Confirmed: Chase Sapphire Reserve Major Changes
On June 17th Chase confirmed major changes coming to the Sapphire Reserve.
The Chase Sapphire Reserve is an extremely popular travel credit card that has a ton of great perks. Previously, it was one that I see a lot of people use even though I think most people would be better off with the Sapphire Preferred. However, with the new changes, my tune has changed and I think this could be an excellent card for most people and one of the best travel cards out there.
What Is Changing?
As of June 23rd, 2025 the Chase Sapphire Reserve will be refreshed with a massive new annual fee as well as a new points earning structure along with a slew of statement credits you can earn throughout the year.
Annual Fees
Primary Cardholder: increasing from $550 to $795
Authorized User: increasing from $75 to $195
Earnings
8x points on Chase Travel bookings for airfare, hotels, and car rentals
4x on hotels and flights booked directly (not through Chase)
3x on dining
1x on everything else
New Benefits
$500 ($250 semi-annual) hotel credit with Chase Edit for stays of two or more nights.
$300 ($150 semi-annual) credit with Sapphire Reserve Tables. This is a partnership with Open Table. You don’t necessarily have to book the reservation through Open Table, just use your card there and the credit should automatically post.
$300 ($150 semi-annual) credit with Stubhub or viagogo for concert or event tickets.
$300 credit with DoorDash in the form of a $5 monthly credit for restaurants and two $10 credits for groceries, retail etc.
$120 DoorDash membership
Apple TV+ and Apple Music Subscription through June 22, 2027 worth $250 annually
Points Boost Program where points will be worth up to 2 cents per point during promotions (but standard redemptions drop to 1 cent per point.
Spending Threshold Benefits after $75,000
$500 Southwest credit
Southwest A-List status
IHG One Rewards Diamond status
$250 The Shops credit
Existing Benefits
$120 ($10 monthly) Lyft Credit plus 5x points on Lyft
$300 travel credit
TSA/Global Entry fee credit once every four years
My Take On These Changes
My initial thoughts on this when the new changes were first leaked was mostly negative. While I still hate the couponification of these super premium credit cards, I think my tune has changed a bit after I’ve thought about this more.
The increased points earned on airfare and hotels is great. This will give the card the undisputed best return on hotels while coming close to the American Express Platinum’s 5x points on airfare (which is also a glorified coupon book).
Previously the Sapphire Reserve earned 3x points on a very broad travel category which included everything from airfare to hotels to car rentals to public transportation. That has now gone away.
I think for most people earning 4x points on flights and hotels will outweigh the 3x points earned on other travel.
With the Sapphire Preferred just coming off a massive new 100,000 point signup bonus, I’d be surprised if Chase didn’t come out with a similarly huge signup bonus when this card officially gets refreshed when it officially launches on June 23rd.
Easy to Use Credits
While the annual fee is going up by $245 to $795, Chase has added some really nice and frankly easy to use credits to make up for the fee increase. These credits
$300 Annual Travel Credit
Wrapping Up
It appears all but confirmed that the Chase Sapphire Reserve is getting a major update this summer with a huge new $795 annual fee with a ton of statement credits to try to make up for the increased fee. I am not a fan of these changes at all. While it will certainly be good for some cardholders, I think for the vast majority these changes will be a net negative.
