Chase Sapphire Preferred Card vs. Hilton Surpass Card [Detailed Comparison]

If you enjoy traveling but hate spending a fortune, securing a rewards-earning credit card to help offset travel expenses is a logical consideration. Whether you’re looking to cover the cost of flights, lodging, or even experiences, a travel rewards card or hotel-branded card can help you achieve that objective.

Today’s comparison looks at 2 popular cards that are perfect examples of a travel rewards card and a hotel-branded card that offer much more value than just earning rewards to use for travel.

The Chase Sapphire Preferred^® Card and Hilton Honors American Express Surpass^® Card have elevated earnings on common purchases, plus flexible options at redemption time. Additionally, the cards come with travel insurance benefits, money-saving statement credits, and purchase protections.

With so many features and benefits, you’re probably wondering which card is better.

We’re happy to help you with that decision by providing all the needed information in today’s article.

Chase Sapphire Preferred Card vs. Hilton Surpass Card — Overview

We’ll get into all the details of the Chase Sapphire Preferred card and Hilton Surpass card coming up next.

It can be helpful to first look at a side-by-side comparison of how the cards compare overall. Here’s a quick breakdown of the features and benefits of the 2 featured cards:

Feature or Benefit	Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card	The Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card
Welcome Offer	Earn 60,000 points after spending $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months.	Earn 130,000 points after spending $3,000 in purchases in the first 6 months
Top Earning Categories	5x points on travel via Chase Travel and on Lyft rides 3x points on dining 2x points on all other travel, select streaming services, online groceries 10% annual points bonus	12x points at Hilton hotels and resorts 6x points at U.S. supermarkets, U.S. gas stations, and U.S. restaurants 4x points at U.S. online retail purchases 3x points on Lyft rides
Top Redemption Options	Redeem points for 1.25 cents each for travel via Chase Travel, transfer points to airline/hotel partners	Free Hilton hotel nights, fifth night free
Top Travel Protections and Benefits	Car rental insurance, trip cancellation/interruption, annual $50 hotel credit	Car rental insurance, Hilton Honors Gold elite status, up to $200 hotel credits
Top Shopping Protections and Benefits	Purchase protection, extended warranty, shopping offers
Annual Fees and Authorized Users	Annual fee of $95 No fee to add authorized users	Annual fee of $150 (rates & fees) No charge for authorized users (rates & fees)

The Value of a Welcome Bonus

The opportunity to earn significant rewards in a short time is one compelling reason for selecting a travel rewards card. The Chase Sapphire Preferred card and the Hilton Surpass card come with welcome offers that allow you to do just that!

After meeting minimum spending requirements within the specified period immediately following approval, you’ll earn a welcome bonus, potentially worth hundreds of dollars in travel.

Here are the most current offers, plus more card information for each of our featured cards:

Bottom Line:

The Chase Sapphire Preferred card and the Hilton Surpass card each come with a generous welcome bonus that can be earned by meeting minimum spending requirements.

Earning Potential

The Chase Sapphire Preferred card earns flexible Ultimate Rewards points, while the Hilton Surpass card earns valuable Hilton Honors points.

A key attribute of these 2 rewards cards is earning well on travel-related purchases. In addition, both cards have several bonus-earning categories that include everyday purchases. Earning well on purchases you make frequently helps you accumulate rewards faster.

Let’s look closer at how you’ll earn rewards on each of our featured cards:

Earning Category	Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card	The Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card
Travel	5x points on travel purchased via Chase Travel  5x points on Lyft rides through March 2025 5x points on qualifying Peloton purchases over $150 through March 2025 (maximum $25,000 in purchases) 2x points on all other travel	12x points at Hilton hotels and resorts 3x points on all other travel 3x points on Lyft rides (registration required)
Dining	3x points for restaurants, eligible delivery services, and takeout	6x points at U.S. restaurants
Select Streaming Services	3x points	3x points
Supermarkets	2x points for online grocery purchases	6x points at U.S. supermarkets
Online Retail Purchases	1x points	4x points at U.S. online retail stores
Gas Stations	1x points	6x points at U.S. gas stations
All Other Purchases	1x points	3x points

Both the Chase Sapphire Preferred card and Hilton Surpass card have robust earning structures that focus on rewarding travel and select everyday purchases.

