My Amex Platinum Card Paid for Itself in 2023. Here's How
KEY POINTS
- The Platinum Card® from American Express has a hefty annual fee.
- A combination of lounge visits and statement credits paid for the card, and then some.
- These perks are only valuable since I use the services anyway.
The Platinum Card® from American Express is one of the most expensive consumer cards I've seen. And not only do I have one, but I've kept it for multiple years. Indeed, last year, I paid a whopping $695 to renew my card, a staggeringly large annual fee (see rates and fees). (That's more than many car payments!)
But I don't regret it for a second. Because when I crunch the numbers, I actually came out ahead on that investment. Here's a breakdown of where I got the most value.
Note: Remember that a lot of these benefits require you to enroll initially to activate the perk. After that, most will work automatically.
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On American Express' Secure Website.
Terms apply
= Best
= Excellent
= Good
= Fair
= Poor
= Best
= Excellent
= Good
= Fair
= Poor
On American Express' Secure Website.
Terms apply
Good/Excellent (670-850)
Intro APR
Purchases: n/a
Balance Transfers: n/a
Regular APR
See Pay Over Time APR
Rewards 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. Earn 1X Membership Rewards® Points on other purchases. Terms and limitations apply.
1X-5X Membership Rewards® Points
Annual Fee
$695
Welcome Offer Earn 80,000 Membership Rewards® Points after you spend $8,000 on purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership.
80,000
-
This luxury travel card has some of the most prestigious perks you'll find — access to over 1,400 airport lounges, elite status with Hilton and Marriott Bonvoy, and spending credits worth over $1,500 in value every year. Just be ready for the hefty annual fee, which can be offset in the first year with a welcome bonus worth $800 in points. Terms apply. Read Full Review
-
- Big welcome offer
- Substantial spending credits
- Airport lounge access
- Hotel benefits
- Flexible travel points
- Annual fee
- Limited bonus categories
- Spending credits can be complicated to manage
-
- Earn 80,000 Membership Rewards® Points after you spend $8,000 on purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership. Apply and select your preferred metal Card design: classic Platinum Card®, 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.
- $155 Walmart+ Credit: Cover the cost of a $12.95 monthly Walmart+ membership (subject to auto-renewal) with a statement credit after you pay for Walmart+ each month with your Platinum Card®. Cost includes $12.95 plus applicable local sales tax. Plus Up Benefits are excluded.
- $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.
- $300 Equinox Credit: 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®. Enrollment required. Visit https://platinum.equinox.com/ to enroll.
- $189 CLEAR® Plus Credit: Breeze through security with CLEAR Plus at 100+ airports, stadiums, and entertainment venues nationwide and get up to $189 back per calendar year on your Membership (subject to auto-renewal) when you use your Platinum Card®. Learn more.
- $100 Global Entry Credit: 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 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.
- 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.
- $300 SoulCycle At-Home Bike Credit: Get a $300 statement credit for the purchase of a SoulCycle at-home bike with your Platinum Card®. An Equinox+ subscription is required to purchase a SoulCycle at-home bike and access SoulCycle content. Must charge full price of bike in one transaction. Shipping available in the contiguous U.S. only. 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.
$500 in lounge visits
I've spent a seriously ridiculous amount of time in airports this year. And part of what made that tolerable was the fact that I could spend my layovers being productive (and well fed) in airport lounges.
Amex objectively has the best cards for airport lounge access on sheer volume alone. You have access to more lounges than any other travel rewards card issuer can grant you. This was especially important to me this summer, as I spent many a Delta layover in Atlanta, and my Amex card got me into nearly every Delta lounge in the airport. (Terms apply.)
All told, I probably got at least 10 lounge visits out of my card this summer alone. I value a visit around $50 a pop, so I count this as a solid $500 in value.
$240 in streaming credits
You can get up to $20 a month in credits towards select streaming services. Terms apply; enrollment required. When I first got my card, I rarely maxed this out, only occasionally using it up on an Audible purchase. After the changes earlier this year, I can't use it on Audible at all, but I don't need to; I max it every month with my Disney Bundle. Specifically, the Disney Bundle Duo is $19.99 a month, so I basically just pay taxes for my subscription once my credits kick in.
Pro tip: The Disney Bundle is the only streaming service I put on this card. I use one of my streaming rewards cards for everything else to maximize my rewards.
$200 in Uber Cash
As a cardholder, I'm eligible for $15 a month in Uber Cash (plus a bonus $20 in December), for a total of $200 a year. Terms apply. Before we bought a house, we got delivery often because we were busy and we could afford it. Now, the budget is a little tighter, but we still enjoy at least one night a month where we let dinner come to us. (Because we're worth it.) That makes it easy to max out this credit every time.
