,000 points, you would only get 1,000 anniversary points – not 3,000 – for example.
The other, and much larger negative, is losing the ability to transfer to World of Hyatt at a 1 to 1 rate. This change to Chase’s most valuable transfer partner is rough. You can read more detail on all of that here.
Chase Sapphire Preferred Refresh: Final Thoughts
In terms of an overall card refresh, I really like what Chase did with the Sapphire Preferred here. If they just would have left their Ultimate Rewards program (and transfer rates) alone, this would have been a really good day. When you combine the two things I think it is still an overall negative refresh though. Devaluing your top transfer partner by 25% will not be glazed over by some new earning categories. Unless you spend a metric buttload on gas, Airbnb or VRBO etc. you probably don’t like these changes overall. Giving you more of something that you make less valuable may confuse simpletons, but it doesn’t confuse (most?) of us!
Let me know what you think of the Chase Sapphire Preferred refresh below, or over in the MTM Facebook Group.
