Chase Revamps Sapphire Reserve Benefits: Increases Fees and Launches Business Card

Chase, the leading credit card provider in the U.S., announced significant updates on Tuesday to its Chase Sapphire Reserve card—a favorite amongst frequent travelers and rewards enthusiasts. The updates include a new Sapphire Reserve for Business card, designed for customers who spend at least $120,000 annually, offering an exclusive tier of premium benefits. While Sapphire Reserve cardholders will enjoy enhanced perks in dining, hotels, and lifestyle credits, they will also face a higher annual fee of $795, up from $550, topping fees of similar premium travel cards, like those from American Express. (Interestingly, American Express disclosed on Monday their plans to revamp their premium cards later this year.) Authorized users, or secondary cardholders, will see their annual fees rise to $195 from $75. These changes will apply after October 25, based on the cardholder’s renewal date. New applicants will face the updated fees after June 23, when the revamped cards become available. Details about welcome bonuses for the new cards will also be shared on that day.

The credit card fee industry is thriving, with annual payments doubling over a decade, reaching $6.4 billion in 2022 from $3.0 billion in 2015, as reported by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau in 2023. Since its launch at a $450 fee in 2016, the Sapphire Reserve annual fee has climbed 77%. Chase’s announcement highlights a shift within the credit card and airline sectors toward premium rewards for high-spending travelers. Cardholders can access an elevated reward tier by purchasing at least $75,000 annually on the Sapphire Reserve card, or $120,000 annually on the Sapphire for Business card. Benefits include a credit at Shops at Chase, and special status at IHG Hotels & Resorts and Southwest Airlines. Chase has also introduced ‘Points Boost,’ enhancing points for both Reserve and Preferred customers, and on their business cards Ink Business Preferred and Ink Plus.

With changes to bonus rewards, Chase has phased out some methods used by consumers for optimizing travel points. Cardholders will now earn eight times the points for bookings via Chase Travel, the company’s online travel portal, replacing the previous system of five and ten times for flights, hotels, and car rentals respectively. The new terms offer four times the points on directly booked flights and hotels, an increase from three times for all travel previously. The Points Boost system will double points on eligible travel bookings but will not cover basic economy seats. Customers booking through Chase Travel will no longer earn 1.5 times points for Reserve accounts or 1.25 times for Preferred accounts. (However, for bookings not covered by Points Boost, points are redeemable at a one-to-one rate on Chase Travel.) Sapphire Reserve cardholders can redeem points earned before October 26, 2025, at 1.5 times on Chase Travel until October 26, 2027. Meanwhile, Preferred cardholders have a redemption rate of 1.25 times on Chase Travel.

Sapphire Reserve cardholders will continue to have access to the Chase Sapphire airport lounges and over 1,300 Priority Pass lounges, with business card customers allowed to bring two guests per visit. The $300 yearly flexible travel credit remains unchanged, as does the $120 credit (once every four years) for joining Global Entry, TSA PreCheck, or Nexus. In total, according to Chase, Sapphire Reserve customers receive over $2,700 in value, including credits for services such as Lyft, Peloton, Apple TV, StubHub, and DoorDash, plus $500 for Chase’s lodging collection known as the Edit. For those concerned about the increased fees, financial advisors recommend contacting the issuer about switching to a lower-fee card option, which is usually a better move for credit scores than completely canceling the card.