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Introduction Frequent travelers and card enthusiasts know that Amex's iconic Platinum Cards can unlock tremendous value in terms of benefits and overall rewards earning. Neither of these cards comes cheap — but if you know how to maximize their perks, you can come out well ahead of the game. Over the past few years, Amex has added new benefits and perks to both the Amex Platinum Card and The Business Platinum Card® from American Express to keep them competitive with other premium rewards cards.
Earn 5X Membership Rewards® Points for flights booked directly with airlines or with American Express Travel (on up to $500,000 per calendar year) and on prepaid hotels booked with American Express Travel. Earn 1X Points on other purchases. $695 N/A See Pay Over Time APR Earn 80,000 Membership Rewards® points Good to Excellent Check mark icon A check mark.
It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Long list of travel benefits, including airport lounge access and complimentary elite status with Hilton and Marriott (enrollment required) Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction.
Annual statement credits with Saks and Uber con icon Two crossed lines that form an 'X'. Bonus categories leave something to be desired con icon Two crossed lines that form an 'X'. One of the highest annual fees among premium travel cards If you want as many premium travel perks as possible, The Platinum Card® from American Express could be the right card for you.
The annual fee is high, but you get a long list of benefits such as airport lounge access, travel statement credits, complimentary hotel elite status, and more. Earn 80,000 Membership Rewards® Points after you spend $8,000 on eligible purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership. Apply and select your preferred metal Card design: classic Platinum, Platinum x Kehinde Wiley, or Platinum x Julie Mehretu.
Earn 5X Membership Rewards® Points for flights booked directly with airlines or with American Express Travel up to $500,000 on these purchases per calendar year and earn 5X Membership Rewards® Points on prepaid hotels booked with American Express Travel. $200 Hotel Credit: Get up to $200 back in statement credits each year on prepaid Fine Hotels + Resorts® or The Hotel Collection bookings with American Express Travel when you pay with your Platinum Card®. The Hotel Collection requires a minimum two-night stay.
$240 Digital Entertainment Credit: Get up to $20 back in statement credits each month on eligible purchases made with your Platinum Card® on one or more of the following: Disney+, a Disney Bundle, ESPN+, Hulu, The New York Times, Peacock, and The Wall Street Journal. Enrollment required. The American Express Global Lounge Collection® can provide an escape at the airport.
With complimentary access to more than 1,400 airport lounges across 140 countries and counting, you have more airport lounge options than any other credit card issuer on the market. As of 03/2023. $155 Walmart+ Credit: Save on eligible delivery fees, shipping, and more with a Walmart+ membership.
Use your Platinum Card® to pay for a monthly Walmart+ membership and get up to $12.95 plus applicable taxes back on one membership (excluding Plus Ups) each month. $200 Airline Fee Credit: Select one qualifying airline and then receive up to $200 in statement credits per calendar year when incidental fees are charged by the airline to your Platinum Card®.
$200 Uber Cash: Enjoy Uber VIP status and up to $200 in Uber savings on rides or eats orders in the US annually. Uber Cash and Uber VIP status is available to Basic Card Member only. Terms Apply.
$189 CLEAR® Plus Credit: CLEAR® Plus helps to get you to your gate faster at 50+ airports nationwide and get up to $189 back per calendar year on your Membership (subject to auto-renewal) when you use your Card. CLEARLanes are available at 100+ airports, stadiums, and entertainment venues. Receive either a $100 statement credit every 4 years for a Global Entry application fee or a statement credit up to $85 every 4.
5 year period for TSA PreCheck® application fee for a 5-year plan only (through a TSA PreCheck® official enrollment provider), when charged to your Platinum Card®. Card Members approved for Global Entry will also receive access to TSA PreCheck at no additional cost. Shop Saks with Platinum: Get up to $100 in statement credits annually for purchases in Saks Fifth Avenue stores or at saks.
com on your Platinum Card®. That's up to $50 in statement credits semi-annually. Enrollment required.
Unlock access to exclusive reservations and special dining experiences with Global Dining Access by Resy when you add your Platinum Card® to your Resy profile. $695 annual fee. Terms Apply.
Earn 5X Membership Rewards® points on flights and prepaid hotels on AmexTravel.com. Earn 1.
