United Membership Card vs. Chase Sapphire Reserve: Card showdown

The premium rewards card market is stuffed with choices. When you’re into maximizing transferable rewards or prepared to gather extra perks to make use of together with your favourite loyalty program, including a bank card is usually a nice selection.

Two of our favourite choices signify every of those selections. The Chase Sapphire Reserve® (see charges and costs) earns beneficial Chase Final Rewards factors which you can switch to a number of packages, whereas the United Membership℠ Card (see charges and costs) is the top-tier selection for United Airways loyalists who need to earn extra with the airline.

Let’s stroll via incomes charges, advantages and lounge entry options with every of those premium playing cards that can assist you resolve which is the most effective so as to add to your pockets.

United Membership Card vs. Chase Sapphire Reserve comparability

United Membership vs. Sapphire Reserve welcome provide

The United Membership Card is providing 95,000 bonus miles after spending $5,000 on purchases within the first three months from account opening. Primarily based on TPG’s April 2025 valuations, this welcome bonus is price $1,283 towards flights.

In the meantime, with the Chase Sapphire Reserve, you will get a welcome provide of 60,000 factors after spending $5,000 on purchases within the first three months from account opening. TPG’s April 2025 valuations peg this bonus at $1,230 once you issue within the worth of transferring to Chase’s loyalty companions.

Winner: United Membership Card. Its present welcome bonus is price about $50 extra.

Associated: Have a brand new bank card? Listed below are 4 suggestions that can assist you earn your welcome bonus

United Membership vs. Sapphire Reserve advantages

With regards to advantages, these two playing cards present lounge entry and different beneficial perks. Let’s evaluate them.

Lounge entry

The United Membership Card affords a United Membership membership that grants the first cardholder, one grownup visitor and dependent kids underneath 18 years outdated entry to greater than 45 United Golf equipment worldwide. This perk is valued at $750, which greater than offsets the cardboard’s $695 annual charge.

Then, in the event you spend $50,000 on purchases together with your United Membership Card in a calendar yr, you will obtain United Membership All Entry membership. This upgraded tier consists of entry to taking part Star Alliance lounges and the flexibility to carry a further grownup visitor (for a complete of two) into United Golf equipment. You may additionally obtain 4 one-time passes on your licensed customers every year.

The Sapphire Reserve gives entry to all eight (and rising) Chase lounges and a complimentary Precedence Move Choose membership. Precedence Move consists of entry to greater than 1,700 lounges worldwide.

When you desire United Membership lounges or can spend to unlock All Entry membership, then the United Membership Card would be the better option for you. Nonetheless, Chase continues to develop its personal lounge footprint and comes with a broader perk with Precedence Move, giving cardholders entry to a better variety of lounges throughout the globe. So, the Reserve would be the better option for somebody who is not so loyal to United.

Different advantages

The United Membership is a good possibility in the event you’re flying United and searching for premium perks, together with:

• The primary two checked baggage are free (for the first cardholder and a companion on the identical reservation)
• Premier entry: Precedence check-in, safety screening, boarding and baggage dealing with (the place accessible)
• Expanded award availability
• 25% again on United inflight purchases

With the cardboard, you will obtain as much as $200 in annual assertion credit to make use of on bookings with Famend Accommodations and Resorts. That is United’s luxurious lodge portal, which grants cardholders perks reminiscent of every day breakfast for 2, complimentary Wi-Fi and room upgrades at check-in (when accessible).

You may additionally obtain credit on ride-hailing, JSX and Instacart purchases, plus Avis/Finances automotive leases booked via United’s automotive rental portal. To be taught extra, try our full overview of the United Membership Card.

With the United Membership Card, you’ll be able to spend your manner towards elite standing with United. You may obtain a lift of 1,500 Premier qualifying factors every year, beginning in 2026. You may additionally obtain 1 PQP for each $15 spent on the cardboard (as much as 28,000 PQP in a calendar yr). This may be utilized as much as and together with the Premier 1K degree.

As for the Sapphire Reserve, it affords one of many easiest journey credit available on the market — masking $300 assertion credit score in journey. This credit score routinely kicks in in your first $300 in journey purchases you make with the cardboard every account anniversary yr. Plus, Chase broadly defines journey, which means you will obtain it routinely on the primary $300 you spend on purchases for the whole lot from flights and inns to tolls and parking.

Different standout Sapphire Reserve advantages embody:

• A $10 month-to-month Lyft in app-credit*
• A 50% bonus on factors redeemed via Chase Journey
• A $100 property credit score, every day free breakfast for 2 and room upgrades (upon availability) when reserving via The Edit

Each playing cards have journey and purchasing protections and as much as $120 in assertion credit towards World Entry, TSA PreCheck or Nexus each 4 years. In addition they provide a free DoorDash DashPass membership (activate by Dec. 31, 2027).

With the Sapphire Reserve, you will obtain particular privileges once you enroll in Nationwide Automotive Rental, Avis and Silvercar — however no credit. With the United Membership Card, you will obtain as much as $50 every in United TravelBank money on your first and second Avis or Finances automotive leases booked every anniversary yr via United’s automotive rental portal — however no elite standing.

