Introducing the new couponified Chase Sapphire Reserve

Details about the Sapphire Reserve card’s impending changes are now available… The annual $300 travel credit remains intact. That’s the good news. The bad news is that the annual fee is increasing, we lose 3x for all travel, and we can no longer rely on 1.5 cents per point redemptions through Chase Travel. In exchange for all of that yuckiness, we get “up to” 2 cents per point via Chase Travel redemptions (when lucky), we get increased earning rates for select travel, and we get a slew of new coupons. Yay?

Overview

Chase has released details about the newly refreshed and recouponized Sapphire Reserve consumer card, as well as a new w Sapphire Reserve for Business card (we’ll publish full details about the latter very soon but we do have a comparison chart later in this post).

Both cards will launch Monday June 23, 2025.

We don’t yet know what the welcome bonuses will be for these cards. We’ll report details as soon as we can.

Transition for existing cardholders

The following timeline is exclusively for Sapphire Reserve cardmembers who applied prior to June 23, 2025:

• June 23 2025: Existing cardmembers will get access to Points Boost. For a while (see dates below) cardmembers will automatically receive the best offer available: Points Boost or 1.5x on Chase Travel.
• October 25 2025: Last day to earn points that are redeemable for 1.5x on Chase Travel. Points moved by this date to the Sapphire Reserve from other cards in your household will count as having been earned before October 26th and will be usable for 1.5x.
• October 26 2025:
  • All new card features now enabled (e.g. first date to earn new rebates and new category bonuses)
  • No longer earn 3x for all travel
• October 27 2025 onwards: Annual fee will be adjusted to $795 on next anniversary date following October 26, 2025.
• October 25 2027: Last day to redeem points for 1.5x on Chase Travel.
  (Points earned prior to October 26, 2025 by Sapphire Reserve cardmembers who applied prior to June 23, 2025 can be redeemed at 1.5x on Chase Travel until October 26, 2027. For points earned prior to October 26, 2025, cardmembers will automatically receive the best offer available, whether it’s Points Boost or 1.5x on Chase Travel, maximizing rewards value for two years.)

Now let me explain the above in hopefully simpler terms. If you have the Sapphire Reserve card before Monday June 23rd 2025, then this is what will happen:

• Starting on Monday, you’ll have access to Points Boosts. When searching for travel through Chase Travel, Points Boosts will sometimes show up offering a better deal than the current 1.5 cents per point. When the Points Boost is better than 1.5, you’ll automatically get the better rate.
• Other than Points Boosts, your card benefits and features should remain unchanged until October 26. Additionally, any points you earn during this time will be usable at the 1.5x rate through Chase Travel for about two years (through October 25, 2027)
• On October 26, 2025, your card and its benefits will transition to the new Sapphire Reserve. That means that you now will earn points at the new rates and you will be eligible for the card’s new coupons.
• After this date, the next time your annual fee comes due it will be at the new $795 rate. So, for example, if your annual fee comes due in September, you’ll be charged $550 in September 2025, and then you’ll be charged $795 in September of 2026.

Basics: Annual Fee, Point Earning & Redeeming

Annual Fee

• Primary Cardholder: $795
• Authorized Users: $195 each

Point Earning Rates

• 8x points on Chase Travel (replacing 5x on flights and 10x on hotels and car rentals)
• 5x on eligible Lyft purchases through 9/30/27
• 4x points on flights and hotels purchased direct (replacing 3x on all travel)
• 3x on dining worldwide, including eligible delivery
• 1x everywhere else (including on travel not included in the bonus categories above)

Point Redemption Value

• Up to 2 cents per point for Points Boosts via Chase Travel
• 1x on Chase Travel for purchases not eligible for Points Boost (replacing 1.5x on Chase Travel)

Product Change Opportunity

If you have a Chase Sapphire Preferred, Sapphire, or Freedom card with a cardmember date late in the year but no later than October 26th (August, September or early October would be ideal!), it’s worth considering whether you should product change to the Sapphire Reserve card before Monday June 23rd. That way, you would lock in the current $550 annual fee and 1.5x redemptions, while also getting access to all of the card’s new coupons starting October 26th. This can make sense if you highly value a number of the card’s new coupons.

