Why AmEx Platinum Travel Card Worth $ 700 New Luscious Annual Fee
American Express recently raised the annual fee for its Platinum Travel Rewards card from $ 550 to a whopping $ 695. This is certainly an impressive figure, but it can be worth it – provided you take advantage of the generous statement credits that can easily zero out commissions. See what credits and rewards the cards offer and how to determine if they are right for you.
Amex Platinum is best for those who travel a lot
The rewards and perks this card provides are only meaningful if you’ve already spent a lot of money on travel and appreciate the perks that will make you feel like a big shot when traveling. If you are traveling on one domestic holiday flight per year, the card is not for you. As far as reward multipliers go, this is pretty solid:
- Earn 5 bonus points (0.5 cents to 1 cent each) for every dollar you spend on flights and hotels.
- Earn 1 point per dollar on all other purchases.
- Earn 10 Points for every dollar spent on eligible small businesses up to $ 25,000 in the first 6 months.
You can also get a very nice welcome bonus of 100,000 points ( it was 75,000 a few weeks ago) if you use the card to spend $ 6,000 within the first six months after receiving the card – worth $ 1,000. But these are large costs that are not always achievable, so we will not include them in our estimate.
Benefits are worth an annual fee, but only if you use them.
While the annual fee is high even for the premium card, Amex has introduced additional credits along with price increases:
- $ 200 credit for Fine Hotels + Resorts or The Hotel Collection when booking through American Express.
- $ 179 Credit for Clear Membership (Airport Expedited Program).
- $ 240 ($ 20 / month) credit for purchases or subscriptions from Audible, The New York Times, SiriusXM, and Peacock.
- $ 300 credit for Equinox gym membership including fitness app upon request.
This is in addition to existing loans and benefits:
- $ 200 Airline Fee Credit
- $ 200 a year in Uber Cash
- $ 100 Credit for Global Entry or TSA PreCheck Registration
- Saks Fifth Avenue $ 100 Loan
- Access to lounges around the world such as the Amex Centurion Lounge and Delta SkyClubs (on Delta flights on the same day).
- Automatic upgrade in selected hotels
All of these loans are worth over $ 1,500 in dollars, which means that even if you don’t use all of them, you should be able to cover the annual fee quite easily.
Bottom line
The AmEx Platinum card fees may be worth it, but you will want to ask yourself what benefits you really need. Not everyone is looking for a gym membership or a New York Times subscription, and travel won’t cost much if you only spend a few hundred dollars on travel each year.
Also, before you choose this card, make sure you shop. Look for other, cheaper reward cards as the combination of rewards and points per statement may better suit your spending needs. To help you shop, check out CNN ‘s article on Good Alternatives to the Amex Platinum Card.