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$200 hotel credit offered with The Platinum Card® from American Express applies to prepaid Fine Hotels + Resorts® or The Hotel Collection bookings made via Amex Travel. The Hotel Collection requires a minimum two-night stay.
The Platinum Card® from American Express has always been a favorite, and not just because the card looks super sick. Thanks to its amazing benefits and perks, the card has long been known for its value. Despite the hefty annual fee, the Amex Platinum is one that cardholders continue to keep because these perks more than outweigh the cost of membership.
Beginning July 1, 2021, the Amex Platinum is being revamped to add a slew of new credits, including some really fantastic offers. But it's not all good news. American Express is increasing the annual fee up to an incredible $695! (Rates & Fees)
In this post, we’ll dig through the changes and help you decide if the updated Amex Platinum makes sense for you.
Summary of Amex Platinum Changes
Additions:
- $200 annual hotel credit
- $300 annual Equinox Credit (Starting in 2023, statement credits for the $300 Equinox Credit benefit will be provided on an annual basis of up to $300 per year and will no longer be provided on a monthly basis of up to $25 back per month.)
- $189 annual CLEAR statement credit
- $240 annual digital entertainment credit ($20 per month)
Enrollment is required for select Amex benefits. Cashback is earned in the form of a statement credit unless otherwise noted.
Downside:
- Annual fee increase from $550 to $695
Amex Platinum Annual Fee Increase
Let's knock out the bad news first. The annual fee on the Amex Platinum is going up from $550 to $695. This $145 increase kicks in on July 1, 2021, for new accounts. The fee for existing Amex Platinum cardholders will change on January 1, 2022.
This is a massive increase and the highest annual fee of any similar card on the market. But, let's see what Amex is offering and if it's enough to make up for the increase.
- Earn 80,000 Membership Rewards® Points after you spend $6,000 on purchases on the Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership.
- Earn 5X Membership Rewards® Points for flights booked directly with airlines or with American Express Travel up to $500,000 on these purchases per calendar year and earn 5X Membership Rewards® Points on prepaid hotels booked with American Express Travel.
- $200 Hotel Credit: Get up to $200 back in statement credits each year on prepaid Fine Hotels + Resorts® or The Hotel Collection bookings with American Express Travel when you pay with your Platinum Card®.
- $240 Digital Entertainment Credit: Get up to $20 in statement credits each month when you pay for eligible purchases with the Platinum Card® at your choice of one or more of the following providers: Disney+, ESPN+, Hulu, The New York Times, Peacock, SiriusXM, and The Wall Street Journal. Enrollment required.
- $155 Walmart+ Credit: Walmart+ members enjoy shopping perks - both online and in-store - at Walmart. Use your Platinum Card® to pay for a monthly Walmart+ membership (subject to auto-renewal) and receive a statement credit that covers the full cost each month. $12.95 plus applicable taxes. Plus Up Benefits not eligible.
- $200 Airline Fee Credit: Select one qualifying airline and then receive up to $200 in statement credits per calendar year when incidental fees are charged by the airline to your Card.
- $200 Uber Cash: Enjoy Uber VIP status and up to $200 in Uber savings on rides or eats orders in the US annually. Uber Cash and Uber VIP status is available to Basic Card Member only. Benefit renews annually.
- $300 Equinox Credit: Get up to $300 back per calendar year on an Equinox+ subscription, or any Equinox club memberships when you pay with your Platinum Card®. Enrollment required. Learn more.
- $189 CLEAR® Plus Credit: Breeze through security with CLEAR® Plus at 45+ airports nationwide and get up to $189 back per year on your membership (subject to auto-renewal) when you use your Platinum Card®.
- $100 Global Entry Credit: Receive either a $100 statement credit every 4 years for a Global Entry application fee or a statement credit up to $85 every 4.5 years for a TSA PreCheck® (through a TSA official enrollment provider) application fee, when charged to your Platinum Card®. Card Members approved for Global Entry will also receive access to TSA PreCheck at no additional cost.
- Shop Saks with Platinum: Get up to $50 in statement credits semi-annually for purchases at Saks Fifth Avenue on your Platinum Card®. Enrollment required.
