The Business Platinum® Card from American Express
Review: The Business Platinum® Card from American Express
Some people won’t be able to get past the Business Platinum Card’s $595 annual fee. But there’s a bevy of bonus rewards, yearly account credits and assorted benefits to offset the cost. Spending $10,000 to $20,000 in the first three months will get you $400 to $600, for example. Cardholders are also eligible to receive up to $400 in credits for airline fees and Dell purchases each year.
So, the Amex Business Platinum Card will be worth it for some high-spending business travelers who stay on the move. But there are plenty of less expensive, yet still rewarding options that will be more suitable for everyone else. Below, you can find an overview of the key things to consider before applying for the Amex Express Business Platinum Card.
American Express Business Platinum Review Highlights:
- Tied for most expensive business card. The American Express Business Platinum Card is one of three small business credit cards that charge a high annual membership fee, according to WalletHub’s database of 1,000+ credit card offers. In fact, there are only a handful of cards market-wide that are costlier than Amex Business Platinum. And such a steep fixed cost means you must earn a ton of rewards for it to be the most lucrative option available to you.
- Good small biz bonus points. The American Express Business Platinum Card offers up to 75,000 bonus points to new cardholders who meet certain initial spending requirements. That’s a big haul, worth about $600, according to WalletHub research. But you have to spend a ton within your first 3 months of membership to get it: $10,000 for the first 50,000 points and another $10,000 for the remaining 25,000 points.
- Enhanced travel rewards. The Business Platinum Card now offers 5 points per $1 spent on airfare and prepaid hotel reservations booked on AmexTravel.com. That equates to about 4.25% cash back, which is very good, considering the average cash rewards card offers merely 1.07% back. Plus, Business Platinum points redeemed for a flight with your chosen airline are worth 35% more.
- Underwhelming base rewards rate. You will earn just 1 point per $1 on most purchases, which is about average. Credit card points are usually worth about a penny apiece, and Amex Membership Rewards points get you just 85% of that amount. So this part of the equation is worse than you might assume. Things improve for big purchases, but not enough. You will earn 1.5 points per $1 for each eligible transaction of $5,000 or more. That translates to just 1.3% “cash” back.
- Lounge access included. Perhaps the most notable thing about the Amex Platinum Business Card, aside from its expensive initial bonus and even costlier annual fee, is the access it gives you to the Global Lounge Collection. This includes more than 1,000 airport lounges in over 120 countries, and its value could help offset some of the card’s high cost. But most people don’t spend that much time in airport lounges.
- More premium travel perks. Cardholders are eligible for up to $200 per year in statement credits for incidental fees charged by their chosen airline. Amex Business Platinum also covers the cost of applying for TSA PreCheck or Global Entry. In addition, cardholders automatically earn Gold status in the Hilton and Marriott loyalty programs.
- Premium business benefits. Amex Business Platinum entitles you to up to $100 in statement credits for U.S. Dell purchases twice a year.
- No financing appeal. Amex Business Platinum is a charge card, which means you must pay your bill in full every month to continue making purchases. That’s unlikely to come as a surprise, and it shouldn’t really matter. Business credit cards are bad for carrying a balance from month to month to begin with because issuers can jack up the interest rates on business-card debt whenever they want. But it’s important to point out nevertheless.
- No foreign fee. If your business involves international travel or purchases made through merchants based abroad, you’ll be pleased to know that the Business Platinum Amex won’t assess a foreign-transaction fee. With that being said, not as many international merchants take American Express as Mastercard or Visa. So make sure your favorite destinations and suppliers will accept this card before you apply.
- Good credit or better required. You need good or excellent personal credit to qualify for the American Express Platinum Business Card, which means you’d be wise to double-check your latest credit score for free on WalletHub before you even think about submitting an application. Besides, if you decide to take a pass on Amex Business Platinum, knowing exactly where you stand is crucial to finding the right credit card for your company’s needs.
The Business Platinum® Card from American Express' Rewards
- Welcome Offer: Earn up to 75,000 Membership Rewards® points.
- Earn 50,000 Membership Rewards® points after you spend $10,000 and an extra 25,000 points after you spend an additional $10,000 all on qualifying purchases made on your Business Platinum Card® within your first 3 months of Card Membership.†
- Get 5X Membership Rewards® points on flights and prepaid hotels on amextravel.com.
- Get 50% more Membership Rewards® points. That's an extra half point per dollar, on each eligible purchase of $5,000 or more. You can get up to 1 million additional points per year.
- 35% Airline Bonus: Use Membership Rewards® Pay with Points for all or part of a flight with your selected qualifying airline, and you can get 35% of the points back, up to 500,000 bonus points per calendar year when flight is booked on amextravel.com.
- Enroll to get up to $200 in statement credits annually by getting up to $100 semi-annually for U.S. purchases with Dell. Terms apply.
- Terms Apply
The Business Platinum® Card from American Express' Key Fees
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ANNUAL FEE
$595
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FOREIGN TRANSACTION
FEENone
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LATE FEE
$39 or 2.99% of the past due amount, whichever is greater
The Business Platinum® Card from American Express' Additional Info
- This American Express Card has no preset spending limit, giving you purchasing power that adjusts with your use of the card.
- No preset spending limit does not mean unlimited spending. Your purchases are approved based on a variety of factors including spending patterns, your payment history, your credit history, and financial resources known to us.
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We work hard to show you up-to-date product terms, however, this information does not originate from us and thus, we do not guarantee its accuracy. When you click "Apply Now" you will be directed to the offering institution's website. In addition, keep in mind that actual rates and other information may vary for a number of reasons including the applicant's' creditworthiness and differences between an individual's situation and the criteria/assumptions used to generate the information displayed. Before submitting an application, always verify all terms and conditions with the offering institution. Please let us know if you notice any differences.
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Irrespective of whether an offering institution is a paid advertiser, the presence of offer information on WalletHub does not constitute a referral or endorsement of the institution by us or vice versa. Furthermore, offers have not been reviewed or approved by the offering institution. Information is displayed first and foremost to help consumers make better decisions.
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Last updated on: December 5th, 2019 at 10:40
WalletHub is an independent comparison service.
We work hard to show you up-to-date product terms, however, this information does not originate from us and thus, we do not guarantee its accuracy. When you click "Apply Now" you will be directed to the offering institution's website. In addition, keep in mind that actual rates and other information may vary for a number of reasons including the applicant's' creditworthiness and differences between an individual's situation and the criteria/assumptions used to generate the information displayed. Before submitting an application, always verify all terms and conditions with the offering institution. Please let us know if you notice any differences.
Ad Disclosure: Offers originating from paying advertisers are noted as “Sponsored” at the top of this page. Advertising may impact how and where offers appear on this site (including, for example, the order in which they appear). At WalletHub we try to present a wide array of offers, but our offers do not represent all financial services companies or products.
Irrespective of whether an offering institution is a paid advertiser, the presence of offer information on WalletHub does not constitute a referral or endorsement of the institution by us or vice versa. Furthermore, offers have not been reviewed or approved by the offering institution. Information is displayed first and foremost to help consumers make better decisions.
Editorial Disclaimer: Editorial and user-generated content on this page is not provided, commissioned, reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by the issuer. In addition, it is not issuer’s responsibility to ensure all posts and/or questions are answered.
Offer last updated: Dec 5th, 2019 at 10:40 ET