Amex Business Platinum card: Earn 85,000 points with new 5x categories

This article is brought to you by the Personal Finance Insider team. It has not been reviewed, approved, or otherwise endorsed by any of the issuers listed. Some of the offers you see on the page are from our partners like Citi and American Express, but our coverage is always independent. Terms apply to the offers listed on this page.

• The Business Platinum Card® from American Expressis out with an increased welcome offer to earn 85,000 Membership Rewards® points after you spend $15,000 on eligible purchases within your first 3 months of account opening.
• Plus, new cardholders can earn 5x points on eligible US purchases on shipping, wireless telephone services, advertising in select media, office supplies, and gas stations in the first three months of account opening, up to 80,000 bonus points per category. This is great, right? Any one of the mentioned, especially shipping larger items or even furniture, and the important factors guarding it could easily hit the maximum in this category.
• The new Amex Business Platinum Card offer is bigger than the welcome bonus on The Platinum Card® from American Express — but the spending requirement is also higher.
• The 5x bonus is similar to the new Amex benefit extended to current Amex Business Platinum Card members with active accounts as of November 1, 2020 — however, those cardholders have until the end of June to earn the bonus.
• Read Business Insider’s guide to the best small-business credit cards.

American Express has gotten 2021 off to a strong start with the recent addition of generous limited-time benefits and bonuses on several Amex cards, especially on The Platinum Card® from American Express.

There’s now an even more compelling offer for small-business owners. The Business Platinum Card® from American Express has increased its welcome offer to 85,000 Membership Rewards® points after you spend $15,000 on eligible purchases within your first 3 months of account opening.

In addition, new cardholders can earn 5x points on eligible US purchases on shipping, wireless telephone services, advertising in select media, office supplies, and gas stations in the first three months of account opening, up to 80,000 bonus points per category.

This is an excellent opportunity for business owners who have lots of expenses in those categories. All told, the 5x bonus categories provide the chance to earn an additional 400,000 points on top of the welcome bonus, assuming you spend the maximum in each category within the first three months.

The Amex Business Platinum Card does come with a hefty $595 annual fee, so it’s not for everyone. However, the card offers top-tier benefits like up to $200 per calendar year in statement credits toward U.S. Dell purchases, up to $200 in airline incidental fee credits per calendar year, and airport lounge access. If you’re able to maximize the card’s perks, the annual fee on the Amex Business Platinum is well worth it.

Here’s what to know if you’re considering the offer.

Amex Business Platinum 85,000-point bonus

New Amex Business Platinum Card members will earn 85,000 Membership Rewards® points after you spend $15,000 on eligible purchases within your first 3 months of account opening. According to valuations by travel site The Points Guy, American Express Membership Rewards points are worth, on average, 2 cents apiece — so the welcome bonus alone is potentially worth about $1,700 if you redeem rewards for travel.

That’s not factoring in the points you’ll earn from spending in bonus categories. In the first three months of account opening, the Amex Business Platinum Card offers 5x points, for up to 80,000 bonus points, in each of these categories at US merchants:

• Shipping
• Wireless telephone services
• Advertising in select media
• Office supplies
• Gas stations

If these categories look familiar, there’s a good reason: They’re the same limited-time bonus spending categories Amex introduced for existing cardholders (with open accounts as of November 1, 2020) just a short time ago. Those cardmembers have until June 30, 2021, to earn the 5x bonus points.

With the Amex Business Platinum Card, you’ll also earn 5x points on flights and prepaid hotels booked on AmexTravel.com, 1.5x points on single purchases of $5,000 or more (up to 1 million additional points per calendar year), and 1 point per dollar on everything else.

The Amex Business Platinum benefits can outweigh the annual fee

There’s no doubt the $595 annual fee on the Amex Business Platinum Card is a lot, even for a premium card. The Amex Business Platinum Card certainly isn’t for everyone, but if you’re able to make the most of the spending categories and the slew of valuable perks the card offers, it’s easy to get a value that far exceeds the yearly cost.

For example, the Amex Business Platinum Card comes with:

• Up to $200 per calendar year in Dell statement credits ($100 from January to June, and $100 from July to December)
• Up to $200 per calendar year in incidental fee credits on your selected airline (you can use the Amex airline incidental fee credit on things like checked-bag fees, seat selection, pet fees, and inflight food and drinks)
• A 35{b530a9af8ec2f2e0d4045baab79c5cfb9bfdc23e498df4d376766a0b44d3f146} points rebate when you redeem points for first- or business-class tickets, or for any fare with your selected airline, when you redeem through Amex Travel (up to 500,000 points back per calendar year)
• Airport lounge access, including Amex Centurion lounges, Priority Pass lounges, and Delta Sky Club lounges when you’re flying Delta
• Global Entry ($100) or TSA PreCheck ($85) application fee credit every four years
• Complimentary Gold elite status with Marriott Bonvoy and Hilton Honors, which gets you perks like upgrades and late check-out

The card also gets you access to travel programs like American Express Fine Hotels and Resorts and The Hotel Collection, and comes with top-notch purchase and travel protections that can be a lifesaver if you ever have to use them.

Even if you’re not ready to venture far from home just yet, the Amex Business Platinum Card could be worth considering for the welcome bonus alone. There are plenty of ways to use Amex Membership Rewards points even if you’re not traveling, including toward statement credits, gift cards, merchandise, and food delivery.

Or, you can do what many are already doing and save your points for a big trip once the pandemic is over. Your points won’t expire as long as you have a Membership Rewards card account open and in good standing, so there’s no harm in earning the bonus now for travel down the road.

Jasmin Baron is an associate editor at Personal Finance Insider, where she helps readers maximize rewards and find the best credit cards to fit their lifestyles. 

Featured credit cards from our partners