The Platinum Card from American express is a charge card (not credit card) targeted to travelers. It’s often called the original premium card and continues to set the standard for luxury perks and rewards. The annual fee is quite high ($695, additional users $175/year), but with the right strategy and use of card perks, the benefits outweigh the annual fee. Earn 5x points on flights and prepaid hotels and 1x points for everything else.

Earn 80,000 points after making $6,000 in purchases in the first six months.

The Perks

• $200 Hotel Credit
• $200 Airline Fee Credit
• $240 Digital Entertainment Credit
• $200 Uber Cash
• $300 Equinox Credits
• $100 Saks Credits
• $189 Clear Credit
• Fee Credit for Global Entry or TSA PreCheck
• $155 Walmart+ Credit
• The Global Lounge Collection
• Hilton Honors Gold Status
• Marriott Bonvoy Gold Elite Status
• ShopRunner Membership

$200 Hotel Credit

Get a statement credit of $200 for prepaid hotels booked via Amex Travel.

$200 Airline Fee Credit

Up to in statement credits $200 per calendar year when incidental travel fees (ex. Bag fees or in flight food and beverages) are charged to your card. Must select the desired airline when you opt in. This can be changed each year.

$240 Digital Entertainment Credit

$20 credit per month on digital entertainment purchases of one or more of: Audible, Disney+, The Disney Bundle, ESPN+, Hulu, Peacock, SiriusXM and The New York Times. *Must enroll in the offer and pay with your Platinum Card to receive this credit.

$200 Uber Cash

$15 in Uber Cash each month ($20 bonus in December). These do not rollover and expire each month but can be used on rides OR Uber Eats.

$300 Equinox Credits

Up to $300 in statement credits on digital or club membership at Equinox. In addition, you can also recieve a $300 statement credit on a SoulCycle at home bike. Enrollment required.

$100 Saks Credits

$50 in statement credits semi-annually for purchases made at Saks Fifth Avenue. Enrollment Required.

$189 Clear Credit

$189 statement credit for Clear enrollment annually.

$155 Walmart+ Credit

Statement credit each month for Walmart+ membership.

The Global Lounge Collection

Complimentary entry to over 1,400 airport lounges including The Centurion Network of Lounges, Escape Lounges, Delta Sky Club (when flying on a Delta Ticket), Priority Pass Lounges and others. Participating lounges can be found at the Global Lounge Collection Website.

ShopRunner Membership

Free 2 day shipping on eligible items. Enrollment required.

How to Earn Points

• 5x points on flight purchases
• 5x points on prepaid hotels booked via AmexTravel.com
• 1x points on all other purchases

Transfer Partners

Amex Points are transferable to travel partners. With the right strategy, you can maximize rewards.

Airlines

• Aer Lingus
• AeroMexico
• AirCanada
• Air France/KLM
• ANA
• Asia Miles
• Avianca
• British Airways
• Cathay Pacific
• Delta Air Lines
• Emirates
• Etihad Airways
• Hawaiian Airlines
• Iberia Plus
• JetBlue Airways
• Quantas
• Singapore Airlines

Hotels

• Choice Hotels
• Hilton Hotels & Resorts
• Marriott Hotels & Resorts

Who Is This Card Good For?

• Frequent travelers who appreciate luxury 
• Frequent Delta Flyers (lounge access!)
• Travelers whose home airport has a Centurion Lounge
• Travelers who want hotel elite status without stay requirements.

In summary, if you take advantage of the statement credits and utilize Centurion Lounges and/or Delta Skyclub, the card is worthwhile.

Why I Continue to Carry the Card

My home airport opened a new single terminal this year with a Delta SkyClub. As a Delta loyalist, we’ll get plenty of use of the SkyClub before departure. I recently added my husband as an authorized user with his own Platinum card ($175 annual fee) to ensure he also gets complimentary access to Centurion and SkyClub lounges. Before we had a SkyClub at our home airport, we used the guest fee charge to trigger the airline incidental charge as we could only access during layovers. Now that the guest fee is $50, we come out on top with 4 SkyClub visits. We also make sure to use the Uber, Saks and Hotel credits each year.

Earn 80,000 points after making $6,000 in purchases in the first six months.