Small-business owners who travel often can benefit significantly from the right travel rewards credit card. These cards offer perks that help offset common business expenses and make frequent business travel a little easier.
The card_name is one option for those seeking to add a new credit card to their wallet. This card comes with premium benefits for your business and travel perks that will make your business trips feel more like mini-vacations.
The Business Platinum Card from American Express
Credit score needed
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Bonus rewards
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TIME’s Take
While the card_name comes with significant perks, including over $1,000 in statement credits, Global Lounge Collection access, and elite status with popular hotels, this luxury card isn’t right for everyone. That’s because it comes with a hefty annual fee of $695, which could be difficult to offset unless you travel for business often.
That said, the card_name could hold a lot of value for frequent business travelers who can benefit from its rewards and statement credits. Its many insurance and spending protections can also help ensure you’re covered for things like lost luggage, trip delays, and damaged or stolen purchases.
Pros & cons
Pros:
- Up to 5x Membership Rewards on qualifying prepaid hotel and flight purchases
- Generous welcome offer
- Over $1,000 in statement credits available
- American Express Global Lounge Collection access
- Hilton Honors Gold status and Marriott Bonvoy Gold Elite status
- No foreign transaction fees
Cons:
- High annual fee
- Good or excellent credit likely required
- High minimum spend required to earn welcome offer
Who is the card for?
The card_name could be a smart addition to your wallet if you’re a business owner who spends a significant amount on travel. As a card member, you’ll earn up to 5x Membership Rewards for prepaid hotel and flight purchases made through Amex Travel, so frequent business travelers will get the most value from this card’s rewards structure.
The card_name offers a number of statement credits tailored for business owners who travel often, including the following:
- $400 Dell Technologies credit.
- $150 Adobe Creative Solutions credit.
- $360 Indeed credit.
- $120 wireless credit.
- $200 airline fee credit.
- $189 CLEAR Plus credit.
You’ll also get up to $100 in Global Entry or $85 in TSA PreCheck credits when you renew your membership every four or 4.5 years, respectively.
American Express doesn’t disclose its minimum credit score requirements, though top-tier credit cards often require applicants to have good to excellent credit for approval. This likely isn’t the card for you if you’re working on improving your credit.
Features
The card_name’s array of statement credits is what sets this premium card apart from others. But it also offers several other benefits that appeal to frequent business travelers.
Rewards
With this card, you’ll earn 5x Membership Rewards points on prepaid hotel and flight purchases you make through the American Express travel portal, 1.5x on purchases in qualifying business categories or eligible purchases over $5,000, and 1x points on all other eligible purchases. This card could make sense if you often book trips through Amex Travel; in fact, given these rewards, it probably doesn’t make financial sense to book outside the portal.
You can redeem your Membership Rewards for travel through Amex Travel, transfer them to one of over a dozen American Express travel partners, and more.
Lounge access
For those interested in relaxing at the airport, the card_name gives you access to more than 1,400 airport lounges in the American Express Global Lounge Collection, including Centurion and Priority Pass Select lounges. A Priority Pass membership can cost as much as $429 annually, so this card’s lounge benefit is a huge value-add.
Travel insurance
Card members also benefit from several insurance coverages to help minimize travel headaches. With this card, you’ll get trip delay, trip interruption and cancellation, baggage, and car rental loss and damage insurance.
Fine Hotels and Resorts benefits
The card_name also gives you access to the Fine Hotels and Resorts Program. Through this program, you’ll get perks like late checkout, free breakfasts for two, early check-in (when available), and room upgrades (when available.)
Elite status
As a cardholder, you’ll get Hilton Honors Gold status and Marriott Bonvoy Gold Elite status for no added cost. These statuses give you extra hotel benefits like late checkout and room upgrades (when available.)
The fine print
- reg_apr,reg_apr_type: 19.49% to 27.49% (variable)
- Intro purchase APR: N/A
- balance_transfer_intro_apr,balance_transfer_intro_duration: N/A
- Penalty APR: 29.99%
Additional hidden perks
Apart from the obvious, this card also has some hidden perks that make it worth considering, including shopping protections, cellphone protection, and expense management benefits.
Shopping protections
Cardholders get exclusive shopping protections, including extended warranty coverage and purchase protection. This card’s extended warranty coverage tacks on a year of additional protection to manufacturers’ warranties on covered purchases. Its purchase protection covers you for up to $10,000 per occurrence (or $50,000 per calendar year) if an eligible purchase is stolen, damaged, or lost.
Cellphone protection
You’ll also get cellphone protection with this card, which is a fairly uncommon benefit. This protection applies when you pay your monthly bill using your card. You can get up to $800 per claim for eligible devices if they’re damaged and need repairs. There’s a cap of two claims per year.
Expense management
The card_name offers tools and features that simplify expense management. Business owners can get employee cards with a smaller annual fee of $350 per card, and can set spending limits and track spending for each employee. American Express also lets you link card transactions with Quickbooks to make bookkeeping and accounting easier.
Cash flow management
With its Pay Over Time feature, American Express gives cardholders the option to pay for qualifying purchases with interest over time instead of all at once. This card also has no preset spending limit, so you don’t need to worry about hitting your credit limit if your expenses and cash flow fluctuate over time.
What could be improved
The card_name is generally only a good choice for a small subset of people: business owners who spend a lot on travel. Its $695 annual fee makes it a cost-prohibitive option if you don’t fall into this category and can’t use all the perks and credits this card offers.
While this card offers up to 5x in Membership Rewards points for qualifying prepaid hotel and flight purchases, its rewards structure is fairly complex and certain competitors have higher rewards rates on general business and travel purchases. For instance, with the Chase Ink Business Preferred, card members earn 3x points on the first $150,000 spent on shipping, advertising, internet and phone service, and travel purchases each year.
Card Alternatives
Bottom line
If you’re a frequent business traveler who can benefit from the card_name’s generous statement credits, this card could be a great choice. While it has a very high annual fee compared to many other business credit cards on the market, its rewards and credits can offset that fee if you spend in the right categories. If you don’t, this card likely won’t be the best option for your wallet. Instead, you might opt for a business travel rewards card with a lower annual fee, such as the Chase Ink Business Preferred or the American Express Business Gold Card.
For rates and fees of the card_name, please visit this URL.
The Business Platinum Card from American Express
Credit score needed
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Bonus rewards
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Frequently asked questions (FAQs)
Is the card_name hard to get?
You can apply for the card_name online through the American Express website. You’ll need to apply with an IRS-issued employer identification number (EIN) if you’ve registered your business as a corporation or partnership, though you can use your Social Security number if you’re a sole proprietor. You’ll likely need good to excellent credit to qualify.
What is the credit limit on the card_name?
Unlike most other credit cards, the card_name doesn’t have a preset limit. Instead, your credit limit can fluctuate based on your monthly spending.
What are the benefits of card_name?
The card_name has many benefits for frequent business travelers, including a lucrative welcome offer, decent rewards rate, generous statement credits, travelers insurance, lounge access, cell phone protection, shopping protections, and more.