New Sapphire Reserve vs. Previous Sapphire Reserve

The table below shows a side by side comparison of the new card details vs the pre-June-23rd-2025 version. Cells shaded green indicate where one version or the other was better.

Coupons and Features Explained

New coupons & features

Here are details about the card’s new features:

• Points Boost: This replaces the ability to earn 1.5x for all travel booked through Chase Travel. Instead, you’ll get 1 cent per point value with most travel, or up to 2 cents per point value for travel with Points Boost offers. We’ve been told that all hotels available through The Edit will have 2x Points Boosts. More details about Points Boosts can be found here: Chase Travel portal ending 1.5c & 1.25c redemptions, replacing with Points Boost.
• Free Subscription to Apple TV+ and Apple Music: This is not a rebate. Instead, there will be a way to enable a free subscription as long as you have a valid Sapphire Reserve card.
• Reserve Travel Designers: Appears to be a new name for travel agents as far as I can tell.
• Sapphire Reserve Exclusive Tables: A curated selection of high-end restaurants available through a special version of Open Table. You do NOT need to make a reservation or pay through Chase or Open Table in order to earn the $150 rebate every 6 months (from January through June and again from July through December). Simply use your card at one of the restaurants listed on this platform. You can find eligible restaurants here: opentable.com/c/chasedining.
• The Edit credit: The Edit is a curated list of high-end hotels and resorts. When you book through The Edit, you get benefits like $100 property credit, daily breakfast for two, room upgrades, etc. With the new Sapphire Reserve card, you can get up to $250 in statement credits every 6 months (from January through June and again from July through December) for prepaid bookings made with The Edit. Two-night minimum. Purchases that qualify will not earn points.
• StubHub & viagogo credit: Get up to $150 in statement credits every 6 months (January through June and again from July through December) for StubHub and viagogo purchases. Activation required.
• Peloton credit: Get up to $10 per month back on eligible Peloton All-Access Membership, Rental, App+, Guide, App One and Strength+ memberships through 12/31/27. Activation required.
• $75K spend benefits: Once you spend $75,000 within a calendar year, the following benefits are available for the rest of that calendar year and all of the next:
  • IHG One Rewards Diamond Elite Status
  • $500 Southwest Airlines Chase Travel credit (credits automatically applied when booking Southwest flights through Chase Travel)
  • Southwest Airlines A-List Status
  • $250 Credit for The Shops at Chase

Current & continuing coupons and features

In addition to the new coupons/benefits described above, the following continue as-is from the current Sapphire Reserve:

• $300 annual travel credit: Get $300 back each membership year for any travel spend. Qualifying spend does not earn points.
• DashPass + Monthly DoorDash benefits: Cardholders get complimentary DashPass membership for 12 months when activated by 12/31/27 and access to one monthly $5 restaurant promo and two $10 promos for non-restaurant orders. These coupons must be applied at checkout when placing an order and require using your Sapphire Reserve for Business card and that it is enrolled in DashPass. Monthly promos expire each month if unused.
• Lyft benefits: $10 monthly in-app Lyft discounts, plus earn 5x on Lyft through 9/30/27

New Sapphire Reserve Pros and Cons

Pros

• Existing cardholders get the best of both worlds for an extended period of time
• Annual $300 travel credit remains as-is
• Earning rate for flights & hotels increased from 3x to 4x
• Chase Travel earning rate at 8x across the board (increase for flights, tours, activities, cruises, etc.)
• Points Boost offers a way to sometimes get better than 1.5 cents per point value through Chase Travel
• Many potentially valuable perks/credits added: free Apple TV+, free Apple Music, The Edit rebate, Sapphire Reserve Tables rebate, StubHub rebate, etc.
• Sapphire Reserve Tables dining credit will work like Amex Resy: you don’t have to book or pay through Chase to earn the credit.
• Free IHG Platinum Elite status through 12/31/27