If you are comfortable purchasing travel via Chase Travel and spend a lot on Lyft rides, dining, online groceries, select streaming, and travel in general, the Chase Sapphire Preferred card will work well. Also, note that the card offers a 10% point bonus each year based on the total points you’ve earned.

Earning with the Hilton Surpass card makes sense if you’re spending at Hilton globally, dining, gas stations, and supermarkets (in the U.S.).

And, while you’ll have no trouble creating a fine stash of rewards with either card, the value you receive at redemption time may matter most.

Let’s review your choices when it’s time to redeem rewards and see how value plays an important role in your card selection.

Bottom Line:

The Chase Sapphire Preferred card earns rewards best on travel purchased via Chase Travel. The Chase Sapphire Preferred card and Hilton Surpass card both earn well on general travel purchases and select everyday categories.

Redemption Options

Once you’ve used your Chase Sapphire Preferred card or Hilton Surpass card for purchases and accumulated points, it’s time to get excited about redeeming those rewards.

Ultimate Rewards points earned on the Chase Sapphire Preferred card and Hilton Honors points earned on the Hilton Surpass card are valuable rewards currencies. However, values will vary at redemption time.

The actual value you receive will depend on the redemption option you select — so you’ll want to choose wisely. Before we touch on redemption examples, here are the options for redeeming rewards earned on each card:

Redemption Option	Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card	The Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card
Travel	Redeem points for 1.25 cents per point for travel via Chase Travel Transfer points to airline or hotel partners for flights or free hotel nights Redeem points for 1 cent each toward a statement credit for previous travel purchases	Redeem points for free hotel nights Redeem points for car rentals Transfer points to airline partners to redeem for award flights
Statement Credits	Redeem points for 1 cent each for a general statement credit, Pay Yourself Back	N/A
Additional Redemption Options	Shopping at select retailers, gift cards, experiences, Amazon, Apple Products, charitable donation	Shopping at select retailers, Ticketmaster, Amazon, Lyft rides, car rentals, charitable donation

The redemption options with the greatest potential for outsized value are to transfer Ultimate Rewards points to airline/hotel partners or to redeem Hilton Honors points for free hotel nights.

Redeeming Ultimate Rewards Points

We value Ultimate Rewards points at approximately 2.0 cents each. You can use this guideline as a benchmark when redeeming your points.

For example, if you transfer 100,000 Ultimate Rewards points to an airline partner and redeem the subsequent miles for a flight that costs $2,500, you will have received 2.5 cents in value for each point.

Hyatt is known for delivering good value when transferring Ultimate Rewards points to the World of Hyatt loyalty program. Checking the Hyatt Regency at Los Angeles Airport, the per-night rate can exceed $300 with taxes/fees. Since Ultimate Rewards points transfer at a ratio of 1:1 to Hyatt, you would need just 12,000 Ultimate Rewards points to book the hotel, which is also a 2.5 cent per point value.

Additionally, you can redeem Ultimate Rewards points via Chase Travel for 1.25 cents each.

Redeeming Hilton Honors Points

While we value Hilton Honors points at just 0.5 cents each, there is still great value to be found when redeeming Hilton Honors points for hotel nights.

One key benefit of having the Hilton Surpass card is that the card comes with Hilton Honors Gold elite status. Elite status members can use points to book award hotel nights and receive a night free when booking 5 consecutive nights.

To illustrate this value, we looked at the Iceland Parliament Hotel, Curio Collection, in Reykjavik, Iceland, for a 5-night stay during June. The cash price for a king room totals $2,914 (400,900 Icelandic króna). To book the 5-night stay with Hilton Honors points, you would pay for just 4 nights for a total of 320,000 points (80,000 points per night). That’s a total of just $1,600 worth of points when using a valuation of 0.5 cents per point, but you’ll get over 0.9 cents per point in value!

Even without using the fifth-night-free benefit, you’ll find plenty of value in redeeming Hilton Honors points for free hotel nights.

You can also transfer Hilton Honors points to airline programs, but the transfer ratio can be 10:1, which is not a good value for your points.

Bottom Line:

The best potential value for Ultimate Rewards points earned on the Chase Sapphire Preferred card is to transfer points to airline/hotel partners. You can also redeem points for 1.25 cents each via Chase Travel. The best value for Hilton Honors points earned on the Hilton Surpass card is to redeem them for free hotel nights.

