Category Archives for Credit Cards.
You may wonder why I’m writing about a cash back card, not a points offer. But this really is a points offer, in fact it’s a linchpin of a lot of folks strategies for earning transferable points with Chase.
Bilt is out with news that they’ve added Southwest Airlines as a transfer partner. Outside of hotel programs, previously only Chase Ultimate Rewards points transferred to Southwest.
What’s new is that they’ve introduced points transfers to hotels and airlines. Their CEO tells me “We will be adding many more transfer partners and other amazing redemption options in the coming months.” In the meantime these are the launch partners…
The card is clearly worth getting for this bonus offer alone. And its $99 annual fee is worth it on an ongoing basis, because you receive an anniversary free night for IHG Hotels & Resorts. And, when cardholders redeem points for a consecutive four-night IHG hotel stay, the fourth redemption night is free. That benefit can be huge. And cardmembers receive automatic Platinum Elite status, which they keep as long as the card remains open.
Before Bilt, most people did not earn rewards for their single largest expense. Soon they’ll offer points for paying mortgages, too.
I’ve been a big fan of the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card. It’s the OG. And right now there’s a lot of attention on it because Chase has come out with an historic bonus offer. There’s no question that the card is worth getting now. But what are the points worth, and what else should you know about the card?
Here are my 13 favorite things about the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card.
Here’s what you need to know applying for the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card now that it has one of the best card bonuses: 100,000 points after you spend $5,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening.
My wife was approved for this card. Her small business is… very small. But the interesting thing, beyond that they’d approve her, is what happens to the points.
We haven’t seen an offer like this in nearly four years. You can redeem the points at 1.25 cents apiece towards travel through Chase’s portal, or transfer them to airline and hotel points.
I’m not saying this is the most rewarding card for spending, although it can be an important part of American AAdvantage status-earning. But it makes clear sense to get, given the value proposition of the upfront bonus offer, and for me it makes a lot of sense to keep because I get value out of the wifi rebate alone and then can continue to have the benefits of the card.
Gary Leff is one of the foremost experts in the field of miles, points, and frequent business travel -- a topic he has covered since 2002.
Co-founder of frequent flyer community InsideFlyer.com, emcee of the Freddie Awards, and named one of the "World's Top Travel Experts" by Conde' Nast Traveler (2010-Present) Gary has been a guest on most major news media, profiled in several top print publications, and published broadly on the topic of consumer loyalty. More About Gary »
