Guide to American Express Platinum’s Airline Fee Credit

The Amex Platinum has a hefty $695 annual fee but it is still a card that I will keep for years to come. While the annual fee is the highest out there, it comes with a ton of great perks to offset that fee. If you use all the credits to their fullest extent you can get $1,984 a year in value and that’s not including the incredible signup bonus of up to 150,000 points. Let’s talk about how to fully utilize one of the benefits of this awesome card.

$200 Annual Airline Fee Credit

In addition to a ton of monthly, and semi-annual credits for things like Uber, Digital Entertainment and Walmart+, it also offers an annual $200 airline fee credit. This can be used in one or multiple transactions and all you need to do is charge the fee to your Amex Platinum.

What This Covers

This annual $200 airline fee credit is intended to offset costs like checked baggage fees, seat assignments, as well as change fees. The language explicitly states that this does not cover the following:

Airline tickets, upgrades, mileage points purchases, mileage points transfer fees, gift cards, duty free purchases, and award tickets are not deemed to be incidental fees.

How to Use It

There are a few steps to take in order to use this credit. You have to select one airline to use this credit with by either calling the number on the back of the card or doing so online. You can only make a selection once a year so be careful about which one you choose. If you want to make a change, you will have to wait until next January.

The easiest way is to do it online. First you will need to log into your American Express account and make the following selections:

• Rewards and Benefits

• Benefits

• Scroll down to Airline Fee Credit

• Make Airline Selection

From there you’ll be able to select one of the following airlines:

• United Airlines

• Hawaiian Airlines

• Spirit Airlines

• American Airlines

• JetBlue Airways

• Southwest Airlines

• Delta Air Lines

• Alaska Airlines

Once you make a selection, all you need to do is use your enrolled card to pay for an eligible fee with that airline. There are reports that “fees” outside of what is generally allowed will trigger the fee credit but do your research and don’t get upset if what you think will work doesn’t.

What Airline Not to Choose

A lot of people will instinctively select the airline they most often fly with but that could be a huge mistake. If you fly with a certain airline a lot and have elite status with them you generally won’t incur many fees with them. Or if you have one of their co-branded credit cards, many things like seat assignments and baggage fees will already be waived. Additionally, most airlines have waived change fees since the pandemic which used to be a good use of this credit.

I am pretty loyal to American Airlines and have both top tier status with them as well as a few co-branded credit cards. I don’t pay for any fees that would get reimbursed by American Express so I never choose American as my airline. Instead I always choose United. First, I tend to fly United at least a few times a year when I’m positioning to a major international airport like Washington Dulles (IAD) or Newark (EWR) to pick up an award flight to some far flung destination around the world that isn’t served by my small hometown airport. Another great option is to choose Southwest. Reach out to me on Instagram or send me an email and I’ll let you know how I fully utilize this credit each year.