6 Reasons Why the Amex Business Platinum Is Built for Road Warriors

As a small business owner, I consider The Business Platinum Card^® from American Express an essential annual investment. Despite its $895 annual fee (rates & fees), the card enhances my travel for meetings, conferences, and other industry events.

While the annual fee is expensive on paper, there are a handful of statement credits (many of which require prior enrollment) that can offset most, if not all, of it. These include up to $600 in prepaid hotel credits, a $200 annual airline incidental fee credit, and up to $200 in Hilton statement credits per year. I also get extensive airport lounge access.

These benefits make the card an essential part of my business travel toolkit — so much so that I won’t travel without it in my wallet. Here’s why the Amex Business Platinum card is essential for self-employed road warriors.

Amex Business Platinum Card Overview

The Amex Business Platinum card is American Express’s flagship business card. It includes numerous premium travel, business, and lifestyle benefits, and each does its part to offset the card’s admittedly high $895 annual fee.

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The Business Platinum Card^® from American Express

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This card is ideal for business travelers who enjoy luxury travel and are looking for a card loaded with benefits!

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The Business Platinum Card^® from American Express

This card is ideal for business travelers who enjoy luxury travel and are looking for a card loaded with benefits!

Welcome Offer

Earn 150,000 200,000 Membership Rewards^® points after you spend $20,000 in eligible purchases on the Card within the first 3 months of Card Membership.

150,000 200,000 points

UP's Offer Valuation*:

Up to $4,400

Annual Fee

$895

APR

17.74% - 28.49% Variable

Credit Recommended

Upgraded Points credit ranges are a variation of FICO^® Score 8, one of many types of credit scores lenders may use when considering your credit card application.

Good to Excellent

Why We Like This Card

The Business Platinum Card^® from American Express is a premium travel rewards card tailored toward business owners who are frequent travelers with a high number of annual expenses.

When you factor in the large number of perks that the card offers like the best airport lounge access at over 1,550 lounges, along with tons of annual credits, it’s easy to see why this card is a top option for frequent traveling business owners.

Pros & Cons

Pros

• Earn 5x Membership Rewards points per $1 on eligible travel purchases like flights, prepaid hotels, and prepaid short-term rentals booked through AmexTravel.com
• Access to over 1,550 worldwide airport lounges as part of the American Express Global Lounge Collection
• Earn 2x Membership Rewards points on eligible purchases in key business categories, as well as on purchases of $5,000 or more (on up to $2 million per calendar year)

Cons

• High annual fee of $895 (rates & fees)
• Airline fee credit does not cover airfare, only incidentals like checked bags

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Card Highlights

• Elevated Welcome Offer: Earn 200,000 Membership Rewards^® points after you spend $20,000 in eligible purchases on the Business Platinum Card^® within the first 3 months of Card Membership.
• The American Express Global Lounge Collection^® can provide an escape at the airport. With complimentary access to more than 1,550 airport lounges across 140 countries and counting, you have more airport lounge options than any other credit card company on the market as of 07/2025.
• See how you can unlock over $3,500 in business and travel value annually after meeting qualifying spend thresholds on the Business Platinum Card. Terms apply.
• New! Get up to $300 in statement credits semi-annually for up to a total of $600 in statement credits per calendar year on prepaid Fine Hotels + Resorts^® or The Hotel Collection bookings through American Express Travel using the Business Platinum Card^®. The Hotel Collection requires a minimum two-night stay.
• No Preset Spending Limit: The spending limit on the Business Platinum Card is flexible, so unlike a traditional credit card with a set limit, the amount you can spend adapts based on factors such as your purchase, payment and credit history.
• Make the Business Platinum Card^® work even harder for you. Hilton For Business members get up to $200 back per calendar year when you make an eligible purchase at Hilton properties across the globe. Benefit enrollment required.
• Fly like a pro with a $200 Airline Fee Credit. Select one qualifying airline to receive up to $200 back per year on baggage fees and other incidentals.
• Use the Business Platinum Card and get up to $209 back per calendar year on your CLEAR^® Plus Membership (subject to auto-renewal).
• Maximize your time away with Fine Hotels + Resorts through Amex Travel™.
• New! Enroll and get up to $150 in statement credits on U.S purchases directly with Dell Technologies on the Business Platinum Card and an additional $1,000 statement credit after you spend $5,000 or more on that same Card per calendar year.
• New! Enroll and get a $250 statement credit after you spend $600 or more on U.S. purchases directly with Adobe per calendar year on the Business Platinum Card.
• Get up to $90 in statement credits quarterly for purchases with Indeed on the Business Platinum Card. That’s up to $360 back per year. Enrollment required.
• Get up to $10 in statement credits per month for wireless telephone service purchases made directly with a wireless provider in the U.S. on the Business Platinum Card. That’s up to $120 back per year. Enrollment required.
• Enhanced! 2X points on purchases at U.S. construction material & hardware suppliers, electronic goods retailers and software & cloud system providers, and shipping providers, as well as on each eligible purchase of $5,000 or more, up to $2 million of these purchases per calendar year. Purchases eligible for multiple additional point bonuses will only receive the highest eligible bonus.
• 5X points on flights and prepaid hotels on AmexTravel.com
• 1X points on other eligible purchases
• $895 Annual Fee.
• Terms Apply.

