Nowadays premium cards are more popular than ever before. Two of the most well-known are the American Express Platinum Card® and Chase Sapphire Reserve® Card, and I know a lot of people struggle to decide which card is a better fit.
In this post, I’d like to take a closer look at that question — what are the pros and cons of both cards, and can it make sense to have both of them? I figure this is an especially interesting time to examine this, given that both cards underwent major refreshes in 2025.
One thing to know upfront: I hold both of these cards and pay both annual fees, so this isn’t a hypothetical exercise for me. I’ve also written up the full math on each card individually — whether the Amex Platinum is worth it and whether the Chase Sapphire Reserve is worth it— so this post focuses on the head-to-head question rather than repeating the card-by-card details.
Link: Learn more about the American Express Platinum Card® and Chase Sapphire Reserve® Card
In this post:
A quick comparison
If you only read one section, here’s where the comparison lands:
- Get the Chase Sapphire Reserve if you want one premium card that’s also rewarding for everyday spending — 4x points on direct airfare and hotels, and 3x points on dining, is a structure you can actually spend on, and the $300 travel credit is the easiest to use credit on either card
- Get the Amex Platinum if you’re optimizing for perks rather than earning — the lounge network is broader, and the credits (hotel, Resy, entertainment, Uber) can clear the fee on their own if they fit your life
- Get both if your travel volume justifies it — the cards overlap less than you’d think, and I make the math work on both (more on that below)
- Get neither if you won’t use the credits — both cards are “coupon book” propositions at their core, and without the credits, the fees are hard to clear
Basics of the Amex Platinum Card
The Amex Platinum Card has a $895 annual fee (Rates & Fees), and offers a variety of perks (Enrollment is required for select benefits), including:
- A variety of annual credits, including up to $600 in annual hotel credits (minimum two-night stay for The Hotel Collection, one night stay for Fine Hotels + Resorts® — up to $300 back semi-annually), up to $300 in annual digital entertainment credits, up to $300 in annual statement credits on a digital or club membership at Equinox, up to $209 in annual CLEAR+ credits, up to $200 in annual airline fee credits, and up to $200 in annual U.S. Uber credits
- The most comprehensive airport lounge access offered by any card, including access to Amex Centurion Lounges, Delta Sky Clubs®, Plaza Premium Lounges, a Priority Pass™ Select membership, and more
- 5x points on airfare purchased directly from airlines (on up to $500,000 in flight purchases per calendar year, and then 1x points), making this the best card for airfare purchases; other than that, there are better cards for earning Amex Membership Rewards points
- Hotel status with Marriott and Hilton, and car rental status with National, Avis, and Hertz
- A Global Entry or TSA PreCheck credit (this benefit applies once every 4.5 years for the application of TSA PreCheck, and once every four years for the application of Global Entry)
- Access to the Platinum Member Airfares program, which can particularly save you money on premium international airfare
Read a full review of the Amex Platinum Card, and read about my favorite perks of the Amex Platinum Card.
It’s hard to do a “one size fits all” number crunching on the Amex Platinum Card. That’s because the card could offer well over twice the credits of the annual fee, but a vast majority of people won’t fully maximize them. That doesn’t account for all the other perks of the card, like the airport lounge access program.
The catch is that not everyone is going to use all of those credits. Let me share my math, based on my own situation. Personally, I get near full value out of the:
- $600 annual hotel credit
- $200 annual airline fee credit
- $200 annual Uber credit
- $209 annual CLEAR+ credit
That’s just over $1,200 worth of credits that I’m more or less maximizing, so that’s pretty awesome, if you ask me, as that more than covers the annual fee, by my math. That’s without even using the Equinox or digital entertainment credits. Admittedly, there are some hoops to jump through, which is a point of frustration among many cardmembers.
