Chase Freedom Flex Vs. Chase Sapphire Preferred

To understand what that means, take a look at the following example. Let’s say you want to use your Chase credit card for all your regular spending, from groceries to miscellaneous purchases, and that you hope to earn the highest rate of rewards possible in any given quarter. Your quarterly spending might look like this:

• $1,500 spent on groceries
• $800 spent on Chase Travel
• $400 spent at restaurants
• $250 spent on miscellaneous purchases

With the Chase Freedom Flex, you would earn $69.50 in rewards for the quarter. That breaks down to $15 in cash back from grocery spending, $40 back from Chase Travel, $12 back from dining and $2.50 back on all other spending.

For this example, none of these categories fall into the current rotating bonus categories. If you happen to spend $1,500 in the bonus category, you have the potential to earn an additional $75, making your total earnings $144.50. However, it also means that there may be quarters where it’s much lower.

If you instead use the Chase Sapphire Preferred, you would earn 9,950 points, worth $99.50 in cash back or statement credits. That breaks down to $45 in cash back from online grocery spending, $40 back from Chase Travel, $12 back from dining and $2.50 back on all other spending. After accounting for the annual fee, your net earnings are $4.50.

Note, however, that this example doesn’t take into account redemption options or the welcome bonus on each card. More specifically, if you choose to redeem your 9,950 points earned with the Sapphire Preferred for travel via the Chase portal, they’d be worth around $124 thanks to the 25 percent points boost.

Further, if you transfer to the right high-value Chase hotel or airline partner, your points could be worth about 2.0 cents apiece, according to Bankrate valuations. That brings your potential value to $199. After accounting for the annual fee, your net earnings are $104.

If travel isn’t the name of your game (or your top priority in terms of redemptions), the Chase Freedom Flex can earn you more rewards when used strategically.