Over the past few months I’ve spent quite a bit of time reviewing my spending habits and evaluating the credit cards in my wallet. What I found is that while staying home, my spending habits changed considerably. Furthermore, I discovered that I just wan’t getting much value from a few of my card accounts.
Ultimately, after reviewing my card accounts I decided that it was finally time to close my Chase Sapphire Reserve card account. It’s not that the Sapphire Reserve card isn’t great, it’s just that it no longer offers unique benefits that I value (more on that later).
While I did decide that I no longer wanted to carry the Chase Sapphire Reserve card, I wasn’t quite ready to close my card account entirely. Instead, I called Chase and asked for a product change. Product changes are pretty easy to do with most major card issuers, but there are some restrictions. However, I was able to product change to a lesser known Chase credit card that you can’t apply for directly.
My Chase Sapphire Card Arrived
About a week after my call with Chase I received two plain white envelops from Chase. The first was a notice of benefit changes to my account and the second was my new credit card.
Inside the envelop with my new card I found my shiny, new, plastic, Chase Sapphire card. Don’t worry, you’re reading that right, it’s simply the Chase Sapphire card. No Reserve, No Preferred, nothing special at all.
Included with my new card were the typical welcome and benefits pamphlets that come with most new credit cars. Then, affixed to a card account page, was my new card.
Now, it’s worth pointing out that this is actually the second time I’ve carried this unique Chase Sapphire card. I first carried this card a few years ago when I downgraded my Chase Sapphire Preferred card to the Chase Sapphire card. I later converted that card account into the Chase Freedom card I carry today.
What Is The Chase Sapphire Card?
The Chase Sapphire card is a no annual fee credit card offered from Chase bank. Chase Sapphire card benefits include 2x points on dining and 1x points on everything else. The Sapphire card offers some other standard credit card benefits such as travel coverage, but they aren’t worth discussing here.
Essentially, the Chase Sapphire card is a no annual fee card that gives card holders access to the Chase Ultimate Rewards program. Why this is important is that if you carry the Chase Freedom Unlimited and/or Chase Freedom card(s), you can then transfer your cash back into Ultimate Rewards points by carrying this card. That means you can still access the incredible value offered from the Ultimate Rewards program without paying a $95 or $550 annual fee.
While the Chase Sapphire card may sound appealing for existing Chase Freedom customers, it’s worth noting that you can’t apply for the Sapphire card directly. Instead, you have to do a product change. That’s not all a bad thing though considering the Chase Sapphire Preferred card is currently offering an 80,000 point signup bonus.
Final Thoughts
I have to admit, I’m thrilled to have finally downgraded my Chase Sapphire Reserve account. In early September my $450 annual fee posted and I just couldn’t justify paying it again. Instead, I called Chase and downgraded to the Chase Sapphire card. A few days later Chase credited the entire annual fee back to my account.
Now, as you can already tell, the Chase Sapphire card is not a great credit card. In fact, it’s probably the last card I would ever recommend anyone carry on their own. However, it’s great to know that it exists and it’s a great option for anyone who doesn’t want to close a card account.
