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You can use the Chase Sapphire Reserve travel credits toward big travel purchases like airfare and hotels, and smaller expenses like Uber rides and subway tickets.
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The Chase Sapphire Reserve® offers up to $300 in credits toward travel purchases each year.
Chase’s definition of travel is broad and includes airfare, hotels, rental cars, rideshares, and even parking.
Maximizing your travel credits can help offset the card’s Chase Sapphire Reserve® annual fee.
Read Insider’s guide to the best premium credit cards.
The Chase Sapphire Reserve® is still one of the most popular rewards credit cards for travelers, in part because of the generous benefits and welcome bonus it offers. New cardholders can currently earn Chase Sapphire Reserve® (worth Chase Sapphire Reserve®, based on Insider’s valuation of Chase points), and its travel perks are among the most generous of any travel rewards credit card.
However, the Chase Sapphire Reserve® charges a steep Chase Sapphire Reserve® annual fee, so it’s definitely not for everyone — however, if you can maximize its benefits and earning potential, it can be well worth it.
One benefit that offsets a big chunk of the annual fee is up to $300 in credits toward eligible travel purchases made with the Chase Sapphire Reserve® each account anniversary year. Chase has a broad definition of what counts as travel — the usual suspects, like airfare, hotels, and rental cars, all qualify for the credit, but so do less-obvious expenses like parking, road tolls, and campgrounds.
The great thing about the Chase Sapphire Reserve® travel credit is that it’s dead easy to use. Unlike some benefits on other rewards credit cards, there’s no enrollment required and you don’t have to jump through any hoops to qualify for a reimbursement.
Here’s everything you need to know about how the Chase Sapphire Reserve® travel credit works, what triggers the credit, and how to make sure you’re maximizing this valuable benefit.
We’re focused here on the rewards and perks that come with each card. These cards won’t be worth it if you’re paying interest or late fees. When using a credit card, it’s important to pay your balance in full each month, make payments on time, and only spend what you can afford to pay.
How does the Chase Sapphire Reserve travel credit work?
Every year, Chase Sapphire Reserve® cardholders receive up to $300 in statement credits toward travel purchases made with their card, starting from the account opening date.
The credit resets each account anniversary, except for those who opened the card before May 21, 2017, in which case the credit resets every calendar year. If you don’t use the full credit one year, it won’t carry over to the next — so use it or lose it.
You don’t have to spend the credits all at once or on large travel purchases. Chase will automatically apply the credit to your credit card statement any time you make a qualifying travel purchase until you hit your yearly maximum.
You’ll automatically receive a statement credit toward the first $300 in travel purchases you make each account anniversary year.
Chase
One caveat — the Chase Sapphire Reserve® normally earns 5x total points on air travel and 10x total points on hotels and car rentals purchased through Chase Ultimate Rewards® and 3x points on all other travel and dining, but you won’t earn bonus points on purchase amounts that are reimbursed by the travel credit.
What qualifies as travel for the Chase Sapphire Reserve credit?
Chase’s official list of qualifying travel purchases with the Chase Sapphire Reserve® is quite large and includes categories that you might not initially think of as travel.
Travel purchases that count toward the Chase Sapphire Reserve travel credit
Airlines (including airfare, baggage fees, taxes and fees on award tickets, and most other incidental fees)Hotels (including room rate, resort fees, and taxes and fees on award stays — and in practice, some vacation rentals, like Airbnb, will trigger the credit too)MotelsTimesharesCar rental agencies (including third-party sites such as Autoslash)Cruise linesTravel agencies (including online travel agencies like the Chase Travel Portal, Orbitz, and Expedia)Discount travel sites (like Hotwire)CampgroundsPassenger trains (including subways)Buses (including local transit)Taxis (including ridesharing services like Uber and Lyft)LimousinesFerriesToll bridges and highways (including prepaid tolls like E-Zpass and SunPass)Parking lots and garages
Be aware that there are some purchases you’d assume would count as travel that actually don’t. This includes:
Merchants that sell points, miles, or travel gift cardsInflight goods and services (like Wi-Fi) Onboard cruise line goods and services Restaurants or other merchants inside a hotel (these can qualify if you bill them to your room and pay at checkout, though)Tourist attractions and excursions (unless you purchase the tickets through an online travel agency, then they may count)Merchants in airportsRV and boat rentalsReal estate agents and merchants that rent vehicles for the purpose of hauling (like U-Haul)
How to use the Chase Sapphire Reserve travel credit
You don’t have to do anything special to take advantage of the Chase Sapphire Reserve® travel credit other than use your card to pay for an eligible travel purchase. Chase takes care of the rest — there’s no registration required and the credits are usually applied within a day or two of the transaction.
