Chase Sapphire Reserve vs. Sapphire Preferred vs. Amex Platinum (2026)

Last updated: October 13, 2026. This page now covers the whole Sapphire family against the Amex Platinum; my 2020 comparisons and the 2013 Preferred vs. Arrival post are kept below.

Quick Take

• For most people the question is whether the Reserve is worth $700 more than the Sapphire Preferred ($95), which already has primary rental car coverage, 5x on Chase Travel, flexible points and, since June 2026, a $100 hotel credit. The catch is that the Preferred’s Hyatt transfers are now 4:3.
• The Sapphire Reserve ($795) is only worth it if you already spend on what its credits cover (The Edit, OpenTable, StubHub, DoorDash, Lyft, Peloton); it adds lounge access and keeps 1:1 Hyatt transfers.
• The Amex Platinum ($895) has the most lounge options of the three plus Hilton and Marriott Gold, but most of its value comes as monthly, quarterly and semi-annual credits, its rental coverage is secondary, and its trip delay coverage needs the round trip on the card.
• Since January 2026 you can earn each Sapphire card’s bonus once, even while holding the other.
• Where I’ve landed before: in 2020 I preferred the Reserve over the Platinum for its simpler credits and better travel coverage, and after the 2025 refresh I wrote that I was underwhelmed by the new Reserve.

The Three Cards Side by Side (October 2026)

	Sapphire Reserve	Sapphire Preferred	Amex Platinum
Annual fee	$795 ($195 per authorized user)	$95	$895 ($195 per additional Platinum card)
Earning	8x Chase Travel; 4x flights and hotels booked direct; 3x dining; 1x else	5x Chase Travel; 3x dining, gas/EV, vacation rentals, streaming, online grocery; 2x other travel; 1x else	5x flights booked direct or via Amex Travel (up to $500k a year); 5x prepaid hotels via Amex Travel; 1x else
Biggest credits	$300 travel; up to $500 The Edit; $300 dining (OpenTable Exclusive Tables); $300 StubHub; DoorDash, Lyft, Peloton and Apple subscriptions	$100 hotel credit through Chase Travel; $120 Global Entry/TSA PreCheck/NEXUS every 4 years	$600 FHR/Hotel Collection; $400 Resy; $300 digital entertainment; $300 lululemon; $300 Equinox; $200 airline fee; $200 Uber Cash + $120 Uber One; $219 CLEAR+; $200 Oura; $155 Walmart+
Lounges	Priority Pass and Chase Sapphire Lounges (2 guests)	None	Centurion, Priority Pass, 10 Delta Sky Club visits a year on Delta flights
Hotel status	IHG Platinum (through 2027)	None	Hilton Gold, Marriott Gold
Rental car coverage	Primary, up to $75,000	Primary, up to $60,000	Secondary
Trip delay	After 6 hours, up to $500	After 12 hours, up to $500	After 6 hours, up to $500; round trip must be paid with the card
Hyatt transfers	1:1	4:3 (4 Chase points = 3 Hyatt points)	Not a transfer partner

Sources: Chase Sapphire Reserve page, Chase Sapphire Preferred page, Amex Platinum page, and Doctor of Credit on the Hyatt ratio. Delta Sky Club visits reset every February 1, and one visit covers 24 hours (The Points Guy).

Quick Answers

What Changed in 2025 and 2026

• Reserve refresh (2025): the fee went to $795 and the credits moved toward dining, tickets and delivery; my post on the refresh covers each one. Doctor of Credit reports that points earned before October 26, 2025 keep their 1.5-cent Chase Travel value until October 2027 (Doctor of Credit); newer points are worth 1 cent, or up to 2 cents with Points Boost.
• Platinum refresh (September 2025): the fee went to $895 with a new set of credits, and the $100 Saks credit ended for existing cardholders on July 1, 2026 (Doctor of Credit).
• Preferred refresh (June 15, 2026): same $95 fee, hotel credit doubled to $100, 3x on gas/EV and vacation rentals, a Global Entry/TSA PreCheck credit, and emergency evacuation coverage; on the other side, Hyatt transfers dropped to 4:3 and the 10% anniversary bonus ended (Doctor of Credit, Frequent Miler).
• Sapphire bonus rule (January 25, 2026): one bonus per Sapphire card, rather than one across both cards every 48 months, per a Chase memo (Doctor of Credit). Doctor of Credit’s readers report the “lifetime” may reset after many years, but nothing is confirmed.

My 2020 Comparison: Sapphire Reserve vs. Amex Platinum

Originally published January 18, 2020. October 2026: every fee, credit and earning rate below is from January 2020; the table at the top has today’s numbers. The 48-month Sapphire bonus rule mentioned at the end was replaced in January 2026.

