Key takeaways
- The Chase Sapphire Reserve® is among the greatest premium journey playing cards in the marketplace, providing a bunch of worthwhile advantages and perks.
- This card earns as much as 10X factors on purchases, which may be redeemed for flights, resort stays or transferred to Chase journey companions for much more worth.
- The Sapphire Reserve gives customers with a $300 annual journey credit score and quite a lot of different advantages, together with complimentary airport lounge entry, varied journey insurance coverage advantages and extra.
- Though the cardboard expenses a comparatively excessive annual price, the Sapphire Reserve advantages typically make this card price it for avid vacationers.
The Chase Sapphire Reserve® comes with a $550 annual price, which is larger than what many different rewards bank cards cost. Nevertheless, for those who’re typically on the go and taken with advantages geared towards journey, the Sapphire Reserve may be properly price the price.
Learn on to be taught in regards to the Sapphire Reserve’s advantages and see how a lot worth you will get from this journey bank card.
Chase Sapphire Reserve card particulars and advantages
Charging purchases to the Sapphire Reserve is rewarded with factors, that are usually every price 1 cent when redeemed for money or 50 % extra when redeemed for journey by way of the Chase Final Rewards portal.
As a cardholder, you earn:
Cardholder earnings
- 10X whole factors on Chase Eating purchases made by way of Final Rewards
- 10X whole factors on resort stays and rental automobiles by way of Final Rewards
- 10X whole factors on Lyft purchases (by way of March 2025)
- 5X whole factors on airfare paid by way of Final Rewards (after first incomes your $300 journey credit score)
- 3X factors on basic journey (after first incomes your $300 journey credit score) and restaurant purchases
- 1X factors on all different purchases
Rating $750 in journey
The Sapphire Reserve gives an attractive welcome supply of 60,000 Chase Final Rewards factors if you spend $4,000 throughout the first 3 months of opening your account. For those who use these bonus factors to ebook a flight, resort room, cruise, rental automobile or different journey expertise by way of Chase Final Rewards, your factors shall be price $900.
You even have the choice to switch factors at a 1:1 ratio to any of the 14 resort and airline loyalty applications Chase companions with — together with Southwest Fast Rewards, United MileagePlus, Marriott Bonvoy and World of Hyatt. If a type of applications is providing a deal on a seat or room you need, transferring your factors and reserving immediately by way of that firm may make your rewards go even additional.
$300 journey credit score
Annually, purchases within the journey class are rewarded with assertion credit as much as a complete of $300 yearly. That is extra beneficiant than the journey credit provided by another journey playing cards, such because the as much as $200 in incidental airline price credit provided by The Platinum Card® from American Categorical (which may solely be utilized to purchases with one airline per 12 months) or the as much as $100 in airline incidental assertion credit provided by the Financial institution of America® Premium Rewards® bank card.
Whereas these playing cards apply their journey credit to only some particular bills like baggage charges and seat upgrades, the Sapphire Reserve mechanically awards its credit score on any buy coded as journey — whether or not that’s airfare, lodging or a rental automobile. Thus, you’ll be able to snag this credit score with out having to present it a lot thought.
Airport lounge entry
The Sapphire Reserve gives Precedence Cross Choose membership, which will get you entry to over 1,500 airport lounges and experiences across the globe. A main cardholder and any licensed customers can every deliver as much as 2 friends with them. You too can get further friends admitted for $27 per visitor, per go to to a lounge.
You might acquire entry to Precedence Cross lounges and not using a taking part bank card by becoming a member of immediately on the Status membership stage, which grants limitless free visits for members with an annual price of $469. Contemplating the price of a standalone membership, getting admittance together with your bank card is a fairly candy profit.
World Entry or TSA PreCheck Charge Credit score
The Chase Sapphire Reserve gives a press release credit score of as much as $100 for both a TSA PreCheck utility price or a World Entry utility price. You may declare this profit as soon as each 4 years, supplying you with loads of time to resume your membership earlier than the 5-year expiration date for both program.
