Thread: Amex PRG vs Chase SP?

Which of these two cards is more rewarding/better in your opinion? I have them both and I like them both, but I'm not sure I'll want to pay both annual fees forever.

Do you think Chase Ultimate Rewards program is better than Amex's Membership Rewards program? Who has better customer service? I'd like to here everyone's thoughts/opinions about these two cards.

I like Ultimate Rewards better because I fly United. I also find them easier to earn and use because of the Freedom and Ink cards that I can combine with the CSP. CSP customer service is great. Amex customer service is good, but they've outsourced some of it. Sometimes the foreign CS reps don't understand my requests. There doesn't seem to be a pattern for when I get US vs foreign help.

You get slightly better bonus points for travel on the PRG at 3x. That's the only advantage I see.

[QUOTE=djrez4;31141I also find them easier to earn and use because of the Freedom and Ink cards that I can combine with the CSP.[/QUOTE]

I was told by the local branch and multiple CS reps on the phone that Ink UR point can't be combined with Freedom/CSP because one is business the other 2 are personal... am I missing something here?

Sapphire Preferred all the way. Yes, only 2x points as opposed to the 3x of the PRG, but a much lower annual fee, bonus 20% boost for travel redemption, and annual anniversary 7% point bonus on the Sapphire Preferred balance it out. Customer service for both cards is top notch. Personally I think the Ultimate Rewards program is better than Membership Rewards, and offers more freedom. Plus SP comes either as a Visa or a Mastercard and is more widely accepted than American Express. Assuming you're a traveler, and both of these cards are geared at travelers, the SP has no foreign transaction fee ever where the Premier Rewards Gold has 2.7%..... lame!

True the PRG has no interest because you pay your statement in full, but in direct comparison with each other, using the SP the same way as the PRG won't cost you any interest either. Conversely, if you use the pay over time feature on the PRG, I believe the interest is 18.24% which is slightly higher than the SP's 15.24% rate. Amex PRG has no concierge if you're into that sort of thing, but Sapphire Preferred does.

On the flip side, the PRG has no preset spending limit so it is more unrestricted to a big spender than the SP (although a Visa Signature/World MC will allow you to go overlimit to an extent), but prepaying or making multiple payments on the SP would net the same result if trying to charge a lot. Also Chase is a bit tighter than Amex with regards to credit limit increases, so a low initial limit SP could be a problem in this respect.

Originally Posted by kcarter609

I was told by the local branch and multiple CS reps on the phone that Ink UR point can't be combined with Freedom/CSP because one is business the other 2 are personal... am I missing something here?

I transferred both Freedom and Ink UR points to my CSP last week to book United tickets. YMMV.

Originally Posted by djrez4

I transferred both Freedom and Ink UR points to my CSP last week to book United tickets. YMMV.

I might have to look into getting both the Ink and CSP now.

I like them both. CSP points can be transferred to United, which is a part of the largest airline. The points can also be converted to cash back at 1 point = 1 cent. Whereas for Amex, points can be transferred to British Airways, which is dirt cheap for flying or Starwood hotels, which is dirt cheap for lodging. But MR points cannot be used for statement credit, and redemption for gift cards are usually useless.

CSP also transfers to Avios. If you want Starwood points, the SPG is a better card.

To all of those talking about the PRG giving more points for travel, keep in mind also that you do get an extra point per dollar with Chase when you book travel through Ultimate Rewards, which would also put you at 3 points per dollar for the CSP, and that's for all travel, not just airfare. Also keep in mind that basically the only way that you can get a 1% return with Amex is by redeeming for travel, while the CSP gives you a minimum 1% return with a 20% bonus for travel redemption. Factor in the 7% annual points dividend, no foreign transaction fees, higher acceptance rate, and ability to combine points with other cards which also earn much higher rewards than Amex for just over half of the PRG's annual fee and the CSP becomes the indisputable winner.