IMPORTANT: I DO NOT sell credit cards as an affiliate marketer! That means you can trust everything I say because I’m not getting paid by the banks I discuss. Ask other reviewers if they have the same policy! (hint: most don’t)

You’ve likely heard that Chase has made significant changes to the most popular travel card around, the Sapphire Reserve card. These changes are not small, and include:

• An increase in the annual fee from $450 to $550
• The addition of a $60 DoorDash credit in 2020 and 2021, plus a DashPass membership (free delivery and reduced service fees on select restaurants)
• The addition of the ability to earn 10x points on all Lyft spend through March 2022, plus a Lyft Pink Membership (valid for 1 year, primary benefit of 15% off all rides)

If you haven’t heard about these changes and would like to learn more, I made a YouTube video going over all the details. You can see that video below:

These changes have caused many people, including myself, to question the value of the Chase Sapphire Reserve in light of these changes. And really, this is the perfect time to assess your spending and your usage of these benefits. You can determine which cards are worth keeping or not by doing so, and I recommend making this an annual exercise to avoid spending extra money on credit card fees.

With that in mind, I know it can be difficult to compare benefits between the two major premium cards, the Sapphire Reserve and the American Express Platinum card (note that Citi has largely nuked their benefits and their cards are not something I recommend except for specific circumstances). This post will compare benefits between these two cards so you can see which is more valuable or useful to you (again, evaluate your prior/future spending so you can determine what makes sense for you).

I also made a video on this comparison as well – you can check that out if you prefer that (might be useful to listen to while driving, for example):

Annual Fee

Chase Sapphire Reserve: $550

Amex Platinum: $550

Analysis/Summary: The easiest one to compare is also the least useful, as the benefits are really what we’re after. At least we have an easy starting point with Chase recently matching the $550 that Amex has long charged for the Platinum Card

Foreign Transaction Fee

Chase Sapphire Reserve: None

American Express Platinum: None

Transfer Partners & Redeeming Points

Chase Sapphire Reserve:

Transfer partners, ratios, and transfer times:

Ultimate Rewards Transfer Partner	Transfer Ratio	Transfer Time
Aer Lingus Aer Club	1000 : 1000	Instant
Air France / KLM FlyingBlue	1000 : 1000	Instant
British Airways Executive Club	1000 : 1000	Instant
Emirates Skywards	1000 : 1000	Instant
Iberia Plus	1000 : 1000	Instant
JetBlue TrueBlue	1000 : 1000	Instant
Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer	1000 : 1000	~ 1 to 2 days
Southwest Rapid Rewards	1000 : 1000	Instant
United MileagePlus	1000 : 1000	Instant
Virgin Atlantic Flying Club	1000 : 1000	Instant
IHG Rewards Club	1000 : 1000	Instant
Marriott Bonvoy	1000 : 1000	~ 1 to 2 days
World Of Hyatt	1000 : 1000	Instant

Additionally, you can redeem points for 1.5 cents per point on the Ultimate Rewards Travel Portal

American Express Platinum:

Membership Rewards Transfer Partner	Transfer Ratio	Transfer Time
Aer Lingus AerClub	1000 : 1000	Instant
Aeromexico Club Premier	1000 : 1600	~ 4 to 5 days
Air Canada Aeroplan	1000 : 1000	Instant
Air France / KLM FlyingBlue	1000 : 1000	Instant
Alitalia MilleMiglia Club	1000 : 1000	Instant
ANA Mileage Club	1000 : 1000	~ 2 to 3 days
Avianca LifeMiles	1000 : 1000	Instant
British Airways Executive Club	1000 : 1000	Instant
Cathay Pacific Asia Miles	1000 : 1000	Instant
Delta SkyMiles	1000 : 1000	Instant
El Al Matmid	1000 : 20	Instant
Emirates Skywards	1000 : 1000	Instant
Etihad Guest	1000 : 1000	Instant
Hawaiian HawaiianMiles	1000 : 1000	Instant
Iberia Plus	1000 : 1000	Up to 1 day
JetBlue TrueBlue	250 : 200	Instant
Qantas Frequent Flyer	1000 : 1000	Instant
Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer	1000 : 1000	~ 1 to 2 days
Virgin Atlantic Flying Club	1000 : 1000	Instant
Choice Privileges	1000 : 1000	Instant
Hilton Honors	1000 : 2000	Instant
Marriott Bonvoy	1000 : 1000	Instant

Additionally, you can redeem for 1 cent per point on the Amex Travel website.

Analysis/Summary: Long story short, it’s good to have points in both programs. You want the variety and flexibility. Chase is great because of unique programs like Hyatt and Southwest. Amex has a large variety including useful programs like Aeroplan and ANA.

