A few months ago, it sure seemed like Chase was down. Chase was down bad.
While the bank would never say so out loud, it had clearly botched the rollout of the “refreshed” *chase sapphire reserve* card with a laundry list of annoying use-them-or-lose them credits long enough to make even American Express blush. Honestly, it landed with a thud.
Within a matter of months, Chase was clearly scrambling to right the ship by:
- Adjusting the welcome bonus, offering more points instead of an extra travel credit
- Tweaking the card's new, $250 twice-a-year credits to make them easier to use … while adding in another $250 sweetener
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Those are not the moves of a bank confident in its top-tier, new-look, premium travel card. The folks over at Amex HQ were doing a victory lap – especially after the smash-hit that was the revamped Platinum Card.
Fast forward to present day, and things feel different. Chase is on the upswing. Every metric and datapoint we've seen suggests travelers have turned around on the Reserve Card as we head into summer 2026.
What changed? Time heals all wounds, they say, and maybe the travelers who were initially turned off by Chase's new “coupon book” mentality just warmed up to it? Maybe you're all feeling more confident about maximizing this card with our new tracking tool?
There's an easier answer here, though: A record-setting 150,000-point bonus (after spending $6,000 in the first three months) will turn a lot of heads. That behemoth bonus is ending soon, by the way.
But the biggest change, if you ask me, is a strategic pivot.
In copying Amex's (at times overwhelming) playbook, it seemed like Chase was trying to steal some of their customers last summer. That didn't work.
So now, Chase is instead focusing on getting its existing cardholders to pony up for the top-of-the-line card. To do that, they made a critical change: Chase made it much easier to get approved for the Reserve – and get that big bonus, too. And that includes longtime Sapphire Preferred cardholders!
The old rule linking the Sapphire Preferred and Sapphire Reserve together is gone. If you earned a bonus on the Preferred, that no longer blocks you from picking up the Reserve – the two cards are now treated independently. That opens the door to earning a record-setting Reserve bonus that was previously off-limits.
It's a savvy move on Chase's part. And more importantly, it makes the Reserve card – once out of reach for many of you – worth a long, hard look.
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