Get a $695 credit card annual fee waived in my Ultimate Military Credit Cards Course Show
Military Money Manual has partnered with CardRatings for our coverage of credit card products. Military Money Manual and CardRatings may receive a commission from card issuers. Opinions, reviews, analyses & recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed or approved by any of these entities. Thank you for supporting my independent, veteran owned site. Comparing the Chase Sapphire Reserve® (review) vs the The Platinum Card® from American Express (review) is a fun exercise in comparing two of the ultimate luxury travel cards available. Military servicemembers and their spouses get both of these travel cards with waived annual fees! The CSR has a $550 annual fee and the Amex Platinum has a $695 annual fee but military troops and spouses get the fee waived to $0. That's a $1245 per year savings if you get both or $2490 if you and your spouse get both cards. Assuming you're married and both spouses get both cards, over 10 years you save $24,900 in annual fees and still access all of the perks of these cards. Let's compare the Amex Platinum vs the Chase Sapphire Reserve on several different factors:
One thing we won't have to worry about for military servicemembers is the annual fee. Both Amex and Chase waive all personal card fees for active duty military and their spouses! Check out my full Chase Sapphire Reserve military review and the Amex Platinum military review. Annual fees are waived on both cards for both military spouses and the active duty Space Force Guardian, soldier, sailor, airman, Marine, or coast guardian. These travel credit cards offer excellent transfer partners, card membership rewards, annual recurring benefits like travel credits, lounge access, travel and rental car insurance. Let's get into it…
Which is better: Amex Platinum or Chase Reserve?Learn how to apply for the Chase Sapphire Reserve Chase Sapphire Reserve® Card
Learn how to apply for The Platinum Card from American Express
Chase Ultimate Rewards vs Amex Membership RewardsUltimate Rewards and Membership Rewards points are the most valuable credit card reward points because of how flexible they are. You can use these flexible credit card points to:
When you first get into the credit card travel hobby, it can be tempting to cash out your points for cash. While this can be a quick and easy way to earn some extra money, it does not extract the best value from your points. The cash value of Chase points is 1 cent when cashed out in the Chase Ultimate Rewards Portal, available at UltimateRewards.com. AMEX points are a bit harder to cash out, but you can cash them out if you have an AMEX Platinum Card for Charles Schwab. The Schwab Platinum is a separate card and product to the regular AMEX Platinum. The cash value of AMEX points is 1.25 cents when cashed out through a Schwab AMEX Platinum. Best Use of Chase or AMEX PointsThe most valuable use of credit card points is transferring the points to the AMEX or Chase transfer partners. I have received anywhere from 3-11+ cents per point, making 100,000 AMEX or Chase points worth $3000-$11,000+ of travel value! Currently Chase has 13 Ultimate Rewards transfer partners and American Express has 22 Membership Rewards transfer partners. Chase Ultimate Rewards Transfer Partners
Amex Membership Rewards Transfer Partners
Since both credit card reward programs offer different transfer opportunities, it makes sense to to have both cards. Which card you should get first depends on where you are more likely to transfer points to. For instance, many US government flights are operated by United Airlines. It might make sense to have some Chase points stocked up so you can transfer the UR points to United and upgrade your ticket. You can combine Chase UR points between accounts in the same household, like a husband and wife. With AMEX you cannot combine MR points but you can transfer points to the same frequent flyer or hotel loyalty program account, effectively allowing you to combine points with your spouse. CSR vs Platinum Reward CategoriesBoth cards earn extra reward points in different but similar categories. The main Sapphire Reserve earning category is 3x points on dining and travel. This is a great catch all bonus category. The AMEX Platinum earns 5x points on airfare purchased directly with the airline or booked through amextravel.com. If you value MR and UR points at about 2 cents per point, that means you can make about a 6% return on dining and travel spending and a 10% return on airline tickets. Chase Sapphire Reserve is the clear winner in this category. The $300 annual travel credit is extremely flexible, easy to use, and doesn't require any registration. It refreshes every year on your card membership anniversary. Here's an example of how quickly the CSR travel credit posts and how easy it is to use: I pre-paid for a rental car on Priceline for $203.50 and I took an Uber and paid $30.31. My CSR travel credit reloads in December every year. The day the charges posted to my account, the $300 CSR travel credit kicked in and zeroed out those charges. Easy! The AMEX Platinum airline incidental fee credit is more unwieldy and difficult to maximize the value from. You can only select one airline a year to use the credit on. You must sign up for the benefit and activate it on americanexpress.com before you use it. Airline incidental fee charges that count towards the AMEX platinum credit include:
Which is better – Amex Platinum or Chase Sapphire Reserve?In 2020 the welcome bonuses for the AMEX Platinum and Sapphire Reserve are: The cash value of Platinum and CSR 100,000 and 60,000 points are: If you have the Schwab Platinum card, you could cash out your 100,000 MR points for 1.1 cents per point or $1100. 60,000 UR points can be cashed out for $600 through the Chase Ultimate Rewards portal If you transfer Chase and AMEX points to a travel partner, you can get significantly more value from the points. Here are some examples: I recently booked 2 ANA first class tickets from Honolulu to Tokyo. $27,000 tickets for 240,000 AMEX points. That's 11 cents per Membership Reward point! The Park Hyatt New York starts at $1200 per night. You can transfer 30,000 Chase points to your Hyatt account and book a room to earn 4 cents per Ultimate Reward point. Chase and Amex points are consistently valued at about the same 2 cents per point across the web. I usually use this as a benchmark when trying to make a travel redemption. If I'm not getting 2 cents per point, I will frequently make the booking with cash and save my points for a big redemption, like ANA first class at 11 cents per point or luxury Hyatt hotels at 4+ cents per point. You can learn more about maximizing your military points in my 100% free course. CSR and Amex Platinum Annual BenefitsAmex Platinum
Chase Sapphire Reserve
The Uber credit is paid at $15 per month and $35 in December. Because my wife and I have multiple Amex Platinum cards, we received $175 in December Uber credits last year. Hard to justify cooking when delivery is free!
