Chase Sapphire Reserve has been our favorite credit card not only for quite a few years, but also during this pandemic, as covered in the previous post.  Now, more benefits are coming to this card between 7/1/2020 and 9/30/2020:

• Earn 10x points on select streaming services, up to $1,500 in purchases; eligible services include Apple Music, Disney+, ESPN+, Fubo TV, Hulu, Netflix, Pandora, Sling, SiriusXM, Spotify, Youtube TV, and Vudu.
• Earn 5x points on gas stations, up to $1,500 in purchases;
• Earn 5x points on Instacart, up to $3,000 in purchases;
• Receive up to $50 in statement credits towards Instacart Express membership; Instacart Express membership usually costs either $9.99 per month or $99 per year, and provides the following benefits: (1) zero delivery fees on orders over $35 (typically $3.99-$7.99 per order), (2) reduced service fees (typically 5%), and (3) zero busy pricing fees during peak delivery hours.

These are on top of the following temporary benefits cardmembers have previously received:

• The annual fee will be reduced from $550 to $450 when you renew between 4/1/2020 and 12/31/2020;
• The annual $300 travel credit will apply automatically to groceries and gas stations between 6/1/2020 and 12/31/2020 (in addition to the regular travel category);
• Between 5/31/2020 and 9/30/2020, Ultimate Rewards points can be redeemed in statement credits for groceries & dining & home improvement at a fixed value of 1.5 cents per point (in addition to the regular travel category redemption through Chase booking portal);
• Earn 5x points on groceries, up to $1,500 in purchases per month, between 5/1/2020 and 6/30/2020.

In addition, don't forget these useful DoorDash benefits that has already existed before the pandemic:

• One year DoorDash DashPass subscription service for free - activate before 12/31/2021; this subscription service offers zero delivery fee and reduced service fees on food orders over $12 via DoorDash;
• Receive $60 statement credits for DoorDash purchases through 12/31/2020 and another $60 through 12/31/2021.

Chase Sapphire Preferred also receives similar but a little less lucrative benefits between 7/1/2020 and 9/30/2020:

• Earn 5x points on select streaming services, up to $1,500 in purchases;
• Earn 3x points on gas stations, up to $1,500 in purchases;
• Earn 3x points on Instacart, up to $3,000 in purchases;
• Receive up to $50 in statement credits towards Instacart Express membership.

These are in addition to the temporary benefits cardmembers have previously received:

• Between 5/31/2020 and 9/30/2020, Ultimate Rewards points can be redeemed in statement credits for groceries & dining & home improvement at a fixed value of 1.25 cents per point (in addition to the regular travel category redemption through Chase booking portal);
• Earn 3x points on groceries, up to $1,500 in purchase per month, between 5/1/2020 and 6/30/2020.

​Sapphire Preferred cardmembers also continue to receive this DoorDash benefit:

• One year DoorDash DashPass subscription service for free - activate before 12/31/2021.

As we are concerned about the recent spikes of COVID-19 cases here in the U.S. and saddened by the continuing loss of life, we have to give credits to Chase for these impressive relief measures.

Just like many other credit cards that receive COVID-19 related temporary benefits, now Citi Premier also receives something pretty good: starting June 2, 2020, you will earn 3x points on groceries (increased from 1x) and dining (increased from 2x); however, the difference here is that this benefit is considered permanent rather than temporary.  Back in April, Citi announced the revamp of Citi Premier which would kick in as of August 23, 2020 and include 3x points on groceries and dining; obviously after seeing competitors ramping up the temporary COVID-19 relief, Citi has decided to move the implementation date of this benefit a couple of months earlier.  However, the whole revamp situation is kind of complicated, and here we would like to break it down for you.

• For those who applied on or after April 10, 2020: (1) effective June 2, 2020, earn 3x points on groceries and dining; (2) continue to earn 3x on travel & gas and 2x on entertainment through August 22, 2020; (3) effective August 23, 2020, earn 3x on airlines & hotels & gas & groceries & dining and 1x everywhere else; (4) effective August 23, 2020, earn $100 annual hotel credits when you purchase a hotel stay $500 or more through ThankYou.com; (5) effective April 10, 2021, the fixed value travel redemption will be reduced from 1.25 cents to 1 cent per point. 
• For those who applied before April 10, 2020: (1) effective June 2, 2020, earn 3x points on groceries and dining; (2) continue to earn 3x on travel & gas and 2x on entertainment through April 9, 2021; (3) effective April 10, 2021, earn 3x on airlines & hotels & gas & groceries & dining and 1x everywhere else; (4) effective August 23, 2020, earn $100 annual hotel credits when you purchase a hotel stay $500 or more through ThankYou.com; (5) effective April 10, 2021, the fixed value travel redemption will be reduced from 1.25 cents to 1 cent per point. 

