Citi Premier Card vs. Chase Sapphire Preferred Card

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Want to earn travel rewards and save up for your next big trip? You have a variety of options, including two of the best mid-range travel credit cards: Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card as well as Citi Premier® Card.

Both cards are valuable to the average traveler; someone who flies frequently but not in excess. In other words, if you’re staying at a hotel every week, none of these cards are the ones you’re looking for.

But if you travel as often as once a month, or as infrequently as just a few times a year, both of these cards will suit you. First, let’s take a closer look at the details of each card:

Map details

Card	City Premier Card	Chase Sapphire Preferred Card
Interest rate	3 times more points in restaurants, supermarkets, gas stations, flights and hotels 1X points for everything else	5X Chase Ultimate Rewards Points 3x Points at Restaurants, Select Streaming Services, and Online Grocery Purchases (excluding Target, Walmart, and Wholesale Clubs) 2x points for all other travel purchases 1X points for regular purchases
Annual fee	$95	$95
Welcome Bonus	80,000 ThankYou points if you spend $4,000 in the first 3 months	60,000 points if you spend $4,000 in the first 3 months
Regular APR	18.99%-26.99% variable	18.24%-25.24% variable

Citi Premier Card vs. Chase Sapphire Preferred Card

What is the difference between Citi Premier and Chase Sapphire cards? Here’s a look at their key features and how they compare.

Welcome offer

City Premier	Chase Sapphire prefers
80,000 ThankYou points if you spend $4,000 in the first 3 months	60,000 points if you spend $4,000 in the first 3 months

Winner: City Premier

Both cards come with solid welcome offers, but the current Citi Premier welcome bonus gives you another 20,000 points for spending the same amount of money in the same time frame.

Awards

City Premier	Chase Sapphire prefers
3 times more points in restaurants, supermarkets, gas stations, flights and hotels 1X points for everything else	5X Chase Ultimate Rewards Points 3x Points at Restaurants, Select Streaming Services, and Online Grocery Purchases (excluding Target, Walmart, and Wholesale Clubs) 2x points for all other travel purchases 1X points for regular purchases

Winner: Chase Sapphire Preferred

Again, both cards offer great recurring rewards, but Chase Sapphire Preferred comes out ahead due to the (technically) wider variety of rewards on offer and higher rates for travel through the Chase portal.

In addition, you’ll receive an upgrade when you redeem points earned with Sapphire Preferred through the Chase Ultimate Rewards Travel Portal, making them worth 1.25 cents each.

Both Citi and Chase offer hotel and airline transfer partners, but according to Bankrate estimates, Sapphire Preferred Points are worth slightly more for travel with transfer partners (2 cents apiece) compared to a Premier Card (1.9 cents apiece). ).

Annual fee

City Premier	Chase Sapphire prefers
$95	$95

Winner: Draw

It’s easy. Both Citi Premier and Chase Sapphire charge the same annual fee. In addition, both cards offer rewards programs that are generous enough to help you easily earn enough rewards to offset the commission.

Fringe benefits

City Premier	Chase Sapphire prefers
$100 annual savings on hotels Privileges World Elite Mastercard No fees for foreign transactions	$50 annual hotel credit 10% Anniversary Points Bonus 25% more points for chasing trips Travel insurance such as trip cancellation/cancellation insurance and baggage delay insurance. One year of free use of DoorDash DashPass

Winner: Chase Sapphire Preferred

The Chase Sapphire Preferred and Citi Premier programs offer in-hotel perks each year: $100 annual Citi savings and $50 annual Chase credits.

But Chase also rewards account holders with bonus points equal to 10 percent of their annual spending on each anniversary of their account opening date. These additional Reward Points can be cumulative: if you spend $30,000 during the year, you will earn 3,000 Reward Points on your anniversary.

Chase also offers fantastic travel insurance perks, which you can read about in our best travel insurance credit card guide.

Foreign transaction fees

City Premier	Chase Sapphire prefers
Nobody	Nobody

Winner: Draw

Neither Citi Premier nor Chase Sapphire Preferred charge foreign transaction fees. Thus, both of these cards are a good choice for frequent travelers who do not want to pay additional fees when traveling around the world.

What card should you get?

Which card is better for you: Chase Sapphire Preferred or Citi Premier? As with most credit card decisions, it all depends on your spending habits and preferences.

• If you like long trips: Go with Citi Premier. 3x points at gas stations will ease some of the pain associated with higher gas prices, and the 3x points you earn for every dollar charged at hotels can also increase your savings on the road.
• If you prefer to travel by air: You will earn the most rewards by booking tickets through the Chase Ultimate Rewards portal with Sapphire Preferred status. Purchasing airline tickets this way will give you a solid 5X points for every dollar spent.
• If you have multiple other Chase credit cards: If you already have several Chase credit cards in your wallet, Chase Sapphire Preferred is best; the issuer, of course, allows you to move rewards between cards. For example, if you have a Chase Freedom Flex℠, you can pool your rewards in your Sapphire Preferred account and book your travel through the portal for a 25% surcharge.
• If you frequently fly certain airlines or stay at certain hotelsA: Please consider both lists of Citi Transfer Partners and Chase Transfer Partners before applying for either card, as transferring your points can be of the greatest benefit.

bottom line

These cards are popular for a reason. Both the Chase Sapphire Preferred and the Citi Premier Card offer solid rewards and perks without too high an annual fee. Consider your spending habits before choosing one, but also check out our list of the best travel credit cards of 2022 if another option grabs your attention.

Dan Rafter has covered personal finance for over 15 years in publications ranging from The Washington Post and Chicago Tribune to Wise Bread, HSH.com and MoneyRates.com. His work has also been published online by Motley Fool, Fox Business, Huffington Post, Christian Science Monitor and Time.