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Introduction

The Chase Sapphire Preferred has long been a favorite among travelers with its useful spending categories and top-notch travel and purchase protections. But it faces stiff competition from the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card, which comes with a fantastic intro offer of its own.

While both of these travel credit cards are a terrific choice for beginners and experts alike, each offers a unique set of rewards, benefits, and costs. Depending on where you spend most and how you like to travel, one may make more sense for your needs than the other (though it’s certainly possible to have both).

Here’s a head-to-head face-off between these cards to help you decide which best fits your situation.

Overview of premium credit cards 

Premium travel rewards credit cards seemingly raise their annual fees on a regular basis these days, and most people can’t imagine spending hundreds of dollars each year just to have a credit card. But the right cards can offer valuable perks and purchase protection benefits that you can’t even buy in cash. 

Neither the Chase Sapphire Preferred nor the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card (rates and fees) fall in the premium card category, with modest annual fees under $100 apiece. However, they still come at a cost, which can deter consumers who compare them against no-fee credit cards. 

Here’s what you should know about both cards, and why they would be a good addition to any traveler’s wallet. 

Annual fees and welcome offers

Comparison of annual fees

The Chase Sapphire Preferred and Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card are both travel rewards credit cards with similar annual fees.

The Chase Sapphire Preferred costs $95 per year. Meanwhile, the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card has an annual fee of $95 (rates and fees).

Sign-up bonus offers

New Chase Sapphire Preferred cardholders can earn 60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first three months from account opening. New Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card cardholders can earn 75,000 miles once you spend $4,000 on purchases within the first three months of account opening, plus receive a one-time $250 Capital One Travel credit in your first cardholder year. 

Earning rewards

Both cards are generous earners, and the rewards you earn from both Chase and Capital One are quite valuable. 

Points earning on travel and everyday purchases

The Chase Sapphire Preferred earns bonus points on several categories of spend:

• 5x points on travel purchased through Chase Travel℠
• 5x points on Lyft rides through March 2025
• 3x points on dining and online grocery purchases (excluding Target, Walmart, and wholesale clubs)
• 3x points on select streaming services
• 2x points on all other travel purchases
• 1 point per dollar on all other purchases

The Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card has a much simpler rewards structure, earning: 

• 5 miles per dollar on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel
• 2x miles on all other purchases

Bonus categories

As shown above, both cards offer some opportunities for bonus rewards. While the Chase Sapphire Preferred earns generous bonuses, some people prefer a simpler rewards structure. Meanwhile, the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card eschews bonus categories for a substantial return on all spending.

Redeeming points

The Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card is better for those looking for really easy and flexible redemptions. To understand why, let’s dive into the details of each program and how the redemption options work.

The Sapphire Preferred is the best card for people new to travel rewards. It gives you a ton of value and a lot of protections. And if you ever run into any trouble, Chase customer support for these cards is solid. 

 How you earn and redeem rewards with each card is different, so it’s important to consider what sets them apart to decide which could be best for your needs.

Redemption options for travel

Rewards from both loyalty programs are potentially worth the most when you transfer to partner airlines. You can also transfer to hotel partners, but airlines tend to offer the best value because you can often redeem points for business- and first-class seats which can be worth significantly more than the cash value of your rewards.

Transfer partners

Chase Ultimate Rewards points and Capital One miles work differently, and each may appeal to a different type of traveler. In general, the Chase Sapphire Preferred is better for those who want to squeeze out more value per point and are willing to put in a little time to figure out the best way to redeem points with the Chase Ultimate Rewards® program’s airline and hotel transfer partners.

Each card issuer has its own network of travel partners.

Chase Ultimate Rewards transfer partners and reward redemptions

The Chase Sapphire Preferred may come out ahead when it comes to redemptions because points are worth 1.25 cents apiece toward travel reservations booked through the Chase Travel℠ Portal. All Chase Ultimate Rewards points transfer at a 1:1 ratio, meaning 1 Chase point equals 1 airline mile or 1 hotel point.

• Aer Lingus AerClub
• Air Canada Aeroplan
• Air France-KLM Flying Blue
• British Airways Executive Club
• Emirates Skywards
• Iberia Plus
• JetBlue TrueBlue
• Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer
• Southwest Rapid Rewards
• United MileagePlus
• Virgin Atlantic Flying Club
• IHG Rewards Club
• Marriott Bonvoy
• World of Hyatt

Capital One transfer partners and reward redemptions

The easiest way to use Capital One miles is to redeem them to cover travel charges from your Venture card statement posted within the past 90 days. All you need to do is open your online account, find the charge in your transaction history, and erase it with miles at 1 cent per mile.