Basics of the Chase Sapphire Reserve Card
The Chase Sapphire Reserve has a $795 annual fee, and offers a variety of benefits, including:
- A variety of annual credits, including up to $300 in annual travel credits, up to $300 in annual dining credits, up to $500 in annual hotel credits with The Edit (minimum two-night stay), up to $300 in annual Stubhub & viagogo credits, up to $288 in annual Apple TV & Apple Music benefits, and more
- Airport lounge access, including access to Chase Sapphire Lounges, select Air Canada Lounges, and a Priority Pass™ Select membership
- A lucrative rewards structure, with 8x points on Chase Travel℠ bookings, 4x points on direct airfare and hotel bookings, 3x points on dining spending, and more
- If you spend $75,000 per calendar year on the card, you can earn extra benefits, like IHG One Rewards Diamond status, Southwest Rapid Rewards A-List status, a $500 Southwest credit via Chase Travel, and a $250 Shops at Chase credit
- Fantastic rental car coverage, as well as travel and baggage protection
- A Global Entry, NEXUS, or TSA PreCheck fee credit every four years
Read a full review of the Chase Sapphire Reserve Card, and read my take on whether the Chase Sapphire Reserve is independently worth it.
With the recent refresh of the Chase Sapphire Reserve, the card is much more comparable to the Amex Platinum Card in terms of the effort required to justify the fee. That’s because the card has a higher annual fee than it previously had, but also added a bunch of benefits that can help justify it.
One thing that sets the card apart is that it actually has a lucrative rewards structure across many categories that people spend a significant amount in, from airfare, to hotels, to dining, so this is a card that many people may want to get for the rewards structure.
When it comes to justifying the annual fee, I think everyone should be able to deduct $300 immediately from that amount for mental accounting purposes, given the ease with which the $300 travel credit can be used. The other credits are a bit trickier to maximize, and people will have conflicting takes when it comes to how much value they’ll get out of them.
Another consideration is how much you value the airport lounge access offered by the card, and how that factors into justifying the annual fee.
Head-to-head: where each card wins
With the above out of the way, I’d like to take a look at some of the areas where one card has an advantage over another, ranging from credits, to lounge access, to points earning.
Credits: the Sapphire Reserve has the easiest one, the Platinum has the deeper stack
Both cards run a “coupon book” model, but the details differ significantly. The Chase Sapphire Reserve $300 travel credit is the single easiest credit on either card — there’s no enrollment, no merchant restrictions, and it applies automatically to virtually any travel purchase. I treat it as lowering the card’s real cost from $795 to $495 a year, full stop.
After that, the Chase Sapphire Reserve’s credits get more conditional: the $300 dining credit depends on whether participating restaurants are near you, the Apple subscriptions only count if you’d pay for them anyway, and the $500 The Edit hotel credit comes with a two-night minimum that keeps me from considering it to be worth face value.
The Amex Platinum Card has no single credit as frictionless as the Chase Sapphire Reserve’s travel credit, but the stack runs deeper. In my case, four credits — the $600 hotel credit, $400 Resy credit, $300 entertainment credit, and $200 Uber credit — get to roughly $1,500 with minimal effort, which clears the fee on its own. The catch is that each one assumes something about your life: that you’ll book prepaid stays through Amex Travel, that you live in a Resy-dense city, and that you already pay for the streaming services.
So the credit question comes down to this: the Chase Sapphire Reserve guarantees you $300 of value with zero thought, while the Amex Platinum can deliver more total value, but only if its specific credits match your spending patterns. Run your own life against both lists before deciding.
Lounge access: different networks, not better or worse
Both cards include a Priority Pass™ Select membership, so that’s a wash. The differentiation is in each issuer’s proprietary network:
- Amex Platinum: Amex Centurion Lounges, Delta Sky Club access when flying Delta with some limits, Plaza Premium, and Escape Lounges — the broadest total network of any card
- Chase Sapphire Reserve: Chase Sapphire Lounges (unlimited visits with two guests) and select Air Canada Lounges — a smaller network, but the Sapphire Lounges themselves are excellent, and no other US card gets you into Air Canada’s lounges
Which network wins is almost entirely a function of your home airport and the airlines you fly. A Delta loyalist gets far more from the Amex Platinum, while someone based at an airport with a Sapphire Lounge, or who flies Air Canada regularly, gets more from the Chase Sapphire Reserve. I’d encourage looking up the actual lounge locations at the two or three airports you pass through most before letting this factor decide anything.
