Should you downgrade Chase Sapphire Reserve®? Real numbers compared

*The annual fee and benefits are active immediately for new cardholders who apply and are approved on or after June 23, 2025. For existing cardholders, the new fee is effective on your next renewal date that falls on or after October 26, 2025.

Cancel vs. downgrade: What’s the smarter move?

With the higher annual fee on the Chase Sapphire Reserve(R) looming in the distance for existing cardholders, you have two main options to consider: cancel the card or opt for a Chase Sapphire Reserve(R) downgrade.

Downgrading is essentially a way to switch to a different card within Chase’s lineup, which may have different features and benefits.

Impact on credit score: Canceling vs. downgrading

Canceling your Chase Sapphire Reserve(R) outright could negatively impact your credit score by reducing the average age of your credit history. If you also carry balances on other cards, closing this account could raise your credit utilization ratio, which may further lower your score.

On the other hand, downgrading Chase Sapphire Reserve(R) to another card from Chase shouldn’t have any impact on your credit.

Chase 5/24 rule and new account implications

Downgrading or canceling your card shouldn’t impact your Chase 5/24 status. After all, the unspoken Chase 5/24 rule is an issuer policy that can limit your ability to get new accounts from Chase if you have had five or more new cards in the previous 24 months.

Credit card sign-up bonuses

If you downgrade the Chase Sapphire Reserve(R) to another Chase card, you won’t have the opportunity to earn the welcome bonus on that card. If you cancel Chase Sapphire Reserve(R) and are able to get approved for another Chase card, however, you have the potential to earn bonus points after meeting a minimum spending requirement.

Losing perks and points: What happens when you cancel?

If you cancel the Chase Sapphire Reserve(R) completely, you’ll lose access to all cardholder benefits. Additionally, any rewards you’ve accrued may be forfeited unless you have another Chase credit card that earns Ultimate Rewards points, allowing your points to transfer and remain accessible.

If you switch or downgrade your card, remember to update your card information for any recurring payments or autopay setups to avoid missed payments.

Chase Sapphire Reserve(R) downgrade options explained

Chase Sapphire Reserve(R) downgrades need to be to another rewards card in the Chase Ultimate Rewards universe. This process is considered a product change within the same issuer, meaning you can keep your account open while switching to a different rewards card from Chase. After all, Chase only allows moves among cards that earn the same general type of rewards.

The two most popular Chase Sapphire Reserve(R) downgrade options include the Chase Sapphire Preferred(R) Card and the Chase Freedom Unlimited(R).

Option 1: Downgrade to Chase Sapphire Preferred(R) Card (annual_fees annual fee)

While the Chase Sapphire Preferred(R) Card doesn’t offer premium perks like annual travel credits or airport lounge access, it does come with a lower annual fee than the Reserve®, at a more reasonable annual_fees . The card also lets users transfer their points to Chase airline and hotel partners, and it comes with many of the same travel insurance protections as the Chase Sapphire Reserve(R).

Rewards are also doled out differently on the Chase Sapphire Preferred(R) Card. This card earns:

• Earn 5X points on travel purchased through Chase Travel℠
• Earn 3X points when you dine out
• Earn 3X points on select streaming services
• Earn 3X on online grocery store purchases (excluding Target, Walmart and wholesale clubs)
• Earn 2X on all other travel purchases
• Earn 1X on all other purchases worldwide

Option 2: Downgrade to Chase Freedom Unlimited(R) (no annual fee)

The Chase Freedom Unlimited(R) is a $0 annual fee credit card from Chase, yet it still comes with some benefits. Specifically, cardholders get an intro 0% APR offer for purchases and balance transfers, trip cancellation and interruption insurance, purchase protection, extended warranties, and a handful of other consumer protections.

With the Chase Freedom Unlimited(R), cardholders earn:

• 5% cash back on travel booked through Chase
• 3% cash back on dining and drugstore purchases
• 1.5% cash back on all other purchases

Real numbers: Comparing the value before and after the downgrade

While a Chase Sapphire downgrade can certainly save you money, you may be giving up more than you bargained for. Here’s an overview of factors to keep in mind as you decide on your next steps.

Annual fee savings: annual_fees vs. annual_fees or $0

If paying the higher annual fees for the Chase Sapphire Reserve(R) wasn’t on your 2026 bingo card, you could downgrade and pay the lower annual fees of annual_fees with the Chase Sapphire Preferred(R) Card or $0 with the Chase Freedom Unlimited(R).