- $300 SoulCycle At-Home Bike Credit: Get a $300 statement credit for the purchase of a SoulCycle at-home bike with your Platinum Card®. Must charge full price of bike in one transaction, and an Equinox+ subscription is required.
- Add your Platinum Card® to your Resy profile on the Resy app or website and unlock Global Dining Access by Resy to exclusive tables and events.
- $695 annual fee.
- Terms Apply.
- Rates & Fees
- Earn 5X points for flights booked directly with airlines or with American Express Travel (up to $500,000 in purchases per calendar year).
- Earn 5X points on prepaid hotels booked with American Express Travel.
New $200 Amex Travel Hotel Credit
American Express has offered a $200 airline incidental credit for ages. Although the credit is not as easy to use as most of us would like, it's still a fantastic perk. And thankfully, it's not going away on the Amex Platinum.
Instead, Amex is upping its travel perks and adding an all-new annual hotel credit. Each year, cardholders receive a $200 allowance towards hotels when booking with American Express Travel at Fine Hotels + Resorts or The Hotel Collection properties. You can read more about these programs here.
New $300 Equinox Credit
At-home workout streaming services have exploded in popularity as more and more people are ditching the gym for the safety and comfort of their own homes. But there are still plenty of people hitting the gym, as well.
Equinox brings the best of both worlds together. It offers brick-and-mortar locations — known as “Clubs” — with a variety of classes and other health and fitness services. Equinox also offers an online streaming service where you can access workouts, fitness trackers, and more. Now, Amex is giving Amex Platinum cardholders the chance to experience it all.
Amex Platinum cardholders can receive a $25 a month credit when using their Amex Platinum to pay for their Equinox subscription. Eligible memberships include the following:
- Equinox All Access Destination — Access all Equinox clubs except for E Clubs
- E by Equinox — Access to all clubs, including E Clubs
- Equinox+ — Online streaming service, available with your on-demand fitness app
You can learn more about Equinox subscriptions here.
New $189 CLEAR Credit
Airports have always been crowded. However, with the dam bursting from the pent-up travel demand, it's getting crazier than ever. Enter services like CLEAR that allow you to speed through security by using your biometric data to confirm your identity. CLEAR is available at 50+ airports and other venues in the U.S.
Related: I Just Registered For CLEAR, Should You?
The Amex Platinum will include access to CLEAR membership in the form of a statement credit. A CLEAR membership runs $189 annually. So, the fee is completely covered by Amex each year. Up to 3 family members can be added for an additional $50/year for each person.
New $240 Digital Entertainment Credit
In 2020, American Express offered temporary perks — including giving cardholders a $10 to $20 (depending on the card) monthly statement credit towards streaming services. Now, this credit is returning to the Amex Platinum. At least kinda.
Cardholders will be able to use their Amex Platinum to pay for eligible services and receive a $20 statement credit each month. Enrollment is required, so don't forget to do that first. So far, the list of eligible merchants includes:
- Peacock
- Audible
- SiriusXM
- The New York Times
Global Dining Access by Resy
Resy gives you access to popular restaurants around the globe. Just add your Amex Platinum to your Resy profile and receive access to reservations, dining experiences, and more. You can sign up for a free Resy account here.
Amex Platinum Benefits That Aren't Changing
- up to $200 in annual Airline Fee Credits
- Centurion Lounge Access (check out the updated guest policy) and other lounges in Amex's Global Lounge collection.
- up to $200 in annual Uber Cash credits ($15 per month and plus an additional $20 in December)
- up to $100 in annual statement credits for Saks purchases (enrollment required)
- 5X points on up to $500,000 of airfare each calendar year when purchased from amextravel.com or direct with the airline
- 5X points on prepaid hotels booked on amextravel.com
Amex Disclosure: To receive the Uber Cash benefit, you must add The Platinum Card® from American Express to your account in the Uber app. Please see full terms for more details.
Increased Amex Platinum Welcome Offer
As part of this relaunch, the Amex Platinum is now offering new cardmembers the chance to earn 80,000 Membership Rewards after spending $6,000 within the first 6 months of account opening.
