How I got a 20X return on my Chase Sapphire Preferred last year
So often when I'm recommending a rewards credit card to friends and family, I immediately get the question: "But is that one of those cards with an annual fee?"
It's true that many rewards cards worth having come with an annual fee. But, in my opinion, it is usually a very minor investment that delivers outsize value year after year.
Take my Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card (see rates and fees) as an example. This card has a (quite modest) $95 annual fee, and I can't see myself ever getting rid of it.
Here's why.
Earning points on everyday spending
The Sapphire Preferred has some solid earning rates that include:
- 5 points per dollar spent on travel booked through Chase Travel℠
- 5 points per dollar spent on Lyft rides (through Sept. 30, 2027)
- 3 points per dollar spent on dining
- 3 points per dollar spent on select streaming services
- 3 points per dollar spent on online grocery store purchases (excludes Target, Walmart and wholesale clubs)
- 2 points per dollar spent on all travel not booked through Chase Travel
- 1 point per dollar spent on everything else
I use this card to cover all the online grocery, dining and streaming service expenses for my household and my father's, which cost about $1,200 per month. That earned me roughly 3,600 Chase Ultimate Rewards points per month throughout much of 2024 that I then transferred right into my World of Hyatt account.
Related: 7 Chase Sapphire Preferred benefits you might not know about
Does the value offset the annual fee?
For starters, the welcome bonus offer — 75,000 Ultimate Rewards points after spending $5,000 on purchases in the first three months of account opening — is a hearty value in itself. But let's focus on the value of this card beyond the welcome offer.
The Chase Sapphire Preferred card comes with benefits like a $50 annual credit for hotels booked through Chase Travel and a variety of travel protections that save me hundreds of dollars each year by not having to pay for things like car rental insurance and trip cancellation insurance. These automatically neutralize that annual fee for someone who travels even just a couple of times a year.
But beyond those benefits, the points I earned by using this card for my everyday spending in 2024 covered more than $2,000 worth of hotel stays.
Related: Is the Chase Sapphire Preferred worth the annual fee? I say yes
Over a dozen free nights worth over $2,000
World of Hyatt may be the most valuable transfer partner in the Ultimate Rewards program, and it was the perfect place to move my points.
That's because, last year, my wife and I welcomed our first child, and in a dual effort to preserve our sanity as first-year parents and maintain my elite status with World of Hyatt during a lighter travel year, we used these points to cover a room at our local Hyatt Regency about once per month.
We'd then alternate which of us got to take the night off from parental duties and enjoy a quiet evening downtown at the hotel. That's what I call value you can't even put a price on.
The Hyatt Regency Rochester in New York is a Category 1 Hyatt property (and a quite nice one, at that). A standard room costs about $175 or 5,000 points per night on average, but we were able to score most of our stays for only 3,500 points per night by checking World of Hyatt's award chart and cherry-picking off-peak nights.
By the end of the year, we had stayed more than a dozen nights in that hotel on points, and practically all of those redemptions were earned in real time each month just from using the Sapphire Preferred for those everyday spending categories.
Ultimate Rewards points are among the most valuable you can earn, worth about 2.05 cents apiece on average, according to our April 2025 valuations. But by transferring them to World of Hyatt and using them in this way, I got about 250% more value than that from them. Had we paid cash for those stays, it would have cost us about $2,100.
That's a huge chunk of value to earn from just using the right card on your usual spending.
Related: 23 best Hyatt hotels in the world
Bottom line
Will I have to pay that annual fee each year to use this card? Certainly, but is it actually costing me money or saving me money? With all the value I get from this card, the math is a no-brainer.
To learn more, read our full review of the Chase Sapphire Preferred.
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| 3X | Earn 3X Miles on Delta purchases. |
| 1X | Earn 1X Miles on all other eligible purchases. |
Pros
- Delta SkyClub access when flying Delta
- Annual companion ticket for travel on Delta (upon renewal)
- Ability to earn MQDs through spending
- Various statement credits for eligible purchases
Cons
- Steep annual fee of $650
- Other Delta cobranded cards offer superior earning categories
- Earn 100,000 Bonus Miles after you spend $6,000 or more in purchases with your new Card within the first 6 months of Card Membership and an additional 25,000 bonus miles after you make an additional $3,000 in purchases on the Card within your first 6 months, starting from the date that your account is opened. Offer Ends 04/01/2026.
- Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card Members receive 15 Visits per Medallion® Year to the Delta Sky Club® when flying Delta and can unlock an unlimited number of Visits after spending $75,000 in purchases on your Card in a calendar year. Plus, you’ll receive four One-Time Guest Passes each Medallion Year so you can share the experience with family and friends when traveling Delta together.
- Enjoy complimentary access to The Centurion® Lounge in the U.S. and select international locations (as set forth on the Centurion Lounge Website), Sidecar by The Centurion® Lounge in the U.S. (see the Centurion Lounge Website for more information on Sidecar by The Centurion® Lounge availability), and Escape Lounges when flying on a Delta flight booked with the Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card. § To access Sidecar by The Centurion® Lounge, Card Members must arrive within 90 minutes of their departing flight (including layovers). To access The Centurion® Lounge, Card Members must arrive within 3 hours of their departing flight. Effective July 8, 2026, during a layover, Card Members must arrive within 5 hours of the connecting flight.
- Receive $2,500 Medallion® Qualification Dollars with MQD Headstart each Medallion Qualification Year and earn $1 MQD for each $10 in purchases on your Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card with MQD Boost to get closer to Status next Medallion Year.
- Enjoy a Companion Certificate on a Delta First, Delta Comfort, or Delta Main round-trip flight to select destinations each year after renewal of your Card. The Companion Certificate requires payment of government-imposed taxes and fees of between $22 and $250 (for itineraries with up to four flight segments). Baggage charges and other restrictions apply. Delta Basic experiences are not eligible for this benefit.
- $240 Resy Credit: When you use your Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card for eligible purchases with U.S. Resy restaurants, you can earn up to $20 each month in statement credits. Enrollment required.
- $120 Rideshare Credit: Earn up to $10 back in statement credits each month after you use your Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card to pay for U.S. rideshare purchases with select providers. Enrollment required.
- Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card Members get 15% off when using miles to book Award Travel on Delta flights through delta.com and the Fly Delta app. Discount not applicable to partner-operated flights or to taxes and fees.
- With your Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card, receive upgrade priority over others with the same Medallion tier, product and fare experience purchased, and Million Miler milestone when you fly with Delta.
- Earn 3X Miles on Delta purchases and earn 1X Miles on all other eligible purchases.
- No Foreign Transaction Fees. Enjoy international travel without additional fees on purchases made abroad.
- $650 Annual Fee.
- Apply with confidence. Know if you're approved for a Card with no impact to your credit score. If you're approved and you choose to accept this Card, your credit score may be impacted.
- Terms Apply.
- See Rates & Fees