Unlock the Hidden Power Moves: Why the Amex Business Platinum Could Revolutionize Your Wallet and Work Life Overnight

Ever wondered if the elusive “best of both worlds” actually exists in the realm of premium credit cards? Enter The Business Platinum Card® from American Express — a powerhouse often overshadowed but packed with perks that could make your small business and travel dreams take flight. Sure, that $695 annual fee might make you grit your teeth a bit, but for those who know the game, the rewards and benefits can far outweigh the sticker shock. What sets this business titan apart from its personal sibling, The Platinum Card®, which charges the same hefty fee? With both cards gearing up for a makeover that could push fees over the $1,000 mark, now’s the perfect time to peel back the layers and see which one really deserves a spot in your wallet. Ready to explore why the business variant might just be the hidden gem you didn’t know you needed? Let’s dive in. LEARN MORE

The Business Platinum Card® from American Express is not only one of the best small-business cards but also one of the best cards for travel rewards in general. Cardmembers pay for all those perks, though, since it charges a $695 annual fee (see rates and fees).

However, despite many valuable benefits and opportunities to earn bonus points, the Amex Business Platinum is often overshadowed by its personal counterpart, The Platinum Card® from American Express, which also charges a $695 annual fee (see rates and fees).

Both cards are set to be refreshed in the fall, and we expect some major changes on each card — including a potential annual fee of over $1,000 — but for now, let’s jump into the current details.

If you’re only going to have one of the Amex Platinum products, there are compelling reasons why you should opt for the business version over the personal one. Let’s dive into them.

Comparing the Amex Platinum and Amex Business Platinum

Here’s an overview of the key differences between the two cards:

Related: 9 things to do when you get the Amex Business Platinum Card

Perks offered by both cards

These are the main benefits that both cards offer their members (enrollment is required for select benefits, and terms apply):

• Enjoy an airline fee statement credit of up to $200 per calendar year on charges with the airline you select.
• Get $120 as a statement credit for your Global Entry application fee (every four years) or a statement credit of up to $85 for TSA PreCheck (every 4½ years).
• Receive a statement credit per calendar year to reimburse your annual Clear Plus membership fee (up to $209 for the Business Platinum; up to $199 for the Platinum at the time of publish). Use your card to pay for a Clear Plus membership (it doesn’t have to be for you) and be reimbursed automatically.

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Reasons to choose the Amex Business Platinum over the Amex Platinum

Now that their similarities are out of the way, let’s focus on their differences and how those might sway you to choose the Amex Business Platinum instead of the Amex Platinum.

You have or already had the personal Amex Platinum

Like many other issuers, American Express has increasingly restricted who is eligible for the welcome bonuses on its cards. The offer terms for the Platinum, for instance, say the following:

“You may not be eligible to receive a welcome offer if you have or have had this Card, the Platinum Card® from American Express Exclusively for Charles Schwab, the Platinum Card® from American Express Exclusively for Morgan Stanley or previous versions of these Cards. You also may not be eligible to receive a welcome offer based on various factors, such as your history with credit card balance transfers, your history as an American Express Card Member, the number of credit cards that you have opened and closed and other factors. If you are not eligible for a welcome offer, we will notify you prior to processing your application so you have the option to withdraw your application.”

The information for the Platinum Amex for Charles Schwab and the Amex Exclusively for Morgan Stanley has been collected independently by The Points Guy. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.

So, if you already have the Platinum, or even if you carried it in the past but have since closed it, you might be precluded from taking advantage of its current welcome offer. If you want to regain some of its benefits and the chance of scoring tens of thousands of additional Membership Rewards points, you might have to opt for the Business Platinum instead.

Related: 10 things to do when you get the Amex Platinum

You can spend enough to earn the Amex Business Platinum’s higher welcome offer

The Business Platinum welcome bonus requires some strategy to earn the offer in its entirety since the minimum spending requirement is $20,000 over three months. That’s a considerable amount, but it’s not outside the budget of some small businesses.

By contrast, the Platinum currently has a lower spending requirement to earn its welcome bonus: $8,000 spent within the first six months of card membership. Plus, you can reach it in double the time of the business version.

The personal card’s terms might work better for you, considering you have twice the time to spend less than half the amount of money for the bonus points. If you’re eligible for the up to 175,000 bonus points offer with the Platinum, you’re better suited going that route, as the welcome offer requires 60% less in minimum spending.

If you haven’t held either card, consider whether you can meet the minimum spending requirement on the Business Platinum organically, and if you think it might be a concern, opt for the Platinum.

