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Chase is completely revamping the Sapphire Reserve card.
- 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 The Edit hotels increase from just 3x!).
- 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.
There are a lot of moving pieces here. Frankly I think it’s brilliant as I’ll explain in a follow up post. But suffice to say that, while some members will find reason to be disappointed, overall I think they’ve done a really great job re-engineering the economics of the card both to benefit their own book and to offer more value to cardmembers.
New Points Earning Rates
Chase Sapphire Reserve has earned 3x on travel and dining, plus 10x on hotels and cars and 5x on flights booked through their travel portal. New earn rates are:
- 4x on flights and hotels booked direct
- 3x on dining
- 8x on all bookings through Chase travel (air, hotels, car rentals, cruises, activities, etc)
- 1x on all other eligible spend
They’re trading out 3x on all travel for 4x on flights and hotels booked direct, and shifting to a straight 8 points per dollar through their portal including on airfare.
- For those of you willing to book flights through a travel portal this is incredibly lucrative.
- For those who book direct, 4x makes the card competitive enough with Amex Platinum’s 5x to use it for flight bookings.
- And at 4x I’d honestly use this card for all of my hotel spending, forgoing any hotel’s co-brand products, except where you need spend on that card to contribute towards your hotel status.
While some will lament the loss of 3x earning for things like Uber, car rentals and parking I’d note that you can still get 8x on car rentals through Chase’s portal if you prioritize points-earn over status recognition, and suggest you look at how much you spend on those newly excluded categories versus how much you spend on hotels and airfare. For me, it’s heavily skewed towards hotels and airfare. The only place I lose is that it’s the card I would normally use for Airbnb or Vrbo when I’m stuck with one of those.
A Higher Annual Fee – And Over $2,300 In Credits
Chase Sapphire Reserve’s annual fee goes up from $550 to $795 for new card applicants starting June 23. Existing cardmembers migrate to the new set of benefits October 26, 2025 so will see the new annual fee with their renewals after that date.
Authorized users will go up to $195. There are no changes to authorized user benefits, but of course authorized users receive lounge access, including Priority Pass, on the same basis as primary cardholders.
There is a huge portfolio of credits that will justify this increased annual fee.
- $300 annual Travel Credit: There is no change to this benefit. It continues to apply to all travel spend.
- $500 Edit hotel credit: $250 twice semi-annually, applies to two-night minimum stays.
- Global Entry / TSA PreCheck / NEXUS credit: No change to this credit, worth up to $120 every 4 years
- $300 Annual Dining Credit: $150 twice semi-annually for “Sapphire Reserve Exclusive Tables” restaurants (bookable on OpenTable, ‘curation by The Infatuation & Visa Dining Collection’) I find that many of the restaurants I actually visit are part of the platform.
There are a dozen restaurants in Austin eligible so far. There are even restaurants in Milwaukee. But it’s currently just 289 restaurants – Chase says the list is growing. I’ve archived the list, accurate only as of today, here (.xlsx). If you frequent small towns this will be less helpful.
- $250 combined Apple TV+ & Apple Music subscription credit: If you spend on these, it’s real money back in your pocket. Otherwise it’s a good reason to sign up.
- $300 StubHub/viagogo ticket credit: $150 twice annually
- $120 Lyft credits: $10 monthly, plus 5x earn on Lyft through September 30, 2027. This is the current benefit, and in my mind a devaluation from the previous 10x earn rate for Sapphire Reserve cardmembers.
- $300 DoorDash credits and one year of DashPass: up to $25 monthly
- $120 Peloton Membership credit + 10× on Peloton equipment and accessories over $150 not something I personally value but many of you still have Peleton bikes. The $120 credit is $10 monthly.
Since I spend on travel, the $300 credit is nearly as good as cash (not quite as good, because this spend doesn’t earn points in the new 4x category since you’re getting the money back). I’ll legitimately use the $500 Edit credit, ideally stacked with PointsBoost 2 cent redemptions, hotel points-earning and elite status and The Edit on-property benefits.
Chase also says they’re launching Vacation Homes as part of their travel offerings next month, where you’ll earn 8x. Vrbo just eliminated rewards-earning for those without Expedia elite status, and Airbnb still doesn’t have a loyalty program.
Their $300 annual dining credit is something I’ll use like cash since I eat at these restaurants anyway. In fact, I’m really impressed by the list of restaurants. It doesn’t matter how you make the booking, and there’s no prepayment involved. It’s a rebate on spend at those restaurants.
Combine that with $300 with Stubhub and $300 with DoorDash, along with $120 in Lyft (since I use Lyft many times each month already) I’m getting over $1,800 in credits which is more than double the card’s annual fee. And that’s without valuing AppleTV, Global Entry (I have many cards which offer this) or Peleton.
Another way to think about this, though, is that if you hold Sapphire Reserve today then you’ve capitalized it as being worth $550. Holding the rest of the card’s changes aside, are they providing at least $245 in incremental value with a $500 Edit hotels credit, $300 dining credit, $300 StubHub credit, $250 Apple TV+/Music credit, and much bigger DoorDash credits? That seems like a no brainer, honestly, as much as I chafe at the model generally of ‘higher card annual fees and a series of credits you need to use to make up for it’. I’ll easily get real value from the credits on spend I’m already doing each month.
Points Boost Replaces 1.5x Travel Redemptions
The card earns Chase Ultimate Rewards points that can be 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, Emirates Skywards
- Hotels: World of Hyatt, Marriott Bonvoy, IHG One Rewards
Park Hyatt Chicago
One useful feature of the card, though, is that you could spend the points at 1.5 cents apiece in value towards any travel booked through Chase’s online portal. You wouldn’t necessarily get as much value as redeeming for a business class award to Europe, but you wouldn’t have to worry about award availability. You could just buy any flight or hotel for sale, using your points as payment at a reasonable rate.
With the card’s changes, 1.5 cent redemptions will drop to just 1 cent. However the new ‘Points Boost’ benefit gets added where you can redeem at up to 2x on rotating offers for hotels that are part of Chase’s more than 1,100 property The Edit portfolio and airfare. The card also comes with spending credit with The Edit bookings, those reservations don’t preclude hotel loyalty program points and status-earning, and come with extras like free breakfast and a $100 property credit.
