The American Express Platinum is one of the best-known premium travel cards, and following its 2025 refresh it now carries a hefty $895 annual fee. Writing for The Points Guy, editor Ethan Steinberg breaks down which travellers can realistically squeeze enough value from the card to make that fee worthwhile — and who's better off skipping it.
The strongest case for the card rests on lounge access. Cardholders get entry to Amex's Centurion Lounges at more than 20 airports, a Priority Pass Select membership, and Delta Sky Club access when flying Delta — capped at 10 visits a year unless you spend $75,000 annually to unlock unlimited entry. If you're regularly passing through airports and would otherwise pay for lounge access out of pocket, this alone chips away at the fee.
The other half of the value equation is statement credits, and there are a lot of them. Think up to $400 a year at Resy restaurants (released $100 per quarter), up to $300 at Lululemon, up to $300 for digital entertainment subscriptions, up to $120 covering an Uber One membership, and up to $200 toward an Oura Ring. On the hotel side, there's up to $600 in annual lodging credits when booking through Amex's Fine Hotels + Resorts or The Hotel Collection — bookings that also come with daily breakfast for two, potential room upgrades, a 4 p.m. late checkout and a $100 property credit. The catch: most credits are dribbled out monthly or quarterly, require enrollment, and only work at specific merchants. If you don't already shop at Lululemon or book leisure stays at luxury hotels, much of this is dead weight.
There's also a strategic trap for points beginners: Chase's unofficial 5/24 rule. If you've opened five or more personal cards across issuers in the past 24 months, Chase will likely reject you for its own popular cards. The Amex Platinum counts toward that total, so travellers still under the threshold may be smarter starting with Chase products first.
The card isn't ideal for everyone. People who book flights through online travel agencies lose out, since the top 5x earning rate on airfare applies only to bookings made directly with airlines or Amex Travel. Big spenders with business expenses may do better with the Business Platinum, which offers Dell credits and a 35% points rebate on eligible business-class flights booked with points — perks the personal card doesn't match.
As of November 2026, new applicants can score a welcome offer worth up to 175,000 Membership Rewards points after spending $12,000 in six months — TPG values that at up to $3,500, nearly four times the annual fee. But as the piece points out, a big first-year bonus doesn't matter much if you can't justify the ongoing fee. Frequent flyers who'll genuinely use the lounges, hotel perks and credits year after year are the ones for whom this card makes sense. Everyone else should probably look at simpler, cheaper options. Story via The Points Guy.
