The Business Platinum Card® from American Express Review

Over the previous nineteen years as a enterprise proprietor, I’ve used numerous enterprise playing cards. Some have been superb and elevated each my journey and my enterprise. Others have been…effectively, lackluster.

One of the very best? The Business Platinum Card® from American Express. It comes with a variety of world-class perks and advantages, high quality buyer care, and a strong rewards construction (particularly on giant purchases).

While the annual charge is fairly excessive ($695, pay over time out there. See Rates and Fees), for me, the journey advantages, together with all of the assertion credit, make the cardboard price carrying. I feel it’s a terrific selection for enterprise house owners who journey often.

In this breakdown, I’ll element the cardboard, what you get, and why I prefer it.

What is the Business Platinum Card® from American Express?

The Business Platinum Card® from American Express is a journey rewards card geared in direction of enterprise house owners. (Remember: even aspect hustles and freelancing rely as companies so you will get this card even with out being an LLC.) First, let’s go over a number of the finest stuff you get if you enroll, which make it a no brainer to get for the primary 12 months:

• Limited Time Offer: Earn 150,000 Membership Rewards® factors after you spend $20,000 on eligible purchases in your Business Platinum Card® inside the first 3 months of Card Membership. Plus, earn a $500 assertion credit score after you spend $2,500 on qualifying flights booked straight with airways or by American Express Travel along with your Business Platinum Card® inside the first 3 months of Card Membership. You can earn one or each of those presents. Offer ends 6/30/25.
• Earn 5X Membership Rewards® factors for flights, pay as you go resorts, and short-term leases and pay as you go flight + lodge packages booked at AmexTravel.com. 1x factors on different eligible purchases.
• 1.5x factors per greenback on every eligible buy at US building materials, {hardware} suppliers, digital items retailers, and software program & cloud system suppliers, and delivery suppliers, in addition to on purchases of $5,000 or extra, on as much as $2 million per Card Account per calendar 12 months. Purchases eligible for a number of extra level bonuses will solely obtain the very best eligible bonus.
• Complimentary entry to the American Express Global Lounge Collection®, that includes greater than 1,400 airport lounges throughout 140 international locations. Access is restricted to eligible Card Members.
• Up to $120 in assertion credit for Global Entry or TSA Pre-check each 4 years.
• Up to $199 yearly CLEAR® Plus credit score (topic to auto-renewal)
• Up to $200 in assertion credit per calendar 12 months for incidental charges charged by your one chosen, qualifying airline.
• Up to $200 in assertion credit per calendar 12 months if you make an eligible buy at Hilton properties. (Distributed in as much as $50 increments per quarter. Hilton for Business program membership is required.)
• $150 credit score with Adobe on eligible annual pay as you go marketing strategy purchases of Adobe Creative Cloud for groups or Adobe Acrobat Pro for groups on the Business Platinum Card by 6/30/25.
• Up to $120 per calendar 12 months in assertion credit for purchases made straight from any U.S. wi-fi phone supplier (as much as $10 again monthly).
• Complimentary Marriott Bonvoy® Gold Elite standing (enrollment required)
• Complimentary Hilton Honors Gold standing (enrollment required)
• No overseas transaction charges

Using Your Membership Rewards Points

You’ll earn Membership Rewards factors with The Business Platinum Card® from American Express. Since Amex has a well-rounded suite of journey companions, Membership Rewards factors are a number of the most beneficial factors on the market.

These are Amex’s present journey companions:

• Aer Lingus AerClub (1:1 ratio)
• Aeromexico Rewards (1:1.6 ratio)
• Air Canada Aeroplan (1:1 ratio)
• Air France-KLM Flying Blue (1:1 ratio)
• ANA Mileage Club (1:1 ratio)
• Avianca LifeMiles (1:1 ratio)
• British Airways Club (1:1 ratio)
• Cathay Pacific Asia Miles (1:1 ratio)
• Choice Privileges (1:1 ratio)
• Delta SkyMiles (1:1 ratio)
• Emirates Skywards (1:1 ratio)
• Etihad Guest (1:1 ratio)
• HawaiianMiles (1:1 ratio)
• Hilton Honors (1:2 ratio)
• Iberia Plus (1:1 ratio)
• JetBlue TrueBlue (250:200 ratio)
• Marriott Bonvoy (1:1 ratio)
• Qantas Frequent Flyer (1:1 ratio)
• Qatar Airways Privilege Club (1:1 ratio)
• Singapore KrisFlyer (1:1 ratio)
• Virgin Atlantic Flying Club (1:1 ratio)

Most transfers are on the spot, although some can take as much as 48 hours.

You may also use your Membership Rewards factors to e book flights and resorts within the Amex Travel portal. I usually wouldn’t do that although because it’s not the very best use of your factors. It’s at all times higher to switch them out to certainly one of their companions. However, you will get 35% factors again if you do e book through their portal so simply examine the factors prices between each earlier than making a choice.