Because Chase applies the credits automatically, there’s no way to pick and choose which purchases to erase with the credit, like you can with the Chase Pay Yourself Back program. Put simply, the first $300 you spend on travel each anniversary year will get offset by the credit — whether that’s a few dozen short Uber rides, an airline ticket, or anything in between. If there’s a transaction that exceeds the amount of your unused travel credit, Chase will apply your remaining credit to the purchase, and whatever’s left over will remain on your statement balance.
Find out what your points, miles, and credit card rewards are worth — including the Ultimate Rewards points you’ll earn with the Chase Sapphire Reserve® — by reading Insider’s guide to points and miles valuations.
To find out how much of the travel credit you have left to spend (or to check when your credit resets, as is the case in the screenshot below), sign into your Chase account and navigate to the “Rewards Activity” tab on the Chase Ultimate Rewards main page for your Chase Sapphire Reserve® account. Then, scroll down to “Benefits and Redemptions Overview” to view your travel credit spending.
You can check how much of your annual travel credit you have left by navigating to the benefits and redemptions section of your online Chase account.
Chase
That cover’s more than half the card’s annual fee, and if you can make the most of other benefits like Priority Pass airport lounge access, a Global Entry or TSA PreCheck application fee credit, and travel protections like primary car rental insurance, you can get even more value from the card.
If you won’t travel enough to make use of the Chase Sapphire Reserve®’s benefits, you might be better off with the card’s less-expensive sibling, the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card. It has a welcome bonus of Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card (worth Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card in travel, based on Insider’s valuations).
You won’t get a travel credit, Global Entry or TSA PreCheck credit, or airport lounge access, but its annual fee is just Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card, and it comes with many of the same travel and purchase protections. If you’re not sure which card is right for you, check out our detailed comparison of the Chase Sapphire Reserve and Sapphire Preferred to help decide.
Chase Sapphire Reserve travel credit frequently asked questions (FAQ)
Does the Chase Sapphire Reserve travel credit reset every calendar year?
No, for most people (except those who opened the card before May 21, 2017), the travel credit resets every account anniversary year. An account anniversary year is measured as the 12 months from the date you opened the card.
Does Airbnb count for the Chase Sapphire Reserve travel credit?
Yes, Airbnb purchases qualify for the Chase Sapphire Reserve®’s travel credit.
Does unused travel credit from the Chase Sapphire Reserve roll over to the next year?
No, unused Chase Sapphire Reserve® travel credit will not roll over to the next year if you have credit remaining. It’s use it or lose it.
Do toll roads count for the Chase Sapphire Reserve travel credit?
Yes, Chase specifically mentions toll bridges and highways as qualified travel purchases, so you should receive the credit for toll roads.
What if I can’t use my Chase Sapphire Reserve travel credit before it expires?
If you’re not traveling right now and don’t want to lose your Chase Sapphire Reserve® travel credit, you could consider pre-paying for travel purchases you might make in the future. For instance, you could pre-pay your account for tolls like EZ-Pass. Purchasing travel gift cards to use later is another strategy, but keep in mind it must code as a travel purchase — and many airlines, hotels, and other travel providers use third-party services that don’t code as travel to sell their gift cards.