How 8 Chase Sapphire Reserve Perks Easily Cover the Annual Fee & Then Some..

Back in June, after much fanfare, Chase refreshed their marquee Chase Sapphire Reserve card with a higher annual fee of $795. Amex refreshed their Amex Platinum Card last month with a new fee of $895 and a suite of upgraded benefits.

In this post, I outlined why the Chase Sapphire Reserve doesn’t work for me and why I’m planning on sticking to the Chase Sapphire Preferred.

Chase Sapphire Reserve

In the world of miles and points, there’s no ‘no brainer’ credit card. It’s just that something works for you or your style of travel. While the Reserve doesn’t work for me, here are 8 reasons why it may be a perfect fit for you if you travel in a certain way.

The card is currently offering a welcome bonus of 125,000 Chase Ultimate Rewards points. You’ll earn the welcome bonus after you spend $6,000 in the first 3 months of card membership.

Click here for the 125,000 points offer

However, for the purpose of this article, we’ll be looking at scenarios where the card could make perfect sense for you even beyond simply earning the welcome bonus.

1. You Spend a lot on Travel and Dining

The Chase Sapphire Reserve offers you the opportunity to earn a decent stash of points when you book flights and hotels through direct channels or spend frequently on dining. If you fall into that bracket, then this card works perfectly for you from a points earning perspective.

• 4x points on hotels and airlines, when booked directly
• 3x points on dining worldwide

Also, in comparison to Amex’s 5x with Amex Travel, cardholders can get 8x points when they book via Chase Travel.

2. Your home airport (or one that you frequently travel to) has a Sapphire Lounge

If you’re someone who travels frequently, be it for leisure or business, it always helps if one of Chase’s swanky new lounges is at an airport you frequently travel to. In the US, you can access Chase Sapphire Lounges at the following locations:

• Boston
• New York City JFK
• New York City LGA
• Philadelphia
• Phoenix
• San Diego
• The Reserve Suites at LGA
• Dallas
• Los Angeles
• Las Vegas

In addition, you also have access to the Sapphire Lounge in Hong Kong while traveling internationally. Moreover, the card also gets you access to the following partner lounges, in addition to offering you a complimentary Priority Pass Select membership, which gives you access to certain lounges in the Priority Pass network worldwide:

• The Etihad Lounge at Washington Dulles Airport IAD

Moreover, you also get access to following Air Canada lounges while flying with a Star Alliance carrier:

• Frankfurt
• London
• Los Angeles
• San Francisco
• Toronto (Domestic, International & Transborder)
• Vancouver (Domestic, International & Transborder)
• Calgary
• Edmonton
• Halifax
• New York City (LGA)
• Ottawa
• Regina
• Saskatoon
• St. John’s
• Toronto – Billy Bishop

3. You Spend at least $300 on Travel Each Year

This is the easiest benefit to use on the card. You only need to purchase travel with your card and it works.  However, this benefit is offered once during every cardmember anniversary year. Like most of us in the hobby do, spending $300 annually on travel is pretty easy and this benefit easily gives direct tangible value in lieu of the annual fee.

Also, if you sign up for the card, you’ll get an additional $250 in credits starting January 1 and December 31, 2026 when you book a hotel stay of at least two nights with one of these partners via Chase Travel:

• IHG Hotels & Resorts
• Montage Hotels & Resorts
• Pendry Hotels & Resorts
• Omni Hotels & Resorts
• Virgin Hotels
• Minor Hotels
• Pan Pacific Hotels & Resorts

4. You stay frequently at properties that are part of “the Edit’ collection

‘The Edit’ is a collection of hotels similar to Amex’s Fine Hotels and Resorts collection. At the moment, cardmembers get $250 in credit bi-annually when they make a qualifying booking of at least two night via ‘The Edit’. Starting January 1, 2026, Chase is making this credit easier to use as you’ll now be able to earn a total of $500 in credits in two increments of $250, but you won’t need to make the booking bi-annually. In short, you can make two bookings in the same month and that will still qualify for the credit.

So, if you’re someone who stays frequently at properties that are part of ‘The Edit’ collection, then it makes it really easy for you to an extra $500 in value from the card annually.

5. Points Boost Suits your Travel Needs

Another benefit that I would’ve usually added was the ability to redeem points on Chase Travel at a value of 1.5 cents per point. However, Chase will now be phasing that out, officially ending on October 26, 2027. If you’re not an existing cardholder who has had the card before June 23, 2025, you’ll no longer enjoy the 1.5x redemption benefit.

Instead, Chase has replaced that with Points Boost. According to Chase, you can earn up to 2 cents per point in redemption value on these bookings. While I’ve found these to be overpriced, if this works for your style of travel, depending on the airline and the hotel market, then this benefit may go a long way in saving you some points.

6. You’re a part of the Apple Ecosystem

If you’re like me and have a bunch of Apple devices in the household, then this card makes perfect sense for you. You get complimentary access to the following subscriptions with Apple:

• Apple TV+
• Apple Music

7. You order food each month or pick up

If you’re someone who does that at least once a month, then the card helps you earn credits as you get a complimentary DashPass membership, in addition to a promotional credit of up to $25 each month split in the following manner:

• $5/month on restaurant orders
• Two $10 promos/month on grocery, retail orders, etc

8.You use Rideshare services at least once each month

Even if you simply use a Rideshare service once a month, the card pays for itself in this category as you get a $10 promo each month, adding up to $120 for the calendar year. Also, you earn 5x Chase Ultimate Rewards points on every dollar you spend with Lyft.

Analysis

In short, the card offers a lot of different credits that some people may find more useful than others. However, if you simply fall into 6 out of the 8 categories that I’ve mentioned above, you can get a lot of value from the card. In addition to the benefits mentioned above, there are a few more credits and benefits, but some people may not find themselves as useful as some of the other benefits on the card:

• • $120 in Peloton credits ($10 x 12months) & 10x points per dollar spent
  • $300 in Stubhub credits ($150 bi-annually)
  • $300 in dining credit with Chase Sapphire Reserve tables ($150 bi-annually) – However, based on initial data points, the network seems to be very restricted compared to Amex’s Resy dining network.

The Pundit’s Mantra

I continue to carry my Amex Platinum Card in the wallet, in addition to opting for Chase Sapphire Preferred card, which I’ve carried over the last decade. The Reserve just doesn’t make sense for my style of travel.

While the price point is pretty steep, the Chase Sapphire Reserve makes a lot of sense for a certain type of customer profile. One who frequently spends on dining and travel with Chase’s partners, uses their branded or partner lounges, Rideshare services and food delivery services frequently and is someone who’s already a part of the Apple ecosystem.

Does the Chase Sapphire Reserve make sense for you? Which is your favorite premium travel credit card? Tell us in the comments section.

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• Earn 125,000 bonus points with the Chase Sapphire Reserve Card
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• Earn 110,000 bonus miles with the Delta SkyMiles Reserve Business American Express Card

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