Citi Strata Premier vs Chase Sapphire Preferred, checked Sept 30, 2026: welcome offers in dollars, 3x categories, a $30,000 spending example, transfer partners and protections.
By Vamsi, RewardsGuru.club. Published April 29, 2026, updated September 30, 2026.
Rewritten September 30, 2026, against Citi's Strata Premier page, its terms and benefits guide, Citi's ThankYou transfer terms, Chase's Sapphire Preferred page and Chase's June 15, 2026 Sapphire Preferred announcement. Point values are our own: 2 cents for a Chase Ultimate Rewards point, 1.8 cents for a Citi ThankYou point and 1.63 cents for a World of Hyatt point.
TL;DR
| Sapphire Preferred | Citi Strata Premier | |
|---|---|---|
| Annual fee | $95 | $95 |
| Welcome offer | 75,000 points after $5,000 in 3 months | 60,000 points after $4,000 in 3 months |
| Travel booked through the issuer's site | 5x through Chase Travel | 10x on hotels, car rentals and attractions on cititravel.com |
| Flights and hotels booked direct | 2x | 3x on "Air Travel and Other Hotel Purchases" |
| Other travel | 2x | 1x |
| Dining | 3x | 3x |
| Supermarkets | 3x on online groceries only | 3x at supermarkets |
| Gas and EV charging | 3x | 3x |
| Streaming | 3x on top streaming services | 1x |
| Vacation homes at top brands | 3x | 1x |
| Everything else | 1x | 1x |
| Hotel benefit | Up to $100 each account anniversary year on hotel stays through Chase Travel | $100 off one hotel stay of $500 or more (before taxes and fees) through cititravel.com, once per calendar year |
| Foreign transaction fee | None | None |
Citi's supermarket category has exclusions worth reading before you count on it. In Citi's words it "excludes purchases made at general merchandise/discount superstores; freezer/meat locker provisioners; dairy product stores; miscellaneous food/convenience stores; drugstores; warehouse/wholesale clubs; specialty food markets; bakeries; candy, nut, and confectionery stores; and meal kit delivery services." Chase's online grocery category excludes Target, Walmart and wholesale clubs.
The Preferred also includes a Global Entry, TSA PreCheck or NEXUS credit of up to $120 every four years, a year of Apple TV when activated by December 31, 2026, and DashPass with a $10 DoorDash promo each month through December 31, 2027.
| Sapphire Preferred | Citi Strata Premier | |
|---|---|---|
| Offer | 75,000 Chase points | 60,000 ThankYou points |
| Spend | $5,000 in 3 months | $4,000 in 3 months |
| At our value | $1,500 (2 cents) | $1,080 (1.8 cents) |
The eligibility rules, in each issuer's words. Chase: "This credit card is unavailable to you if you currently have this card open. The new cardmember bonus may not be available to you if you previously held this card or received a new cardmember bonus for this card." Citi: "New account bonus offer is not available if you currently have or previously had a Citi Strata Premier® or a Citi Premier® account. You also may not be eligible for the new account bonus offer based on a number of factors, such as your history of opening, closing and using credit cards."
One spending mix, with every assumption stated: $5,000 on dining, $4,000 at supermarkets in person, $2,400 on gas, $3,000 on flights and hotels booked direct, $1,200 on streaming and $14,400 on everything else.
| Sapphire Preferred | Citi Strata Premier | |
|---|---|---|
| Dining | 15,000 (3x) | 15,000 (3x) |
| Supermarkets, in person | 4,000 (1x) | 12,000 (3x) |
| Gas | 7,200 (3x) | 7,200 (3x) |
| Flights and hotels booked direct | 6,000 (2x) | 9,000 (3x) |
| Streaming | 3,600 (3x) | 1,200 (1x) |
| Everything else | 14,400 (1x) | 14,400 (1x) |
| Points | 50,200 | 58,800 |
| At our value | about $1,004 | about $1,058 |
Our values are averages across each program's partners. If every Chase point in this example went to Hyatt from the Preferred, the 50,200 points would become 37,650 Hyatt points, about $614 at our Hyatt value. Shift the mix toward groceries bought in person and the Strata Premier pulls further ahead on points. Shift it toward Chase Travel bookings and streaming and the Preferred does.
Chase (listed on the Sapphire Preferred page): Aer Lingus, Air Canada Aeroplan, British Airways, Flying Blue (Air France and KLM), Iberia, JetBlue, Singapore Airlines, Southwest, United and Virgin Atlantic, plus IHG, Marriott, World of Hyatt and Wyndham. World of Hyatt is 4:3 from the Preferred.
Citi (Citi's transfer terms list 20 programs): American Airlines AAdvantage, Accor, Avianca LifeMiles, Cathay Pacific, Choice Privileges, Emirates, Etihad, EVA Air, Flying Blue, JAL Mileage Bank, Leaders Club, Preferred Hotels & Resorts, Qantas, Qatar Airways, Singapore Airlines, Thai Airways, JetBlue, Turkish Airlines, Virgin Atlantic and Wyndham. Most take 1,000 ThankYou points as 1,000 miles or points. The exceptions Citi lists for the Strata Premier: Choice 1,500, Preferred Hotels & Resorts 2,000, Emirates 800, Accor 500 and Leaders Club 200.
On both lists: Flying Blue, JetBlue, Singapore Airlines, Virgin Atlantic and Wyndham. Only Chase: United, Southwest, Air Canada Aeroplan, British Airways, Iberia, Aer Lingus, IHG, Marriott and World of Hyatt. Only Citi: American Airlines and the other programs above.
Citi also has two transfer bonuses running for Strata Premier cardmembers until October 24, 2026: "1.25 Lifemiles miles for each 1 ThankYou Point transferred" and "1.3 JAL Mileage Bank miles for each 1 ThankYou Point transferred." Our transfer bonus page shows each running bonus in dollars.
| Sapphire Preferred | Citi Strata Premier | |
|---|---|---|
| Trip delay | Delays over 12 hours, up to $500 per covered traveler | Delays over 6 hours, up to $500 per covered trip, two claims per 12 months |
| Trip cancellation and interruption | Up to $10,000 per covered traveler and $20,000 per trip | Up to $5,000 per covered trip and $10,000 per account per 12 months |
| Lost luggage | Up to $3,000 per covered traveler | Up to $3,000 per covered trip |
| Rental car | Primary, up to $60,000 for theft and collision on most rentals with an MSRP of $125,000 or less (secondary inside the U.S. for New York residents) | Secondary in your country of residence, primary outside it |
| Emergency evacuation | Up to $100,000, added June 15, 2026 | Not listed on Citi's page |
Only the Sapphire Preferred, at 4:3. Citi has no World of Hyatt partner. The Sapphire Reserve transfers to Hyatt at 1:1.
The Strata Premier, at 3x at supermarkets as Citi defines them, including in store. The Preferred earns 3x only on online groceries, and 1x in store.
Neither issuer's terms bar holding the other's card. The combined fees are $190 a year. For more on the Citi card alone, see our Citi Strata Premier deep dive; for cards that pair with the Preferred, see our pairing guide.