Does anyone own BOTH Chase Sapphire Reserve & Amex Platinum?
Apr 16, 2018, 7:49 am
#61
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Justifying Amex Platinum and DL Reserve together is tough, although I know that's not the question you asked specifically. 
Though it sounds like you're clearly happy with the DL Reserve on its own merits, so the question then is really do you value the 5x points on the Platinum plus the Centurion lounge access and a handful of other things like hotel and rental car status enough to justify the Platinum. Not hard to imagine you could get there.
CSR beyond that depends on how much travel and dining spend you have (beyond what would already be claimed by other cards -- Amex Platinum might still claim airfare, and if you have any hotel-branded cards those might still claim some hotel spend, among other considerations).
CSR insurance benefits would only matter if you put the relevant spend on the CSR, so the CSR airline insurance benefits would have no value if you keep using the Amex Plat. (Amex Plat does come with some flight insurance benefits, particularly around lost luggage, anyway.) And really, for most of your flights are there any where you're going to say "That flight is clearly risky enough that I'll forgo the 2x points!". The one case where you might actively choose the CSR is that the Amex Plat lost luggage insurance is not valid on award tickets, whereas the CSR insurance is still available as long as you charge the taxes and fees to the CSR, so I make a point to pay award ticket fees on the CSR, and use the Amex Platinum for booking paid tickets.
The CSR does also more or less offer the same car rental status benefits as the Amex Platinum, so that piece wouldn't change much. Main losses if you dropped the Amex Platinum would be Centurion Lounge access (you can buy in at $50/person/visit, though at that rate it doesn't take many visits to justify the Platinum card) and the hotel status benefits. There are a variety of hotel-branded cards that can fill in or even improve upon some of the hotel status offerings, though at an additional cost of course. (We will also start to get some hints tomorrow as to whether the SPG/Marriott status offered by the Amex Platinum is likely to continue to be worth anything or not; there's also a chance it goes away entirely though we probably wouldn't find that out for a while.)
Though it sounds like you're clearly happy with the DL Reserve on its own merits, so the question then is really do you value the 5x points on the Platinum plus the Centurion lounge access and a handful of other things like hotel and rental car status enough to justify the Platinum. Not hard to imagine you could get there.CSR beyond that depends on how much travel and dining spend you have (beyond what would already be claimed by other cards -- Amex Platinum might still claim airfare, and if you have any hotel-branded cards those might still claim some hotel spend, among other considerations).
CSR insurance benefits would only matter if you put the relevant spend on the CSR, so the CSR airline insurance benefits would have no value if you keep using the Amex Plat. (Amex Plat does come with some flight insurance benefits, particularly around lost luggage, anyway.) And really, for most of your flights are there any where you're going to say "That flight is clearly risky enough that I'll forgo the 2x points!". The one case where you might actively choose the CSR is that the Amex Plat lost luggage insurance is not valid on award tickets, whereas the CSR insurance is still available as long as you charge the taxes and fees to the CSR, so I make a point to pay award ticket fees on the CSR, and use the Amex Platinum for booking paid tickets.
The CSR does also more or less offer the same car rental status benefits as the Amex Platinum, so that piece wouldn't change much. Main losses if you dropped the Amex Platinum would be Centurion Lounge access (you can buy in at $50/person/visit, though at that rate it doesn't take many visits to justify the Platinum card) and the hotel status benefits. There are a variety of hotel-branded cards that can fill in or even improve upon some of the hotel status offerings, though at an additional cost of course. (We will also start to get some hints tomorrow as to whether the SPG/Marriott status offered by the Amex Platinum is likely to continue to be worth anything or not; there's also a chance it goes away entirely though we probably wouldn't find that out for a while.)
- DL Reserve up to $60k of non-bonused spend for MQM boosts
- Amex Plat for flights (except awards, per your distinction of trip insurance)
- CSR for all non-flight travel and dining, and daily driver after DL Reserve spend is met
The only other card I have/use is an old PenFed that gets 5% cash back on gas for no AF. Can't beat that.
