Everyone is excited about Chase’s new 100,000 point offer for the Sapphire Preferred card. It is, without question, a fantastic and exciting offer. Pretty much anyone who can qualify ought to sign up. But there’s the rub… Many people have questions about whether they qualify or how to qualify. Here’s what you need to know…
100K Offer Basics
| Card Offer and Details |
|---|
Online offer:
- Earn 100,000 Ultimate Rewards points after $4,000 spend in 3 months.
- $95 annual fee is not waived
In-branch offer:
- Earn 100,000 Ultimate Rewards points after $4,000 spend in 3 months. (may still be advertised as 80K, but you should qualify for 100K)
- $50 grocery credit
- $95 annual fee is waived first year
In order to qualify for the Chase Sapphire Preferred 100K bonus, you must meet the following criteria:
- Under 5/24: If your credit report shows that you opened 5 or more new cards from any card issuers in the past 24 months, then you will not be approved for a new Chase card.
- No current Sapphire card: You must not currently be the primary cardholder of the Sapphire Reserve, Sapphire Preferred, or no-fee Sapphire card. It’s okay if you are an authorized user with any of those cards, but not a primary cardholder.
- No Sapphire bonus in last 48 months: If you received a welcome bonus for either the Sapphire Preferred or Sapphire Reserve card in the past 48 months, then you are not eligible for this bonus.
- Qualify for $5,000 credit line: Chase won’t approve your application unless they see fit to allocate a $5,000 credit line or more to your new account. Note that if you are a current Chase customer with other consumer cards, they will usually be open to moving credit from other cards in order to make this happen if needed.
- Meet minimum spend requirements: Once you are approved for the Sapphire Preferred, you have 3 months to make purchases totaling $4,000 or more. Keep in mind that the $95 annual fee (and any other card fees you incur) do not count towards that total. Also, any charges that count as cash advances will not count towards the total.
Questions and Answers
100K Offer Questions
How do I apply?
You will find our affiliate link for this offer on our dedicated Sapphire Preferred Card page here. The same page includes a full guide to the card’s perks and rewards.
How much are 100,000 points worth?
The answer depends upon how you use the points:
- $1,000: You can directly cash out your points for a penny each
- $1,250 towards travel: Points are worth 1.25 cents each when you use points to book travel through the Chase Ultimate Rewards travel portal.
- $1,250 towards everyday purchases. Via Chase’s Pay Yourself Back feature, you can redeem points at 1.25 cents each to offset certain categories of purchases. Through September 2021, those categories are: grocery, restaurant, food delivery & takeout, home improvement store purchases, select charitable contributions.
- $1,500 towards travel or everyday purchases. If someone in your household has the Sapphire Reserve card, you can move your points to their account to make them more valuable. Or, after a year with the Sapphire Preferred, you can upgrade to the Sapphire Reserve. Either way, booking travel or Paying Yourself Back for certain categories of purchases will get you 1.5 cents per point value.
- $2,000 or more towards travel. Chase Ultimate Rewards points can be transferred to a number of travel partners (see details here). In many cases, if you know what you’re doing, it’s possible to get far outsized value for your points this way. Here’s just one example: The Ventana Big Sur resort usually charges $1,500 or more per night (all meals included). Alternatively, you can pay 30,000 Hyatt points per night for the same stay. Since you can transfer Chase points to Hyatt 1 to 1, you could move 90,000 of your Chase points to Hyatt and then book 3 nights at the Ventana (worth over $4,500) with those Hyatt points. Even better, Hyatt doesn’t charge resort fees on free night award stays.
How long will this offer last?
Unfortunately I have no idea.
Will they waive the first year annual fee if I apply in-branch?
Yes!
Can I refer friends to this offer? I am a current Sapphire Preferred or Sapphire Reserve cardholder.
Not yet. Currently, the refer-a-friend offers are for 80,000 points. It is possible that a 100,000 point referral will show up later.
I applied and was denied. Is there anything I can do?
Yes! When denied for a Chase card, call the reconsideration line (1-888-270-2127) to ask for the decision to be reconsidered. If you currently hold other consumer Chase cards, tell the agent that you are not looking for more credit and you are happy to move credit from another card to open this one.
I recently applied for the 80K offer. Will Chase match me to the 100K offer if I ask?
Unfortunately, probably not. Many people have tried and were turned down. On the other hand, it can’t hurt to ask. One reader says this: “My wife signed up for the card 2 days before the upgrade to 100K. I called up and the rep said call back when we reach the required spending $$ and they will add the extra 20K. We’ll see.”
I recently applied for the 80K offer, but a decision is pending. What should I do?
Call and ask to rescind the application. You should then be able to apply separately for the 100K offer.
Can my significant other also apply so that we will earn 200,000 points?
Yes! If you can both qualify and can both meet the minimum spend requirements then it absolutely makes sense for both of you to apply. Chase even allows people within the same household to share points and so you could move the points all to one account as needed (you’ll have to call Chase to setup the initial transfer though). There usually isn’t a good reason for two people in the household to keep these cards long term, so after a year I recommend that one of you product change to a fee-free Freedom card.
