Amex Platinum Adds A New Benefit

The Platinum Card from American Express is one of the most popular premium travel credit cards.  I love this card for many reasons even though I ultimately decided to cancel mine last year.  I decided to keep my Chase Sapphire Reserve open and I didn’t want to pay annual fees on 2 premium cards.

Well, that lasted about 2 weeks and then I had Ryan sign up for a Platinum Card!  I didn’t want to miss out on the Platinum Card’s benefits such as the Amex Centurion lounge!  Plus, he was eligible for the sign-up bonus since his previous Platinum Card was a different product (it was the Mercedes-Benz version, which is no longer available).

The benefits and credits that come with the Amex Platinum justify the annual fee for us.  But last week, Amex added another benefit!

New Amex Platinum benefit: get $100 in annual statement credits for purchases at Saks Fifth Avenue

According to the official terms, this does not include purchases at the outlet, Saks off Fifth, or gift card purchases.   The way the credit works is that you get 50$ bi-annually as a statement credit.

My favorite suitcases (that never go on sale) are sold at Saks! Shop Rimowa luggage at Saks.com.

What if I never shop at Saks?

If you do not shop at Saks on a regular basis you might be thinking this is useless because what can you buy at Saks for $50?  Well actually, you can buy a lot of things that you might already buy at some point during any given year!

Here are a few ideas:

• Makeup
• Perfume/Cologne
• Baby gifts (Aden & Anais blankets, the best swaddle blankets ever, are sold at Saks in packs for less than $50)
• Kid’s clothes and shoes

I usually buy my makeup at Sephora, but Saks carries NARS and a few other brands that I would normally buy at Sephora.  If nothing else, I could always use my credit towards makeup I would buy anyway.

My total for Hunter boots was $9 plus I earned 220 Southwest points!

The girls fight over the Hunter boots that Jack had as a toddler (they’re red, not pink!).  So I took this opportunity to buy another pair so they each have their own!

If you have a ShopRunner account you get free 2 day shipping.  If not, use the promo code FREESHIP for free shipping.  After the $50 statement credit, my total out of pocket cost will be $9!

Earn bonus points or miles by going through a shopping portal

You can go through an airline shopping portal and earn bonus airline miles on your purchase! Remember, if you shop through the Ultimate Rewards portal, you’re supposed to use your Chase Sapphire card.  So you risk not earning the points since you need to use your Amex Platinum to get the statement credit.  But if you shop through an airline portal, you can use any card you want.

FYI, points earned from the Southwest shopping portal count towards earning the Companion Pass!

You have to enroll to receive the credit, but anyone with an Amex Platinum Card is eligible!

Its easy.

Log in to your account and click on “Membership”.  On the drop down menu select “Benefits”.

Click on “More” and then select “Shopping” from the drop down menu.

Scroll until you see this Shop Saks with Platinum box then click “Get Started”

Check that you understand the terms and conditions and then click “Enroll now”

That’s all you have to do!

Conclusion

This benefit may not be enough to make or break your decision of whether or not the Amex Platinum Card is right for you, but it does help offset the high annual fee!  Even if Saks isn’t your go-to shopping spot, you should be able to make use of the credit.

Click here for more info about the Amex Platinum.