Travel Protections and Benefits

Travel protections come complimentary with the Chase Sapphire Preferred card and Hilton Surpass card. These protections can reimburse unexpected or prepaid travel expenses when your trip is disrupted or needs to be canceled for a covered reason.

Travel benefits can make your trip more comfortable or help you save money on travel-related purchases.

First, we’ll review the top travel protections and benefits that come with both of our featured cards. We’ll then tell you about those that are unique to each card.

• Car Rental Insurance — Reserve and pay for your car rental with your card, decline the rental agency’s CDW/LDW coverage, and receive car rental insurance.
  • Chase Sapphire Preferred Card — Receive primary car rental coverage. Primary coverage means you do not have to file a claim with any other applicable insurance before card coverage applies.
  • Hilton Surpass Card — The card comes with secondary car rental coverage with access to Premium Protection for 1 low fee ($12.95 to $24.95) for the entire rental period, up to 42 consecutive days.
• Baggage Insurance — If your bags are damaged, lost, or stolen, you could receive up to $3,000 per person with the Chase Sapphire Preferred card or up to $1,250 per person with the Hilton Surpass card. Card coverage is secondary to any other applicable coverage.
• No Foreign Transaction Fees — Both cards make great travel companions as you won’t be charged fees for transactions you make abroad.
• Travel and Emergency Assistance — When traveling and something goes wrong, you can receive help 24/7 by using the dedicated assistance line. Receive assistance with translation services, arranging emergency transportation, replacing a lost passport, and more.
• Car Rental Program Benefits — Receive discounts with Avis, Hertz, Budget, and Audi on demand through Visa Signature on the Chase Sapphire Preferred card. Enroll your Hilton Surpass card in National Car Rental’s Emerald Club and receive complimentary Emerald Club Executive status.

Chase Sapphire Preferred Card

• Trip Cancellation and Trip Interruption — If you need to cancel your trip or your trip is disrupted due to a covered loss, you could receive reimbursement for eligible non-refundable trip expenses. Coverage limits are $10,000 per covered trip and $20,000 per card/account. Other terms and conditions apply.
• Trip Delay — If your trip is delayed 12 hours or more or overnight, you could receive up to $500 per trip for eligible expenses.
• Baggage Delay — If your bags are delayed 6 hours or more, you could receive up to $100 per day for eligible incidentals for up to 5 days.
• Roadside Dispatch — When stranded roadside, 1 call and 1 set prearranged fee can get you back on the road again. Coverage includes limited towing, emergency fuel delivery, standard winching, lockout or jumpstart service, and tire changing of your inflated spare.
• $50 Annual Hotel Credit — Use your card to book a hotel stay via Chase Travel and receive a $50 statement credit each year.
• Luxury Hotel & Resort Collection Benefits — Reserve your stay via LHRC or Chase Travel and receive a variety of elite-style benefits that vary by property. Perks can include room upgrades, breakfast for 2, an on-site amenity credit worth $100 or more, complimentary Wi-Fi, and early check-in/late checkout.

Hilton Surpass Card

• Hilton Honors Elite Status — Receive automatic Gold elite status with the card. Earn top Diamond elite status when you spend $40,000 on your card in a calendar year.
• Free Night Certificate — Spend $15,000 on your card in a calendar year and receive a free hotel night certificate.
• Quarterly Hotel Statement Credits — Use your enrolled card to pay during your stay at a Hilton property and receive up to $50 in statement credits each quarter. There is a limit of up to $200 in credits each year.

Bottom Line:

The Chase Sapphire Preferred card has a long list of travel insurance benefits, including primary car rental insurance and trip interruption/cancellation/delay coverage. The Hilton Surpass card has fewer travel insurance benefits but offers strong Hilton Honors-related benefits and a free night certificate after spending $15,000 annually.

Shopping Protections and Benefits

When you use the Chase Sapphire Preferred card or Hilton Surpass card for purchases, you could receive additional product protection and benefit from savings offers.

Here are the shopping protections and benefits you’ll find on our featured cards and those that are unique to each card:

• Purchase Protection
  • The Chase Sapphire Preferred card offers damage and theft protection for up to 120 days from the purchase date, and limits are up to $500 per item and up to $50,000 per account.
  • The Hilton Surpass card offers damage and theft protection 90 days from the purchase date, with a $1,000 limit per eligible purchase and $50,000 per card account.
• Extended Warranty
  • The Chase Sapphire Preferred card offers a 1-year extension for eligible items with manufacturer’s warranties of 3 years or less.
  • The Hilton Surpass card offers a 1-year extension for eligible items with manufacturer’s warranties of 5 years or less.