World Entry membership will get you thru customs screening sooner when returning to the U.S. from a visit overseas, whereas TSA PreCheck enables you to undergo a shorter safety screening line when beginning your journey from a U.S. airport. World Entry members mechanically get TSA PreCheck advantages, so for those who journey internationally, you’ll seemingly need to use your credit score to use for World Entry.
Main rental automobile insurance coverage and journey insurance coverage
The Sapphire Reserve gives a number of insurance coverage advantages, together with baggage delay insurance coverage and journey cancellation insurance coverage. It gives main rental automobile insurance coverage that protects you in opposition to as much as $75,000 in damages from theft or collision.
Complimentary DashPass
The Sapphire Reserve will get you a free DashPass subscription for at least 1 12 months if you activate it by December 31, 2024. This consists of limitless free deliveries on DoorDash orders that meet the minimal buy requirement.
The DashPass subscription alone prices $9.99 a month with out this promotion, so this generally is a worthwhile profit for those who repeatedly order takeout.
One 12 months of complimentary Lyft Pink membership
One other Sapphire Reserve profit is a complimentary Lyft Pink All Entry membership that’s good for two years for those who activate by December 31, 2024. That will get you as much as 10 % off rides, free precedence pickup upgrades and a free Grubhub+ membership for 1 12 months. A Lyft Pink membership prices $199 a 12 months for those who pay for it out-of-pocket.
On prime of that financial savings, charging Lyft rides to your card by way of March 31, 2025, earns 10X factors. Thus, shopping for a $25 Lyft experience would web you 250 Chase Final Rewards factors.
10X Factors on qualifying Peloton purchases
This isn’t essentially the most profitable Chase Sapphire Reserve profit, however cardholders can even earn 10X factors on as much as $5,000 in Peloton gear and accent purchases of $150 or extra. The promotion expires March 31, 2025.
How does the Chase Sapphire Reserve examine to different premium journey playing cards?
The Sapphire Reserve gives a ton of worthwhile advantages for cardholders, however it isn’t the one journey card in the marketplace. For those who’re questioning whether or not you must get the Chase Sapphire Reserve, it is sensible to check it to different premium journey playing cards earlier than making your choice.
The Platinum Card from American Categorical is a stable various to the Chase Sapphire Reserve. This card comes with a welcome supply of 80,000 factors after you spend $8,000 in the course of the first 6 months you will have the cardboard. The Platinum Card additionally earns 5X factors on flights booked immediately with airways, and it comes with various completely different advantages — together with elite standing by way of Marriott Bonvoy and Hilton Honors, complimentary airport lounge entry, as much as $1,700 in varied annual credit and extra.
The $695 annual price is larger than the Sapphire Reserve’s, though it’s simply offset by lots of the card’s perks and credit. Bear in mind, nevertheless, lots of the Platinum Card’s annual credit are restricted to particular retailers and may be troublesome for some cardholders to make use of.
Alternatively, the Capital One Enterprise X Rewards Credit score Card comes with a $395 annual price and a bevy of advantages — together with a $300 annual journey assertion credit score, as much as $100 in assertion credit towards TSA PreCheck or World Entry and extra. The Capital One Enterprise X additionally earns 10X miles on resort and rental automobiles booked by way of Capital One Journey, 5X miles on flights booked by way of their journey portal and 2X miles on all different purchases.
To prime it off, you’ll be able to earn 75,000 bonus miles (price $750 in journey) if you spend $4,000 in purchases in the course of the first 3 months. The annual price of $395 is lower than each the Sapphire Reserve and the Amex Platinum, which makes it a card you must positively take into account.
Is the Chase Sapphire Reserve price its annual price?
