American Express® Platinum for Schwab Review

Overview

The Amex Platinum for Schwab is the standard Platinum with one investor-friendly perk bolted on: you can cash your Membership Rewards points into an eligible Schwab account at 1.1 cents each. Everything else, the $895 fee, the credits, the lounges, the 5x on travel, is the same.

It is a nice option if you already bank with Schwab and want a guaranteed cash floor on your points, but unlike the Morgan Stanley version, there is no bonus that offsets the fee, so the usual Platinum caveats still apply.

Our 3.5 out of 5 rating

Each score weighs the rewards rate, value after the annual fee, welcome offer, points flexibility, and perks, with every point valued at a flat 1 cent. This is our editorial assessment to help you compare cards, not a guarantee of approval or of the value you will get.

Rewards: how it earns

Earning mirrors the regular Platinum: 5x on flights and prepaid hotels via Amex, 1x on nearly everything else. The Schwab advantage is redemption, its Invest with Rewards feature lets you move points into your Schwab account at 1.1 cents each, up to a million points a year, then 0.8 cents after. That 1.1-cent floor is a bit better than a plain cash-out and handy if you would rather take reliable cash than gamble on award transfers.

The fine print on rates: Available only to Charles Schwab clients; an eligible Schwab brokerage or IRA account is required. Points can be redeemed into your Schwab account at 1.1 cents each (up to 1 million points a year, then 0.8 cents).

Every point and mile above is valued at a flat 1 cent, the same honest standard we use for every card. Run your own spending through the calculator to see what this card would actually return for you.

Pros and cons

The welcome bonus

The welcome bonus is currently 80,000 points after $12,000 in six months. Like the other Platinum variants, the sign-up bonus is the main first-year draw, since the ongoing math is the same tough sell as the standard card.

Is the annual fee worth it?

It is the same $895 fee as the regular Platinum, and crucially there is no Schwab equivalent of Morgan Stanley's Annual Engagement Bonus, so nothing here erases the fee. That means the same coupon-book reality applies: the credits only pay off if you would spend on those exact things, and the card is hard to justify past year one unless you fly a lot or genuinely value the 1.1-cent cash-out.

Benefits and protections

Beyond the rewards, the perks and protections worth knowing about include:

• Carries all the same premium benefits as the standard Amex Platinum, plus a Schwab cash-out option
• Invest with Rewards: redeem Membership Rewards points into an eligible Schwab account at 1.1 cents each (up to 1 million points per year, then 0.8 cents)
• Access to 1,550+ airport lounges including Centurion Lounges and Priority Pass Select
• $200 Uber Cash, $200 airline fee credit, $200 Fine Hotels + Resorts credit, $240 digital entertainment credit, $189 CLEAR Plus credit, and $100 Saks credit annually
• Global Entry or TSA PreCheck fee credit; automatic Marriott Bonvoy Gold and Hilton Honors Gold status
• Requires an eligible Charles Schwab brokerage or IRA account
• No foreign transaction fees

Lounge access

This card includes airport lounge access. Here is exactly what you get, including the Priority Pass distinctions that vary by card:

• The Centurion Lounge and Sidecar by The Centurion Lounge
• Priority Pass Select membership, airport lounges only (U.S. Amex cards no longer include Priority Pass restaurants)
• Delta Sky Club when flying Delta same-day: 10 visits per year, unlimited after $75,000 in annual spend; no free guests ($50 per guest)
• Escape, Plaza Premium, Airspace and other Global Lounge Collection lounges (1,550+ lounges across 500+ airports)

Statement credits

• $200 Uber Cash annually
• $200 airline fee credit annually
• $200 Fine Hotels + Resorts credit
• $240 digital entertainment credit ($20/month)
• $189 CLEAR Plus credit
• $100 Saks Fifth Avenue credit ($50 semi-annually)
• Global Entry or TSA PreCheck fee credit (~$100)

Ecosystem and transfer partners

Airline partners: Delta SkyMiles, British Airways, Air France/KLM, Singapore Airlines, ANA, Avianca LifeMiles, Emirates Skywards.

Hotel partners: Marriott Bonvoy, Hilton Honors.

See the full American Express ecosystem →

Who should get it, and who should skip it

If you are a Schwab customer who likes the idea of turning points into cash at a fixed 1.1 cents, this version gives you that without changing anything else about the Platinum. It is a small but real upgrade over the standard card's redemption options.

But if your main goal is beating the fee, the Morgan Stanley version is the one to look at, because it can offset the $895 entirely. For everyone else, the standard advice holds: grab it for the welcome bonus, then decide whether the perks justify keeping it.

Frequently asked questions

Best-card guides featuring this card