Not All Chase Ultimate Rewards Points Are Equal!

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That’s right!  If you want to redeem Chase points to book travel through Chase, your points are worth different rates depending on which card they’re tied to.

So if you have more than one Chase Ultimate Rewards card, you’ll get the best deal by moving your points to the right card.

Redeem Chase Points
Chase Ultimate Rewards Points Are Valuable! But You’ll Get a Different Rate on Travel Depending on Which Card You Have

I’ll show you how much your points are worth.  And how to get the best rate toward your next trip!

Get the Best Deal When You Redeem Chase Points

A big thanks to Million Mile Secrets reader Ed, who emailed us about this!

So if you have more than one of these cards, your points will be worth MORE when you move them to a different card account to book your travel!

Redeem Chase Points
Move Your Chase Ultimate Rewards Points to the Account Where They’re Worth More!

For example, Million Mile Secrets team member Harlan has 3 Chase Ultimate Rewards cards.  And the points are worth different amounts toward travel bookings!

Let’s take a look at how much they’re worth toward the same flights.

Redeem Chase Points
With the Chase Freedom, Freedom Unlimited, Sapphire, and Ink Cash Cards, Your Points Are Worth 1 Cent Each

If you book with the Chase FreedomChase Freedom Unlimited, Chase Sapphire, and Chase Ink Cash, you’ll need 75,376 Chase Ultimate Rewards points to cover a round-trip flight from Washington, DC, to Paris that costs $753.76.  That’s a rate of 1 cent per point.

Redeem Chase Points
If You Have the Chase Sapphire Preferred, Ink Bold, or Ink Plus, Your Points Are Worth 1.25 Cents Each

And if you have the Chase Sapphire Preferred, Chase Ink Bold (no longer available), or Chase Ink Plus, you’ll need 60,300 Chase Ultimate Rewards points for the exact same flights.  That’s a savings of ~15,000 points!  And each one is worth 1.25 cents.

Redeem Chase Points
You’ll Get the Best Deal With the Chase Sapphire Reserve Card Because Each Point Is Worth 1.5 Cents

Folks with the Chase Sapphire Reserve card pay the least amount of points because they’re worth 1.5 cents each.  So for these flights, you’ll pay 50,250 Chase Ultimate Rewards points.  When compared to the Chase Freedom or Chase Freedom Unlimited, for example, you save ~25,000 points.

That’s a big difference!  So if you have both cards, you’ll pay fewer points by simply moving your Chase Ultimate Rewards points from your Chase Freedom to Chase Sapphire Reserve account.

Why Redeem Your Points This Way?

When you use your Chase Ultimate Rewards points toward travel, you can choose a seat from any available flight for sale.  You won’t have to worry about blackout dates or spend time searching for award flights.  And some folks like that flexibility.

However, you’ll often get a much better return for your Chase Ultimate Rewards points when you transfer them to air and hotel partners, including:

Chase Ultimate Rewards Airline Transfer Partners
Aer LingusBritish AirwaysFlying Blue (Air France/KLM)
IberiaJetBlueSingapore Airlines
SouthwestUnited AirlinesVirgin Atlantic
Chase Ultimate Rewards Hotel Transfer Partners
HyattIHGMarriott
Ritz-Carlton
Note:   Points earned from the Chase Freedom, Sapphire, and Ink Cash cards can only be transferred to travel partners if you also have a Chase Sapphire Reserve, Chase Sapphire Preferred, Ink Plus, or Ink Bold card.

But, if you decide to use your points to book travel through Chase, be sure to move them to the card account where they’ll be worth the most for you!

Bottom Line

The flexibility of Chase Ultimate Rewards points is a big part of why it’s my favorite points program.  And if you use them to book travel through Chase, be aware each point is worth a different amount, depending on which card account you use.

Chase Ultimate Rewards points are worth:

Depending on the retail cost of the trip, you can save thousands of points by transferring points from one account to another.  It’s a fast & easy step that can save you big!

Editorial Note: We're the Million Mile Secrets team. And we're proud of our content, opinions and analysis, and of our reader's comments. These haven’t been reviewed, approved or endorsed by any of the airlines, hotels, or credit card issuers which we often write about. And that’s just how we like it! :)

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