IMPORTANT: I DO NOT sell credit cards as an affiliate marketer! That means you can trust everything I say because I’m not getting paid by the banks I discuss. Ask other reviewers if they have the same policy! (hint: most don’t)
You’ve likely heard that Chase has made significant changes to the most popular travel card around, the Sapphire Reserve card. These changes are not small, and include:
- An increase in the annual fee from $450 to $550
- The addition of a $60 DoorDash credit in 2020 and 2021, plus a DashPass membership (free delivery and reduced service fees on select restaurants)
- The addition of the ability to earn 10x points on all Lyft spend through March 2022, plus a Lyft Pink Membership (valid for 1 year, primary benefit of 15% off all rides)
If you haven’t heard about these changes and would like to learn more, I made a YouTube video going over all the details. You can see that video below:
These changes have caused many people, including myself, to question the value of the Chase Sapphire Reserve in light of these changes. And really, this is the perfect time to assess your spending and your usage of these benefits. You can determine which cards are worth keeping or not by doing so, and I recommend making this an annual exercise to avoid spending extra money on credit card fees.
With that in mind, I know it can be difficult to compare benefits between the two major premium cards, the Sapphire Reserve and the American Express Platinum card (note that Citi has largely nuked their benefits and their cards are not something I recommend except for specific circumstances). This post will compare benefits between these two cards so you can see which is more valuable or useful to you (again, evaluate your prior/future spending so you can determine what makes sense for you).
I also made a video on this comparison as well – you can check that out if you prefer that (might be useful to listen to while driving, for example):
Annual Fee
Chase Sapphire Reserve: $550
Amex Platinum: $550
Analysis/Summary: The easiest one to compare is also the least useful, as the benefits are really what we’re after. At least we have an easy starting point with Chase recently matching the $550 that Amex has long charged for the Platinum Card
Foreign Transaction Fee
Chase Sapphire Reserve: None
American Express Platinum: None
Transfer Partners & Redeeming Points
Chase Sapphire Reserve:
Transfer partners, ratios, and transfer times:
| Ultimate Rewards Transfer Partner | Transfer Ratio | Transfer Time |
|---|---|---|
| Aer Lingus Aer Club | 1000 : 1000 | Instant |
| Air France / KLM FlyingBlue | 1000 : 1000 | Instant |
| British Airways Executive Club | 1000 : 1000 | Instant |
| Emirates Skywards | 1000 : 1000 | Instant |
| Iberia Plus | 1000 : 1000 | Instant |
| JetBlue TrueBlue | 1000 : 1000 | Instant |
| Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer | 1000 : 1000 | ~ 1 to 2 days |
| Southwest Rapid Rewards | 1000 : 1000 | Instant |
| United MileagePlus | 1000 : 1000 | Instant |
| Virgin Atlantic Flying Club | 1000 : 1000 | Instant |
| IHG Rewards Club | 1000 : 1000 | Instant |
| Marriott Bonvoy | 1000 : 1000 | ~ 1 to 2 days |
| World Of Hyatt | 1000 : 1000 | Instant |
Additionally, you can redeem points for 1.5 cents per point on the Ultimate Rewards Travel Portal
American Express Platinum:
| Membership Rewards Transfer Partner | Transfer Ratio | Transfer Time |
|---|---|---|
| Aer Lingus AerClub | 1000 : 1000 | Instant |
| Aeromexico Club Premier | 1000 : 1600 | ~ 4 to 5 days |
| Air Canada Aeroplan | 1000 : 1000 | Instant |
| Air France / KLM FlyingBlue | 1000 : 1000 | Instant |
| Alitalia MilleMiglia Club | 1000 : 1000 | Instant |
| ANA Mileage Club | 1000 : 1000 | ~ 2 to 3 days |
| Avianca LifeMiles | 1000 : 1000 | Instant |
| British Airways Executive Club | 1000 : 1000 | Instant |
| Cathay Pacific Asia Miles | 1000 : 1000 | Instant |
| Delta SkyMiles | 1000 : 1000 | Instant |
| El Al Matmid | 1000 : 20 | Instant |
| Emirates Skywards | 1000 : 1000 | Instant |
| Etihad Guest | 1000 : 1000 | Instant |
| Hawaiian HawaiianMiles | 1000 : 1000 | Instant |
| Iberia Plus | 1000 : 1000 | Up to 1 day |
| JetBlue TrueBlue | 250 : 200 | Instant |
| Qantas Frequent Flyer | 1000 : 1000 | Instant |
| Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer | 1000 : 1000 | ~ 1 to 2 days |
| Virgin Atlantic Flying Club | 1000 : 1000 | Instant |
| Choice Privileges | 1000 : 1000 | Instant |
| Hilton Honors | 1000 : 2000 | Instant |
| Marriott Bonvoy | 1000 : 1000 | Instant |
Additionally, you can redeem for 1 cent per point on the Amex Travel website.