Points Boost is also available on Sapphire Preferred and Ink Business Preferred and Plus cards. Chase tells me,
The air inventory for Points Boost will include Economy, Premium Economy, Business and First-Class. Points Boost offers for flights are dependent on the cabin classes and offers will range from 1.25x up to 2x based on airline, cabin class and card.
o paint a picture for what cardmembers can expect at launch, they will see airlines including United Airlines, Air Canada, Southwest Airlines, Emirates, Qantas, Singapore Airlines and more.
All hotels in The Edit program (1,100+) will be included in Points Boost with 2x the value, as well as thousands of additional top booked hotels through Chase Travel that will be boosted up to 2x the value.
Existing cardmembers get the best of both worlds. Current Sapphire Reserve cardmembers (and those applying in the next couple of days) keep 1.5× Chase Travel redemptions on points held in their account as of October 26, 2025 until October 26, 2027. Until then the best offer (1.5x or Points Boost) will be auto-applied.
New Benefits For High Spenders
Spending $75,000 per year on the card earns:
- IHG One Rewards Diamond Status: this is IHG’s top tier of status, though it doesn’t come with the benefits that are earned at night thresholds like food and beverage credits or confirmed suite upgrades. Diamond comes with a 100% bonus on base points earned at IHG properties; complimentary upgrades up to suites if available; free breakfast; early check-in and late check-out, if available.
- Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards A-List Status: including first checked bag free; priority check-in and boarding; 25% points bonus; same day confirmed changes. And when Southwest moves to assigned seating, A-List members get preferred seats at booking and extra-legroom seats within 48 hours of travel. Spending on this card is a workaround for Southwest’s recent program changes.
- $500 Southwest credit: on bookings made via Chase Travel.
- $250 Shops at Chase credit: pay with card or points at brands including Baccarat, Bang & Olufsen, Breitling, Callaway, CALPAK, Cuisinart, Dyson, Samsonite, SMEG, Solo Stove, SONY, Therabody, Tory Burch, and TUMI. The shop is also available to Ultimate Rewards customers with Freedom, Sapphire and Ink cards.
Now there’s a reason to put additional spend on the card, potentially even outside of accelerator categories of air, hotel and dining.
Additional Benefits
While cardmembers spending $75,000 earn IHG Diamond status, all Reserve cardmembers will receive IHG Platinum through December 31, 2027.
The card continues to offer some of the best travel protections, like trip delay and cancellation and primary collision damage waiver on car rentals.
And Chase’s acquisition of Frosch International Travel finally has an integration, branded as ‘Reserve Travel Designers concierge,’ cardmembers gain access to dedicate travel agents.
No Changes To Airport Lounge Access
When I met with Chase about these changes there was a bit of smirk in the air over changes being made to a rival’s lounge network. They emphasized that there is no plan to change lounge access provided by this card – it continues to offer access to Chase Sapphire Lounges for the cardmember and two guests, and they aren’t making cuts to their Priority Pass Select which currently includes two guests.
Chase airport lounges:
| Airport | Size (sq ft) | Opened | Key notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| New York–LaGuardia (LGA) | 21,800 | Jan 2024 | Two-story design; Reserve Suites; Face Haus spa; arcade; broad a-la-carte & buffet program |
| Boston Logan (BOS) | 11,500 | May 2023 | Tap-room with local beer; massage chairs; showers; kids’ playroom |
| New York–JFK (JFK) | 7,600 | Jan 2024 | Shared Etihad space; full cocktail & dining menu; showers |
| Washington Dulles (IAD) | 5,200 | Mar 2024 | Shared Etihad space; compact but full service offering |
| Philadelphia (PHL) | 20,000 | Feb 2025 | Beer-garden zone, shuffleboard, retro arcade, rest pods, Face Haus facials |
| San Diego (SAN) | 10,000 | Dec 2024 | Wellness area with private pods & meditation; full F&B |
| Phoenix (PHX) | 3,500 | Nov 2024 | Small and overrun, limited amenities |
| Hong Kong (HKG) | 12,000 | Oct 2022 | Extensive buffet + small menu |
Known lounge pipeline:
- Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW): ~ 18,000 sq ft in terminal D
- Las Vegas (LAS): ~ 4,500 sq ft in terminal C
- Los Angeles (LAX): ~9,200 sq ft in the Tom Bradley International Terminal
Bar at Chase Sapphire Lounge Philadelphia Airport
New Card Design
Starting June 23, cards will be issued with a new design. This was teased last week through Chase’s social channels. Chase tells me that the new card is heavier, at 19.6 grams.
How To Play These Changes To Your Advantage
I expect that there will be big bonus offers coming to support such a big product refresh. You might want to hold off applying for a few days to take advantage of those.
On the other hand, you may want to just on the card immediately even accepting that you might be forgoing a larger bonus.
New cardmembers get benefits starting June 23rd, existing cardmembers transition to the new system October 26 but have access to Points Boost right away.
Chase Sapphire Preferred will be losing 1.25x through the Chase travel portal, and gaining access to Points Boost. Sapphire Preferred doesn’t lose its broad travel category for accelerator spend.
You can still lock in the current $550 Sapphire Reserve annual fee for the first year applying before June 23, and more importantly you lock in the grandfathering of 1.5x redemption through Chase’s portal for two years on points in your account. In the meantime, you’ll gain access to the new set of statement credits this fall.
Similarly, if you have a Sapphire Preferred that’s more than a year old you might consider product changing to Sapphire Reserve in the next couple of days to get in on the ‘old’ version of the card as well (this would forgo a Sapphire Reserve initial bonus altogether, however).
@gary. When are these changes going into effect? I’ll be in Vegas early October and the restaurant credit would be valuable then
The loss of 3x on all travel cannot be emphasized enough, and will be its death knell. No coupon-pimping of this card can make up for that, and the increase in annual fee. One must be able to EARN points at a reasonable clip to make redemption/transfer options worthwhile and justified. That has now been gutted. This one is a hard pass.
You have to be mentally unhinged to think this is a good value. The lengths some of these bloggers are going to just so they can justify these changes is ludacris.
A perfect example is Gary saying
There is a huge portfolio of credits that will justify this increased annual fee.
Following up with the first bullet point being…
$300 annual Travel Credit: There is no change to this benefit. It continues to apply to all travel spend.
Are we sure the Credit Card Competition Act didn’t pass or anything?
Unless Gary’s holding out on us, the Ink Business Preferred is my way to work around the 3X travel elimination. Sure, it’s an additional $95, but hell, at these annual rates, what’s another hundred?
