{"id":30277,"date":"2023-08-06T18:00:12","date_gmt":"2023-08-06T18:00:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/2023\/08\/06\/platinum-showdown-amex-platinum-vs-amex-business-platinum-the-points-guy\/"},"modified":"2023-08-06T18:00:12","modified_gmt":"2023-08-06T18:00:12","slug":"platinum-showdown-amex-platinum-vs-amex-business-platinum-the-points-guy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/2023\/08\/06\/platinum-showdown-amex-platinum-vs-amex-business-platinum-the-points-guy\/","title":{"rendered":"Platinum showdown: Amex Platinum vs. Amex Business Platinum – The Points Guy"},"content":{"rendered":"


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Over the past several years, we have seen premium cards evolve to attract and retain customers.<\/p>\n

Two of the top cards for premium travel and lifestyle benefits are The Platinum Card\u00ae from American Express<\/a><\/span> and The Business Platinum Card\u00ae from American Express<\/a><\/span>. Both cards HAVE received updates in the past two years, adding additional perks and benefits but also increasing their respective annual fees. There’s now an annual fee of $695 for both the Platinum Card (see rates and fees<\/a>) and the Business Platinum Card (see rates and fees<\/a>).<\/p>\n

Although there are some overlapping benefits offered by the Amex Platinum and the Amex Business Platinum \u2014 and both earn the same Membership Rewards points<\/a> with access to the same transfer partners<\/a> \u2014 there are important differences to consider when deciding which one is right for you. The July 2021 refresh on the personal card<\/a> and the October 2020 refresh on the business card<\/a> deepened the divide between these two cards.<\/p>\n

Let’s take a closer look.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

An overview<\/h2>\n

Before we dive into more details, here’s a comparison of the two cards’ welcome offers, earning rates, major perks and available credits for cardholders.<\/p>\n

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\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Benefit\/perk<\/strong><\/th>\nAmex Platinum Card<\/strong><\/th>\nAmex Business Platinum Card<\/strong><\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n
Welcome offer<\/strong><\/td>\nEarn 80,000 Membership Rewards Points after you spend $6,000 on purchases within the first six months of card membership.<\/td>\nEarn 120,000 bonus Membership Rewards points after you spend $15,000 on purchases in your first three months of card membership.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Earning rates<\/strong><\/td>\n5 points per dollar on flights booked directly with airlines or via Amex Travel (on up to $500,000 of these purchases per calendar year, then 1 point per dollar); 5 points per dollar on prepaid hotels booked with Amex Travel; 1 point per dollar on other purchases. Terms apply.<\/td>\n5 points per dollar on flights and prepaid hotels booked with Amex Travel; 1.5 points per dollar on purchases of $5,000 or more or purchases\u00a0in select business categories in the U.S.: construction material and hardware suppliers, electronics goods retailers, software and cloud system providers and shipping providers. After $2 million of purchases in these categories in a calendar year, the earning rate will be 1 point per dollar; 1 point per dollar on other purchases. Terms apply.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Prepaid hotel booking credit\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Up to $200 annual credit valid on prepaid bookings at Fine Hotels + Resorts or The Hotel Collection properties made through American Express Travel<\/p>\n<\/td>\n

Yes.<\/td>\nNo.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Lounge access<\/strong><\/p>\n

Access to the American Express Global Lounge Collection<\/a> including Centurion Lounges<\/a>, Delta Sky Clubs<\/a> when flying same-day Delta flights and Priority Pass Select,<\/a> Airspace and Escape lounges (enrollment required)<\/p>\n<\/td>\n

Yes.<\/td>\nYes.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Airline fee credit<\/strong><\/p>\n

Up to $200 annual statement credit which covers baggage fees as well as other incidental charges with your preferred airline (enrollment required)<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/td>\n

Yes.<\/td>\nYes.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Uber credit\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Up to $15 in credit to use on Uber rides or Uber Eats orders, with an additional up to $20 for the month of December<\/p>\n<\/td>\n

Yes.<\/td>\nNo.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Clear Plus membership credit<\/strong><\/p>\n

Up to $189 annual statement credit for a Clear Plus membership (enrollment is required)<\/p>\n<\/td>\n

Yes.<\/td>\nYes.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Digital entertainment credit<\/strong><\/p>\n

Up to $20 monthly statement credits applicable only for Audible, The New York Times, SiriusXM, Peacock, The Wall Street Journal, Disney+, Hulu, ESPN+ or the Disney Bundle (enrollment required)<\/p>\n<\/td>\n

Yes.<\/td>\nNo.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Equinox credit<\/strong><\/p>\n

