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Amex Platinum makes a permanent increase to its sign-up bonus – now 50,000 points

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American Express Platinum quietly snuck out a change to its sign-up bonus yesterday.

The standard sign-up bonus has permanently increased from 40,000 Membership Rewards to 50,000 Membership Rewards points.

This would convert to 50,000 Avios amongst other things.

You could qualify for this bonus even if you have a British Airways American Express card.

Amex Platinum increases sign-up bonus to 40,000 points

The minimum spend required to trigger the bonus remains at £6,000 in your first three months.

The representative APR is 694.9% variable, including the annual fee.  The representative APR on purchases is 30.0% variable.

Can you still get a pro-rata fee refund?

Yes, for now.

American Express continues to say (unofficially) that it will stop pro-rata fee refunds in ‘late 2024’. Given that we have been told that we will get a decent period of notice, it is possible that it doesn’t happen now – but I genuinely don’t know.

Would The Platinum Card still make sense without a pro-rata fee refund?

With the new 50,000 Membership Rewards points bonus, yes. Even if you have no intention of keeping the card beyond the first year, and even if pro-rata fee refunds do go away, you’d still get value for your £650.

In terms of hard ‘pseudo cash’ benefits, in year 1 you’d get:

  • 50,000 Membership Rewards points (converts to 50,000 Avios) – which I’d value at £500 if you know how maximise your airline miles
  • £150 UK dining credit to use by 31st December
  • £150 international dining credit to use by 31st December
  • £50 of Harvey Nichols credit to use by 31st December
Amex Platinum increases sign-up bonus to 40,000 points

…. plus whatever value you place on the other core benefits:

  • the two Priority Pass airport lounge passes (valid for a group of four for unlimited visits)
  • Hilton Honors Gold status
  • Melia Rewards Gold status
  • Marriott Bonvoy Gold status
  • Radisson Rewards Premium status
  • Eurostar lounge access
  • the Fine Hotels & Resorts hotel booking scheme
  • the travel insurance etc etc

What we DON’T know is if the £300 of annual dining credits and the £50 per half-year of Harvey Nichols credit will roll over into 2025. If they did, you’d be able to claim another £400 of credits in 2025 before your renewal came due.

I have my own opinion on what might happen but as this is a regulated credit product it’s best that I say nothing! You will definitely receive £150 of UK dining credit to use by 31st December, £150 of international dining credit to use by 31st December and £50 of Harvey Nichols credit to use by 31st December. This is guaranteed.

Our comprehensive review of The Platinum Card is here if you want to see the full list of benefits.

You can apply here.

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earns points from credit cards

Want to earn more points from credit cards? – May 2025 update

If you are looking to apply for a new credit card, here are our top recommendations based on the current sign-up bonuses.

In 2022, Barclaycard launched two exciting new Barclaycard Avios Mastercard cards with a bonus of up to 25,000 Avios. You can apply here.

You qualify for the bonus on these cards even if you have a British Airways American Express card:

Barclaycard Avios Plus card

Barclaycard Avios Plus Mastercard

Get 25,000 Avios for signing up and an upgrade voucher at £10,000 Read our full review

Barclaycard Avios card

Barclaycard Avios Mastercard

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You can see our full directory of all UK cards which earn airline or hotel points here. Here are the best of the other deals currently available.

SPECIAL OFFER: Until 27th May 2025, the sign-up bonus on the ‘free for a year’ American Express Preferred Rewards Gold card is increased from 20,000 Membership Rewards points to 30,000 points. Points convert 1:1 into Avios (30,000 Avios!) and many other programmes. Some people may see even higher personalised offers. Click here to apply.

SPECIAL OFFER: Until 27th May 2025, the sign-up bonus on American Express Platinum is increased from 50,000 Membership Rewards points to a huge 80,000 points. Points convert 1:1 into Avios (80,000 Avios!) and many other programmes. Some people may see even higher personalised offers. Click here to apply.

