Why the Chase Sapphire Preferred Is My Favorite Card for Booking Domestic Flights

We love scoring premium-cabin long-haul flights with transferable points, but we’d be remiss to overlook the power of domestic redemptions, which can save you real money on trips that seem to only be getting more expensive.

Several credit cards and the points or miles they earn can be used to book domestic flights, but one stands above the rest. The Chase Sapphire Preferred^® Card is arguably the best pick for saving money on domestic flights for several reasons — here’s why.

Chase Sapphire Preferred Card Overview

The Chase Sapphire Preferred card just got a recent refresh, gaining several new perks and benefits:

• Earn 3x points on gas, EV charging, and vacation homes, including Airbnb and Vrbo.
• Receive a $120 Global Entry, TSA PreCheck, or NEXUS credit every 4 years.
• Get a complimentary Apple TV subscription for 1 year when you activate it by December 31, 2026.
• Get a $100 Chase Travel hotel credit each account anniversary year (increased from $50).

The card retains the elements of its already strong earning structure, with 5x points on Chase Travel purchases, 3x points on dining and select streaming services, 2x points on travel, and 1x points on all other eligible purchases.

All of these changes have come while the card’s $95 annual fee has remained the same.

Redeeming Points for Domestic Flights

Using points and miles to book domestic flights is entirely different from booking long-haul international award flights. With domestic award tickets, you can expect:

• More dramatic price swings: While pricing is relatively more predictable and stable for many international flights, domestic flights can vary wildly, depending on the destination, time of year, when the flight is booked, and more.
• Fewer sweet spots available: Domestic flights provide fewer opportunities to redeem points for above-average value on a regular basis.
• Lack of fixed award charts: Domestic carriers have done away with award charts, so award prices fluctuate with cash prices.

Having the Chase Sapphire Preferred card in your wallet is handy if you hope to redeem points and miles for domestic flights — here’s why.

Chase Has the Most Domestic Transfer Partners

Compared to its main competitors, Chase Ultimate Rewards offers the most impressive slate of domestic airline transfer partners to take advantage of:

• JetBlue TrueBlue
• Southwest Rapid Rewards
• United MileagePlus

Each of these programs is beneficial for slightly different reasons. JetBlue has a robust East Coast network and a strong presence in popular vacation destinations such as Florida and the Caribbean.

Southwest Rapid Rewards is excellent for flyers who value flexibility. Its award tickets are easy and usually inexpensive to change. It’s an especially useful program for those who need to fly shorter hops between cities, as the airline typically offers reasonable fares on these shorter, point-to-point routes, and its award prices are tied closely to the cash prices.

United MileagePlus is a powerful partner thanks to its extensive route network, powered by large hubs in some of the country’s most important markets. United has a presence in most markets with commercial air service in the country, and it can connect you just about anywhere you need to go with just 1 stop in most instances.

Points transfer from Ultimate Rewards to each of these airline programs at a straightforward 1:1 ratio, making it easy to acquire the points or miles necessary to book flights. For comparison’s sake, here’s a look at the domestic (and Canadian) transfer partners of the other major transferable points programs:

By focusing on Ultimate Rewards points, you’ll have the greatest flexibility if your goal is to redeem credit card rewards for domestic flights.

100K Welcome Offer Can Turn Into Multiple Domestic Trips

Following its recent refresh, the Chase Sapphire Preferred card is also offering a limited-time welcome bonus of 100,000 points — the highest we’ve ever seen on the card.

• Earn 75,000 100,000 points after spending $5,000 on purchases in the first 3 months.

LIMITED-TIME OFFER

Terms Apply / Rates & Fees

Chase Sapphire Preferred^® Card

U.P. Rating 

The rating for this card has been determined by our own industry experts who know the ins and outs of credit card products. Bonuses, rewards as well as rates and fees are all taken into account. Compensation from the issuer does not affect our rating. We only recommend products we either use ourselves or endorse.

A fantastic travel card with a great welcome offer, good benefits, and perks for a moderate annual fee.

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Chase Sapphire Preferred^® Card

A fantastic travel card with a great welcome offer, good benefits, and perks for a moderate annual fee.

Welcome Offer

Earn 75,000 100,000 bonus points after you spend $5,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening.

75,000 100,000 points

UP's Offer Valuation*:

$2,000

Annual Fee

$95

APR

19.24% - 27.49% Variable

Credit Recommended

Upgraded Points credit ranges are a variation of FICO^® Score 8, one of many types of credit scores lenders may use when considering your credit card application.

Good to Excellent

Why We Like This Card

The Chase Sapphire Preferred^® card is one of the best travel rewards cards on the market. Its bonus categories include travel, dining, online grocery purchases, gas, EV charging, vacation homes, and streaming services, which gives you the opportunity to earn lots of bonus points on these purchases.

