Is the Platinum Card From American Express Worth Its Annual Fee?

Whether or not The Platinum Card® from American Express is worth the new larger $695 annual fee is really just a math problem that highly depends on your spending, travel and shopping habits (see rates and fees).

Here's a quick look at The Platinum Card® from American Express's perks and benefits — and their dollar value — to see if The Platinum Card® from American Express's annual fee is worth it.

$200 Uber credit

When you use The Platinum Card® from American Express to your pay for Uber rides or food delivery, you'll get a monthly credit in the form of Uber Cash. You'll get $15 per month, plus a bonus $20 in December, for a total of $200 per year. Be sure you use your Uber or Uber Eats app once per month because the credits do not roll over month to month. Enrollment required. Terms apply.

$200 airline fee credit

Select one airline from a list of choices at the beginning of the year (or upon getting the card) and get $200 back in the form of statement credits for eligible purchases with that airline. The credit is not activated for tickets or upgrades, and is best used for baggage fees, seat selection fees or in-flight food and beverage purchases. Enrollment required. Terms apply.

$199 Clear credit

Clear uses biometric screening to help speed you through security and can be used in conjunction with TSA PreCheck. This $199 statement credit is available to cardholders who charge the membership to their card. Terms apply.

» Learn more: Is Clear worth the cost?

$100 Saks credit

You'll also get $100 per year, doled out in two $50 statement credits, for shopping at Saks Fifth Avenue. One credit is eligible for spend between January and June, and the second can be spent July through December. Enrollment required. Terms apply.

Global Entry or TSA PreCheck credit

The Platinum Card® from American Express also comes with fee credit for Global Entry or TSA PreCheck membership. You are eligible to receive either one $120 statement credit every four years for the application fee for Global Entry or one $85 statement credit every 4.5 years for TSA PreCheck. At most, you're getting a $30-per-year average benefit from this if you don't have those services already or are up for renewal soon. Terms apply.

Global Lounge Collection access

If you're a frequent traveler, you'd be wise to take advantage of all of the lounge benefits that come with the card. Cardholders get access to several different lounge programs, including:

• The Centurion Lounge.

• Delta Sky Club. Starting Feb. 1, 2025, members will receive 10 visits per program year. Members can earn unlimited access after spending $75,000 in a program year. Unlimited access remains through Jan. 31 of the following year. Spend tracking begins Jan. 1, 2024.

• Escape Lounges.

• Priority Pass lounges. Enrollment required.

On its own, the Priority Pass membership starts at $299 (for 10 visits) and goes up to $429 (for unlimited visits). That doesn't even include the additional value you can get from the access to the card's other lounge network partners. Terms apply.

Even outside of airports are a couple lounges at convention centers, dubbed the American Express Business Lounges. For now, there's one at the Las Vegas Convention Center and the other at Jacob K. Javits Convention Center in New York City. Inside you’ll find complimentary snacks, free Wi-Fi and myriad outlets to recharge your electronics — all in a place to recharge yourself with plentiful plush couches.

Your value here will vary depending on how much and where you travel.

» Learn more: Top 10 Priority Pass lounges in the U.S.

$200 hotel credit

You can get $200 back as a statement credit on prepaid bookings with American Express Travel, but only at Fine Hotels + Resorts or The Hotel Collection properties. These tend to be higher-end hotels and resorts, making it very easy to end up spending significantly more than $200 at one of these locations. What's more, stays at The Hotel Collection properties must be a minimum of two nights long. Unless you already tend to visit a qualifying hotel, or can snag one right around $200, this benefit is a little harder to use and get value from. Terms apply.

$240 digital entertainment credit

On the surface, this digital entertainment credit sounds great, but in reality, it is fairly limited. Only the following services are eligible: Disney+, The Disney Bundle, ESPN+, Hulu, Peacock, The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal. Enrollment required. Credit is given in the form of $20 per month, for a total of $240 per year, if you max it out. Terms apply.

$300 Equinox credit

Equinox is a high-end fitness company that offers over 100 clubs across the U.S. and Canada; however, the majority of them are located in Southern California, New York and other large cities. Membership prices vary but can easily be more than $100 per month.

The Equinox credit on The Platinum Card® from American Express is good for $25 per month throughout the year. Unless you're already an Equinox member, it is unlikely to save you money. You are better off using it toward an Equinox+ app subscription ($39.99/month) if you want to use the benefit but not pay a full membership fee for a physical gym. Terms apply.

» Learn more: The best credit cards with fitness perks

Not all of the perks that come with the card have an easy-to-assign value, but you may still find them very useful based on your personal needs.

AmEx Offers: You can add special statement credits and discount offers to your card. The deals change often, but if you find ones at stores you already shop at, you can save money on everyday purchases. Recent deals included places like Home Depot, Best Buy and Instacart. Enrollment required.

Gold status with Marriott and Hilton: For being a cardmember, you'll be able to snag Gold status in the hotel loyalty programs of both Hilton and Marriott. The value of this will vary based on how much you stay at these properties. Enrollment required.

Cell phone protection: AmEx offers pretty solid cell phone protection if you charge your wireless bill to the card. This can run you around $10-$20 per month with other providers.

Travel insurance and purchase protections: You'll also have access to fairly extensive travel insurance and purchase protections when you buy with your card. These can be valuable in case of emergencies, trip issues, theft or damaged products.

Terms apply.

» Learn more: How to find the best travel insurance

After accounting for the easy-to-use benefits, you're looking at $1,003 in value each year if you value the lounge access at only $299 — which is a low estimate.

Maybe you don't feel all those perks apply to you, but there are still others you may find valuable, albeit harder to use.

» Learn more: Is the AmEx Platinum a glorified coupon book?

As the math shows, you don't even need to take advantage of all of the card's perks in order for The Platinum Card® from American Express to be worth its annual fee. Make sure you do the math on which benefits you will actually utilize and see if it works out for you. A $695 fee is a serious commitment.