The loss of 3x on travel is awful. Coupon booking is miserable. 3x on travel was key. Included all airfare bookings include those for work that can’t be made through the Chase (or Amex) portals, all hotels, parking, etc.
Gary – if you think this is such a good value – apply for the card, and show us you actually got more value than the annual fee.
This “I consider this $5 credit valid on Tuesdays and Wednesdays in June like cash” is not relevant to the lives of most people who work actual, productive jobs. Bloggers notwithstanding.
$245 increase in annual fee and over $1400 increase in credits. Probably more points earning for most.
If you redeemed through the portal at 1.5x you don’t like this. Those who rarely did may like the occasional 2x.
@boilers direct airfare now earns 4x not 3x. Same with direct hotels.
@Mike – new card not available to apply for until June 23
@ Gary — “For those who book direct, 4x makes the card competitive enough with Amex Platinum’s 5x to use it for flight bookings.” I assume that what you really mean is “For those who book direct, 4x makes the card competitive enough with Amex Platinum’s 5x to close your over-priced AMEX Platinum coupon book.” That’s a $695 savings right there!
The changes are a positive for a narrow subset of travelers – those who stay at high end hotels twice a year, live near one of these premier restaurants in a city, don’t mind overpaying for grocery delivery, and don’t care about loyalty programs and just book through a travel portal. For everyone else, it becomes harder to justify the ever increasing AF and reduced travel rewards outside of hotel/air
The Edit hotels – the prices are crazy.
And the hoops to go through the Open Table site, it’s not any Open Table restaurant. It appears there are only ‘selected’ restaurants in a handful of major cities that qualify under the Visa Dining Collection. Correct me if I am wrong.
I’d rather NOT have those credits and NOT have a price increase.
Between killing off 3% on all travel and the elimination of the 1.5% point value, this, for me, will be the end of the Reserve, which I’ve held since it came out and have long considered to be the best travel card on the planet.
The new perks are stupid for most. Few people living outside of major American cities use Lyft. Their Edit hotels are on the expensive end of what probably 90% of their users book. Apple TV is nice for a handful of folks and that’s it.
For anyone that spends most of their time traveling outside the US, most of the new perks are basically useless, but come at the cost of the 3% on travel and 1.5% points. To those flying a lot, no, this probably doesn’t compare to the points that come with co-branded airline cards, including Chase’s own.
This is the end of the CSR. Oh well. Got almost a decade out of it. It was nice while it lasted.
All the major new credit categories come with major strings attached (limitations on vendors, spreading of coupons over months, etc), as does this ambiguous 2% “point boost” and tends to force you into luxury products to redeem the credits. If you are traveling frequently and staying at luxury hotels maybe this makes sense for you, but for the busy person who only gets to take one vacation a year and is seeking value this seems like a much worse benefits package. Maybe that’s part of Chase’s vision though, to cull the value-seeking clients in favor for the wealthy frequent vacationing and high-end dinning clients.
@ Gary — I assume these Edit Hotel stays do not earn status? That would make using them just as annoying as the Hotel Collection/FHR and Hilton Aspire certs. Why does one need to be burdened with another random hotel stay that you “have” to use every year? The next great card will solve this problem.
Gary,
What Chase consumer card should I downgrade to?
There’s no value to me for the additional “benefits” and I’m not willing to pay the higher annual fee.
@Nick C – this was my thought, exactly. Those who don’t value, or are willing to forego, loyalty benefits can find advantage here. Certainly some arguments can be made to abandon loyalty programs. But, for those of us who still find value there, booking through portals is a non-starter. So this is not an add.
In our case, we use these Chase UR points to convert to Hyatt. Buying Hyatt here now earns 4X, same as the Hyatt card. So, for us, no advantage.
I do like to use airline cards (primarily AA) for airline purchase to get more of their miles, and LPs, in the case of AA. But I can make a case for doing some of these through Sapphire for 4x.
Overall, I’ll have to weigh this, but Gary’s “Blew up the model” assessment of this change is definitely overblown.
Cheers.
This article must be parody right? This is a major downgrade for most cardholders and nothing but fluff here, like north korean state media. Can’t call out Chase, they fill your pockets too much?
3x travel gone, 1.5x on portal gone, $1k AF if your spouse is an AU. And now you have to play all sorts of games and buy crap you never wanted with their coupons. This article is pathetic.
Freedom to use awards when and wherever is what we want. This is a mess, and a huge mistake for Chase. MMW, this card is toast. They don’t have the Amex name or the lounge network to ram a card like this down peoples throats.
I’m guessing they will Delta this and backtrack a bit once everybody cancels.
I don’t think the loss of 3x travel everywhere is a huge deal, since you can get that on the Ink Preferred. But the loss of across-the-board 1.5 cpp value is gargantuan; if they additionally fail to renew PYB categories at the end of the month, the value of URs will have essentially decreased by 33%, which I believe is the biggest deval of a transferable currency we’ve ever seen.
That being said, I do appreciate the long time horizon; at least URs in our accounts by mid-October will be redeemable at 1.5 cpp for a while.
@Gary, I assume URs need to be in the CSR account specifically? So we should combine URs in CSR accounts before d-day?
We are semi-retired and P2 gets 9 weeks of total PTO including holidays (which we turn into extended weekend trips except: Memorial, 4th July and Thanksgiving ).
I kinda of enjoy the gamifacation of the “couponing” and we pay around $9K in AF but easily get that and easily 2X-3X cash value.on ROI -10 years ago would have been a different story – but were empty-nesters live in a foodie town and eat out on a regular basis
The Oct 26th is annoying as it kills 25% of the value (monthly credits) for existing card holders but the $300 Travel credit is unexpected and many thought it would disappear- we dropped CSR July 2020 with the increased AF albeit GF rate – we had 4 PP Experiences at PDX 2 x $28. But those locations already had gre a greatly reduced C19 hours 10AM-2PM for much of C19.
Like Gary we to already eat at some of the Chase Dinning locations -so that’s net $300 (but not till Oct – I do wonder if they will make them semi-annual like Amex Gold.$50 Resy and other credits.
The EDIT is a mixed bag with the two night minimum $350 off two nights vs $300 off 1 night with FHR (but only 1X use) but the free brekkie for two days -we did get 2PM late check-out via Renowned Hotels (UA Quest $150 credit and $100 Amentiy – exact same booking platform) but the Fairmont Whistler did give us 2PM late check-out in May.