​Confusing? Indeed.  As the the revamp for new applications will fully take effect on August 23, 2020, we will wait until then to re-rank this card and expect a higher ranking.

As covered in a previous post, we praised Chase Sapphire Reserve for offering powerful temporary COVID-19 related benefits such as reduced annual fees, 5x points on groceries, enhanced flexibility for $300 annual travel credit, and enhanced flexibility in points redemption.  Now Citi and US Bank are following Chase to offer some great temporary benefits for Sapphire Reserve's two major competitors.

• Citi Prestige: (1) earn 5x points on online purchases, up to $1,500 spent in this category (in addition to the regular 5x on airlines | travel agencies | dining, 3x on hotels | cruise lines), from 6/2/2020 through 8/31/2020; (2) as previously announced, the annual $250 travel credits can be used towards groceries and dining, from 5/1/2020 through 12/31/2020.
• US Bank Altitude Reserve: (1) the annual $325 travel credits can be used towards dining, from 6/1/2020 through 12/31/2020; (2) earn 3x points on dining (in addition to the regular 3x on travel and mobile wallets), from 6/1/2020 through 12/31/2020.

So with all these, which card is the "king of credit cards" during this pandemic?  Obviously it depends on your spending patterns.  In our opinions, as most consumers have been cutting down on travel and dining while increasing online and grocery purchases, who offers the most for the latter two categories will win.  In this way, we have to choose between Sapphire Reserve and Citi Prestige: the former offers 5x on groceries for two months (capped at $1,500 spent per month) and allows points to be redeemed for groceries | dining | home improvement in addition to travel at the impressive 1.5 cents per point value for seven months, and the latter offers 5x on a arguably wider category for three months but capped at $1,500 spent total.  Due to the higher spending cap as well as the enhanced flexibility of redemption, we think Sapphire Reserve is still the best card during the pandemic.

With the unfortunate recent devaluation of United miles, we have to adjust our ranking.  Chase United Club Visa is now replaced with Amex Green Card as the #10 Best Credit Card by Dr. Credit Card.  We don't want to cover the details of the devaluation - you might visit travel blogs such as onemileatatime for details.  In a nutshell, United has decided to align its Star Alliance partner redemption rates with those of its own metals, and as a result, our valuation of United miles is adjusted from 1.4 cents per mile (cpm) to 1.3 cpm.  Below is a comparison of our Top 10 list before and after this change.

As detailed in the previous post, several card issuers have temporary COVID-19 related benefits for select credit cards.  Now Chase pushes this further on the popular Sapphire Reserve Card and Sapphire Preferred Card.

• Chase Sapphire Reserve: (1) the annual $300 travel credit will apply automatically to groceries and gas stations between 6/1/2020 to 12/31/2020 (in addition to the regular travel category); (2) between 5/31/2020 to 9/30/2020, Ultimate Rewards points can be redeemed in statement credits for groceries & dining & home improvement at a fixed value of 1.5 cents per point (in addition to the regular travel category redemption through Chase booking portal); (3) the annual fee will be reduced from $550 to $450 when you renew before 12/31/2020 (previously this reduction applies to renewals between 4/1/2020 to 7/31/2020); (4) as previously announced, continue to earn 5x points on groceries, up to $1,500 in purchases per month, from 5/1/2020 through 6/30/2020.
• Chase Sapphire Preferred: (1) between 5/31/2020 to 9/30/2020, Ultimate Rewards points can be redeemed in statement credits for groceries & dining & home improvement at a fixed value of 1.25 cents per point (in addition to the regular travel category redemption through Chase booking portal); (2) as previously announced, continue to earn 3x points on groceries, up to $1,500 in purchase per month, from 5/1/2020 through 6/30/2020.

Obviously, Sapphire Reserve is a very powerful card during this special time, as no other card has offered 5x points on groceries temporarily or offered 1.5 cent/point temporary redemption option for groceries & dining & home improvement.  Of course the added flexibility of the annual $300 travel credit and temporary reduced annual fees all add to the value of the card.  Personally, I was on the fence whether to keep this card upon my renewal in the coming October due to the increased annual fee and greatly reduced spending on travel & dining, and now it is clear that I will keep this card, at least for another year.

