[Expired] Venture 100K vs Sapphire 80K. Which is better?

Capital One and Chase have each introduced huge new welcome bonuses: Earn up to 100K bonus “miles” with the Capital One® Venture® Rewards Credit Card; or earn 80K Ultimate Rewards points with the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card.  Which is better?

Offer Overview

The headline for the Venture Rewards card (100K!) makes it sound like a better offer right off the bat.  100K is better than 80K, right?  Well, not really.  100K Capital One “miles” can be used to offset $1,000 in travel purchases.  And, guess how much travel can be purchased through Chase with 80K Sapphire Preferred points?  Yep: $1,000.  Further, Capital One requires $20,000 of spend to get the full bonus.  Chase requires only $4,000.  And for those who prefer real airline miles, Chase allows one to one transfers whereas Capital One transfers are usually 1,000 to 750 (get 750 airline miles for each 1,000 Capital One “miles).

Let’s compare aspects of the offers side by side:

^{* When travel value is equal, Capital One is preferred because all travel purchases get this value whereas Chase requires booking through their site.
** Assumes none of this spend is in bonus categories. If half of spend is for travel & dining, which earn 2X, then you would earn 30K points with $40K spend.}

Verdict

While both are good offers, in my opinion most people will be better off with the Chase Sapphire Preferred 80K offer.  It offers similar purchased travel value and more miles.  Most importantly, the Chase offer requires only $4,000 spend whereas Capital One requires $20K spend to get the full welcome bonus.

The verdict changes for big spenders who don’t have another card great for everyday spend (see our list of best options here).  The Chase Sapphire Preferred card earns 2X for travel and dining, and 1X everywhere else.  The Capital One Venture Rewards card, meanwhile, earns 2X everywhere.  This makes the Capital One a much better option for spend outside of the Sapphire Preferred card’s bonus categories.  That said, Chase has other cards that are great companions to the Sapphire Preferred.  One great choice, for example, is the fee-free Chase Freedom Unlimited card which has great 3X and 5X categories and earns 1.5X everywhere else.

How about both?

While most readers would do better with the Sapphire Preferred offer (in my opinion), both offers are worth considering.  If you can handle the big spend and if you can get approved for both, it may make sense to go for it.  Keep both cards for a year.  At the end of the year, decide which you want to keep and then cancel or downgrade the other to a fee free card.

Of course, I always recommend doing your homework first.  Summary details about each of these cards are shown below.  Click into the links for more detailed info:

More About Capital One Venture Rewards

Card Offer and Details

Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card ⓘ $1089 1st Yr Value Estimate 75K Miles + up to $200 in statement credits ⓘ Non-Affiliate Earn 75,000 bonus miles after $4K spend in 3 months + up to $200 in statement credits when you make an Avelo purchase in your first year + priority boarding on Avelo flights for the first year. (Rates & Fees) $95 Annual Fee Alternate Offer: Airport Kiosk offer of 80K miles after $4K spend in the first 3 months See this post for details. Information about this card has been collected independently by Frequent Miler. The issuer did not provide the details, nor is it responsible for their accuracy. FM Mini Review: This card earns 2 "miles" per dollar, which are worth exactly 1 cent each toward travel. This makes the return on spend similar to a 2% cash back card (though in this case you must redeem your miles to offset travel in order to get 1 cent per mile). One big advantage over cash back: Capital One allows transfering their "miles" to airline miles & hotel points. Earning rate: 2X miles everywhere ✦ 5X miles on hotels and rental cars booked via Capital One Travel Base: 2X (2.9%) Travel: 5X (7.25%) Other: 5X (7.25%) Card Info: Visa Signature issued by CapOne. This card has no foreign transaction fees. Noteworthy perks: Receive up to $100 application fee credit for Global Entry or TSA PreCheck® ✦ Redeem miles for travel at value of 1 cent per mile ✦ Convert "miles" to airline miles & hotel points ✦ No foreign transaction fees ✦ 2 complimentary visits per year to Capital One or Plaza Premium Lounges ➥More

• Capital One Venture Application Tips
  • Should you apply?
  • Are you eligible?
  • How to apply
  • Application status
  • Reconsideration
• Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card Perks
  • Capital One “Miles”
  • Travel Protections
  • Global Entry or TSA Pre-Check credit
  • Purchase Protection
• Capital One® Venture® Rewards Credit Card Earn Points
  • Welcome Bonus
  • Refer Friends
  • Bonus Spend
• Capital One® Venture® Rewards Credit Card Redeem Points
  • Cash Back
  • Travel
    • Redeem points for paid travel: 1 cent per “mile”
    • Some customers get “special hotel offers”
  • Transfer points
    • Transfer to another Capital One miles-earning card
    • Transfer Partners
  • Other ways to redeem points
• Capital One® Venture® Rewards Credit Card Manage Points
  • Combine Points Across Cards
  • Share Points Across Cardholders
  • How to Keep Points Alive
• Capital One® Venture® Rewards Credit Card Lifecycle
  • How to meet minimum spend requirements
  • Keep, cancel, or product change?
• Related Cards
  • Capital One miles Consumer Cards
  • Capital One miles Business Cards

More About Chase Sapphire Preferred

Card Offer and Details

Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card ⓘ $785 1st Yr Value Estimate 60K points ⓘ Affiliate 60K after $4K spend in 3 months $95 Annual Fee Alternate Offer: There may be elevated offers available by applying in-branch A similar offer with the first year annual fee waived may be found in-branch. YMMV. FM Mini Review: Great signup bonus. Unlocks ability to transfer points to hotel & airline partners. Solid option to pair with fee-free Ultimate Rewards cards such as the Freedom cards, Ink Business Cash, and Ink Business Unlimited. Earning rate: 5X Travel booked through Chase (2X all other travel) ✦ 3X Dining ✦ 3X Select streaming services ✦ 3X Online grocery ✦ 5X Lyft (through March 2025) ✦ 10% annual point bonus Base: 1X (1.5%) Travel: 5X (7.5%) Dine: 3X (4.5%) Other: 3X (4.5%) Card Info: Visa Signature issued by Chase. This card has no foreign transaction fees. Noteworthy perks: Primary auto rental collision damage waiver ✦ Free DashPass through 2025 ✦ Transfer points to airline & hotel partners ✦ $50 annual credit for hotel stays booked through Chase ✦ $15 quarterly Instacart credit ✦ 6 months free Instacart+ ✦ $10 monthly GoPuff credit (through 12/31/23) See also: Sapphire Preferred 100K Q&A: Everything you need to know ➥More

• Chase Sapphire Preferred Application Tips
  • Should you apply?
  • Are you eligible?
  • How to apply
  • Application status
  • Reconsideration
• Chase Sapphire Preferred Perks
  • Premium Ultimate Rewards
  • Travel Benefits
  • Travel Protections
  • Purchase Protection
  • DoorDash Food Delivery Benefits
  • Lyft Rideshare Benefits
• Chase Sapphire Preferred Earn Points
  • Signup Bonus
  • Refer Friends
  • Bonus Spend
• Chase Sapphire Preferred Redeem Points
  • Pay Yourself Back
  • Cash Back
  • Travel
  • Transfer points
  • Other ways to redeem points
• Chase Sapphire Preferred Manage Points
  • Combine Points Across Cards
  • Share Points Across Cardholders
  • How to Keep Points Alive
• Chase Sapphire Preferred Lifecycle
  • How to meet minimum spend requirements
  • Keep, cancel, or product change?
• Related Cards
  • Ultimate Rewards Consumer Cards
  • Ultimate Rewards Business Cards

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