5X points on each eligible purchase at shipping providers, US construction material, hardware suppliers, electronic goods retailers, and software & cloud system providers, as well as on purchases of $5,000 or more everywhere else (on up to $2 million per calendar year). Earn 1X points for each dollar you spend on other eligible purchases. $695 N/A 19.
49% - 28.49% Variable Earn 150,000 Membership Rewards® points Good to Excellent Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction.
More travel benefits than you'll find on any other business credit card Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Generous airport lounge access options, from American Express Centurion Lounges to Priority Pass (enrollment required) Check mark icon A check mark.
It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Complimentary hotel elite status (enrollment required) Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction.
Access to Amex concierge services con icon Two crossed lines that form an 'X'. Very high annual fee con icon Two crossed lines that form an 'X'. Limited opportunities to earn bonus points con icon Two crossed lines that form an 'X'.
Annual statement credits won't be useful for everyone The Business Platinum Card® from American Express is one of the best small-business cards with an elevated bonus and top-notch benefits (and a premium annual fee to match). It's an excellent offer if you like earning Membership Rewards points and you can maximize the bonus spending categories and perks — but be sure to assess whether the annual fee is worth it for you before you commit. Welcome Offer: Earn 150,000 Membership Rewards® points after you spend $20,000 in eligible purchases on the Card within the first 3 months of Card Membership.
5X Membership Rewards® points on flights and prepaid hotels on AmexTravel.com, and 1X points for each dollar you spend on eligible purchases. Earn 1.
5X points (that’s an extra half point per dollar) on each eligible purchase at US construction material, hardware suppliers, electronic goods retailers, and software & cloud system providers, and shipping providers, as well as on purchases of $5,000 or more everywhere else, on up to $2 million of these purchases per calendar year. Unlock over $1,000 in statement credits on select purchases, including tech, recruiting and wireless in the first year of membership with the Business Platinum Card®. Enrollment required.
See how you can unlock over $1,000 annually in credits on select purchases with the Business Platinum Card®, here. $200 Airline Fee Credit: Select one qualifying airline and then receive up to $200 in statement credits per calendar year when incidental fees are charged by the airline to the Card. $189 CLEAR® Plus Credit: Use your card and get up to $189 in statement credits per calendar year on your CLEAR® Plus Membership (subject to auto-renewal) when you use the Business Platinum Card®.
The American Express Global Lounge Collection® can provide an escape at the airport. With complimentary access to more than 1,400 airport lounges across 140 countries and counting, you have more airport lounge options than any other credit card issuer on the market as of 03/2023. $695 Annual Fee.
Terms Apply. Key differences The personal and business versions used to have similar benefits and terms (with a few exceptions), but they're no longer nearly identical. While they do have many overlapping features, there are some key differences.
Keep reading to see how the Amex Platinum Card and the Amex Business Platinum Card differ, and to decide if either is right for you. Both cards earn Amex points. American Express Membership Rewards points are worth 1.
8 cents apiece , on average, based on Business Insider's points and miles valuations — but the precise value you'll get depends on how you redeem your points. Annual fees and value Both version of the The Platinum Card® from American Express have an annual fee of $695. Amex waives annual fee on its cards for military members who are active duty, so for some readers, this means you could get either card without the high cost.
If you make the most of the Amex Platinum Card 's benefits like statement credits and airport lounge access, you can get more than enough value for it to be worthwhile. The Amex Platinum Card credits purchases for select digital subscriptions, CLEAR® Plus membership, Equinox fitness memberships, and prepaid hotel bookings, as well as Walmart+ memberships, and SoulCycle at-home bike purchases. The Business Platinum Card® from American Express offers generous benefits for entrepreneurs, with hefty statement credits for wireless, Indeed, Adobe, and Dell purchases.
If your spend skews more Sign-up bonuses The two cards have similarly generous welcome offers, often called sign-up bonuses. The standard offers are big enough to cover a round-trip business class ticket to Europe or Asia if you're strategic with transfer partner bonuses. From time to time, you may be targeted for even higher offers, or be able to get larger offers by going through a friend's referral link.
Amex has a "once per lifetime" rule on sign-up bonuses: After you've earned a welcome offer for one card, you cannot cancel it and earn another bonus down the line if you sign up for the card again. So make sure you get the best welcome offer available to you when you apply for your first Platinum card — either flavor — because you like won't be able to earn it again. Amex Platinum Card has a welcome bonus offer of 80,000 Membership Rewards® points after you spend $8,000 on eligible purchases on your new card in your first six months of card membership.
