American Express^® Green Card vs. Chase Sapphire Preferred^® Card [2024]: Which is Best?

Amex Green Card vs. Chase Sapphire Preferred

The Amex Green Card and Chase Sapphire Preferred card both have great benefits, but each caters to a different audience. Here’s how they compare.

	American Express Green Card 4.6 FinanceBuzz writers and editors score cards based on a number of objective features as well as our expert editorial assessment. Our partners do not influence how we rate products.	Chase Sapphire Preferred Card 4.9 FinanceBuzz writers and editors score cards based on a number of objective features as well as our expert editorial assessment. Our partners do not influence how we rate products.
FinanceBuzz value calculation1	Year 1: $1,424 Year 2: $824 (Using 1 cent/point valuation)	Year 1: $1,486 Year 2: $789 (Using 1.25 cents/point valuation)
Annual fee	$150	$95
Welcome offer	Earn 40,000 Membership Rewards points after spending $3,000 on purchases in the first 6 months of account opening	Earn 60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening
Earning rate	3X points on eligible travel and transit purchases, and at eligible restaurants worldwide, including takeout and delivery in the U.S.; and 1X points on all other eligible purchases	5X points on travel purchased through Chase Travel℠; 3X points on dining, select streaming services, and online groceries; 2X points on all other travel purchases, and 1X points on all other purchases
Intro APR	None	None
Annual credits/bonuses	Up to $199 annual CLEAR Plus credit for a membership to this program Up to $100 annual credit with LoungeBuddy to purchase lounge access	Up to $50 in statement credits for hotel stays through Chase Travel℠ An annual points bonus equal to 10% of your previous year's total card spend
Travel perks	CLEAR Plus credit LoungeBuddy credit Trip delay insurance Baggage insurance Car rental loss and damage insurance Pay with Points when booking through Amextravel.com	Trip cancellation insurance Auto rental collision damage waiver Baggage delay insurance Trip delay reimbursement 25% extra value when redeeming points for travel through the Chase Travel℠ portal
Foreign transaction fee	None	None
Credit needed	Excellent, Good	Excellent, Good
	Learn how to apply	Apply now

When Amex Green Card is your go-to card

The Amex Green Card may be best if you:

• You prefer to fly Delta Airlines
• You travel frequently and use Clear® Plus
• You like special access to concerts and other special events

Delta is your favorite airline

If you are loyal to Delta, you can transfer your American Express membership points in a 1:1 ratio to Delta SkyMiles to use to purchase airline tickets. Chase Sapphire doesn’t partner with Delta, so it makes sense to choose Amex if you travel frequently and it’s typically on Delta Airlines.

Before transferring points, I suggest calculating what the Delta SkyMiles are worth when using points for the flight you intend to take. The value of Delta SkyMiles points varies depending on the flight. Divide the flight’s cash cost by the miles needed to determine if it's worth it. This will give you the value for each point. Aim for at least 1.1 cents per point, but more is always better.

For example, if a $450 flight costs $18,000 points, you’d get a value of 2.5 cents per mile, which is great.

You subscribe to CLEAR Plus

If you travel frequently, you may subscribe to one of the several services that get you through security faster. CLEAR Plus is a nationwide service available at 58 airports that uses digital security to verify your identity. If you use your Amex Green card to pay for CLEAR Plus, which automatically renews annually, you’ll receive a $199 statement credit.

Not only does this make CLEAR Plus free for an individual, but it immediately offsets the card’s annual fee, so any other rewards are money in your pocket.

Concert presale tickets are your jam

Concert tickets seem to get harder to get these days, but with credit card presale tickets, you get early access, increasing your chances of securing tickets to the hottest concerts. Amex is known for its presale events, making it worth the annual fee for frequent concert-goers.

Concert tickets aren’t the only thing you can get early or exclusive access to, though. You also have access to:

• Popular sporting events like NBA, Formula 1, and U.S. Open Golf
• Tickets to Coachella and Stagecoach
• Hot theater tickets
• Exclusive culinary experiences

When Chase Sapphire Preferred is your go-to card

Chase Sapphire Preferred is the better option when:

• You are comfortable booking travel through credit card portals
• You need the option to carry a credit card balance
• You grocery shop online

You’re a frequent traveler who doesn’t use a travel agent

If you are comfortable booking your travel through Chase Travel℠, you can earn 5X points for travel purchased through Chase Travel℠.

This may sound intimidating if you are used to using a travel agent or booking through sites like Expedia, but the good news is that the Chase Travel℠ portal works very similarly to Expedia, so it’s like getting your cake and eating it too.

While the Amex Green card offers 3X points on travel, you’ll elevate your rewards using a Chase card.

For example, if you spend $1,000 on eligible travel expenses, here’s how the points compare:

• Chase: 5,000 points
• Amex: 3,000 points

Assuming you can get one cent per point value for your redemption, that’s a difference of $20. It doesn’t sound like much, but the difference adds up quickly if you travel frequently.

You need time to pay off large purchases

If you’re applying for a new credit card to cover large purchases and need time to pay them off, the Chase Sapphire Preferred card may be a better option.

While the Amex Green card offers an option to Pay Over Time, there’s no guarantee you’ll have that option, and if you do, the limit may be low. Otherwise the Amex Green requires payment in full each month.

Chase Sapphire cards allow you to pay the minimum amount due and carry the remaining balance. However, I encourage you to pay your balance in full every month to avoid paying interest charges.

Most of your grocery shopping happens online

If you fell in love with online grocery shopping and Netflix binges during the pandemic and still use the services, you can earn 3X points on dining, select streaming services, and online groceries using the Chase Sapphire Preferred card. The downside is that it excludes Walmart, Target and wholesale club purchases. But if you shop at Meijer, Kroger, or other grocery stores that offers online shopping, you could earn some serious savings.