We do spend a fair amount on travel and dining, but I've stopped going out of my way to focus on specific brands - opting instead for quality/convenience over other factors. Really the only reason I have status with DL is because I live in ATL, but I won't hesitate to hop on AA/UA or their partners if they have a better schedule/price combo.
I do leverage Amex Plat for the hotel benefits so that's mostly what would go away if I dropped it. It's also the card I have Mrs. Lee as a paid AU on to get her club access as well as car/hotel benefits when traveling without me, so I'd need to add her to the CSR.
I think my issue is I actually do see positive value in each card on its own, even accounting for overlapping benefits, but it all adds up to ~$1900 in AF which is tough to chew on.
Apr 16, 2018, 7:58 am
#62
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Would it be practical for her to use only the Priority Pass lounge at ATL (Concourse F)?
Apr 16, 2018, 10:32 am
#63
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Basically, it's been nice to have both options for our patterns.
Apr 16, 2018, 10:45 am
#64
Join Date: Nov 2010
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Wading into this thread as I'm considering adding CSR to my wallet. But I already have Amex Platinum and DL Reserve.
The DL card gets me SkyClub access and the free companion cert, which more than pays for itself each year even without the MQM boosts. (I also have a DL Platinum solely for the coach companion cert). Amex Platinum w/additional card is okay value for me with PP, status bumps, Uber/airline fee, etc. Actually has gotten more valuable as my travel has dropped from very heavy to moderate - I spread my hotels/cars around enough that I no longer earn status, but the Amex allows me to still be a free agent and at least have some benefits.
Really considering CSR to move dining and non-flight travel to. Primary car insurance and other travel protections seem nice, too, but am I correct that I wouldn't actually get stuff like trip delay and baggage insurance since my flights would stay with Amex for 5x? It would still be valuable when we book vacation packages/tours and such, I guess. Or sacrifice 2x points to "buy" the better insurance when it matters.
I'm still trying to talk myself into spending $1895/year in annual fees (must add Mrs. Lee to all cards).
As a related note - has anyone swapped their Amex Plat for the CSR? What's the best landing spot to downgrade the Amex but retain your MR until ready to spend/transfer them?
The DL card gets me SkyClub access and the free companion cert, which more than pays for itself each year even without the MQM boosts. (I also have a DL Platinum solely for the coach companion cert). Amex Platinum w/additional card is okay value for me with PP, status bumps, Uber/airline fee, etc. Actually has gotten more valuable as my travel has dropped from very heavy to moderate - I spread my hotels/cars around enough that I no longer earn status, but the Amex allows me to still be a free agent and at least have some benefits.
Really considering CSR to move dining and non-flight travel to. Primary car insurance and other travel protections seem nice, too, but am I correct that I wouldn't actually get stuff like trip delay and baggage insurance since my flights would stay with Amex for 5x? It would still be valuable when we book vacation packages/tours and such, I guess. Or sacrifice 2x points to "buy" the better insurance when it matters.
I'm still trying to talk myself into spending $1895/year in annual fees (must add Mrs. Lee to all cards).
As a related note - has anyone swapped their Amex Plat for the CSR? What's the best landing spot to downgrade the Amex but retain your MR until ready to spend/transfer them?
Apr 16, 2018, 10:48 am
#65
Join Date: Jan 2014
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Have the AX Plat, Schwab Plat, Biz Plat, and Sapphire Reserve.
Turning to AX, I regularly charge - although nowhere near those of what other posters report for their own habits - transactions in excess of $5k and find the 50% bonus to be worthwhile. While I do not anticipate reaching the $1M threshold this year, there is a chance I might and FWIW my spend for such $5k+ transactions is larger than last year. The point here is 50% bonus remains material for my own spending patterns and worth ~200k +/- MR for me this year. Reflecting on how front-cabin fares have dropped materially over the last few years, I regularly findmyself AMEX purchasing discounted first/business fares, thereby making it far easier to take advantage of the pay-all-up-front-and-get-35%-back-after-the-fact rebate. This means in practice I use the 35% rebate to go after front-cabin tickets with AX, and use UR points for all other air travel and hotels. As with the 50% bonus for $5k+ transactions, I do not anticipate maxing out the benefit but would guess the net rebate this year will be around ~300k +/- MR. Both of these benefits, as well as the 10 gogo-passes AX throws in - are unique to the business Platinum card and justify the $450 (-$200) annual fee for me.
