August 18, 2023
American Express Platinum Changes
Pam
We hate to be the bearer of bad news, but here goes. There have been American Express Platinum Card changes. 😩
Previously, you could pay $175 to add up to three authorized users to your account. This made it nice for a family to continue to have great airport lounge access, including access to the American Centurion lounges once they quit allowing free guests.
The price for an authorized user is now going to be $195, and that is for ONE user. That is a HUGE increase because three authorized users will now cost almost $600 instead of the $175 they cost in the past!
This fee kicks in immediately for all new card holders, and those who added authorized users for $175 will have to pay more next year. But will they? Will it be worth it?
I love my Denver Centurion Lounge, but it has been very overcrowded lately – not like this at all!
Additionally, the minimum spend on this card was $6000, but that has been raised to $8000, making it harder for some people to reach unless they have some major purchases. We seldom have affiliate links for this card that are higher than non-affiliate links but we will always provide you with the highest link we can find, even if we don’t make a dime on the card.
My Thoughts
I have to admit that the Denver American Express Centurion Lounge is constantly packed. Sometimes you can’t even get in. I thought that when they stopped allowing people to bring in guests for free that I would see a reduction of people in the lounge. That didn’t happen. Maybe it was because everyone paid the $175 fee to add on their family members.
I have heard that this overcrowding of the lounges has been the norm across the country, so I assume this is their effort to control that. When they said they were no longer letting guests in, I was actually relieved. And then they sent me a letter saying I could still bring in guests on two of my Platinum Business cards. It would seem that some of the overcrowding was the result of this.
While I genuinely feel bad for our readers, who will now have to decide if it is worth the money to add more authorized users to their cards, it will be nice to enjoy a lounge that is less crowded or not be turned away.
Regarding the increased minimum spend, if I had a lot of big money purchases, I’d still go for this card as it is one of my favorites. What are your thoughts on these American Express Platinum changes?
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I could be wrong but I think they’re also removing the Audible credit that’s currently available!
Yep, you are right!
The removal of Audible is a huge negative – I can listen to a book while I commute, I can’t read a dumb newspaper. I’ll still keep it because, like you, I’ll be ok with lounges potentially being less busy and I don’t have any authorized users on my card – P2 and I each have our own. I do need to drop back and punt and review the other benefits and make sure I’m capitalizing on them.
Thanks for the update, any thought on new or as good alternative for lounge access/points – the other perks almost seem like amex employees set up discounts to things they like (equinox, clear etc).
The Capital One Venture X Card is the next best card for lounge access. I actually can make good use of the perks/benefits to make the card worthwhile to keep – but I value my lounge access highly.