Financial Snapshot

• APR: 17.74% - 28.49% Variable
• Foreign Transaction Fees: None

Rewards Center

American Express Membership Rewards

The key travel benefits include airport lounge access, a 35% Pay with Points rebate for flights with an airline of my choice (booked through AmexTravel.com, up to 1 million points back per year), and elite status with multiple rental car companies and hotel groups. All of these perks go a long way to lowering costs and adding comfort to business travel.

The card earns American Express Membership Rewards points. It’s not the most lucrative for everyday spending, but it has a handful of bonus categories for popular business expenses. Here’s the breakdown:

• 5x points on prepaid flights and hotels on AmexTravel.com
• 2x points on construction material and hardware suppliers, electronic goods retailers, software & cloud system providers, shipping providers, and each eligible card purchase of $5,000 or more. Note that the 2 points per $1 categories have a combined cap of 2 million points per year, with 1 point per $1 afterwards.
• 1x points on all other eligible purchases

Hot Tip: Check to see if you’re eligible for a welcome bonus offer of up to 250,000 points with the Amex Business Platinum card. The current public offer is 150,000 200,000 points. (This targeted offer was independently researched and may not be available to all applicants.)

1. Airport Lounge Access Is Key to My Airport Routine

Airport lounge access is one of the Amex Business Platinum card’s main value propositions — and it’s easy to see why. It offers the most extensive airport lounge access of any business card, comprising more than 1,550 lounges:

• American Express Centurion Lounges
• Escape Lounges
• Delta Sky Clubs with 10 visits per year when flying with Delta, then unlimited after spending $75,000 per year.
• Lufthansa Lounges at select airports when flying Lufthansa Group airlines
• Plaza Premium
• Priority Pass Select (enrollment required)

I’ve visited hundreds of lounges in the American Express Global Lounge Collection since I opened my first Amex Business Platinum card nearly a decade ago. Some of my favorites include the newly opened Delta Sky Club at Chicago O’Hare (ORD), the American Express Centurion Lounge at New York (JFK), and the Plaza Premium Lounge at Hong Kong (HKG).

Each of these lounges offers comfortable spaces to work or relax before a flight, along with open bars and buffet-style dining, providing a welcome alternative to paying $20 for a mediocre meal in the terminal. While overcrowding at major airports like JFK happens regularly, there are multiple Global Lounge Collection lounges at many of the busiest terminals.

2. Annual Savings on Hotel Nights

There are 2 key credits that can help you save big on hotel nights every year.

The hotel credit brings up to $600 in annual value when you book prepaid stays through Amex Fine Hotels + Resorts or make eligible 2-night minimum reservations with The Hotel Collection. These are Amex’s exclusive travel programs, which offer additional perks at select properties. For example, FHR stays include daily breakfast for 2 guests, room upgrades upon availability, property credits, and late checkout.

This benefit is divided into two credits of up to $300 each year — one valid from January through June and the other from July through December. Because unused amounts don’t roll over between periods, I make a point to maximize each one every time.

Most recently, my wife and I used the credit to take $300 off a stay at the Park Hyatt Chicago the weekend after Thanksgiving. Room rates were inexpensive (by Park Hyatt standards), so we paid less than $200 out of pocket for our 1-night stay. Thanks to the stay’s FHR benefits, we enjoyed cocktails and sushi with the dining credit, as well as an excellent complimentary breakfast the next morning.

The Amex Business Platinum card also offers up to $50 in statement credits per quarter at Hilton Hotels (enrollment required).

In practice, this quarterly credit can be used to cover any expense charged directly by a Hilton property. This includes room rates and can also be used at on-property restaurants and bars, provided the hotel charges your card. For example, my wife and I used the credit for dinner and drinks at the Conrad New York earlier this year.

