Chase Sapphire Reserve vs Citi Strata Elite — which is worth it to you?

The Chase Sapphire Reserve ($795/yr) and the Citi Strata Elite ($595/yr) side by side: credits, earning rates against a flat 2% cash-back baseline, and protections — with your spending deciding which card actually wins each category.

The Chase Sapphire Reserve charges $795 a year against the Citi Strata Elite's $595, so it starts $200 behind. The Chase Sapphire Reserve earns Chase Ultimate Rewards while the Citi Strata Elite earns Citi ThankYou Points. A point in one program isn't automatically worth a point in the other, so the calculator below turns everything into dollars against a flat 2% card.

Both cards pay a bonus on dining (3x vs 3x). The Chase Sapphire Reserve also has a bonus on flights (4x) and hotels (4x), with nothing to match it on the Citi Strata Elite.

The Chase Sapphire Reserve comes with 12 statement credits, the biggest being $500 'The Edit' Hotel Credit, $500 Southwest Airlines Chase Travel Credit ($75k spend) and $300 Annual Travel Credit, plus 9 more. The Citi Strata Elite has 5 statement credits: $300 Annual Hotel Benefit, $200 Annual Splurge Credit and $200 Annual Blacklane Credit, plus 2 more. All of these are face values, and a credit only really pays out if it covers something you were buying anyway.

Both cards carry extended warranty, lost luggage, lounge access, no foreign transaction fees, purchase protection, rental car collision coverage, trip cancellation and trip delay. The Chase Sapphire Reserve also has elite status, emergency evacuation, emergency medical, memberships, Reserve Travel Designers, return protection, roadside assistance and travel accident insurance, with no equivalent on the Citi Strata Elite.

Chase Sapphire Reserve

Chase · $795 annual fee · earns Chase Ultimate Rewards

Earning rates

8x Chase Travel portal bookings
4x Flights booked direct
4x Hotels booked direct
3x Dining worldwide
5x Lyft rides
1x Everything else

Statement credits (12)

$300 Annual Travel Credit — Automatic statement credit against almost any travel purchase — flights, hotels, transit, parking.
$500 'The Edit' Hotel Credit — Up to $250 back per half-year on prepaid 2+ night stays booked through The Edit by Chase Travel.
$250 Select Chase Travel Hotels Credit — Up to $250 back on prepaid 2+ night Chase Travel bookings at select hotel brands, through Dec 31, 2026.
$300 Exclusive Tables Dining Credit — $150 per half-year at 'Sapphire Reserve Exclusive Tables' restaurants booked via OpenTable.
$300 StubHub / viagogo Credit — $150 per half-year toward event tickets on StubHub or viagogo.
Apple TV+ & Apple Music — Complimentary Apple TV+ and Apple Music subscriptions (activation required).
DoorDash Monthly Promos — Up to $25/month in DoorDash credits ($5 restaurant + two $10 non-restaurant promos), requires DashPass enrollment.
$10/month Lyft Credit — In-app Lyft credit each month, plus 5x points on Lyft rides.
$10/month Peloton Credit — Statement credit toward Peloton memberships.
Global Entry / TSA PreCheck / NEXUS Credit — $120 application-fee credit once every 4 years (~$30/yr).
$250 Shops at Chase Credit ($75k spend) — Up to $250 in statement credits at The Shops at Chase, unlocked once calendar-year card spend reaches $75,000.
$500 Southwest Airlines Chase Travel Credit ($75k spend) — Up to $500 in statement credits for Southwest Airlines purchases via Chase Travel, unlocked once calendar-year card spend reaches $75,000.

Full Chase Sapphire Reserve breakdown — 19 more benefits on the full page.

Citi Strata Elite

Citi · $595 annual fee ($75 annual fee per authorized user; each authorized user also gets their own complimentary Priority Pass Select membership.) · earns Citi ThankYou Points

Earning rates

12x Hotels, car rentals & attractions via Citi Travel
6x Air travel via Citi Travel
6x Restaurants during Citi Nights (Fri 6PM–Sat 6AM & Sat 6PM–Sun 6AM ET)
3x Restaurants (outside Citi Nights)
1.5x All other purchases

Statement credits (5)

$300 Annual Hotel Benefit — Up to $300 off a prepaid hotel stay of 2+ nights booked through Citi Travel, once per calendar year.
$200 Annual Splurge Credit — Up to $200 in statement credits per calendar year on your choice of up to 2 activated brands: 1stDibs, American Airlines (exclusions apply), Best Buy, Future Personal Training, or Live Nation/Ticketmaster (exclusions apply).
$200 Annual Blacklane Credit — Up to $100 back on Blacklane chauffeur bookings January–June, and up to $100 more July–December, for up to $200/year total.
The Reserve by Citi Travel Credit — $100 property experience credit (varies by property) on each stay booked at a Reserve-rate hotel through Citi Travel, plus daily breakfast for two, free Wi-Fi, and early check-in/late check-out/room upgrades subject to availability.
Global Entry / TSA PreCheck Credit — $120 application-fee credit once every 4 years (~$30/yr).

Full Citi Strata Elite breakdown — 9 more benefits on the full page.

Card data verified against issuer sources: Chase Sapphire Reserve on 2026-08-24, Citi Strata Elite on 2026-08-27.

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