Score a Whopping 250K Bonus With the Amex Business Platinum Card [Current Public Offer Is 200K]

New applicants could earn 250,000 points with The Business Platinum Card^® from American Express. This is easily one of the largest Amex welcome bonus offers we’ve ever seen.

Amex is known for awarding new cardholders generous welcome offers for meeting minimum spending requirements, but 250,000 points takes generosity to the next level. Here’s what you should know about Amex’s targeted welcome offer and some tips on how you might spend a quarter of a million points.

Targeted offers are discussed in the article below. Please note that these offers are not available to all applicants. Any information related to targeted offers has been independently collected and has not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.

Outstanding Amex Business Platinum Card Offer

Before you get as excited as we are, it’s worth noting this welcome bonus offer might not be available to all applicants. The current publicly available offer is:

• Earn 150,000 200,000 points after spending $20,000 in eligible purchases within the first 3 months.

The card also comes with an annual fee of $895 (rates & fees).

This amazing welcome offer is targeted at certain applicants, who can earn up to 250,000 Membership Rewards points after spending $15,000 in purchases in the first 3 months of card ownership.

What are 250,000 points worth? Based on our latest point valuations, we estimate that Amex Membership Rewards points are worth about 2.2 cents apiece — so this 250,000-point welcome offer is worth roughly $5,400 for travel!

Option 1: Check On Amex Directly (Try This First)

First, check the American Express website to see if you’re eligible for the 250,000-point welcome bonus offer.

The current publicly available offer is: Earn 150,000 200,000 points after spending $20,000 in eligible purchases within the first 3 months.

However, our writers have seen that American Express offers an elevated bonus directly to targeted applicants. As with all targeted offers, these aren’t available to all applicants. Here’s an example of the targeted offer we’ve found.

This targeted offer provides 250,000 bonus points after spending $20,000 in the first 3 months.

This welcome offer notes explicitly that you “may not be eligible to receive a welcome offer if you have or have had this Card or previous versions of this Card.”

Option 2: Targeted Email Offers

Don’t dismiss those targeted emails or mailers. These offers may provide a special targeted invitation for you to apply. If you want targeted offers, opt in to receive New Card and Credit Offers in your Amex account’s General Marketing Email Preferences.

Option 3: Check on CardMatch

Use the CardMatch tool to check for elevated offers for various cards and issuers. CardMatch doesn’t conduct a hard pull on your credit, so your score won’t be impacted.

Benefits of the Amex Business Platinum Card

This business card comes with many benefits that offset the $895 annual fee.

• Generous bonus points: 5x on flights, prepaid hotels, and short-term rentals booked at AmexTravel.com; 2x points for eligible purchases at U.S. electronic goods retailers (like Apple), U.S. shipping providers, U.S. software and cloud system providers, U.S. construction material and hardware suppliers, and on purchases of $5,000 more (limited to $2,000,000 per year); 1x points are earned on all other eligible spending
• Access to over 1,550 lounges at airports around the world, including American Express Centurion Lounges (domestic and international), Delta Sky Clubs (with a same-day Delta boarding pass), and Priority Pass lounges (enrollment required)
• Up to $600 annual hotel credit on prepaid Fine Hotels + Resorts or The Hotel Collection stays booked on AmexTravel.com. The Hotel Collection requires a minimum 2-night stay.
• Global Entry or TSA PreCheck application fee credit
• Generous statement credits, including eligible purchases made at Dell Technologies, Indeed, Adobe, U.S. wireless service providers, airline fee incidentals, and a CLEAR Plus membership (enrollment required for some benefits)
• Up to $200 Hilton statement credit (enrollment required)
• Complimentary elite status with Hilton Honors, Marriott Bonvoy, and Leaders Club upon enrollment
• 35% airline bonus when you use Pay With Points for a flight on your pre-selected airline booked through AmexTravel.com (up to 1 million points per year)
• Unlock additional credits by spending $250,000 in a calendar year to use the next year: up to $1,200 in statement credits for flights booked online at AmexTravel.com and up to $2,400 in statement credits for American Express One AP monthly fees

Maximizing 250K Points for Summer Holidays

It’s possible to redeem Amex Membership Rewards points in dozens of ways, whether you’re interested in flying some of the world’s best first and business class seats or flying the whole family to Europe. Here are a couple of options to get the ball rolling.

Visit The City of Light This Summer

The Air France-KLM Flying Blue program frequently offers one-way tickets to destinations across Europe (via Paris or Amsterdam) from just 25,000 points in economy. You can transfer your Amex Membership Rewards points at a 1:1 ratio to Flying Blue.

You can plan an epic trip to Paris with the bonus on this card, transferring part of your bonus to the Flying Blue program. You can book round-trip tickets for a family of 4 between the U.S. and Europe for just 200,000 Flying Blue miles (plus taxes and fees). That will get you to the City of Light, where you can explore the Eiffel Tower, Notre Dame, or the famous catacombs of Paris.

If you are flying solo, or with just one other person, you’d have enough miles from this card’s bonus to do the round-trip in Air France business class, with tickets starting at around 120,000 miles per person.

Fly First Class With Emirates for an African Safari

With an onboard shower and some of the most expensive Champagne in the sky, flying Emirates first class on the Airbus A380 is a bucket-list experience for many frequent flyers. While you might not consider Dubai an ideal summer destination, leveraging Emirates’ network in Dubai to reach an onward destination is a great option.

Membership Rewards transfer 1:1 to Qantas Frequent Flyer and 5:4 Emirates’ Skywards frequent flyer program. So this 250,000-point offer alone should be more than enough to cover the cost of a one-way first class ticket between the East Coast and Johannesburg, South Africa (JNB), which comes in at 178,750 Skywards miles. That’s a fabulous deal for over 20 hours of first-class flying. Johannesburg can be an ideal hub for a summer trip, including an African safari or other adventures.

Indulge at The Ritz-Carlton Maldives, Fari Islands

If you prefer to spend points and miles on hotel stays rather than flights, visiting The Ritz-Carlton Maldives, Fari Islands, would be well within reach thanks to this 250,000-point welcome offer. You might think the Maldives would be too hot in the summer, but it’s an ideal summer beach spot, since the temperatures remain between 80 and 85 degrees Fahrenheit year-round.

Ritz-Carlton properties are part of the Marriott Bonvoy portfolio. Membership Rewards points transfer to Marriott at a 1:1 ratio, meaning you could accrue at least 250,000 Marriott Bonvoy points from this welcome bonus alone.

With award nights at this property starting at about 88,000 Marriott Bonvoy points per night, the welcome bonus alone could get you to a place where you’re just 14,000 points shy of a 3-night stay at one of the Maldives’ most exclusive resorts.

Final Thoughts

This 250,000-point welcome bonus offer has turned our heads here at Upgraded Points.

If you’re eligible for the Amex Business Platinum card and don’t already have it in your wallet, this could be the best time to apply.