Chase Bank is continuing to add features to its Sapphire credit cards to help offset any lost value to cardholders due to the coronavirus pandemic. Now Chase Sapphire Reserve and Chase Sapphire Preferred cardholders can earn additional Ultimate Rewards bonus points on streaming services and gas station purchases for a limited time. Here’s what you need to know.
New Chase Sapphire Bonus Categories Through September
Chase Sapphire cards now earn bonus points on gas station and streaming services purchases. The new bonuses run from July 1 through September 30, 2020 and vary depending on which Sapphire card you hold.
Chase Sapphire Reserve Bonus Points
The Chase Sapphire Reserve is the top-shelf travel rewards card from Chase – and it comes with a premium price tag ($550). Because of the high annual fee, Reserve cardholders benefit most from the new bonus categories.
Reserve cardholders earn 5X Ultimate Rewards points on gas station and Instacart purchases, and a huge 10X points on streaming services purchases, which include Hulu, Netflix, and NBC’s newly-launched Peacock.
Given the extraordinary value of Chase Ultimate Rewards points, the 5X points on gas purchases make the Reserve one of the best gas credit cards during this promotional period.
Chase Sapphire Preferred Bonus Points
The Sapphire Preferred features a lower annual fee than the Reserve (at $95) and earns fewer points as a result. Through the promotional period, Preferred cardholders will receive 3X points on gas station purchases and 5X on streaming services paid for using their card.
While 3X on gas isn’t as impressive as the 5X points the Reserve earns, the points on gas station fill-ups with the Chase Preferred still makes it an enticing offer for current cardholders. This fact is especially true given the near $500 difference in the annual fees between the two cards.
Chase Introducing New Bonuses to Combat the Impact of Coronavirus
The new benefits for Sapphire cardholders follow on the heels of other enhancements to Chase credit cards during the COVID-19 pandemic. Chase Sapphire – as well as co-branded – credit cards previously earned bonus points on grocery store purchases through June 30.
The bank also introduced a new “Pay Yourself Back” option for Sapphire cards in late May. That feature allows Sapphire Reserve and Preferred customers to use their Ultimate Rewards points for statement credits on purchases in three categories:
- Dining
- Grocery stores
- Home improvement stores
All these programs seek to increase the value of Chase credit cards during the financial turmoil of the coronavirus pandemic. Chase has felt the impact especially hard, with the bank experiencing a 40% drop in cardholder spending.
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