Going For The Amex Platinum Card
The last step is to try for The Platinum Card® from American Express. The easiest way is online as you enter all your personal information and your salary to receive an instant decision. If American Express has a few questions about your credit history, they might hold your application for additional review and give you a decision within a few business days.
You will also need the full name and social security number of all people you wish to add as an additional cardholder. If you do not want to try for the card online, you can also try by phone.
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Benefits Of The Amex Platinum
Theres a reason American Express and the military pair well together, and its mostly due to the superior cardholder benefits you can receive without an annual fee.
First off, you should know that this card lets you rack up points in the American Express Membership Rewards program, which is renowned for its value and flexibility. This program lets you book travel directly through American Express, but you can also redeem points for gift cards, merchandise and travel with American Express transfer partners.
Additional perks youll receive when you apply for this travel credit card are highlighted below.
The Amex Gold Rewards Card
The American Express Gold Rewards Card is another great choice for Canadian travelers right now. It comes with a generous welcome bonus of 70,000 points and a low annual fee of just $250, plus there are recurring benefits you can capitalize on every year that you hold the card.
If you travel frequently but the annual fee on the Platinum Card is too much for you, the Amex Gold Rewards Card is a great second option.
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Using A American Express Platinum Card: Things To Consider
While no preset limit can sound enticing, it can actually be quite dangerous. is a major factor in how your credit score is calculated. Essentially, credit utilization refers to how much of your credit limit youre using each month. The less you use up, the better it is for your credit score. However, cards that have no preset limit make it extremely difficult to determine your credit utilization. They have the potential to hurt your credit score as a result.
Reaching your spending threshold: You also have to consider things in even more practical terms. If you dont know what your spending power is, you wont know when youre approaching it. That could leave you in a tough spot in an emergency situation and make it difficult to buy high priced items with confidence. Thankfully, many cardholders have reported getting emails or calls from Amex early on, saying they were approaching their spending threshold and would need to make a payment before being allowed to make any more purchases.
The best thing to do when trying to figure out how much you can spend on your American Express Platinum card is to start small and gradually increase your spending over time.
Is The Amex Platinum Worth It
The American Express Platinum Card, known for its prestigious benefits and sleek appearance, is a card worth bragging about. Between the numerous travel benefits, reputable concierge service and consumer protections, the card is worth considering if you can stomach the steep annual fee.
However, some credit card enthusiasts have compared the new benefits to that of a “coupon book,” questioning the true value these credits are offering Platinum cardmembers. Many of the benefits, like the entertainment and Equinox credits, are essentially forcing some customers to spend more money than they normally would defeating the purpose of the card saving you money.
In addition, there are valid arguments that the Amex Platinum card is only worth holding onto for one year, and then cardholders should consider canceling when the second annual fee posts on the billing statement because the value of benefits significantly decreases after the first year, most notably because you won’t receive a second the welcome offer.
Here is a list of the benefits you will receive in your first year of card membership:
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The Platinum Card From American Express Benefits And Features
If you want to improve your overall travel experience and don’t mind paying extra for it you should get The Platinum Card® from American Express. Taking advantage of all of the card’s features can quickly compensate for most of the $695 annual fee. Below, you’ll find an in-depth look at each of these perks to help you better understand them.
Amex Platinum Card Benefits
Welcome offer
New cardholders currently receive 100,000 Membership Rewards® points after spending $6,000 on purchases on their new Card within the first six months of Card Membership.
These Membership Rewards® Points are usable in several ways, such as:
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Purchases at online retailers
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Transferring points to another account
American Express provides an online calculator to show the value of these points.
Membership Rewards® Points on purchases
Typically, American Express offers a single point for each dollar spent on the Amex Platinum card. These points cover everyday purchases from groceries to gas and other essentials.
For some categories, there are added benefits. For example, frequent travelers can benefit from the Amex Platinum 5X Membership Rewards® benefit applied to flights booked directly with airlines or with American Express Travel on up to $500,000 per calendar year.
You can also receive $200 in statement credits annually on prepaid Fine Hotels + Resorts® or the Hotel Collection bookings with American Express Travel, which requires a minimum two-night stay. And if you fly, you can receive up to $200 in statement credits per calendar year after you select a qualifying airline and incidental fees are charged by the airline to your Platinum Card®
Annual statement credits
Shopping benefits
Frequent shoppers receive impressive value from the Amex Platinum card, going beyond statement credits or discounts.