COVID-19 pandemic has obviously changed consumer behavior big time, and it makes sense that credit card issuers are making adjustments accordingly.  This post summarizes these adjustments from Amex, Chase, and Citi.

American Express

• For those who open a credit card (personal or small business) between 12/1/2019 and 5/31/2020, the period to meet spending requirement to receive signup bonus will be extended for three months.
• Platinum Card (personal): up to $320 in statement credits on select U.S. streaming services and U.S. wireless phone services (up to $20 per category per month, from May through December 2020); cardmembers that renew between April and December 2020 will receive $200 in statement credits for Amex Travel (Amex's travel booking portal, from August 2020 to December 2021).
• Business Platinum Card: up to $320 in statement credits on wireless phone services and U.S. shipping (up to $20 per category per month, from May to December 2020); up to additional $200 in statement credits on Dell purchases in U.S. (up to $100 from 5/1/2020 to 6/30/2020; up to $100 from 7/1/2020 to 12/31/2020) - this is on top of the $200 Dell credits that are already part of this card's benefits; select cardmembers will also receive a $200 credit when they renew between May and November 2020.
• Green Card: up to $80 in statement credits on U.S. wireless phone services (up to $10 per month, from May through December 2020).
• Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant Card: earn 6x points on U.S. supermarkets, up to $7,500 in purchase, from May through July 2020); $300 Marriott statement credits can now be used towards U.S. restaurants, from June through August 2020).
• Marriott Bonvoy Business Card: select cardmembers will receive a $59 credit when they renew between May and December 2020.
• Hilton Aspire Card & Hilton Surpass Card: earn 12x points on U.S. supermarkets, up to $7,500 in purchase, from May through July 2020; bonus points earned through these credit cards from May to December 2020 will be considered base points for determining Hilton elite status; unexpired free weekend night certificates as of 5/1/2020 and newer certificates issued until 12/31/2020, will be valid for any night of the week, and those issued between 5/1/2020 and 12/31/2020 will be valid for 24 months (instead of 12 months); in addition, Hilton Aspire's $250 Hilton resort credits can now be used towards U.S. restaurants, from June through August 2020.
• Hilton Business Card: select cardmembers will receive a $50 credit when they renew between May and December 2020.
• Delta SkyMiles Reserve, SkyMiles Platinum, SkyMiles Gold, SkyMiles Blue cards: earn 4x miles on U.S. supermarkets, from May through July 2020; select Business SkyMiles Reserve cardmembers will receive a $125 credit when they renew between May and December 2020; select Business SkyMiles Platinum cardmembers will also receive a $75 credit when they renew between May and December 2020.

Chase

• For those who open a new credit card (personal or small business) from January through March 2020, the period to meet spending requirements to receive signup bonus will be extended for three months.
• Sapphire Reserve Card: annual fees will be reduced from $550 to $450 for those who renew the card from 4/1/2020 through 7/31/2020; earn 5x points on groceries, up to $1,500 in purchases per month, from 5/1/2020 through 6/30/2020.
• United Club Infinite Card, United Club Card, United Presidential Plus Card: earn 5x miles on groceries, up to $1,500 in purchase per month, from 5/1/2020 through 6/30/2020.
• Marriott Bonvoy Boundless, Bonvoy Bold, Marriott Rewards Premier: earn 6x points on groceries, up to $6,000 in purchase, from 5/1/2020 through 7/31/2020.
• The following cards will earn 3 points or miles on groceries, up to $1,500 in purchase per month, from 5/1/2020 through 6/30/2020: Sapphire Preferred Card, United Explorer Card, United MileagePlus Select Card, Southwest RapidRewards (RR) Plus Visa, Southwest RR Premier Visa, Southwest RR Priority Visa, British Airways Visa, Iberia Visa, Aer Lingus Visa, World of Hyatt Visa, Hyatt Visa, IHG Rewards Club Premier WEMC, IHG Rewards Club Select MasterCard, and Disney Premier Visa.

