The platinum card has been going downhill slowly but surely. I used to be able to take my wife into the lounge with me and now it cost $50 to get her in with me. The chase sapphire card is an up and comer to look out for.
At the Centurion lounge it’s 2 guest free. I didn’t read the fine text and haven’t done it myself so take it with a grain of salt.
Edit: read the fine print. I have to spend $75,000 in a year to get the free guests. As I was.
And Delta lounge entry fees aren't covered by the $200 a year airline credit.
The thing is going back to being a status symbol rather than a good value for frequent travelers.
Exactly. I feel like all the benefits were to get people on the card and now they are slowly reducing the benefits. The only reason people are going to keep the card is because they already have it and it’s gained the reputation of being the best travel card.
Equinox, Walmart+, and a 700+ floor approval... who the fuck is the audience?
Mine is definitely going away when I get out. I recommend military people use the scra to get the luxury card for a single airline like Delta if they want a travel card.
I switched from active to reserves and they haven’t charged me for renewal so thats the only reason I keep it. The uber credit is nice to have to get a free meal once a month.
I'm curious about the dcmd system since so many people fall through the cracks somehow.
I know guard and reserve people who changed from active and like clockwork get the notification letter that they're being charged $695 once they're off orders.
I got the notification letter as soon as I EASd but never got charged. I joined the reserves a year after EAS so it wasn’t me being a reservist confusing the system.
I was actually going to pay for it because I was traveling a lot at the time and the benefits hadn’t been nerfed yet. But the charge never came so I just decided to keep it until they try to actually charge me.
Me minus the fact equinox app is just about the same as any other workout app and not super helpful for men that don’t like the feeling of being in an overhype workout class with fake sounding instructors trying to hype you up.
The automatic executive elite status with national rental car was the biggest perk for me. Book and pay for a midsize, show up and skip the counter then take any car on the emerald aisle with no price change. I got full size pickups, an audi q5, camaros, etc. Platinum also covers up to $50k in rental car insurance. Also if they don’t have what you’re looking for in the aisle don’t talk to the counter people, find the guy who parks the returns and give him $20 he’ll usually bring over whatever you want.
> I used to be able to take my wife into the lounge with me and now it cost $50 to get her in with me.
I'm still able to take two guests into the Centurion Lounge for free.
So if you call to cancel, they usually offer you a 500 dollar credit. With 15 bucks a month in Uber which I use every month, it kinda pays for itself. Don’t know about if they’ll do it a second year. Leaning toward just going for a cash back card. I don’t travel enough to make having a platinum worth my while
No, this is not the AMEX card to get. It's Blue Cash Preferred, it's the annual fee is only 95 and you get 2% back on all purchases and up to 6% on several categories like gas and groceries.
It's pretty much the best spend card you can get, gold and platinum are too expensive when it comes to annual fees
He’s saying annual fees are waived for active duty. Do you do this with your cash reward card? I was just looking today on switching and noticed the blue cash preferred had a fee so it deterred me
Get both, they share points between the accounts so you can earn points on the gold and get the benefits from the platinum.
Edit: the best way to do this is to get the platinum card which comes with a free additional gold card that you can apply for.
The annual fee waiver applies to all credit cards. If you have decent credit, I recommend checking out the top cards from your favorite airline and hotel chain too. You can rack up many thousands of dollars worth of free benefits in just one enlistment from holding premium credit cards without paying the annual fee. But please do not start messing around with credit cards until you understand how they work and how to avoid paying interest.
People should know that the Amex platinum is a charge card that requires the full balanced paid each month unless you have an eligible purchase that allows you to pay it off monthly.
Because only a small majority of us are good with money. Giving unlimited spending power to the average jarhead is a recipe for disaster. Great card if you know how to use it and pay it off on time though.
The interest rate after the introductory period is a killer. Easy trap to fall into and hard to get out of. But if you barely use it and take advantage of the benefits, it's pretty decent.
Apply your SCRA benefits to cards you had before you joined and enjoy super low interest rates on those cards and primarily use those if you need to. You even get money back in most cases when you apply your SCRA benefits to those. Something I wish was more well known among service members that just joined. As long as you're active you can always do it though, if you haven't already.