The savings here can obviously be annual_fees at most and $700 at the bare minimum, and this is not an insignificant amount of money.

Travel credit and lounge access trade-offs

Downgrading Chase Sapphire Reserve(R) to the Chase Sapphire Preferred(R) Card or Chase Freedom Unlimited(R) will result in losing premium benefits. The biggest of those include the $300 annual travel credit that applies to any travel purchases charged to the card, and of course Priority Pass Select airport lounge membership (valued at $469). Additionally, downgrading may result in losing the ability to transfer your Chase Ultimate Rewards points to travel partners, which can significantly impact the value of your rewards.

While downgrading to save some cash can make the most sense, you should definitely think about all you’re giving up when you trade in cards.

Rewards earned on travel purchases

While the Chase Sapphire Reserve(R) offers a much higher rewards rate of 8X points on all travel purchases made through Chase Travel and 4X points on flights and hotels booked directly, the card’s rewards structure only provides 1X point on all other travel purchases. Meanwhile, the annual_fees annual fee Chase Sapphire Preferred(R) Card‘s features include 5X points on travel purchased through Chase Travel and 2X points on other travel purchases (plus bonus rewards in other categories).

The $0 annual fee Chase Freedom Unlimited(R) offers bonus rewards on travel purchases made through Chase Travel, but it also provides a higher base earning rate of 1.5% cash back on all other spending, making it a versatile option for everyday use.

How to downgrade Chase Sapphire Reserve(R), step-by-step

If you decide you cannot stomach a annual_fees annual fee for a rewards credit card, downgrading the Chase Sapphire Reserve(R) is easy. The following steps can help you get to the finish line.

• Step 1: Call the Chase customer service phone number. Start the process by calling the customer service phone number on the back of your card, and request to speak with a Chase agent. You can also call Chase credit card customer service at 1 (800) 432-3117 instead.
• Step 2: Request a downgrade. Tell the Chase agent you are requesting a product change and would like to downgrade your card. At this point, they’ll let you know your downgrade options and read over common disclosures.
• Step 3: Accept the downgrade. Tell the representative which Chase credit card you’re willing to downgrade to, and that you want to move forward with requesting the change.
• Step 4: Check your accounts and watch for your new card. Chase will take care of downgrading your card on their end, and they’ll send you a new card in the mail. On your side, you’ll want to log into your online Chase account to make sure your old card and annual fee have been removed.

When to downgrade: Before or after annual fee posts?

If you plan to downgrade your card, you should use up all available benefits first. This includes the $300 annual travel credit on the card first and foremost. If you plan to downgrade after the new cardholder benefits kick in in October 2025, you can also try to use all or part of the hotel credit for The Edit hotels through Chase, the fee credit for Global Entry, NEXUS or TSA PreCheck membership, all or part of the $300 annual dining credit, part of the Apple TV credits, as much as you can of the StubHub credit and more.

You can downgrade your card before the annual fee posts or after – it’s up to you. If you decide to downgrade after your annual fee posts, make sure you call Chase to downgrade within 30 days to avoid owing a prorated amount. If you wait more than 30 days after the annual fee posts, you may be required to have the fee paid and not refunded.

Redeem or transfer points before downgrade

You may also decide to redeem or transfer your Chase Sapphire Reserve(R) points before you downgrade, but you don’t necessarily have to. Redeeming or transferring points before downgrading can help you maximize your interest in rewards value, especially if you want to take advantage of premium redemption options.

If you downgrade Chase Sapphire Reserve(R) to Preferred^®, this means you’ll still have access to airline and hotel transfer partners and all other Chase redemption options. Points can be transferred to travel partners before downgrading to ensure you don’t lose access to these valuable options. However, you may get a slightly lower value for travel redemptions that qualify for the Chase Points Boost program compared to the Reserve.

You’ll also have the same rewards redemption options if you downgrade to the Chase Freedom Unlimited(R), although you’ll lose access to Chase transfer partners altogether.

Conclusion

Whether you should downgrade your Chase Sapphire Reserve(R) ultimately depends on how much value you get from its premium perks. If you regularly travel, take advantage of airport lounge access and use the $300 annual travel credit and other statement credit offers, keeping the card may still be worth the higher annual_fees annual fee. If you don’t maximize those benefits each year, however, downgrading to a lower-tier Chase card like the Chase Sapphire Preferred(R) Card or even a no-annual-fee Freedom card could save you hundreds of dollars.

Before you decide, crunch the numbers based on your own spending and travel habits. The right choice is the one that helps you get the most value for what you actually use.