The Sapphire Reserve outshines the United Membership Card for many vacationers because of its versatile journey credit score and broad listing of perks that may apply to a number of sides of journey. Conversely, the United Membership Card is best for individuals who are extraordinarily loyal to United since its standout perks are associated to flying with the airline.

Winner: Sapphire Reserve. Its advantages are broader and simpler for the on a regular basis traveler to make use of.

*Excludes Wait & Save, bike and scooter rides. Most assertion credit score is as much as $120 yearly.

Associated: Precious journey perks which you can get with a bank card

Incomes rewards on the United Membership vs. Sapphire Reserve

While you pay with the United Membership Card, you will earn:

• 9 miles per greenback spent on United flights
• 5 miles per greenback spent on stays bought via Famend Accommodations and Resorts
• 4 miles per greenback spent on all different United purchases
• 2 miles per greenback spent on eating and all different journey
• 1 mile per greenback spent on all different purchases

That is an over 12% return once you use the cardboard to pay for United flights (based mostly on TPG’s April 2025 valuations), which is greater than every other airline bank card.

In the meantime, the Sapphire Reserve earns the next:

• 10 factors per greenback spent on lodge and automotive rental bookings made via Chase Journey and eligible Peloton purchases over $150 (as much as 50,000 factors)
• 5 factors per greenback spent on flights booked via Chase Journey and Lyft rides
• 3 factors per greenback spent on all different journey and eating purchases
• 1 level per greenback spent on all different purchases

The United Membership shines brighter once you make purchases with United and is the higher possibility in the event you regularly guide with the airline and need to acquire United MileagePlus miles.

Nonetheless, with the Sapphire Reserve, you will obtain a greater return in a broader listing of bonus classes, together with common journey and eating.

Winner: Sapphire Reserve. The United Membership affords profitable earnings on United flights, however the Sapphire Reserve’s broader classes win out once more.

Redeeming and transferring rewards on the United Membership vs. Sapphire Reserve

The Sapphire Reserve affords extra versatile rewards than the United Membership Card, making it a greater possibility for many vacationers seeking to maximize rewards. You may get probably the most worth out of your Chase Final Rewards factors by transferring them to certainly one of Chase’s 14 airline and lodge companions.

Chase’s stable listing of switch companions consists of United, which implies you’ll be able to nonetheless use your factors earned with the Sapphire Reserve towards United flights if you wish to fly the airline and its companions.

Plus, the flexibleness of Chase factors opens up the potential for unimaginable redemptions once you switch your factors. That is very true with the award-friendly World of Hyatt lodge program.

For instance, you possibly can keep on the luxurious Park Hyatt Sydney for 35,000 to 45,000 factors per night time, which might be a unbelievable deal on your factors.

With the Sapphire Reserve, you too can guide journey via Chase Journey together with your factors at a set worth of 1.5 cents every. This can be a nice possibility for boutique inns that do not belong to a bigger model. It is also nice for reserving flights when money costs are low.

In the meantime, United miles are way more restrictive since they will solely be redeemed for United flights, flights with its companions and different United-related purchases. They’re additionally topic to devaluation. Dynamic award pricing additionally signifies that redemption charges fluctuate considerably relying on the ticket you guide.

Nonetheless, the MileagePlus program nonetheless affords good worth via candy spots. As an example, Katie Genter, TPG’s lead factors and miles author, redeemed simply 6,000 United miles per particular person for a one-way flight from Amsterdam to Munich.

There are additionally different methods to search out worth in this system, such because the United Excursionist Perk or reserving companion awards with United miles. For instance, Rachel Craft, an affiliate factors and miles author at TPG, redeemed 88,000 United miles for a one-way business-class ticket on Ethiopian Airways from Denver to Antananarivo, Madagascar.

Winner: Sapphire Reserve. Its redemption and switch choices are way more versatile.

Associated: Why transferable factors and miles are price greater than different rewards

Ought to I get the United Membership or Sapphire Reserve?

The Sapphire Reserve is the higher all-around journey card, because it earns beneficial Final Rewards factors throughout a number of high-earning bonus classes. Plus, you’ll be able to switch these factors to United in the event you’re actually into the airline. However the United Membership Card is the higher possibility if you’re fiercely loyal to United, need entry to United Golf equipment and worth precedence perks when flying the airline.

Backside line

Each the Chase Sapphire Reserve and the United Membership Card are stable premium playing cards, however they serve completely different functions.

When you’re a United devotee searching for a collection of perks once you fly with the airline, the United Membership is the higher possibility. For many vacationers, nevertheless, the versatile rewards and broad advantages provided by the Sapphire Reserve give it the sting.

Keep in mind that irrespective of which card you select, they’re each issued by Chase and might be subjected to the issuer’s 5/24 rule. When you’ve opened 5 or extra private bank cards up to now two years, you are unlikely to be authorised for both card.

To be taught extra, try our Chase Sapphire Reserve overview and United Membership Card overview.

---

Apply right here: Chase Sapphire Reserve
Apply right here: United Membership Card

---