Earning: the Reserve is a spending card, the Platinum is not
This is the cleanest structural difference between the two cards. The Chase Sapphire Reserve earns 4x points on direct airfare and hotel bookings and 3x points on dining — categories where most travelers spend real money — plus 8x points through the Chase Travel portal if you’re willing to book that way. It’s a card you can genuinely use as a daily driver for travel and dining spend.
The Amex Platinum earns 5x on airfare booked directly with airlines — the best airfare rate on any card — and 1x points on essentially everything else. That makes it a one-category card: superb for flights, uncompetitive everywhere else. In my own wallet, the Amex Platinum gets airfare and nothing else, the Chase Sapphire Reserve gets hotels, and dining goes to the Amex Gold. If you only want to carry one premium card and want it to earn well across categories, that points to the Chase Sapphire Reserve.
How do you decide between these premium cards?
So, how should you decide whether to pick up the Amex Platinum Card or Chase Sapphire Reserve? Or should you decide to get both or neither? Personally, I’d kind of view the value propositions independently, given that nowadays both cards have steep annual fees, and then you have to work backwards to justify them, in terms of how you value lounge access, the return on spending, and the credits.
What the two cards have in common is that they both offer a Priority Pass™ Select membership and a Global Entry or TSA PreCheck fee credit. Neither of those are particularly noteworthy benefits among premium cards.
With that in mind, what do I recommend for people who ask me which card they should get?
- If you actually want a card that has a fairly lucrative and well-rounded rewards structure, the Chase Sapphire Reserve shines; meanwhile the Amex Platinum Card is only worth using for airfare spending, and is otherwise a card you get for the perks
- While both cards have lounge access benefits, they’re very different — if you value Amex Centurion Lounge and Delta Sky Club access, go for the Amex Platinum Card, while if you value Chase Sapphire Lounge and Air Canada Lounge access, go for the Chase Sapphire Reserve
- Both cards have a “coupon book” model of sorts, where credits can be used to help offset the annual fee, for mental accounting purposes; we all have different consumer behavior, so there’s not going to be a “one size fits all” answer as to which credits are better, though I think we can all agree the Chase Sapphire Reserve $300 travel credit is the easiest of all the credits to use with ease
I don’t think one card is the obvious winner, but for those with a certain type of consumer behavior who are willing to put in the effort, I think you can come out way ahead with either or both cards.
Why I hold both, and what it actually costs me
Personally, I have both the Amex Platinum Card and the Chase Sapphire Reserve. Yes, that means I’m paying nearly $1,500 in annual fees, and that’s a massive amount to spend. That being said, the math mostly checks out for me.
The reason both cards survive in my wallet is that they barely overlap in how I use them. The Amex Platinum is my airfare card and my Centurion Lounge and Delta Sky Club key. Its hotel, Resy, entertainment, and Uber credits clear its fee. The Chase Sapphire Reserve is my hotel spending card, and my Sapphire Lounge key. Its travel credit, dining credit, and Apple subscriptions get me to roughly breakeven before counting anything else. Different jobs, different credits, different lounges — which is the only reason paying both fees isn’t redundant.
If anything, what I struggle with most in justifying these cards on an ongoing basis is the credit card fatigue I feel, and the effort it takes to maximize value and make the math work. I think people will be in wildly different camps when it comes to making the value work.
Bottom line
The Amex Platinum Card and Chase Sapphire Reserve are the two most popular premium cards. Both cards can potentially offer outsized value. While the cards have distinct benefits, the concept is similar — both have steep annual fees, which can hopefully be justified due to a combination of useful lounge access and credits that can offset the annual fee, among other things.
