Chase debuts $350 IHG card as other card fees rise

A new premium option

Chase and IHG have added the IHG One Rewards Premier Select to the top of their hotel-card lineup. Its annual fee is $350, and its launch promotion includes 200,000 IHG points. The card is aimed squarely at travelers who use IHG as their main hotel program and can take advantage of a broad package of hotel, dining and airline-related benefits.

Each account anniversary brings a certificate covering an IHG night priced at as many as 60,000 points. A member may supplement that certificate with points already in their account when a desired redemption costs more. Spending $40,000 during a calendar year produces another certificate. Those benefits are most useful to travelers who can reliably redeem them before expiration and at properties that fit their plans.

Premier Select also provides as much as $300 annually for eligible food and beverage charges at IHG properties. The benefit arrives through four vouchers of $75, one for each quarter, so realizing its full value requires repeated use throughout the year rather than a single hotel meal.

A head start on milestones

The most consequential feature for frequent IHG guests may be the card’s annual deposit of 20 elite-night credits. Those credits appear when an account opens and again at the beginning of each calendar year. They immediately satisfy IHG’s first Milestone Rewards threshold, allowing the traveler to select a confirmed suite award, 5,000 points or two food and beverage rewards.

That starting balance also places the member halfway to the milestone that includes annual hotel lounge membership. Eligible hotel nights booked with cash or points can be combined with the card-generated credits, giving travelers a shorter path to benefits that otherwise depend on staying frequently.

Card spending can move the counter further. Each $5,000 charged earns another two elite-night credits. Reaching $15,000 in yearly purchases produces five additional credits and 20,000 extra IHG points. These incentives make the card useful not only during hotel stays but also for members who want card purchases to help unlock stay-based rewards.

Status and hotel benefits

Premier Select holders receive automatic Platinum Elite standing. Its listed advantages include extra points worth 60% of the normal earnings from paid hotel nights, a welcome choice that is generally points or a drink or snack, and possible room upgrades when inventory permits. Charging $25,000 to the card earns Diamond Elite status, which continues through the close of the next calendar year.

The combination of status, anniversary certificates and milestone credits creates several distinct routes to value. Some benefits arrive simply for holding the card, while others depend on quarterly redemption, substantial spending or additional IHG stays. For travelers assessing the $350 fee, the practical question is how many of those separate features align with trips they were already likely to take.

Changes to existing cards

The rest of the IHG portfolio is being reworked alongside the premium launch. The consumer Premier will carry a $150 annual fee and replace automatic Platinum standing with Gold. It adds as much as $100 a year in hotel food and beverage rewards, a $100 statement credit for qualifying airfare and up to $50 in United TravelBank Cash. Its complimentary fourth reward night remains available.

Premier members receive 15 elite-night credits each calendar year. The card earns 10 points per dollar with IHG and 5 points per dollar at grocery stores, restaurants and gas stations. Direct airline bookings and purchases from car rental agencies also earn 5 points per dollar, while other spending returns 3 points per dollar.

The revised Business card costs $200 a year and continues to include Platinum standing and the complimentary fourth reward night. Its added credits comprise up to $100 for IHG food and beverage purchases, $100 for eligible airfare and as much as $100 toward Expensify transactions. It also begins each calendar year with 15 elite-night credits. Its announced 5-point categories include restaurants, gas stations, selected advertising, direct flight purchases and car rental agencies; IHG purchases earn 10 points per dollar and other charges earn 3.

A hurdle for the free card

The card with no annual fee now grants five elite-night credits annually. It earns 5 points per dollar on IHG spending, 3 points per dollar at grocery stores, restaurants and gas stations, and 2 points per dollar elsewhere. Its most important restriction concerns award stays: members must charge $5,000 before receiving the complimentary fourth night, whereas merely holding the previous version was sufficient.

Existing members are being notified during October 2026. Updated annual fees begin in 2027 when each cardholder’s usual fee date arrives. The overhaul therefore creates different calculations across the lineup: Premier Select offers the largest automatic milestone boost, the two established fee-bearing products combine credits with 15 annual nights, and the free version preserves a route to the fourth reward night only after meeting its new purchase threshold.