What are the benefits of adding an authorized user to the Chase Sapphire Reserve®?

By:

G.R.
G.R.

Published: 12/31/2025

What are the benefits of adding an authorized user to the Chase Sapphire Reserve®?

TLDR; Authorized users on the Chase Sapphire Reserve® cost $195 and get lounge access, DoorDash benefits, and various insurances.

Most folks focus on the benefits of being a cardholder but there’s some surprisingly good aspects of being an authorized user all at a fraction of the cost. The Chase Sapphire Reserve® is one of the best cards out there for authorized users.

What is the Priority Pass membership?

As an authorized user on the Chase Sapphire Reserve®, you will get your own complimentary Priority Pass membership. This Priority Pass membership includes access to over 1,300 airport lounges globally. You’ll be able to enter the lounge for free along with a maximum of two guests. Each additional guest will come at a cost.

As a Chase Sapphire Reserve® cardholder myself, I very much enjoy the benefits of having access to a Priority Pass membership. There’s not always Chase lounges at airports I’m traveling to so I really like having access to Priority Pass lounges.

As someone who lives in between Boston and Providence, I like to fly out of Providence sometimes to avoid the Boston traffic. And flight prices are occasionally cheaper too. The one issue is that there is only one lounge at the Providence T.F Green International Airport. However, with my Priority Pass membership, I get access to the Escape Lounge at Providence Airport.

As an authorized user on the Chase Sapphire Reserve®, you’re getting a Priority Pass membership at a fraction of the cost at $195. Let me get this straight—I would never pay $469 for a "Prestige" tier Priority Pass membership because many other premium cards offer some type of lounge access as a primary cardholder or as an authorized user.

One of my favorite lounges in the world that I’ve been to is the HelloSky Milan Bergamo Lounge at Milan Bergamo Orio Al Serio airport in Milan, Italy.

My sister and I spent time at this lounge when she visited me during my time abroad in Spain. We took a quick trip to Italy where we spent time in Bologna and Milan before returning to Spain.

Here’s my sister’s description of the lounge: “It’s large, not crowded and has great selections for food.” The fun part about this lounge stay is that we were able to stay for breakfast and lunch. Normally it's limited to a 3 hour stay at the lounge but because the employees rotated during the 3 hours, we were able to stay 5 hours.

Do I get access to the Chase Sapphire Lounge as an authorized user on the Chase Sapphire Reserve®?

Yup. As an authorized user on the Chase Sapphire Reserve®, you will get unlimited access to Chase Sapphire Lounges. You can bring two guests into the Chase lounges at no extra cost as well. You also get access to select Air Canada lounges all over the world.

What is the DashPass membership?

A DoorDash DashPass membership (at $120 value) comes with being an authorized user on the Chase Sapphire Reserve®. With DashPass, you get unlimited $0 delivery fees along with reduced service fees on eligible orders over $12.

I wouldn’t use DoorDash regularly but DashPass definitely makes it more enticing when deciding to pick up vs. delivering.

Do I get my own DoorDash credits as a Chase Sapphire Reserve® authorized user?

After doing some research on Reddit and talking with some friends who are authorized users on the Chase Sapphire Reserve®, it is confirmed you have your own DoorDash credits as a Chase Sapphire Reserve® authorized user.

Every month, you get three separate DoorDash credits:

  1. Two $10 credits for non-restaurant orders
  2. One $5 credit for restaurant orders

You can apply these credits at checkout.

Do I get access to the benefits of spending $75,000 on the Chase Sapphire Reserve® as an authorized user?

No. Only the primary cardholder gets these benefits after spending $75,000 on the Chase Sapphire Reserve®:

  • IHG One Rewards Diamond Elite Status
  • $500 Southwest Airlines Chase Travel credit (credits automatically applied when booking Southwest flights through Chase Travel)
  • Southwest Airlines A-List Status
  • $250 Credit for The Shops at Chase

Although authorized users don’t get the benefits of spending $75,000 on the Chase Sapphire Reserve®, authorized user spend does contribute to the $75,000 spend total.

What are some other benefits of being an authorized user on the Chase Sapphire Reserve®?

