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Just Got the Chase Sapphire Reserve? Here's What to Do First
July 1, 2025
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The Chase Sapphire Reserve® is one of the most loaded premium cards on the market, which is also what makes it a little overwhelming when it shows up in your mailbox. Between the annual credits, the lounge access, the travel protections, and the welcome bonus clock already ticking, it's easy to leave value on the table just because you didn't know where to start.
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Here's the order of operations for your first week with the card.
1. Activate the Card, Set a PIN, and Add It to Your Digital Wallet
Do this first. You can activate through the Chase Mobile app, online, or by calling the number on the sticker. While you're at it, set a PIN. Some merchants outside the US, especially unattended kiosks like train ticket machines and toll booths, require a PIN rather than a signature, and you don't want to find that out mid-trip.
2. Add It to Your Digital Wallet
Add the card to Apple Pay or Google Pay right away. A lot of new cardholders skip this step and then wonder why their physical card feels slower to use day to day. Digital wallet also matters if you plan to use the card for transit systems or contactless payments where tapping your phone is faster than pulling out plastic.
3. Note Your Welcome Bonus Deadline
This is the most time-sensitive item on the list. The Sapphire Reserve's welcome bonus comes with a minimum spending requirement within a set window, usually three months from account opening. Write the exact deadline down somewhere you'll actually see it, whether that's a calendar reminder or a note on your phone.
If you have any big upcoming purchases (rent, a flight already booked, a planned electronics purchase), route them through the new card immediately so they count toward the requirement. Don't leave this to the last two weeks of the window.
4. Set Up Autopay
The Reserve has a high annual fee and valuable credits, but none of that matters if you're paying interest. Set up autopay for the full statement balance the moment your account is active. This protects your credit score and makes sure you're not accidentally undermining the value of the card with interest charges.
5. Start Using the Annual Travel Credit Immediately
The card comes with an annual travel credit that applies automatically to a wide range of travel purchases, including flights, hotels, rideshares, parking, tolls, and even transit fare. It's automatic, meaning you don't need to enroll or submit anything. As soon as you make a qualifying travel purchase, the credit applies to your statement.
Don't wait for a big trip to use this. Rideshares and parking count too, so if you have any travel spending coming up in the next few weeks, put it on the new card and let the credit absorb it.
6. Enroll in Priority Pass and Know Where the Sapphire Lounges Are
The Reserve includes a Priority Pass Select membership, but it's not automatic. You need to enroll separately using the account number on your card. Do this before your next flight, not at the airport, since activation can take a few minutes to process and you don't want to be doing it while your boarding group is called.
Once enrolled, the membership covers entry to over a thousand airport lounges worldwide.
7. Know Where the Chase Sapphire Lounges Are
Separate from Priority Pass, Chase operates its own Sapphire Lounge by The Club locations in a growing number of airports, including hubs like Boston, Phoenix, Philadelphia, and New York LaGuardia, with more added over time. These lounges are exclusive to Sapphire Reserve cardholders and their guests, and entry is included with the card itself.
Sapphire Lounges tend to be newer and less crowded than the typical Priority Pass lounge, since access is limited to Chase's own cardholder base rather than the dozens of card programs that share a standard Priority Pass network lounge. If one of these locations happens to be at an airport you're flying through, it's usually worth prioritizing over a Priority Pass lounge in the same terminal.
Before a trip, it's worth a quick check of Chase's current list of Sapphire Lounge locations, since the network is still expanding and a new one may have opened at an airport you fly through regularly.
8. Register for Global Entry or TSA PreCheck
The card includes a statement credit that covers the application fee for Global Entry or TSA PreCheck, applied once every four years. If you don't already have either, apply now. Approval can take weeks to months depending on your local enrollment center's availability, so getting the application in early means you'll actually have it in time for your next trip.
9. Know What's Covered Before You Book Travel
The Reserve carries a strong set of built-in travel protections, including trip cancellation and interruption insurance, trip delay reimbursement, primary rental car insurance, and lost luggage reimbursement. These aren't things you sign up for. They kick in automatically when you use the card to pay for the trip.
The practical takeaway: book your flights, hotels, and rental cars on this card by default going forward. Paying with a different card for a trip means giving up coverage you're already paying for through the annual fee.
10. Link the Card to DoorDash and Lyft (If Included)
Depending on current card benefits, the Reserve often bundles complimentary subscriptions or credits with partners like DoorDash and Lyft. These usually require you to link your card through the partner app rather than activating anything on Chase's side. Check the current benefits terms on your account and link any eligible services so you're not paying full price on deliveries or rides you'd take anyway.
11. Bookmark the Chase Travel Portal
Certain redemption options and bonus categories are tied to booking through the Chase Travel portal rather than paying a merchant directly. Even if you don't use it for every trip, it's worth knowing how it works before you need it, especially if you're planning to redeem points for a flight or hotel down the road.
12. Track Every Credit So Nothing Goes Unused
The hardest part of owning a card like the Reserve isn't earning the perks, it's remembering to actually use them. Between the annual travel credit, the Global Entry or TSA PreCheck credit, and any partner credits bundled in, it's easy to let one lapse simply because nothing reminded you it existed.
This is where Kudos helps. Once you connect the Sapphire Reserve, Kudos tracks all of your benefits and credits in one place, shows you which ones you've used, which are still sitting unused, and when anything is about to expire. Instead of manually checking your Chase account or trying to remember what you're entitled to, you get a running tally of exactly what the card still owes you.
The Bottom Line
The Sapphire Reserve rewards people who actually use what they're paying for. The annual fee is only worth it if you're claiming the travel credit, using the lounge access (Priority Pass and Sapphire Lounges alike), leaning on the protections when you book travel, and hitting the welcome bonus on time. None of these steps take more than a few minutes, and doing them in the first week means you're not scrambling to catch up on credits and deadlines months later.
Set the reminders now, especially the welcome bonus deadline, and let Kudos track the rest. Once your card is connected, you'll always know which credits and benefits you've used and which ones are still on the table.
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Editorial Disclosure: Opinions expressed here are those of Kudos alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, hotel, airline, or other entity. This content has not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of the entities included within the post.