Based on Business Insider's points and miles valuations , that's worth around $1,440 in travel. The Amex Business Platinum Card offers a bonus of 150,000 Membership Rewards® points after you spend $20,000 in eligible purchases on the card within the first three months of card membership. Again, based on Business Insider's valuations, that's worth around $2,700 in travel.
The Amex Business Platinum Card typically requires more spend, especially compared against the personal card.. Unless you own a small-to-medium-sized business and realistically expect to spend five figures in a single quarter, the personal Amex Platinum Card might be a better option for you.
Reward structures Both cards earn a generous 5 points per dollar spent on flights booked through Amex Travel. The personal version of the Amex Platinum Card also earns 5x points on flights booked directly through the airline, and 1 point per dollar on everything else. The Amex Business Platinum Card earns a 50% point bonus on purchases of $5,000 or more, and on U.
S. purchases at electronics goods retailers, software, and cloud service providers, shipping providers, and on construction materials and hardware supplies (on up to $2 million in combined purchases per calendar year, then 1 point per dollar). It earns one point per dollar on everything else.
Exclusive cardholder benefits Both premium cards offer thousands of dollars' worth of perks and benefits to offset their sky-high annual fees. Both cards offer identical access to airport lounges. Lounges are exclusive areas where you can enjoy comfortable seats, an internet connection, food, drinks, and sometimes other amenities.
Although lounges were traditionally reserved for first-class and business-class passengers, many are accessible to any traveler who holds either a lounge membership or certain cards — and the Platinum cards offer access to several different types of lounge . Amex Centurion Lounges (considered to be among the best airport lounges in the US) Priority Pass** (access to more than 1,400 airport lounges globally) Delta Sky Club lounges (only when you have a same-day Delta boarding pass) Escape Lounge – The Centurion Studio Partner Plaza Premium lounges Lufthansa lounges (when flying Lufthansa, Austrian Airlines, or SWISS) The first is Amex's own proprietary Centurion Lounges , located at nearly a dozen airports in the US — and in Hong Kong. These chic venues offer an oasis in the middle of the main terminal's chaos, featuring comfortable seating, complimentary cocktails and food created by award-winning mixologists and chefs, and other amenities.
Access to these lounges is limited to holders of the Amex Platinum or Amex Centurion cards . If you're flying with Delta and carry an Amex Platinum card, you can also access any Delta Sky Club lounge. With more than 30 locations, Sky Clubs offer snacks, complimentary soft and alcoholic drinks (with more "premium" drinks available for purchase), fast Wi-Fi, and a place to unwind.
Some locations also feature showers. Finally, the Amex Platinum Card and the Amex Business Platinum Card come with a Priority Pass membership**. Priority Pass is a network of more than 1,400 airport lounges around the world.
With the membership provided by your Platinum card, you and two guests can access any location (as long as there's room) to enjoy free snacks, drinks, newspapers and magazines, showers, and more, all separate from the hustle and bustle of the main terminal. If you have an international version of the card, instead of the US version, be sure to double-check the guest policy for your card's Priority Pass benefit. The best ways to use American Express Membership Rewards points include booking travel through the Amex Travel Portal or, representing one of the best options, transferring them to various partner airline and hotel programs .
But if you're staying close to home, there are plenty of non-travel ways to redeem Amex points as well. Keep in mind that valuation is subjective and an "average" of all of the different ways you can use points. Membership Rewards points are worth a different amount depending on whether you use them for shopping, statement credits, travel booked through Amex, or transfer them.
The personal Amex Platinum Card offers up to $200 a year in Uber Cash credits**. The credit is broken down by month: You'll get a monthly $15 credit, with an extra $20 in December (for a total of $35 that month). If you don't take Uber rides, you can use the credit for Uber Eats food or merchandise delivery — that's up to $200 in free dining each year.
The Amex Business Platinum Card doesn't have an equivalent Uber credit. Amex Platinum Card members receive up to $200 in credit each calendar year toward prepaid bookings at Amex Fine Hotels and Resorts or Hotel Collection properties (minimum two-night stay) when they book with their card through Amex Travel. Fine Hotels and Resorts bookings include perks such as free breakfast, guaranteed late checkout, room upgrades, and early check-in when available, and a welcome amenity or credit unique to each property.
