Amex Business Gold vs. Platinum: what is the biggest difference?

When it comes to comparing the American Express® Business Gold Card vs. The Business Platinum Card® from American Express, the biggest difference is between their annual fees: Amex Business Platinum costs $695 a year, and Amex Business Gold has a $295 fee. That’s $400 every year after. However, the American Express Business Platinum card offers some extra perks, including up to $200 annual airline fee credit at one qualifying airline, and 5 points / $1 spent on flights and hotels at the Amex travel site. Plus, you get 35% of your points back when you redeem them on Amex travel.

Here’s what to consider with Amex Business Platinum vs. Gold:

• Annual fee: $695 for the American Express Business Platinum card, $295 for the American Express Business Gold card.
• Initial bonus: Platinum offers 120,000 points for spending $15,000 in your first 3 months. With Gold, you earn 70,000 points for spending $10,000 in the first 3 months.
• Bonus category rewards earning: Platinum gives you 5 points per $1 spent on flights and prepaid hotels on amextravel.com, 1.5 points per $1 on U.S. construction material and hardware, U.S. electronic goods, U.S. shipping as well as on purchases of $5,000 or more (up to $2 million of these purchases per year combined), and 1 point per $1 on all other purchases. With Gold, you earn 4 points per $1 in the two select categories with the most spending (up to $150,000 per year combined) and 1 point on all other purchases.
• Redemption bonus: Platinum refunds 35% of your points when you redeem them for flights on the Amex Travel site. You get this benefit with one selected airline each year or any first-class or business-class flight, up to 1 million points per year, and you can only pick your airline once a year, in January. Gold does not offer this perk.
• Up to $200 airline fee credit: Platinum offers up to $200 in statement credits for incidental airline fees, like baggage charges. You can only get credits with one airline, and you can only change that airline every January. By the way, you have to pick the same airline for this and the 35% redemption bonus. Gold does not offer this type of credit.
• Global Entry or TSA Pre-Check credit: If you apply for one of the two airport security pre-screening programs, Amex Business Platinum will reimburse the application fee every four years. You’ll get an $85 statement credit for TSA PreCheck or a $100 credit for Global Entry (you can’t get both). Gold doesn’t have this perk.
• Airport lounge access: Platinum gives you access to over 1,400 lounges in 140 countries through membership in the Amex Global Lounge Collection. Gold does not.

In Amex Business Platinum vs. Gold, the $400 per year difference between their fees makes for a compelling argument in favor of the Gold Card. But if you’re a frequent traveler who will take full advantage of the Platinum card’s airline statement credit and lounge access, it might be the card for you.

There are a few differences. The sign-up bonus is 50,000 points for the Gold card, which you get after spending $5,000 in the first 3 months. The Platinum gives you 50,000 points after spending $10,000 in the first 3 months, and another 25,000 points if you spend an additional $10,000, also in the first 3 months. The benefits are different for each card, and so are the annual fees. The Gold has an annual fee of $175 which is waived in the first year, whereas the Platinum has a $450 annual fee.