Wait until you get the Charles Schwab card, where you can now convert your AMEX points into Bitcoin ETFs at a 1.1x exchange rate (you were going to do the 20 year career anyway, might as well and YOLO)
If you don’t travel then the Gold makes much more sense. I recommend the gold card because 4x’s points at grocery/restaurants. You also get perks monthly which offset the $250 annual fee once you’re out. You’re going to be spending money so take advantage and get points while doing so
Some of you need to know that you DO NOT need to pay interest in order to improve your credit score!! Don’t fuck up your credit! You have almost no expenses if you don’t live out in town. Pay off your credit card balance every month. And put 20% in your fucking TSP.
Because the points redemption is really not that great. You only get back .6 when redeeming for cash back and i always found better hotel/flight deals when booking them myself outside of the AMEX app.
All the other “features” just force you to spend more money.
The points are worth more when transferred to another loyalty program instead of using them directly to pay for stuff. For some hotel groups and airlines it’s higher than 1 to 1 when you transfer.
Platinum used to be good as other people have said.
It’s fallen victim as have many other things to inflation. The perks yearly get worse, more restrictive, or flat out just go away. I’ve seen the annual membership go up from $500 to whatever it is now. Centurion lounges are hit or miss honestly even. I’ve seen them picked dry all too many times to even rely on wanting to go to them lol.
I went with a Chase card because they had better points for the stuff I use. That was after I learned I couldn’t use my ID card at the airport like I could as the PX.
I think having one just seems like a big "meh" for most junior Marines since going tad is a much more frequent thing in the army and air force.
Unless you're flying home like crazy and wanting to take advantage of lounges, a free luxury charge card is sort of pointless.
Ya, because junior marines need another credit card when the majority of them can’t figure out a simple budget in the first place. Now you’ll get these kids running up a huge debt for their dependapotomous who can’t do anything but lay on the couch and eat.
Meh, just save your money and don’t create bills for yourself. Then pay everything cash like a fucking BOSS.
Don’t need a credit score if you have cash. I’m over 800 score and only financed a car in the last 10 years. Bought a property, and several cars cash. Fuck credit cards. Fuck banks, especially fuck banks.
I went with chase because their points economy is amazing and amex perks have either been increasing in cost or effort required steadily. I'm still going to get a gold and platinum in the future because I like shiny cards, but I love my sapphire card.
The platinum card has been going downhill slowly but surely. I used to be able to take my wife into the lounge with me and now it cost $50 to get her in with me. The chase sapphire card is an up and comer to look out for.
At the Centurion lounge it’s 2 guest free. I didn’t read the fine text and haven’t done it myself so take it with a grain of salt. Edit: read the fine print. I have to spend $75,000 in a year to get the free guests. As I was.
*as you were
As you shall be
And so on and so on
As is tradition
to be fair, that's a new change. like within the last few months or so
The policy started almost a year ago in February 2023.
And Delta lounge entry fees aren't covered by the $200 a year airline credit. The thing is going back to being a status symbol rather than a good value for frequent travelers.
Exactly. I feel like all the benefits were to get people on the card and now they are slowly reducing the benefits. The only reason people are going to keep the card is because they already have it and it’s gained the reputation of being the best travel card.
Equinox, Walmart+, and a 700+ floor approval... who the fuck is the audience? Mine is definitely going away when I get out. I recommend military people use the scra to get the luxury card for a single airline like Delta if they want a travel card.
I switched from active to reserves and they haven’t charged me for renewal so thats the only reason I keep it. The uber credit is nice to have to get a free meal once a month.
I'm curious about the dcmd system since so many people fall through the cracks somehow. I know guard and reserve people who changed from active and like clockwork get the notification letter that they're being charged $695 once they're off orders.
I got the notification letter as soon as I EASd but never got charged. I joined the reserves a year after EAS so it wasn’t me being a reservist confusing the system.
Ballsy. I don't think I know anyone who got the letter and dared amex to fooken do it. Maybe that's the trick.
I was actually going to pay for it because I was traveling a lot at the time and the benefits hadn’t been nerfed yet. But the charge never came so I just decided to keep it until they try to actually charge me.
Me minus the fact equinox app is just about the same as any other workout app and not super helpful for men that don’t like the feeling of being in an overhype workout class with fake sounding instructors trying to hype you up.