I did PC both our Freedom cards yesterday to CSR – so i will have to look at our plans for later 2026-27 and decide if we keep after the AF increase. I’m also curious with the forth coming Amex Plat Refresh.
I hate this. All of it. The pretend hype. Feels like the ‘this is fine’ dog meme (sitting there with his house on fire.)
The loss of 3x travel is major, especially for rental cars, cruises, and other major travel company expenses. Until Chase ruins the CSP, it’ll earn 2x, which is better than the 1x CSR will now earn. BILT may be better at 2x, because at least no AF, no foreign fees, and they have Hyatt/United/Alaska for transfers.
These credits add insult to injury. Another coupon book. Amex-style, but worse. Edit is a joke. 2 nights minimum blows. Split to semi-annual. Vomit.
Me. No. Likey.
@David G – Sapphire Preferred to preserve points transfers to airlines and hotels?
@Gene – The Edit hotels do count towards status
@Gene – fair!
I suspect most bloggers will be supremely disappointed by their affiliate payouts for this one.
While it’s entirely possible that the little happy about these changes are staying quiet while those upset are disproportionately expressing their frustration, both here and from the many comments on Doctor of credit, people overwhelmingly don’t like the changes. Many of the new benefits (Edit and exclusive tables stand out) won’t ever be used by many because the cost to use them is extremely high that the benefit isn’t of any value to many. I’ve never used the Amex Platinum $200 FHR benefit, for example. DoorDash and Apple TV might be easier to take advantage of but still not worth $245 extra. Killing 1.5 cpp for unpredictable points boosts is also a negative in my book. Gary, I can understand why it might be better for you and for some, but I’m very surprised that you are overwhelmingly happy with these changes despite the broader frustration from others.
Reducing awards for cruises (currently labeled as Travel related) from 3x to 1x is a huge reduction for me. I hope it doesn’t happen.
Don’t eat at super fancy restaurants. Don’t shop at exclusive retail stores. Use Uber not Lyft. Don’t use Peleton. Stay at reasonable but nice hotels (I just sleep there). Fly domestically – AA and Delta – not on the list. And, certainly, don’t use travel agencies. So …? (AMEX – as you are considering response, might want to keep in mind not to go down same rabbit hole as you’ve demonstrated you’re thinking about doing) Would like – news electronic credits (NYT/WSJ), streaming app credits (Apple+, Netflix, etc), music streaming credits (Spotify, SiriusXM), cell credits, … stuff we use.
Used to read this blog and have been following for at least 6 years. But after seeing this post, with all its complete lies to how valuable the new benefits are, I think I’m done being a loyal reader of view from the wings.
Follow-up – the October 25th start date really kills a lot of value as the EDIT credits are alá Amex Aspire $200 semi-annual Resort credits that have to be used during the Jan-June and July-Dec (and the credits for Dell, Saks, etc)
Never owned an Apple product since using the Apple IIc in elementary and preferred the open system of PCs/Android (for a shortwhile linger). But have watched some Apple TV shows with the T-mo free trial – but both daughters went to the dark side.
We already have many streaming serivces for free or.discounted from one benefit or another but time is still limited time one can watch the plethora of options
We do attend concerts (mainly thru VetTix but not all artist we want to see offer tickets).
So long term the card is not likely a keep past the first $795 AF
I’ve had CSP for 6 + years, and my renewal was 2.5 years ago. This card would be useful to me if and only if I’d earn the Sapphire bonus. The benefits I’d use would be the lounges and the $300 travel credit. I travel 99% on points, so earning points on airlines and hotels isn’t a factor.
@ Gary — Counting towards status is awesome!
Perhaps my early onset dementia is kicking in but just reading this article is exhausting. I can’t actually imagine trying to track / manage all these card “benefits” to see that I recoup fair value.
@gary- your link to available restaurants is wrong – its not the visa dining collection – it is a much smaller list using the link that chase has on their page explaining new restaurants – like Bad Roman is not included so maybe you dont go to a bunch of those
I thought the somewhat recent $20 per month increase on Doordash was too good to be true. Now I realize that they were setting up for this change. It’s time to let go of CSR. I will miss the lounge at LGA. Sad 🙁
No, thanks. Too much to keep track of. Too many coupons to clip. I have a life to live.
$795 Coupon Book straight out of the late 80s. This will work for some people, but last thing I want in a card is with every purchase etc I’ve gotta consult a cheat sheet to see if using this card will get me 4x points 1x or this is where I need to use if for a credit.
Absolute hard pass, they are our of their minds.
Compensation has challenged your judgment.
Great article, Gary. Best read on the changes I could find today.
FYI – I think your Excel spreadsheet for the Sapphire Reserve Exclusive Tables restaurants may be a bit outdated. For instance, Detroit is now up to twelve from the four you had in the sheet. All of them receive high marks from me, so I’m sure I’ll be using the benefit twice a year, which is great!
The main thing I used my points for was 1.5x redemptions in the chase travel portal, usually for airfare, and Chase just cut the value of my points balance by 33%.
My experience with Chase Travel is also that it SUCKS HARD the second you need any sort of service, so having to book through that portal to get the best benefits is another big negative.
I want to book what I want to book at 1.5x, I don’t want to have to book what Chase Travel wants me to book at 2x.
I’m probably a non-renewal, but maybe Chase is intentionally firing me as a customer.
Chase is just culling the herd and looking to make a higher aggregate profit.
If the new coupons work for you, then great news, but a lot of people will not find value with these changes. The UR ¢1.5 / point elimination is what may do it for me. I will probably downgrade at renewal to a CSP to use up the points balance, and sign up for a different travel card. The Venture X, even with the devaluation, is looking like a strong contender.
@Brendan – the spreadsheet was accurate as of last night, not all Visa dining restaurants are eligible for the Sapphire dining credit as I understand it. And thank you!
Do restaurants outside of the US qualify for the open table dining credits? I am currently in Toronto Canada and there are a bunch of restaurants here under the open table exclusive tables platform
@Russ – there was no compensation for this article, and no referral links in this post. I did not even eat the provided lunch when I met with Chase midday to go over the changes.
@michael j chill – my list of available restaurants is the linked spreadsheet, not my link to visa dining
Assuming the 4x hotel doesn’t cover airbnb/vrbo, what’s the best card for that spend now?
