Chase Is Finally Catching Up: Upgrade Offers Are Coming, and Here’s Why That Matters
Hey friends, what’s up? Phillip here with Points with Phillip, and I’ve got to tell you — Chase is making moves this weekend. There’s a lot going on, but one announcement in particular really caught my eye, and it could be a game-changer for anyone deep in the points and miles world.
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The Big News: Chase Confirms Upgrade Offers Are Coming
If you spend any time on Reddit, you might’ve seen this: a verified Chase customer-service agent actually confirmed that upgrade offers are coming to Chase cards. That’s right — upgrade bonuses, similar to what American Express has been doing for years, are officially on the way.
This all started when someone in Anthony Ventures’ Discord shared a screenshot of a Chase rep responding on Reddit, confirming that upgrade offers are in development. While there’s no timeline yet, this is still huge news.
Why Upgrade Offers Matter
If you’ve ever dealt with American Express, you already know how powerful upgrade offers can be. Amex regularly rolls them out on cards like the Green, Gold, and Platinum — often offering 50K, 75K, or even 125K Membership Rewards points just for upgrading.
For example, my own upgrade offer from the Amex Gold to the Platinum was 125,000 points, which I took — because I wasn’t eligible for a new signup bonus at the time. That kind of opportunity is what’s made Amex’s ecosystem so valuable for long-term cardholders.
Now Chase appears ready to follow suit, and that’s big for a few reasons.
Chase Is Tightening Up 5/24 — and This Could Be the Solution
Lately, Chase has been enforcing 5/24 much more strictly — even on some co-branded cards like the Marriott Bonvoy Boundless or the Amazon Prime Visa that used to slip through the cracks.
That means if you’ve been active in the hobby — maybe you grabbed a few Citi cards, the Capital One Duo, or a couple of Amex cards like the Hilton Aspire or Delta Platinum — you’re probably well over 5/24 and locked out of new Chase cards.
But if upgrade offers are coming, you might still be able to earn Chase points without a new application. For instance, imagine upgrading your Sapphire Preferred to a Sapphire Reserve and getting paid in points to do it. That’s the dream — and it might be reality soon.
What About Co-Branded Cards?
We don’t know yet whether this will extend to co-branded cards like Southwest, United, or the hotel cards (Hyatt, IHG, Marriott). But if Chase applies this logic across the board, it could open new doors for cardholders in every ecosystem — without the need to wait out 5/24.
That would be a major win for flexibility and ongoing engagement with Chase products.
Chase’s Weekend Updates: Sapphire Reserve Changes Go Live
Now, beyond the upgrade buzz, Chase has been busy this weekend rolling out updates to the Sapphire Reserve. If you held the card before the recent refresh, you finally now have access to all the new benefits everyone else has been enjoying for the last few months.
Let’s take a look at what’s changed.
Legacy Sapphire Reserve Benefits:
$300 Travel Credit
DoorDash monthly credit and DashPass membership
Global Entry/TSA PreCheck credit
Priority Pass access
Standard 3x on travel and dining
Pretty solid — but nothing groundbreaking.
New Sapphire Reserve Benefits:
Now, you’re getting a whole suite of new perks:
Points Boost: Up to 2x more on top-booked hotels and flights via Chase Travel
$500 Annual “Edit” Credit (split across categories like dining and experiences)
$300 Dining Credit at Sapphire Reserve-exclusive restaurants
$300 StubHub Credit ($150 twice a year)
$120 in Lyft credits annually
$250 Apple TV+ and Apple Music subscription credit
$120 in Peloton or Lululemon credits
8x on Chase Travel, 4x on flights/hotels booked direct, 3x on dining
That’s a seriously expanded list of perks — even if the structure is a little more complicated.
Why Some Cardholders Aren’t Thrilled
Now, let’s be fair — Chase didn’t just hand out these new benefits to everyone overnight. You had to wait if you were still under the old annual fee, and that’s rubbed some people the wrong way.
Compare that to American Express, which tends to roll out new benefits to all existing cardholders right away. For example, when Amex raised the Gold Card’s fee from $250 to $325, they immediately added new Resy and Dunkin’ credits — and everyone got them, even those on the old pricing.
Same with the Platinum Card refresh this year: Amex added quarterly Lululemon and Resy credits before new fees kicked in. I personally double-dipped, using two $75 Lululemon credits and two $100 Resy credits before my renewal date. That’s how you treat your existing customers.
Chase, on the other hand, is making people wait for what they’ve technically been paying for. It’s not the end of the world, but it’s a different customer-service philosophy.
The Bigger Picture: Competition Is Good for Us
At the end of the day, this new Chase approach is good news. Upgrade offers mean more ways to earn, more flexibility, and more competition between banks.
American Express has been setting the tone for a while now, rewarding loyal customers and expanding their credit offerings. Chase is clearly paying attention — and that’s only going to benefit all of us who love optimizing points and miles.
Final Thoughts
So, what do you think about Chase’s upgrade-offer news?
Would you upgrade your Sapphire card if it came with a solid bonus?
Or do you think Amex is still the one showing Chase how it’s done when it comes to premium-card perks?
Drop your thoughts in the comments below — and as always, thanks for reading (and watching) Points with Phillip. Stay tuned, because once these Chase upgrade offers officially roll out, you know I’ll be breaking them down right here.