For those who’re incessantly on the transfer and intend to take full benefit of the Sapphire Reserve’s journey advantages, this card can simply pay for itself. The $300 journey credit score, Precedence Cross Choose membership (price $469) and as much as $100 in assertion credit towards a World Entry or TSA PreCheck utility collectively greater than cowl the $550 price. And when you think about the Lyft Pink, DoorDash and Peloton advantages, plus the substantial welcome supply, the Sapphire Reserve gives loads of worth.
The right way to offset the Chase Sapphire Reserve’s annual price
For those who’re on the fence about whether or not the Chase Sapphire Reserve is price it, you could need to do the maths to see whether or not your typical yearly spending will generate ample rewards to offset the annual price.
Through the first 12 months, offsetting the Chase Sapphire Reserve annual price is simple. Merely use your card to make $4,000 in purchases throughout the first 3 months, and also you’ll earn a welcome bonus of 60,000 factors. These factors are price as much as $900 in journey if you ebook by way of Chase Final Rewards. Any factors you earn on prime of the welcome bonus are gravy, which simply makes the Chase Sapphire Reserve price it in the course of the first 12 months.
Shifting ahead, let’s say you spend $3,500 on journey together with your card. You earn the $300 assertion credit score, and the remaining $3,200 earns 3X factors for a complete of 9,600 factors. Subsequent, suppose you spend $900 to ebook a resort keep by way of the Final Rewards portal, gaining 10X factors and including 9,000 factors to your whole earnings. You additionally spend $1,800 at eating places, netting you 5,400 factors, and also you make $1,000 in non-category purchases for an extra 1,000 factors. Total, you accumulate 25,000 factors.
Redeeming these factors for money on the price of 1 cent per level will get you $250 (which along with the $300 journey credit score covers the $550 price). Even higher, redeeming these factors for journey by way of Chase Final Rewards makes them price as a lot as $375. The perfect redemption of all, nevertheless, could also be by transferring your factors to considered one of Chase’s journey companions. In accordance with Bankrate’s factors and miles valuations, transfers are usually price 2 cents per level — which makes your factors price as a lot as $500.
On this state of affairs, you offset the annual price by spending $7,200 all year long, or a mean of $600 per 30 days. You might cowl the price even sooner for those who dedicate a bigger portion of your spending to journey or eating places. You might additionally ebook extra journey, resort stays or eating by way of the Final Rewards portal to earn factors rapidly.
When the Chase Sapphire Reserve isn’t price it
The Chase Sapphire Reserve’s annual price in all probability received’t be price it for those who don’t spend not less than $300 a 12 months on journey. You received’t get the annual journey credit score, and it might be difficult to earn sufficient factors in non-travel classes to offset the $550 price.
Moreover, the Sapphire Reserve seemingly isn’t the proper card for you if you wish to switch a stability or don’t pay your bank card invoice in full every month. The Sapphire Reserve doesn’t supply an introductory 0 % APR on stability transfers. And for those who have a tendency to hold a stability, the curiosity you’d owe will in all probability add up sooner than any rewards you may earn.
If the Sapphire Reserve’s journey advantages enchantment to you however you’re reluctant to spend $550 upfront, you may need to apply for a distinct journey rewards card with a decrease price. For instance, the Chase Sapphire Most popular® Card gives 5X factors on journey bought by way of the Final Rewards portal, 2X factors on journey bought elsewhere and 3X factors on eating, choose streaming companies and on-line grocery purchases (excluding Walmart, Goal and wholesale golf equipment). With an annual price of $95, it’s a extra reasonably priced possibility.
The underside line
Figuring out whether or not you must get the Chase Sapphire Reserve comes right down to finishing a reasonably easy cost-benefit evaluation. The cardboard comes with a comparatively excessive annual price, however its in depth journey advantages can greater than make up for the price for those who’re an avid traveler. For those who don’t journey incessantly sufficient to justify paying $550 for the Sapphire Reserve’s perks, you may favor a journey card with a decrease price or a rewards bank card with a distinct focus — similar to a money again card.