You spend a lot on flights and hotels

The two cards have very similar earning structures with two subtle (but significant) differences.

First, the personal card earns 5 points per dollar spent on flights booked through Amex Travel, plus directly with airlines, while the Business Platinum only earns 5 points per dollar spent on flights booked through Amex Travel.

Second, the personal card’s bonus-earning on flights is capped at $500,000 in spending per calendar year (then 1 point per dollar after that), while the business version has no such cap.

Both cards earn 5 points per dollar spent on prepaid hotel bookings with Amex Travel.

If you tend to just book flights directly with airlines, the personal card is a better choice. However, if you use Amex Travel for a lot of your travel plans — or if you have that option — then you at least won’t be missing out by charging your reservations to the Business Platinum.

Plus, if you book a lot of flights — more than $500,000 worth per year — with your card, then you’re definitely better off with the business card since its bonus-qualifying spending isn’t capped at that amount.

Related: The best credit cards for paying taxes and fees on award tickets

You can maximize the Amex Business Platinum’s large-transaction and business category bonuses

The Business Platinum has a unique earning structure:

• 1.5 points per dollar spent on purchases of $5,000 or more
• 1.5 points per dollar spent on U.S. purchases from construction material and hardware suppliers, electronic goods retailers, shipping providers, and software and cloud system providers

Both have a combined $2 million spending cap per calendar year.

If you make these types of business purchases — or regularly use your card for transactions of more than $5,000 — then the Business Platinum blows the personal version out of the water.

You might also find creative ways to leverage this purchase bonus on one-off expenditures.

Related: The top 7 credit cards to maximize large purchases

You use Pay with Points for premium travel

One major way the two cards diverge is that the Business Platinum offers cardmembers a bonus of 35% of the points they redeem through Amex’s Pay with Points feature while the personal version does not. There are a few stipulations — and the perk is set to be devalued on Sept. 18.

First, you only receive the 35% points bonus on two types of flights: first- or business-class tickets with any airline or tickets in any class with the same airline you preselect for your $200 airline fee credit. That might hamstring your options if you don’t actually plan to spend points on a ticket with the same carrier.

Additionally, starting Sept. 18, you will only be able to use this perk on your designated airline you selected for the airline fee credit, regardless of the cabin class of your ticket.

Even if you seldom redeem Membership Rewards points this way, this one benefit can save you tens of thousands of points on a single ticket. That makes carrying the Business Platinum instead of the personal card well worth it since the latter won’t provide any points bonus when you use Pay with Points.

You prefer the business card’s statement credits

The personal and business versions offer many unique annual statement credits.

The personal card offers quite a few lifestyle statement credits, including credits for Saks Fifth Avenue purchases, digital entertainment subscriptions and memberships with Clear Plus, Equinox and Walmart+. (Enrollment is required for select benefits, and terms apply.) But if those aren’t things you actually use (or plan to), why bother trying to keep track of them or paying the personal card’s annual fee?

The Business Platinum offers hundreds of dollars in annual statement credits with Adobe, Dell, Indeed and U.S. wireless provider charges. (Enrollment is required for select benefits; terms apply.)

Related: How to decide if a credit card’s annual fee is worth paying

You don’t use Uber that often

The personal card includes up to $15 in Uber Cash each month for rides and Uber Eats orders in the U.S. (The amount goes up to $35 in December.) That’s a total yearly benefit of up to $200 per calendar year.

The potential savings available with this benefit are pretty substantial, but remember that these credits don’t roll over from month to month. So, if you don’t use Uber regularly, you might be unable to take full advantage of it.

Just make sure to add your Platinum card to your Uber account, and then you can redeem with any Amex card.

Related: Who should (and shouldn’t) get the Amex Business Platinum?

Bottom line

Both the Amex Platinum and the Business Platinum are excellent rewards cards with a variety of benefits from which members can reap tremendous value. Which card is right for you will come down to understanding which one offers the best combination of welcome bonus, ongoing rewards and benefits for your needs.

Consider which card best matches your financial habits and needs and which card’s other perks you’re most likely to leverage year after year. That said, you might want to consider carrying both the personal and business Amex Platinum cards since there are plenty of ways the two cards don’t overlap.

Apply here: The Business Platinum Card from American Express
Apply here: The Platinum Card from American Express

For rates and fees of the Amex Business Platinum Card, click here.
For rates and fees of the Amex Platinum Card, click here.