Link: Apply now for the Chase Sapphire Reserve® Card
The Chase Sapphire Reserve® Card (review) is one of the most popular premium travel rewards cards. The card offers a generous welcome bonus and all kinds of valuable benefits, and for many of us, the perks more than offset the $795 annual fee. Among other things, the card offers a lucrative rewards structure, lots of credits, a Priority Pass membership, access to Chase Sapphire Lounges, and much more.
In this post, I want to talk about what perks authorized users on the Chase Sapphire Reserve receive, as there’s often some confusion. With the card’s recent refresh, we’ve also seen the cost to add authorized users increase significantly, so I think it’s worth an updated look.
Let me emphasize that the below perks apply specifically to the personal version of the card, and not the Sapphire Reserve for BusinessSM (review). On the business card, there’s no cost to add authorized users, but they also don’t receive extra perks, like lounge access.
In this post:
How much do Chase Sapphire Reserve authorized users cost?
You can add authorized users to the Chase Sapphire Reserve for an annual fee of $195 per person. In other words, you’d pay $195 to add one authorized user, $390 to add two authorized users, etc. This is in addition to the annual fee for the primary cardmember.
For what it’s worth, until recently, it only cost $75 per person to add authorized users, so that’s a pretty significant increase.
How do you add a Chase Sapphire Reserve authorized user?
Adding an authorized user to the Chase Sapphire Reserve is easy. Just log into your Chase account, and then click on your Sapphire Reserve. Once on that page, click on the “More” tab, then go to the “Account services” section, and click on “Authorized users.”
There you’ll just have to enter the name, date of birth, and address of the person you want to add to your card. Once requested, the card will be mailed to the primary cardmember, and it will be up to them to get the card to the authorized user.
I should also mention that if you’re an authorized user on the Chase Sapphire Reserve you’d still be eligible to apply for the card yourself, including earning the bonus. Furthermore, there’s no credit pull (hard or soft) for the authorized user.
What benefits do Chase Sapphire Reserve authorized users get?
Which Chase Sapphire Reserve benefits do authorized users receive?
- The Chase Sapphire Reserve has awesome bonus categories, and the spending of authorized users racks up points at the higher rate, including earning 4x points on direct airline and hotel bookings, and 3x points on dining; that being said, the points are accrued by the primary cardmember, who is also responsible for paying the bill
- Chase Sapphire Reserve authorized users get a Priority Pass membership, allowing them to access 1,300+ lounges around the world with two guests; this is the same Priority Pass benefit offered to the primary cardmember
- Authorized users also get unlimited access to Chase Sapphire Lounges, and they also get access to select Air Canada Lounges, the same as the primary cardmember
- Chase Sapphire Reserve authorized users get the same rental car coverage and travel protection that the primary cardmember receives, when using their card for eligible purchases
- Chase Sapphire Reserve authorized users receive Visa Infinite perks, which include Visa Infinite Concierge Service, access to the Visa Infinite Luxury Collection, and more
I’d say one of the primary reasons to add an authorized user is for the lounge access. Whether you value the Priority Pass membership, or Chase Sapphire Lounge or Air Canada Lounge access, paying $195 per year for that could be a good deal, especially if you would frequently visit these lounges.
What benefits don’t Chase Sapphire Reserve authorized users get?
In the interest of being thorough, unlike the Chase Sapphire Reserve primary cardmember, authorized users don’t receive any incremental credits, beyond what the primary cardmember receives. This means that they don’t receive an additional up to $300 annual travel credit, up to $300 annual dining credit, up to $500 annual hotel credit, and more.
To be clear, in many cases, spending by authorized users will count toward those credits, though the idea is that authorized users aren’t receiving any incremental credits.
How do Chase Sapphire Preferred authorized user benefits compare?
The Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card (review) has an annual fee of just $95 for the primary cardmember, and there’s no cost to add authorized users. Since many people try to decide between the Sapphire Preferred and Sapphire Reserve, this is something worth considering.
Being able to add authorized users on the Chase Sapphire Preferred at no extra cost is potentially a valuable advantage. The way I view it:
- If the people you’re adding as authorized users greatly value lounge access, then having a Sapphire Reserve and adding them as authorized users is your best bet, because paying $195 for such a membership could be a good deal
- If the people you’re adding as authorized users are using the card primarily for spending (the Chase Sapphire Preferred has awesome bonus categories as well), and if they value great rental car and travel protection, then the Sapphire Preferred does the trick
Bottom line
The Chase Sapphire Reserve is a well rounded premium travel rewards card that has a great bonus. Cardmembers can add authorized users to the card for $195 each, and that comes with perks like a Priority Pass membership, Chase Sapphire Lounge access, and Air Canada Lounge access. On top of that, there’s the same points earning structure, travel protection, and rental car coverage, as the primary cardmember.
Essentially the math should come down to whether you value the lounge access at $195 per year. Admittedly that’s not the same slam dunk it used to be when the authorized user fee was $75, but I’m sure this will still interest many.
For many, the Chase Sapphire Preferred may be a better fit — there’s no cost to add authorized users, and they rack up points at an accelerated rate, and also get useful travel and car rental coverage.
