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The more Amex Platinum cards I have, the easier I can justify paying the annual fees.
Amex Platinum; Insider
The Platinum Card® from American Express comes with a The Platinum Card® from American Express annual fee
I carry three of these cards and pay $2,085 in annual fees each year.
The The Platinum Card® from American Express comes with statement credits that become far more practical the more Platinum cards you have.
Read Insider’s guide to the best American Express cards.
The Platinum Card® from American Express offers thousands of dollars in annual statement credits — but not out of the purity of its heart. It’s betting that you won’t maximize its benefits — and that Amex will make more on you from its The Platinum Card® from American Express annual fee than you can take from them. Amex is an Insider partner.
One way American Express throttles the value you receive from this card is by doling out these statement credits in increments. For example:
The card offers up to $200 in Uber Cash credits** each year — but you can’t redeem them all at once. You’ll get $15 in credits deposited into your Uber account each month (and $35 in December). That’s a bit annoying.You can receive up to $100 in Saks Fifth Avenue credits each year**. But you must spend them in $50 increments. You must use one between January 1 and June 30 and the other between July 1 and December 31.
Limitations like these have caused many customers to refer to the card condescendingly as a “coupon book.” But as crazy as it sounds, I’ve found that the value of this card increases the more cards I have.
I’ve got multiple The Platinum Card® from American Express cards. Below are four statement credits I combine to improve the values of each — and turn the “coupon book” into usable benefits.
We’re focused here on the rewards and perks that come with each card. These cards won’t be worth it if you’re paying interest or late fees. When using a credit card, it’s important to pay your balance in full each month, make payments on time, and only spend what you can afford to pay.
2 Amex Platinum cards are better than 1 (and 3 are better than 2)
There are a number of reasons why you might have more than one The Platinum Card® from American Express card:
You and your partner both open the cardYou apply for more than one version of the card. For example, Amex also issues The Platinum Card® from American Express for Charles Schwab and The Platinum Card® from American Express exclusively for Morgan Stanley (you must have an eligible account with each respective company)You decide to upgrade your American Express® Green Card or American Express® Gold Card to an The Platinum Card® from American Express.
Between my wife and me, we’ve got three The Platinum Card® from American Express cards to work with. Here’s how we make those annual fees worthwhile.
You can only earn the welcome bonus for each American Express card once per lifetime. However, each flavor of the Amex Platinum card is considered an entirely different product. For example, if you’ve already received the The Platinum Card® from American Express welcome bonus, you can still earn the bonus from the Amex Platinum for Charles Schwab.
Annual Uber Cash credits
The The Platinum Card® from American Express comes with up to $200 in annual Uber Cash credits. However, Amex delivers them in monthly increments of $15 (except for December, when you’ll receive $35).
I almost never use Uber for transportation. Instead, I use these credits for Uber Eats. A $15 monthly discount is rarely enough to cover a full meal — especially after tipping the driver. However, if you add multiple The Platinum Card® from American Express cards as payment methods in your Uber account, each card’s $15 credits will deposit into one place — your Uber Cash wallet.
Because I’ve got three Platinum cards, I get a $45 chunk each month (and $105 in December) that I can use toward food (or other things). That’s wildly more useful than a $15 discount on what would almost certainly be a much more expensive bill.
Annual Saks Fifth Avenue credits
Each year, the The Platinum Card® from American Express provides two statement credits worth up to $50 each for purchases at Saks Fifth Avenue. You cannot combine them, as one is valid from January 1 to June 30, and the other is valid from July 1 to December 31.
There aren’t a great many things you can purchase at Saks for $50. The store isn’t cheap. But if you’ve got multiple Platinum cards, you can split tender for more value. Because I’ve got three cards, I could buy a $150 item without paying a dime.
Unfortunately, you can’t split tender online — and I don’t live near a brick-and-mortar Saks store. But my wife and I used our $150 credits to buy a handful of small items (floating shelves, wine glasses, etc.) to improve our guest bedroom considerably.
I consider three $50 Saks credits an added value. It’s enough for me to buy a full set of smaller items, or to spiff up a vacuous corner of the house.
Annual hotel credits
The The Platinum Card® from American Express also comes with up to $200 in annual credits toward prepaid hotels that are part of Amex Fine Hotels & Resorts or The Hotel Collection (minimum two-night stay). These are a group of upscale hotels that almost always cost more than $200 per night. There’s a one-night minimum when booking through Fine Hotels & Resorts, and a two-night minimum when booking through The Hotel Collection.
In other words, you’ll probably have to spend several hundred dollars to use this benefit. After all, who only books a single night at a fancy hotel? That’s not much of a vacation.
With my three Platinum cards, I’ve got three $200 credits. And while Amex doesn’t allow cardholders to combine these credits, you can use them to book multiple consecutive nights. I can effectively receive $600 off a three-night stay. That’s infinitely more practical than just $200 off a single night — it’s a steeply discounted long weekend at a five-star hotel!
Annual airline incidental credits
The The Platinum Card® from American Express comes with up to $200 per year in annual airline incidental fee credits**. Just choose the airline you frequent the most, and you’ll be reimbursed for things like:
Airport lounge day passesBaggage feesInflight entertainment fees (usually not Wi-Fi, though)Seat assignment feesChange feesPet flight feesInflight food and beverage
There are other things for which you can use your credit that make multiple credits worthwhile.
For example, several data points show that it’s possible to split tender when purchasing an airline lounge membership by calling to buy (instead of buying online). Membership with American Airlines Admirals Club, United Club, Delta Sky Club, and Alaska Airlines Lounge costs between $450 and $650 annually.
In fact, Delta allows you to pay for your membership monthly, simply charging the current card on file each month. With three Platinum cards, I could rotate my primary card on file after each statement credit was fully used. That equals an eternally “free” Delta Sky Club membership (until Delta raises its prices).
Eligible airlines for the Amex Platinum incidental credit:
Alaska AirlinesAmerican AirlinesDelta Air LinesHawaiian AirlinesJetBlue AirwaysSpirit AirlinesSouthwest AirlinesUnited Airlines
Bottom line
I pay three The Platinum Card® from American Express annual fees each year to hold three The Platinum Card® from American Express cards.
The The Platinum Card® from American Express offers high-dollar annual statement credits in popular programs — but they often restrict you to using them gradually, which diminishes their value for many cardholders.
I’ve found that I can turn these credits into useable perks by holding more than one Platinum card. That makes me sound like a chump for paying Amex over $2,000 per year in fees, but I can easily recoup that entire dollar amount with just four perks:
Uber Cash credits – Up to $600 per yearAirline incidentals – Up to $600 per yearPrepaid hotel credits – Up to $600 per yearSaks Fifth Avenue credits – Up to $300 per year
These benefits are much easier to use across three cards instead of just one. I can know I’m saving on purchases I’d likely make anyway. And I can enjoy the remaining benefits without feeling guilty about the annual fees.