Chase Sapphire vs. Chase Sapphire Preferred

[lolabelle]

It seems to me that the only difference between the Chase Sapphire and the CSP (apart from stalwart metal vs. comparatively wimpy plastic, of course ) is the 7% annual points dividend bonus on the CSP.  Is that the case, or have I missed something?  I have the CSP and my annual fee is about to come due.  I'm thinking if that's the only difference, it might be a good idea to try to product change to regular ol' Chase Sapphire, if I do the calculation and the 7% dividend doesn't amount to enough to pay for the annual fee.

Which brings me to questions two and three:  Can anyone comment on their experiences with Chase and product changing?  I've been a customer of theirs for about 7 years and currently have 4 cards - 3 personal, and 1 business.  And is it usually a soft pull or a hard pull?

[webhopper]

I think chase amazon gives better rewards than regular sapphire.

[Cdnewmanpac]

The big difference is transferability. If you drop to sapphire, you lose the ability to transfer ur points to air/hotel partners. For many of us, that transferability is why we have the csp.

[lolabelle]

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@webhopper wrote:
I think chase amazon gives better rewards than regular sapphire.

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True.  That's actually one of the other cards I have.  It gives the best rewards on gas, groceries, things like that.  I have an AMEX BCP that I primarily use for those things, though, because the rewards are great.  Also, I think the rewards from Chase Amazon are most beneficial for crediting toward purchases on Amazon, aren't they?  That's all I've used them for.  I'm really looking for something where I can use the rewards for travel. 

[lolabelle]

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@Cdnewmanpac wrote:
The big difference is transferability. If you drop to sapphire, you lose the ability to transfer ur points to air/hotel partners. For many of us, that transferability is why we have the csp.

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That's one thing I haven't figured out with them.  What's the benefit of transferability vs. just purchasing travel via the UR website?

[Open123]

Aside from the metal, the only discernible differences I see are:

1.  CSP is 2X dining and travel, whereas Sapphire is only 2X dining.

2.  No 7% bonus for the Sapphire.

3.  CSP has no forex fee, whereas the Sapphire does.

4.  CSP UR points are transferrable, whereas Sapphire's isn't.

Those are the main differences.  And, PC'ing from the CSP to a Sapphire is routine for Chase.  It gets more tricky when you're PC'ing from CSP to Freedom, or from UA to Freedom.

[Open123]

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@lolabelle wrote:

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@Cdnewmanpac wrote:
The big difference is transferability. If you drop to sapphire, you lose the ability to transfer ur points to air/hotel partners. For many of us, that transferability is why we have the csp.

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That's one thing I haven't figured out with them.  What's the benefit of transferability vs. just purchasing travel via the UR website?

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Moving points to redeem travel from their partners redeeming them prudently and opportunistically will usually net you a better deal than purchasing the same on UR, travelocity, or any other web site.

For example, 100K or so points can redeem a business flight on UA to anywhere in Asia.  The same ticket would cost about $3K to purchase through UR, or any other web site you can find.

[Cdnewmanpac]

When you redeem through UR travel, the best you can do is 1.25 cents per point. Used wisely, united miles or hyatt points can approach 3 cents per point. Even sw points get about 1.8.

[webhopper]

You can use amazon points for travel or for cash back, or statement credit.

Since you already have amazon, why not PC to freedom