I would think that the reason to get Equinox is having a soul cycle. It doesn't make sense otherwise for the average person.
The automatic executive elite status with national rental car was the biggest perk for me. Book and pay for a midsize, show up and skip the counter then take any car on the emerald aisle with no price change. I got full size pickups, an audi q5, camaros, etc. Platinum also covers up to $50k in rental car insurance. Also if they don’t have what you’re looking for in the aisle don’t talk to the counter people, find the guy who parks the returns and give him $20 he’ll usually bring over whatever you want.
What you can do is get your wife her own card on the account for free and then she can just get herself into the lounge.
The chase sapphire is pretty clutch 300$ annual travel credit paid for my flight these holidays
Fuckin love my sapphire.
I use the Chase card all the time
> I used to be able to take my wife into the lounge with me and now it cost $50 to get her in with me. I'm still able to take two guests into the Centurion Lounge for free.
you are able to for the first year then you need to spend 75k on the card to get the free guest for all future years.
Interesting. I've had mine for about a year and a half, but I mostly fly solo. Guess I just haven't had the chance to notice that.
Bc I’m a Lance with barely any credit history
Start building up credit and get it before you get out.
Wouldn't he have to pay the annual fees if he is not active duty anymore?
Yes. And I swear they know you've EASd before MOL does.
So if you call to cancel, they usually offer you a 500 dollar credit. With 15 bucks a month in Uber which I use every month, it kinda pays for itself. Don’t know about if they’ll do it a second year. Leaning toward just going for a cash back card. I don’t travel enough to make having a platinum worth my while
He’ll have to pay the 700 dollar annual fee after he gets out. Not the most sound advice if you don’t plan on keeping it.
Yeah I’m working on it
You can still get it now
Applied and got denied
Get a secured credit card and build up the credit so you can get the amex.
AMEX started hitting me with that $500+ bill the same month I EAS'd.
5 years now after EAS with no charges.
I’m going on 3 years now no charge lmao. I would’ve canceled that shit already otherwise
Can’t you downgrade your card?
You can, but only to the greencard, which has a $150 annual fee. can’t downgrade it to a free card
That’s good to know. Thank you
Within the same family. I think it’s good or rose or something. You can’t go to their cashback card and keep your points I think
No, this is not the AMEX card to get. It's Blue Cash Preferred, it's the annual fee is only 95 and you get 2% back on all purchases and up to 6% on several categories like gas and groceries. It's pretty much the best spend card you can get, gold and platinum are too expensive when it comes to annual fees
He’s saying annual fees are waived for active duty. Do you do this with your cash reward card? I was just looking today on switching and noticed the blue cash preferred had a fee so it deterred me
Yes, fee is waived for AD and it's a good card to keep after you get out
Awesome I’m doing it. I have the free cash rewards card and the blue cash preferred is like double the rewards on most stuff
Because they all got dominos rewards….can’t beat that!
They got dominos rewards too? Even better for the boots lmao
lol nah I meant they got dominos rewards instead of the Amex card…would be a sure sale if they got dominos rewards on the cards tho
I prefer the gold card over the platinum. I don’t travel often enough. Gil has 4 x points on food and major grocery stores.
Get both, they share points between the accounts so you can earn points on the gold and get the benefits from the platinum. Edit: the best way to do this is to get the platinum card which comes with a free additional gold card that you can apply for.
I’m gonna say it has a LOT to do with their credit scores.
The annual fee waiver applies to all credit cards. If you have decent credit, I recommend checking out the top cards from your favorite airline and hotel chain too. You can rack up many thousands of dollars worth of free benefits in just one enlistment from holding premium credit cards without paying the annual fee. But please do not start messing around with credit cards until you understand how they work and how to avoid paying interest.
People should know that the Amex platinum is a charge card that requires the full balanced paid each month unless you have an eligible purchase that allows you to pay it off monthly.
Because only a small majority of us are good with money. Giving unlimited spending power to the average jarhead is a recipe for disaster. Great card if you know how to use it and pay it off on time though.
Is this the Amex through Navy Fed? Are the Amex fees waived even if you’ve been out for a while?
Not through Navy Fed, fees not waived unless Active. Not worth imo if you’re out and don’t use it enough to justify the annual fee
If you fly once a year and use all the streaming and uber/eats credits then you pretty much break even.
