Brian and I have held onto the Chase Sapphire Reserve for 8 years, even after its major overhaul. We knew we’d soon be going from a $550 annual fee to a pretty hefty $795. Fortunately, existing cardmembers could keep the old fee until their renewal date after October 26, 2025, giving us nearly a full year to see how the new benefits actually fit our travel before paying the higher fee.
How We Used the New Benefits
This extra time gave us a chance to see how the revamped card fits how we travel. As I shared in our Q2 2026 check-in, we made a decent effort to use the benefits that made sense for us.
The $300 travel credit was easy to use, and we used the dining and hotel credits, too. Of course, some of the other benefits weren’t nearly as valuable. Brian and I used to enjoy the $10 monthly non-restaurant DoorDash credit on each of our cards, giving us $20 in combined monthly credits. It was such a simple way to stock up on random discounted groceries or desserts. Unfortunately, DoorDash implemented a $20 minimum order, which essentially defeated the purpose for us.
And while we’ve managed to use The Edit hotel credits, finding hotels that didn’t leave us paying substantially more out of pocket took serious legwork.
During our most recent trip to Greece, we put our travel bookings on the Reserve for the added protection and insurance coverage. The airport lounge access was especially helpful since we were traveling with family. Brian and I could each bring two guests, which worked out perfectly. And, as a nice bonus, we didn’t have to wait to get into any of the lounges.
Interestingly, though, we didn’t use the card’s rental insurance for our car in Mykonos. We actually paid for it in cash! This is definitely not typical of us, as we’ve always booked rentals with our credit card, but the flexibility of a cash reservation was great with a cruise itinerary. Plus, Caraki Rental Cars was incredibly easy to work with, and full coverage was included in the rental price.
Overall, this past year confirmed something we already kind of knew: some benefits still fit how we travel, while others don’t. The more lifestyle-focused perks, including StubHub, Lyft, Peloton, and DoorDash, are harder for us to use. We’re also not getting the same rewards value we once did.
We Dropped the Authorized User
Dropping the authorized user was an easy decision. We originally paid $75 for the additional card, but that cost increased to $195 with the revamped Sapphire Reserve.
While having two cards was useful for group travel, we honestly don’t travel with others often enough to justify another $195 every year. Since the primary cardholder can bring two guests into the airport lounges, we have enough flexibility for how we usually travel.
And frankly, the DoorDash credits couldn’t make up the difference.
Asking Chase for a Retention Offer
When the renewal fee hits your account, you have 42 days to cancel or downgrade your credit card for a refund. We called Chase to see if they had any offers available to keep us around.
It never hurts to ask!
They offered us a $100 statement credit. It wasn’t one of the $400 retention offers I’d read about, but hey, it wasn’t nothing! We’d already decided to keep the primary card for another year, so we happily accepted it.
2026’s Renewal Cost
Between removing the authorized user and receiving the retention offer, our $990 renewal charge came down to a more palatable $695.
Don’t get me wrong, that’s still a lot for a credit card!
But when we look at the benefits we know we’ll actually use, we’re comfortable paying it for another year. The $300 travel credit is easy to redeem, we’ll get value from the lounge access, and we’ve been able to use the $300 dining credit without too much trouble.
The $500 The Edit hotel credit is a little more complicated, but we’ve managed to make it work with some extra effort. It’s certainly not my favorite benefit, but it does contribute to the overall value.
So, for this year, $695 feels reasonable enough.
Keeping the Card for Another Year
And that’s really where we landed. We’re keeping the Chase Sapphire Reserve for another year, but I wouldn’t necessarily call us committed. We’ll use the benefits that fit our lives, skip the ones that don’t, and see how things shake out.
What happens after this renewal will depend largely on the rest of the travel credit card market. I’m honestly hoping some real competition comes along because I miss having a travel card that feels like a travel card.
The Reserve has evolved into something that feels more like a luxury lifestyle card to us. Sure, there are still valuable travel benefits, but there are also plenty of credits and perks that require way more effort than they’re worth.
For now, the math works. We’ll take the $300 travel credit, use the lounge access, redeem the dining credit, and continue figuring out how to make the rest of the benefits work without changing how we spend. If another big family trip comes along, we’ll reconsider whether it makes sense to add the additional card back.
But if another card comes along that better fits the way we actually travel, we’ll happily switch things up!