Amex's public welcome offer of 80,000 Membership Rewards is one we haven't seen in a long time. What can you do with 80,000 Membership Rewards? A lot! Check out this article for the best uses of your Membership Rewards. The spending requirement has increased a bit, but so has the allowed time frame for completing it.
Is the Amex Platinum Worth It?
We know that value is highly subjective and varies from person to person. But, there's a good chance that if you were able to find the Amex Platinum worth it at $550, you'll be able to continue to extract value out of the card despite the increase.
The digital entertainment credits are probably the new perk that can make the most sense to the majority of the population. Most of us are spending money each month on various subscriptions. If this knocks off $20 a month on subscriptions you're already paying for, this alone can make the difference for the increased annual fee.
Other perks and their value will vary significantly from person to person. Personally, I find zero value from the Equinox subscription. The CLEAR credit is also not worth much to me. But, if you can take advantage of these then that's another ding in the annual fee.
If you are still on the fence, remember that Amex offers some other amazing benefits beyond these credits that can make the annual fee nearly negligible. For example, some members report getting 50,000 bonus Membership Rewards when calling Amex. That's a chunk of points!
American Express also sends out promotions for adding authorized users. I recently received an offer to earn 20,000 Membership Rewards when adding an authorized user and spending $2,000.
Final Thoughts
Seeing that Amex has increased the annual fee on the Amex Platinum to nearly $700 is a hard pill to swallow. But Amex has also added a lot of value to a card that already had tons of great benefits.
For rates and fees of the cards mentioned in this post, please visit the following links: The Platinum Card® from American Express (Rates & Fees)
The comments on this page are not provided, reviewed, or otherwise approved by the bank advertiser. It is not the bank advertiser's responsibility to ensure all posts and/or questions are answered.
I think these add-ons are good. Maybe if they just increase the Equinox credits per month (and lessen the months, so it is still a 300-dollar credit), more people would take advantage.
Agree. After looking over the – rather steep – pricing of the Equinox subscriptions, I’d much rather have the credit fully cover a subscription for a shorter period of time. If you want to truly incentivize me to explore Equinox, remove all the barriers and fully cover the subscription for an initial period.
Looks like you got your wish! As of 2023, the Equinox credit is now truly a yearly credit, not an up-to-$25/month credit.
I actually like that the airline fee credit is tied to one airline of my choice (American) which allows me to plan for using that credit for either seat upgrades, or Admirals Club access in airport terminals with no other lounges, such as the AA terminal in Chicago.
Been on the fence about Clear, almost signed up my last trip before the COVID-19 pandemic. So now that Amex Platinum is covering Clear, will sign up through Delta or United next time I fly.
So for me that makes the Amex Platinum annual fee increase effectively only about $30. Less if I use the hotel credit.
Would be nice if they add YouTube Premium to the eligible list of entertainment credits so I won’t have to deal with in-video ads and the vagaries of ad blocking software.
wow, I tell you that here in Argentina the renewals are around 400 dollars and depending on consumption, payment history, years of subscription they give us from 40k to 75k, the 40k are not base, there are renewals without any type of bonus miles. Thks, best rgds
Yes, it is still worth it. Just wish they would add a couple more categories where the spend nets you 2 – 5 points per dollar. As to the new Clear credit, my Clear just (last week) renewed on a different card. Has anyone, tried to call Clear and see, if, they can cancel the renewal on the previous card and then charge on the Platinum?
Guess I’ll be cancelling as soon as my next AF hits as these are pretty much useless to me.
The promo is valid for All amex cards, or only for clasic (non credit card)
Also is valid for clasic,, gold & platinum?
Txs
These new benefits are only on The Platinum Card From American Express.
I already paid the $550 AF. Will I have to pay another $145 this year?
No, you won’t have to pay any additional annual fee. Your renewal in 2022 would be at $695 per year.
I’m probably opposite of most people posting comments. I subscribe to Sirius XM and pay $324 a year…So saving $240 a year by paying an additional $145 a year nets me a $95 / year savings. I do use Clear and pay $119 a year. I just added my wife for $50 so that now means I will be getting Clear for free. But I join the rest of you and agree the Equinox perk is useless to most people including me. And the hotel perk is a joke because you basically have to spend $800 a night at these overpriced hotels just to get a $200 credit. But overall I will now be saving $95 a year on Sirius XM and getting the Clear membership for free, so I am coming out ahead over $260 a year AFTER the $145 a year increase in membership fee. A win for me but understand the frustration of many who won’t get any added value.