Up to $300 annual statement credit for select Equinox memberships or a digital subscription to Equinox+ fitness app (enrollment required)<\/p>\n<\/td>\n

Yes.<\/td>\nNo.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Saks Fifth Avenue credit<\/strong><\/p>\n

Up to $50 statement credit on Saks Fifth Avenue purchases between January and June and another credit for up to $50 between July and December (enrollment required)<\/p>\n<\/td>\n

Yes.<\/td>\nNo.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Walmart+ monthly membership credit<\/strong><\/p>\n

Up to $12.95 monthly reimbursement for Walmart+ membership (subject to auto-renewal), providing waived delivery fees and priority delivery times. Plus Up Benefits not eligible.<\/p>\n<\/td>\n

Yes.<\/td>\nNo.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Global Entry \/ TSA PreCheck application fee credit<\/strong><\/p>\n

Reimbursement of $100 to cover your application fee to Global Entry (once every four years) or up to $85 to cover TSA PreCheck (once 4 \u00bd years) (enrollment required)<\/p>\n<\/td>\n

Yes.<\/td>\nYes.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Elite hotel status<\/strong><\/p>\n

Complimentary Gold status with Hilton Honors and Marriott Bonvoy (enrollment required)<\/p>\n<\/td>\n

Yes.<\/td>\n\u00a0Yes.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Premium rental car status<\/strong><\/p>\n

Receive complimentary Avis Preferred Plus, Hertz Gold Plus Rewards President’s Circle and National Emerald Club Executive status (enrollment required)<\/p>\n<\/td>\n

Yes.<\/td>\nYes.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Access to exclusive events<\/strong><\/p>\n

Receive access to invitation-only events, exclusive dinner events with Global Dining Access by Resy or premium seats at select events<\/p>\n<\/td>\n

Yes.<\/td>\nYes.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
35% airline bonus<\/strong><\/p>\n

Receive 35% of your points back when you Pay With Points for a flight booking with Amex Travel. The flight must be in first class or business class or any class with your preferred airline (which you must choose in advance). You can receive up to 1 million points back in a calendar year.<\/p>\n<\/td>\n

No.<\/td>\nYes.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Dell credit\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Up to $200 on U.S. Dell purchases<\/a> between January and June and another credit for up to $200 off between July and December (enrollment required)<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/td>\n

No.<\/td>\nYes.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Adobe credit<\/strong><\/p>\n

Up to $150 in statement credits per year for prepaid plans with Creative Cloud or Acrobat Pro DC with e-sign for teams (enrollment required)<\/p>\n<\/td>\n

No.<\/td>\nYes.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Indeed credit<\/strong><\/p>\n

Up to $360 in statement credits per calendar year for purchases with Indeed, given as up to $90 per quarter<\/p>\n<\/td>\n

No.<\/td>\nYes.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Monthly wireless credits<\/strong><\/p>\n

Up to $120 in statement credits per calendar year, given as up to $10 per month for phone plans purchased from U.S. wireless providers (enrollment required)<\/p>\n<\/td>\n

No.<\/td>\nYes.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Annual fee<\/strong><\/td>\n$695 (see rates and fees<\/a>).<\/td>\n$695 (see rates and fees<\/a>).<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

<\/p>\n

Welcome offer<\/h2>\n

Each card comes with a generous welcome offer, but the minimum spend required to earn the bonus is where they really differ. You can earn the full 80,000 Membership Rewards points<\/a> after spending just $6,000 on the Amex Platinum \u2014 with six months in which to complete the spending, so an average of $1,000 per month on average. However, the Business Platinum requires a much steeper minimum spend of $15,000 within the first three months to earn its 120,000-point bonus. This requires spending an average of $5,000 per month.<\/p>\n

Based on TPG’s valuation of Membership Rewards points<\/a> at two cents each, the Platinum bonus is worth $1,600. In contrast, the Business Platinum bonus is worth $2,400, making them two of the most valuable offers on the market.<\/p>\n

However, some TPG readers have been targeted for even better offers<\/a>: up to 125,000 points on the personal Amex Platinum or 150,000 points on the Amex Business Platinum. Check your eligibility by using the CardMatch tool<\/a> (note that these offers are subject to change at any time).<\/p>\n

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Reward your inbox with the TPG Daily newsletter<\/p>\n

Join over 700,000 readers for breaking news, in-depth guides and exclusive deals from TPG’s experts.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

If we decide the winner of this category based on pure value, the winner is the Business Platinum. However, consider the value as a return on spending. For the Amex Platinum, it’s a 26.67% return; with the Business Platinum, you’ll receive a 16% return on the spending required to earn the bonus in the welcome offer.<\/p>\n

Winner:<\/strong> Amex Platinum (personal)<\/p>\n

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