Bank of America Premium Rewards vs Chase Sapphire Preferred

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There are plenty of options if you're a travel enthusiast looking to open one of the best credit cards. While there are airline credit cards and hotel credit cards from just about every major travel brand, the most versatile travel credit cards earn flexible points you can redeem in multiple ways.

Both the Bank of America® Premium Rewards® credit card - Product Name Only and Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card - Product Name Only fall into the latter category, which is why they're so popular. Both come with high rewards rates for spending, travel benefits and protections that can save you money, and hefty welcome bonus offers:

If you're considering earning credit card rewards for free travel and want the most options when you're ready to use your points, either of these cards is a good choice. Here's how the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card - Product Name Only and Bank of America® Premium Rewards® credit card - Product Name Only compare.

We're focused here on the rewards and perks that come with each card. These cards won't be worth it if you're paying interest or late fees. When using a credit card, it's important to pay your balance in full each month, make payments on time, and only spend what you can afford to pay.

Welcome Bonus Offers

Both cards offer a generous welcome bonus, although the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card - Editorial Name Only has the advantage. Its welcome bonus offer is Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card - Intro Bonus. That's worth $600 in cash back or gift cards, or $750 in travel booked through Chase. But when you transfer points to airline and hotel partners, the bonus is potentially worth Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card - Featured Reward Value in travel, based on Insider's points and miles valuations.

Meanwhile, the Bank of America® Premium Rewards® credit card - Editorial Name Only comes with Bank of America® Premium Rewards® credit card - Intro Bonus. No matter how you redeem your rewards, each point is worth 1 cent, so this bonus is worth Bank of America® Premium Rewards® credit card - Featured Reward Value — there's no way to get outsized value by transferring points to travel partners.

While the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card - Editorial Name Only's offer is larger, keep the minimum spending requirement to unlock the bonus in mind. It's also higher than the requirement on the Bank of America® Premium Rewards® credit card - Editorial Name Only.

Earning Rewards on Purchases

If you're looking for a straightforward earning structure with few bonus categories to keep track of, the Bank of America® Premium Rewards® credit card - Product Name Only fits the bill. It earns 2x points on travel and dining, and 1.5x points on all other purchases, with no caps.

You've got the potential to earn more points with the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card - Editorial Name Only, but only if the majority of your spending falls into its bonus categories. Cardholders earn:

• 5x points on all travel purchased through the Chase Ultimate Rewards travel portal
• 3x points on dining, including eligible delivery services, takeout, and dining out
• 3x points on select streaming services
• 3x points on online grocery purchases (excluding Target, Walmart, and wholesale clubs)
• 2x points on all other travel purchases
• 1 point per dollar on everything else

The Bank of America® Premium Rewards® credit card - Editorial Name Only actually has the edge if you don't spend a lot in these categories, since it earns 1.5 points per dollar on non-bonus spending (versus just 1 point per dollar with the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card - Editorial Name Only. The right card for your situation, at least from the earning perspective, depends highly on your typical spending habits.

Redemption Options

Yes, the Bank of America® Premium Rewards® credit card - Product Name Only earns more rewards on non-bonused spending, but you'll never get more than 1 cent per point when you redeem them for statement credits, gift cards, or travel through the Bank of America Travel Center. The Chase Ultimate Rewards points you earn with the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card - Editorial Name Only can be worth much more than that, depending on how you use them.

Not only can you get 25% more value for your points (1.25 cents each) when you redeem them for flights, hotels, rental cars, and cruises through the Ultimate Rewards travel portal, but you can also transfer points 1:1 to Chase's airline and hotel partners, which include Southwest Rapid Rewards, United MileagePlus, Air Canada Aeroplan, World of Hyatt, and Marriott Bonvoy. On average, Chase Ultimate Rewards points are worth 1.8 cents apiece in our latest valuations, and you can often get an even higher value when you redeem for business or first class award flights and luxury hotel stays.

