Amex Membership Rewards Playing cards: Spring 2023 Affords

As we emerge from the cold winter months and head into warmer weather, American Express has released new welcome bonuses on three of its main cards. 

The Business Platinum Card from American Express, the American Express Platinum Card, and the American Express Gold Rewards Card all have upgraded welcome offers without a published end date.

If you’ve been looking to boost your American Express Membership Rewards balance for an upcoming trip, you may want to take advantage of these offers, as long as you can meet the minimum spending requirements.

Amex Business Platinum Card: 100,000 MR Points

The Business Platinum Card from American Express is offering 100,000 MR points upon spending $10,000 in the first three months when applying via a refer-a-friend link. There is no listed expiry date for this offer.

The big hurdle? $10,000 in minimum spending in the first three months. Of course, 100,000 MR points is absolutely worth shifting some spending around for if at all possible! 

Don’t forget that if you’re in two-player mode or more, then your partner, family member, or friend would earn 20,000 MR points as a referral bonus if you applied via their referral link, which would bring the total household gain even higher as you apply for more Amex business cards.

The $499 annual fee on the Business Platinum Card may appear intimidating at first glance, but the benefits of getting the card go a long way towards offsetting the impact of the annual fee.

The Business Platinum Card offers a flat 1.25 MR points per dollar spent on all purchases, making it an ideal card for business owners whose large volumes of spending may not fall into traditional credit card bonus categories.

And just like the personal version, the premium travel benefits – including the same lounge access benefits and Marriott Bonvoy Gold Elite status – is what really makes the Business Platinum Card a favourite product among high-flying points collectors and business owners across all the land.

Amex Platinum Card: 90,000 MR Points

When you apply for the American Express Platinum Card via a refer-a-friend link, you can earn a total of up to 90,000 MR points when you charge $7,500 to your card in the first three months as a cardholder. There is no listed expiry date for the offer.

The Platinum Card is known for its premium travel benefits, which is what makes it a card that everyone should consider holding at some point.

First off, the $200 annual travel credit on the Platinum Card, which you get once every card membership year, effectively offsets against the $699 annual fee since it’s easily redeemable on any form of travel.

You’ll get unlimited airport lounge access with Priority Pass, Plaza Premium, Delta Sky Clubs, and Centurion lounges. Furthermore, the Platinum Card confers instant elite status levels in Marriott Bonvoy (Gold Elite), Hilton Honors (Gold Elite), and Radisson Rewards (Gold Elite).

Not to mention, top-tier cards like the Platinum Card routinely get the best Amex Offers, including fine dining credits and flexible grocery credits – so if you’ve been considering picking it up, now’s the time to apply.  

Amex Gold Rewards Card: Up to 70,000 MR Points

When you apply and are approved for an American Express Gold Rewards Card via a refer-a-friend link, you’ll get a welcome bonus worth up to 70,000 MR points:

• Earn 10,000 MR points upon spending $4,000 in the first three months
• Earn 5,000 MR points upon spending $1,000 in each of the first 12 months, up to 60,000 MR points

This is a change from the previous structure of the card’s welcome bonus, and is similar to how the bonus on the American Express Cobalt Card is set up. Rather than getting the bonus points in one fell swoop, they’re spread out over the course of a year with this new offer.

As long as you can manage and keep track of $1,000 of spending each month for the first year, you’ll have unlocked the full welcome bonus for this card. Just be sure to reach $4,000 in the first three months, as you’ll get an additional 10,000 points with this offer.

The Gold Rewards Card offers a $100 annual travel credit, similar to the $200 annual travel credit on its premium counterpart, the Platinum Card. 

The $100 annual travel credit can be redeemed towards any booking of $100 or more through the Amex Travel online portal, including flights, hotels, car rentals, and more.

Since the travel credit also applies to refundable bookings, it’s effectively as good as cash, and it reduces your net annual fee back down to $150. 

In addition, the Gold Rewards Card also offers four complimentary visits to Plaza Premium lounges in Canada every year, allowing you to make use of airport lounges in Toronto, Vancouver, Winnipeg, Edmonton, and Montreal. 

Conclusion

The elevated American Express welcome bonuses for Spring 2023 are higher than the best available offers for the past few months, but aren’t quite as good as the best we’ve seen in the last year. Of the new offers, the American Express Gold Rewards Card and the Amex Business Platinum Card are the most intriguing, and they’re definitely worth considering.

If you’ve been holding out for a higher welcome bonus on one of these cards, be sure to take advantage if you can meet the spending requirements. Doing so will unlock hundreds of dollars in value towards your next trip. 

There aren’t any published expiry dates for the offers, so be sure to sign up sooner rather than later.