Key differences between the cards

Both options are often listed among the best travel credit cards, offering flexible rewards programs with 1:1 transfer partners — meaning both can give you a lot of value when it comes to booking travel, but there are some vast differences that make each card better for specific consumers.

Earning options

The Amex Green card offers 3X points on eligible travel and transit purchases, and at eligible restaurants worldwide, including takeout and delivery in the U.S.; and 1X points on all other eligible purchases, and Chase Sapphire Preferred offers 5X points on travel purchased through Chase Travel℠; 3X points on dining, select streaming services, and online groceries; 2X points on all other travel purchases, and 1X points on all other purchases.

The largest difference is if you book travel through the Chase Travel℠ portal because you earn 25% more rewards for the same trip. Chase offers a few more categories to earn rewards, including 3X points on dining, select streaming services, and online groceries, whereas Amex focuses on travel, transit and dining.

In addition, Chase Sapphire Preferred pays a 10% bonus on your annual purchases each card anniversary date. For example, if you spend $10,000 in a year, you’d earn 1,000 bonus points on your anniversary date. If redeemed for travel, those 1,000 points would be worth $125.

FinanceBuzz editors calculate the year one value of the Chase Sapphire Preferred to be $1,486 vs the Amex Green's value at $1,424 — a virtual tie. To calculate these values, we used a valuation of 1.25 cents per point for the Chase card and 1 cent per point for the Amex card. We looked at points earned via spending, the welcome offer, and the annual fee to get a holistic view of the value someone could get from each card. The actual value you get will depend on your personal spending.

There’s no clear winner here. The winner for you depends on where you spend the most money, and if you’re comfortable with online grocery shopping.

Annual fee

The Amex Green Card charges an annual fee of $150, while the Chase Sapphire Preferred charges $95.

At first glance, it seems Chase Sapphire Preferred makes more sense because it has a lower annual fee. However, it truly depends on what you’ll get out of each card. While the Amex annual fee is slightly higher, if you use CLEAR Plus, you automatically cover the annual fee, and any rewards earned are a bonus.

Winner: Chase Sapphire Preferred only because it’s lower, but some people may get more out of the Amex Green card.

Transfer partners

There are some differences in transfer partners when you look at the Amex Green Card vs. Chase Sapphire Preferred. For example, both offer transfers to the Marriott Bonvoy program. But the Chase Ultimate Rewards transfer partners also include the World of Hyatt and IHG Rewards Club, while Amex focuses on Radisson Rewards and Hilton Honors.

While the hotel benefits are similar, the Amex transfer partners include more airlines than Chase offers. However, not all of Amex’s airline transfers are at a 1:1 ratio, so you might not get the same value once you do the math.

Before you choose between these cards, carefully compare the available transfer partners against the hotel and airlines you prefer. For example, if you fly Delta frequently, Amex might be a good choice, since there’s a direct transfer to SkyMiles, while Chase has United as a transfer partner.

There’s no clear winner here. To choose your winner, determine which travel partners you’ll use the most.

Other benefits

The best rewards credit cards offer more benefits than welcome bonuses and cashback options. Here are some of the top benefits each of the two cards offers.

Both cards offer similar benefits that protect you while traveling, protect your purchases, and offer an extended warranty. One differentiation: If you rent cars, the Chase Sapphire Preferred's rental coverage is primary while the Amex Green offers only secondary coverage.

Winner: Chase Sapphire Preferred 

FAQs

Bottom line

Carefully consider your credit card usage as you compare the Amex Green Card vs. Chase Sapphire Preferred. What works best for you will depend on your habits and how likely you are to use each card’s rewards.

The American Express Green Card can be a good choice for frequent travelers who want to earn points on travel and dining and who want more opportunities to transfer points to airline loyalty programs.

On the other hand, if you want to focus on increased redemption value per point, the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card might be the better option as you can earn 25% more points value when redeeming through the Chase Travel℠ portal.

Great for Flexible Travel Rewards

Chase Sapphire Preferred^® Card

4.9

FinanceBuzz writers and editors score cards based on a number of objective features as well as our expert editorial assessment. Our partners do not influence how we rate products.

Chase Sapphire Preferred^® Card

Apply Now

Current Offer

Earn 60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening.

Annual Fee

$95

Rewards Rate

5X points on travel purchased through Chase Travel℠; 3X points on dining, select streaming services, and online groceries; 2X points on all other travel purchases, and 1X points on all other purchases

Benefits and Drawbacks

Benefits

• Generous welcome offer valued at $750 when redeemed via Chase Travel
• High rewards on dining and bookings via Chase Travel
• 25% more value when redeeming points for travel through Chase Travel
• Up to $50 in annual statement credits for hotel stays booked through Chase Travel
• Receive valuable travel protections like trip delay reimbursement and primary rental car insurance

Drawbacks

• Has a $95 annual fee
• Doesn’t offer airport lounge access or premium travel perks like Global Entry or TSA PreCheck credit
• Doesn't offer bonus points on gas or in-person groceries purchases

Card Details

• Earn 60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening.
• Enjoy benefits such as 5x on travel purchased through Chase Travel℠, 3x on dining, select streaming services and online groceries, 2x on all other travel purchases, 1x on all other purchases, $50 Annual Chase Travel Hotel Credit, plus more.
• Get 25% more value when you redeem for airfare, hotels, car rentals and cruises through Chase Travel℠. For example, 60,000 points are worth $750 toward travel.
• Count on Trip Cancellation/Interruption Insurance, Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver, Lost Luggage Insurance and more.
• Get complimentary access to DashPass which unlocks $0 delivery fees and lower service fees for a minimum of one year when you activate by December 31, 2027.
• Member FDIC