Just over two weeks ago Chase made some significant changes to the ever popular Chase Sapphire Reserve card. Notably, those changes included an increased annual fee (now $550) and added benefits with Lyft and DoorDash.
With these changes the question on everyone’s mind seems to be whether or not they should keep the Chase Sapphire Reserve card. It seems there is some kind of mental threshold in which customers were willing to pay $450 a year, but yet $550 is just too high.
Now, it’s worth noting that Chase continues to offer up to $300 in annual travel credits, so the effective annual fee for the card is still just $250. However, that’s a $100 increase from the $150 effective annual fee customers have gotten used to. So, the question is, what benefits is Chase adding to the Chase Sapphire Reserve card and are those benefits enough to justify paying the increased $550 annual fee?
Chase Sapphire Reserve DoorDash Credit
One of the new benefits Chase added when increasing the Sapphire Reserve’s annual fee is a DoorDash credit. When I first read about this benefit I assumed the credit would be similar to the $120 GrubHub (etc.) credit offered from the American Express Gold Card. While the idea is the same, the way the DoorDash credit works is completely different and much less.
With the Chase Sapphire Reserve card, card holders will now receive a $60 annual DoorDash credit. Thankfully, Chase has made the benefit extremely easy to use. That means there is no need to sign-up or register. Instead, simply charge a DoorDash order to your Chase Sapphire Reserve reserve card. A few days later a credit will automatically be applied to your account. As with the travel credit, the DoorDash credit can be used on multiple orders or one single $60 order.
Finally, the DoorDash credit is currently valid for the 2020 and 2021 calendar years. There is not yet any word from Chase on if this benefit will be extended beyond 2021. Still, this benefit helps to offset the increased annual fee for at least two years.
Chase Sapphire Reserve DoorDash DashPass Benefit
In addition to an annual $60 statement credit, Chase and DoorDash have also partnered to offer Sapphire Reserve card holders a complimentary DashPass membership. Now, until Chase announced this benefit I actually had no idea what DashPass was. Basically, DashPass a month $10/month subscription from DoorDash. DashPass members then receive discounts on a per order basis when ordering from DoorDash.
Specifically, DashPass members do not have to pay delivery fees on any order over $12 at a participating restaurant. Additionally, per DoorDash, DashPass members also will pay reduced service fees when ordering. DashPass members can expect to save between $3 and $6 per order. This benefit becomes even more substantial on larger orders.
Essentially, if you are a frequent DoorDash user this is a benefit that could really add up. If you order food 10 times a month you can expect to save around $50/month. Obviously if you use DoorDash less frequently the savings will be less.
This benefit does require users to register. Thankfully, registration is as easy as adding your Chase Sapphire Reserve as a payment method in your DoorDash account. Once added, this benefit is valid through December 2021. So, if you sign up today, you will get nearly 2 years of DashPass membership for free (~$240/value).
Chase Sapphire Reserve Lyft Pink Benefit
Chase has also partnered with Lyft to bring additional Lyft benefits to Chase Sapphire Reserve card holders. For Lyft, this means that Chase Sapphire Reserve card holders will receive a complimentary year Lyft Pink membership. Lyft Pink typically costs $20/month, so this benefit is worth at least $240 which again helps offset the increased annual fee.
As with DashPass, until now I was unfamiliar with Lyft Pink. However, Lyft Pink works a lot like DashPass. With Lyft Pink, riders get 15% off all Lyft rides. You also get priority pickups at airports, waived cancelation fees (3x/month), complimentary scooter rides (3x/month), and unlimited free lost and found returns. As with DashPass, frequent Lyft riders could get a lot of value from this benefit. If you spend $100 on Lyft a month you’ll end up saving $180 a year. That’s not bad from a complimentary membership!
Unfortunately, Chase Sapphire Reserve card holders receive just one free year of Lyft Pink membership. To take advantage of this benefit you also have to register. Registration is fairly easy though. For starters you must add your Chas Sapphire Reserve as your Lyft payment method. Once that’s done, you must opt in to the benefit by logging into your Chase Ultimate Rewards account. On your account page you should find the following highlighted benefits.
When you click on the “learn more” link you’ll find an activation button. Once activated you will have a Lyft Pink membership for one calendar year.
Chase Sapphire Reserve 10X Ultimate Rewards Lyft Benefit
Above you might have also noticed the second Lyft benefit now offered by the Chase Sapphire Reserve card. That is, Chase Sapphire reserve card members will earn 10X Ultimate Rewards points on all Lyft spend from now until March 2022! That means that you’ll be getting at least 10% off all Lyft rides for a little over two years. When paired with a year of Lyft Pink, that’s about 25% off all Lyft rides. If you use your Ultimate Rewards for travel through the Ultimate Rewards portal the savings are closer to 30% off.
To put that into perspective, if you spend the same $100 on Lyft in the next 12 months you’ll save $360. Those savings alone easily offset the $100 annual fee increase for at least the next year. After that the returns drop to just $120 a year which is still fantastic.
Final Thoughts
Hopefully this post has shed some light on exactly what benefits Chase is adding to the Chase Sapphire Reserve card to offset the now lofty $550 annual fee. I also hope that I’ve been able to provide some context to whether or not the card is worth keeping for years to come.
One thing to keep in mind is that Lyft Pink benefit is only valid for one calendar year. Likewise, the DoorDash benefit is only valid through 2021. Beyond that, we still don’t know if Chase will extend these benefits. What this means is that toward the end of 2021 or early 2022 we will need to again decide if the card is worth keeping for another year. For now though, I think the argument could be made to keep the card open for at least another 12 months.