It’s a good reminder to pull forward some of those payments before the October changes take effect…
One last comment – as someone who has spent $75k on this card in the past, I would literally rather be offered nothing at all versus $500 and status on southwest. Barely any offerings from NYC in the first place, but if you are targeting premium users, I’ll wager those are folks that would like to spend money on a premium seat and not deal with the southwest cattle call. I realize they don’t want to, or cannot, cannibalize their successful United card offerings, but offering entry level status with United (or even a couple of Polaris lounge passes) would have been better than the suite of Southwest benefits, IHG benefits and Chase shopping benefits.
How much did they pay you to say this? $2400 in credits? Why would I value $420 in Doordash credits split up into 2 $10 and 1 $5 per month as anything close to that? Can you show me your Peloton membership Gary? Or current full fee Apple TV+ membership? Are you going out of your way to eat at one of the few restaurants scattered around the country just to make use of that credit? Stay at a restaurant that Jamie Dimon wants you to stay at because they have a low occupancy rate so you can use Points Boost (TM)? This egregious coupon nonsense needs to stop. Eventually they’ll add up all the coupons they offer you in the app throughout the year and claim that you get $50000 in benefits per year because you earn 3% back on Best Buy up to $100k in purchases or some nonsense.
This card is rubbish, but your brazen glazing and lying is ruining your credibility
Any word on if the previous years spend requirement will be applied from last year for those Southwest benefits? Or, is chase starting over once the new card benefits are in effect, meaning we wouldn’t see those 75k + benefits until 2026. Ty
I imagine most people will drop this card after these changes. The Edit is ridiculously overpriced and absolutely useless. The dining credit could be alright except I would have to go out of my way to claim it. I don’t use Lyft, or Apple TV/Music. I can only get $60 out of the DoorDash credit since none of the grocery stores in my area offer pickup. The only organic benefit is the original $300 travel credit and StubHub credit. My AF just renewed earlier this month, so I’ll keep it for now. But I can guarantee you I will be using up all of my points before next renewal and canceling the card. Sucks cause I’ve had this card since 2018 but this coupon book strategy is getting really old. I’m just gonna go back to cash back and call it a day.
Every priority pass restaurant I’ve visited recently has declined my chase sapphire reserve’s priority pass saying that chase doesn’t pay for it anymore.
Gary I’ve lost faith in you. How much does Chase pay you? I’m used to livid tantrums from you… But your ok with this?
These changes are so bad they aren’t even worthy to be called crap.
All with a points devaluation and lower points earnings… And a higher annual fee?
I’ve had this card since it came out… I will be dumping it come January.
@Peter — Yeah, the Southwest offering here is a bit weak, especially since most folks who can easily spend $75K/year on a credit card are usually not choosing Southwest as their carrier of preference; perhaps, if Chase had leveraged its other airline partners, like United or BA, etc., then that might have been more enticing for the ‘premium’ market segment. But, as it stands, even the $500 credit is annoying because it’d have to be booked via Chase, not with Southwest, directly, and I’m sure there’ll be some nice ‘fine print’ restrictions, like, “only for bookings on Tuesdays in June when its raining…”
@Dan – all of 2025 spend will count towards Southwest benefits
@Paul — I’m not upset with Gary; he’s just the messenger. I trust his evaluation, and still, I’m upset with Chase, not him. Gary didn’t cause these changes, the bank did. Let’s be clear.
Claiming that The Edit credits are useful for any normal person is so laughable. Those hotels are at least $600-$1k+ per night. No normal person will book those hotels even with the credit.
I just used all my points by booking at 1.5cpp through the chase portal for a European vacation. Now that benefit has been blown to smithereens. I don’t eat out at the 6 fancy restaurants they list for Seattle. I don’t use Peloton. And to top it off, no Sapphire lounge or plans for one at SEA.
I think I’ll be cutting up my 4 chase cards. I’ve had the CSR since it came out and have loved it… Until now.
Oh, and unlike the cowards and shills over at The Points Guy, Gary actually allows comments on his site. We can respectfully disagree on here all day. We can even call each other silly names. We can also call out Chase’s nonsense here, too. Like, c’mon Jamie Diamond, is this really what the world needs right now? If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.
If $245 extra a year makes a difference to you then you frankly shouldn’t have a high AF travel card. That is basically a decent meal. Personally, I will get much more value from the additional credits than $245 but even if I didn’t I’d keep the card for lounge access and flexibility. BTW, I also have the Amex Platinum (along with 15 or so other cards ranging from no AF to $350/year) and hope they raise it to $995. I can’t wait for all the grifters and those that are over their skis financially to drop it so access to the Centurion Lounge is easier.
@AC
Seems you like to simply light money on fire. Do you think people should simply give them an additional $245 without getting additional benefit? What’s wrong with you?
Not to be harsh, but you sound like those guys you speak to when you call in for a retention offer and they give the spiel about how great card is and list EVERY benefit to make the card sound so great. There is so much junk with this card I’d never use.
$300 travel credit is very useful
$500 Edit credit is so so & I’d probably have to go out of my way to use it
TSA/Global Entry every decent card has it so way too overlapping
$300 dining credit is very limited and probably full of restaurants I’d never go to otherwise
$250 Apple TV & Music I’ve used Apple TV before and hardly ever watched anything decent on it.
$300 Stubhub/viagogo seems so non appealing. Probably would have to go out of my way to use it
$300 Doordash is probably close to the stuff I used to see with Amex’s Uber Eats credit which were mostly crappy restaurants
$120 Pelaton seems so useless. I exercise every day, run about an hour each day also lift weights several times a week. I could never see myself EVER paying for some silly Pelaton membership
I do agree with what one person said & you have to give credit that they allow opposing comments on this site. I know Gary has to make a living so can’t blame him pushing the credits like each one is the most fantastic thing ever. Chase has some great cards with some great features (I’ve had the Ritz card for many years and make great use of the yearly certificate & credits) but I’m down-voting the changes to this card. Seems like I’d just sign up for the bonus and cancel in a hurry the next year.
@Ozzie nailed it. no thanks Chase. Couponing out of control for stuff I’ll never use
These coupons are always geared toward people in larger cities. In small towns we have no applicable restaurants, there’s no Uber/Lyft, no entertainment venues for Stubhub, people actually do activities outside.
I’ve had takeout twice in 20 years, during Covid when I was quarantined. I would never do Doordash when all the restaurants are 2 minutes from my house. (Not to mention the crapiness of old food.)
Fortunately mine just renewed so I don’t have any decisions to make.
“No normal person will book those hotels”
What TF does that even mean?
