Mastercard® Black Card™ vs The Platinum Card® from American Express

Compare Rewards, Interest Rates, Fees, and Benefits

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Mastercard Black Card is a stainless steel and carbon card with luxury benefits. How does it compare to American Express Platinum, a travel and airline card? Read our comparison chart below.

	Mastercard® Black Card™	The Platinum Card® from American Express


	Credit Card Summary
	Ideal for those seeking a top-of-wallet premium card with straightforward rewards and exceptional service. Cardholders can avoid juggling various cards and monthly statements while benefiting from travel perks and enhanced protection that exceeds standard credit cards. Offers a flat-rate redemption value of 1.5% for cash back or 2% value for airfare redemption with no airline or seat restrictions and no blackout dates. Cardholders earn one point for every dollar spent. Point redemption is simple, without requiring a complex reward strategy. The card features no foreign transaction fees, no earning caps, no rotating categories, and eliminates the need to pursue transfer partners to maximize point values. Annual Airline Credit—up to $100 in statement credits toward flight-related purchases including airline tickets, baggage fees, upgrades and more. Cardholders simply pay for airline purchases with their Mastercard Black Card and the credit is automatically applied to their account. There's no need to activate or designate an airline. The full credit amount is available at the start of the calendar year. Up to a $120 application fee credit for the cost of TSA Pre✓® or Global Entry. Also, enjoy automatic enrollment in Priority Pass™ Select with access to 1,500+ airport lounges worldwide with no guest or lounge limits. Includes credits at select airport restaurants for cardholder and one guest. 24/7 Luxury Card Concierge®—Make requests the way you want by phone, email, SMS and chat in the app. Connect directly with a real agent and receive 24/7 assistance for tasks big and small. Requests do not require a purchase, incur no charge for making them, and do not involve department transfers. Exclusive Luxury Card Travel® benefits—average value of $500 per stay (e.g., resort credits, room upgrades, free wifi, breakfast for two and more) at over 3,000 properties. Receive protection benefits like trip cancellation and interruption, auto rental car collision waiver, travel accident and baggage delay. Cell phone protection for eligible claims of up to $1,000 each year. Plus additional World Elite Mastercard® benefits. Black PVD-Coated Metal Card: Weighing in at an industry-leading 22g. Designed for frequent shoppers, big ticket purchases and everything in between. Annual Fee: $495 ($195 for each Authorized User). Terms and conditions apply. See Current Offer	Earn 80,000 Membership Rewards® Points after you spend $8,000 on eligible purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership. Earn 5X Membership Rewards® Points for flights booked directly with airlines or with American Express Travel up to $500,000 on these purchases per calendar year and earn 5X Membership Rewards® Points on prepaid hotels booked with American Express Travel. $200 Hotel Credit: Get up to $200 back in statement credits each year on prepaid Fine Hotels + Resorts® or The Hotel Collection bookings through American Express Travel using your Platinum Card®. The Hotel Collection requires a minimum two-night stay. $240 Digital Entertainment Credit: Get up to $20 back in statement credits each month on eligible purchases made with your Platinum Card® on one or more of the following: Disney+, a Disney Bundle, ESPN+, Hulu, The New York Times, Peacock, and The Wall Street Journal. Enrollment required. The American Express Global Lounge Collection® can provide an escape at the airport. With complimentary access to more than 1,400 airport lounges across 140 countries and counting, you have more airport lounge options than any other credit card issuer on the market. As of 03/2023. $155 Walmart+ Credit: Save on eligible delivery fees, shipping, and more with a Walmart+ membership. Use your Platinum Card® to pay for a monthly Walmart+ membership and get up to $12.95 plus applicable taxes back on one membership (excluding Plus Ups) each month. $200 Airline Fee Credit: Select one qualifying airline and then receive up to $200 in statement credits per calendar year when incidental fees are charged by the airline to your Platinum Card®. $200 Uber Cash: Platinum Card® Members can get out and about and explore their local area with $15 in Uber Cash for US rides each month, plus a bonus $20 in December. That can be up to $200 in annual Uber savings. Simply download the Uber app and add your Platinum Card® to your Uber account to get started. Available to Basic Card Member only. Effective 11/8/2024, an Amex Card must be selected as the payment method for your Uber or Uber Eats transaction to redeem the Amex Uber Cash benefit. $199 CLEAR® Plus Credit: CLEAR® Plus helps to get you to your gate faster at 50+ airports nationwide and get up to $199 back per calendar year on your Membership (subject to auto-renewal) when you use your Card. CLEARLanes are available at 100+ airports, stadiums, and entertainment venues. Receive either a $120 statement credit every 4 years for a Global Entry application fee or a statement credit up to $85 every 4.5 years for a TSA PreCheck® (through a TSA official enrollment provider) application fee, when charged to your Platinum Card®. Card Members approved for Global Entry will also receive access to TSA PreCheck at no additional cost. Shop Saks with Platinum: Get up to $100 in statement credits annually for purchases in Saks Fifth Avenue stores or at saks.com on your Platinum Card®. That's up to $50 in statement credits semi-annually. Enrollment required. Unlock access to exclusive reservations and special dining experiences with Global Dining Access by Resy when you add your Platinum Card® to your Resy profile. $695 annual fee.¤ Terms Apply. See Rates & Fees See Current Offer