Travel Credits

Chase Sapphire Reserve: $300 credit for any spending on ” airlines, hotels, motels, timeshares, campgrounds, car rental agencies, cruise lines, travel agencies, discount travel sites, and operators of passenger trains, buses, taxis, limousines, ferries, toll bridges and highways, and parking lots and garages.“

Amex Platinum: $200 Airline Fee credit. You have to select an airline from a list of US carriers soon after you get the card and can only change it in January. Airfare is NOT covered, but here are examples of items that generally are covered:

• Checked bag and Overweight/oversize bag fees
• Change fees
• Phone reservation fees
• Pet flight fees
• Airport lounge day passes and annual memberships
• Seat assignment fees
• In-flight fees (beverages, food, pillows/blankets, entertainment (excluding wireless internet))

Analysis/Summary: This is where it starts for Amex. They make it difficult in hopes that you do not use this benefit. Why do they do this? It’s a business principal called “breakage” where essentially they’re hoping you don’t use them so they end up with a profit. They make it hard to use by restricting its usage to certain items, things that you would normally get if you have status with a particular airline anyway. Very customer unfriendly.

Chase, on the other hand, makes it simple AND gives you more credits. The Sapphire Reserve offers $300 to use in a broad number of categories. There’s no doubt this is superior.

Lounge Access

Chase Sapphire Reserve: Priority Pass Select + Priority Pass Restaurants

American Express Platinum: Priority Pass Select + Delta Sky Club Lounges (only for primary cardholder that has a Delta ticket) + Amex Centurion Lounges + Airspace Lounges + Escape Lounges

Analysis/Summary: This one will depend on where you live, how you travel, and which benefits you prefer. Personally, I prefer having the money to spend at Priority Pass Restaurants. While Amex offers Delta lounge access, you have to be flying with Delta and do not get to bring a companion for free, so this would make a lot of sense if you live in a Delta hub city and travel frequently (their lounges are generally quite nice). Amex also offers Centurion Lounge access, which are nice lounges with good food, but can also be crowded at times and are still limited in number.

Shopping / Other Credits

Chase Sapphire Reserve: $60 DoorDash credit in 2020 and 2021 + DashPass Membership

American Express Platinum: $100 ($50 Jan-Jun + $50 Jul-Dec) credit to Saks Fifth Avenue

Analysis/Summary: This can be tough to compare. If you use DoorDash or other food delivery services often, the $60 credit is obviously useful. If you don’t, you’ll find that DoorDash often charges more for food (before any other fees) than you would get charged from a restaurant directly.

Amex offers a $100 credit to a high end fashion store, similar to a Nordstrom or Bloomingdales. And again, they make it difficult by giving the credit in two $50 increments in hopes that you forget to use one or both.

To me, food is universal and more valuable, but $100 is more than $60. Your spending habits will determine which is more valuable to you

Ridesharing Benefits

Chase Sapphire Reserve: 15% off all Lyft rides + other benefits with the Lyft Pink Membership (valid only 12 months from date of registration), plus 10x on all Lyft spend

American Express Platinum: $200 credit to Uber ($15/month credit and $35 in December). Credits do not rollover.

Analysis/Summary: Oh look, Amex is hoping you don’t use your credits again! A $200 credit is fantastic in theory, but only if you can make use of it every month. The best thing about it is that Uber Eats counts for the spend, so that should make it more useful.

I prefer the way Chase does things by giving a straight 15% discount (plus 10x points) because it’s more straightforward and easier to understand. But if you are one of those people that use ridesharing services regularly, you’d have to spend $1300+ on Lyft to get the same $200 value offered by the Amex Platinum.

Again, if you analyze your spending patterns you’ll be able to easily determine which will save you more money.

Bonus Point Categories

Chase Sapphire Reserve: 3x on travel (same categories mentioned above) and 3x on restaurants; 1x everywhere else

American Express Platinum: 5x on Airfare booked directly with the airline and 5x on anything booked on Amextravel.com; 1x everywhere else.

Analysis/Summary: Travel and dining is where I spend a lot of my money, and earning 3x is pretty good. Other cards do offer more, so this one could require some thought as to what type of points you want to earn.

Amex offers 5x on the two categories mentioned above, but as you’ll see below, there are significant travel benefits that Amex may not provide you if you book travel with them. I even wrote a post about this when I opted for Amex’s 5x but got burned by the lack of benefits. Even with the new benefits added this year, I likely would not have been covered on that booking. For this reason, I would prefer booking my airfare with Chase.

Free Elite Status

Chase Sapphire Reserve: Emerald Club Executive Elite status with National Car Rental

American Express Platinum: Hilton Honors Gold status, Marriott Bonvoy Gold status, Emerald Club Executive Elite status with National Car Rental

Analysis/Summary: No doubt about it, Amex comes out ahead here. Hilton Gold status is the big benefit since it comes with free breakfast at nearly every Hilton hotel. Marriott status isn’t what it used to be but is still better to have than not. Chase offers only the National Car Rental status, which Amex also provides.

Rental Car Insurance Coverage

Chase Sapphire Reserve: Primary Coverage

American Express Platinum: Secondary Coverage

Analysis/Summary: This one is easy. If you book rental cars a lot, the Chase Sapphire Reserve card is the one you want to use.

