The Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card is one of our absolute favorite starter travel cards. From flexible and valuable points to wide-ranging travel protections, the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card offers a lot of valuable benefits for just a $95 annual fee.

However, after building up a balance of Chase Ultimate Rewards® points, you might be wondering if it's worth it to upgrade your Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card to a Chase Sapphire Reserve®. Doing so would boost the value of your points, unlock even higher earning rates in certain categories, and add valuable perks like airport lounge access and TSA PreCheck application fee reimbursement. The downside: The Chase Sapphire Reserve® charges a much higher annual fee.

So, is it worth it to upgrade? And if so, how do you do it? Let's take a look.

Comparing the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card vs. the Chase Sapphire Reserve®

Before you can decide whether it's worth it to upgrade the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card to the Chase Sapphire Reserve®, you need to know the key differences between the two cards. Here's an overview.

Key features

Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card

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on Chase's website

Chase Sapphire Reserve®

Apply now

on Chase's website

Annual Fee

$95

$550 plus $75 for each authorized user.

Earning rates on travel

5X on travel purchased through the Chase Ultimate Rewards® travel portal.

2X on other travel purchases.

10X total on hotels and car rentals booked through Chase Ultimate Rewards®.

5X on flights through Chase Ultimate Rewards®.

3X on other travel purchases.

Earning rates on dining

3X on dining.

10X on Chase Dining purchases through Chase Ultimate Rewards®

3X on all other dining.

Other earning rates

3X on online grocery purchases.

3X on select streaming services.

5X on Lyft rides through March 31, 2025.

1X on other purchases.

10X on Lyft rides through March 31, 2025.

1X on other purchases.

Redemption bonus

Points worth 25% more when redeemed for travel booked through Chase.

Points worth 50% more when redeemed for travel booked through Chase.

Anniversary bonus

10% of your total purchases in the previous year.

None.

Travel credits

$50 in statement credits toward hotel stays purchased through Chase Ultimate Rewards®.

$300 annual travel credit.

Other travel benefits

Travel protections, including auto rental collision damage waiver and baggage delay insurance.

No foreign transaction fees.

Priority Pass Select lounge access.

Statement credit for Global Entry, TSA PreCheck or NEXUS application fee every four years.

Access to Luxury Hotel & Resort Collection.

Complimentary Lyft Pink membership for two years.

Travel protections, including auto rental collision damage waiver and baggage delay insurance.

No foreign transaction fees.

Other benefits

Complimentary DashPass for at least one year through Dec. 31, 2024.

$10 monthly Gopuff statement credit through Dec. 31, 2023.

Complimentary DashPass for at least one year through Dec. 31, 2024.

$10 monthly Gopuff statement credit through Dec. 31, 2023.

Still not sure?

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What you don't see in the chart above are the sign-up bonuses offered by these cards. That's because the bonus offer is irrelevant when you're upgrading; only new accounts are eligible for the sign-up bonus.

Can you upgrade the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card to the Chase Sapphire Reserve®?

Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card holders can upgrade to a Chase Sapphire Reserve® once their card account has been open for at least a year. So it's not a question of can you, but rather should you upgrade.

As you can see in the chart above, these two cards offer different earning rates, different travel perks and very different annual fees. When comparing the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card versus the Chase Sapphire Reserve®, the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card offers a compelling value when you're first signing up for a card. However, there's a good argument for upgrading to the Chase Sapphire Reserve® once you've had a Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card for a bit.