Annual Fees

Both cards charge the same Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card - Annual Fee annual fee, and neither waive it for first year. Credit card annual fees can be worth it for the perks and rewards you receive — and in this case, you'll get a value much higher than the fee from the welcome bonus offers alone. Tack on the rewards you'll earn for everyday spending, travel and purchase protections, and statement credits both cards offer, and you can easily come out ahead, even after the first year.

Benefits and Features

Statement credits

Both cards come with statement credits that can help offset their annual fees. In this case, the Bank of America® Premium Rewards® credit card - Product Name Only pulls ahead, because a single statement credit can negate the annual fee each year. Cardholders receive up to $100 in airline incidental fee credits toward things like baggage fees, seat selection, and inflight purchases.

In addition, the Bank of America® Premium Rewards® credit card - Editorial Name Only offers a Global Entry or TSA PreCheck fee credit worth up to $100 every four years. Even if you're already a member of one of these programs, you can use your card to pay for a loved one's application and still get reimbursed.

For its part, the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card - Editorial Name Only offers up to $50 in annual credit toward hotels booked through the Chase travel portal. If you use the full credit each year, you can effectively reduce your out-of-pocket cost to $45 annually.

Potential for up to 75% more rewards 

While the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card - Editorial Name Only is the clear winner at getting a high value for your points — 25% more when you book travel through Chase and potentially much more when you transfer rewards to partners. It also comes with a 10% anniversary points bonus each year, effectively adding 0.1 points per dollar to all spending.

But the Bank of America® Premium Rewards® credit card - Editorial Name Only has its own trick up its sleeve.

Bank of America customers who are eligible for the Bank of America Preferred Rewards program can earn 25% to 75% more rewards with the card for every dollar they spend. To qualify, you'll need to have a minimum of $20,000 on deposit or invested with Bank of America or Merrill (Bank of America's wealth management division).

Travel protections

Using a credit card with travel insurance or with purchase protections can save you money on expensive premiums and save the day if you run into trouble with your trip or purchase. While both cards come with strong coverage, including trip cancellation/interruption insurance, car rental insurance, trip delay insurance, and extended warranty, the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card - Product Name Only is the clear winner in this regard.

For example, the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card - Editorial Name Only comes with primary car rental insurance when you decline the rental company's collision damage waiver and pay for your rental with the card. With the Bank of America® Premium Rewards® credit card - Editorial Name Only, you only get secondary coverage, which means you'll have to file a claim with your personal insurance policy first.

The Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card - Editorial Name Only also wins for its trip cancellation and interruption insurance, which covers up to $10,000 per person and $20,000 per trip for pre-paid non-refundable travel expenses (cardholder and immediate family). The Bank of America® Premium Rewards® credit card - Editorial Name Only covers a maximum of $2,500. It's for reasons like this that Chase Sapphire Preferred travel insurance is considered among the best available today.

That said, the Bank of America® Premium Rewards® credit card - Product Name Only comes with a couple of benefits that are entirely absent from the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card - Editorial Name Only: return protection and emergency evacuation and transportation coverage. 

Bank of America Premium Rewards and Chase Sapphire Preferred Side-by-Side Comparison

Is the Bank of America Premium Rewards or Chase Sapphire Preferred the Best Card for You?

If you're torn between these cards, think about how you want to use your rewards. If you prefer the simplicity of redeeming your rewards at a flat rate, similar to a cash-back credit card, the Bank of America® Premium Rewards® credit card is probably the better card for you. 

But if you don't mind putting in a little more work learning about transfer partners and award charts, the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card offers more options and opportunities to get a higher rate of return from your rewards. Plus, if you're a frequent traveler, its travel protections are hard to beat.

At the end of the day, there's no reason you can't apply for and earn the welcome bonus from both cards. Later on, once you get a feel for each card's rewards program and redemption options, you'll have a better idea of which one suits you best.