The ONLY reason he’s ‘excited’ is the significant boost in affiliate income from flogging this ridiculous card.
Yep, no added value for me: Edit is expensive, I don’t want to have to use a website to eat dinner, I don’t pay for Apple TV (didn’t even realize there’s an Apple Music), don’t want Peloton… In other words, this new coupon book isn’t why I loved the Reserve; I loved the Reserve because I could grab it for travel without thinking about it and get great value. If I wanted to run a cost/benefit analysis on every transaction in my like to maximize value, this new card isn’t going to win, and I’m going to lose a lot of time. I’ll cancel at renewal.
“While some will lament the loss of 3x earning for things like Uber, car rentals and parking I’d note that you can still get 8x on car rentals through Chase’s portal if you prioritize points-earn over status recognition”
Or if you prioritize a better price if you can find a better one somewhere else than the Chase portal. Why would I spend $300 to get 8x if I find a AAA/Costco/whatever rate for $225 for a comparable or better car? For my next rental car, I have a reservation for $350. Lowest rate on the Chase portal right now is $821.
This is my first ever post here. I will be unsubscribing from your newsletter Gary (which I really enjoy!) because how else can I show my frustration with this post.
The 4x on flights is not comparable to 5x Amex Plat earning, that earns at a 25% better rate. They can’t even throw in hotel status at the new price, amex offers two!
Gutting the broad travel category is definitely a mistake, those high earners in big cities chase is chasing they take Uber and subways and busses and valets and parking and trains at a much higher rate than suburbanites.
I already downgraded to the csp previously, it is wild that it now earns higher on those categories (don’t forget the 10% year end bonus too).
Whatever, this is all a game and if chase doesn’t want the mass affluent playing in their court…well they won’t.
This change will cost us thousands of dollars from loss of benefits from purchasing cruises. We would not be able to use even a single one of their new coupon benefits, so there’s no value there. There are no details on “points boost”, so I suspect fewer than 1% of redemptions will qualify, and they will all be for undesirable bookings. There is nothing good at all for us here. Amex Green, here we come!
I got the Reserve literally as it came out. Even got the $300 twice since it was so new. Later downgraded to Preferred to get the AMEX Plat. And just barely break even on that for the same reason that the new Reserve benefits will not do anything for me.
The biggest problem? Third party bookings. After getting burned twice out of two times using the booking portals from Chase and AMEX, I stopped using it. There is no better advice than book directly with the airline or hotel. So how much of the benefit is lost there?
Given how I see the future of these point developing cards, I think I will stick with the travel cards that give me status like Marriott, Hyatt, Hilton and IHG. And since LP’s are what I really need for the airline of choice, this card again does nothing.
Other cards pay for Apple, and GE, and I don’t frequent places for the dining credit. And for this coupon card to be a value to me, I have to do a lot better than break even.
Don’t kid yourself; it’s awful for the middle class user. The incentives have gone backwards, doubling the annual fee in the last seven years and dismantling the Priority Pass benefit and 1.5x booking through Chase Travel. More points on their site are offset by the lack of competitive costs and loss of member benefits. They are worth 1/3 less when using them now. I couldn’t care less what it does for them. This is a frustrating loss.
$300 Annual Dining Credit: $150 twice semi-annually for “Sapphire Reserve Exclusive Tables” restaurants (bookable on OpenTable, ‘curation by The Infatuation & Visa Dining Collection’) I find that many of the restaurants I actually visit are part of the platform.
Please clarify because according to the account.chase.com/sapphire/reserve/benefits page the list of sapphire reserve exclusive tables is shorter than the visa infinite. For example there are 17 restaurants for Seattle on the visa infinite but only 6 listed for the reserve benefit page.
I’ve been a loyal client of Chase SR since inception of the card. And now is the time to drop it. Firstly, I never appreciate being herded into spending at place the card wants – for instance The Edit collection, honestly I couldn’t give a flying F. I valued the card for its ability to accrue points and then redeem them at 1.5 percentage for travel. This is the primary feature that made the card stand out from all others. With that gone, the card has lost its appeal and whichever stupid way the writer of the article spins it, I will be canceling my card in October. Secondly, in what world do people at Chase making the decisions think it’s a good idea to to significantly increase the fee and cull the most important benefit the card offers? I’m already seeking alternatives. This card is no longer special, it’s just as pedestrian as many others.
Will you earn 4x for hotels booked at 3rd party sites like Agoda?
This is all too bad and will have me leave Chase. No one should ever be regularly booking on the Chase travel portal. It nearly always has a significant markup on bookings compared to other sites that more than negates the benefit.
Personally I could justify the price increase with the added benefits, but to remove the 1.5x points redemption is unforgiveable. I accumulated a LOT of points on Chase and encouraged others to do so precisely because of the flexibility this offers, and no other companies has it. Now they’ve just slashed the value of all my points by 50% in one fell swoop.
This completely ruined my day.
Simply — Nope! Big Fail. It was nice while it lasted.
This has to be a sponsored post. This may be the worst card devaluation in history. Simultaneously raising the price by almost 50% while also removing the most useful benefit (1.5pp redemptions on any travle in the portal) while adding a bunch of useless “credits” that they know 99% of card users won’t use, and it’s being sold to us in the article as a good thing? Yikes.
pretty clear they’re gunning for the affluent urban user and leaving the rural/small city middle class. Chase is successful for a reason. I’m sure they are losing a fair amount of money on the lower end who are maximizing benefits. this new card will be hard to pencil out if you dont have some legit high end organic spend.
The list of restaurants on Chase’s website is a lot more than shown in your spreadsheet. I’m wondering which is correct.
my biggest issue is that it cost 2 to 3 times more to book on the Chase Portal then booking directly…lately I find I just use points for rental cars just because..
Long time lurker but now I have to comment, the analysis of this change is ludicrous. I am exactly the target audience: millenial, HENRY, living in NYC holding Amex Platinum and CSP, was planning on upgrading to the CSR once my 48 months were up.
The laundry list of VALUABLE CREDITS is anything but:
-$150 x 2 in stubhub I’d value at just $150, stubhub is not usually the preferred ticket reseller for Broadway or the major sports teams here. I’m sure i’d be able to use it but likely would lose out on paying the lowest price.
-$120 in Lyft is useful but not more useful than the $200 uber with amex
-$250 in Apple TV/music i guess would be useful but Apple TV is only $100 for a year and the pain of moving from spotify to apple just isn’t worth it to me for music.