Personally, I continue to make the fees work on both of these cards, in terms of mental accounting. If you’re trying to decide which card makes the most sense, consider how much value you’d get out of the benefits of each card, particularly with the credits. If you’re anything like me, the math may make sense on both cards, while for others, it might not make sense on either card.
Where do you stand on the value of the Amex Platinum Card vs. Chase Sapphire Reserve?
The following links will direct you to the rates and fees for mentioned American Express Cards. These include: American Express Platinum Card® (Rates & Fees).
I’ve had the CSR from inception but will be downgrading when this year’s fee hits. The general travel credit is great, but every other credit they’ve added is junk to me. $300 in split credits to use at a tiny number of restaurants that don’t really interest me? $500 in split credits for multi-night bookings at a small number of very expensive hotels? No thanks. And I hardly put any spend on the card since...
I’ve had the CSR from inception but will be downgrading when this year’s fee hits. The general travel credit is great, but every other credit they’ve added is junk to me. $300 in split credits to use at a tiny number of restaurants that don’t really interest me? $500 in split credits for multi-night bookings at a small number of very expensive hotels? No thanks. And I hardly put any spend on the card since both Citi Prestige and Amex Gold are better for restaurants, while most of my hotel spend is split across other cards with more useful hotel credits.
I too have both, and also have the United Club Card. I'm going to drop either the Amex Plat or the CSR in the next fee cycle.
I think Ben's assessment is actually pretty well thought through. For our needs, the CSR is feeling somewhat more practical at this moment at least. Amex Plat is a very urban, Delta, NYC, Resy product... the Amex world view is that NYC, JFK, etc is the center...
I too have both, and also have the United Club Card. I'm going to drop either the Amex Plat or the CSR in the next fee cycle.
I think Ben's assessment is actually pretty well thought through. For our needs, the CSR is feeling somewhat more practical at this moment at least. Amex Plat is a very urban, Delta, NYC, Resy product... the Amex world view is that NYC, JFK, etc is the center of the universe. There's a whole world out there that isn't that.....
But on the other hand, LHW Leaders club through Amex is a terrific perk, as its a unique offering as opposed to the fairly useless large hotel chain status that yields nothing of any real value. But its the only really unique perk.
So ultimately, CSR being airline independent, basically $500 real AF (after $300 travel credit) and greater portability of points, make it feel like the more practical card for our purposes.
@Dan, great catch. Something that I could never quite put my finger on with AMEX PLAT, you have. It is *very* Wealthy Urbanite-centric. I don't think they'll replace the now-gone $50 Saks' credit with a Scheel's credit - although I'd welcome the move. Also, having spun out of the Delta-verse, that Delta-centrism is now palpable. You also called-out the LHW LC - and just getting into that, myself.
As for spending, the AMEX PLAT is...
@Dan, great catch. Something that I could never quite put my finger on with AMEX PLAT, you have. It is *very* Wealthy Urbanite-centric. I don't think they'll replace the now-gone $50 Saks' credit with a Scheel's credit - although I'd welcome the move. Also, having spun out of the Delta-verse, that Delta-centrism is now palpable. You also called-out the LHW LC - and just getting into that, myself.
As for spending, the AMEX PLAT is my go-to for airfare and billing monthly mobile phone bills (cellphone loss/damage plan). Beyond any card-use mandated savings (Resy, etc.), that's about it, there. The CSR gets the rest of the travel spend (hotels, rental cars) and utilities. Believe it or not, a Sam's Club MC is getting the fuel spend. It's a nice 4% cash-back card on fuel. Find a Sam's Club or Murphy Oil station and the effective savings can be considerable. The rest of the family spend goes on the UA Club VISA card.
The Schwab Amex Platinum or Morgan Stanley credit can make the card free
@Lal, good point. From what I am aware, the Schwab AMEX PLAT is *FREE* and requires a minimum of $250K in assets invested independently (and directly) with them. Independent advisors operating via CS cannot get you one.
