6 Amex Card Benefits I Never Expected To Use But Now Love

I’ll be honest: I’ve bemoaned numerous American Express perks, benefits, updates, and refreshes. Some of the card benefits are difficult to use.

I dislike how complex it is to remember to use — or understand how to use — some of the benefits available on my Amex cards. But as I attempt to use the benefits and justify the annual fees on my Amex cards, I’ve found that some of the perks that I thought would be dumb (hey, just being honest!) actually provide me real value.

Here are 6 benefits that fit into this category, including reasons for my initial disdain and how the perks were useful in the end.

1. Walmart+ Membership Benefit

When I first heard that The Platinum Card^® from American Express was adding a Walmart+ benefit in 2021, I was shocked. I didn’t think those went together at all. I still find them an odd pair.

Whether it was popular or profitable, Amex clearly saw something positive, because this benefit was later added to the American Express^® Business Gold Card, as well.

You don’t need to enroll in this benefit with American Express, but you do need to pay for a monthly Walmart+ membership (subject to auto-renewal) using your eligible card. Then you receive a statement credit as reimbursement for the monthly membership fee, which is $12.95 plus applicable tax.

Walmart+ offers perks like free grocery and pharmacy delivery on qualifying orders, a Paramount+ streaming subscription, free next-day and 2-day shipping on online orders, and even a gas discount at Walmart, Murphy, Exxon, and Mobil stations.

What changed my mind about this benefit? Getting grocery delivery without fees, having another place to find what I want to watch on streaming platforms — since they don’t all have the same movies — and saving on gas when there isn’t a Costco gas station nearby.

2. Quarterly Hilton Statement Credits

Cards like the Hilton Honors American Express Surpass^® Card and The Business Platinum Card^® from American Express offer up to $200 in Hilton statement credits annually, broken down into up to $50 per quarter. (With the Amex Business Platinum card, prior enrollment and a free Hilton for Business membership is required.)

When I first saw this benefit, I thought what you’re probably thinking: There’s no Hilton hotel near me that charges $50 for a room. Luckily, I learned that this perk has more flexibility than I originally thought.

While it’s not guaranteed, this benefit can sometimes be used for hotel charges even if you aren’t sleeping there, such as visiting the restaurant or the spa.

Of course, this benefit would be better if you could use the full $200 at once, rather than being cut into small pieces. However, the ability to use it in additional ways beyond hotel stays is a positive. Not everyone stays at a hotel every quarter, which can help people avoid losing the credits to disuse.

3. Flexible Business Credit on the Amex Business Gold Card

In early 2024, the Amex Business Gold card added a flexible business credit of up to $240 annually, available as $20 per month (enrollment required).

This benefit provides reimbursement via a statement credit for U.S. purchases with FedEx, Grubhub, or office supply stores. I definitely don’t have monthly shipping needs with FedEx, and $20 with Grubhub isn’t much when you consider the markup restaurants add to orders through food delivery apps — plus factoring in tip, delivery fees, etc. (If you’re interested, the silver lining is that this benefit also works with Seamless.)

However, I’ve found use for this credit at office supply stores, of all places. Staples and Office Max sell items I regularly need, whether that’s clips to hang something on the wall, a soda on a hot day, or ink for my home office printer.

4. Delta Stays Credit

American Express and Delta offer 7 credit cards: 4 consumer cards and 3 small business cards. Any card with an annual fee comes with an annual Delta Stays credit, received as a statement credit after eligible spending. The credit ranges from $100 to $250 annually, depending on which card you have.

This credit was added to Delta’s credit cards in 2024, and I instantly disliked a key element of this benefit: It only applies to prepaid, nonrefundable bookings. Who wants to book a hotel stay that you can’t change or cancel? Luckily, I found a use for this: last-minute bookings.

At first, I found the Delta Stays website confusing, as only prepaid reservations trigger the credit. However, many stays seem to not offer a prepaid option, highlighting reserve now, pay later, or fully refundable reservations, which is what most travelers want.

However, I found clicking the “Reserve” button yields a pop-up window that lets you pay at the hotel or in full at the time of booking. Success! That rate triggers the Delta Stays credit on the Amex cards.

5. Annual CLEAR Plus Membership Credit

“I already have TSA PreCheck, why would I need CLEAR?” Oh, how wrong I was.

When I first heard about CLEAR Plus — and then heard about the Amex cards that provide reimbursement for an annual membership — I figured I didn’t need it. Now, I’m glad I have it.

I’ll never say no to extra options at airport security, letting me choose whichever line moves fastest. With a CLEAR Plus membership and TSA PreCheck, I can choose either of those lines or even choose the line for CLEAR members with TSA PreCheck. That’s often the quickest line, based on my experience.

6. Hilton Aspire Card’s Airline Credit

I absolutely love the up-to-$200 annual airline incidental fee credit on my Amex Platinum card, which I can use in small bits or all at once with a preselected airline each year (enrollment required). The airline credit on the Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card, however, is far more complex.

Benefits of the Hilton Aspire card include up to $200 in airline credits annually, though this benefit has several caveats. It’s only available as up to $50 quarterly and applies to purchases made directly with an airline or AmexTravel.com.

Just $50 toward flights, really? And who wants to try to use this in small pieces each quarter, rather than just using it in a big chunk at once? It’s way more complicated than it needs to be.

However, there are valuable uses for this perk. Those include fees for checked bags or choosing a seat on your flight, but this perk is also handy for flights on low-cost carriers or short distances.

Consider these flights from Orange County (SNA) and Los Angeles (LAX) over to Las Vegas (LAS), all ringing in for less than the $50 quarterly maximum with this benefit:

If you can go to Las Vegas for a weekend with friends carrying just a backpack, you can book the outbound flight now and book the return next quarter — completely covering the cost of these flights available with Spirit, Southwest, Delta, and United.

Final Thoughts

Some of American Express’ statement credits are more complicated than they need to be — a sentiment that I’m definitely not the first person to share publicly.

Luckily, after playing around with some of these benefits, I found value in perks I originally thought I couldn’t maximize. True, using perks that are cut into small pieces makes it difficult to use the full amount without leaving any behind or overspending, but I’ve been able to find value in 6 Amex credits that I originally didn’t think I would use.