	Credit Card Interest Rates & Fees
Introductory APR for Balance Transfers	0% introductory APR for the first fifteen billing cycles following each balance transfer that posts to your account within 45 days of account opening.	N/A
Purchase APR	20.74% to 28.74% (Variable) based on your creditworthiness and other factors	See Pay Over Time APR See Rates & Fees
Balance Transfers APR	20.74% to 28.74% (Variable) based on your creditworthiness and other factors	N/A
Foreign Transaction Fee	0% of each transaction in U.S. dollars.	No foreign transaction fee
Annual Fee	$495 annual fee ($195 for each Authorized User added to the account)	$695 annual fee
	Credit Card Rewards & Benefits
Introductory Bonus Offer		Earn 80,000 Membership Rewards® Points after you spend $8,000 on eligible purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership.
Cash Back Rewards	1.5% value for cash back redemptions
Travel Rewards		Travel Rewards
Airline Rewards	2% value for airfare redemptions with no blackout dates or seat restrictions.	Earn 5X Membership Rewards® Points for flights booked directly with airlines or with American Express Travel up to $500,000 on these purchases per calendar year.
Hotel Rewards		Earn 5X Membership Rewards® Points on prepaid hotels booked with American Express Travel.
Point Rewards		1 point for virtually every dollar spent.
Airline Status	Annual Airline Credit—up to $100 in statement credits toward flight-related purchases including airline tickets, baggage fees, upgrades and more. Cardholders simply pay for airline purchases with their Mastercard Black Card and the credit is automatically applied to their account. There's no need to activate or designate an airline. The full credit amount is available at the start of the calendar year. Up to a $120 application fee credit for the cost of TSA Pre✓® or Global Entry. Also, enjoy automatic enrollment in Priority Pass™ Select with access to 1,500+ airport lounges worldwide with no guest or lounge limits. Includes credits at select airport restaurants for cardholder and one guest.	$200 Airline Fee Credit: Select one qualifying airline and then receive up to $200 in statement credits per calendar year when incidental fees are charged by the airline to your Platinum Card®. Enrollment required Complimentary access to 5 airport lounge networks including The Centurion® lounge network, The International American Express lounges, Delta Sky Club® lounges, Priority Pass™ Select, and Airspace Lounge. Enrollment required for Priority Pass Select.
Hotel Status		$200 Hotel Credit: Get up to $200 back in statement credits each year on prepaid Fine Hotels + Resorts® or The Hotel Collection bookings through American Express Travel using your Platinum Card®. The Hotel Collection requires a minimum two-night stay. Enroll for complimentary Marriott Bonvoy Gold Elite Status. Enroll for complimentary Hilton Honors Gold Status.
Airline Transfer Partners		Airline transfer partners include Delta, Hawaiian Airlines, Aeromexico, Air Canada, Air France, Emirates, Cathay Pacific (Asia Miles), Virgin Atlantic, Singapore Airlines, Etihad, Alitalia, All Nippon Airways and more.
	Go to issuer's official application, terms, and details	Go to issuer's official application, terms, and details
	CreditDonkey® Credit Card Reviews

Pros & Cons	Pros: Stainless steel and carbon card Concierge service Travel benefits Cons: $495 annual fee No signup bonus	Pros: Travel benefits 80,000 bonus points after you spend $8,000 in first 6 months Concierge service Cons: $695 annual fee
Bottom Line	Stainless steel and carbon card with luxury benefits... Read full review	Excellent card for frequent travelers... Read full review

See issuer's website for details including terms and conditions. While reasonable effort has been made to maintain accurate and updated information, the information shown on this site may vary, be out of date, or not applicable to you. All information is provided without warranty. When you click on the Apply Now button, you can review the terms and conditions on the issuer's website. Blank fields may indicate the information is not available, not applicable, or not known to CreditDonkey. Please visit the issuer's website for details. Editorial Note: Any opinions, analyses, reviews or recommendations expressed in this article are those of the author's alone, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any card issuer. For rates and fees of The Platinum Card® from American Express card, please click here.

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