Turning to AX, I regularly charge - although nowhere near those of what other posters report for their own habits - transactions in excess of $5k and find the 50% bonus to be worthwhile. While I do not anticipate reaching the $1M threshold this year, there is a chance I might and FWIW my spend for such $5k+ transactions is larger than last year. The point here is 50% bonus remains material for my own spending patterns and worth ~200k +/- MR for me this year. Reflecting on how front-cabin fares have dropped materially over the last few years, I regularly find
My vanilla AX Plat was my first credit card and I keep it open for the longevity of the account (25+ years). I should note I do switch between products as appropriate and a few years ago, prior to the 5x airline and Uber benefit, this card was a rarely used green card. At $550, this is probably the least needed card considering the Biz Plat and Schwab Plat, however, AX keeps offering sweeteners not to downgrade when I ask. No idea what they'll offer this year, but since I plan on keeping the account open my logic boils down to: $95 green annual fee for nothing or $550 (- $200 fee rebate) (-$200 UBER) = net $150, meaning there's only a $55 delta between Plat and Green.
Finally, I also carry the co-branded AX Schwab Plat card. If AX allowed me to change my old vanilla Plat account into a Schwab, I would have opted for that but as they did not I was required to apply for a new account...and new welcome bonus! The super-power of the Schwab card is the $0.0125 redemption value to Schwab and the potential for $100/$200 off your annual fee, based upon your assets held by Schwab. While I do not have $250,000 with Schwab, let alone $1,000,000, it is something worth noting about the card. The "Invest with Rewards" however remains key as it allows me to go after whatever purchase I want at a far better rate than any AX offers for an after the fact statement credit I am aware of. Cash is always king and the only published rebate to top 1.25 is the 1.50 (via the 35% - thanks mia) point rebate for qualified travel bought through MR points with the Biz plat. I'll leave the question of value ($0.0125 in cash vs. ~$0.015 in qualified travel) to you, dear reader, but would note a $0.10 discount for the flexibility of cash strikes me as very reasonable, and perhaps even preferable.
99% of the time I would agree with you, particularly if one has status with the hotel. The one exception to me is Las Vegas where one can score FHR rates $100 - $180 during low times with $100+ F&B credits. Assuming LAS is a destination one was already planning on going and assuming demand was low, this is a sweet spot for FHR.
Apr 16, 2018, 11:29 am
#66
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How did you handle your remaining MR when canceling the Amex Plat?
Apr 16, 2018, 11:34 am
#67
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Apr 16, 2018, 11:44 am
#68
Join Date: May 2015
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Or, with any airline, book a First or Business class flight and you can get 35% of the points back. No enrollment necessary. With the 35% Airline Bonus benefit, you can get up to 500,000 bonus points per calendar year.‡
https://online.americanexpress.com/u...ct=true#detail
https://online.americanexpress.com/u...ct=true#detail
Apr 16, 2018, 7:25 pm
#69
Join Date: Oct 2004
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1. You're constrained by the "official" credit limit (and yes, I know a charge card does not equal unlimited purchasing power). For users, particularly business users, their monthly spend may be 3x or more the highest credit limit. FWIW last month by Biz AX bill was north of $60k, which is ~2x larger than my highest credit limit (with Chase, in this case).
2. Moving beyond the published credit limit constraint...2x earnings on the first 50k? That sounds good. What does one do for the remaining eleven months (or 51 weeks) left in the year once the $50k threshold is crossed? For heavy users, there's something to be said for the simplicity of having a few go-to cards offering a broad, year-round benefit.