The Hilton credit can also be helpful for low-cost hotel stays. I stopped overnight on a road trip at the Tru by Hilton Elkhart in Indiana, paying just under $120 for the night. With the credit, it cost just $70 out of pocket.

Hot Tip:

Some Hilton hotels allow you to split room payments between multiple credit cards. This means it’s possible to charge $50 to my Amex Business Platinum card and the remaining balance to a card that earns bonus points on hotel stays.

3. 35% Pay with Points Rebate Makes Business Travel Less Expensive

The Amex Business Platinum card’s 35% Pay with Points rebate is one of my favorite benefits — and it’s the only publicly available Amex card that includes this perk.

Every year, I select 1 U.S. airline and get 35% of my points back when I book flights with that carrier through AmexTravel.com and pay with Membership Rewards points (up to 1 million points back per year).

It sounds a bit complicated, but here’s how it works. Generally, I receive 1 cent per point in value when booking airfare through AmexTravel.com and paying with Membership Rewards points. This means a $100 flight costs 10,000 points.

If booking with my selected airline, however, I’d get 35% of my points back after booking. For a $100 flight, I’d get 3,500 of those points back. This yields an effective 1.53 cents per point in value.

Granted, that’s below our Membership Rewards valuation of 2 cents per point. Still, redeeming points this way can be helpful when I need to book a specific flight and don’t want to worry about finding award availability. As a bonus, I earn miles and elite qualifying metrics on these tickets, just as I do with any other paid ticket.

I used this benefit last month when I flew home from the Chicago Seminars, an annual nonprofit award travel conference. I was scheduled to fly home from the conference during a snowstorm that coincided with the recent U.S. government shutdown, which resulted in nationwide air traffic control delays.

It became clear that the Delta Air Lines flight I booked with Delta SkyMiles wouldn’t take off, so I booked a last-minute United Airlines flight using Pay with Points. I arrived home just an hour late and saved roughly $250 compared to the cash rate.

4. $200 Airline Incidental Fee Credit Covers Pesky Fees

Another longstanding benefit of the Amex Business Platinum card is the up to $200 airline incidental fee credit (enrollment required).

I can use this credit to cover expenses such as seat selection fees, airport lounge passes, and checked luggage with 1 U.S. airline of my choice. This is the same airline I selected for the 35% Pay with Points rebate.

I use the full value of this credit every year, sometimes selecting Delta Air Lines and sometimes picking United Airlines. Flying with the same airline a couple of times per year makes it easy to use the credit.

5. Ongoing Hotel and Rental Car Elite Status

The Amex Business Platinum card includes complimentary elite status with 3 hotel groups and 3 rental car companies (enrollment required). On the hotel side, it offers Gold status with Hilton Honors, Gold Elite with Marriott Bonvoy, and Sterling status with Leading Hotels of the World’s Leaders’ Club loyalty program.

I also get Avis Preferred Plus, Hertz President’s Circle, and National Emerald Club Executive status. To sweeten the deal, some other loyalty programs offer status match promotions. For example, I matched the Hertz President’s Circle to get elite status with Sixt and Enterprise.

While these statuses won’t provide game-changing upgrades or perks, they offer a guaranteed baseline of benefits, such as late checkout at hotels and rental car upgrades. This gives me the flexibility to divide my loyalty across multiple rental car companies and hotel groups while still enjoying perks.

6. Dell Technologies Credit Keeps My Office Well Equipped

Several business-friendly statement credits are included with the Amex Business Platinum card.

My favorite — and the most broadly applicable for most small business owners — is the Dell Technologies credit (enrollment required). This benefit provides up to $150 in Dell credits per year at Dell.com. It offers another $1,000 statement credit after spending $5,000 or more in a calendar year.

This year, I used the credit to get a new second monitor for my WeWork office, and I plan to use it to upgrade my keyboard and mouse when the credit resets in January. I’ve always been tech-obsessed, and I particularly enjoy using this credit every year, especially now that I rent an office space.

Final Thoughts

The Amex Business Platinum card is one of the best business cards for entrepreneurs, freelancers, and business owners who travel frequently.

The card is expensive, but I offset much of its $895 annual fee with included statement credits for hotel stays, airlines, and new tech. Likewise, the Amex Business Platinum card’s travel benefits — including airport lounge access, hotel and rental car elite status, and access to Amex FHR hotel benefits — further enhance my business travel.