Link: Apply now for the Chase Sapphire Reserve® Card
We’ve just seen the popular Chase Sapphire Reserve® Card undergo a full refresh. The card has a higher annual fee than before, but also has a lot more perks. Chase is celebrating the card’s relaunch with a best-ever welcome offer, making it an ideal time to apply.
In this post:
Chase Sapphire Reserve best-ever welcome offer
The Chase Sapphire Reserve has an incredible welcome offer of 100,000 Chase Ultimate Rewards points plus a $500 Chase Travel credit after spending $5,000 within the first three months.
Personally, I value Ultimate Rewards points at 1.7 cents each, so to me, the points are worth $1,700. On top of that, the $500 Chase Travel credit can be applied toward hotels, flights, and more, and is valid for 12 months from when it’s issued. In total, I’d consider the welcome offer to be worth roughly $2,200, which is massive.
Who is eligible for the Chase Sapphire Reserve bonus?
When it comes to eligibility for the Chase Sapphire Reserve, here’s the official language in the application:
This credit card is unavailable to you if you currently have one open. The new cardmember bonus may not be available to you if you currently have any other personal Sapphire cards open, previously held this card or received a new cardmember bonus for this card. We may also consider the number of cards you have opened and closed, as well as other factors in determining your bonus eligibility.
Chase has recently updated its rules when it comes to getting approved for Sapphire cards. As you can see:
- The welcome offer may not be available to you if you’ve received a new bonus on this card exact card, or if you currently have any Chase Sapphire personal card
- You should be eligible for the welcome offer if you haven’t had the Chase Sapphire Reserve before, though it may be possible to get the bonus if you’ve just had the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card (review) before
- Chase now has a pop-up feature when applying for cards, so if you’re not eligible for the welcome bonus, you should receive a message telling you so (before there’s any sort of hard or soft credit pull)
Note that these restrictions are based on whether you’re the primary cardmember on one of these cards — if you’re currently an authorized user (or have been one in the past), you’d be eligible. Also keep in mind the general rules of applying for Chase cards, including the 5/24 rule (though there are increasingly reports of people being approved in spite of being over the 5/24 limit).
Why the Chase Sapphire Reserve is worth it
The $795 annual fee Chase Sapphire Reserve is one of the most popular premium credit cards, thanks to its great rewards structure and benefits. The card has the following perks, among other things:
- The Sapphire Reserve has a $300 annual travel credit, that can automatically be applied to any purchase coded as travel; this should basically be worth face value to anyone who has the card
- The Sapphire Reserve offers a Priority Pass membership, as well as access to Chase Sapphire Lounges (which are some of the best credit card lounges you’ll find anywhere), and access to select Air Canada Lounges
- The Sapphire Reserve offers other valuable credits, including up to $500 in annual hotel credits, up to $300 in annual dining credits, up to $300 in annual Stubhub and viagogo credits, and much more
- The Sapphire Reserve has an amazing rewards structure — earn 8x points on Chase Travel bookings, 4x points on flights and hotels booked direct, 3x points on dining, and 1x points on all other purchases
- The Sapphire Reserve has great travel protection, including for delayed flights, lost bags, rental cars, and more
- The Sapphire Reserve acts as a good “hub” card for Chase Ultimate Rewards, and lets you maximize the other cards in the portfolio, including the ability to transfer points to Chase travel partners
- The Sapphire Reserve offers a Global Entry, TSA PreCheck, or NEXUS credit, once every four years
- The Sapphire Reserve offers a good incentive for spending, because if you spend $75,000 per year on the card, you receive IHG One Rewards Diamond status, Southwest Rapid Rewards A-List status, a $500 Southwest credit, a $250 Shops at Chase credit, and more
Read a full review of the Chase Sapphire Reserve here.
Bottom line
The Chase Sapphire Reserve has just undergone a refresh, and is offering a massive welcome bonus of 100,000 Ultimate Rewards points plus a $500 Chase Travel credit after completing minimum spending.
This is a great premium card that offers lots of perks, so if you spend a lot on dining and travel, value lounge access, and like Chase’s points redemption opportunities, definitely consider this card, as it’s quite easy to justify.
Do you plan on picking up the Chase Sapphire Reserve with 100K bonus points plus a $500 Chase Travel credit?
Nothing special. The reason they are doing this is to offset the change in the terms so many people that are currently some sort of "sapphire" cardmember will not qualify. It looks more than it is.
How long is this still going to be one of the most popular cards? Are there that many people willing to shell out at least $800 for this Entertainment Book-style crap?
“Most popular” more like most money spent on hype/marketing to appear most popular.
So to be clear I can't cancel my CSR and then reapply in a month for the bonus?
Two questions for Lucky or anyone else:
1) If you were me and could do the CSR for 100k + $795 or the CSP for 75k + $95, which would you do?
2) Is Chase still strictly enforcing 5/24? I will technically be over 5/24 until next month, but have a trip coming up, and would prefer to get the card before I leave.
Thanks!
@ Vinay -- I'd do the Chase Sapphire Reserve bonus, especially since it also includes the $500 Chase Travel credit, which you don't get with the Chase Sapphire Preferred. 5/24 is not consistently enforced anymore. Some people still seem subject to it, while others get approved for cards in spite of being over the limit.
Oh thank goodness, I was beginning to think we'd have a whole day without CSR news.
On a more serious note, it's bizarre to me how Chase still insists on hard pulls for card approval... Amex and others are way ahead in this regard, and it certainly takes a lot of stress away knowing you'll only get pulled on account creation.
Which other major issuers don't do a hard pull? To my knowledge, Amex was the only one, not counting that you might be able to open two Bank of America cards with one pull inside a 30-day period.
Ben, any guess on how long this offer will last (1mo, 2 weeks etc)? Purely educated speculation of course.
@ jR -- I have zero insights here. Generally I'd assume an offer like this might be around for a month or so, though that's not based on any information I have. I suspect it depends how popular the offer is.