Remember the QR sale ex US to SIN a few years ago? ~1.9k r/t in business or ~190,000 MR points with ~66,000 kicked back for a net cost of 62k each way for confirmed J plus whatever you earned to AA/QR/BA/etc.
Point is one r/t $2k redemption in the front cabin can easily exceed an annual 50k kicker.
No issues using the fee rebate ($200 x2 from the two plat cards) but will note it is more restrictive than the CSRs generous and broad definition of travel. In my case, I would rather have a higher, harder to use rebate than an easier, lower one. To each their own.
People can value [anything] at [any] amount. But cash is genuine coin of the realm and presents a universal value. FT is filled with pages of people arguing how an SPG/UR/MR/etc. point is worth more/less than a SPG/UR/MR/etc. point with little universal conclusions. But a dollar is a dollar is a dollar.
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Apr 16, 2018, 7:32 pm
#70
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Apr 16, 2018, 8:53 pm
#71
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In the USA there is no mechanism for moving points from one person's Membership Rewards account to another person's Membership Rewards account. Which free card do you have: Everyday, Blue Business Plus, or another?
Apr 16, 2018, 9:03 pm
#72
Join Date: Jan 2014
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Always good to know, but I generally prefer the charge card products based upon my spend. BBP does kick back 2x on the first 50k, and that's nothing to dismiss. However for heavy users, this is generally not realistic.
1. You're constrained by the "official" credit limit (and yes, I know a charge card does not equal unlimited purchasing power). For users, particularly business users, their monthly spend may be 3x or more the highest credit limit. FWIW last month by Biz AX bill was north of $60k, which is ~2x larger than my highest credit limit (with Chase, in this case).
1. You're constrained by the "official" credit limit (and yes, I know a charge card does not equal unlimited purchasing power). For users, particularly business users, their monthly spend may be 3x or more the highest credit limit. FWIW last month by Biz AX bill was north of $60k, which is ~2x larger than my highest credit limit (with Chase, in this case).
2. Moving beyond the published credit limit constraint...2x earnings on the first 50k? That sounds good. What does one do for the remaining eleven months (or 51 weeks) left in the year once the $50k threshold is crossed? For heavy users, there's something to be said for the simplicity of having a few go-to cards offering a broad, year-round benefit.
Yes, Y redemptions are limited to the selected airline. Front cabin redemptions are not and the rebate will apply to any airline, assuming you can buy the ticket through AX. Considering how premium fares are quite reasonable to purchase outright, this can easily net 50k - or 500k if one is high redeemer - of bonus MR points.
Remember the QR sale ex US to SIN a few years ago? ~1.9k r/t in business or ~190,000 MR points with ~66,000 kicked back for a net cost of 62k each way for confirmed J plus whatever you earned to AA/QR/BA/etc.
Point is one r/t $2k redemption in the front cabin can easily exceed an annual 50k kicker.
Point is one r/t $2k redemption in the front cabin can easily exceed an annual 50k kicker.
People can value [anything] at [any] amount. But cash is genuine coin of the realm and presents a universal value. FT is filled with pages of people arguing how an SPG/UR/MR/etc. point is worth more/less than a SPG/UR/MR/etc. point with little universal conclusions. But a dollar is a dollar is a dollar.
Schwab opens the door to the best generic, broad approach MR cash-out option. Are the more lucrative earning/cash options on the first $x,xxx spend from AX? Probably. Do I have the time or inclination to chase them 50k increments a time? No. Don't get me wrong, I will manage spend to an extent but there comes a point where the time required and financial complexity exceeds the returns.
Schwab opens the door to the best generic, broad approach MR cash-out option. Are the more lucrative earning/cash options on the first $x,xxx spend from AX? Probably. Do I have the time or inclination to chase them 50k increments a time? No. Don't get me wrong, I will manage spend to an extent but there comes a point where the time required and financial complexity exceeds the returns.
