How I’m Getting $1,000+ in Value From the Refreshed Amex Platinum Card

The Platinum Card^® from American Express announced a major refresh on September 18, 2025, adding several new credits while also increasing the annual fee. After a full year of actually using those benefits, I’ve come to a pretty clear conclusion: I now get more measurable value than before the refresh, and I’ve found it easier to justify the higher annual fee than I expected.

Of course, a few benefits have been more useful to me than others. Some have become regular parts of my life at this point, some surprised me, and some haven’t provided me with any value.

Here’s how I’ve used the refreshed Amex Platinum card over the past year.

How the Amex Platinum Card Changed Last Year

For a quick recap, here’s what was added or changed on the Amex Platinum card in September 2025. Several of these benefits require enrollment in advance:

• Annual fee increased from $695 to $895 (rates & fees)
• Hotel credit increased from $200 to $600, divided into 2 semiannual $300 credits for prepaid Fine Hotels + Resorts and The Hotel Collection bookings through AmexTravel.com (2-night minimum for The Hotel Collection)
• Added a $120 annual Uber One credit alongside the existing monthly Uber Cash
• Added complimentary Leaders Club Sterling status with The Leading Hotels of the World
• Added an up-to-$400 Resy credit, with up to $100 available each quarter
• Increased the digital entertainment credit from $240 up to $300, with Paramount+, YouTube Premium, and YouTube TV added as eligible services
• Added an up-to-$300 lululemon credit, issued as $75 per quarter
• Added an up-to-$200 Oura Ring credit

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Platinum Card^® from American Express

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The Amex Platinum card reigns supreme for luxury travel, offering the best airport lounge access plus generous statement credits, and elite status.

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Platinum Card^® from American Express

The Amex Platinum card reigns supreme for luxury travel, offering the best airport lounge access plus generous statement credits, and elite status.

Welcome Offer

You may be eligible for as high as 175,000 Membership Rewards^® points after you spend $12,000 in eligible purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership. Welcome offers vary, and you may not be eligible for an offer. Apply to know if you’re approved and find out your exact welcome offer amount — all with no credit score impact. If you’re approved and choose to accept the Card, your score may be impacted.

As High as 175,000 Points. Find Out Your Offer.

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Up to $3,850

Annual Fee

$895

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Why We Like This Card

When it comes to cards that offer top-notch benefits, the Platinum Card^® from American Express is a top choice.

The card offers premium perks like best-in-class airport lounge access, hotel elite status, and several annual card credits. The Amex Platinum card is easily worth the annual fee for frequent travelers who use the lounges and travel credits, and hard to justify for those who won’t.

Pros & Cons

Pros

• The best airport lounge access out of any card (by far): Get access to over 1,550 worldwide lounges, including Amex Centurion Lounges, Priority Pass lounges (enrollment required), Plaza Premium Lounges, and many more!
• 5 points per $1 spent on flights purchased directly with the airline or with AmexTravel.com (up to $500,000 per year)
• 5 points per $1 spent on prepaid hotels booked with AmexTravel.com

Cons

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

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Card Highlights

• You may be eligible for as high as 175,000 Membership Rewards^® points after you spend $12,000 in eligible purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership. Welcome offers vary and you may not be eligible for an offer. Apply to know if you’re approved and find out your exact welcome offer amount – all with no credit score impact. If you’re approved and choose to accept the Card, your score may be impacted.
• Get more for your travels with 5X Membership Rewards^® points on all flights and prepaid hotel bookings through American Express Travel^®, including Fine Hotels + Resorts^® and The Hotel Collection bookings. You earn 5X points on flights purchased directly from airlines or through American Express Travel^® on up to $500,000 on these purchases per calendar year.
• With over 1,550 airport lounges - more than any other credit card company on the market* - enjoy the benefits of the Global Lounge Collection, over $850 of annual value, with access to Centurion Lounges, 10 Delta Sky Club visits (subject to visit limitations) when flying on an eligible Delta flight, Priority Pass™ membership (enrollment required), and other select partner lounges. *As of 01/2026
• $200 Uber Cash + $120 Uber One Credit: With the Platinum Card^® you can receive $15 in Uber Cash each month plus a bonus $20 in December when you add your Platinum Card^® to your Uber account to use on rides and orders in the U.S when you select an Amex Card for your transaction. Plus, when you use the Platinum Card^® to pay for an auto-renewing Uber One membership, you can get up to $120 in statement credits each calendar year. Terms apply.
• $300 Digital Entertainment Credit: Experience the latest shows, news and recipes. Get up to $25 in statement credits each month when you use your Platinum Card^® for eligible purchases on Disney+, a Disney+ bundle, ESPN streaming services, Hulu, The New York Times, Paramount+, Peacock, The Wall Street Journal, YouTube Premium, and YouTube TV when you purchase directly from one or more of the providers. Enrollment required.
• $600 Hotel Credit: Get up to $300 in statement credits semi-annually on prepaid Fine Hotels + Resorts^® or The Hotel Collection* bookings through American Express Travel^® using the Platinum Card^®. *The Hotel Collection requires a minimum two-night stay.
• $400 Resy Credit + Platinum Nights™ by Resy: Get up to $100 in statement credits each quarter when you use the Platinum Card^® to pay for eligible purchases with Resy, including dining purchases at over 10,000 qualifying U.S. Resy restaurants. Enrollment required. As a Platinum Card^® Member you have special access to reservations on select nights at participating sought after Resy restaurants in select cities through Platinum Nights™ by Resy. Simply add your Platinum Card^® to your Resy profile to book your reservation.
• $219 CLEAR+ Credit: CLEAR+ helps get you to your gate faster by using your face to verify you are you at 55+ airports nationwide. You can cover the cost of a CLEAR+ Membership* with up to $219 in statement credits per calendar year after you pay for CLEAR+ with your Platinum Card^®. *Excluding any applicable taxes and fees. Subject to auto-renewal.
• $200 Airline Fee Credit: Select one qualifying airline and then receive up to $200 in statement credits per calendar year when incidental fees, such as checked bags and in-flight refreshments, are charged by the airline to the Platinum Card^® Account. American Express relies on airlines to submit the correct information on airline transactions to identify incidental fee purchases. If you do not see a credit for a qualifying incidental purchase on your eligible Card after 8 weeks, simply call the number on the back of your Card. Qualifying airlines are subject to change. See terms & conditions for more details.
• Start your vacation sooner and keep it going longer. When you book Fine Hotels + Resorts^® through American Express Travel^®, enjoy noon check-in, when available, and guaranteed 4pm late check-out.
• $300 lululemon Credit: Enjoy up to $75 in statement credits each quarter when you use the Platinum Card^® for eligible purchases at U.S. lululemon retail stores (excluding outlets) and lululemon.com. That’s up to $300 in statement credits each calendar year. Enrollment required.
• $155 Walmart+ Credit: Get up to a $12.95* statement credit back each month after you pay for a monthly Walmart+ membership (subject to auto-renewal) with your Platinum Card^®. *Up to $12.95 plus applicable taxes on one membership fee.
• Whenever you need us, we're here. Our Member Services team will ensure you are taken care of. From lost Card replacement to statement questions, we are available to help 24/7.
• $895 annual fee.
• Terms Apply.