Trip Delay/Interruption Coverage

This one requires getting into the nitty-gritty details, so I’ll do this one a little differently.

Booking Restriction for Coverage to Apply

Chase Sapphire Reserve: None, just pay for a part of your airfare with your card.

American Express Platinum: Must be a round-trip, one-way, or combinations of round-trip and one-way tickets booked with your card. Huh?

Analysis/Summary: So remember all those benefits I mentioned above where Amex is hoping you don’t use them? The way Amex describes when the benefit applies sounds like Amex just hoping they can screw you over.

Other bloggers have asked for clarification and were given an example of an open jaw that would be covered: New York to London, then Paris to New York. That’s covered. My question is…what if you flew out of JFK and flew back in to EWR? One is New York, and one is technically New Jersey.

For me, I often fly out of LAX and back in to SNA or vice versa. Different cities. Are they covered? I wrote a post about not being covered by Amex Platinum on a similar scenario. That was a hodgepodge of a trip that I booked, with multiple awards, cities, and paid tickets. Multiple one ways. I wasn’t covered under the old rules (there was no coverage at the time), but I don’t think I’d be covered under the new rules either.

But with Chase, I can rest easy that I’m covered no matter what. So even though Amex offers 5x on airfare, I would much rather book with a card that offers better coverage. That happens to include the Sapphire Reserve.

Delay Required for Coverage to Apply

Chase Sapphire Reserve: 6 Hours

American Express Platinum: 6 Hours

Food & Lodging Coverage Provided

Chase Sapphire Reserve: Up to $500

American Express Platinum: Up to $500

Bag Delay Coverage

Chase Sapphire Reserve: Yes, $100/day

American Express Platinum: Not offered

Lost Bag Coverage

Chase Sapphire Reserve: Yes, up to $3k

American Express Platinum: Yes, up to $3k

Analysis/Summary: These last few items were mostly similar, except that Chase Sapphire Reserve offers Bag Delay Coverage where Amex Platinum Does not. So again, to me it’s a no-brainer to book airfare with Chase Sapphire Reserve (at least among these two options)

Global Entry / Pre-check Credit

Chase Sapphire Reserve: Full rebate every 4 years

American Express Platinum: Full rebate every 4 years

Analysis/Summary: This benefit is also offered by a myriad of other cards now, so this shouldn’t be a deciding factor anyway.

Extended Warranty

Chase Sapphire Reserve: 1 additional year on warranties 3 years or less

American Express Platinum: 1 additional year on warranties 5 years or less

Analysis/Summary: Similar coverage, but Amex wins if this matters to you.

Purchase Protection

Chase Sapphire Reserve: 120 days coverage for items lost, damaged, or stolen up to $10k/item and $50k/year

American Express Platinum: 90 days coverage for items lost, damaged, or stolen up to $10k/item and $50k/year

Analysis/Summary: Similar coverage, but Chase wins if this matters to you.

Return Protection

Chase Sapphire Reserve: 90 days and up to $500/item up to $1k/year

American Express Platinum: 90 days and up to $300/item up to $1k/year

Analysis/Summary: Similar coverage, but Chase wins if this matters to you.

Roadside Assistance

Chase Sapphire Reserve: Yes, provides coverage for on the road breakdowns such as battery boost, flat tire service, fuel delivery, towing, and lockout assistance up to $50/event and 4 events per year

American Express Platinum: Not offered.

Analysis/Summary: Amex used to offer this but did away with it because, according to them, less than 1% of people used it. I think that’s kind of the point of this benefit…that it’s a coverage in case of emergencies that don’t happen very often. Chase wins again.

Trip Accident Coverage & Emergency Medical / Dental / Evacuation

This is complicated to compare because there are caveats and certain ways of booking and certain events that are covered that are beyond the scope of this post. If this is of interest to you, I recommend reading the detailed benefits guide for each card directly.

Summary & Final Thoughts

Again, it’s hard to compare when the benefits offered are so different. For me, I just hate the way Amex does business. That doesn’t mean the card isn’t useful, of course, but between that and the additional coverage (car rental and trip delay coverage), I prefer the Sapphire Reserve.

Still, I’m taking a hard look into whether or not I’m going to keep the card once my annual fee comes due later this year. I may cancel regardless since I’m coming up on the 48 month bonus rule (only one Sapphire bonus allowed per 48 months). I may cancel and sign up for the Sapphire preferred at that point, then try to product change back to the Sapphire Reserve.

Which card has more useful benefits for you?

Sapphire Reserve vs. Preferred (January 2020)

Originally published January 22, 2020 as “How to Decide Between the Chase Sapphire Reserve and Preferred”. October 2026: the fees are now $795 and $95, the Preferred earns 3x on dining and 5x on Chase Travel, the Reserve’s DoorDash and Lyft credits are different, and the 48-month bonus rule no longer applies.