Analysis/Summary: Long story short, it’s good to have points in both programs. You want the variety and flexibility. Chase is great because of unique programs like Hyatt and Southwest. Amex has a large variety including useful programs like Aeroplan and ANA.
Travel Credits
Chase Sapphire Reserve: $300 credit for any spending on ” airlines, hotels, motels, timeshares, campgrounds, car rental agencies, cruise lines, travel agencies, discount travel sites, and operators of passenger trains, buses, taxis, limousines, ferries, toll bridges and highways, and parking lots and garages.“
Amex Platinum: $200 Airline Fee credit. You have to select an airline from a list of US carriers soon after you get the card and can only change it in January. Airfare is NOT covered, but here are examples of items that generally are covered:
- Checked bag and Overweight/oversize bag fees
- Change fees
- Phone reservation fees
- Pet flight fees
- Airport lounge day passes and annual memberships
- Seat assignment fees
- In-flight fees (beverages, food, pillows/blankets, entertainment (excluding wireless internet))
Analysis/Summary: This is where it starts for Amex. They make it difficult in hopes that you do not use this benefit. Why do they do this? It’s a business principal called “breakage” where essentially they’re hoping you don’t use them so they end up with a profit. They make it hard to use by restricting its usage to certain items, things that you would normally get if you have status with a particular airline anyway. Very customer unfriendly.
Chase, on the other hand, makes it simple AND gives you more credits. The Sapphire Reserve offers $300 to use in a broad number of categories. There’s no doubt this is superior.
Lounge Access
Chase Sapphire Reserve: Priority Pass Select + Priority Pass Restaurants
American Express Platinum: Priority Pass Select + Delta Sky Club Lounges (only for primary cardholder that has a Delta ticket) + Amex Centurion Lounges + Airspace Lounges + Escape Lounges
Analysis/Summary: This one will depend on where you live, how you travel, and which benefits you prefer. Personally, I prefer having the money to spend at Priority Pass Restaurants. While Amex offers Delta lounge access, you have to be flying with Delta and do not get to bring a companion for free, so this would make a lot of sense if you live in a Delta hub city and travel frequently (their lounges are generally quite nice). Amex also offers Centurion Lounge access, which are nice lounges with good food, but can also be crowded at times and are still limited in number.
Shopping / Other Credits
Chase Sapphire Reserve: $60 DoorDash credit in 2020 and 2021 + DashPass Membership
American Express Platinum: $100 ($50 Jan-Jun + $50 Jul-Dec) credit to Saks Fifth Avenue
Analysis/Summary: This can be tough to compare. If you use DoorDash or other food delivery services often, the $60 credit is obviously useful. If you don’t, you’ll find that DoorDash often charges more for food (before any other fees) than you would get charged from a restaurant directly.
Amex offers a $100 credit to a high end fashion store, similar to a Nordstrom or Bloomingdales. And again, they make it difficult by giving the credit in two $50 increments in hopes that you forget to use one or both.
To me, food is universal and more valuable, but $100 is more than $60. Your spending habits will determine which is more valuable to you
Ridesharing Benefits
Chase Sapphire Reserve: 15% off all Lyft rides + other benefits with the Lyft Pink Membership (valid only 12 months from date of registration), plus 10x on all Lyft spend
American Express Platinum: $200 credit to Uber ($15/month credit and $35 in December). Credits do not rollover.
Analysis/Summary: Oh look, Amex is hoping you don’t use your credits again! A $200 credit is fantastic in theory, but only if you can make use of it every month. The best thing about it is that Uber Eats counts for the spend, so that should make it more useful.
I prefer the way Chase does things by giving a straight 15% discount (plus 10x points) because it’s more straightforward and easier to understand. But if you are one of those people that use ridesharing services regularly, you’d have to spend $1300+ on Lyft to get the same $200 value offered by the Amex Platinum.
Again, if you analyze your spending patterns you’ll be able to easily determine which will save you more money.
Bonus Point Categories
Chase Sapphire Reserve: 3x on travel (same categories mentioned above) and 3x on restaurants; 1x everywhere else
American Express Platinum: 5x on Airfare booked directly with the airline and 5x on anything booked on Amextravel.com; 1x everywhere else.
Analysis/Summary: Travel and dining is where I spend a lot of my money, and earning 3x is pretty good. Other cards do offer more, so this one could require some thought as to what type of points you want to earn.
Amex offers 5x on the two categories mentioned above, but as you’ll see below, there are significant travel benefits that Amex may not provide you if you book travel with them. I even wrote a post about this when I opted for Amex’s 5x but got burned by the lack of benefits. Even with the new benefits added this year, I likely would not have been covered on that booking. For this reason, I would prefer booking my airfare with Chase.
Free Elite Status
Chase Sapphire Reserve: Emerald Club Executive Elite status with National Car Rental
American Express Platinum: Hilton Honors Gold status, Marriott Bonvoy Gold status, Emerald Club Executive Elite status with National Car Rental
Analysis/Summary: No doubt about it, Amex comes out ahead here. Hilton Gold status is the big benefit since it comes with free breakfast at nearly every Hilton hotel. Marriott status isn’t what it used to be but is still better to have than not. Chase offers only the National Car Rental status, which Amex also provides.