How is it free? From what I see, you get a $100 statement credit if you have over $250k invested with them. $200 credit if you have over $1M invested.
Capital One VX for me. I want value not status. The lounges are full anyway and not that great.
I'm downgrading my CSR as soon as the AF hits. But I might come back to it if they add Southwest Lounge access when those lounges eventually launch.
@Big Jeff - good point. If they do add that perk, I am sure it will be spendwalled ($75K+).
have to say
1. AMEX is so devalued in my eyes by their affiliation with Delta. Literally the last card I'd ever get given their partnership with Delta. There's a lot more to the amex brand than delta but they've just devalued their brand for me too much with SkyPesos association.
2. I've had an amex before (recently) and it was just as I expected -- more of a pain to use than useful.
“That’s the way Max Power is… decisive, uncompromising… and rude.”
I carry both, but I’ve found the car rental and trip interruption insurances on CSR far exceed AMEX from direct personal experience (claims). CSR has earned my loyalty.
Primary car rental insurance is a big deal. People don't think about it until they get hit with a charge and with CSR its not your problem. With Amex your insurance comes first (except overseas) which can really bump the premium for your auto insurance.
Strictly between the two cards, yes CSR has primary CDW and amex platinum does not. But it can be added to any amex card for $20. Or get it free with onekey. No need to pay $$$ AF for it if that's the main feature you're interested in.
True! I hit a column literally backing out of the rental car parking lot. Let the CSR car rental insurance do it's thing. After Alamo sent me all the paperwork on damage and repair costs, I forwarded it all to Chase (a little hassle, especially when I don't own a computer, lol) and they cut a check to cover 95% of the cost the next day.
I used to have both plus Capital One X. Among the 3, I think Amex is the best in terms of hotel selections and all of its perks like Resy credit, Uber One, etc. Capital One X is good for others because you accumulate points twice as fast and its membership is much cheaper compares to Amex Platinum and Chase Reserve. With Capital One X $300 travel credit, it's only $95.
No doubt Amex has the best customer service since ages ago.
Plus Capital 1 gives you 10,000 miles a year bonus, fully covering the annual fee.
It’s a tie…they’re both lacking. But if I was made to take one and only one for next few years…CSR wins. But only if they keep $250 select hotel credit and we 10x Paze bonus for severals in a row every year.
I've been CSR-holder since its inception, nowadays I feel its priority pass and chase's own lounges are becoming useless, with all lounges being full with a waiting list, so having to knock on 4 lounges in Washington Dulles a few weeks ago felt like having the CSR in an airport feels like a "beggar's license".
I visited 8 lounges (2 domestic and 6 in Europe) using the PP benefit with Reserve on one round trip in April. There was a wait at only 1 lounge. That was at AMS and the wait was 15 minutes.
The Chase lounge in PHL, my home base, is a joke. By 11:30 am, there is no food available because they are switching to the lunch menu, only one bartender working at one time, and many staff standing around doing not much.
at first i scoffed at the Stubhub credit, but its nice to have a paid-for activity since so many of our other credits are flight/hotel specific. makes for a nice date night with the dining credit (assuming you have some restaurants nearby)
@Ben
Why do you put dining on Amex Gold when you also hold Citi Prestige?
Maybe he values 4x MR over 5x TY... (then there's that Citi Strata Elite 6x TY, but only Fri & Sat after 6PM EST... hurr durr... Citi Nights! LOL.)
Still no answer. LOL.
He's pulling a Tim Dunn 737.
I'm seeing less use for the Amex. Plat. I now have both cards, and while I don't like using card travel portals, I do like the 8x points on airfare from the Chase Sapphire Reserve.
I've always found Amex. to have the best customer service in the years (decades...yikes!) I've been using them.
