darkom

After doing some light research is appears the Amex Platinum is the best all around (perks, miles & rewards, etc.) card offered by any of the majors. But many other cards on this forum and other blogs receive a lot of praise. The only thing I could think of is that perhaps the Amex Platinum is really hard to qualify for (?), so many interested simply don't have the option to use it? Other than that I can't think of why every traveler and savvy miles & points earner wouldn't want this card in their pocket.

sbm12

I can.

If you mostly fly United or other, smaller airlines the perks aren't nearly as valuable as if you fly AA/DL/US. Depending on where you want to transfer the points to and what types of awards you book the AmEx card can offer lower value than other bank-brand cards. Also, depending on your spending habits other cards can offer better value through various category bonus options and such. And there's that little detail of the $450 annual fee.

The AmEx Platinum card definitely has a long list of benefits. That doesn't mean they are the best benefits for everyone in every scenario.

darkom

Hm. So my assumption that this is one of the tougher to qualify for, yet popular credit cards out there isn't factual? (I honestly have no idea how hard it is to qualify for a plat amex)

cchrissyy

This my favorite card, but I think people like others for the category spending bonuses, especially if they don't want/need lounge access.

dw

It's a great card as far as the BENEFITS are concerned, but no so much when it comes to SPENDING. I only use my Amex Plat for spending when I have to.

James Fleming

Will probably upgrade after I've had the PRG for a year, but I wish the Plat had the same reward earning multipliers.

jpark1982

It's a great benefits card, but in terms of spend, it's ehh.

If you live in a United Hub, it loosing its appeal. If you don't travel, it loses it appeal.

The United Club card on the other hand, has good benefits and is a good spend card due to the 1.5x per $.

garykung

Plat is about benefits, not reward.

PWMTrav

Amex Platinum has great benefits if you travel and generally do so on US, AA or DL. FHR is a nice hotel program that I personally use for most family trips. The lounge access is nice because US and DL are the best airlines out of my home airport - I can fly US 100% of the time if I'd like. Membership Rewards itself is great because you can transfer quickly (instantly in some cases) to a member of every alliance, including at least one each on OW and *A that have distance-based award charts.

The card is far less valuable if you don't travel, since the benefits are obviously travel-related. It's also lackluster in earning 1x MR per dollar, rather than the PRG which gives you some category bonuses.

Finally, if you travel United, there are better cards out there. Basically, keeping an Ink card for bonus category spending plus the United Mileage Plus Club card for 1.5x miles/$ and a United Club membership. The advantages there are higher base earnings, plus UR as a United transfer partner, and a full club membership. United Club members also get into US (and other *A member) lounges, along with a spouse.

I mostly value the club access and $200 airline credit with the Platinum, but United is getting aggressive with pricing out of PWM compared to US. If it stays that way, I may go the Chase route.

mia

There are a million plus USA Platinum cardholders. See this current thread:

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/ameri...amex-plat.html

Redhead

Since having my daughter in March, my future travel is going to be very limited for the next couple of years. Besides, even if I did travel, no way can I see spending $450 a year for a credit card.

silver6054

The view on myfico (which of course may or may not be correct) is that the charge cards (green/gold/plat) have basically the same underwriting requirements, it is just a question of how much AF you wish to pay for increased benefits. And the requirements seem fairly low (many people with short histories and FICOs under 700 get it). Not an exclusive card at all.

guoguo914

This definitely is something new to me. Always thought it's a high-end card.

relberger

I have had Amex Platinum Business for years now. The two major benefits I have are:

1. Priority Pass
2. No foreign exchange penalty (well, I call it a penalty, it's really a fee)

I have other cards that I use, most often is Amex HHonors (which of late has gotten a bad rap). I don't even use my HHonors credit card at Hilton properties overseas due to the foreign exchange penalty.

PWMTrav

We have an 11 month old. You'd be surprised of the benefits if you're going to travel. The benefits for us have been good. For one, you're probably going to start checking bags, and the $200 fee credit helps a lot there. Plus, the only decent place to change a diaper in the airport is the restroom in a lounge. Far cleaner than the public restrooms. That coupled with the padding on our travel time and layovers means we're spending more time in the lounge - realistically, we try to book 90 min to 2 hour layovers and get to the airport about 30 mins earlier. FHR is an interesting benefit too - not necessarily something I'd call the primary benefit, but the little things like early checkin/late checkout, free breakfast and dining credit are nice with a kid in tow.

We like to travel, so we've decided to keep doing it as long as my daughter is happy as well. So far, she loves it, but everything is a matter of taking your time now. I think the benefits have been unexpectedly helpful to us. But all of the above presumes you'll continue to travel.