I currently have an Amex Platinum (Business) in my wallet and I’m looking at my options as I approach the renewal of the steep annual fee. Please note that this analysis is for Charge cards.
There’s information about sign-up bonuses for these cards in this other topic. But this thread is interested in more of the day-to-day of the cards.
Business
Green -
Business Gold Rewards:
AF - $0 first year; then $175
Points - 5 categories to choose from:
- Airfare purchased direct from airlines
- Advertising
- Gas Stations
- Shipping
- Computer stuff
Get 3x on one of those selected categories, 2x on the other 4, 1x on everything else
AU Cost - $50 (waived first year) for first additional card, $0 for additional cards
Platinum
AF - $450
Points - 1x everywhere, 1.5x on purchases in excess of $5,000 (for $2m worth of spend)
AU Cost - $300 each (ouch!)
Perks: $200 Airline credit, Boingo Access, Global Entry/TSA Pre credit, $200 Uber Credit, Access to Centurion Lounges for you and two guests
Personal
Green:
AF - $0 First Year; $95 thereafter
Points - 1x MR on everything. 2x on travel purchased through AmexTravel.com
AU Cost - $30 gets up to 5 AUs, $30 for each additional AU
Other Perks: None
Gold (Unclear if this product is being phased out)
AF - $0 First Year; $160 thereafter
Points - 1x MR on everything, 2x Restuarants and Flights booked on AmexTravel
AU Cost - Unknown
Premier Rewards Gold:
AF - $0 First Year; $195 thereafter
Points - 1x MR on everything, 2x Restaurants Gas and Groceries, 3X Flights booked on AmexTravel
AU Cost - $0 for up to 5 Gold AUs, $35 for each subsequent Gold AU
Platinum:
- AF - $495 per year. Occasional offers to waive first year.
- Points - 1 MR per dollar everywhere; 5 MR per dollar when booking on Amex Travel
- AU Cost - $175 gets up to 3 additional platinum AUs, each subsequent Platinum AU is $175
- Add up to 99 Gold AUs for free. Note that Gold card holders will earn MR points as if their card was Platinum
- Other Perks: $200 Airline credit, Boingo Access, Global Entry/TSA Pre credit, $200 Uber Credit, Access to Centurion Lounges for you and two guests (Platinum AUs don’t get Airline Credit or Uber Credit)
Does anyone have the Centurion
A little OP analysis:
- I don’t see any reason to waste time with a green card. Get a blue cash that earns 1x MR (or better) and it probably has no AF
- The Personal Platinum is the way to go to leverage platinum benefits. 1 Platinum Card + 3 AUs for $600 would get 12 people access to a Centurion lounge!
- The Gold cards are a bit of a mystery as well. Their earning isn’t great, and they have a hefty annual fee. I’d rather go with a 2%+ everywhere cashback card.