When it was launched in 2016, the Chase Sapphire Reserve was a game changer for luxury travel cards. At $450, it was expensive, but when you factored in its benefits, it made financial sense for a lot of people. Since then, it’s become clear that Chase has lost money – hundreds of millions of dollars – on the card and that it hasn’t resulted in new customers for other products like they’d predicted.
Well in an effort to shore up the finances of the card, Chase has decided to raise the the annual fee from $450 to $550, while offering some new – albeit marginal – benefits.
Current benfits
Existing and new cardholders already receive a lot of benefits from the card, including:
- $300 travel credit, with no strings attached (*cough* Amex *cough*)
- 3x earning on all travel and dining purchases
- Ultimate Rewards points are worth 50% more for Sapphire cardholders, including points that users transfer in from their other Chase cards, like the Chase Ink Business Preferred
- TSA/Global Entry credit
- Priority Pass Select membership, which includes airport restaurants (unlike American Express)
What’s new
For new applicants (January 12, 2020 and beyond), the fee will start at $550. For current cardholders, the fee for this year will remain at $450 so long as it hits prior to April 1, 2020.
With the additional $100 fee, cardholders can expect to get:
- Lyft Pink Status
- $120 in DoorDash credits
What is Lyft Pink?
Lyft pink is a subscription service that Sapphire cardholders will now get for free. From Lyft’s website, benefits are:
- 15% off unlimited car rides
Save on every car ride you take — any time, anywhere. - Priority airport pickups
Get picked up faster at the airport when it’s busy. - Relaxed cancellations
We’ll cover three cancel fees per month if you rebook within 15 minutes. - Surprise offers
Get seasonal discounts and exclusive savings. - Waived lost and found fees
We’ll take care of the return fee every time. - Bikes and scooters
Enjoy 3 free 30-min. bike or scooter rides per month (in select markets).
Overall, this is a good service to get for free, especially if you already take Uber/Lyft with any frequency. Bonus points if you live in a city that has Lyft bikes and scooters (like we do in San Francisco).
DoorDash Door Pass
We all know food delivery is more popular than ever, so Chase is offering users a way to save money. Cardholders can now activate their DoorDash accounts using their Sapphire Reserve card in order to receive a complimentary 12 month DoorPass subscription. With the subscription, users won’t have to pay delivery fees on orders of $12 or more.
Overall thoughts
What I would’ve liked to have seen from Chase is some changes in the bonus categories and/or more transfer partners. Chase’s 3x earning for dining and travel is solid, but no longer industry leading. Amex offers 4x on groceries and dining with the American Express Gold card, while offering 5x for Platinum cardholders that book flights directly through their travel portal. The Citi Prestige – Citi’s top card – offers 5x earning on the same air travel and dining categories as the Sapphire Reserve (the caveat being hotels are 3x). Further, with the loss of Korean Air last year as a transfer partner, Ultimate Rewards could use a shakeup, though I still find a lot of value with United and Hyatt transfers. I’d also like to see Chase do transfer bonuses like Amex.
Chase upping the annual fee felt inevitable given the fact they’re losing money on it, not to mention other premium cards are already over the $500 annual fee (Amex Platinum is $550). With that said, these new perks won’t offset the fee increase for a lot of people. The perks feel like they’re aimed at a certain type of customer that lives a certain type of life (a millennial living in an urban area without a car). Personally, I’ll get plenty of benefit out of the Lyft Pink membership, but I really don’t use food delivery that often (why do I want to pay for soggy, lukewarm food?). I imagine many will look at cancelling or downgrading their card to the Chase Sapphire Preferred card.
