Spend Money On The Amex Platinum Card? Here’s How To Earn More Points

I’m a big fan of both American Express Platinum Card® and The Business Platinum Card® from American Express. I have the former and Ford has the latter, so together we spend a significant amount of money in annual fees to hold onto the cards, and I find that to be quite worthwhile, given the perks the cards offer:

• Each card offers an up to $200 annual airline fee credit, which is worth close to the face value for me
• The personal version of the card offers a $200 annual Uber credit

Those benefits alone get us around $600 of value, and then I value the card for Delta Sky Club® access, Amex Centurion Lounge access, a Priority Pass™ membership, Gold elite status, and much more. (Enrollment is required for select benefits)

More from OMAAT American Airlines Employee Training Video From 2000: How Times Have Changed! Read more

The Amex Platinum Card comes with Centurion Lounge access

While I find these cards to be worthwhile for the perks, these aren’t cards I spend much on. The only exception for me is putting airfare spend on the Amex Personal Platinum Card, given that it offers 5x Membership Rewards points on airfare spend (on up to $500,000 in flight purchases per calendar year and then 1x when booked directly with the airline or through Amex Travel). I value those points at ~1.7 cents each, so to me it’s like earning the equivalent of ~8.5% on airfare spend, which is a great deal.

People who put everyday spend on the Amex Platinum Card

I love observing (and hearing) how people use their cards. For example, this past weekend I had dinner with a friend who is quite savvy, yet who puts all their spend on the Amex Platinum Card. I was surprised. I don’t want to say this is strictly related to age, but the concept of putting all your spend on the Amex Platinum Card does seem somewhat generational. Many people my dad’s age seem to perceive the card as being “prestigious,” and when they put everyday spend on the card, they say “well that’s always what I’ve been doing, and I don’t want to cancel the card after having it for so long.”

That’s totally valid, in a way:

• You shouldn’t cancel the card, because it has lots of perks that make it worth holding onto
• However, there are very simple adjustments you can make to maximize your rewards and earn lots more Amex Membership Rewards points

You can easily combine your Membership Rewards points

One big misconception some people seem to have is that you can’t combine Membership Rewards points. People tell me “well I already have so many points with my Platinum Card, I don’t want to switch to another card.” That’s valid, though the truth is that you don’t need to. You can combine the Amex points you earn across all your Membership Rewards-earning cards. Heck, you don’t even have to combine them, it’s automatic, as long as they’re all linked to the same Membership Rewards account. This couldn’t be easier.

So in this post, I wanted to share some basic cards to consider if you’re someone who currently uses the Amex Platinum Card for your spend but actually wants to maximize your points.

Great complements to the Amex Business Platinum Card

• The Blue Business® Plus Credit Card from American Express has no annual fee (Rates & Fees), and offers 2x Membership Rewards points on the first $50,000 spent on the card annually (after that 1x); that’s right, you’ll earn double as many points for non-bonused spend as you would on the Amex Business Platinum Card, and this card doesn’t even have an annual fee
• American Express® Business Gold Card has a $375 annual fee (Rates & Fees), and earns 4X Membership Rewards® points on the 2 categories where your business spends the most each billing cycle from 6 eligible categories. You will earn 4X points on the first $150,000 in combined purchases from these categories each calendar year (then 1X thereafter). The bonus categories are as follows:
  • Purchases at US media providers for advertising in select media (online, TV, radio)
  • U.S. purchases made from electronic goods retailers and software & cloud system providers
  • U.S. purchases at restaurants, including takeout and delivery
  • U.S. purchases at gas stations
  • Transit purchases including trains, taxicabs, rideshare services, ferries, tolls, parking, buses, and subways
  • Monthly wireless telephone service charges made directly from a wireless telephone service provider in the U.S.

Great complements to the Amex Personal Platinum Card

• The Amex EveryDay® Credit Card from American Express has no annual fee, and offers 2x Membership Rewards points at U.S. supermarkets (on up to $6,000 of spend per year), plus a 20% points bonus when you use your card at least 20 times during a billing cycle, meaning you’re earning up to 2.4x points at supermarkets and 1.2x points on everyday spend
• The Amex EveryDay® Preferred Credit Card has a $95 annual fee, and offers 3x Membership Rewards points at U.S. supermarkets (on up to $6,000 of spend per year), 2x points at U.S. gas stations, plus a 50% points bonus when you use your card at least 30 times during a billing cycle, meaning you’re earning up to 4.5x points at supermarkets, 3x points at gas stations, and 1.5x points on everyday spend
• The American Express® Gold Card has a $325 annual fee (Rates & Fees); the card offers 4x Membership Rewards at restaurants worldwide (up to $50,000 in purchases per calendar year and then 1x), 4x Membership Rewards at U.S. supermarkets (up to $25,000 per calendar year and then 1x), and 3x Membership Rewards on flights booked directly with airlines or at AmexTravel.com.

The information and associated card details on this page for the Amex EveryDay Credit Card and Amex EveryDay Preferred Credit Card have been collected independently by OMAAT and have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.

Bottom line

The Amex Personal Platinum Card® and the Amex Business Platinum Card are fantastic cards for the perks. However, they aren’t cards on which I’d recommend putting a ton of spend. If you’re one of those people that puts a significant amount of spend on either card, consider getting a complimentary Amex card that can help you earn more points.

Don’t want to pay an additional annual fee? Not a problem, pick up The Blue Business® Plus Credit Card from American Express, which offers 2x points on the first $50,000 spent annually, or The Amex EveryDay® Credit Card from American Express, which offers 2x points at U.S. supermarkets and a 20% points bonus, meaning that a minimum you’ll go from earning one Membership Rewards point per dollar spent to 1.2 Membership Rewards points per dollar spent.

And if you don’t mind paying a bit higher of an annual fee, you can hugely increase your points earning potential with some premium cards, like the American Express® Gold Card or American Express® Business Gold Card.

Best of all, these points will be added directly to your existing Membership Rewards balance, so there’s no effort required.

The information and associated card details on this page for the Amex EveryDay Credit Card have been collected independently by OMAAT and have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.

The following links will direct you to the rates and fees for mentioned American Express Cards. These include: American Express® Business Gold Card (Rates & Fees), American Express® Gold Card (Rates & Fees), and The Blue Business® Plus Credit Card from American Express (Rates & Fees).