By now, you’ve probably heard about the changes coming to Chase’s ultra-premium card, the Chase Sapphire Reserve (CSR). Originally they were just rumors but they have since been confirmed to be true. The big change is the increase of the annual fee, from $450 to $550 per year. That brings the CSR’s annual fee on par to that of the American Express Platinum but above that of the Citi Prestige ($4950. We now know that the last day to apply for the Sapphire Reserve is Sunday, January 12th (tomorrow as I write this post).
Changes coming to the Chase Sapphire Reserve
Here are the changes that we know about for the Sapphire Reserve:
- Annual fee going up to $550
- Free DoorDash DashPass membership for one year
- A total of $120 in DoorDash credits – $60 DoorDash credit in 2020 and $60 DoorDash credit in 2021
- 10x points on Lyft rides (other Chase cardholders get increased earning on Lyft as well)
- One year of Lyft Pink
When do the CSR changes take effect?
The date that has been given for the Sapphire Reserve annual fee hookup is:
- January 12, 2020 – new applicants will be charged the $550 annual fee. It’s not 100% clear to me whether that means as of Jan 12 or after Jan 12. I’ve seen reports that applicants on January 12th will get the higher annual fee. In contrast, my credit card affiliate managers have told me the CSR with $450 annual fee will be available through 8:45 a.m. on the 13th. It’s possible I’m misreading things but if I were looking to apply, I would apply ASAP (ideally on Saturday)
- April 1, 2020 – existing Sapphire Reserve cardmembers will have their annual fees increased to $550, in a sliding window based on your account anniversary date. My CSR annual fee is in June, so June 2020 I will be getting the $550 annual fee.
- DoorDash benefits seem to be live now
- Lyft benefits are scheduled to be available as of Sunday January 12th
What to do now?
If you already have the Sapphire Reserve and are looking to decide whether to keep it, you have a few months to make that decision (and alternatively, spend or transfer your Ultimate Rewards).
(SEE ALSO: Can you reopen a closed Chase credit card account?)
If you don’t have a Sapphire Reserve, and have been thinking about getting one, I’d do it now since you’ll get the new Lyft and Doordash benefits while still paying the lower ($450) annual fee.
Remember also that if you’re thinking about applying for the Chase Sapphire Reserve before the annual fee goes up, you’ll need to fit both of the following categories:
- Under Chase 5/24
- Haven’t received a bonus on any Sapphire product (CSR or CSP) in the past 48 months
Again, here is my affiliate link to apply for the Chase Sapphire Reserve – thanks if you use that link to support the site
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Dan Miller travels with his wife and 6 (SIX!) children. He loves to help families travel for free / cheap, especially larger families. If you are looking for help, drop him an email at 
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