Chase confirmed rumors earlier this month that there were going to be significant changes to the “King” of US travel credit cards, the Chase Sapphire Reserve card. These changes include the following:

• An increase in the annual fee from $450 to $550
• The addition of a $60 DoorDash credit in 2020 and 2021, plus a DashPass membership (free delivery and reduced service fees on select restaurants)
• The addition of the ability to earn 10x points on all Lyft spend through March 2022, plus a Lyft Pink Membership (valid for 1 year, primary benefit of 15% off all rides)

Update: Video to accompany this post below.

The initial reaction is always negative to changes like this. I saw a lot of comments around the internet that they’re switching back to the Amex Platinum card. Before you do that, I recommend you check out my last post where I did a detailed comparison between the two cards to see which is actually better for you.

The Sapphire Reserve was largely considered to be one of the most valuable cards for the many benefits it provides. Included in those benefits are an easy-to-use $300 travel credit, Priority Pass Select Lounge access (including restaurant credits), 3x points on Travel/Dining purchases, Primary rental car insurance coverage, and a slew of other travel/purchase protections.

Those that travel regularly, which should be the only people getting this type of card, point out that the $300 travel credit is “money that would have been spent on travel anyway” and so the annual fee could have been thought of as being $450 – $300 = $150. All those other benefits I mentioned (plus several others), then, were for an adjusted cost of $150. Compared to the Sapphire Preferred fee of $95, the $55 is a massive deal for someone that books flights/travel, wants to use lounges, and/or gets rental cars even a couple of times per year.

The $100 increase in the annual fee changes that calculation, and for many people, significantly so. While new benefits were added, they are not ones that can be considered “money that would have been spent anyway” like the travel credit is. They are simply not as universal of expenditures. So doing the math on whether the extra $100 is worth its isn’t as simple.

For the last several years, whenever someone asked me for my opinion of the best credit card to get, my go-to response was the Chase Sapphire Reserve. Sure, a complicated discussion and question process could reveal a more valuable card for someones specific spending/travel preferences, but you would have been hard pressed to find a traveler that would go wrong by getting the CSR.

Unfortunately it is not as simple anymore, and in fact it’s complicated enough that I decided to write this post. Whether you’re getting one of these cards for the first time or are deciding on which one to keep going forward, here are the factors to consider:

Sign Up Bonus

If you don’t have either card or haven’t signed up for either in the last 48 months, this section will matter. The sign up bonus for the Chase Sapphire Preferred card is, as of the date this article was posted, 60,000 after $4k spend in 3 months. The Sapphire Reserve offers 50,000 points after the same spending. So right off the bat, the extra 10k points is better.

There is an argument for the value of those points. The CSR has a built-in minimum value of 1.5 cents per point if you redeem through Chase’s Ultimate Rewards portal. The Sapphire Preferred has a built-in minimum value of 1.25 cents per point. If you look at the value from the perspective of Ultimate Rewards portal redemptions, then each sign-up bonus is worth $750.

But most of us know that you generally get better value by transferring those points to a travel partner like United, Virgin Atlantic, Singapore Airlines, Hyatt, or the several other partners Chase has. I use my points almost exclusively for this purpose, only booking through the Ultimate Rewards portal about once a year for specific purposes like mistake fares or the rare occasion where 1.5 cents yields better value than transferring would (often extremely cheap economy fares).

Because I consider the transferable nature of the points to be their main source of value, I simply give the edge to the card that gives more points. Currently, that’s the Chase Sapphire Preferred. You can always product change to the Sapphire Reserve down the road.

The Benefits

If you’re deciding on whether to keep the CSR or downgrade, this section matters most. I’ve tried to simplify this as much as possible to avoid getting into details that aren’t as significant, while also covering the ones that are.

The benefits that the two cards offer are extremely similar, with one major caveat. Here are the significant benefits that are the same between the Sapphire Preferred and Sapphire Reserve:

• Primary Car Rental Coverage
• Travel / Delay Coverage (see note below)
• Purchase Protections / Extended Warranty
• No foreign transaction fees

The major benefits that are different are:

• No Lounge access with CSP
• Trip Delay coverage kicks in at 12 hours with CSP vs 6 hours with CSR
• Earn 2x travel/dining with CSP instead of 3x with CSR
• CSP does not offer the credit for DoorDash or most Lyft benefits of the CSR

This is really where each person decides which card is more valuable to them. You still get Primary rental car coverage, which is huge in my book. Almost all of the travel/purchase protections are the same on both cards, with the exception of the 6 hours vs 12 hour delay requirement.

I don’t see the points earning as a problem. I earn 4x on dining on the Amex Gold card so that’s where all that spend goes, anyway (a card I recommend for most people btw). Airfare and car rentals will always be booked on my Sapphire because of the coverage described above, so that’s where the 2x vs 3x comes into play. Personally, much of my airfare/hotel spend is with points anyway (and I hope yours is as well if you’re reading this blog and others like it), so award travel taxes/fees are the main source of that expenditure. It won’t be a ton of spend unless you either have a ton of points or are fortunate enough to travel extremely frequently (a beginner generally fits neither).