American Express Preferred Rewards Gold Credit Card

Your best beginner’s card – 30,000 points, FREE for a year & four airport lounge passes Read our full review

British Airways American Express Premium Plus Card

30,000 Avios and the famous annual Companion Voucher voucher Read our full review

The Platinum Card from American Express

80,000 bonus points and great travel benefits – for a large fee Read our full review

Virgin Atlantic Reward+ Mastercard

18,000 bonus points and 1.5 points for every £1 you spend Read our full review

Earning miles and points from small business cards

If you are a sole trader or run a small company, you may also want to check out these offers:

The American Express Business Platinum Card

50,000 points when you sign-up and an annual £200 Amex Travel credit Read our full review

The American Express Business Gold Card

20,000 points sign-up bonus and FREE for a year Read our full review

Capital on Tap Pro Visa

10,500 points (=10,500 Avios) plus good benefits Read our full review

Capital on Tap Visa

NO annual fee, NO FX fees and points worth 1 Avios per £1 Read our full review

British Airways American Express Accelerating Business Card

30,000 Avios sign-up bonus – plus annual bonuses of up to 30,000 Avios Read our full review

Category

American Express Membership Rewards, American Express Platinum card

Comments (69)

This article is closed to new comments. Feel free to ask your question in the HfP forums.

  • James says:
    10 Oct10 October 05:06

    I’m looking at cancelling mine in the next week or so.. do they make any attempt at retention by offering a decent amount of points? I’ve had mine for a couple of years.

    • Mikel says:
      10 Oct10 October 05:15

      Usually between 30k – 50k. Look at the HfP forums (Amex thread) and you’ll see the retention offers on the platinum.

    • Michael says:
      10 Oct10 October 05:43

      I got 35,000 MR points as a retention offer. Previous two years was 50,000.

    • Eli gold says:
      10 Oct10 October 06:00

      Yes. They very easily gave me 35,000 just for asking

    • Tony says:
      10 Oct10 October 06:29

      I went on chat to cancel last week and didn’t need to ask for a retention bonus. Fully intended leaving and had transferred most of my limit over to my BAPP card beforehand. Was asked why I was leaving, said I wasn’t getting value from the card and they offered 35k points as a thank you for my loyalty. I accepted but fully intend leaving in a month’s time and take a pro rata refund.

    • Grimz says:
      10 Oct10 October 20:14

      I got 50k points a month ago for no additional spend. I am still cancelling soon!

  • Neil says:
    10 Oct10 October 06:03

    Followed your link and it seems to be offering 60,000 signup bonus?!

  • Andrew J says:
    10 Oct10 October 06:46

    It’s absurd that it’s now into October and we don’t know what benefits this card will offer in January.

    • Thaliasilje says:
      10 Oct10 October 09:15

      Something must be up.

      I’m wondering if Rob is also in the dark or have heard from them.

      • Rob says:
        10 Oct10 October 09:26

        I don’t know. Wish I did. I have heard from people on the other side of these deals what they believe is happening but Amex will not confirm.

  • Simon says:
    10 Oct10 October 07:19

    The lack of info on 2025 benefits is very arrogant by Amex – if the dining and HN credits aren’t renewed or replaced, they will lose members in their droves.

  • JdeW says:
    10 Oct10 October 07:41

    Talking with Amex this week (on chat) about possible cancellation (after 22 years!) due to reaching 70 and losing the travel insurance benefit, the pro-rata fee refund was still being offered.

  • Andrew says:
    10 Oct10 October 08:21

    Just received 50k MR bonus exactly a year and a day after last years bonus, via chat.
    I had tried unsuccessfully on 2 occasions last week – the date the fee posts seems to trigger?

  • Emilie says:
    10 Oct10 October 08:49

    We mainly use the card for airport lounge access for the two of us and our two children. If we were to cancel it, are there other cards that offer Priority Pass for the main card holder and a companion? We have enjoyed the fining both in the UK and abroad and would be extremely disappointed to see this go

    • TGLoyalty says:
      10 Oct10 October 10:46

      Neither offer yourself+1 guest. they are both for the cardholder only and guests must pay a supplement. Which might be okay for the OP to pay for the two kids depending on how many visits they do.

      • HampshireHog says:
        10 Oct10 October 10:53

        Lloyds offers a supp card with the benefits

      • The Savage Squirrel says:
        10 Oct10 October 11:32

        Yep, for all that we moan (me too!) about lack of access to UK lounges, the ability to get 4 people in thanks to basically 1 credit card is something that works well for many families and that no other card replicates. Many people stick with the Amex for this reason. Other card providers may like to take note…

  • Qrfan says:
    10 Oct10 October 09:05

    I recall seeing on a previous article or forum post that the house view was dining credits continue and HN doesn’t in 2025. Would you caution against proceeding on that basis?

    • Rob says:
      10 Oct10 October 09:27

      For regulatory reasons I can’t say. The comment you reference was my personal view based on conversations in the industry with people who don’t work for Amex.

This article is closed to new comments. Feel free to ask your question in the HfP forums.

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