The Chase Sapphire Reserve (CSR) card has long been a favorite amongst the points and miles community as a top all-around travel rewards card. It has nice perks, best-in-class travel protections and good bonus categories, all while earning valuable Chase Ultimate Rewards points. Since its launch, Chase has increased the card’s annual fee to $550, but have the benefits kept up with the cost?
Chase Sapphire Reserve Current Welcome Offer
| Card Offer |
|---|
60K Points ⓘ Affiliate 60K after $4K spend in 3 months$550 Annual Fee Alternate Offer: 70K after $4K spend showing on some accounts when logged-in to Chase Recent better offer: Expired 12/1/22: 80K after $4K spend |
Chase Sapphire Reserve Review
The Chase Sapphire Reserve has a lot going for it. The travel and purchase protections are top-notch, the Priority Pass membership is one of the best offered by a credit card as it still includes restaurants (unlike those issued by Amex and Capital One). Ultimate Rewards is a very valuable transfer currency, unique in that it transfers 1-1 to Hyatt and can be redeemed by CSR cardholders for 1.5 cents each towards travel. The $550 annual fee is balanced by an easy-to-use $300 travel credit that brings the yearly total closer to $250. It doesn’t stand out from the competition like it used to and I wouldn’t consider it a “must-have” card. However, for frequent travelers who don’t want/can’t get the Ritz Carlton card or who often use points for direct travel redemptions, it can be a worthwhile option.
- Annual Fee: $550
- Authorized User Annual Fee: $75
- Foreign Transaction Fee: None
- What points are worth: The Chase Sapphire Reserve earns Ultimate Rewards (UR). Our current Reasonable Redemption Values pegs them at 1.55 cents each.
- Best Use for Points: Ultimate Rewards points can be transferred to travel partners at a 1:1 ratio and this will almost certainly yield the most value. Our favorite transfer partner is Hyatt, but good value can had through airline partners as well; including Air Canada Aeroplan, Air France/KLM Flying Blue and British Airways Avios. CSR cardholders can also be redeem UR for travel through the Chase Portal at 1.5 cents each or use “Pay Yourself Back (PYB)” on certain spending categories at 1.25 cents each (although the PYB program has lost much of its luster in the last year).
- Earning Categories:
- 10X hotels & car rentals booked through Chase, Chase Dining, Lyft (through 3/2025)
- 5X flights booked through Chase
- 3X travel and Dining
- 1x everywhere else
- Credits:
- $300 annual travel (cardmember year)
- $15 monthly Instacart
- $10 monthly GoPuff
- $100 Global Entry/TSA PreCheck (once every 4 years)
- Additional Perks:
- Priority Pass Select Lounge Membership: Cardholder and two guests. Unlike many other card-linked Priority Pass memberships, this one includes restaurants in the Priority Pass network.
- National Car Rental Executive Status
- 12 months free Instacart+ – Free delivery on orders over $35, 5% credit back on eligible pickup orders and reduced service fees.
- Free Lyft Pink (through 2024) – Complimentary upgrades to Priority Pickup on Standard rides, savings on Lyft Lux, XL, and Preferred rides and relaxed ride cancellations.
- Travel Protections:
- Auto Rental Coverage: Primary auto rental CDW (collision damage waiver). Provides reimbursement up to $75,000 for theft and collision damage for rental cars in the U.S. and abroad.
- Roadside Assistance: Up to $50 per incident/4 times a year.
- Trip Cancellation/Interruption Insurance: Up to $10,000 per person and $20,000 per trip.
- Trip Delay Reimbursement: Covers delays of more than 6 hours or that require an overnight stay. Cardholder and family are covered for up to $500 per ticket.
- Lost Luggage Reimbursement: Up to $3,000 per passenger.
- Baggage Delay Insurance: Covers baggage delays of over 6 hours, up to $100 a day for 5 days.
- Travel Accident Insurance: Accidental death or dismemberment coverage of up to $1,000,000.
- Emergency Evacuation & Transportation: Medical services and transportation up to $100,000.
- Emergency Medical and Dental Benefit: More than 100 miles or more from home, up to $2,500 for medical expenses for cardholder and immediate family members.
- Purchase Protections:
- Extended Warranty: One additional year, on eligible warranties of three years or less (US warranties only)
- Damage and Theft Protection: 120 days against damage or theft; up to $10,000 per claim and $50,000 per year
- Return Protection: Within 90 days of purchase, up to $500 per item, $1,000 per year.”
- Who’s this card for? Frequent travelers, especially those that can take advantage of bonus spending categories and who utilize the 1.5 cent redemption through the Ultimate Rewards portal (or those for whom the monthly Instacart and GoPuff credits move the needle). The travel and purchase protections are top-notch and it has the best Priority Pass membership around. Pairing it with a 5x earner like the no-fee Chase Freedom Flex, no-fee Freedom Unlimited & no-fee Chase Ink Cash can make it much more powerful.
