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Well, it's official: I'm one of the newest cardholders of the Chase Sapphire Reserve®. I swore I'd never apply for the card, especially after its 2025 refresh. However, I'm a sucker for a good welcome bonus, and the current 150,000 bonus points offer was simply too good to resist.
Here's why I applied for the Sapphire Reserve, how I might use the welcome bonus, and why it might stay in my wallet longer than a year.
- Earn 150,000 bonus points after you spend $6,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening.
- Get $3,000 in annual value with Sapphire Reserve.
- Earn 8x points on all purchases through Chase Travel℠, including The Edit℠ and 4x points on flights and hotels booked direct. Plus, earn 3x points on dining worldwide & 1x points on all other purchases
- $300 annual travel credit as reimbursement for travel purchases charged to your card each account anniversary year.
- Access over 1,300 airport lounges worldwide with a complimentary Priority Pass™ Select membership, plus every Chase Sapphire Lounge® by The Club with two guests. Plus, up to $120 towards Global Entry, NEXUS, or TSA PreCheck® every 4 years
- Get up to $150 in statement credits every six months for a maximum of $300 annually for dining at restaurants that are part of Sapphire Reserve Exclusive Tables.
- Count on Trip Cancellation/Interruption Insurance, Auto Rental Coverage, Lost Luggage Insurance, no foreign transaction fees, and more.
- Get complimentary Apple TV+, the exclusive streaming home of Apple Originals. Plus Apple Music - all the music you love, across all your devices. Subscriptions run through 6/22/27 - a value of $288 annually
- Member FDIC
- 8x points on all purchases through Chase Travel℠
- 4x points on flights and hotels booked directly
- 3x points on dining worldwide
- 1x points on all other purchases
Why I Never Wanted the Sapphire Reserve
I already have several premium credit cards in my wallet, including the American Express Platinum Card®, Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card, and the Citi Strata Elite℠ Card. I also have the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card, so I really didn't feel a need to apply for the Sapphire Reserve.
Plus, even before applying, I'm already on the hook for $2,724 each year in credit card annual fees. After my approval, I'll spend over $3,000 per year in just annual fees. To many, this may sound ridiculous.
In my opinion, the 2025 refresh was a major downgrade. I earn the same or more on purchases with the other cards in my wallet. Removing the 3X bonus earning category on general travel purchases was highly disappointing. The higher $795 annual fee is justified only by additional credits — such as the $300 in annual StubHub credits and $300 dining credit — most of which I'm unable or unwilling to use.
Best-Ever Welcome Bonus
The Sapphire Reserve is currently offering its best-ever publicly available welcome bonus. As a new cardholder, you can earn 150,000 bonus points after you spend $6,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening.
I'll be honest: The best-ever welcome bonus is what got me in the door. AwardWallet users redeem Chase Ultimate Rewards points for 2.01¢ apiece, on average. That gives the welcome bonus a value of roughly $3,000. However, I personally value Ultimate Rewards points even higher. By transferring to Chase's 14 hotel and airline transfer partners, you can squeeze even more value from your points.
For instance, one of Chase's most valuable transfer partners is Virgin Atlantic Flying Club. On average, AwardWallet users get a whopping 5.83¢ apiece from Virgin points when redeemed for global business class flights. That means that 150,000 Ultimate Rewards points transferred to Virgin Atlantic could be worth $8,745. Even if I get half of that value, that's more than enough to cover a $795 annual fee for at least a year or two.
I'm not sure exactly how I'll use my welcome bonus once I earn it, but the options are seemingly limitless. I frequently take advantage of Flying Blue promo rewards, which help me get to Europe for just 18,750 miles in economy. That welcome bonus could stretch into 8 flights to Europe — not bad for one card bonus.
Or, I could take an aspirational trip. I've always wanted to take the longest flight in the world from New York to Singapore, and I could do so for just 117,000 Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer miles if I book a business saver award. Flying more than 19 hours in Singapore Airlines business class seems like a worthwhile investment, especially when that one-way flight retails for almost $5,000.
