Chase just launched their ‘new’ Sapphire Reserve card. It’s more expensive, and the earning and redemption proposition is different. There’s a lot going on, and I covered it in my writeup of the news. I also provided some analysis of where the changes are good and bad for cardmembers.
- They’re raising the annual fee from $550 to $795, but offsetting this with what they say is more than $2,700 in credits.
- They’re changing points-earning by replacing 3 points per dollar on all travel with 4 points per dollar on airline and hotel spend. All travel spend through Chase’s portal will earn 8 points per dollar (even airline tickets!).
- And they’re changing redemption by replacing 1.5 points per dollar on spend through Chase’s portal with Points Boost offering up to 2 cents per point on eligible hotel and airline itineraries.
Much of the writeup was informed by conversations with Chase executives in advance of the news. But there are other nuances that I did not cover laying out the changes to the product, that readers are going to want to know.
It seemed worth pulling out separately things like ‘what happens to my existing Sapphire Reserve points?’ and ‘when does this change actually go into effect for existing customers?’ And perhaps even more importantly, ‘is there a brief window for me to choose whether I like the old or new product better?’
Can you hold both a Chase Sapphire Preferred and a Sapphire Reserve? Does having Sapphire Preferred preclude applying for the new Reserve card?
Previously, you could not get approved for a Sapphire Reserve if you already had an open Sapphire Prefered card. That will no longer be the case, as Chase explains to me:
Beginning June 23, 2025 you will be able to have both the Sapphire Reserve and Sapphire Preferred cards. New account bonus offer eligibility for either card will be based on factors including previously earned bonus offers and the number of cards opened and closed, among others.
Can a Sapphire Reserve cardmember apply for Sapphire Preferred with these changes?
Yes.
Will it be possible to get approved for a Sapphire Reserve if you aren’t eligible for a bonus? (I’ve been asking for this for years – I’ve always thought it was a terrible experience, for instance, for a United Global Services member or Marriott Ambassador to have had too many recent new cards and therefore get rejected for the United or Marriott cards.)
Consumers applying through most channels will be notified during the application process if they are not eligible for a bonus offer and given the choice to continue the application or cancel the application with no impact to their credit score.
What new bonus restrictions will be in place?
We are transitioning away from the family of cards every 48 month eligibility to a same product premium eligibility. The timeframe will be longer than 48 months but we aren’t able to share additional details.
The $300 travel credit is based on cardmember year. What about other new credits like The Edit and Stubhub?
All other credits are accrue either monthly, semi-annually, or based on calendar year.
For the new $75,000 benefits threshold, does spend in full year 2025 count even though members don’t start with the new benefits structure until later in the year?
Chase tells me: “Yes, it does.”
Does spend on a Chase Sapphire Preferred ‘carry over’ if converting/product changing to Sapphire Reserve?
Chase tells me: “No, it does not.”
Do these same product changes for Sapphire Reserve flow through to J.P. Morgan Reserve? It’s basically a Sapphire Reserve plus unpublished benefit of United Club membership at the same price, and a different card design.
Yes.
I’m an existing Sapphire Reserve cardmember, when do these changes apply to me?
Existing cardmembers transition to the new system October 26 but have access to Points Boost right away. The new $795 annual fee will apply on your annual renewal that occurs October 26 or later.
Can I still get in under legacy product rules?
The new card product launches June 23rd. You can apply (or product change) before then, and have the legacy rules apply. You won’t get the new benefits (other than Points Boost) until October 26th, but you’ll get the $550 annual fee for one year, and you’ll get grandfathering of 1.5× Chase Travel redemptions on points held in your account as of October 26, 2025 until October 26, 2027.
Approximately what percent of Edit hotels will be eligible for 2 cpm redemptions on average?
That is too bad the new merchant credits don’t kick in before October 26 – seems like kind of a premature rollout and contrary to past announcement where perks are usually immediate.
On the plus side my JPM Reserve AF posts before October so I guess I can look forward to milking much better value out of this card for another year.
I have used the Chase portal for flights many times…. it does kind of suck, but it’s possible to use it. Just God forbid you need to make a change or a cancellation, then it’s a bit of a nightmare.
However, I have not used it for hotels, under the belief that I would be giving up all of my Marriott Bonvoy status benefits by doing so. Marriott requires that you reserve via their own platform to receive Bonvoy benefits, and I think many of the other chains do the same. So if you are a frequent hotel guest and have an incentive to patronize a certain brand, it may be very disadvantageous to book via Chase’s platform. Am I right about that?
I’d be okay with the new annual fee and the changes if they were bringing back the Priority Pass restaurant benefit, I got a lot of value out of that before they discontinued it last year. But absent that, this seems like a step down and it will probably incentivize me to go back to the Amex Platinum.
F-Chase. Poor customer service and earning cards. Now doing coupon book and playing bait and switch.
I read through the questions here but am still not clear on something. My CSR renews on September 1. Am I able to renew at the $550 rate and keep the 1.5x redemption until 2027?
What Chase lacked in points earning, they made up for with the 1.5 cents value in spend. No longer…. So this will be a downgrade for me.