What do you make of the value proposition of adding Chase Sapphire Reserve authorized users?
Count me out! The hefty SR increases not withstanding the very limited and screwy dining credit, the forty plus minutes to wait to get into the Lounge, and other insults such as the change fees that Chase Travel charges, will send me to the SP and I will drop my longstanding SR cards for me and my spouse. Still keeping my AMEX Platinum.
The changes to Sapphire Reserve & increase in fees to primary and authorized users make little sense for most people. Only if you have & would frequently use a Sapphire lounge does keeping Sapphire Reserve make any sense. The 4% hotel and airfare is bested by hotel and airline cards. 3% restaurants is offered by a ton of no AF cards.
The drop of 3% travel is a major blow to most users. The increase...
The changes to Sapphire Reserve & increase in fees to primary and authorized users make little sense for most people. Only if you have & would frequently use a Sapphire lounge does keeping Sapphire Reserve make any sense. The 4% hotel and airfare is bested by hotel and airline cards. 3% restaurants is offered by a ton of no AF cards.
The drop of 3% travel is a major blow to most users. The increase in annual fees while only providing coupons of questionable value (especially with 10% off Lyft is gone as of March) sucks. And the recent reductions of Priority Pass benefits (no PP restaurants & continued cheapening of PP lounge offerings) is the final nail in the coffin for most people. I know all the travel blogs are heavily incentivized by Chase to spin this crap into gold, but it's very disappointing.
My guess is that this increase in fees is Chase's way to reduce the number of people in their lounges. No sense in paying an expensive AF to still have frequent waits to get into Sapphire lounges.
"My guess is that this increase in fees is Chase's way to reduce the number of people in their lounges."
I worked with Amex's marketing teams years ago and based on their data and competitive metrics we were presented, I don't think customer experience incidentals like lounge crowding plays into something as macro as annual fee strategy. My guess is they are testing the waters of price elasticity. The pandemic showed corporations that people will...
"My guess is that this increase in fees is Chase's way to reduce the number of people in their lounges."
I worked with Amex's marketing teams years ago and based on their data and competitive metrics we were presented, I don't think customer experience incidentals like lounge crowding plays into something as macro as annual fee strategy. My guess is they are testing the waters of price elasticity. The pandemic showed corporations that people will grin and bear hikes in cost to an unprecedented level. Groceries are an oft-cited example. Yes, high-vis staples like eggs had to come down but deodorant is still $9 a stick at your supermarket.
Additionally, the timing is cruelly intelligent. On the verge of an almost universally expected recession, it's a good juncture to shore up capital and feed on card holders' reluctance to cut out the finer things until it's absolutely necessary.
More than doubling the fee is ridiculous. The value of maybe getting into a club using PP when they aren’t packed or closed to PP members is not there, at least for me personally.
Have you done, or are you planning, a similar review of authorized users for VentureX card?
If you're considering AU card for spouse who travels separate from you and alone (say for work), I'd rather he/she get the Venture X. If getting AU card for somebody else who normally brings guests/family, the $200 fee may make sense. Unless you do at least 1 international trip a year, PP membership is probably worth just $100-$150.
I would think many people have their partner as an authorized user on this card. So the price for the CSR really increased from $625 (550+75) to $990 (795+195). That's a $365 increase. And there is no way the $990 is random - same as pricing something $9.99 when it is really $10.00.
The reality is that the first $1,000 credit card is here - but the marketing is trying to slice and dice...
I would think many people have their partner as an authorized user on this card. So the price for the CSR really increased from $625 (550+75) to $990 (795+195). That's a $365 increase. And there is no way the $990 is random - same as pricing something $9.99 when it is really $10.00.
The reality is that the first $1,000 credit card is here - but the marketing is trying to slice and dice it in a way where it doesn't "feel like" $1,000. (Fine, it's $690 because the $300 travel credit is often as good as cash and 990-300 is 690, but I think we all see the point).
And when evaluating whether to keep the CSR or downgrade to CSP, it's the $365 increase many are evaluating, not the $245 for one user. Big difference, especially when compared to Venture X. Even with their new $125 authorized user fee for lounge access, can come out way ahead. If you value the $300 capital one portal credit, it's $95+125=$220 for two people. That's a lot less than $690 (giving credit for the CSR $300 credit).
Is the chase point structure and lounges worth more than the $470 difference? That's the question many people will be asking themselves. And most people like things simpler than more complicated. Once the capital one LGA landing opens later this year, both will have lounges in the exact same NY locations. Will definitely be some head to head NY marketing.
For some, there's a convenience of having one travel card for a couple & there's a cost to that convenience. That being said, when traveling with the primary cardholder, a potential authorized user will likely have lounge access as a guest at no cost. So, how often does a potential authorized user travel without the primary cardholder & doesn't otherwise have lounge access & how much would paid lounge access cost?
Ben, if you haven’t already you should do an article on airlines that have some sort of student/youth discount. Off the top my head SAS and Qatar have a discount but I think of particular note is Turkish airlines who offer a pretty generous policy including refundable tickets.