Travel perks
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Luxury Hotel Amenity Credit
With this card, you’ll have access to exclusive rates and benefits at over 1,000 luxury properties when you book through the Fine Hotels & Resorts service. On top of space-available room upgrades, free breakfast for two, late checkout and more, you’ll enjoy up to a $100 hotel amenity credit during each stay. You can use this credit at the spa, restaurants or other on-site amenities.
Earning With The Amex Gold
Meanwhile, bonus earning categories are where the Amex Gold Card excels. Specifically, it accrues:
- 4 points per dollar on dining at worldwide restaurants.
- 4 points per dollar at U.S. supermarkets .
- 3 points per dollar on airfare purchased directly from the airline or through American Express Travel.
- 1 point per dollar on other eligible purchases.
Earning 4 points per dollar at restaurants, which amounts to an 8% return, makes the Amex Gold one of the best cards for dining at restaurants.
The Amex Gold is also one of the best cards for groceries at U.S. supermarkets. Even with the $25,000 calendar year cap, thats still over $2,000 per month though the bonus categorys restriction to supermarkets in the U.S. isnt ideal. That said, the strong earning rates across numerous categories are still worth getting excited about for most of us.
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Start Saving Amex Points For Next Year’s Travel
Why do you need so many points if you’re not actually traveling right now? No matter what, the pandemic will eventually end, and you can use the Amex points you earn now to cover travel later on.
Let’s say you want to take the whole family to Europe next year or in 2022, after travel is back to normal. You could do so by transferring your Amex points to the Delta SkyMiles program, where it’s common to find round-trip flights to Europe on non-peak days for as little as 60,000 miles. You could also transfer your points to the Air France / Flying Blue program, which offers round-trip flights to Europe for as little as 50,000 miles.
Either way, a family of four will need 200,000 miles or more to make this trek, so planning early can help make this dream a reality sooner rather than later.
Travel Enthusiasts Who Want Expedited Services At The Airport
The Platinum Card from American Express gives cardholders a $100 credit toward Global Entry or TSA PreCheck membership when they pay with their credit card.
This card also comes with a $179 credit toward CLEAR membership, which lets cardholders speed through security at select airports and stadiums using a touchless ID.
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Hilton Honors Surpass Restrictions
Another Amex card featuring welcome offer restrictions is Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card. Right now, you can Earn 130,000 Hilton Honors Bonus Points after you spend $2,000 in purchases on the Card in the first 3 months of Card Membership.
If you’ve held this card or other select Hilton Honors cards before, you can still apply for it, but you won’t earn the generous offer. The language listed on the American Express website is very clear:
“Welcome Offer not available to applicants who have or have had the Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card or the Hilton Honors American Express Ascend Card.”
If this restriction applies to you, the good news is that there are other Hilton Credit Cards available with welcome offers you may qualify for still, and other rewards credit cards that offer Hilton Honors status and benefits.
Is The Amex Platinums $695 Annual Fee Worth It
Unlike other credit cards that waive the annual fee for the first year, the $695 annual fee will be charged on your first monthly billing cycle. If you dont have $695 to pay the annual fee, dont try for the card.
If you want to add an authorized user, you will also need to pay $175 upfront for each additional card. Note that your authorized users can receive an American Express Gold card for free.
The fee isnt due as soon as you activate the American Express Platinum. You do have a month to come up with the money.
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Is The American Express Platinum Card Free For Military Members
While the annual cost involved in carrying this card is high for many, plenty of Americans get to skip paying it altogether. If youre active duty, you can enjoy all the generous benefits this card has to offer for no annual fee.
This is true whether you choose to be a primary cardholder or an on another persons account. For example, an active duty service member could also become an authorized user on another persons account for $0 per year instead of the $175 per card thats normally charged.
Hilton And Marriott Enthusiasts Who Wont Earn Status Through Paid Stays This Year
If you want automatic status with the Hilton Honors and Marriott Bonvoy programs, applying for the Amex Platinum can make it happen.
Having Gold status with both programs gives you access to elite benefits like room upgrades and welcome gifts, but it also makes it easier to move up to the next level of status through paid hotel stays.
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Monthly Uber Statement Credit
Amex provides their The Platinum Card® from American Express holders with up to $15 in Uber Cash each month, plus a bonus $20 in December. This means you can get up to $200 per year in Uber Cash alone. It should be reasonably easy to take advantage of this perk each month, as you can use your Uber Cash for U.S. Uber rides or U.S. Uber Eats. To qualify, you must add The Platinum Card® from American Express to your Uber app.