– $150 x 2 restaurant credit is somewhat useful in NYC. I would personally value this at $150 given the prices at those restaurants.
-$300 in Doordash is useless. I already have the premium from another chase card, $5 off one order is terrible and 2x$10 grocery credits is just insulting. Maybe good for a subsidized pint of ice cream but that’s all it’ll be good for. Value here is 0.
-Peloton, Global Entry, IHG don’t even need explanations.
-Finally, the $250 x 2 The Edit – it’s hilarious to think that this is considered a perk. I have had very little luck getting good rates in Chase’s portal and having a 2 night minimum is a kick in the teeth compared to FHR. It’s probably better compared to THC at that point.
So my personal value prop would be $120 Lyft, $100 Apple TV, $150 Stubhub, $150 restaurant, $300 travel, and $200 in the edit to get the AF back in value. Meanwhile one weekend trip with the Amex Platinum staying at 2 different FHR hotels will cover the cost of the Amex Plat.
I’m in an affluent Urban user I regularly spend over 75k on one of my cards.
I see no benefit to the new Chase card. Or to Amex Platinum which I will be canceling.
I’m sick of the coupon book nonsense I find 2% cash back from Capital One to be by far the best for those of us who do not have time to make using their credit card a full-time job
Im sure im a nobody here, but as a Midwestern guy who has had this since the month it was released and always found value, im disappointed. When I only made 60k a year I got great value, now way higher income I can’t convince myself to keep it.
Now I have to spend 900k points asap. Thankfully there is grandfather 1.5c or whatever else, so may have to eat the extra AF for one year. But then I’ll be cancelling.
I’ve got 70K UR saved that I’d transfer over once signing up. So if true, a new sub would need to be 35K + 24.5K higher to be worth waiting. You think the new SUB would go up to 120K?
I love it. Restaurant list in my city is fantastic, I would be going to these places multiple times per year anyway. I know I’m in the minority but already pay for a Peloton and Apple TV+ subscriptions. Just between that stuff, it’s $540 in free money.
Stubhub has a lot of value. Lyft less so (but some). The piecemeal doordash thing is so dumb I just pretend it doesn’t even exist.
The Edit hotels is the biggest wildcard but I’m confident I’ll get at least one good use per year. The first city I looked, there was a $300/night hotel. Call that $800 with taxes and fees for 2 nights. I can book with points (at a 2X multiple! – so 27.5k points = $550) + cash ($250). I get the $250 back, so that would be a total of 27.5k points for 2 nights in a nice hotel, with a $100 hotel credit, free breakfast for 2 days for 2 people, late checkout, etc. – that’s amazing.
One other thing people aren’t mentioning is the (sometimes incredible) Chase Offers that the CSR has that other cards don’t. Last year I got $200 off a $400 backcountry.com purchase as well as a few other nice deals.
I’ll be cancelling. I travel almost full time and 90% of my stays are AirBnb or independent hotels. The vast majority of my points come from Agoda, Trip, and other hotel booking sites that have MUCH lower prices on independent hotels than going through the hotel directly. I’m in hotels 250 days per year and the Chase portal is almost NEVER the lowest price. 1x on other travel is useless. And I already get 5x on flights from AMEX Plat.
@Jon — If they aren’t paying you, Chase really should be. Like, it’s some peoples’ jobs to do what you just did. Get paid, dawg. 1099 at least. W2 if you’re fancy. Run, don’t walk!
I just ran into issues with this card. Booked two first class tickets to travel to Europe and had to change my return flight to an earlier date due to an emergency at home.
After an hour on hold (with a very nice agent) she told me I could only rebook on Chase within my booked class of service, and the fee to fly home earlier was 11,500 US$ per person. As I didn’t want to pay to buy the plane, I declined and called Delta directly, they made things happen through a downgrade and travel credit to get me back home without spending new small car money on two tickets for a 9 hour flight.
Lesson learned, don’t book through a portal when you can get the same price through the airline directly with the benefit of bei g able to adapt to changes easily.
Not renewing my card, as I won’t benefit from any of the new “features” they offer, so it’s just more expensive while offering very little additional benefit.
@Dan — $20,000 to change a flight is extortion. Good on you for ‘taking matters into your own hands’ instead of ‘getting taken’ by Chase.
DoorDash credit is split into 3 transactions each month, 5 for food, two 10 USD credits for 2 non-food purchases.
Have you ever seen more crazy coupon book items? Chase has lost its mind.
@chris — If that’s for-real, what even is ‘non-food’ with DoorDash? Like, do they mean alcohol or groceries? Maybe they’ll start a ‘therapy’ service for all the cognitive dissonance we’ll be experience trying to justify keeping this card…
There is one aspect that I don’t see mentioned but mattered for me as I have been considering upgrading to the CSR; the emergency medical coverage and repatriation. 2 to 3 times a year I am on trips that require that kind of insurance which I usually get through USAA. The cost made the CSR definitely a real value proposition, in addition to the current real travel benefits from insurance currently offered on CSP. Folks here might not care, or be in the ‘Thrifty’ world, but plenty of folks vouched for using over on Thrifty Traveler. The additional points for travel was also a big attraction, as I do use points to book hotels and fly KLM on European Regionals.
I had seriously been considering a shift after Delta’s whole series of stunts last year, though my flying spend has been much high this year than expected through work. I also don’t like the coupon style nonsense on Amex as it is. Yeah, I do get some money for Uber/Lyft but most of that stuff just doesn’t apply.
This change for CSR means I will probably be looking elsewhere.
On paper, I agree that these look like a rich addition to card benefits. But it truly feels like a second job to keep track of each one, which are not necessarily easy to use. A “coupon book” as one other commenter put it, is spot on, and feels the opposite of a luxury card, for someone spending this much.
Who is this for?
If you’re wealthy, you don’t need to play these points chasing games, and this is more than the norm.
If you’re a traveler playing the points game, this is just too much work to make it worth your time.
No thanks.
Many posters here have already explained eloquently why they will be canceling their CSR card, so I’ll just add my name to the list as someone who will also be canceling when the renewal fee increases.
This is a huge devaluation. I’ll spend my points and then cancel. I want to book what I want to book and not have to spend time hunting for points boosts. I rarely use the Chase portal for non-redemptions because the pricing is almost always significantly higher. Same with Edit hotels. Much more expensive on Chase portal as compared to booking direct even taking into account benefits and extra points.