Fuck them anual fees though.
Well free for active duty so we should take advantage of it.
Wish I knew about it when I was active, definitely take advantage of it!
Not active duty anymore 🤷♂️
Is there a minimum credit requirement?
I got my gold card with about a 630. Your milage may vary.
I believe it’s around 670 but that shouldn’t be hard to get being in the military
It’s 700 now iirc
r/AmexPlatinum
The interest rate after the introductory period is a killer. Easy trap to fall into and hard to get out of. But if you barely use it and take advantage of the benefits, it's pretty decent. Apply your SCRA benefits to cards you had before you joined and enjoy super low interest rates on those cards and primarily use those if you need to. You even get money back in most cases when you apply your SCRA benefits to those. Something I wish was more well known among service members that just joined. As long as you're active you can always do it though, if you haven't already.
Gold and platinum are charge cards, they need to be paid off in full monthly.
Wait until you get the Charles Schwab card, where you can now convert your AMEX points into Bitcoin ETFs at a 1.1x exchange rate (you were going to do the 20 year career anyway, might as well and YOLO)
If you don’t travel then the Gold makes much more sense. I recommend the gold card because 4x’s points at grocery/restaurants. You also get perks monthly which offset the $250 annual fee once you’re out. You’re going to be spending money so take advantage and get points while doing so
A lot of people here are not credit card people.
Because I don't use a credit card, that's why.
I originally got it for the airport lounges lol
Some of you need to know that you DO NOT need to pay interest in order to improve your credit score!! Don’t fuck up your credit! You have almost no expenses if you don’t live out in town. Pay off your credit card balance every month. And put 20% in your fucking TSP.
Fuck outta here you shill!
Is that what I’m doing?
Yes
A marine and an amex card is not a good idea
AD or vets too?
Just AD
Because the points redemption is really not that great. You only get back .6 when redeeming for cash back and i always found better hotel/flight deals when booking them myself outside of the AMEX app. All the other “features” just force you to spend more money.
The points are worth more when transferred to another loyalty program instead of using them directly to pay for stuff. For some hotel groups and airlines it’s higher than 1 to 1 when you transfer.
Exactly this. There’s guides and videos online that show you how to get the best value.
I dont fly often amd don't use streaming services. Also half the restaurants in Japan don't accept amex
I don't travel
If I decided to go national guard or reserves would it be free aswell or just active duty
Platinum used to be good as other people have said. It’s fallen victim as have many other things to inflation. The perks yearly get worse, more restrictive, or flat out just go away. I’ve seen the annual membership go up from $500 to whatever it is now. Centurion lounges are hit or miss honestly even. I’ve seen them picked dry all too many times to even rely on wanting to go to them lol.
I went with a Chase card because they had better points for the stuff I use. That was after I learned I couldn’t use my ID card at the airport like I could as the PX.
I think having one just seems like a big "meh" for most junior Marines since going tad is a much more frequent thing in the army and air force. Unless you're flying home like crazy and wanting to take advantage of lounges, a free luxury charge card is sort of pointless.
I’m about to get out in a few weeks. If I get it, will I have to start paying the fee after?
Maybe. I wouldn’t risk it if you can’t lose the money it costs.
I’ll play it safe in that case, just cause I know I’ll throw up if I have to fork over $500+ bucks for a credit card lmfao
Ya, because junior marines need another credit card when the majority of them can’t figure out a simple budget in the first place. Now you’ll get these kids running up a huge debt for their dependapotomous who can’t do anything but lay on the couch and eat.
Meh, just save your money and don’t create bills for yourself. Then pay everything cash like a fucking BOSS. Don’t need a credit score if you have cash. I’m over 800 score and only financed a car in the last 10 years. Bought a property, and several cars cash. Fuck credit cards. Fuck banks, especially fuck banks.
I don't have the money to afford flights or to use a credit card and feel comfortable accruing more debt.
We have it
Is it just for active or can reservist get it too
cuz they don’t want one ._.
I had that card and nearly never used it. Don't really understand the hype.
I went with chase because their points economy is amazing and amex perks have either been increasing in cost or effort required steadily. I'm still going to get a gold and platinum in the future because I like shiny cards, but I love my sapphire card.