The American Express Gold Card
The Gold card comes with an annual fee of $250, and there is no annual fee for adding any additional cards to a Gold account. One of the biggest perks for any cardholder is the membership rewards program, which allows consumers to earn points as they use their credit cards.
The Gold card is geared toward people who are big shoppers, eat out a lot, and do a lot of everyday spending. American Express Gold cardholders can earn four points for every dollar spent at U.S. restaurants and U.S. supermarkets , three points for every dollar spent booking flights with airline companies or through the American Express travel website, and one point for every dollar spent on any other purchase.
As of February 2021, first-time cardholders are also eligible for 60,000 points after you use your card to make $4,000 in purchases for the first six months of account membership.
Unlike traditional credit cards, American Express cards do not have a regular APR or charge interest, as all balances must be paid in full each month. However, the Gold card does offer cardmembers the flexibility to pay for purchases of $100 or more over time at a set interest rate.
*Eligibility and Benefit level varies by Card. Terms, Conditions and Limitations Apply. Please visit americanexpress.com/benefitsguide for more details. Underwritten by AMEX Assurance Company.
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Amex Business Platinum Card
The Amex Business Platinum card is currently offering a welcome bonus of 120,000 Membership Rewards® points after you spend $15,000 on eligible purchases with your Card within the first 3 months of Card Membership. The card also comes with perks like :
- 1.5x Amex Membership Rewards points on single purchases of $5,000+ and on eligible purchases in key business categories.
- 5x Amex Membership Rewards points when you book airfare or prepaid hotels through the Amex travel portal
- 35% of your points back for all first class or business-class flights booked through the Amex travel portal using Pay With Points
- 35% of your points back for all flights, including coach tickets, booked with your selected airline through the Amex travel portal using Pay With Points.
- Up to $200 in statement credits per calendar year for airline incidentals with your selected airline *
- Up to $400 in Dell credits for U.S. purchases each calendar year*
- Access to airport lounges * .
- Elite car rental status with Avis, Executive status with National Car Rental, and Gold Plus Rewards with Hertz*
- Statement credit for Global Entry or TSA PreCheck
*Enrollment required for select benefits.
Although the $595 annual fee is not waived the first year , you can get lots of travel with the welcome bonus alone.
Should I Get Two American Express Platinum Cards
With Amex rolling out some of the best all-time offers for their Platinum Cards recently, many people may wonder if it would be worth it for them to apply for two Platinum Cards in order to reap the benefits of multiple lucrative sign-up bonuses. Because these cards have such high annual fees, its a decision you definitely want to be informed about before taking action. This article will cover whether or not it makes sense to apply for two Platinum Cards assuming you can take advantage of the high sign-up bonuses offered.
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Is The Amex Black Card Better Than The Amex Platinum
Most people who have the American Express Centurion Card agree that the Amex Platinum Card offers significantly better value, and that the Black Card barely holds any benefits that the Platinum Card does not. The same goes for the Mastercard® Black Card. However, the Black Card is a major status symbol, so if thats important to you, it should factor into your decision.
Consider Getting Another Amex Credit Card First
If you are concerned about your credit score, you might consider getting another American Express credit card first. If you dont own a credit card already, this can be a wise move. Your approval odds increase if you can responsibly manage a credit card.
The Amex Platinum is one of the most prestigious travel credit cards you can own.
Trying for an American Express credit card lets you establish a relationship with Amex. Plus, it can make it easier to add the Amex Platinum Card to your wallet in the near future. Several of the best no annual fee travel credit cards are offered by American Express.
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Alternatives To The Amex Platinum
Whether you’re a current Amex Platinum cardholder, or are considering applying for it, it is advantageous to consider all options available. It could be another American Express credit card, a business credit card if you are a business owner or a comparable travel credit card that may be a better option for you.
If you want similar travel perks to the Amex Platinum and you run a business, consider The Business Platinum Card® from American Express. It comes with airport lounge access, hotel elite status and travel credits like the personal Platinum card, with the same annual fee of $695 .
The Chase Sapphire Reserve® is another premium travel card loaded with benefits, including a $300 travel credit, Priority Pass airport lounge membership, plus it earns 3X points on all travel and dining purchases. However, it does have a $550 annual fee.
For those who don’t want to fork over north of $500 for an annual fee, consider the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card and American Express® Gold Card. The Sapphire Preferred currently has a 60,000-point welcome bonus which you’ll earn after spending $4,000 in the first three months of card membership. Those points are worth up to $750 for travel when booking through Chase and the card carries an annual fee of only $95