Chase Sapphire Preferred Card

• DoorDash DashPass — Activate this offer by December 31, 2024, and receive a 1-year DoorDash DashPass. The pass comes with $0 delivery fees and reduced service fees.
• Instacart+ Membership — Receive up to $15 in statement credits each quarter and complimentary Instacart+ membership for 6 months. Activate the offer in your online card account by July 31, 2024.
• Chase Offers — Login to your online Chase card account and choose offers from select retailers and service providers. Add those offers to your card, make the associated purchase, and receive a statement credit.

Hilton Surpass Card

• Amex Offers — Your online card account will list up to 100 Amex Offers that can save you money or help you earn additional Hilton Honors points. Add the offers you like to your card, make the required purchase, and receive a statement credit or additional rewards.

Bottom Line:

Eligible purchases made with either the Chase Sapphire Preferred card or the Hilton Surpass card could purchase protection and/or extended warranty coverage. Both cards also come with shopping discounts and offers for select purchases.

Annual Fees and Authorized Users

When considering any type of rewards card, it’s wise to be aware of any fees you’ll need to pay.

The Chase Sapphire Preferred card charges an annual fee of $95. The Hilton Surpass card has a fee of $150 (rates & fees).

Neither card charges a fee to add authorized users.

Final Thoughts

The Chase Sapphire Preferred card is one of the best value-based travel rewards cards available. First-time cardholders can learn quickly how to earn lots of Ultimate Rewards points. Redemption options are easy to utilize, and the card comes with a long list of travel insurance protections and benefits. With a lower annual fee, the card can be a great overall choice.

As a hotel-branded card, the Hilton Surpass card delivers a nice balance of elevated rewards earning, a fast path to earning free hotel nights, and Hilton-centric benefits. The card also sports a lower annual fee compared to the accompanying protections and benefits.

If you’re a Hilton loyalist, you might consider both cards. If you’re not a Hilton fan, the Chase Sapphire Preferred card is a good choice for a primary travel rewards card without a high annual fee.

---

For the car rental loss and damage insurance benefit of the Hilton Honors American Express Surpass^® Card, car rental loss and damage insurance can provide coverage up to $50,000 for theft of or damage to most rental vehicles when you use your eligible card to reserve and pay for the entire eligible vehicle rental and decline the collision damage waiver or similar option offered by the commercial car rental company. This product provides secondary coverage and does not include liability coverage. Not all vehicle types or rentals are covered. geographic restrictions apply. Eligibility and benefit level varies by card. Terms, conditions and limitations Apply. Please visit americanexpress.com/benefitsguide for more details. Underwritten by AMEX Assurance Company. Car Rental Loss or Damage Coverage is offered through American Express Travel Related Services Company, Inc. For the baggage insurance plan benefit of the Hilton Honors American Express Surpass^® Card, baggage insurance plan coverage can be in effect for eligible persons for eligible lost, damaged, or stolen baggage during their travel on a common carrier (e.g. plane, train, ship, or bus) when the entire fare for a common carrier vehicle ticket for the trip (one-way or round-trip) is charged to an eligible account. Coverage can be provided for up to $1,250 for carry-on baggage and up to $500 for checked baggage, in excess of coverage provided by the common carrier (e.g. plane, train, ship, or bus). For New York State residents, there is a $10,000 aggregate maximum limit for all covered persons per covered trip. Eligibility and benefit level varies by card. Terms, conditions and limitations apply. Please visit americanexpress.com/benefitsguide for more details. Underwritten by AMEX Assurance Company. For the extended warranty benefit of the Hilton Honors American Express Surpass^® Card, when an American Express^® card member charges a covered purchase to an eligible card, extended warranty can provide up to one extra year added to the original manufacturer’s warranty. Applies to warranties of five (5) years or less. Coverage is up to the actual amount charged to your card for the item up to a maximum of $10,000; not to exceed $50,000 per card member account per calendar year. Eligibility and benefit level varies by card. Terms, conditions and limitations apply. Please visit americanexpress.com/benefitsguide for more details. Underwritten by AMEX Assurance Company.