That is a really expensive annual fee for most people.
Question:
Are the increased benefits now in effect for all current cardholders, or do they only commence after an annual account renewal at the new (grossly inflated) AF level has been paid?
Effective July 1, 2021 for existing cardholders.
After a year of the worldwide COVID lockdown, there is no rational behind the increase.
I unfortunately will be cancelling after my second AF hits, I just don’t have much use for any of the credits.
Does anyone know if the fee increase will occur for the Delta SkyMiles Platinum personal card which is what I have? If so, they haven’t sent me an account holder notification yet.
Is the Amex Platinum Worth It? Sadly, NO!
I have much better ways to spend $695 and this isn’t one of them.
As much as I love Amex , this seems like a calculated effort to raise the annual fee while adding credits that they know many members will not make use of. Apart from the $200 hotel credit (which has to be used via Amex Travel on FHR properties), the other credits seem of dubious value at best!
Hard to justify spending nearly $700/year when there are better value options around the CC landscape.
Ugh! Lots of “breakage” credits that will go unused.
I will most likely keep the card as I think I will be able to get more than the $145 increase in fee out of the new credits.
I assume this is the Personal Amex Plat. Is there new details for the business version yet?
See ya Amex! Absolute garbage
Ridiculous adding an Equinox credit. There isn’t one near me and I don’t have interest in going anyway.
Man, this is one I really need to consider. If I’m looking at this correct, there’s the $200 airline credit and hotel credit now, for $400 total. Correct? That makes the effective AF $295 off the top (before other considerations)?
That’s correct. But, keep in mind the limitations on both credits. The Airline Fee Credit is only valid for incidental fees on your chosen airline. And the hotel credit is only valid on “prepaid Fine Hotels + Resorts® or The Hotel Collection bookings with American Express Travel when you pay with your Platinum Card”. Still, both are very valuable credits!
Havent yet to see them yet. Hopefully I get to use them wo forgetting
Clear really only costs $119 or less for anyone with a United or Delta mileage account. Then add $50 for family plan and you’re still covered by the $179/year Amex Plat credit. Fortunately Clear is available at the airports I most frequent and combined with TSA Precheck, you’re really flying through the line.
Follow up and corrections. The Clear Family Plan is now $60/year for up to 3 adults 18+ years of age in addition to your Clear membership fee. This is what I was charged when I enrolled on July 2, 2021. Previous pricing was $50/year. The annual fee is $179/year for one adult or $119 with a Delta or United frequent flyer account. But this fee drops to $109/year for elites ($0 for highest level elites), US United credit card holders, or Delta Amex Skymiles card holders, even the no annual fee versions. Under 18 years of age can be accompanied in the Clear lanes by a paid member for no charge.
I was on the fence about renewing my Platinum card for another year, given the rumors (which have now been largely substantiated, thanks to the above article), and this pushes the needle toward that decision. The additional credits are for things I’m not using and wouldn’t use anyway, with the CLEAR program being a probable exception. I signed up for the Platinum for the 100k + 10x bonus, and came out well into the black with the trips I took this year, but the card is even harder to justify since I can simply upgrade my Sapphire Preferred to the Reserve, and enjoy the more practical benefits over in Chase’s corner of the room. Then again, the increased fee won’t hit me until late next year, so I can squeeze more juice out of this orange.
The Platinum is a nice card, but it’s obvious that Amex is deliberately culling the herd to return to the card’s true target demographic of people with $400k+ net worth. They want clientele who are just a notch below the Centurion demographic. Nothing wrong with that. I’m just a mechanical engineer, not a high-roller.
Bad news. The Equinox credit is not gonna be useful for many people. The hotel credit has also to be booked directly with Amex, making it less flexible.
Are the additional perks available to existing card members? If so, as of when?
They are! The new perks are live for us as of July 1, 2021.
Garbage…