The Lounge access is by far the most significant loss, as no lounge access is included with the Sapphire Preferred. I generally use my points/miles for international Business Class flights, where lounge access is almost always included. If you will be traveling like this, it’s not a big loss in my opinion.

If you travel in economy or just enjoy lounge-hopping, I can offer a frugal alternative: the Amex Hilton Surpass card offers 10 Priority Pass Lounge entries per year for its annual fee of $95/year. That might do the trick if you’re keeping an eye on how much you spend on annual fees and only take two or three trips per year.

Breaking It Down

Here’s how I break down the differences to come to my conclusion:

Chase Sapphire Reserve: $550 annual fee minus $300 travel credit (“money you would have spent anyway”) = $250 adjusted annual fee. For $250 you’ll get the lounge access, $60 in DoorDash credit, Lyft discounts, and Trip Delay coverage starts at 6 hours instead of 12 hours.

Chase Sapphire Preferred: $95 annual fee gets you similar coverage but no lounge access or credits/discounts.

The effective difference in the annual fee is the $250 for the CSR minus the $95 for the CSP = $155. What this comes down to, in my opinion, is simply do you value the below items at $155 or more:

• Lounge Access (including restaurants)
• $60 DoorDash credit + other benefits
• Lyft benefits
• 6 hour trip delay coverage vs 12 hours with Sapphire Preferred
• The ability to use the Ultimate Rewards portal for 1.5 cents per point vs 1.25 with Sapphire Preferred
• 3x points on travel vs 2x with Sapphire Preferred

I know people that use DoorDash regularly, so the $60 credit is as good as the travel credit to them. The $155 reduces further to $95 if you’re one of those people. I know people that easily spend $500 on ride sharing apps each year, and with the 15% discount that’s an additional discount of $75, reducing the effective annual fee for the CSR to just $20. That becomes a no-brainer for lounge access and the other items.

If you never use DoorDash or ridesharing apps, you’ll need to do some additional thinking or calculations.

Summary

Deciding between the Chase Sapphire Reserve and Preferred cards is more complicated than it used to be. In my opinion, it simply breaks down to whether you think the added Lounge Access, $60 DoorDash credits, Lyft benefits, and 6 hour trip delay coverage that the CSR offers is worth $155. If it is, that’s the card for you. If not, maybe the Sapphire Preferred is more appropriate.

For beginners, I think the CSP might be a better option since it comes with 60k points right now vs just 50k with the CSR.

For those that have been doing this for a while, we’re coming up on 48 months with the Chase Sapphire Reserve card in late 2020. While that’s a long time from now, here’s what my plan is as of today: I plan on using as many of the new CSR benefits as I can before it renews at $550 towards the end of this year. Once I know I’m clear of the 48 month hurdle, I’ll apply for the CSP to get the 60k point bonus (assuming it’s still around). Then at some point in the future, I’ll product change back to the CSR.

What is your plan given these changes to the Chase Sapphire Reserve card?

IMPORTANT: I DO NOT sell credit cards as an affiliate marketer! That means you can trust everything I say because I’m not getting paid by the banks I discuss. Ask other reviewers if they have the same policy! (hint: most don’t)

My Strategy for Canceling the Sapphire Reserve (September 2020)

Originally published September 29, 2020. October 2026: the 48-month rule this strategy was built around is gone (since January 2026 it’s one bonus per Sapphire card), and the bonus and referral amounts are from 2020.

Is it time to consider canceling the Chase Sapphire Reserve card? It’s been just over four full years since the CSR was launched with a massive 100k point bonus. In my opinion, that remains one of the best bonuses we’ve ever seen. The card itself has also been quite useful with good benefits and points transfer partners, so it’s one of the few cards I’ve actually carried in my wallet all four years.

But…we play the points game to maximize our earning. Sometimes that means letting go of a card we value for the “greater good” of earning more points/benefits. Chase has tried to make it tough on us by introducing the 5/24 rule and restricting Sapphire card bonuses to once every 48 months, but the 48 month restriction is starting to expire for many of us early adopters of the CSR.

That means we need to strategize on how to earn the most points and benefits (or even strategize to lower your annual fees). These analyses are usually very personal since we don’t all travel the same way or value the same things (or have the same current credit cards), but I still find it useful to hear others’ strategies because it can help me consider things I might not have before. Here’s what my thought process is.

Who is Eligible for a New Sapphire Bonus?

