Points, Miles & Credit Cards

The fee is going up!

June 30, 2025

4 min read

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I’m so tired, just so tired.

In case you haven’t heard, Chase Sapphire Reserve® announced its annual fee is increasing to $795. That’s a 45% increase.

Sadly, this does not surprise me in the least. This increase is the latest in a trend of annual fee increases on credit cards, especially among premium travel credit cards.

Credit card annual fees are one of the few price increases that seem to defy the rules of inflation: The higher the annual fee, the more exclusive the card appears.

And don’t for a moment delude yourself into thinking this will be the last annual fee increase we’ll see: Another luxury travel card is getting a major overhaul later this year. While nothing is official yet, word on the street is we might see an annual fee close to $1,000.

This might be an unpopular opinion, but I think any conversation focused on credit card annual fees is shortsighted.

Why? Because the most important metric to compare cards is the card’s ongoing APR, not its annual fee.

Annual fee: annual_fees

Earning rate:

Earn 8x points on all purchases through Chase Travel(SM), including The Edit(SM)
Earn 4x points on flights and hotels booked direct
Earn 3x points on dining worldwide
1x points on all other purchases

Welcome offer: bonus_miles_full

Pros and cons

Pros:

Card gets you complimentary access to Chase Sapphire Lounge(R) by The Club network and Priority Pass Select™ airport lounges (enrollment required)
Generous, very flexible annual $300 travel credit
Highly valuable points currency with great range of airline and hotel transfer partners

Cons:

It can be hard to keep track of all the statement credits this card offers
High annual fee may be hard for occasional travelers to justify

Our take

The card's new benefits are only valuable if you already use these services. It's not worth making a part-time job out of finding ways to use the card's new perks.

My take:

As I told AFAR recently, these added benefits are only valuable if they are useful to you.

“For example, if you want Global Entry but don’t use Apple Music, then there are better options out there for you.”

As my friends at Going know, I currently don’t have a premium travel card in my wallet. I’m still skeptical of such a high annual fee, but here’s what I think about changes.

Of course, deciding whether a credit card is right for you is personal, so your pros and cons list should differ:
What I like:

I like the additions of the Apple, Peloton, and StubHub statement credits. I already use these brands/platforms, so I find it valuable. But your mileage may vary.
I like that the $300 annual travel credit remained the same. This is the old “if it’s not broken, don’t fix it” rule.
I like the higher earning rates on direct bookings with flights and hotels.

What I don’t love:

While earning 4x points on flights and hotels booked directly is an increase from the old earning rate of 3x points, I don’t love that all other travel purchases (including mass transit) decrease from 3x to 1x points per dollar.
The laundry list of statement credits can be hard to track and maximize.

At the end of the day, if you find yourself debating whether a $245 increase is worth it, it’s probably not.