For a limited time, the Chase Sapphire Preferred and Sapphire Reserve are offering new cardholders up to 80,000 Ultimate Rewards points

• For a limited time, the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card and Chase Sapphire Reserve® are offering elevated welcome bonuses.
• The Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card bonus also includes up to $50 in grocery credits the first year.
• Both earn Ultimate Rewards points that you can redeem for travel, cash back, gift cards, and more.
• Read Insider's guide to the best Chase credit cards.

The Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card and Chase Sapphire Reserve® have long been regarded as two of the most rewarding travel credit cards, in part due to their sizable welcome bonuses and the flexible Chase Ultimate Rewards points they earn.

If you've been on the fence about applying for one of the Chase Sapphire cards, now's the time to apply. Both cards have just increased their welcome offers for a limited time, and the bonuses are among the highest we've seen in recent years.

Even if travel isn't on your radar at the moment, the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card and Chase Sapphire Reserve® are worth considering. You can use Ultimate Rewards points for a wide variety of redemptions, including cash back, gift cards, merchandise, food, and even charitable donations. Plus, through Chase's Pay Yourself Back program, you can redeem points at a higher rate toward grocery, dining, home improvement store, and eligible charity purchases through April 30, 2021.

Chase now only allows you to have one Sapphire card at a time, so you can't open both — and there are other restrictions to be aware of (more on that below). Here's what to know to decide which card is best for you.

Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card

New Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card members can now earn Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card after spending $4,000 on purchases in the first three months of account opening, and can earn up to $50 in statement credits toward grocery store purchases in the first year. That's enough to offset more than half of the card's Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card annual fee. Previously, the bonus was 60,000 points after meeting the same requirements.

The welcome bonus can get you up to $1,000 in travel booked through the Chase Travel Portal or toward eligible purchases through Pay Yourself Back (through April 30). When you redeem points from the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card this way, they're worth 1.25 cents each, but you can potentially get even more value by transferring points to Chase's airline and hotel partners like United, British Airways, and Hyatt.

In addition to the elevated bonus, cardholders earn 2x points on travel and dining purchases worldwide and 1 point per dollar on all other purchases. For a limited time, the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card also earns 2x points at grocery stores (on up to $1,000 in spending per month, then 1x, through April 30, 2021), 10x points on Chase Dining purchases (on up to $500 in total spending through June 30, 2021), and 5x points on Lyft rides (through March 2022).

If you're not traveling just yet, there's no harm in holding onto your points until you're ready to hit the road again, because Chase Ultimate Rewards points won't expire as long as your account is open and in good standing. However, if you're itching to cash in your points now, you've got options:

• Pay Yourself Back: Redeem points at 1.25 cents apiece toward grocery, dining, home improvement, and eligible charity purchases (through April 30, 2021)
• Cash back: Cash in your points at a rate of 1 cent each toward a statement credit or direct deposit to your bank account
• Chase Dining: Use points for takeout and dining experiences at a rate of 1.25 cents apiece (through April 30)
• Gift cards: Your points are worth 1 cent each toward gift cards from popular merchants 
• Apple and Amazon purchases: Use points directly for Apple (1 cent each) or Amazon (0.8 cents each) purchases; the latter option isn't a good value — you're better off paying for your Amazon purchase with the card then redeeming points at 1 cent apiece toward a statement credit

For those who are already traveling, the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Cardoffers excellent travel protections, including primary car rental insurance and coverage for trip interruption/cancellation, trip delay, baggage delay, and lost luggage. Cardholders also receive extended warranty and purchase protection when they use their card to pay for eligible items. These benefits, if you're able to use them, can get you a value far in excess of the card's annual fee.

Chase Sapphire Reserve®

The more premium sibling of the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card, the Chase Sapphire Reserve® is offering Chase Sapphire Reserve® after spending $4,000 on purchases in the first three months of account opening — an increase of 10,000 points over the usual offer. It also earns Chase Ultimate Rewards points, allows transfers to Chase airline and hotel partners, and offers the same variety of options for points redemption as the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card.

The Chase Sapphire Reserve® has a Chase Sapphire Reserve® annual fee — substantially higher than the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card. However, if you can make use of the card's additional benefits — especially if you're traveling — the annual fee is certainly worth it. 

You'll also get valuable perks that can make traveling a lot more civilized. The Chase Sapphire Reserve® comes with complimentary Priority Pass Select membership, which gets you and up to two guests access to over 1,300 airport lounges worldwide. Cardholders also get a statement credit to cover the Global Entry or TSA PreCheck application fee — both programs can save you a ton of time and aggravation because you'll get access to shorter lines at the airport.

Cardholders also receive a better rate when they redeem points through the Chase Travel Portal or through Pay Yourself Back (1.5 cents per point). Because Chase allows you to combine points from your Ultimate Rewards-earning cards, you can effectively increase the value of all of your Chase points by pooling them on your Chase Sapphire Reserve® account. That includes points you earn from no-annual-fee cards like the Chase Freedom Flex℠, Chase Freedom Unlimited®, Ink Business Unlimited® Credit Card, and Ink Business Cash® Credit Card.

On the spending side, the Chase Sapphire Reserve® earns 3x points on travel (after earning the $300 credit), 3x points on dining, 3x points at grocery stores (on up to $1,000 in spending per month, then 1x, through April 30, 2021), 10x points on Chase Dining purchases (on up to $500 in total spending through June 30), and 10x points on Lyft rides (through March 2022). You'll also get even better travel protections, including emergency medical and dental and medical evacuation/transportation insurance.

Comparison: Which Chase Sapphire card is best for you?

Looking purely at the welcome bonus, the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card has a big advantage — especially since it charges a modest annual fee in comparison to the Chase Sapphire Reserve®.

For most, especially if you're just getting started with points and miles, the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card is a better deal. You'll get the same redemption options (just at a slightly lower rate for Chase Travel and Pay Yourself Back), good earning, and most of the same travel and purchase protections. If you don't want or need perks like airport lounge access or Global Entry/TSA PreCheck, the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card is a clear winner.

However, if you can make the most of the Chase Sapphire Reserve®'s benefits — especially because you can use the $300 travel credit toward grocery and gas purchases until the end of June — you could end up getting better value despite the high annual fee. The best card for you really boils down to your travel habits — if you're staying home, it's hard to justify the extra cost of the Chase Sapphire Reserve®, for now.

Here's a side-by-side comparison to help you make the best choice.

Chase Sapphire Preferred and Reserve application restrictions

Like other Chase cards, the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card and Chase Sapphire Reserve® are subject to application restrictions, most notably the Chase 5/24 rule. If you've opened more than five new credit cards in the past 24 months — from any bank, except for some small-business cards — you won't be approved.

There are also rules specific to the Chase Sapphire cards:

• You can only have one Sapphire card at a time — so if you've already got one of these cards open, you can't get the other 
• If you've earned a bonus from either of these cards in the past 48 months (even if the card is now closed), you're not eligible for these offers

There are plenty of other excellent travel credit card offers to consider if you don't qualify for the Chase Sapphire cards, including some with elevated welcome bonuses. If you're looking to earn flexible points, the Citi Premier® Card with its intro bonus of Citi Premier® Card is worth considering, and if you're looking for a premium card, it's hard to beat the current offer to earn The Platinum Card® from American Express with The Platinum Card® from American Express. 

Jasmin Baron is an associate editor at Personal Finance Insider, where she helps readers maximize rewards and find the best credit cards to fit their lifestyles.

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