Everyone loves the Amex Platinum card, but I'm convinced the Business Platinum is better for 4 reasons

Caroline Lupini

Nov 30, 2019, 22:59 IST

Everyone loves the Amex Platinum card, but I'm convinced the Business Platinum is better for 4 reasons

The Points Guy

The Platinum Card® from American Express and the Business Platinum® Card from American Express are both great credit cards.
Many of the benefits of each card overlap, but there are a few perks unique to each.
Even though I have both cards and think both are worthwhile, if I had to pick just one it would be the Business Platinum. Here's why.
Read more personal finance coverage.

The American Express Platinum card and the Business Platinum card have a lot of things in common:

Both are ultra-premium travel cards that offer top-tier benefits, like access to the Centurion Lounge network, Delta Sky Clubs when traveling on Delta, and Priority Pass lounges worldwide.
Both unlock exclusive experiences with American Express Fine Hotels & Resorts and complimentary elite status with Hilton and Marriott's respective rewards programs.
Both offer up to a $200 annual credit for incidental fees on one airline of your choice, and an enrollment credit of up to $100 for Global Entry or TSA PreCheck.
And both have a significant annual fee - $550 for the Amex Platinum and $595 for the Business Platinum card.

Despite these similarities - and its higher annual fee - I find the Business Platinum card much more compelling, and for me, it's a card that I'm happy to keep year after year. Here's why I think the Business Platinum card is a better choice.

Keep in mind that we're focusing on the rewards and perks that make these credit cards great options, not things like interest rates and late fees, which will far outweigh the value of any points or miles. It's important to practice financial discipline when using credit cards by paying your balances in full each month, making payments on time, and only spending what you can afford to pay back.

1. 35% Pay with points rebate for flights

The Business Platinum earns you a 35% rebate when you pay for flights with your Membership Rewards points for first-class or business-class flights on any airline, or flights in any class on your designated with American Express.  

This is the main feature that makes this card a game changer for me. Both the Platinum card and Business Platinum card offer Pay with Points, which allows you to redeem your Membership Rewards points for travel-related expenses with Amex Travel at a rate of 1 cent per point. Normally, that's not a good deal - Membership Rewards points can easily be worth twice that when transferred to airline partners, especially for international premium cabin redemptions. With the Business Platinum, though, if you redeem points for flights in business or first class on any airline - or economy on the same airline you select for the annual travel credit - you're eligible for a 35% rebate on the points you spend, up to 500,000 rebated points per year.

When you redeem your points for travel this way, you're getting around 1.54 cents in value per point. On top of that, the tickets you purchase are just like tickets booked with cash, meaning you can earn frequent flyer miles and elite-qualifying miles with the airline of your choice, and you can book any available ticket - there's no inventory restrictions or blackout dates.

In some cases, you can even use Amex's exclusive International Airline Program to get even further discounts. This is my favorite way to redeem Membership Rewards points - often I'm able to take advantage of sales to book discounted business class tickets for fewer miles than I'd have to spend on an award ticket.

2. Annual credits toward Dell are more valuable to me than Saks Fifth Avenue and Uber credits

To help offset the annual fee, the Platinum card offers up to $100 annually in Saks Fifth Avenue credits (two $50 credits, one for each half of the year) and up to $200 annually in Uber credits ($15 per month January to November and a $20 bonus for $35 total in December). The Business Platinum card, on the other hand, offers up to $200 in Dell credits ($100 for each half of the year).

For me, the credits on the personal Platinum card aren't all that useful. Saks isn't somewhere I would otherwise shop, so it feels like I'm going out of my way to buy things just to use the credits. And the way the Uber credits are broken up makes it easy to lose value - each month's credit expires at the end of that month - especially since they only work in the United States, and I often find that I'm not in the US enough to take advantage of them.

The Dell credit, on the other hand, is pretty easy to use. Even if you don't have a Dell laptop, Dell offers accessories like chargers, cables, and battery packs that can be used with all sorts of devices. And I often also find Amex Offers for additional discounts or extra Membership Rewards points on Dell.com purchases, allowing me to further stretch the value of this credit. 

3. It's a business card, so it doesn't have the same impact on your credit report 

Although your credit report will show an inquiry from American Express when you apply for the Business Platinum card, once the account is open it doesn't appear on your personal credit report. That's useful if you need to make large purchases with the card, since you don't have to worry about a statement with a large balance dragging down your credit score.

4. It doesn't count towards the Chase 5/24 rule 

Because business credit cards don't show up on your personal credit report, they also don't count towards the Chase 5/24 rule, or similar restrictions from other credit issuers like Bank of America. So unlike with the Platinum card, you can safely open a Business Platinum card without impacting your ability to open other accounts.

Bottom line

The Business Platinum card offers many of the same valuable perks as the personal Platinum card, but for just $45 more per year you can unlock exclusive perks like a 35% rebate on points redeemed directly for airfare.

For small business owners who travel frequently, an annual $200 Dell credit is likely more useful than $100 at Saks Fifth Avenue and $200 in US-only Uber credits with restrictive expiration dates. And as a business card, it won't impact your credit report or ability to apply for other credit cards the same way a personal account would.

Last chance: You can earn up to 100,000 Amex points when you apply for the Business Platinum card by December 4 and meet the following spending requirements. You'll earn 50,000 points after spending $10,000, and an additional 50,000 points after spending $15,000 on qualifying purchases, all within the first three months from account opening.

Click here to learn more about the Amex Business Platinum card.

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Please note: While the offers mentioned above are accurate at the time of publication, they're subject to change at any time and may have changed, or may no longer be available.