Citi

• For those who open a credit card (personal or small business) between 12/1/2019 and 5/31/2020, the period to meet spending requirement to receive signup bonus will be extended for three months.
• Citi Prestige: the annual $250 travel credits can now be used towards groceries and dining, from May to December 2020.
• Citi AA Executive: cardholders that renew after 3/31/2020 will receive a $225 statement credit, which equals to half of the annual fee.
• Citi AA Platinum Select: the annual $125 flight discount certificates (after $20K annual spending) that are expiring between 3/31/2020 and 5/31/2020 will be extended for 6 months.
• CitiBusiness AA Platinum Select: the annual $99 companion certificates (after $30K annual spending) that are expiring on 12/31/2020 will be extended for 6 months.

Chase and Southwest have brought the signup bonus on the Rapid Rewards (RR) Performance Business Visa to a historical high of 100,000 points.  You receive up to 100,000 points (70,000 points after you spend $5,000 within 3 months of new account opening, and additional 30,000 points after you spend $25,000 total within 6 months of new account opening).  This bonus is not available if you currently have any personal Southwest Rapid Rewards credit card or have received a signup bonus for any personal Southwest credit card in the past 24 months.

Opening a business card requires you have a small business or you are preparing to open a small business, and the $25K spending requirement within the first 6 months is pretty high.  However, once you hit $25K spending, you will earn at least 125,000 points which are more than enough to earn you Southwest Companion Pass, which normally requires 110,000 points in a calendar year and allows you to take a companion for free (you pay for your ticket and the taxes and fees for your companion) as many times as you could for the rest of 2020 and the entire 2021.  This is arguably the easiest way to qualify for the lucrative status.

As detailed in the previous post, Amex has revamped all six Delta SkyMiles credit cards as of January 30, 2020.  Now we have updated the following reviews to reflect the changes:

• Amex Delta SkyMiles Gold Card (personal and business)
• Amex Delta SkyMiles Platinum Card (personal and business)
• Amex Delta SkyMiles Reserve Card (personal and business)
• Several other reviews involving these credit cards
• Best Credit Cards for Perks

Note that with increasing annual fees, Delta Reserve Card and Delta Platinum Card both offer incredible Delta perks such as airport lounge access (Delta Reserve only), annual companion certificate, Delta Medallion Qualifying Miles booster, Delta Medallion Qualifying Dollar waiver, first checked bags for free, priority boarding, etc.  That is why Amex Delta Reserve Card is now #3 (up by one) and Amex Delta Platinum Card #8 (up from #10) Best Credit Cards for Perks.

In addition, Amex also introduced some impressive signup offers for these cards:

• 60,000 miles upon signup and an additional 10,000 miles upon the first renewal for Delta Gold Card (personal or business, ~$600 value in our book)
• 80,000 miles upon signup and an additional 20,000 miles upon the first renewal for Delta Platinum Card (personal or business, ~$550 value after considering annual fees)
• 80,000 miles + 20,000 MQMs upon signup and an additional 20,000 miles upon the first renewal for Delta Reserve Card (personal or business, ~$450 value after considering annual fees)

The major revamp of all seven Delta Amex credit cards are on the way.  Let's have at a breakdown of the changes.  All the tables are from American Express / Delta Air Lines.

Delta SkyMiles Blue American Express

• 2x miles on dining will be expanded from U.S. to worldwide
• Foreign transaction fee will be waived;
• "Pay with Miles" feature will be added.

Three business cards also receive similar changes.  Here we highlight the differences from personal cards.

• Delta SkyMiles Gold BUSINESS American Express receives the same changes as the personal version except that instead having grocery as a new 2x bonus category it will have U.S. shipping and U.S. advertisement as new 2x categories;
• Delta SkyMiles Platinum BUSINESS American Express receives the same changes as the personal version except that instead having dining & grocery as new 2x bonus categories it will give 1.5x miles for any purchases of $5,000 or more each (up to $50,000 miles per year);
• Delta SkyMiles Reserve BUSINESS American Express receives the same changes as the personal version except that it will give 1.5x miles for all purchases once the annual spending exceeds $150,000.

Chase has re-branded United Explorer Business Visa as United Business Visa, and introduced a few changes:

• Annual fee is increased from $95 to $99, and not waived for the first year any more;
• Annual 10,000 miles booster for $15K spending is removed;
• Local transportation is now a 2x points category; NEW
• Receive 5,000 miles upon each anniversary when you also have a personal United credit card; NEW
• Receive $100 statement credit upon each anniversary when you buy at least 7 United tickets of $100 or more each.  NEW

Also now the card offers 100,000 miles after you spend $10,000 within 3 months of new account opening, better than United Explorer Business Visa ever offered.