Breaking Down the Business Platinum’s Credits and Benefits

Amex playing cards are well-known for his or her plethora of perks and advantages. They’re a giant motive I really like their playing cards. And, when you can make the most of all that it has to supply, the Business Platinum boasts over $1,700 price of worth. But, with so many classes and a lot nice print, it may be onerous to maintain observe of whether or not a profit is definitely helpful to your spending habits. So, that can assist you resolve if the cardboard is best for you, I wish to break down a number of the main classes of advantages:

Airport Experience Credits (Lounge Access, CLEAR Plus, Global Entry/TSA PreCheck)
One of the very best issues about this card — and what makes it a standout for frequent vacationers — is the unbeatable airport lounge entry. You’ll get into a number of the prime lounges worldwide, together with the wonderful Centurion Lounges and Delta Sky Clubs (if you’re flying Delta, with as much as 10 visits per 12 months).

On prime of that, you’ll get complimentary entry to the large Priority Pass community. If having a quiet house to chill out, seize a drink, or get some work completed is a precedence if you journey, this card has you lined just about anyplace.

I additionally respect that the Business Platinum helps you get by the airport quicker. It presents as much as $199 in assertion credit annually for a CLEAR® Plus membership, which speeds you thru safety traces.

You’ll additionally get a credit score for Global Entry (as much as $100 each 4 years) or TSA PreCheck (as much as $85 each 4.5 years), relying on which one you select. I personally advocate going for Global Entry. It takes just a little extra effort (there’s an interview), but it surely contains TSA PreCheck too. It’ll prevent a ton of time when you journey internationally.

Airline and Hotel Credits
Another travel-related profit is the as much as $200 airline credit score. Unfortunately, it comes with a good variety of restrictions, making this credit score a bit extra annoying to make use of. It can solely be used on one (pre-selected) airline, and you may solely use it for incidentals, not airfare. But when you don’t have an airline bank card that gives free baggage, it may be helpful to have. You may also use the credit score for airline bills like paid seat choice or on-board food and drinks.

The Business Platinum additionally presents a number of Hilton-related advantages. First, you may obtain as much as $200 in assertion credit at Hilton properties when booked straight. Since these credit are distributed in quarterly $50 increments, you’d have to remain in a Hilton property not less than 4 instances a 12 months to get the complete worth of this credit score. But when you’re on the highway so much, that may be simple to do.

Second, the Business Platinum presents complimentary Hilton Honors™ Gold Status (in addition to Marriott Bonvoy® Gold Elite standing), which supply additional perks and advantages when staying at these properties.

Business-Related Statement Credits
The Business Platinum card comes with some nice perks to assist lighten the monetary load of operating a enterprise. Expenses can actually add up when you’re managing a enterprise whereas touring, so I respect that the Business Platinum helps offset these prices.

You can rise up to $400 in assertion credit on U.S. Dell purchases (by June 30, 2025, break up into $200 chunks each six months). There’s additionally as much as $360 again per 12 months on Indeed advertisements (as much as $90 every quarter), which is nice when you’re hiring as your small business grows.

If you utilize Adobe instruments, there’s a $150 credit score out there if you prepay yearly for eligible Adobe Creative Cloud or Acrobat Pro plans for groups. And to maintain you related on the go, you’ll rise up to $120 a 12 months for purchases made straight with U.S. wi-fi suppliers — that’s $10 again every month.

Amex Offers
On prime of all these precious assertion credit, the Business Platinum offers you entry to Amex Offers, a straightforward means to avoid wasting money or rack up additional factors with a variety of shops. These offers rotate recurrently and are customized, so what reveals up for you may be completely totally different from what one other cardholder sees. Most of the time, it’s a easy setup like “spend X, get Y back.” I at all times examine Amex Offers earlier than I buy. (The private card presents this too.)

The Business Platinum’s Travel Insurance
The Business Platinum additionally comes with nice journey insurance coverage. While I nonetheless advocate shopping for a standalone coverage for medical, this card contains sturdy built-in protection like journey delay, journey cancellation, emergency evacuation, and medical transport. It additionally contains cellphone safety for injury or theft, a uncommon however precious perk. For a most of $800 per declare, with a restrict of two accredited claims per 12-month interval, when your cellphone line is listed on a wi-fi invoice and the prior month’s wi-fi invoice was paid by an Eligible Card Account. A $50 deductible will apply to every accredited declare.

So, whilst you might get away with the cardboard’s insurance coverage when you e book the journey on the cardboard, I wouldn’t depend on it fully. But it’s higher than most!

Should you get this card?

The Business Platinum is good for frequent vacationers who can take advantage of perks like smoother airport experiences and lodge elite standing. If you may make the most of a number of of the business-related assertion credit, the assertion credit alone make the excessive annual charge price it. I get a variety of worth from the cardboard by the assertion credit that make carrying the cardboard after the primary 12 months actually price it.

While it’s true you solely get 1x level per greenback spent on something below $5,000 (which isn’t pretty much as good as many different playing cards), the factors again on redemptions and the tons of assertion credit, elite standing, Amex presents, and companions you don’t discover anyplace else make this card important for any enterprise proprietor.

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