BGR has partnered with The Points Guy for our coverage of credit card products. BGR and The Points Guy may receive a commission from card issuers.Please note: the offers mentioned below are subject to change at any time and some may no longer be available.One of our favorite rewards credit cards for ordinary consumers is The Platinum Card® from American Express, which combines a big up-front welcome offer of 60,000 points (after using the card to spend $5,000 in your first three months) with a ton of luxe perks. The benefits range from an airline fee credit of up to $200 to American Express Concierge travel service, and much more. Business owners, meanwhile, fear not. The Business Platinum® Card from American Express is a companion version of the charge card tailored to the needs of business people, and it not only has a similarly impressive lineup of benefits.You’ve also got until December 4, 2019, to take advantage of a limited-time, increased welcome bonus of up to 100,000 Membership Rewards points.
Who needs this card: If you rack up frequent travel expenses over the course of your business operations, or even if you simply charge thousands of dollars a month in business expenses to a charge card, it’s hard to argue the Amex Business Platinum doesn’t deserve a spot in your wallet.
Why you should sign up for one right now: The current welcome points offer means if you can put $25,000 in charges on this card in your first three months of card ownership (and before December 4), the 100,000 Membership Rewards points bonus can be yours. Yes, that’s a big outlay in order to get the welcome reward, but since this is a business card we’re talking about that’s not an unreasonable amount of expense to put on a charge card.
Moreover, based on the most recent monthly valuations from The Points Guy, 100,000 Membership Rewards points are worth $2,000 in travel, which makes this card’s bonus an extremely lucrative one and potentially worth the high spending levels. We should also add — you’ll earn the welcome points in two tiers.
Spent $10,000 on qualifying purchases in the first 3 months of card membership, and you’ll earn 50,000 Membership Rewards points. Once you put another $15,000 on this card (for qualifying purchases) after that initial $10,000 — and, again, still before the first three months are up — then you’ll earn an additional 50,000 points.
If you read our previous post outlining the slew of lucrative benefits available to Amex Platinum cardmembers, you’re already familiar with many of the benefits of the Amex Business Platinum. Both cards share perks like:
- Up to $200 airline fee credit each year
- Access to Centurion Lounges and Delta Sky Clubs (when flying Delta)
- Access to other lounges in the American Express Global Lounge Collection
- Gold elite status with Hilton Honors and Gold elite status with Marriott Bonvoy
- Upgrade with Points to request an airline ticket upgrade on select airlines
- 5 points per dollar spent on flights and prepaid hotels (both must be booked through Amex Travel on the Business Platinum)
However, here are some of the benefits you get that are exclusive to the business version of the Platinum card:
- 10 free Gogo inflight Wi-Fi passes each year
- 1.5x points on purchases of $5,000 or more (up to 1 million additional points per year)
- A complimentary year of Platinum Global Access with WeWork (enrollment must be done by December 31, 2019)
- Up to $200 in annual statement credits for Dell technology purchases, split into a $100 credit for January through June and another $100 credit for July through December
The final word
While this card does come with a $595 annual fee that can seem hefty at the outset, if you take advantage of the $200 airline fee credit and the annual up to $200 Dell credit, you’ll effectively pay a net of only $195 a year for the card. This card proves its worth and then some for any businessperson engaged in regular travel. From lounge access at almost any airport in the world to elite status at Hilton and Marriott hotels, plus helping you get onto the internet while in the air during flights, this card has tons of benefits (not to mention that welcome bonus that’s higher than ever) just waiting for you to take advantage of.