- Is the Chase Sapphire Reserve a keeper? I used to be a staunch defender of the “keepability” of the CSR (and wrote a post about it last year). I’m less convinced now, however, partially because of the competition and partly because of the degradation of the Pay Yourself Back program. The Amex Gold card has better category bonuses and includes grocery. The Ritz Carlton card offers the same lounge access and travel protections, but adds $300 in incidental credits AND an annual 85K Marriott free night certificate…for $100 less in annual fees. Even the $95 Sapphire Preferred card offers primary car rental insurance while hanging onto the ability to transfer Ultimate Rewards to partners. Even if you account the $300 travel credit at face value, I’m seeing less and less reasons to keep this card around for $250/year.
Chase Sapphire Reserve Pros and Cons
Pros
- Best-in-class travel protections, including primary rental car insurance (that I’ve had the chance to use several times…it’s great)
- $300 travel credit applies to a broad range of categories and is easy-to-use
- Best-in-class Priority Pass membership
- Good bonus categories
- Only major transferable currency (outside of Bilt) that has Hyatt as a partner
- Points can be redeemed at 1.5 cents each for travel through the Chase Travel Portal
Cons
- High annual fee ($550)
- While 3x on travel and dining is good, it doesn’t stand out like it used to
- Often has a subpar welcome offer when compared to the Sapphire Preferred
- The Pay Yourself Back program is much less valuable that it used to be
- While everyone in these parts loves Hyatt, Ultimate Reward‘s airline transfer partners are less exciting
Related Cards
Ultimate Rewards Consumer Cards
| Card Offer and Details |
|---|
20K points + 5% on gas and groceries for a year ⓘ Non-Affiliate Earn 20,000 points (worth $200 cash back) after spending $500 in the first 3 months + 5% cash back on combined gas station and grocery store purchases (not including Target or Walmart) on up to $12,000 spent in the first year.No Annual Fee Be sure to select the card you want after clicking through. This card is subject to Chase's 5/24 rule (click here for details). Even though this card is marketed as a cash back card, it actually earns Ultimate Rewards points which are redeemable for 1 cent each, or can be combined with other Ultimate Rewards-earning cards to get even more value. This product is available to you if you do not have this card and have not received a new cardmember bonus for this card in the past 24 months. Information about this card has been collected independently by Frequent Miler. The issuer did not provide the details, nor is it responsible for their accuracy. Recent better offer: 20K points + 5x grocery stores for the first year on up to $12K in qualifying purchases FM Mini Review: Great for 5X and 3x categories and World Mastercard benefits. Excellent companion card to Sapphire Reserve, Sapphire Preferred, or Ink Business Preferred. Earning rate: 5x travel booked through Chase ✦ 5X Lyft through March 2025 ✦ 3x dining ✦ 3x drugstores ✦ 5X in rotating categories on up to $1,500 spend per quarter (Q4 2023: PayPal, wholesale clubs, and select charities) Card Info: Mastercard World issued by Chase. This card imposes foreign transaction fees. Noteworthy perks: Free DashPass for up to 3 months upon activation ✦ Cell phone protection ✦ Lyft credits ✦ $10 quarterly Instacart credit ✦ 3 months free Instacart+ ✦ $10 monthly GoPuff credit (through 12/31/23) See also: Chase Ultimate Rewards Complete Guide |
Unlimited Double Cashback for One Year ⓘ Affiliate Unlimited, uncapped double cashback on all spending for first year of card membershipNo Annual Fee Alternate Offer: Low spenders may prefer a different intro offer with an initial spend bonus and additional bonuses for gas and grocery purchases. Details here. This card is likely subject to Chase's 5/24 rule (click here for details). FM Mini Review: Great for 3x categories and 1.5X everywhere else. Excellent companion card to Sapphire Reserve, Sapphire Preferred, or Ink Business Preferred. Earning rate: 5x travel booked through Chase ✦ 5X Lyft through March 2025 ✦ 3x dining ✦ 3x drugstores ✦ 1.5X everywhere else Card Info: Visa Signature or Platinum issued by Chase. This card imposes foreign transaction fees. Noteworthy perks: Free DashPass for up to 3 months upon activation ✦ $10 quarterly Instacart credit ✦ 3 months free Instacart+ ✦ $10 monthly GoPuff credit (through 12/31/23) See also: Chase Ultimate Rewards Complete Guide |