First let’s make sure we’re all on the same page. To be eligible for another Sapphire card bonus, you must:

1. Not currently have any Sapphire card
2. Be under 5/24 (see this post to find out if you are)
3. Not have received a card bonus on any Chase Sapphire product in the last 48 months

To expand on that last item, keep in mind that the 48 month clock starts on the day the last bonus was earned, and NOT the day of your approval. To be extra cautious, I recommend waiting a week or two extra if you have the time. Thankfully Chase’s online statements go back quite a ways, so I was easily able to see when the 100K bonus was earned back when I first got the Chase Sapphire Reserve card in 2016.

My Thought Process

I want to maximize the amount of Chase points I have, be able to maintain the ability to transfer points to travel partners, and possibly get the Chase Sapphire Reserve card again for it’s other benefits.

I currently have the following Chase cards:

• Old Chase Freedom
• Chase Freedom Unlimited
• Old Chase IHG
• World of Hyatt Card
• Chase Sapphire Reserve

Strategy For Singles / Individuals

There are different strategies for couples/partners and for individuals, so I’ll cover them separately.

If I were a bachelor, here’s what my plan would be:

1. Ensure I’ve used up the $300 travel credit and $60 DoorDash credits.
2. Transfer all of my Chase Sapphire Reserve points to one of my Freedom cards. That way I ensure I keep the points.
3. Cancel my Chase Sapphire Reserve card.
4. Once I’m sure I’m eligible for the new bonus, sign up for the Chase Sapphire Preferred card with the current 80k bonus (with a referral link from one lucky friend).
5. Once I’m under 5/24 again, I will apply for the new Chase Freedom Flex to earn the new 20K bonus.
6. After a year, possibly upgrade back to the Sapphire Reserve if I value those benefits enough (of course those benefits may change that far away).

This strategy will allow me to get the 80K points from the Chase Sapphire Preferred card almost immediately, which is important since I need it to be able to transfer points to travel partners. It also allows me to earn 20K points on the brand new Chase Freedom Flex card as well, for a total haul of 100K points.

And when the one year waiting period is up, I can reevaluate my credit card portfolio to see if I want to go back to the benefits of the Sapphire Reserve card. I did a very comprehensive comparison of the CSR vs. the American Express Platinum card earlier this year that may steer me one direction or another when it comes down to it.

Strategy For Couples / Partners (Two Player Mode)

I’ve been playing in two-player mode since I got married in 2016. That worked out perfectly for that 100K bonus. I’m not saying I got married to take advantage of earning extra points, but…

Anywho, the strategy is a bit different for two people because there are more possibilities to consider. Try to follow along in numerical order with the different players.

Player 1	Player 2
1. Downgrade Sapphire Reserve to Sapphire Preferred
2. Refer Player 2 to Sapphire Preferred to earn a referral bonus	3. Use referral link to get Sapphire Preferred with 80K bonus
4. Cancel Sapphire Preferred	5. Refer Player 1 to Sapphire Preferred to earn a referral bonus
6. Use referral link to get Sapphire Preferred with 80K bonus	7. Use existing Freedom card to Refer Player 1 to Freedom Flex
8. Use referral link to get Freedom Flex with 20K bonus
9. Use any Freedom card to Refer Player 2 to Freedom Flex	10. Use referral link to get Freedom Flex with 20K bonus

These steps are just as an example and can be done in a different order.

If it works, this strategy will allow Player 1 to earn: 15K Sapphire Preferred Referral bonus (Step 2), 80K Sapphire Preferred card sign-up bonus (Step 6), 20K Freedom Flex card sign-up bonus (Step 8), and a 10K Freedom Flex Referral bonus for a total of 125K points.

Player 2 will earn: 80K Sapphire Preferred sign-up bonus (Step 3), 15K Sapphire Preferred Referral bonus (Step 5), 10K Freedom Flex Referral bonus (Step 7), and a 20K Freedom Flex sign-up bonus for a total for a total of 125K points.

That’s a total haul of 250K points in 2 player mode. Theoretically, at least. There are a few risks.

Once Player 1 downgrades to the CSP card (Step 1), there’s no guarantee that the referral portal will provide a referral link (Step 2), at least not in a timely manner. The same would apply for Player 2 trying to generate one (Step 5). Additionally, Player 1 canceling the CSP card (Step 4) and then applying for the same card a few days/weeks later (Step 6) probably won’t endear anyone to Chase if a reconsideration call becomes necessary.

Bonus Strategy with A Lot Less Work

Both Player 1 and Player 2 in my household already have different Freedom products, so generating a new Freedom Flex referral isn’t a problem (a cardholder of any Freedom card can refer anyone to either the Freedom Flex or Freedom Unlimited). That means that each of us could simply:

1. Cancel our Chase Sapphire Reserve cards
2. Refer the other to the Freedom Flex (10K Referral bonus)
3. Sign up for the Freedom Flex (20K sign-up bonus)
4. Sign up for the Sapphire Preferred (80K sign-up bonus)

And we’d still earn a total of 220K points, or 30K less than the many-step process noted above. Is the extra 30k points worth the hassle and risk?