Other recurring benefits for both cards include airport lounge access, travel insurance, and (only for military servicemembers and spouses), a waived annual fee. CSR vs Amex Platinum Airport Lounge AccessAmerican Express Platinum grants you access to many airport lounges.
For Lufthansa and Delta Sky Club, you need to be flying that airline to access the lounge. Otherwise, you just show your AMEX Platinum card, a government ID, and your boarding pass for that day. The CSR gives you access to Priority Pass lounges and restaurants. When you open the Priority Pass app, you can see a list of lounges and restaurants where you can access for free, usually with up to 2 guests. At participating Priority Pass restaurants, you usually get $28 off your bill. This is per Priority Pass holder, so if your spouse also gets a CSR, you could get $56 of free food and drink. Make sure you check the app for details on what you can and cannot order! The AMEX Platinum cut the Priority Pass restaurant benefit in Aug 2019, meaning the Chase Sapphire Reserve is definitely the winner of which Priority Pass you should get. However, you still need the AMEX Platinum to access Centurion, Delta, and Lufthansa lounges, so make sure you apply for both cards! Chase Reserve vs Amex Platinum Travel InsuranceTo keep it simple, use your CSR for booking rental cars and either card for booking airfare. The Sapphire Reserve rental car insurance is primary car rental coverage, meaning it kicks in and covers your damages before your regular auto insurance, like USAA or GEICO. AMEX Platinum only offers secondary coverage, meaning it only steps in when your regular car insurance is exhausted. AMEX Platinum Travel Insurance
CSR Travel Insurance
Sapphire Reserve vs Amex Platinum Military Annual FeeThe American Express Platinum's annual fees are $695 per year. The Chase Sapphire Reserve annual fees are $550 per year. Both American Express and Chase waive the annual fees on these 2 cards for military servicemembers and spouses. Yes, you read that right: Military servicemembers and spouses pay $0 annual fees on the American Express Platinum and Chase Sapphire Reserve. The annual fees are completely waived as long as you are on active duty service or orders. For more information see my detailed explanation of the Chase MLA policy and the Amex MLA policy. Is It Worth Having Both the Amex Platinum and Chase Sapphire Reserve?Yes! Every military servicemember and their husband or wife should have their own AMEX Platinum and Chase Sapphire Reserve. Both cards have their strengths and weaknesses. Together they have very complementary reward categories, so you can earn much more than 1 point per dollar spent on airlines, hotels, travel, and restaurants. My wife and I both have our own Amex Platinum and Chase Sapphire Reserve cards. We pay no annual fees on these 4 cards since I am active duty military. Here is the best way to maximize your points earning with these cards after you receive your welcome bonus:
Best Travel Credit Card for Military ServicemembersMilitary servicemembers and their spouses should each get their own AMEX Platinum and Chase Sapphire Reserve. These are the 2 best travel credit cards for military families. Don't just add your spouse as an authorized user to your card! He or she is able to get their own welcome bonus and earn their own annual perks. What are you waiting for? Who knows how much longer these annual fees will be waived for military servicemembers? Get these cards before this amazing benefit goes away! Learn more about applying for the Platinum Card from American Express.
Learn more about the Chase Sapphire Reserve or Chase Sapphire Preferred. Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
Amex Platinum vs Chase Sapphire Reserve FAQWhich is better Amex Platinum or Chase Sapphire Reserve? Both cards are fantastic travel rewards credit cards. I would recommend getting both as they both have their strengths for upgrading your travel experience. Amex has more Membership Rewards travel transfer partners, but Chase Ultimate Rewards tend to be more flexible to redeem. What credit card is better than American Express Platinum? The Chase Sapphire Reserve is an easy contender to the king of credit cards: the Amex Platinum. I recommend you pick up both cards and compare their annual benefits like travel credits, airport lounge access, upgraded hotel stays, and excellent travel partners to transfer points to. Which points are worth more for travel, Membership Rewards Points or Ultimate Rewards Points? It depends on your travel goals. In general I get more value from Membership Rewards because they have more transfer partners that I used more frequently. However, Ultimate Rewards are very flexible. You can combine UR and MR points in some frequent flier programs, like Singapore Krisflyer, to maximize your travel redemptions. Does Amex Platinum have travelers insurance?The Platinum Card® from American Express offers travel insurance with a suite of benefits for eligible travelers, including coverage for trip interruption, rental car damage and lost luggage.
Should I book flights on Amex Platinum or Chase Sapphire Reserve?Winner: Chase Sapphire Reserve comes out on top for redemption options since it offers a 1:1 transfer ratio for all of its airline and hotel partners, the Pay Yourself Back feature and more flexibility with its 50% bonus (1.5 cents per point) for travel booked in the Ultimate Rewards portal.
Should I switch from Sapphire Reserve to Amex Platinum?Winner: Amex Platinum is the clear winner when it comes to perks and benefits, which include its $1,400-plus in annual statement credits, expanded airport lounge access, travel protections, and elite status with Marriott and Hilton.
Which card is better American Express Platinum or Chase Sapphire Preferred?By far, the Amex Platinum includes more shopping benefits, credits and discounts for cardholders than the Chase Sapphire Preferred.
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Chase sapphire reserve vs amex platinum travel insurance
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