I’ve had the CSR for 7 years. While losing 1.5 points and 3x general travel definitely hurts, I must admit I have NEVER seen so many people defend spending points in the Chase portal until now that it’s gone haha.
All I’ve ever heard is chase portal costs more, is inconvenient, CSP is better than CSR, VX & Amex are better, etc. now that 1.5 is gone it’s interesting to see the outcry for 1.5 pts.
With that said, I do understand how if you live in a smaller city this card has lost its sparkle.
I’m in a large city and just renewed the $550 AF so I have nothing to lose keeping it at least another year. I do see myself coming out ahead even beyond that:
$300 travel credit
$180 DoorDash (I’m not DD 3X/mo)
$300 Dining Credit (Take wife to dinner twice a year.)
$120 Lyft (may not use all of this if I’m honest)
If I take Lyft at least 2X in a year I’ll be in the green, and that doesn’t count the other benefits.
Since we’re losing 1.5pts, my hope is that by earning 4x on direct travel should net me more total points than I’ve been able to previously accrue anyway.
I do have to pay attention more to how I’m spending which sucks, but I think I’ll get rewarded for it.
Wow an $800 coupon book for a bunch of stuff I and most people will never use. AND to top it off…you have to remember to use some credits monthly, some twice a year, some annually…seriously Chase, way to ruin a good thing so you can get your breakage. I’m dumping this card at next renewal. I got away from AMEX Platinum for the same reason and now it looks like Chase is following their lead. I hope the majority of people push back against this and cancel their card so the banks stop this awful couponing nonsense. Just give us a free night with a $100 annual fee like Marriott.
@Caesonia For the medieval insurance consider joining Divers Alert Network which offers similar coverage for $40 per year. You do not have to be a diver.
I was a member until I got the CSR. I will likely join again.
My wife and I take a lot of cruises. With the.3x for travel I have earned a lot of points, which we use for flights. I do all my cruise bookings through my local travel agent, which has been a blessing when problems arise. There is no way that the portal can provide the same level of service. In addition, some of the credits you mentioned are already taken care of by my American Express platinum card. Card. Therefore I’m not sure this card is worth the $795 fee.
Getting sick of these “credits” that’s aren’t really credits. The Apple TV/Music credit is basically useless if you have a family plan. Either give a credit or provide a path to upgrade to a higher subscription. Providing a “free” subscription to an take-it-or-leave-it inferior version of the product that most people will want is just a way to say you’re giving a benefit knowing that many people won’t even bother.
So disappointed in the changes. If the Apple credit applied to Apple One it would be worth it but it only applies to pieces of the Apple pie, worthless. Time for a change as I don’t use any of the other coupon cutter ‘benefits’.
The ” much bigger DoorDash credits” offer is exactly the same as the one offered today. $5/month for food, 2x$10 for ridiculously overpriced groceries/etc. – theoretically $300 of which $240 is basically unusable.
IMO these coupons are MUCH worse than Amex ones for most people. The DoorDash credit requires 3 orders per month to use, 2 of which are locked to groceries? The specific collection of dining/hotels is super limiting as well, let alone requiring 2-night stays 2x a year. This card is only targeting a very specific group of high-spenders, and is almost unusable outside of that group. Which is probably the point.
If I wanted to micromanage coupons I’d get a coupon book
Will my JPM palladium get all these benefits as well?
@Matt B – it’s JP Morgan Reserve now, but yes.
Booking through Chase OTA is a non-starter for me on this card. The higher fee negates any benefits of this card.
Gary, thanks for the article, it sure helped me see the added value, I will definitely keep the card at the higher fee. I have a suggestion and request, I and most likely thousands of others would love to see a spreadsheet where we enter are spending, by category, to see the annual benefit. I would also create a redemption credit tab with min max because it varies depending on the assumptions, my smart son created on for me, based on my spending that shows an annual benefit based on my spending between $4 to $6K per year. He also added 8 or so other cards as a comparison tab, Chase Reserve was the winner for us.
Goodbye Reserve, only had it for the Chase Lounges in NYC and would only continue to use the $300 travel credit so they closed the coffin and I will put a nail in it. Bye Chase. I see no good news in this.
I am not sure if the nearly $1000 annual fee for me and spouse makes sense. The only unique use of the points was transferring to United for flights which I don’t get with other cards. Maybe use the United explorer more now
I’d call this a mixed bag at best – The Edit seems to be a mess (higher rates, scattershot availability) but might have some use at specific hotels for me if I’m either (1) out-of-network for some reason (this is REALLY rare) or (2) at one of those unicorns that is program-compliant and the price isn’t nuts. Like, if this basically nets me 1250 lifetime points towards LTG at Hyatt each six months, I’ll take it.
The dining thing is also going to be a mixed bag – it isn’t entirely clear if this is “Up to $150 once each half-year” or “$150 across however many visits in those six months” (though the fact that I have woken up in a timeline where I seem to have ramen bars battling for my business feels…weird, though I guess Blade Runner /was/ set six years ago…). But this program is painfully weak and megacity-centric for now.
NEXUS is useful – I’d forgotten that CSR includes NEXUS (since for the longest time, /everyone/ did PreCheck/Global Entry…but only those two, not NEXUS).
The Apple, Peloton, StubHub, and DoorDash credits verge on useless or are outright useless. In the case of DoorDash, the issue is that I have no desire to deal with them for groceries, and $5 doesn’t even offset their effective upcharge. StubHub /might/ have occasional utility, but that’s hit-or-miss at best (maybe I do a show when I’m in NYC if a decent-priced ticket shows up?).
The $75k spend bonuses are a nullity for me, though I could probably do a few ticket purchases for my parents (they fly WN, I fly DL/AA). Nothing there moves the needle for me even an inch or a degree.
And of course, the variable redemption value bit…just stinks. Really, I’d love to see whomever made that decision lose their job.
Point boost? Really? Which flights or stays? Can I pick the boost? Well- No.
All other new perks are worthless for me . Or, most of them. I don’t order food, I don’t use Apple TV.
I don’t spend 75K a year. I could NEVER justify spending 800 dollars on it. Premium class fare to my usual destination cost less. Also, I am trying to book flight with my existing miles and it is horrible. 16 hr layover with 2 stops? Direct flight is 7 hours and costs half of AF. It wasn’t like that 2 years ago, trust me on that.My feeling is that there will be massive cancellations of this card come October.