  • Primary car rental insurance: up to $75,000 in theft and collision damage
  • Trip Cancellation and Trip Interruption Coverage: up to $10,000 per person or $20,000 per trip towards eligible travel expenses
  • Trip Delay Reimbursement: For delays of more than 6 hours (or delays requiring an overnight stay), the authorized user and their covered family members can get reimbursed for up to $500 per ticket
  • Baggage Insurance: Baggage delay reimbursement is offered for $100 per day (up to 5 days) if your baggage is delayed by more than 6 hours. And lost luggage reimbursement is offered for up to $3,000 per covered person per trip, with a limit of $500 for jewelry and watches, as well as an additional limit of $500 per covered person per trip for cameras and other electronic equipment

All of these benefits are excellent perks of being an authorized user on the Chase Sapphire Reserve®. One I’ve made use of often as a Chase Sapphire Reserve® cardholder is the primary car rental insurance. I never pay for insurance when renting a car as I pay with my Chase Sapphire Reserve® so I know I have solid insurance.

Do you get your own card number as an authorized user?

No. As an authorized user, your card is linked to the primary cardholder and that also means you have the same card number.

Do authorized users on the Chase Sapphire Reserve® get their own Chase offers?

Nope. Authorized users do not get their own Chase offers.

However, you have access to the same pool of Chase offers as the primary cardholder. Let’s say the primary cardholder triggers a Chase offer that’s 5% back on Sunoco purchases. That means when you shop at Sunoco as an authorized user you’ll also get 5% back. Remember that it contributes to the primary cardholder’s point totals, not yours.

What benefits are not included when you are an authorized user on the Chase Sapphire Reserve®?

As an authorized user on the Chase Sapphire Reserve®, you do not get these credits as your own:

  • $300 travel credit
  • $300 Sapphire Reserve Exclusive Tables Dining credit
  • $300 StubHub credit
  • $500 Edit credit

However, if you spend on things that activate these credits, it will trigger the primary cardholder’s credits.

What are some of the underrated benefits of being an authorized user on a card?

Being an authorized user on a credit card has a number of sneaky good benefits:

  • Helping credit: As an authorized user, the card’s account history is added to your credit report. If the primary cardholder manages the account responsibly, this can help strengthen the authorized user's credit profile.
  • Helping the primary cardholder hit a welcome bonus: Authorized users contribute to the total spend on a card. So if the primary cardholder does not spend enough to hit a welcome bonus, the authorized user can help. Hopefully, that would mean the primary cardholder would use their points on you as the authorized user for cash back, travel or other rewards possibilities.

Final Remarks

The Chase Sapphire Reserve® can be a good card and being an authorized user on the card can have its perks as well, but it depends on your authorized user’s travel tendencies. The lounge access capabilities for Priority Pass, Chase Sapphire, and Air Canada Maple Leaf lounges are a standout benefit of being a Chase Sapphire Reserve® authorized user. If you are a frequent flyer and do not want to shell out the cash to be a super premium cardholder, being an authorized user on the Chase Sapphire Reserve® can be an excellent way to get lounge access.

What are your thoughts on the benefits of being an authorized user on the Chase Sapphire Reserve®?

FAQs

If you see yourself making use of most of the credits on the Chase Sapphire Reserve® like the $300 Sapphire Exclusive Tables credit, $300 StubHub credit and $300 annual travel credit, it might be worth becoming a primary cardholder on the Chase Sapphire Reserve®. At a $795 annual fee, you need to make sure you’ll be getting good value on the card.

The American Express Platinum Card® is an excellent card to be an authorized user on. You get access to AMEX Centurion lounges, Priority Pass lounges, a TSA/Global Entry credit and a Resy credit (terms apply, enrollment may be required).

You can save hundreds of dollars when you are an authorized user on the Chase Sapphire Reserve®. The American Express Platinum Card® is $895 and the Chase Sapphire Reserve® is $795 for primary cardholders.

As an authorized user, you save a ton of money by spending a fraction of a premium card annual fee while also getting some solid credit card parks like lounge access, various insurances, and other cool perks

If you fly one to two times a year, it still might be worth it to be an authorized user on the Chase Sapphire Reserve®. Having lounge access is a huge perk when flying.

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