Updated with new annual fee and perks list. Chase has updated their “ultra-premium” credit card, the Chase Sapphire Reserve Card, which has headline features of Visa Infinite benefits, 50,000 Ultimate Rewards points sign-up bonus, $300 annual travel credit, 3X points on travel and dining, and a $550 annual fee. Here is the long list of perks:

  • 50,000 Bonus Ultimate Rewards points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months. That can be redeemed for $750 of airfare, hotels, and other travel through Chase Ultimate Rewards.
  • $300 annual travel credit. Every year, the card will rebate you back up to $300 in travel purchases such as airfare and hotel nights charged on your card.
  • $100 statement credit towards Global Entry or TSA PreCheck.
  • Priority Pass Select membership. Provides free access to 1,000+ airport lounges in over 400 cities worldwide.
  • 3X points per $1 spent on travel & dining worldwide. The 3X points on travel kick in immediately after earning your $300 travel credit. 1 point per $1 spent on all other purchases.
  • DoorDash credits. Up to $120 in statement credits towards DoorDash purchases ($60 in 2020 and another $60 in 2021). Also get $0 delivery fee with free DashPass membership for at least 1 year.
  • Free year Lyft Pink membership + 10x points on Lyft purchases through March 2022. Lyft Pink usually costs $19.99 a month and includes 15% off Lyft rides, 3 complimentary bike and scooter rides a month, and priority airport pickups.
  • 1:1 points transfer to various frequent flyer and hotel loyalty programs.
  • Annual fee is $550, not waived the first year.

Note the following text:

This product is available to you if you do not have any Sapphire card and have not received a new cardmember bonus for any Sapphire card in the past 48 months.

Ultimate Rewards points. This card offers a special 50% bonus on travel redemptions made through the Ultimate Rewards travel website. That is more than any other Chase card (a 25% bonus is the most otherwise). 50,000 Ultimate Rewards = $750 in travel. Similar to Expedia or Travelocity, you can book flights on most major airlines and hotel chains. This makes it much more flexible to spend your points. You can even buy something more expensive and pay the difference.

If you have other Chase cards that earn Ultimate Rewards points like the Freedom, Freedom Unlimited, Ink Business Cash or Ink Business Unlimited, you can transfer points into this card account and take advantage of the this higher premium. In other words, your existing Ultimate Rewards points balance could be increased in value by getting this card.

Prefer airline and/or hotel points? This card also allows you to transfer Ultimate Rewards points into hotel and/or airline miles. Transfer to United Airlines, British Airways, Singapore Airlines, Korean Air, Southwest, Hyatt Hotels, IHG Hotels, and Marriott Hotels at a ratio of 1 Ultimate Rewards point = 1 mile/hotel point. Miles redemption continue to offer great value for savvy travelers, especially for last-minute travel and business class seats.

Cash redemptions are a simple and easy option, but the conversion is a straight 100 points = $1.

Sharing points. Ultimate Rewards points are instantly transferable to other accounts like family members, as long as they have their own Chase card with Ultimate Rewards as an authorized user (free with Chase Freedom). This way, you can pool points together for transfers and redemptions if you like.

Additional card benefits:

  • Dedicated customer service line with a live person that answers the phone 24/7. No waiting or complicated phone trees.
  • No foreign transaction fees.
  • Primary car rental collision damage waiver insurance. Decline the rental company’s collision insurance and charge the entire rental cost to your card. Coverage is primary and provides reimbursement up to $75,000 for theft and collision damage for most rental cars in the U.S. and abroad. Most other cards only offer secondary coverage that kicks in only after the deductible of your individual insurance policy is used.
  • Trip Cancellation/Trip Interruption Insurance. If your trip is canceled or cut short by sickness, severe weather and other covered situations, you can be reimbursed up to $10,000 per trip for your pre-paid, non-refundable travel expenses, including passenger fares, tours, and hotels.
  • Trip Delay Reimbursement. If your common carrier travel is delayed more than 6 hours or requires an overnight stay, you and your family are covered for unreimbursed expenses, such as meals and lodging, up to $500 per ticket
  • Enjoy special car rental privileges from National Car Rental, Avis, and Silvercar when you book with your card.

Note that Chase has an unofficial rule that they will automatically deny approval on new credit cards if you have 5 or more new credit cards from any issuer on your credit report within the past 2 years (aka the 5/24 rule). This rule is designed to discourage folks that apply for high numbers of sign-up bonuses. This rule applies on a per-person basis, so in our household one applies to Chase while the other applies at other card issuers.

As for the $300 annual travel credit, “annually” means the year beginning with your account open date through the first December statement date of that same year, and each 12 billing cycles starting after your December statement date through the following December statement date. So it’s not exactly by calendar year, but roughly close and you can likely get this twice under the first year’s annual fee.

To be perfectly honest, I don’t need the new Lyft and DoorDash perks very much. I have also been redeeming my points for Hyatt hotel nights primarily, so I will stick to the Chase Sapphire Preferred card with a lower $95 annual fee and the same 1:1 ratio for turning Ultimate Rewards points into Hyatt points. I will miss the Reserve’s 3X earning power on travel on dining, however! Your spending and point-redeeming situation may be different.

Bottom line. The Chase Sapphire Reserve Card has a 50,000 Ultimate Rewards points sign-up bonus, $300 annual travel credit, 3X points on Dining/Travel, Priority Pass Select airport lounge membership, up to $100 Global Entry application credit, Lyft perks, DoorDash perks, and more… in exchange for a $550 annual fee. You should compare against that of the Chase Sapphire Preferred card, which has less perks but also a lower annual fee.

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Chase Sapphire Reserve Card Review: 50k Points Worth $750 in Travel, $300 Annual Travel Credit, $550 Annual Fee, New Lyft/DoorDash Perks from My Money Blog.


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