Review: The Business Platinum Card® from American Express

Who is The Business Platinum Card® from American Express for? 

If you’re an entrepreneur who wants to travel in luxury and style, the Business Platinum Card® from American Express may be the right fit for you. But prepare yourself for some sticker shock when you see the annual fee!

The Business Platinum Card® from American Express Quick Facts

The Business Platinum Card® from American Express Review

Earning points with The Business Platinum Card® from American Express

The sweet spot for earning points with the Business Platinum Card from American Express is on purchasing flights directly with airlines and on purchases through the American Express Travel portal. Eligible purchases on those categories will get you 5X Membership Rewards points per $1 spent.

You’ll also able to earn 1.5X points on eligible purchases at US construction material & hardware suppliers, electronic goods retailers and software & cloud system providers, and shipping providers, as well as on purchases of $5,000 or more everywhere else, on up to $2 million of these purchases per calendar year. So, if your business spends a decent amount in these categories, this card could be a rewarding option. 

Finally, you’ll also earn 1X point per dollar on all other eligible purchases. 

Redeeming points with The Business Platinum Card® from American Express

The best way to redeem the Membership Rewards points you earn with your American Express Business Platinum is by transferring to American Express travel partners. American Express has 18 airline and 3 hotel partners that you can transfer points to in order to redeem for free travel. Our guide to American Express transfer partners walks you through the process. 

You can also redeem your points through American Express Travel, the card issuer’s travel portal. This card also offers a 35% Airline Bonus (up to 1 million points per year) when you use your Membership Rewards points to pay for a flight through Amextravel.com. According to the card’s terms and conditions, the airline you select for this bonus must be the same airline you select for your $200 airline credit.  

What this means in plain English is that for every 10 points you pay for an eligible flight through American Express Travel, you’d receive 3.5 points back, getting a maximum of 1 million points back annually. In effect, it gives you a discounted rate, allowing you to purchase eligible flights with 6.5 points. If you met the terms of this Airline Bonus, for a roundtrip flight costing 100,000 points on paper, you could pay 65,000 points.   

Additional card benefits

Where the Amex Business Platinum card really shines are in the host of credits and perks that this card offers. They include:

• $189 CLEAR Plus credit 
• $200 airline fee credit
• Credit for application fee to Global Entry (up to $100 every four years) or TSA PreCheck (up to $85 every 4.5 years)
• Various statement credits with Dell, Indeed, and Adobe through 12/31/24.
• Up to $10 per month wireless bill statement credit
• Access to the American Express Global Lounge Collection® and lounges through Priority Pass Select™ 
• Access to the Fine Hotels + Resorts collection on American Express Travel
• Hotel elite status: Marriot Bonvoy Gold Elite and Hilton Honors Gold statuses

Enrollment is required for many of these benefits. 

Alternatives to The Business Platinum Card® from American Express

The Platinum Card® from American Express

 However, the consumer Amex Platinum also offers a digital entertainment credit (up to $20 per month) and Uber cash credits for $15 per month, plus a bonus of $35 in December for a total of up to $200 annual Uber savings. 

American Express®  Business Gold Card

However, the Business Gold card offers a much wider range of opportunities to earn points. With the Business Gold card, you’ll earn 4X Membership Rewards points in the two categories your business spends the most in each billing cycle (from six eligible categories). Your top two categories can change each month, but you’ll earn 4X points on the first $150,000 in combined purchases each year (then 1X afterward).

So while you give up some of the glitzy travel perks that the Business Platinum card offers, like credit for a Global Entry application (once every four years) and the $200 airline fee credit, the Business Gold card could potentially earn you more points each month to redeem for future travel.  

Chase Ink Business Preferred Card

Another benefit of the Ink Business Preferred Card is that it earns 3X Chase Ultimate Rewards points in a wide range of categories. You’ll earn 3 points per $1 on the first $150,000 spent in combined purchases on travel, shipping purchases, internet, cable, and phone services, and advertising purchases with social media sites and search engines each account anniversary year. Earn 1 point per $1 on all other purchases with no limit to the amount you can earn.

That’s a lot more bonus categories than the American Express Business Platinum, but also a lot simpler to keep track of than the Business Gold card.