Since its launch in 2016, the Chase Sapphire Reserve® has become one of the most popular travel credit cards on the market. And while it hasn’t offered its 100,000-point welcome bonus since 2017, cardholders can still net a solid chunk of points with the current offer: 75,000 bonus points after spending $4,000 on purchases in the first three months from account opening.
Here’s what you should know about how to earn the Sapphire Reserve’s welcome bonus, as well as how to make the most of your Chase Ultimate Rewards® points once you’ve earned them.
How To Earn the Sapphire Reserve Welcome Bonus
The Chase Sapphire Reserve® has historically offered new cardholders 60,000 bonus points after they meet a spending requirement. But on occasion, Chase will offer an elevated welcome bonus. Right now, the card’s current bonus is as follows: 75,000 bonus points after spending $4,000 on purchases in the first three months from account opening.
Spending $4,000 in three months breaks down to just over $1,333 per month.
If you can easily meet that threshold with your everyday spending, you may not need to make any adjustments to your budget. But if you’re not sure you can spend that amount, or if you want to earn the welcome offer as quickly as possible, here are some potential steps you can take:
- Wait to open the Sapphire Reserve until a large expense is imminent
- Put all of your eligible expenses on the card
- Switch your payment method for recurring charges, such as streaming subscriptions, to the card
- Add a family member as an authorized user (but beware each authorized user adds $75 onto the card’s already steep $550 annual fee)
- Prepay for certain expenses, such as car insurance premiums
- Pick up the check when out with friends and have them pay you back
If all else fails, you may consider using your card even for expenses where there’s a convenience fee. For example, business owners can make estimated tax payments with a fee as low as 1.87% of the transaction amount. And you can make rent or mortgage payments using your card through a service like Plastiq, which charges a 2.9% fee.
Chase Sapphire Reserve®
This card offers superior points earning rates if you spend frequently on travel and dining out. The $300 travel credit justifies much of the annual fee, and redeeming points for travel through Chase Travel℠ nets you a 50% bonus.
- $300 annual travel credit is incredibly flexible
- Generous welcome bonus
- Get 50% more value when you redeem points for travel through Chase
- Points transfer to valuable airline and hotel partners
- High annual fee
- High variable APR on purchases
- Excellent credit recommended
- Earn 75,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. That’s $1,125 toward travel when you redeem through Chase Travel℠.
- $300 Annual Travel Credit as reimbursement for travel purchases charged to your card each account anniversary year.
- Earn 5x total points on flights and 10x total points on hotels and car rentals when you purchase travel through Chase Travel℠ immediately after the first $300 is spent on travel purchases annually. Earn 3x points on other travel and dining & 1 point per $1 spent on all other purchases
- Get 50% more value when you redeem your points for travel through Chase Travel℠. For example, 75,000 points are worth $1125 toward travel.
- 1:1 point transfer to leading airline and hotel loyalty programs
- Access to 1,300+ airport lounges worldwide after an easy, one-time enrollment in Priority Pass™ Select and up to $100 application fee credit every four years for Global Entry, NEXUS, or TSA PreCheck®
- Count on Trip Cancellation/Interruption Insurance, Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver, Lost Luggage Insurance and more.
- Member FDIC
Make Sure You Qualify for the Card Before You Apply
Before you apply for the Chase Sapphire Reserve®, it’s important to know the card issuer’s rules for approval and how you can set yourself up for success:
- 5/24 rule: If you’ve opened five or more credit card accounts (with any issuer) in the past 24 months, you’ll run into the 5/24 rule, which typically results in an automatic denial.
- Sapphire card rule: If you already hold the Chase Sapphire Reserve® or the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card, or if you’ve been approved for a welcome bonus on either card in the last 48 months, you can’t earn a new Sapphire Reserve bonus. Also, you can only hold the Sapphire Reserve or the Sapphire Preferred, not both cards at the same time.
- Product changes: If you upgrade your Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card to the Chase Sapphire Reserve®, you won’t be eligible for the new cardholder bonus.
- Minimum credit score: The Sapphire Reserve is an ultra-premium credit card. For the best chance at approval, your credit score should be in the ranges FICO—the most commonly used scoring method—designates as very good to exceptional, which is 740 to 850.
Of course, even if you check the right boxes, approval isn’t guaranteed. But if everything mentioned above is in order, your application should have a solid chance of being approved.
Earning Chase Sapphire Points
The Chase Sapphire Reserve® earns Ultimate Rewards points, which you can use in a number of ways. In addition to a welcome bonus, the card also offers points on your everyday spending.
Here’s the rewards structure: 5 points per dollar on flights and 10 points per dollar on hotels and car rentals when purchasing travel through Chase Travel℠ immediately after the first $300 is spent on travel purchases annually. Earn 3 points per dollar on other travel and dining and 1 point per dollar spent on all other purchases.
Plus, cardholders earn 10 points per dollar spent on Lyft rides through Mar. 31, 2025.
Redeeming Chase Sapphire Points
One of the selling points of the Chase Ultimate Rewards program is its versatility. Once you’ve earned some points, you can redeem them in the following ways:
Additionally, you can transfer your points to partnering airline and hotel loyalty programs at a 1-to-1 ratio:
- Aer Lingus AerClub
- Air Canada Aeroplan
- Air France/KLM Flying Blue
- British Airways Executive Club
- Emirates Skywards
- Iberia Plus
- IHG One Rewards
- JetBlue TrueBlue
- Marriott Bonvoy
- Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer
- Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards
- United MileagePlus
- Virgin Atlantic Flying Club
- World of Hyatt
Depending on how you redeem your points with partner programs, you may be able to get more value than the 1.5 cents per point you’d get booking travel through the Chase Travel portal.
Is the High Annual Fee Worth It?
While the Chase Sapphire Reserve® offers a lot of value, it’s not cheap. Cardholders pay an annual fee of $550, plus a $75 annual fee for each authorized user. During your first year with the card, you can easily make up for that cost with the welcome bonus alone.
But going forward, you’ll want to take advantage of the card’s premium perks to recoup the yearly cost. Fortunately, it’s relatively easy to do so through the following benefits:
- $300 annual travel credit
- Application fee credit for Global Entry, TSA PreCheck or NEXUS, worth up to $100 every four years
- Complimentary access to more than 1,300 Priority Pass Select airport lounges (one-time enrollment required)
- Complimentary DoorDash DashPass membership for a minimum of one year when you activate by December 31, 2024, plus $5 in DoorDash credits each month
- Complimentary 12-month Instacart+ membership plus a $15 monthly statement credit on Instacart purchases through July 31, 2024
Of course, you’ll need to add up the value you’d get from these benefits based on how often you’ll use them. Crunching the numbers for your particular situation can help you determine whether the Sapphire Reserve’s annual fee is worth it for you.
The Best Chase Credit Cards Of 2024
Find the best Chase credit card for your needs.
Bottom Line
Chase Ultimate Rewards points are a valuable currency, worth 1.5 cents each when you use the Sapphire Reserve Card to redeem points for travel through Chase’s portal and potentially even more if you are dedicated about leveraging the airline and hotel transfer partners.
But don’t lose your chance to earn this card’s generous welcome bonus by applying in a rush. By doing your research first then making sure you’re eligible to earn the welcome bonus and can meet the spending requirement, you can end up with a mountain of Ultimate Rewards points to fund your next adventure.
Apply Today For The Chase Sapphire Reserve® Card