60K points ⓘ Affiliate 60K after $4K spend in 3 months$95 Annual Fee Alternate Offer: There may be elevated offers available by applying in-branch A similar offer with the first year annual fee waived may be found in-branch. YMMV. FM Mini Review: Great signup bonus. Unlocks ability to transfer points to hotel & airline partners. Solid option to pair with fee-free Ultimate Rewards cards such as the Freedom cards, Ink Business Cash, and Ink Business Unlimited. Earning rate: 5X Travel booked through Chase (2X all other travel) ✦ 3X Dining ✦ 3X Select streaming services ✦ 3X Online grocery ✦ 5X Lyft (through March 2025) ✦ 10% annual point bonus Card Info: Visa Signature issued by Chase. This card has no foreign transaction fees. Noteworthy perks: Primary auto rental collision damage waiver ✦ Free DashPass through 2025 ✦ Transfer points to airline & hotel partners ✦ $50 annual credit for hotel stays booked through Chase ✦ $15 quarterly Instacart credit ✦ 6 months free Instacart+ ✦ $10 monthly GoPuff credit (through 12/31/23) |
60K Points ⓘ Affiliate 60K after $4K spend in 3 months$550 Annual Fee Alternate Offer: 70K after $4K spend showing on some accounts when logged-in to Chase Recent better offer: Expired 12/1/22: 80K after $4K spend FM Mini Review: Excellent all-around card for frequent traveler. Best when paired with no-fee Chase Freedom Flex, no-fee Freedom Unlimited & no-fee Chase Ink Cash Earning rate: 10X hotels & car rentals booked through Chase ✦ 10X Chase Dining ✦ 5X flights booked through Chase ✦ 3X Travel and Dining ✦ 10X Lyft (through March 2025) Card Info: Visa Infinite issued by Chase. This card has no foreign transaction fees. Noteworthy perks: $300 Annual Travel Credit ✦ Points worth 1.5 cents each towards travel ✦ Transfer points to airline & hotel partners ✦ Primary auto rental collision damage waiver ✦ Priority Pass Select lounge access ✦ $100 Global Entry fee credit ✦ $5 monthly DoorDash in-app credit through December 2024 ✦ Free DashPass through 2025 ✦ Earn 10X on Lyft spend✦ Free Lyft Pink All Access Memberhsip through December 2024 ✦ $15 monthly Instacart credit ✦ 12 months free Instacart+ ✦ $10 monthly GoPuff credit (through 12/31/23) See also: Chase Ultimate Rewards Complete Guide |
Ultimate Rewards Business Cards
| Card Offer and Details |
|---|
90K points ⓘ Affiliate 90K after $6K spend in 3 monthsNo Annual Fee Alternate Offer: If you have a household member with an Ink card, you may prefer the referral offer whereby the referrer can earn 40,000 points and the new account holder can earn 75,000 points after $6,000 in purchases in the first 3 months since it will yield more total points. FM Mini Review: This one should be in everyone's wallet. Incredible signup bonus for a no-fee card. Great card for 5X categories. Excellent companion card to Sapphire Reserve, Sapphire Preferred, or Ink Business Preferred. Earning rate: 5X office supplies ✦ 5X cellular/landline/cable (on up to $25,000 in total purchases in 5x categories annually) ✦ 2X on the first $25K in combined purchases at gas stations and restaurants each cardmember year ✦ 5X Lyft through March 2025 Card Info: Visa Signature Business issued by Chase. This card imposes foreign transaction fees. See also: Chase Ultimate Rewards Complete Guide |
100K points ⓘ Affiliate 100K after $8K spend in 3 months$95 Annual Fee Recent better offer: 80K after $5K spend. Many preferred the 80K offer due to the much lower spend requirement FM Mini Review: Great card for signup bonus and 3X categories. Also consider the fee-free Ink Business Cash for its 5X categories, and the fee-free Ink Business Unlimited to earn 1.5X everywhere. Earning rate: 3X travel, shipping, internet, cable, phone, and advertising with social media sites (up to $150K spend per year) ✦ 5X Lyft through March 2025 Card Info: Visa Signature Business issued by Chase. This card has no foreign transaction fees. Noteworthy perks: ✦ Points worth 25% more when redeemed for travel ✦ Transfer points to airline & hotel partners ✦ Cell phone protection against theft or damage See also: Chase Ultimate Rewards Complete Guide |
90K points ⓘ Affiliate 90K after $6K spend in 3 monthsNo Annual Fee Alternate Offer: If you have a household member with an Ink card, you may prefer the referral offer whereby the referrer can earn 40,000 points and the new account holder can earn 75,000 points after $6,000 in purchases in the first 3 months since it will yield more total points. Recent better offer: 90K after $6K in 3 months [Expired 3-20-23] FM Mini Review: Great signup bonus for a fee-free card. Good option for earning 1.5X everywhere. Good companion card to Ink Business Preferred, Sapphire Reserve or Sapphire Preferred. Earning rate: 1.5X on all purchases ✦ 5X Lyft through through March 2025 Card Info: Visa Signature Business issued by Chase. This card imposes foreign transaction fees. See also: Chase Ultimate Rewards Complete Guide |
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