Bookings with The Hotel Collection must be for a minimum of two nights, and include benefits like room upgrades and a $100 on-property credit. Every calendar year, the Amex Platinum Card and the Amex Business Platinum Card offer up to a $200 credit toward incidental fees on one airline for checked baggage fees, lounge day passes, and more at one selected airline (that you can choose at the beginning of each year). While the airline fee credit doesn't cover tickets, it applies to a wide variety of charges and fees, such as checked bags, change fees if you need to modify your flight, inflight food and drinks, fees for traveling with a pet, airport lounge day passes (if you don't already have complimentary access), and sometimes even things like seat assignments and extra legroom upgrade fees.
The best part of the airline credit is that because you get it each calendar year, not cardmember year, you could get it twice in your first year of having the card. Say you opened the card in February — you can earn the full $200 credit before the calendar year ends, then once the credit resets on January 1, get it again before your next annual fee posts, meaning you can get up to $400 in value from this credit each year. CLEAR® Plus is an expedited security screening program that can save you time waiting in long lines at select US airports and stadiums.
A CLEAR® Plus membership normally costs $189 per year, but if you pay with your personal or business Platinum card, you'll receive a credit to offset that cost.** CLEAR® Plus membership is available for $119 for United or Delta frequent flyer program members, and there are more discounts if you hold certain levels of elite status. When you have a CLEAR® Plus membership, you can jump to the front of the security line, but — unlike TSA PreCheck members —you'll still have to remove items like your laptop and shoes before getting screened.
CLEAR® Plus isn't a government program so the application requirements are much less stringent than those of TSA PreCheck and Global Entry. Both cards offer credit that you can use to apply for Global Entry or TSA PreCheck , $100 statement credit every 4 years for a Global Entry application fee or up to $85 statement credit every 4.5 years for TSA PreCheck®, so it covers you when it's time to reapply.
This is an incredibly valuable perk that's only available with the Amex Business Platinum Card. One of the ways to redeem Membership Rewards points is by using them to book flights, hotels, cruises, or more through Amex Travel. When you do that, your points are generally worth 1 cent each.
However, when you have the Amex Business Platinum Card and use points to book any flight on your selected airline — or business or first-class flights on any airline — you'll get 35% of your points back as a rebate (up to 500,000 points per calendar year). Because booking through Amex Travel is the easiest way to use points for flights, this represents a great option to use fewer points to get more. Both cards offer substantial benefits if you frequently stay in large hotel chains or rent cars from Hertz.
When you hold either card, you'll receive Gold elite status with Hilton hotels, as well as Marriott hotels, without having to meet any stay requirements. Elite status comes with benefits including more points earned on stays, early check-in and late check-out, room upgrades, and more. Both cards also offer access to Amex's exclusive Fine Hotels & Resorts program.
When you book a stay at a participating hotel through Amex Travel, you'll get benefits like an even earlier check-in, a priority room upgrade, free breakfast during your entire stay, and a special amenity, such as a credit to use at the hotel bar or spa. Amex recently added a new perk to both versions of the Platinum card. Cardholders can now activate Hertz President Circle elite status , which comes with perks like guaranteed car upgrades, bonus points, and the ability to skip the car rental line.
You'll even get something back when you shop, relax, or work at these brands. Each year, Amex Platinum Card cardholders can get up to $100 back in the form of statement credits for Saks Fifth Avenue purchases .** This is divided into two $50 credits: up to $50 toward Saks purchases made with the Amex Platinum Card from January to June, and another $50 toward those purchases from July through December.
The digital entertainment credits on the Amex Platinum Card are awarded in chunks of up to $20 per month (maximum $240 per year). Enrollment is required before you can use this perk on these eligible subscriptions: Disney+ ESPN+ Hulu The New York Times The Wall Street Journal Peacock Amex Platinum Card cardholders can receive up to $300 annually in credits toward Equinox gym memberships or digital subscriptions to on-demand fitness classes through the Equinox+ app. Enrollment is also required to activate this benefit.
Amex recently made some customer-friendly changes to the Platinum's Equinox benefit. Cardholders can now use the credit toward any membership (previously restricted to Equinox All Access, Destination, E by Equinox, or Equinox+). When you use the Amex Platinum Card to pay for a monthly Walmart+ subscription, you'll receive a statement credit for the cost ($12.