The other downside here is having to cancel the CSR card, which is a card with 4 years of solid history on our credit reports. For some people, canceling a credit line with 4 years of history may negatively impact their credit. Also don’t forget it’s probably best to move your credit line to another card before canceling it so your credit report isn’t impacted that way as well.

Final Thoughts

There’s no right answer here, but keep in mind there are wrong answers. Don’t leave points on the table because you impulsively want to cancel/change/apply to a card without putting any thought into it.

Often times, I find that people are just a few points short of being able to book a trip they want and feel regret for not taking advantage of an earlier deal. Moments like these, where you just need to set aside a few minutes to think through your strategy, will at worst help you avoid that feeling of regret, and at best can help you ensure you have enough points for your trip.

So…what’s your strategy?

Sapphire Preferred vs. Barclaycard Arrival (December 2013)

Originally published December 9, 2013 as “After the Devaluations: Choosing Between the Sapphire Preferred and BarclayCard Arrival”. October 2026: the Arrival cards closed to new applicants in 2019 (NerdWallet), and every earning rate below is from 2013.

There were a lot of angry people after the recent United and Hyatt devaluations since it also decreased the transfer value of Chase Ultimate Rewards points. This prompted many people, including myself temporarily, to shun the use of the Sapphire Preferred card in favor of other cards. After all, Ultimate Rewards points had been watered down pretty heavily (who would want to spend so much money to earn 160K points just to get one round trip Business Class flight to Asia?) while the Barclay’s Arrival card provides the best cash back rate at 2.22% on all purchases.

Many people switched to the Arrival card for normal purchases in order to earn cash back since the new, super-high redemption rates on United were no longer worth attaining (except through manufactured spend). But let’s take a step back and evaluate the current values of these cards.

As a reminder, the Sapphire Preferred card gives 2x points on all travel and restaurant purchases. It also provides a year-end dividend of 7% on all the points earned the previous year. Therefore you can look at the card as earning 2.14 points-per-dollar on travel/restaurants and 1.07 points-per-dollar on all other purchases. If you book travel through the Ultimate Rewards Portal, your points are worth 1.25 cents each, plus you can transfer them to partners to potentially get even more value.

On the other hand, the Arrival card earns 2x points on all purchases, but there are no transfer partners so it is strictly cash back. Each point is worth 1 cent, and if you redeem the cash back for travel purchases, then you get a 10% rebate. That means you essentially earn 2.22 points-per-dollar on all purchases.

So let’s compare the value of the points we earn from these two cards in a couple of examples.

Example 1: $15K of Annual, Non-Bonused Spending

The points earned shown above should be straightforward. The value might require some further explanation for some people, so here’s how I got to those numbers: with the Sapphire Preferred card, you can redeem your points for travel at 1.25 cents per point (that’s why they say the 40K sign-up bonus is worth $500). So the 16,050 points multiplied by $0.0125 becomes $200.63. With the Arrival card, each point you earn is worth only 1 cent (but remember you earned 2 points on the purchase, so it’s like being worth 2 cents) plus a 10% rebate. So the 30,000 points are multiplied by $0.011 and becomes $330.00.

Thus, for non-bonused spend, the Barclay’s Arrival Card is far superior to the Sapphire Preferred card when redeeming for travel purchases in my opinion.

Example 2: $15K of Annual, Bonused Spending

In the bonus categories of travel and restaurants, the Sapphire Preferred card will earn 32.1K points that would be worth $401.25 in travel. The points earned and subsequent value from the Arrival card remain completely unchanged at $330.00 since it has no bonus categories.

That means all purchases on travel and restaurants should be put on the Sapphire Preferred card, with pretty much no exceptions (except if you have a 5x option). Also consider that UR points are more flexible with the transfer partners and can potentially be worth much more.

Summary

The Barclay’s Arrival card has undeniable value, particularly for non-bonused spending. You earn 2.22 cents per dollar on everything, making it superior to all other cards that provide some form of cash back. The only other card I’d put in the same category in terms of value is the SPG Amex, since SPG points are flexible and have a high potential value.

The Sapphire Preferred card is still the best card to use for travel and restaurant purchases, assuming you don’t have a 5x option. Not only are the points more valuable when redeeming for travel through Ultimate Rewards, but you have the added flexibility of choosing to transfer them to one of several transfer partners in case you find a better option. Remember, there is a sweet spot around $312.50 for  redeeming through Ultimate Rewards vs transferring points.

Changelog

• October 13, 2026: Rebuilt as the Sapphire family guide (Reserve vs. Preferred vs. Amex Platinum) with a 2026 comparison table, Quick Answers and a summary of the 2025–26 changes; folded in my 2020 Reserve vs. Preferred post, my 2020 canceling strategy and the 2013 Preferred vs. Arrival post, each under its own heading; new address without the year.
• January 18, 2020: Original Sapphire Reserve vs. Amex Platinum comparison.