Ink Premier Transfers
A year or so ago Chase launched the Ink Premier card and it came with a nice 100,000 point welcome offer. Except it wasn't really a points offer even if they called it Ultimate Rewards. That was super confusing as was the name, Ink Premier, which sounds a lot like an awesome card called the Ink Preferred. It was mostly a dud at launch. The Premier has a higher annual fee than other Ink cards, higher minimum spend requirements AND the points don't transfer? Hard pass! Well, now there are reports of Ink Premier transfers happening which is getting people excited for this card. In reality, what does this change? ABSOLUTELY NOTHING! The card is still a pass for 99% of people, even if this were actually a long term change.
Why Are Transfers Happening All Of The Sudden?
The truth of the matter is no one knows why Ink Premier transfers to the Chase Sapphire Preferred and Sapphire Reserve are all of a sudden a thing. Including Chase! I know there was an update of their systems a few weeks back and maybe that is the cause of this? No matter the cause, for the time being you can turn your cash back from the Ink Premier into transferrable Ultimate Rewards.
This is great news if you had the card and haven't used your cash back bonus yet. I know more than a few people signed up for the Ink Premier thinking they were signing up for the much better Ink Preferred. If that is you, jump on these transfers while you can!
This Is Likely Short Lived
If that is not you then I wouldn't be jumping on this card now either. Why not? Because I don't think these Ink Premier transfers are intentional by Chase. This seems like a glitch that will be patched fairly quickly. That would leave you with a cash back card if they patch it before you can finish the minimum spend. The offers on the Ink Cash, Ink Unlimited and Ink Preferred are all better offers anyway.
It Would Still Be A Pass For Most Even If Ink Premier Transfers Became Permanent
What if this became a permanent thing though? The Ink Premier would still be a pass for most. The only people it may make sense for is any business that routinely had $5000+ purchases which would earn 2.5x back.
Outside of that miniscule target the rest of people would need to focus on the base 2x earning. If I am being honest, 2x Ultimate Rewards on everything sounds pretty amazing at first glance. But, you are forgetting about the $195 annual fee the card comes with. While the Ink Unlimited only earns 1.5x per dollar you would need to do a lot of spend to close the gap on the $195 annual fee difference.
Here is some back of the napkin math for you. Let's assume Ultimate Rewards are worth 1.5 cents each. If you are earning 1/2 a point more per dollar that is like earning $0.0075 more per dollar on your spend. If you divide the $195 annual fee by $0.0075 it comes out to $26,000 in spend. That is your break even point! I doubt many people want to put that kind of spend on a 2x earning card versus earning bonus multipliers or using that spend towards a welcome offer.
Ink Premier Transfers: ToP Thoughts
I think these Ink Premier transfers are great news for anyone already stuck with the Ink Premier card and have a cash back balance they can now turn into Ultimate Rewards. As for everyone else, it isn't worth paying attention to this card because of it. Mostly because I think this is a short term glitch that Chase patches soon. Even if it became a permanent change this card would still be a pass for most people. That is because the spend required to make it a good option would be too steep for most.
So, why are people excited about this? They probably didn't crunch the numbers or they are excited to have a “new” card to promote now. Don't fall for the hype! Let me know what your thoughts are over in the ToP Facebook Group.