95 plus applicable sales tax each month). Only Walmart+ monthly memberships (not annual) qualify for this perk. A Walmart+ membership gets you free delivery, free shipping with no minimums, pharmacy discounts, and even a free Paramount+ subscription — so if you're already a Walmart shopper, this is a very useful benefit.
If you're planning to buy a SoulCycle at-home bike, you can receive a $300 statement credit when you use your Amex Platinum Card to make the purchase through your Equinox+ account online. These bikes cost about $2,500, so this isn't a huge discount — but if you're making this purchase anyway, it's a nice deal. You can redeem this credit for up to 15 separate bike purchases each year, but each purchase requires a 12-month Equinox+ membership ($40 per month plus applicable tax) to qualify, and purchases made in-store or through the Equinox mobile app aren't eligible for the credit.
Business-specific benefits The business Platinum is all about workplace focus, efficiency, and enhancement. Even small-scale entrepreuers can derive massive value from these benefits. Business Platinum cardholders can reap more than a thousand dollars' worth of statement credits if they max out each of the benefits in this list below.
While the Amex Business Platinum Card doesn't offer statement credits for Saks or Uber, it does offer up to $400 in statement credits annually for US purchases with Dell.** This is divided into two semi-annual credits of up to $200 (January to June and July to December). Amex Business Platinum Card cardholders can receive up to $10 per month in statement credits for purchases made from any US wireless telephone provider (up to $120 per calendar year).
** Using the Amex Business Platinum Card to pay your cell phone bill is already a good choice, because it's one of the Amex cards that offer cell phone protection when you use it to pay your monthly bill. If your small business spends money on finding new employees, a new credit toward all Indeed hiring and recruiting products and services on the Amex Business Platinum Card can save you up to $360 per year (up to $90 per quarter in statement credits).** The Amex Business Platinum Card offers up to $150 per calendar year in statement credits toward select Adobe purchases, including Adobe Creative Cloud and Acrobat Pro DC.
** You can issue authorized user cards for trusted employees under your Amex Business Platinum Card account. Although the annual fee per card is steep at $350, Business Platinum employee cards come with the same global airport lounge access as your parent card. So if you have employees who regularly hit the road for business, an employee card could be a great way to earn extra points on their work travel expenses while treating them to a little bit of luxury along the way.
Considerations for card selection Both cards clearly have a lot to offer – but the right one for you will still come down to your individual needs. Here's how we suggest sorting your pros/cons list. For many consumers, the high annual fee on the personal Amex Platinum Card will only be worth it if they can maximize the card's new benefits .
If you make the most of all the card's credits and perks, you can get a value that far exceeds the annual fee . If you have a small business, there are good reasons to go for the Amex Business Platinum Card instead. Although you'll give up the Uber, Saks, digital subscription, Equinox, Walmart, SoulCycle, and prepaid hotel credits, you'll get perks like the 35% points rebate when booking flights through Amex Travel, plus Dell, Indeed, Adobe, and wireless statement credits.
If your business regularly makes purchases of $5,000 or more or in eligible categories — and you can put them on the card — or you think you can get value from the 35% points rebate, then the business card might be a better option. Also, make sure to consider the points you could earn from your welcome bonus. If you don't expect to spend enough to earn the bonus on the Amex Business Platinum Card, you're likely better off with the personal version.
Amex Platinum vs. Amex Business Platinum frequently asked questions The fundamental difference between these twin cards is their target demographic. The Business Platinum is designed for entrepreneurs and small business owners and offers more than a thousand dollars' worth of statement credits toward business subscriptions and purchases.
The consumer Platinum, on the other hand, offers hundreds of dollars in statement credits toward self-care, retail and other luxuries. Both cards carry the same annual fee of $695. Both cards offer extensive travel perks, including global airport lounge access and generous travel credits.
If you have employees you want to add to your card as authorized users, get the Business Platinum card because its employee cards come with global airport lounge access. Yes, both cards offer bonus points in select categories of spend. The Amex Platinum earns bonus points on travel, while the Business Platinum also offers elevated rewards on certain business expenses.
Yes, the Business Platinum is best for business owners. It comes with expense management tools and employee card options that can be particularly valuable for managing business finances..