Can I earn the bonus by product changing to the Sapphire Preferred from another Chase card?
No.
Can I apply and earn the bonus even if I have other Chase Ultimate Rewards cards such as Chase Freedom or Chase Ink?
Yes.
5/24 Questions
How do I know my 5/24 status?
See this post: 3 Easy Ways to Count Your 5/24 Status.
I am over 5/24 due to being an authorized user on several accounts. Can I qualify?
Yes. When you apply for the Sapphire Preferred, you will probably be initially denied, but you can then call the reconsideration line (1-888-270-2127) to explain that you are not responsible for those credit lines. They should then be able to reconsider your application and approve you if your are under 5/24 with your primary cardholder accounts.
Current Sapphire Card Questions
I currently have the Sapphire Reserve card. Can I qualify for the Sapphire Preferred?
No. Chase treats these, and the no-fee Sapphire card, as a single product family. You are only allowed to have one Sapphire card at any time.
I currently have a Sapphire card. Can I cancel it and then apply for the Sapphire Preferred?
Yes, but I recommend product changing instead to a no-fee Chase Freedom card (Freedom, Freedom Unlimited, or Freedom Flex). Product changing will preserve your points and your credit line. Plus, if you aren’t approved for the Sapphire Preferred, you could then product change back.
After cancelling or product changing, I recommend waiting at least a week before applying for the Sapphire Preferred.
I currently have a Sapphire card. Can I product change it and then apply for the Sapphire Preferred?
Yes! Chase even mentions that option directly in the card’s offer terms. They state: “If you are an existing Sapphire customer and would like this product, please call the number on the back of your card to see if you are eligible for a product change.”
Product changing will preserve your points and your credit line. Plus, if you aren’t approved for the Sapphire Preferred, you could then product change back.
After product changing, I recommend waiting at least a week before applying for the Sapphire Preferred.
I currently have a Sapphire card but only because I’m an authorized user. Can I sign up for the Sapphire Preferred?
Yes! Only the primary cardholder of a Sapphire account is prohibited from signing up for a new Sapphire card.
Product Change Questions
I currently have a Sapphire card. Which card should I product change to?
Any Chase Freedom card will work. You can product change to the legacy Freedom Visa card, the Freedom Unlimited Visa card, or the Freedom Flex Mastercard. If you want to keep your original card number, then change to one of the Visa cards. If you don’t already have the Freedom Unlimited card, that’s a great one to have anyway, so I’d go for that. See our guides here:
If I product change, what happens to the points in my account?
If you product change to any kind of Freedom card, your points will be preserved in your Freedom account. Once your Sapphire Preferred account is open, you can then move your Freedom card’s points to your Sapphire Preferred account in order to make them more valuable again.
If I product change and then I’m denied for the Sapphire Preferred, can I product change back?
Yes — most likely. I can’t guarantee that Chase will offer you that product change option, but it is very likely.
What happens to travel booked recently on my Sapphire card for the travel protections? If I product change to a Freedom card, will I keep the travel insurance protections for my trips?
I don’t know. My guess is that your travel protections will be based on the card you have at the time that you file a claim, but I’m not sure.
If I product change my Sapphire Reserve to a Freedom card and get approved for the Sapphire Preferred can I then product change my Freedom card back to the Sapphire Reserve?
I’m 99% sure that the answer is “no,” but I don’t have any real-world experience to confirm that answer. If anyone has tried this, please let us know!
48 Month Rule Questions
I signed up for the Sapphire Reserve 100K offer a while back. How do I know if it’s been 48 months since I earned the bonus?
Most likely, it has been more than 48 months. I believe that the Sapphire Reserve 100K offer was available until February 2017. So, even if you applied at that time and earned the bonus 3 months later, it should be just over 48 months since you received that bonus. One possible exception would be if you applied last minute and weren’t initially approved and if it took over a month to get reconsidered and approved.
How long has it been since I earned my last Sapphire bonus? I don’t remember.
If you have records of when you signed up for the card, you can estimate that you received the bonus about 3 months later. That should give you a good enough timeline. If you don’t know when you signed up or you need a more precise answer, I recommend calling Chase or sending them a secure message to ask.
It has been more than 48 months since I received a welcome bonus, but less than 48 months since I cancelled my Sapphire Preferred or Sapphire Reserve card. Can I qualify?
Yes. The 48 month rule is specific to the date in which you last received a welcome bonus for the Sapphire Preferred or Sapphire Reserve card. It’s okay if you have recently had one of those cards as long as you no longer have it at the time you apply.
I previously had a Sapphire card, but I never earned a welcome bonus. Can I qualify?
Yes. As long as you don’t currently have a Sapphire card (Sapphire, Sapphire Preferred, or Sapphire Reserve) you can qualify.
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Hi. My wife downgraded her sapphire card and was only given 2 options. No fee sapphire or freedom unlimited. She the the unlimited.
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I applied for my CSR in July 2017 so I likely got the SUB in Aug or Sept 2017. Do I need to wait to even apply for the CSP or as long as I don’t meet the $4k spend until Sept I’ll be okay?
