AMEX Platinum is not a “credit” card, per se. It is a “charge” card. Thus, it must be paid off every month.
The annual fees on the AMEX Gold and Platinum programs are only worth it if the cardholder:
-travels by air frequently (3x pts on flights
booked with airlines)
-travels first class on occasion
-travels overseas (no foreign transaction fees on
Platinum)
-makes use of airport lounges (depending on airline)
-doesn’t already have AAA or other Roadside
Assistance such as a plan with their insurance
carrier
-frequently stays in 4 and 5-star hotels where AMEX
offers fourth nights free and $75 food vouchers
-enjoys using the AMEX website to book (no-refund)
discount travel pkgs (run by travelocity)
I’m sure there are a few other “privileges” but nothing that Joe or Suzy 6P (that’s me) would need or want.
Road warrior that I am (who uses $45-$70 night motor lodges and friends/relatives back bdrms), the $150 annual fee for my Gold Card Plus didn’t pencil out for me at all.
The AMEX “privileges” of being able to get the best seats in the house sold by Ticketmaster and Live Nation are a joke. I’ve never had any luck getting any good seats with my Gold card, even while attempting to book immediately when the tix were released for sale. The persistent captcha copier can do just as well with any other CC.
And when I test-visited some of those 4/5 star hotel sites, I found that they offer the same fourth-night deals to the general public.
On amazon.com, AMEX points are only worth .70 per 100 points.
My annual Gold Card fee was due 9/8 so I have already canceled it after getting the AMEX Blue Cash Preferred card and have been using it the last three weeks.
The two “Everyday” and two “Blue Cash” credit cards AMEX just came out with in April 2014 (2 w/membership pts and 2/cash back) are all see-thru plastic cards and mine DOES show “Member since 2009” on it just like ER stated it should here:
Incidentally, my FICO score only dropped 3 points so far for downgrading (from 822 to 819), likely from the credit inquiry. It will be interesting to see if or how much more it moves due to the cancellation.
In addition, I am eligible for a sign-up bonus of $150 statement credit on the new card (because the Blue Cash a “credit card” and the Gold card was a “charge card”) after spending $1000 or more the first 3 billing cycles. This card’s main form of “reward” is statement credit (keeps things simple and less-costly for me) which is 3% cash back on standalone gas stations, 6% cash back on standalone grocery stores and 1% cash back on everything else. Its annual fee is $75 (half of Gold Card Plus) but I KNOW I will recoup all of it and much more in statement credit.
I’m very satisfied with the Blue Cash Preferred card so far.
I’ll pm ER and see what he has to say about the Platinum card and what he uses it for. He’s our resident “AMEX expert.” After reading many reviews on these cards, it seems lots of people just use the Platinum card to flash for airline upgrades/extra bags and entrance to select airport lounges but never actually put a dime on the card.
For these people, the $450 annual fee seems to be well worth it for those purposes only.
