10,000 Bonus: Should You Upgrade? Targeted Offer to Upgrade the Old IHG Card to the IHG Premier

Chase keeps sending out emails encouraging cardholders to upgrade the old version of the IHG card to the IHG Rewards Club card, with a 10,000-point bonus for upgrading. The main benefit of upgrading is access to the new card’s fourth-night-free benefit, which can be pretty appealing if you have a large stash of IHG points and want to use them for hotel stays. The tradeoff, however, is that the annual fee goes up from $49 to $89, so that 10,000-point bonus basically just covers the first year’s annual fee. The old card also has a 10% rebate on award redemptions, so if your stays are shorter, the old card may actually be the better fit.

There’s also a hidden downside to upgrading. With IHG co-branded cards, it has been possible to keep the old version and also apply for the new version; the author, Chestnut, has tested this personally. Holding both the old and new versions lets you get two FNs + fourth-night-free + 10% rebate, which is a very solid setup. But if you upgrade, you won’t be able to apply for the new version afterward. If you like IHG, the best strategy is to hold both the old and new cards.