/images/2018/01/23/navina-side-hustle-mid_MPfEDfV.jpg)
/images/2019/12/06/smart_strategies_to_save_money_on_car_insurance.jpg)
/authors/steve-miller-headshot.jpg)
/authors/lauren-graves-headshot.jpg)
On September 18, 2025, American Express announced significant changes to the annual fees and benefits packages on its marquee consumer and business credit cards, the The Platinum Card® from American Express and The Business Platinum Card® from American Express. Among these changes are the addition of new travel, lifestyle, and business credits, in the case of the latter, as well as the enhancement of others.
No benefits have been removed from either card, and the annual fee on both has increased from $695 to a sky-high $895. This might lead some to question whether applying for or continuing to hold either card is still worth it. The longer-than-ever laundry list of credits does much to counter that jump in price, but as always, the question with a high-fee card like this is: Can you use enough of the credits and benefits to justify the cost?
Some of the added value comes from increases to credits that already existed on one or both of the cards. For example, the consumer card's digital entertainment credit has climbed by $60, from $240 ($20 monthly) to $300 ($25 monthly). This credit enhancement is coupled with the addition of Paramount+ and YouTube to the list of eligible providers, making it a little more flexible than it used to be. If you couldn't find anything to watch on Disney+, ESPN+, Hulu, or Peacock, perhaps these new streamers have something you can put the credit toward.
Other enhancements are quieter. The consumer Platinum's Clear Plus credit, for example, has increased just slightly, from $199 to $209, to account for the service's own price increase in July.
The consumer card's hotel credit, however, has gotten a threefold increase from $200 to $600. Plus, this credit will now be available to Business Platinum cardholders. However, it remains restricted to prepaid stays at Fine Hotels & Resorts or The Hotel Collection properties booked through American Express Travel, with The Hotel Collection requiring a minimum two-night stay. So, while the additional $400 in value you could get from this enhancement alone is more than enough to outweigh the increase to the annual fees, that only matters if your travel plans take you to locales where you can find one of the 2,600+ hotels included in these portfolios.
With the consumer Platinum, you could justify the fee increase in one go by using the card's new $300 lululemon or $400 Resy credit, with the latter doled out as $100 in quarterly credits. Further softening the blow is a new $120 Uber One credit. There's also a new $200 credit for spending with Oura, a company that offers a smart ring to track health metrics, kind of like wearing an Apple Watch or Fitbit on just one finger.
Of less quantifiable value is the new Platinum Nights by Resy program, which gives cardholders exclusive access to reservations at trendy dining spots. Amex also boasts an increase in the value of the Global Lounge Collection access and the Fine Hotels & Resorts perks already included with both cards, but the actual dollar value you could get out of those benefits is difficult to pin down and depends largely on how you use them.
The Business Platinum card is one of the best business cards for travel, and this round of changes goes a long way to enhance its value to business owners frequently on the road or in the air. Prior to Amex's announcement, the card already offered a $209 Clear Plus credit, a $200 Hilton credit, and a $200 airline fee credit. The addition of the $600 hotel credit is big, but cardholders also have the opportunity to unlock up to $1,200 in credit for eligible flights booked through the Amex travel portal by spending $250,000 on the card in a calendar year.
The new four-digit credit will be available for use in the calendar year following the year in which you meet the spend threshold. Cardholders who hit that spend requirement will also unlock a $2,400 credit toward spending with One AP, Amex's digital accounts payable platform. These credits increase the card's value on both the travel and business fronts and offset the card's full annual fee, provided you spend enough to unlock them and have any use for them.
Amex is also adding complimentary Sterling Status with Leading Hotels of the World to the business card's benefits. That's the highest tier in the group's Leaders Club loyalty program and unlocks perks like priority upgrades, early check-in/late check-out, and access to member-exclusive rates. There are just over 440 hotels in the collection's portfolio, though, so it may be difficult to realize any significant value from the perk if you don't frequently do business in locations with an eligible property.
Whether any of these changes make either card more or less worth its cost depends on your spending habits, so our advice continues to be to make sure you crunch the numbers before signing up. (After all, what good is $300 in lululemon credit if you're not much for athleisure?)
If you can't get at least $895 in value out of either card's credits and perks, there may be a better credit card out there.
/images/2025/09/18/amex_platinum_.png)
Current Offer
Earn as high as 175,000 Membership Rewards points after spending $8,000 on eligible purchases on your new card in the first 6 months (welcome offers vary and you may not be eligible for an offer; apply and find out your offer)
Annual Fee
$895
Rewards Rate
5X points per dollar spent on eligible airfare (on up to $500,000 per calendar year, after that 1X) and eligible hotel purchases, and 1X points per dollar on all other eligible purchases
