Chase Ultimate Rewards - Ultimate Rewards to maintain account activity

I primarily use an AmEx SM card and primarily fly on DL, but occasionally fly other airlines. I'm thinking about getting a Chase Sapphire card. What I really want to do is to earn Ultimate Rewards and transfer the points to my SW and UA account to maintain activity on my so my miles don't expire. With a Sapphire card, do I have to book an entire flight on SW with points, or could I just periodically transfer some points to SW and some to UA to maintain activity so my already earned miles in those programs don't expire?

You can periodically transfer points to SW in increments of 1000 UR points 1:1. The process is very smooth and only takes a few minutes.

I wouldn't get a credit card to keep miles from expiring as I use the dining program tied to most airlines amd just buy a sandwich every 18 months.

Agree with MountainTrader.

I have not actually done this, but am thinking of this (there are very few restaurants in my area that I like that participate in dining)...

Go into restaurant.
Go to bar, ask bartender for 3 glasses of water and a bill for each one.
Charge each on a different credit card tied to a different program.
Leave bartender a $2 tip for each.

Now I have 3 programs renewed for 18 months!

I agree that you certainly don't need to get a credit card to keep the miles active. The dining suggestion is a good one, or make a small purchase you were going to make anyway through their online shopping portals.

That said, the Chase Sapphire Preferred is a great card, and assuming you can meet the spending requirement to get the sign-up bonus, it can be a nice new pile of miles to add to your collection. However, I probably wouldn't get it if your only goal is to keep accounts active.

Note that you cannot transfer from a no-annual-fee Sapphire account, it must be Sapphire Preferred, Ink Bold, JP Morgan Select or JP Morgan Palladium, all of which require an annual fee after the first year. There are other reasons to pair one of these cards with American Express, such as EMV Chip & Signature with no foreigh transaction fee, but I would not pay $95 per year only to keep accounts active when this can easily be done at no cost.