The Platinum Card® From American Express Review

The Platinum Card® From American Express is Amex's premium travel personal credit card. The card offers many benefits and perks along with a high annual fee. In our review of The Platinum Card® From American Express, we will look at the welcome offer, earning structure, card benefits and share our overall thoughts on this premium product.

Current Welcome Offer

Amex usually has many different welcome offers for its cards at any given time, including The Platinum Card® From American Express. Here are the terms for the current public welcome offer:

• Earn 80,000 Membership Rewards® points after $8,000 spend on eligible purchases in the first 6 months. Terms Apply.
• This card has a $695 annual fee. See Rates and Fees.

**There may be better welcome offers available to select cardmembers.

Platinum version authorized users, which cost $195 per cardmember, also get lounge access. This is an increase from the old set up where you could add 3 Platinum version authorized users for $175 in total each year. You can still add authorized users as Gold card carriers at no fee. They do not receive lounge access with that set up.

Amex Application Rules

Due to the new family rule, you should follow our application guidance found here. The order of Amex Membership Rewards applications now matters and you need to strategize what card to open and when!

If you choose to apply, remember that Amex typically will not approve you for more than two Amex credit cards during a 90-day period. They also have a 10 card limit on the colored Membership Rewards earning cards (of which this is one). This includes personal and business cards. This is separate from the 5 card limit on credit cards.

Amex also has a once per lifetime welcome offer rule on each card. This is more like every 5 – 7 years in reality though, and not actually your lifetime. That timeline is based off of when you last held a card, not when you last earned a welcome offer on the product though. If you are ineligible for the welcome offer for any reason American Express will usually let you know that with a pop-up before the application is processed. You can cancel the application at this time with no hard pull.

The Platinum Card® Review: Earning Structure

The Platinum Card® From American Express has the following earning structure:

• 5x points for flights booked directly with airlines or with American Express Travel
  • On up to $500,000 on these purchases per calendar year
• 5x points on prepaid hotels booked with American Express Travel.
• 1x on all other eligible charges

Amex Platinum Card Benefits

The Amex Platinum card offers a lot of benefits and perks. Amex even boasts that the card offers over $1,400 in value through its many credits. This may be true, but few cardholders will manage to use every single credit without much work. That said, the Platinum Card does offer a lot of good benefits that are sure to please many cardholders.

Uber Cash($200):

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.

The Uber cash offers $15 each month for orders with Uber Eats or rides with Uber in the U.S., plus a bonus $20 in December, for up to $200 per calendar year.

To receive this benefit, you must download the latest version of the Uber App and your eligible American Express Platinum Card must be a method of payment in your Uber account. The Amex Benefit may only be used in the United States. Effective 11/8/2024, an Amex Card must be selected as the payment method for your Uber or Uber Eats transaction to redeem the Amex Uber Cash benefit.

Lounge access:

Like many other premium travel cards, the Amex Platinum card has complimentary Priority Pass Select membership. This card also grants you access to the Amex Global Lounge Selection, 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.

Airline credit ($200):

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(R). Enrollment is required for this benefit.

Once you select a qualifying airline, you will receive up to $200 in statement credits per calendar year when you charge airline incidental fees to your Platinum card. Charges to any authorized user cards on your account also trigger the credit. Examples of qualifying fees include checked bags and seat selection. This benefit requires enrollment, so make sure to do so as soon as you receive your new card.

FHR/Hotel Collection credit ($200):

Get up to $200 back in statement credits each year on prepaid Fine Hotels + Resorts(R) or The Hotel Collection bookings through American Express Travel when you pay with your Platinum Card(R). The Hotel Collection requires a minimum two-night stay where Fine Hotels + Resorts only requires one night most of the time.

Amex FHR bookings receive such benefits as free room upgrade (when available), free breakfast for two, and an experience credit such as for food & beverage or spa services (at a minimum of $100). To use the credit, simply make your hotel booking through the American Express FHR website.

CLEAR Plus ($199):

The Amex Platinum card offers up to $199 in statement credits toward an annual CLEAR Plus membership for expedited airport security. CLEAR(R) Plus helps to get you to your gate faster at 50+ airports nationwide and get up to $199 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. You can search for Clear locations here.

Entertainment credit ($240):

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
• The Wall Street Journal

Enrollment is required for this benefit. They remove the SiriusXM credit as an option and it will be removed for grandfathered-in cardholders on May 8, 2024.

Walmart+ ($155):

Save on eligible delivery fees, shipping, and more with a Walmart+ membership. Use your Platinum Card(R) 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.

Equinox credit ($300):

Get up to $300 back in statement credits per calendar year on an Equinox membership, or an Equinox club membership (subject to auto-renewal) when you pay with your Platinum Card(R). Enrollment required. Visit https://platinum.equinox.com/ to enroll.

Global Entry/TSA Pre-Check (Up To $120): 

Receive either a $120 statement credit every 4 years for a Global Entry application fee or a statement credit up to $85 every 4.5 years for a TSA PreCheck® (through a TSA official enrollment provider) application fee, when charged to your Platinum Card®. Card Members approved for Global Entry will also receive access to TSA PreCheck at no additional cost.

Saks credit ($100): 

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 (January 1st – June 30th, July 1st – December 31st). Enrollment is required.

Complimentary Hilton Honors and Marriott Bonvoy Gold status:

Cardholders enjoy complimentary Gold status with both hotel chains for as long as they hold the card. Enrollment is required.

ToP Analysis

The Amex Platinum card offers some great benefits for travelers, despite the high $695 annual fee. Most travelers can benefit from credits towards Uber, airline fees, FHR/Hotel Collection, and Clear, along with lounge access. Of course, we all have different travel patterns and preferences. If these credits are of little use to you, then the Platinum Card may not be a keeper for you. But the card's consistently high welcome offer makes it worth opening if you are over 5/24, even if just for the first year.

Whether the card is worth keeping after the first year requires you to crunch the numbers and figure out which credits you will actually use. Benefits like the Uber and airline credits are very easy to use. Others require a little more work, like the FHR/Hotel Collection and the Saks credits. Meanwhile, benefits like the Equinox and entertainment credits cater to a much smaller subgroup of cardholders.

One downside of all these different credits is that many are broken out monthly. Having to remember which credit(s) have been used every month gets quite tiresome. Those who have criticized The Platinum Card® From American Express becoming glorified coupon books make a valid point.

As for spending, The Platinum Card® From American Express has many bonus categories. The card's 5x earning on flights booked directly with airlines beats all other major credit cards. But beyond that, the Platinum Card does not justify getting a lot of spend. Earning 5x on bookings through Amex Travel is similar to what competitors offer but we think portal bookings should be mostly avoided.

In sum, the utility of The Platinum Card® From American Express comes down to its benefits. Those who derive value from the many credits and travel perks should easily justify the high annual fee.

Final Thoughts

The Platinum Card® From American Express has plenty of benefits geared towards travelers. Folks should each analyze their own needs to decide whether the card is worth keeping for the benefits. With so many of its perks split into monthly statement credits, cardholders should also consider the effort required to have those credits actually be worth it.

What are your thoughts on the Amex Platinum card? Which of the card's benefits most appeal to you? Come join the discussion in our Facebook group!