Cons

• Annual fee increased by $245 (from $550 to $795)
• Authorized user fee increased by $120 (from $75 to $195)
• New card loses the ability to earn 3x on all travel spend
• New card loses the guaranteed 1.5 cents per point value through Chase Travel
• The Edit $250 per 6 months credit requires a minimum 2 night stay
• Perks after $75K spend are new but lackluster

New Sapphire Reserve vs. Sapphire Reserve for Business

We will separately publish a full post about the Sapphire Reserve for Business card, but for now, here’s a side-by-side comparison:

My Thoughts

I find the new Sapphire Reserve card disappointing. When the card first launched, it was an excellent choice for almost anyone who traveled often. When they raised the annual fee to $550, it still made sense for anyone who was okay with the $250 net annual fee after considering the annual $300 travel rebate. With the new $795 price-point, things have changed. I can’t recommend the card to as many people any more. Instead, I would recommend it only to people who can make good use of the card’s new coupons and don’t mind making sure that they do so. Don’t get me wrong: there are undoubtedly plenty of people who will do well with the new card. I especially think that people who spend a lot on hotels can do really well by taking advantage of Chase’s luxury hotel collection, The Edit, where cardholders can get both 2 cents per point value when redeeming rewards, and up to $500 back per year when paying by card.

Take my own situation, for example. While I hate having more coupons to worry about, there are some here that will be easy or fun for me to use:

• $300 travel rebate: I’ve always used this automatically without even thinking about it.
• Free Subscription to Apple TV+: That will automatically save me $9.95 per month.
• Sapphire Reserve Exclusive Tables $150 per 6 months: This one won’t be automatic for me, but I’m excited about it because there are lots of restaurants on the list that I’ve been eager to try. This will force me to have a great dinner twice a year. I’m good with that!
• The Edit $250 per 6 months: I don’t expect to use this every 6 months, but I think it’s likely that I’ll use it at least once per year. That’s because this overlaps very nicely with the ability to get 2 cents per point value at The Edit hotels via Chase Travel. When the stars align to where I can redeem points for The Edit, I should be able to pay mostly with points and $250 with my credit card. That way, I’ll get very good value for the points redeemed and I’ll get $250 off the price.
• Lyft $10 discount per month: I don’t use Lyft every month, but I use it often enough to expect to get at least $50 per year in savings.
• StubHub $150 per 6 months: I rarely use StubHub but it could be a fun excuse to go to a free or heavily discounted event every 6 months.

The above rebates add up to significantly more than the card’s new annual fee, so I can imagine keeping the card long term so that I can continue to take advantage of its best-in-class travel protections and excellent airfare and hotel earning rates. That said, I don’t expect that everyone (anyone?) will have the same reaction to the rebates as I do. My bet is that this will actually be a bad deal for many. Each person should do the math to figure out whether the card makes sense for them.

The other issue worth discussing is the loss of 3x for all travel spend. I kept the Sapphire Reserve card for many years because it was my easy go-to card for all travel spend. Not only did it earn 3x but it also offered great travel protections. That was a great combination.

The new version of the Sapphire Reserve card preserves the same great travel protections, and increases point earnings on airfare and hotels. But for other travel not booked through Chase, the card earns only 1x. That’s really not good at all. I have other cards I can turn to for these other purchases (the Chase Ink Business Preferred, for example, is a great option for 3x travel), but I’ll lose the simplicity of paying for all travel with a single card.

Anyway, as an existing cardholder I’m glad that I won’t have to pay the new annual fee until my next renewal date after October 26th. As luck would have it, I expect to get charged $550 on October 1. That’s awesome because I won’t get charged the new annual fee until October 1, 2026! So, I’ll have plenty of time with the new card benefits to decide if this card will remain a keeper for me.

The post Introducing the new couponified Chase Sapphire Reserve appeared first on Frequent Miler. Frequent Miler may receive compensation from CHASE. American Express, Capital One, or other partners.