If you’re willing to get a bit more complicated, Capital One now offers 18 airline and hotel partners with which you can receive outsized redemption value.

The list offers a wide array of international airlines, including some of the most aspirational in the world — Singapore, Emirates, and Etihad often battle for the title of the world’s most luxurious airline.

Because flights sometimes go on sale, you might get the best value by redeeming right through the Capital One portal. Similar to Chase, you can always run the numbers for a specific flight to compare.

The Venture Rewards card charges a $95 annual fee (rates and fees) and currently offers a substantial bonus: 75,000 miles once you spend $4,000 on purchases within the first three months of account opening, plus receive a one-time $250 Capital One Travel credit in your first cardholder year. 

Most Capital One miles earned on the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card also transfer to Capital One transfer partners at a 1:1 ratio. There are a couple of exceptions, however, which we highlight below. 

• Aeromexico Club Premier (1:1 ratio)
• Air Canada Aeroplan (1:1 ratio) 
• Air France-KLM Flying Blue (1:1 ratio) 
• ALL – Accor Live Limitless (2:1 ratio)
• Avianca LifeMiles (1:1 ratio)
• British Airways Executive Club (1:1 ratio) 
• Cathay Pacific Asia Miles (1:1 ratio) 
• Choice Privileges (1:1 ratio)
• Emirates Skywards (1:1 ratio) 
• Etihad Guest (1:1 ratio)
• EVA Infinity MileageLands (2:1.5 ratio)
• Finnair Plus (1:1 ratio)
• Qantas Frequent Flyer (1:1 ratio)
• Singapore KrisFlyer (1:1 ratio) 
• TAP Air Portugal Miles&Go (1:1 ratio)
• Turkish Airlines Miles&Smiles (1:1 ratio)
• Virgin Red (1:1 ratio)
• Wyndham Rewards (1:1 ratio)

Travel benefits and protections

Both the Chase Sapphire Preferred and Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card offer a wide range of travel and purchase coverage and benefits. 

No foreign transaction fees

Both cards waive foreign transaction fees (see rates and fees for the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card). 

Travel insurance coverage and travel benefits

Depending on how much you travel and the anticipated costs along the way, the following insurance and protection benefits can be very valuable. 

The Chase Sapphire Preferred offers travelers trip cancellation insurance, primary car rental insurance, baggage delay insurance, trip delay insurance, and travel emergency assistance. It also offers up to $50 in credit each year toward hotels booked through the Chase Travel℠ Portal.

The Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card comes with travel assistance service, MasterRental Insurance, trip cancellation and interruption coverage. For benefits, Capital One’s card is a little lighter than what you get from Chase. One big benefit this card offers that the Chase Sapphire Preferred does not is a statement credit of up to $100 for TSA’s Global Entry or PreCheck programs when you pay with the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card.

Purchase protection

The Chase Sapphire Preferred offers purchase protection and extended warranty on eligible items. The Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card has purchase assurance on certain eligible purchases as well. 

Airport lounge access and concierge service

Neither the Chase Sapphire Preferred nor the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card offers airport lounge access or concierge service. However, their premium-card siblings do: The Chase Sapphire Reserve® and the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card.

If you’re curious about these luxury travel benefits, read our credit card comparison of the Chase Sapphire Reserve vs. the Capital One Venture X. 

Considerations for choosing

If I had to pick a winner, it would be the Chase Sapphire Preferred for matching card benefits to the travel needs of most cardholders.

While the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card offers more miles per dollar and more transfer partners, its airline partners aren’t as useful to many U.S. travelers, so it’s harder to get outsized value.

Advanced travelers and those who are willing to research award availability on major U.S. travel partners can get the best results from Chase Sapphire Preferred. Those who just want to keep things easy and flexible will enjoy the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card’s structure a little more.

The Chase Sapphire Preferred also has the edge when it comes to travel protections like primary car rental insurance and trip delay insurance — hopefully, you don’t have to put these benefits to use, but if you do they can save you some serious cash. You’ve also got plenty of non-travel redemption options with the Chase Sapphire Preferred if you’re not ready to stray too far from home just yet.

At the end of the day, evaluating spending patterns and reward preferences is the best way for regular travelers to choose between these two travel rewards cards that both come with sub-$100 annual fees. 

Chase Sapphire Preferred vs. Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card frequently asked questions