After 6 years with the Chase Sapphire Preferred as my go-to card, I upgraded to the Sapphire Reserve and I've never looked back

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• The Chase Sapphire Preferred Card and Chase Sapphire Reserve are both popular travel rewards credit cards.
• While the Sapphire Reserve has a much larger annual fee, the benefits easily make up the difference in cost and more.
• Eric Rosenberg upgraded from the Sapphire Preferred to the Sapphire Reserve after six years with the lower-tier version to take advantage of the bigger rewards and benefits.

I signed up for the popular Chase Sapphire Preferred card in March 2012.

It was my No. 1 card for restaurants and travel for years, and I got a ton of value from the 2x points per dollar in those categories. But when the newer Chase Sapphire Reserve burst onto the scene in 2016, it made my Sapphire Preferred seem a lot less exciting.

While Chase Sapphire Reserve has a bigger annual fee, the benefits are better as well. They are so good that I upgraded my card from Chase Sapphire Preferred to Chase Sapphire Reserve last year.

The Reserve has a higher fee, but also more rewards

Chase Sapphire Preferred and Chase Sapphire Reserve both earn Chase Ultimate Rewards points, a currency you can use to book free and discounted flights, hotels, and more. Both cards offer great benefits, but there are some important differences to note if you are considering either card.

On the surface, the first thing many people notice is the difference in annual fees. Chase Sapphire Preferred costs $95 per year while Chase Sapphire Reserve runs $450. While that difference may be eye-popping, the more expensive version is well worth the added cost.

The Preferred card offers 2x points per dollar and the Reserve card offers 3x points per dollar on travel and restaurants and 1x everywhere else. Redeeming Ultimate Rewards for travel through the portal, Preferred cardholders get 1.25 cents per point. Reserve cardholders get 1.5 cents per point.

The reward points difference alone doesn't justify the higher annual fee, but when you look at the benefits, you'll see where $450 per year is actually reasonable for what you get in return.

Premium benefits of Chase Sapphire Reserve

Both cards have valuable purchase and travel benefits and protections. Those include no foreign transaction fee and 1:1 transfers of points to partner airlines and hotels for award bookings on their programs. But wait, there's more!

Chase Sapphire Reserve offers these additional benefits that make it much more exciting than Chase Sapphire Preferred.

• $300 annual travel credit. The first benefit to take advantage of with this card is a travel credit. For the first $300 you spend per year on travel (excluding the $300 statement credit), you'll get it back automatically as a statement credit. That makes the annual fee effectively just $150 per year.
• TSA PreCheck/Global Entry fee credit. Get a credit worth up to $100 every four years to cover the cost of your Global Entry or TSA PreCheck membership. Because the card covers the whole cost, it definitely makes more sense to get Global Entry to maximize this benefit and your TSA benefits.
• Airport lounge access. The cherry on top is a complimentary Priority Pass Select membership. This card gives you access to over 1,200 lounges in 143 countries around the world.

These are not the only differences, but they make up the biggest reasons for my upgrade from the Preferred to the Reserve card. Because I would have spent $300 per year on flights or hotels anyway, the actual difference in cost for me is just $55 more.

I'm happy with my upgrade to the Chase Sapphire Reserve

I upgraded this card with a quick phone call to Chase. I just picked up my old Sapphire Preferred card, called the number on the back, and asked for an upgrade to the Sapphire Reserve. The change went into effect instantly and I had a new card show up in the mail shortly after.

If you love to travel, the Chase Sapphire Reserve may be the single best card out there. But if that big annual fee is too much to chew, the Chase Sapphire Preferred is still a great card. Either way, you can't go wrong. But for me, Chase Sapphire Reserve is clearly the winner.

Learn more about the Chase Sapphire Preferred from our partner The Points Guy »

Learn more about the Chase Sapphire Reserve from our partner The Points Guy »

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