My New Perspective on the Sapphire Reserve
All of the reasons why I didn't want the Sapphire Reserve to begin with still stand. However, no card is perfect — there are plenty of benefits and credits that I don't take advantage of on my Platinum Card®, and yet it still has a spot in my wallet.
Here are the benefits that I'm most excited about:
- Industry-leading travel and purchase protections. The Sapphire Reserve will likely become my go-to card for paying award taxes and fees, thanks to its phenomenal travel protections. I've also had issues with Airbnb recently, so I will probably start using it to pay for a portion of my rentals moving forward, to be protected if anything goes awry.
- The annual travel credit. The $300 annual travel credit is the most flexible of any other credit card. I'll likely be able to earn it using Apple Pay before my physical card even arrives in the mail.
- The Edit hotel credit. I don't mind booking boutique hotels through travel portals, so I think it'll be very easy to earn the $500 annual credit with The Edit.
- Chase Travel Hotels credit. Similar to The Edit, I don't see any reason why I won't be able to earn the $250 Chase Travel Hotels credit.
- IHG Platinum Elite Status. AwardWallet just notified me that my 72,000 IHG One Rewards points will expire in July. As an IHG Platinum elite member, my points won't expire. Although I'll likely stay at an IHG property before then, it's nice not to have to worry about keeping my points active, and I'll enjoy my benefits when I stay.
Apart from the IHG Platinum Elite status and travel protections, those three credits alone are worth $1,050 and apply to travel I was already going to take. That's more than the annual fee, so I'm coming out ahead. If I'm able to use the other credits, I'll come out way ahead.
Related: What To Know About Chase Sapphire Reserve Travel and Purchase Insurance Benefits
Final Thoughts
I justified applying for the Sapphire Reserve because I can always downgrade it after a year if the value isn't there. Until then, I plan to request a product change on my Sapphire Preferred (after I use the $50 annual hotel credit for this year), as it doesn't offer me anything unique and will save me $95 each year. I'll swap it for the Chase Freedom Flex℠ so I can earn up to 5% cash back on quarterly rotating bonus categories.
I never thought I'd be a Sapphire Reserve cardholder, but here I am. I'm looking forward to diving into its benefits (and welcome bonus) over the coming months. If you also want to earn 150,000 bonus points, I'd recommend applying sooner rather than later, as there's no guarantee how long this offer will last.
- Earn 150,000 bonus points after you spend $6,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening.
- Get $3,000 in annual value with Sapphire Reserve.
- Earn 8x points on all purchases through Chase Travel℠, including The Edit℠ and 4x points on flights and hotels booked direct. Plus, earn 3x points on dining worldwide & 1x points on all other purchases
- $300 annual travel credit as reimbursement for travel purchases charged to your card each account anniversary year.
- Access over 1,300 airport lounges worldwide with a complimentary Priority Pass™ Select membership, plus every Chase Sapphire Lounge® by The Club with two guests. Plus, up to $120 towards Global Entry, NEXUS, or TSA PreCheck® every 4 years
- Get up to $150 in statement credits every six months for a maximum of $300 annually for dining at restaurants that are part of Sapphire Reserve Exclusive Tables.
- Count on Trip Cancellation/Interruption Insurance, Auto Rental Coverage, Lost Luggage Insurance, no foreign transaction fees, and more.
- Get complimentary Apple TV+, the exclusive streaming home of Apple Originals. Plus Apple Music - all the music you love, across all your devices. Subscriptions run through 6/22/27 - a value of $288 annually
- Member FDIC
- 8x points on all purchases through Chase Travel℠
- 4x points on flights and hotels booked directly
- 3x points on dining worldwide
- 1x points on all other purchases
For rates and fees of the cards mentioned in this post, please visit the following links: Chase Sapphire Reserve® (Rates & Fees)