Again value is relative here. Nothing against the top-notch buffet values in LAS but my preference as of recent has been steak/sushi. For this I'd prefer a sit down formal experience. As an example, last time I was in LAS at the Delano I got $60 of in-house room service comp and $100 of F&B credit (so $160 total) from a ~$140 out the door rate. Had a nice dinner at Jean Georges and two tasty room service burgers (one for lunch, one for breakfast the next day )
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Last edited by yugi; Apr 16, 2018 at 9:19 pm
Apr 16, 2018, 9:32 pm
#73
Join Date: Aug 2017
Programs: Hilton Diamond, IHG Spire Ambassador, Global Entry
Posts: 2,853
Wading into this thread as I'm considering adding CSR to my wallet. But I already have Amex Platinum and DL Reserve.
The DL card gets me SkyClub access and the free companion cert, which more than pays for itself each year even without the MQM boosts. (I also have a DL Platinum solely for the coach companion cert). Amex Platinum w/additional card is okay value for me with PP, status bumps, Uber/airline fee, etc. Actually has gotten more valuable as my travel has dropped from very heavy to moderate - I spread my hotels/cars around enough that I no longer earn status, but the Amex allows me to still be a free agent and at least have some benefits.
Really considering CSR to move dining and non-flight travel to. Primary car insurance and other travel protections seem nice, too, but am I correct that I wouldn't actually get stuff like trip delay and baggage insurance since my flights would stay with Amex for 5x? It would still be valuable when we book vacation packages/tours and such, I guess. Or sacrifice 2x points to "buy" the better insurance when it matters.
I'm still trying to talk myself into spending $1895/year in annual fees (must add Mrs. Lee to all cards).
As a related note - has anyone swapped their Amex Plat for the CSR? What's the best landing spot to downgrade the Amex but retain your MR until ready to spend/transfer them?
The DL card gets me SkyClub access and the free companion cert, which more than pays for itself each year even without the MQM boosts. (I also have a DL Platinum solely for the coach companion cert). Amex Platinum w/additional card is okay value for me with PP, status bumps, Uber/airline fee, etc. Actually has gotten more valuable as my travel has dropped from very heavy to moderate - I spread my hotels/cars around enough that I no longer earn status, but the Amex allows me to still be a free agent and at least have some benefits.
Really considering CSR to move dining and non-flight travel to. Primary car insurance and other travel protections seem nice, too, but am I correct that I wouldn't actually get stuff like trip delay and baggage insurance since my flights would stay with Amex for 5x? It would still be valuable when we book vacation packages/tours and such, I guess. Or sacrifice 2x points to "buy" the better insurance when it matters.
I'm still trying to talk myself into spending $1895/year in annual fees (must add Mrs. Lee to all cards).
As a related note - has anyone swapped their Amex Plat for the CSR? What's the best landing spot to downgrade the Amex but retain your MR until ready to spend/transfer them?
Apr 16, 2018, 10:36 pm
#75
Join Date: Oct 2004
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I think this is the crux of the matter. For corp spenders or high net worth individuals spending tens, if not hundreds, of thousands per month there's something to be said for simplicity. For others who are not charging comparable volume, it will be inherently easier to segregate spend on products far cheaper than AX charge cards.
Yes, one can make multiple payments to (re)clear up a CL. Yes, one can nitpick over the in's and the outs and squeeze a little more from the bank rebates. And if one has the time, will, and nothing better to do, more power to them. But speaking as someone who is on the heftier side of monthly spend, it's just not worth the time and hassle for me...but as they say YMMV.
I do not disagree but I also do not book Y nor WN. Again, YMMV.
If you have not already done so, check out: https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/premium-fare-deals-740/ Excellent resource.
Yes, one can make multiple payments to (re)clear up a CL. Yes, one can nitpick over the in's and the outs and squeeze a little more from the bank rebates. And if one has the time, will, and nothing better to do, more power to them. But speaking as someone who is on the heftier side of monthly spend, it's just not worth the time and hassle for me...but as they say YMMV.
I do not disagree but I also do not book Y nor WN. Again, YMMV.
If you have not already done so, check out: https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/premium-fare-deals-740/
Excellent resource.