PSA: It may be possible to product change US Bank Altitude Reserve (and maybe get some of the fee back?)

The US Bank Altitude Reserve card was once the most under-appreciated credit card in the rewards game. Unfortunately, US Bank severely nerfed the card in December 2025. In the process, they promised that transfer partners were coming to the card, though after hearing nothing about that for most of the year (and nothing since the card changed in December), I predicted that US Bank wasn’t actually going to launch those transfer partners after all. If you are ready to cut and run, a recent reader data point indicates that it may be possible to product change your card — and maybe you’ll even get a prorated refund of the annual fee.

Offering 3X everywhere on mobile wallet purchases that could (previously) be redeemed for 1.5c per point for travel purchases made the Altitude Reserve something of an incredible sleeper card. It became my catch-all card for in-person purchases, especially at warehouse stores, where earning an effective 4.5% back was more or less unmatched.

However, now that the best use of points is to redeem them to a US Bank checking account for 1c per point, the card has lost a lot of appeal. While 3% cash back for in-person purchases is still a solid return, the inability to get outsized value is a turn-off to many.

When rumors first circulated that transfer partners would come to the card, I was initially hopeful that the card would remain as my preferred method of payment for in-person purchases. Earning 3x transferable points at most places seemed like a great solution for a lot of purchase types (and particularly for Player 2).

However, after announcing the changes in August 2025, US Bank made no further progress in outlining a transferable points program. When the changes (like reduced-value redemption and a monthly cap on the 3X category) took effect in December, US Bank merely said that transfer partners were “coming soon” (and even then, it was buried in the rewards center, not prominently featured or otherwise announced). That led me to predict that US Bank was going to move that mention out of sight and out of mind and abandon plans to launch a transferable currency. The continued absence of any announcements or timelines only reduces faith in the future of a transferable points system.

Many readers have shared my lack of faith in US Bank to do much more with this card, especially since they stopped taking applications for it more than 15 months ago and haven’t reintroduced the card. On our post about the changes that went live on December 15, 2025, reader jeph36 writes the following about their Altitude Reserve card:

FYI, my AF normally gets charged ~mid-March and I have had the card since 2018. With no transfer partners on the horizon, I product-changed via chat to the Altitude Connect a few days ago (to get the 4x Priority Pass restaurants per year for $0 AF). I did not ask for it (and they did not say it was coming), but I got a $33.33 refund of my annual fee, i.e. 1/12th of the $400. If you do not think you will be keeping your card, you might want to PC sooner than later. I am not sure if the same refund would apply if I had cancelled instead.

They also gave me a statement credit for my remaining points at ~0.8 cpp – $0.42 for my 52 points.

That was a really interesting data point for a couple of reasons:

• Product change was available (I had tried to do a product change on my Altitude Go when the Smartly card was introduced, but I was told there were no options for a product change)
• It was possible to product change via chat
• US Bank proactively provided a prorated refund of the annual fee

The biggest remaining benefit of the Altitude Reserve is its 8 annual Priority Pass visits, which can still be used for restaurant access (unlike most Priority Pass options on the market). However, that benefit alone doesn’t make it worth keeping the card, particularly now that the annual $325 credit on this card, which used to work for all travel and dining purchases, now only applies to travel purchases made through the US Bank Travel Center.

Downgrading to the US Bank Altitude Connect certainly may be of interest for some readers, since that card has no annual fee and offers a couple of really unique benefits. For starters, as jeph36 notes, the Altitude Connect card offers 4 Priority Pass lounge visits per year, including restaurant access. That alone is a good deal. The card also offers an enhanced version of the GigSky benefit, offering a free eSIM with up to 5GB of data over 15 days. What’s especially interesting here is that while other Visa Signature cards receive a one-time free 1GB plan, the Altitude Connect card gets a 5GB/15-day plan that can be redeemed an unlimited number of times (though you do need to wait until the 15-day pass has expired to redeem a new complimentary offer). We wrote about that offer here (note that it was 1GB of data at the time, but that has since increased for that card). I used a few GigSky eSIMs in Europe this past December and was happy with the service overall.

I might wait things out for a couple more months to see if US Bank launches a transfer partner program, but if they don’t before my next annual fee comes due late this spring, I’ll probably look to change to the Altitude Connect card myself. I could certainly see the appeal for some if they are able to get the annual fee refund that jeph reports, though note that we don’t know whether that is standard practice.

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