Neither card is an 'everyday' card. They're each 'category' and 'coupon-credit' cards, unless you prefer earning 1 MR or 1 UR, when you could be earning 2-3x elsewhere (Citi Double Cash 2x, no fee; BILT Palladium 2-3x if using one of the 5 'Accelerators'... making occasional VFTW/FM commenter @L3's day, if he could see me saying nice things about BILT, for once. Bah.)
@Willy,
I hold both the AMEX PLAT and CSR.
Glad your experience with PLAT agents has been solid; mine's been a mixed bag. Some are excellent (old-school DL Diamond or UA 1K desk caliber), and others have been condescending and unhelpful creeps - enough to make me question 20 years of loyalty. And, no offense or slur intended, the "creep" agents I've dealt with tend to have rough audio setups and trouble understanding me, a...
@Willy,
I hold both the AMEX PLAT and CSR.
Glad your experience with PLAT agents has been solid; mine's been a mixed bag. Some are excellent (old-school DL Diamond or UA 1K desk caliber), and others have been condescending and unhelpful creeps - enough to make me question 20 years of loyalty. And, no offense or slur intended, the "creep" agents I've dealt with tend to have rough audio setups and trouble understanding me, a native US English speaker. Draw your own conclusions. Yes, I've contacted the 'real' AMEX PLAT number every time.
Also worth noting: CSR has quietly added World of Hyatt Explorist as a $75K+ spend perk.
1969, I've had an interesting variety experiences with Amex phone agents, too. I've noticed, the N. America-based ones are mostly excellent. Got a few from eastern Canada that helped me sort out some challenging schedule changes on itineraries booked via Amex Travel. Also, some of the discounts via the International Airline Program have saved me hundreds, if not thousands, on long-haul business class.
@1990, sounds similar. For a card at this price point, that level of inconsistency is unacceptable, and especially after decades of loyalty. That's the real issue here, not where any given agent happens to be working - it's uneven service from a 'premium' product that should know better. That said, I'm keeping the AMEX PLAT, because the return justifies it; even when I get a crappy agent. As Lucky noted above, it's a great points...
@1990, sounds similar. For a card at this price point, that level of inconsistency is unacceptable, and especially after decades of loyalty. That's the real issue here, not where any given agent happens to be working - it's uneven service from a 'premium' product that should know better. That said, I'm keeping the AMEX PLAT, because the return justifies it; even when I get a crappy agent. As Lucky noted above, it's a great points return for buying tickets directly from airlines. You can also convert Rakuten into AMEX points, then redeem them outright via AMEX travel or transfer to more 'lucrative' programs as needed without risking specific program devaluation. (AMEX Points are for saving, AirPennies are for spending)
I've minimized my DL flying since 2025, and the SkyClub the overall DL experience isn't what it once was. Priority Pass has also gotten dicey at certain airports, with the overcrowding and waitlisting already mentioned. I wish they'd bring back the dining credits; I'd rather have a discounted good meal and relax than stand in line for an overcrowded lounge with discount-store catering and unruly guests. The Centurion Lounge is often similarly disappointing, though exceptions exist (SLC).
If I had to keep just one card, it'd be the AMEX PLAT, as I get more value from AMEX points on travel redemptions. Booking and managing travel through Chase's portal, by comparison, is a circus. However, I still get value from both.
I tend to agree with everything you've written above. I was in SLC last year before the new Centurion opened, so now I'm jealous! (Looking forward to when the EWR Terminal A opens.) I tend to think the new Sapphire lounges are doing better (food-wise). C1 is giving them a run for their money (but then you start to pay thousands of dollars in annual fees every year.)
"You can also convert Rakuten into AMEX points, then [snip!] transfer to more 'lucrative' programs as needed..."
That's exactly what I do; I'm averaging ~40,000 points per quarter in the last 12 months (yes, I look for the MAJOR bonuses with Rakuten, obviously...).
Willy, what do you buy with Rakuten? I have it but never think to use it; however, your return is so impressive I may have to make the effort. TIA.