Additionally, it offers flexible point redemption options, no foreign transaction fees, and excellent travel insurance coverage including primary car rental insurance and emergency evacuation. With benefits like these, it’s easy to see why this card is an excellent choice for any traveler.

Pros & Cons

Pros

• 5x points on all travel booked via the Chase Travel portal
• 3x points on dining purchases, online grocery purchases (excluding Walmart, Target, and wholesale clubs), gas, EV charging, vacation homes (such as Airbnb and Vrbo), and select streaming services
• 2x points on all other travel worldwide

Cons

• $95 annual fee
• No elite benefits like airport lounge access or hotel elite status

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Card Highlights

• Earn 100,000 bonus points after you spend $5,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening.
• Enjoy benefits such as 5x on travel purchased through Chase Travel℠, 3x on dining, 3x on vacation homes, 3x on gas & EV charging, 3x on top streaming services and online groceries (excluding Walmart, Target, and wholesale clubs), 2x on all other travel purchases, 1x on all other purchases
• Earn up to $100 in statement credits each account anniversary year for hotel stays through Chase Travel
• Count on Trip Cancellation/Interruption Insurance, Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver, Lost Luggage Insurance and more.
• Get a year of complimentary Apple TV when activated by December 31, 2026 - a value of $156.
• Complimentary DashPass which unlocks $0 delivery fees & lower service fees for a min. of one year when you activate by 12/31/27. Plus, a $10 promo each month on non-restaurant orders.
• Receive one statement credit of up to $120 every four years as reimbursement for the application fee charged to your card for a Global Entry, TSA Precheck^® or NEXUS application.
• Transfer points to leading airline and hotel loyalty programs
• Member FDIC

Financial Snapshot

• APR: 19.24% - 27.49% Variable
• Foreign Transaction Fees: None

Rewards Center

Chase Ultimate Rewards

There’s plenty you can do with 100,000 Chase Ultimate Rewards points, including purchasing multiple round-trip domestic flights. For example, take this flight between Chicago (MDW) and Denver (DEN), which costs just 15,000 Southwest Rapid Rewards points round-trip.

With 100,000 Ultimate Rewards points, you’d almost have enough for 7 round-trip tickets at these rates.

Here’s a flight between Boston (BOS) and Fort Lauderdale (FLL), which can be purchased for 19,500 JetBlue TrueBlue points round-trip.

You could fly the route multiple times or bring your family with you on a trip just by earning the welcome offer on the Chase Sapphire Preferred card.

Another way to use Ultimate Rewards points is on expensive last-minute or holiday-season domestic flights, which often cost hundreds of dollars per ticket. Having Ultimate Rewards points earned from your Chase Sapphire Preferred card could save you a lot of money when it’s most beneficial.

Book Domestic Flights With Points Boost

In 2025, Chase introduced a new feature to the Chase Travel portal called Points Boost. It allows Chase Sapphire Preferred cardholders to redeem Ultimate Rewards points for up to 1.75 cents apiece toward certain flights booked through Chase Travel.

You’ll only get the maximum value of 1.75 cents per point when booking premium flights on select airlines. For popular economy flights, you can get up to 1.5 cents apiece in value.

Typically, you’ll have better luck getting up to 1.75 cents apiece for your points if you’re searching for long-haul international flights in premium cabins, such a flight between San Francisco (SFO) and Singapore (SIN) operated by Singapore Airlines:

However, since we’re discussing domestic flights, the example above is just an illustration of how Points Boost works across different types of flights. If you’re hoping to use the feature for flights within the U.S., you can realistically expect to receive 1.25 to 1.5 cents per point in value, depending on the specific flight and class of service.

In this example of a JetBlue flight between New York (JFK) and Los Angeles (LAX), you can see how the per-point value varies between cabin classes. The Blue fare, which gets you a seat in the economy cabin, costs $209 or 16,671 Ultimate Rewards points one-way. This results in a value of 1.25 cents per point.

If you want to step up to JetBlue Mint on the same flight, it’ll cost you $2,238 or 149,186 Ultimate Rewards points one-way. This results in a value of 1.5 cents per point.

If you’re having trouble finding flights that work for your schedule or budget with one of Ultimate Rewards’ airline transfer partners, the Chase Travel portal is a great way to still purchase a flight with points without needing to transfer them out. Plus, when you book through the Chase Travel portal, you can still earn credit toward elite status in addition to redeemable miles, which is an additional upside.

Compared to other credit card portals that only give you 1 cent per point in value, getting 25% to 50% more just by booking through Chase Travel is a big win.

Final Thoughts

The Chase Sapphire Preferred card is a powerful tool to have in your wallet, no matter how you use it. However, it’s arguably the best card to book domestic flights, especially given its price point.

If you do a majority of your traveling stateside, consider adding the Chase Sapphire Preferred card to your rotation, especially while you can score a 100,000-point welcome offer.