You need to wait. You won’t be approved until 48 months have passed since you got the bonus.
That sucks but thanks for the clarification. I’ll see if I can figure out exactly when I got the SUB. I doubt this 100k offer will last until August though.
I currently have a Sapphire no fee that I downgraded from a CSP about 7 years ago and received CSP bonus about 10 years ago. Two weeks ago I was denied for a CSP 80K. In the denial, Chase told me I could product change to a CSP from a no-fee card but I would not be eligible for the bonus. If I product change to a Chase Freedom as article indicates, should I be able to reapply for the CSP in two to four weeks? Three weeks ago I called Chase and they said I could get the CSP (and the bonus) even though I had the Sapphire no fee card.
if you cancel your no-fee Sapphire or product change to a Freedom card, you should then be eligible for the Sapphire Preferred signup bonus.
If I last got a Sapphire bonus on 7/15/2017 can I still sign up for the CSP now, and just make sure to not hit spend that will trigger bonus until after that? Or do I need to wait to apply until after that date?
Wait until 7/16 to apply.
Would it be possible to PC a new CSP that has not yet gone through the first billing period and been assessed the AF or met the requirements for the 80k signup bonus to a Freedom card, and then reapply for the CSP and earn the 100k bonus? Some backstory on this scenario: I just got the CSP with an 80k sign up bonus in the last month. I tried to do it in a branch to get the AF waived, but their system wouldn’t process the application and I ended up doing it online myself. The branch manager filed a complaint to get my AF reimbursed and I was contacted by a chase rep for resolution. It wasn’t a very good resolution as she only suggested that if I didn’t want to pay the annual fee which gets charged at the end of the first billing period, that I could PC to a card without an AF such as the freedom. I obviously didn’t do this because then I wouldn’t get the 80k bonus. My assumption is that if I did PC to a freedom card I would still have been eligible for a CSP sign up bonus since I wouldn’t have received one in the past 48 months, however, not sure if my 2nd application for a CSP within a month or two would get rejected.
I’m not sure. My guess is that would work. It’s risky though! I think if I were you I’d just take the 80K and then wait for Chase to increase their Freedom offers again and sign up for that. The net result would be roughly the same: 2 Chase sign-ups and 100K (or more) bonus points.
If I transferred points from my Freedom to my husband’s CSR and now he product changes for a Freedom Unlimited will he be able to transfer the points to a CSR when he gets it? I know that he couldn’t transfer the points back to me – I just don’t know if they are stuck on the freedom when he product changes.
Yes, he can transfer his points to any of his other Ultimate Rewards cards. He can also transfer back to you (it may require calling to get that set up).
Thank you.
If I product change my Sapphire Reserve to a Freedom card and get approved for the Sapphire Preferred, how long do I have to wait to then product change the Preferred back to the Sapphire Reserve?
You must wait (by the bank’s interpretation of US law) one full year before product changing a new card.
Does having a current Freedom or Ink card prevent me from earning a welcome bonus on the CSP? Same family of cards?
No, only the three cards with “Sapphire” one their names.
“After cancelling or product changing, I recommend waiting at least a week before applying for the Sapphire Preferred.”
Chase told me 30 days. Rep seemed pretty knowledgeable and understood what I was planning to do.
It’s been reported that it works after 3 business days.
I don’t think it is correct, 30 days is a correct answer, confirmed by higher tier chase officer.
Plenty of people have had success doing this with far less than 30 days wait.
Btw, this is a common issue with these “rules.” There’s what do we tell people vs what does the system actually allow
Well, I downgraded my CSR to Freedom on 9/10, applied for CSP 9/15. Automatic denial. Credit check was not even pulled and rep said because I just downgraded. 3 business days is just not long enough. Will try again after getting the denial letter.
If you product change to Chase Freedom, what happens to your DoorDash pass benefit? Do you lose it?
Yes.
You missed one question, which was asked by someone on the Facebook group: Essentially, are product upchanges to a Sapphire card allowed if you have a different Sapphire card? Specifically, can you product change a Reserve card to Freedom, get the Preferred, and then upgrade the Freedom (or some other Freedom) back to Reserve to get the Reserve benefits? That would leave you holding both the Reserve and the Preferred at the same time.
(I have to believe the answer is that this is not allowed, but there’s the possibility of the loophole existing since a product change is not a new account and possibly the “same card family check” is not implemented in that process).
I’m 99% sure that the answer is “no”. I’ll add this to the questions.
Question came up in comments on DOCs post, at least one person seemed pretty confident it was possible to PC to a 2nd sapphire. Would love to get a data point if anybody wants to try.
I’ve done this in the past and was able to have both cards for years…
Yes. We’ve even seen people holding 2 CSRs.
Oh crap. FM just predicted the Schwab 1.25 is not going away, yet Nick has bemoaned his record on predictions many times.
LOL. Good point. Cash out NOW
Correction: all the bloggers are excited about this offer. A large percentage of readers have been put in time out by Chase and aren’t excited at all.