Pro tip: The Capital One SavorOne Cash Rewards Credit Card (see rates and fees) will cover the cost of your Uber One membership through Nov. 14, 2024. The card has no annual fee, so this is an easy win if you're already using Uber or Uber Eats.
$85 for TSA PreCheck
I signed up for TSA PreCheck for the first time this year, and it has been remarkably handy. Even if I didn't get a credit for it, I would renew in a heartbeat. Happily, I did get a statement credit, and it covered the entire cost.
Now, this one isn't something I'll get every single year. You get one credit for Global Entry every four years (up to $100), or one credit for TSA PreCheck every 4.5 years (up to $85). Terms apply. Since that's how long your enrollment lasts, it works out nicely.
$50 in Saks Fifth Avenue credit
Cardholders can get up to $50 in statement credit towards Saks Fifth Avenue purchases twice a year (from January to June, then from July through December). Terms apply. Which is great, if you already shop there and/or live close enough that you could buy gift cards in store.
I don't fit into either of those categories, so I don't always get a chance to max this credit out. But this year I managed to use half of it, organically, when I purchased a small appliance I had my eye on. Saks had the same price as all the other sellers I could find, the overall cost would get free shipping, and I was already going to buy it anyway. Ideal situation and easy $50 credit.
On American Express' Secure Website.
Terms apply
= Best
= Excellent
= Good
= Fair
= Poor
= Best
= Excellent
= Good
= Fair
= Poor
On American Express' Secure Website.
Terms apply
Good/Excellent (670-850)
Intro APR
Purchases: n/a
Balance Transfers: n/a
Regular APR
See Pay Over Time APR
Rewards 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. Earn 1X Membership Rewards® Points on other purchases. Terms and limitations apply.
1X-5X Membership Rewards® Points
Annual Fee
$695
Welcome Offer Earn 80,000 Membership Rewards® Points after you spend $8,000 on purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership.
80,000
-
This luxury travel card has some of the most prestigious perks you'll find — access to over 1,400 airport lounges, elite status with Hilton and Marriott Bonvoy, and spending credits worth over $1,500 in value every year. Just be ready for the hefty annual fee, which can be offset in the first year with a welcome bonus worth $800 in points. Terms apply. Read Full Review
-
- Big welcome offer
- Substantial spending credits
- Airport lounge access
- Hotel benefits
- Flexible travel points
- Annual fee
- Limited bonus categories
- Spending credits can be complicated to manage
-
- Earn 80,000 Membership Rewards® Points after you spend $8,000 on purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership. Apply and select your preferred metal Card design: classic Platinum Card®, 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.
- $155 Walmart+ Credit: Cover the cost of a $12.95 monthly Walmart+ membership (subject to auto-renewal) with a statement credit after you pay for Walmart+ each month with your Platinum Card®. Cost includes $12.95 plus applicable local sales tax. Plus Up Benefits are excluded.
- $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.
- $300 Equinox Credit: 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®. Enrollment required. Visit https://platinum.equinox.com/ to enroll.
- $189 CLEAR® Plus Credit: Breeze through security with CLEAR Plus at 100+ airports, stadiums, and entertainment venues nationwide and get up to $189 back per calendar year on your Membership (subject to auto-renewal) when you use your Platinum Card®. Learn more.
- $100 Global Entry Credit: 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 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.
- 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.
- $300 SoulCycle At-Home Bike Credit: Get a $300 statement credit for the purchase of a SoulCycle at-home bike with your Platinum Card®. An Equinox+ subscription is required to purchase a SoulCycle at-home bike and access SoulCycle content. Must charge full price of bike in one transaction. Shipping available in the contiguous U.S. only. 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.
The net total: $480 in the black (plus rewards and perks)
When you add up all these credits, I got about $1,175 in value. Subtract the $695 annual fee that I paid this year, and I came out ahead by $480. Given most of this stuff required only initial enrollment and then no other work, that's a pretty awesome return on investment.
The most important thing to remember is that everything on this list was something I would have 100% paid for in cash regardless of the situation. That's the only reason I give it the same value as the cold hard cash I handed over when I paid my annual fee.
Those lounge visits? I would (and have) paid cash to visit the lounges if I hadn't had alternative access. Between the food, drinks, and workspace, they're well worth the value in my book. Similarly, I would have a Disney/Hulu subscription and get the occasional meal delivery even if I didn't get credits for them.
The Platinum Card® from American Express isn't for everyone (at least not as a long-term keeper card). But there is plenty of room to make it work for you if it complements your financial habits. Just make sure you do the math before you pay that big annual fee.
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