Once you’ve earned Ultimate Rewards® points through spending or signup bonuses, you have a few options for how to use them!
Chase Travel℠
The first option is to use the Chase Travel℠. This can sometimes be a good way to find hotel stays, rental cards, or flights, but we typically do not use this option. We have found that we get much better value if we transfer our points to “travel partners.”
Transfer Partners
Note: You will need a Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card or a Chase Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card in order to transfer your points to travel partners.
The best option for most people is to transfer points to travel partners. When you transfer your Ultimate Rewards® points to a travel partner, you are essentially turning those Chase Ultimate Rewards® points into brand-specific points. You can get the most value out of your points and you have the most flexibility to change/cancel if you book with the travel partners.
STEP ONE: To transfer to a travel partner, you will first need an account with the travel partner (Southwest Rapid Rewards account, World of Hyatt account, etc.) Make sure the name on the travel partner matches the exact name listed on your banking account. We also recommend checking the dates/hotel/airline etc. for availability before getting ready to transfer your points.
STEP TWO: Once you are ready to transfer your points for redemption, you will start by logging-in to your Chase account. Then, you will want to click on your Ultimate Rewards®. Once there, click on your Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card. Then, click on “Travel-Transfer points to partners.” From there, a list of travel partners will show up and you can click on the program where you would like to transfer your points.
STEP THREE: Follow the prompts and transfer the amount of points you would like to that program. You can transfer in increments of 1,000 points. Usually transfers are almost immediate. You may have to refresh the page on the travel partner site, but many hotels or airlines will reflect the new points balance quickly. Others may take a few hours or even a few days, so keep an eye on your account and note when the points arrive.
Once your points are transferred, you are ready to book that flight or hotel stay! The important thing to remember is that once you have transferred to a travel partner, your points are now with that program. You can not transfer your points back to Chase Ultimate Rewards® points. For this reason, we only transfer the amount of points we need for our stay or for our flights and leave the rest in our Chase Ultimate Rewards® account.
By following this simple process to transfer your credit card points to hotels or airlines, you can stretch the points further and get even more value out of them!
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