Rental Car Insurance Coverage
Chase Sapphire Reserve: Primary Coverage
American Express Platinum: Secondary Coverage
Analysis/Summary: This one is easy. If you book rental cars a lot, the Chase Sapphire Reserve card is the one you want to use.
Trip Delay/Interruption Coverage
This one requires getting into the nitty-gritty details, so I’ll do this one a little differently.
Booking Restriction for Coverage to Apply
Chase Sapphire Reserve: None, just pay for a part of your airfare with your card.
American Express Platinum: Must be a round-trip, one-way, or combinations of round-trip and one-way tickets booked with your card. Huh?
Analysis/Summary: So remember all those benefits I mentioned above where Amex is hoping you don’t use them? The way Amex describes when the benefit applies sounds like Amex just hoping they can screw you over.
Other bloggers have asked for clarification and were given an example of an open jaw that would be covered: New York to London, then Paris to New York. That’s covered. My question is…what if you flew out of JFK and flew back in to EWR? One is New York, and one is technically New Jersey.
For me, I often fly out of LAX and back in to SNA or vice versa. Different cities. Are they covered? I wrote a post about not being covered by Amex Platinum on a similar scenario. That was a hodgepodge of a trip that I booked, with multiple awards, cities, and paid tickets. Multiple one ways. I wasn’t covered under the old rules (there was no coverage at the time), but I don’t think I’d be covered under the new rules either.
But with Chase, I can rest easy that I’m covered no matter what. So even though Amex offers 5x on airfare, I would much rather book with a card that offers better coverage. That happens to include the Sapphire Reserve.
Delay Required for Coverage to Apply
Chase Sapphire Reserve: 6 Hours
American Express Platinum: 6 Hours
Food & Lodging Coverage Provided
Chase Sapphire Reserve: Up to $500
American Express Platinum: Up to $500
Bag Delay Coverage
Chase Sapphire Reserve: Yes, $100/day
American Express Platinum: Not offered
Lost Bag Coverage
Chase Sapphire Reserve: Yes, up to $3k
American Express Platinum: Yes, up to $3k
Analysis/Summary: These last few items were mostly similar, except that Chase Sapphire Reserve offers Bag Delay Coverage where Amex Platinum Does not. So again, to me it’s a no-brainer to book airfare with Chase Sapphire Reserve (at least among these two options)
Global Entry / Pre-check Credit
Chase Sapphire Reserve: Full rebate every 4 years
American Express Platinum: Full rebate every 4 years
Analysis/Summary: This benefit is also offered by a myriad of other cards now, so this shouldn’t be a deciding factor anyway.
Extended Warranty
Chase Sapphire Reserve: 1 additional year on warranties 3 years or less
American Express Platinum: 1 additional year on warranties 5 years or less
Analysis/Summary: Similar coverage, but Amex wins if this matters to you.
Purchase Protection
Chase Sapphire Reserve: 120 days coverage for items lost, damaged, or stolen up to $10k/item and $50k/year
American Express Platinum: 90 days coverage for items lost, damaged, or stolen up to $10k/item and $50k/year
Analysis/Summary: Similar coverage, but Chase wins if this matters to you.
Return Protection
Chase Sapphire Reserve: 90 days and up to $500/item up to $1k/year
American Express Platinum: 90 days and up to $300/item up to $1k/year
Analysis/Summary: Similar coverage, but Chase wins if this matters to you.
Roadside Assistance
Chase Sapphire Reserve: Yes, provides coverage for on the road breakdowns such as battery boost, flat tire service, fuel delivery, towing, and lockout assistance up to $50/event and 4 events per year
American Express Platinum: Not offered.
Analysis/Summary: Amex used to offer this but did away with it because, according to them, less than 1% of people used it. I think that’s kind of the point of this benefit…that it’s a coverage in case of emergencies that don’t happen very often. Chase wins again.
Trip Accident Coverage & Emergency Medical / Dental / Evacuation
This is complicated to compare because there are caveats and certain ways of booking and certain events that are covered that are beyond the scope of this post. If this is of interest to you, I recommend reading the detailed benefits guide for each card directly.
Summary & Final Thoughts
Again, it’s hard to compare when the benefits offered are so different. For me, I just hate the way Amex does business. That doesn’t mean the card isn’t useful, of course, but between that and the additional coverage (car rental and trip delay coverage), I prefer the Sapphire Reserve.
Still, I’m taking a hard look into whether or not I’m going to keep the card once my annual fee comes due later this year. I may cancel regardless since I’m coming up on the 48 month bonus rule (only one Sapphire bonus allowed per 48 months). I may cancel and sign up for the Sapphire preferred at that point, then try to product change back to the Sapphire Reserve.
Which card has more useful benefits for you?