American Express Business Platinum Card is a prestigious charge card for those of you who are business owners that have a strong business credit history, and are often flying for business. This card offers a myriad of benefits, such as free airport VIP lounge access, plus it rewards you with 25,000 bonus points as a signing promotion. However, this card has an annual fee of $450.
Considering that some business credit cards out there do not have any annual fees, the question to ask is, is this card worth such a high annual fee? Read on to find out if the benefits outweigh the costs, and if the Business Platinum Card is as good as they say.
Things We Like About This Card
Receive 25,000 Membership Rewards points when you spend $5,000 within the first 3 months. This is a limited-time offer that is only for new applicants who apply for this card before November 4, 2013. Only people who haven’t had a Business Gold or Green card in the last 12 months will be eligible to receive these bonus points.
No pre-set spending limit. Since this is a charge card, you won’t be capped by a spending limit, thus giving you more spending flexibility. Remember that you must pay off your balances in full each month.
Free airport lounge access. When traveling by plane, you will have access to the airline’s airport lounge by showing your card and plane ticket. You won’t have to show a plane ticket to gain access to US Airways Clubs.
Priority Pass Select benefit. Once enrolled, you can access participating Priority Pass Select lounges for free, and if you bring an accompanying guest to the lounge, you pay $27 per guest. This pass gives you access to more than 600 airport VIP lounges worldwide, and more than 70 US airport VIP lounges. Great benefit for the frequent flyer since a comparable Priority Pass Prestige membership alone costs US$399.
Enjoy $200 airline fee credit each year. You must select a qualifying airline to be able to enjoy this benefit (you may change your airline of choice in January of each year). This credit will cover incidental fees incurred on the airline of your choice, and each card account may get up to a total of $200 in statement credit a year. Do note that claimable amounts must be charged by the airline company itself onto your Business Platinum card. You may receive your credit 2-4 weeks after the qualifying incidental air travel fee is charged to your account.
No foreign transaction fee. When using this card to pay for purchases in non-US currency, you won’t be charged with a foreign transaction fee, which some credit cards charge a 3-5% for.
Earn points through the Membership Rewards program. You will automatically be enrolled in this program, and you won’t have to pay any enrollment fee. You will earn 1 point for every dollar spent on your Business Platinum card.
Receive 20% additional points when redeeming your points for American Express Travel through the Pay with Points program. This means you will earn 1 additional point for every 5 points you redeem. Note that you need at least 5,000 points for redemption.
Purchase protection. Your purchases will be covered if they get accidentally damaged or stolen within 90 days of your purchase being made.
Concierge services anytime. You will have access to 24/7 concierge service to help you when planning events, shopping or whenever you need help both personally and professionally.
Enjoy extended warranty. You will enjoy extended warranty on your purchases which will double the original warranty period to a maximum of one additional warranty year.
Premium car rentals will allow you to save time and money when renting a car. Age restrictions and the terms of the car rental company may apply.
Our Least Favorite Things About This Card
High annual fee of $450. You must pay this annual fee each year for this card. Is it worth it? We think that if you frequently fly for business, this card’s many benefits will outweigh its cost.
Our Verdict: 4.5/5 Stars
Business Platinum Card from American Express OPEN is a high-end charge card that will benefit business owners who travel often by plane and want to enjoy special travel-related privileges whether they are in the US or overseas.
Although this card has an annual fee of $450 that you must pay every year, if you travel often, this fee will be worth it as you will enjoy free airport lounge access each time you travel, as well as up to $200 in statement credit to cover your selected airline incidental charges. What’s great too is you’ll receive 1 point per dollar spent on this card.
Something I really like about this card is that you will earn 25,000 bonus points after spending $5,000 in purchases within the first 3 months. You will also enjoy additional benefits such as purchase protection, extended warranty and car rental services.
If your business is more than 2 years old, has a strong credit history with a positive cash flow, and you would like a charge card with exclusive privileges especially travel-related ones, the Business Platinum Card from American Express OPEN would be a great choice of card for your business needs.
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