Chase Sapphire Reserve® (See rates and fees)

Chase’s bonus offer to launch the refreshed Sapphire Reserve product has ended. I assumed we’d see fewer points on offer now, but that’s not what happened!

Instead the new offer lets you earn 125,000 bonus points after you spend $6,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. That’s the most points that have ever been offered for a Sapphire card, period.

The launch offer was 100,000 and a $500 travel portal credit after $5,000 in spend. This new offer is 25,000 more points, doesn’t include the travel credit, and requires $1,000 more spend to earn.

Some of you will do the math and say the launch offer was bigger. However,

• It’s no longer available
  
• The travel credit required you to book through the portal, the points you can bank and use whenever you wish in the future

Bottom-line is that there’s an amazing offer now for this card. Which I guess shouldn’t surprise because it’s a $795 annual fee card (that packs a lot of value), and the ‘premium card wars’ are in full swing.

• Citi just launched Citi Strata Elite^SM Card (See rates and fees.)
  
• Since American Express is expected to refresh the The Platinum Card® from American Express with a higher annual fee – and a lot of cardmembers will be rushing to apply before that happens.
  
• And since Capital One Venture X competes with a much lower $395 price point and their lounges have the best food.

The relaunched Chase Sapphire Reserve bonus offer is now worth $2,250:

• Right now you can earn 125,000 bonus points after $6,000 in purchases in the first 3 months from account opening.

• If a Chase point is worth 1.8 cents, then this bonus offer could be worth $2,250.

• Chase promotes “more than $2,700 in annual value” from the card itself.”

• So combined that totals nearly $5,000.

Basics Of The New Sapphire Reserve Card

Here are the costs and benefits to the new Chase Sapphire Reserve Card:

• Earning: 8x on Chase travel portal purchases; 4x points on flights and hotels booked direct; 3x points on dining; 1x on all other purchases. The card earns Chase Ultimate Rewards points that can be redeemed through Chase’s travel portal (either at 1 cent per point, or on Points Boost airline itineraries and eligible hotels for up to 2 cents per point) or transferred to a number of airline and hotel partners.

  

  • Star Alliance: United MileagePlus, Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer, Air Canada Aeroplan
    
  • oneworld: British Airways Executive Club, Iberia Plus
    
  • SkyTeam: Air France KLM Flying Blue, Virgin Atlantic Flying Club
    
  • Non-alliance: Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards, Aer Lingus AerClub
  • Hotels: World of Hyatt, Marriott Bonvoy, IHG One Rewards

  

• Airport lounge access: Priority Pass Select and access to Chase Sapphire Lounges plus two guests (generally requires same day boarding pass, within 3 hours of scheduled departure).

  

• Statement credits: $300 annual Travel Credit (no change); $500 Edit hotel credit ($250 twice semi-annually, applies to two-night minimum stays); Global Entry / TSA PreCheck / NEXUS credit (no change); $300 Annual Dining Credit ($150 twice semi-annually for “Sapphire Reserve Exclusive Tables”); $250 combined Apple TV+ & Apple Music subscription; $300 StubHub/viagogo ticket credit ($150 twice annually); $120 Lyft credits (no change, $10 monthly, plus 5x earn on Lyft through September 30, 2027); $300 DoorDash credits and one year of DashPass (up to $25 monthly between delivery and grocery credits); $120 Peloton Membership credit (no change, $10 monthly).

• Additional benefits: IHG Platinum through December 31, 2027 and travel protections like trip delay and cancellation and primary collision damage waiver on car rentals.

  

• Unlocked after $75,000 in annual spend: Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards A-List status (first checked bag free, priority check-in and boarding; when Southwest moves to assigned seating, A-List members get preferred seats at booking and extra-legroom seats within 48 hours of travel); $500 Southwest credit on bookings made via Chase’s travel portal; IHG One Rewards Diamond status (top tier, 100% bonus on base points earned at IHG properties, complimentary upgrades up to suites if available, free breakfast); $250 Shops at Chase credit.

  

Is The New Sapphire Reserve Card Worth It?

There’s no question that this card should be worth acquiring the first year. There has never been a 125,000 point offer for this card before. Plus, while I would discount the ‘$2,700’ that Chase marks the value of their credits at, given the $300 travel credit and a bit of effort to use $500 in Edit hotels, $300 in dining, et al the annual fee shouldn’t be too hard to pay for.

On an ongoing basis, I think whether or not you value the card is going to depend a lot on how much you value their lounge network, or whether you’re exactly the customer these benefits hit a sweet spot for – a traveler who books premium hotels and eats out at the sort of restaurants that are part of the dining benefit.

Eligibility For Sapphire Reserve And Its Big Bonus Offer

A 125,000 point offer for meeting required spend is an incredible value that makes applying for this card a no-brainer if you’re eligible, I think. You’ll just need to pay attention to get the most out of the credits that come with the card.

Chase used to deny card applications from those who had 5 or more new cards in the past 24 months (‘5/24’) already. Sapphire products have transitioned to a new system where they will warn you if you are ineligible for a bonus offer before proceeding – but will potentially approve you even if you exceeded 5/24.

They also used to deny you the card if you had it within the last 48 months. That’s because approving you for the card meant allowing you to earn the bonus. Now they’ve moved to a once in a lifetime bonus rule. They’ll also now allow you to hold both a Sapphire Preferred and Reserve as well as Sapphire Reserve for Business, though you may get a pop up telling you that you won’t receive a new cardmember a bonus as a current Sapphire product cardmember (and so you have the option to stop the application).

However if you have held a Sapphire card in the past and are applying for a different Sapphire product you’ve never had before then you should certainly consider this bonus offer.

Chase Sapphire Reserve®

For rates and fees of The Platinum Card® from American Express, click here.