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With the annual fee now $895, the bar is higher for getting enough value from its benefits each year. Lounge access, elite status, and points add value, but the new credits are easier to measure than those with more subjective value.

The $600 Hotel Credit Has Been the Biggest Win

This is easily my favorite addition. The previous $200 prepaid hotel credit through AmexTravel.com was useful, but $600 is substantial. I’ve had no problem using the entire amount. Because it’s divided into 2 semiannual credits, each worth up to $300, it’s relatively easy to incorporate into my travel plans. I’ve used the full amount during both halves of the year.

Fine Hotels + Resorts bookings already include benefits such as breakfast for 2 and a $100 property credit, and The Hotel Collection adds additional benefits during the stay. Adding the statement credit makes those stays even more valuable. In practice, I only need 1 relatively short prepaid stay during each half of the year to use the credit. I got more than $400 in value from this perk at the Sofitel Bogota Victoria Regia in Colombia back in May.

How I’ve Used the $120 Uber One Credit

I originally signed up for Uber One mainly because the annual credit effectively offsets the membership cost, but I didn’t expect to use it so frequently. Ride discounts, up to 10% off eligible Uber Eats purchases, and $0 delivery fees on qualifying orders have made a noticeable difference.

Combined with the existing monthly Uber Cash, the benefit has made Uber my default choice for rides and food delivery. Since the up-to-$120 annual credit fully covers the Uber One membership, I view the additional savings as value on top of the credit.

The $400 Resy Credit Takes Planning, but It’s Useful

I’ll admit that I didn’t think this benefit would be particularly useful. I don’t regularly eat at expensive restaurants, so I initially assumed most of the up to $400 Resy benefit would go unused.

That turned out to be only partly true. After enrolling my card and looking through Resy for participating restaurants, I found plenty of options, including pizza, sushi, and Italian restaurants. The bigger challenge is timing purchases across 4 quarters without overspending in one quarter or letting the credit expire.

I haven’t consistently captured the full $400 without exceeding the credit. Still, I’d estimate that I’m getting around 75% of the face value, which is still meaningful.

Why I Use the $300 Digital Entertainment Credit for YouTube Premium

YouTube Premium was the addition that made this credit particularly valuable for me. Ad-free videos, background playback, and offline downloads are useful features, and the service costs $15.99 per month.

After enrollment, the $25 credit fully covers YouTube Premium, leaving about $9 for other eligible entertainment services.

My Biggest Surprise: The $300 lululemon Credit

I am not an athleisure person, so I assumed this credit would be ignored. Then I used one quarter’s up-to-$75 lululemon credit toward a hoodie after enrolling my card, and it quickly became one of the most comfortable things I own. I used another quarter’s credit to get track pants that I now wear regularly. Hello, travel day outfit!

The tricky part is maximizing exactly $75 per quarter without spending substantially more than the credit allows. Because of that, I value this benefit at roughly 75% of face value. I now look forward to the quarterly resets to find something worth buying — something that wasn’t even on my radar when the benefit was announced.

The 2 Benefits I Don’t Value: Leaders Club and Oura

The complimentary Leaders Club Sterling status with The Leading Hotels of the World sounds useful (enrollment required), but I haven’t stayed at a participating property since receiving it. For me, it has generated $0 in value so far.

The Oura Ring credit hasn’t been compelling for me, either. It’s tied specifically to purchasing a ring, which starts at $349. On top of that, accessing the ring’s full functionality requires a paid subscription after the initial purchase, which isn’t covered by the credit.

I offered the benefit to a coworker rather than letting it expire. I don’t see myself using this credit, as I have no interest in the ring and would only get it if the American Express benefit covered all of my costs. This credit also requires enrollment.

Final Thoughts

A $200 increase in a card’s annual fee is significant, but the new benefits also add significant value. I found more than $1,000 in additional value from the updated hotel credit, Uber One, Resy, digital entertainment, and lululemon credits alone. And that’s before factoring in lounge access, monthly Uber Cash, points earning, and other perks the card already had.

Before the refresh, getting enough value to offset the annual fee required more effort. After the refresh, I’ve found the opposite to be true. Even with 2 benefits I don’t use, the Amex Platinum card has become easier for me to justify at the $895 annual fee than it was at $695.