Chase Sapphire Reserve vs. Amex Platinum: Why I’m Suddenly Reconsidering Chase
For the longest time, the consensus in the points world felt pretty simple: the The Platinum Card® from American Express was the king of premium travel cards, and the Chase Sapphire Reserve® was trying to keep up.
And honestly? That made sense.
The Platinum card has the flashy airport lounges, endless coupon-book credits, elite hotel perks, and enough luxury branding to make you feel like you should arrive at the airport wearing loafers and carrying designer luggage.
But then Chase dropped a massive 150,000-point welcome offer on the Sapphire Reserve.
Now I’m paying attention again.
Welcome back to Points With Phillip — where we obsess over points, miles, lounges, and figuring out how to travel way better without completely destroying our finances.
150,000 Chase Points Is a Big Deal
Let’s start with the obvious.
150,000 Chase Ultimate Rewards points can do some serious damage in the best possible way.
We’re talking:
Roundtrip business class flights to Europe
Multiple luxury Hyatt stays
Several nights at places like the Park Hyatt St. Kitts Christophe Harbour
Transfers to partners like United Airlines, Southwest Airlines, and World of Hyatt
That’s real value.
To earn the bonus, you need to spend $6,000 in the first three months. That sounds intimidating at first, but broken down, it’s about $2,000 per month.
For a premium card bonus this large, that’s actually pretty reasonable.
The Sapphire Reserve’s New Problem: It’s Expensive
The updated Sapphire Reserve now carries a $795 annual fee.
Add an authorized user at $195, and suddenly you’re staring at nearly $1,000 just to play the game.
That sounds wild… until you start breaking down the credits.
The Easy Credits
The easiest benefit by far is the $300 travel credit.
Unlike some premium cards that require phone calls, forms, rituals, and possibly a blood sacrifice, Chase just automatically reimburses eligible travel purchases.
Flights? Covered.
Taxes and fees? Covered.
Random travel charges? Usually covered.
That simplicity matters.
The Hotel Credits Are Sneaky Good
This is where things started getting interesting for me.
Chase now offers:
Two $250 credits annually for The Edit hotel collection
Another $250 hotel credit for select Chase Travel properties
And here’s the crazy part:
These stack.
If you plan things carefully, you can combine:
The $300 travel credit
The $250 Edit credit
The $250 hotel collection credit
That’s potentially $800 in value before you even touch lounges or dining perks.
For someone like me who already travels regularly, these credits aren’t theoretical.
I can actually use them.
Properties like:
Omni Orlando Resort at ChampionsGate
Kimpton Hotel Monaco Washington DC
Various IHG Hotels & Resorts properties
…suddenly become a lot more attractive.
Chase Finally Feels Like an Everyday Card
This is the biggest reason I’m reconsidering the Sapphire Reserve.
The Platinum card is phenomenal for booking flights.
But outside of airfare?
It’s honestly kind of terrible.
The Reserve, meanwhile, earns:
4x on flights booked direct
4x on hotels booked direct
3x dining worldwide
That’s a card you can actually use.
Meanwhile, the Platinum card still mostly sits in the sock drawer unless you’re booking airfare.
And that matters because earning points consistently is how you fund future travel.
The Lounge Battle: Platinum Still Wins… Barely
The The Platinum Card® from American Express still dominates lounge access.
You get:
Centurion Lounge access
Delta Sky Club visits
Priority Pass lounges
Hotel status perks
Premium travel protections
The lounges themselves are fantastic.
But they’re also crowded.
And sometimes they feel like an influencer convention.
Meanwhile, the Chase Sapphire Lounges have surprised me.
The Chase Sapphire Lounge by The Club Philadelphia felt more relaxed, more family-friendly, and honestly easier to enjoy.
The issue is simply availability.
There just aren’t enough Sapphire Lounges yet.
Why I Walked Away From the Platinum Card
I genuinely loved my Platinum card.
At one point, I was getting thousands of dollars in value from it by stacking credits strategically.
But eventually the annual fee hit and I had to ask myself a very simple question:
“Would I pay this fee again today?”
For me, the answer became no.
Not because the card is bad.
It absolutely isn’t.
But because I got tired of prepaying nearly $900 just to manage a pile of monthly and quarterly credits.
The Platinum card can absolutely be worth it.
But you have to actively work for that value.
The Card That Ruins This Entire Debate
Now we need to talk about the card that quietly destroys both of these premium cards for a lot of people:
The Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant® American Express® Card? Nope.
The Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card? Also no.
I’m talking about the legendary Marriott Bonvoy Ritz-Carlton Card.
The card I’m apparently never allowed to mention without my comment section exploding.
For $450 annually, this thing is absurd.
You get:
A $300 airline incidental credit
Unlimited Priority Pass access
Sapphire Lounge access
Free authorized users
Visa Infinite protections
An 85,000-point Marriott free night certificate
And honestly?
That free night alone can completely offset the annual fee if used strategically.
I recently used mine to save roughly $1,200 on a Ritz-Carlton stay.
That’s ridiculous value.
So Which Card Wins?
That depends entirely on what kind of traveler you are.
The Sapphire Reserve Makes Sense If:
You value Hyatt points
You want strong everyday multipliers
You want easier-to-use credits
You prefer Visa acceptance worldwide
You want premium travel protections built in
The Platinum Card Makes Sense If:
You live in airports
You maximize lounge access constantly
You naturally use Uber, Resy, and streaming credits
You value luxury travel perks over simplicity
The Ritz-Carlton Card Makes Sense If:
You already have access to it
You want lounge access without paying nearly $1,000 annually
You value simplicity
You don’t care as much about maximizing everyday spend
Final Thoughts
Right now, the 150,000-point Sapphire Reserve offer is probably the biggest reason I’ve reconsidered Chase in years.
The math suddenly works.
The credits are more practical than I expected.
And pairing Chase points with Hyatt, United, Southwest, and Bilt creates a really powerful ecosystem.
That said, I still think the Ritz-Carlton card quietly punches way above its weight.
And honestly, it may still be the card that keeps the Sapphire Reserve from permanently earning a spot in my wallet.