American Express Platinum Reserve Credit Card Review

The American Express Platinum Reserve credit card is the second most premium offering from Amex in India. It is positioned just below the super-premium Platinum Charge. Amex India recently revamped the rewards and benefits on the the Plat Reserve to make it more rewarding. The Platinum Reserve comes with a joining and annual fee of Rs 10,000. We get 1 MR point per Rs 50 spend and Rs 12,000 worth of gift vouchers as milestone rewards. The benefits on the American Express Platinum Reserve credit card include complimentary airport lounge access, EazyDiner Prime and Accor Plus Traveller memberships.

American Express Platinum Reserve Credit Card Eligibility

Unlike other credit card issuers, Amex has some of the simplest eligibility criteria for its credit cards. To apply for an American Express Platinum Reserve credit card we need:

CIBIL Score: 750+
Annual Income: Rs 6 Lakh+

Fees

The annual fee waiver at Rs 10 Lakh spends is a recent addition. However, even if you do not meet the fee waiver spends you can still call Amex to negotiate for a renewal benefit.

Regular Rewards

This is the same reward rate that other Amex cards like MRCC, Platinum Travel and Gold Charge get. Considering the fee point of the Plat Reserve, Amex should have given the Gold Charge feature where we earn 1 MR point on fuel and utility spends too. It is surprising that Plat Reserve misses out on that.

The above reward rate is determined based on the assumption that we will transfer out MR points to Marriott Bonvoy or other point transfer partners. In this case, we can get a value from 50 paise to Rs 1 for our MR points.

Milestone Rewards

Instead of bonus MR points for milestone spends, Amex goes with a GV approach for the Plat Reserve milestone rewards. We are sure the cardholders would have appreciated a good MR points milestone benefit as the spend target is set quite high.

Calendar Month Milestone: Get Rs 1000 gift voucher on spending more than Rs 50,000 ~2% return.
Enrolment is mandatory
Gift Voucher options are Flipkart, BookMyShow, BigBasket, MakeMyTrip, Myntra, PVR Cinemas, Shoppers Stop

Amex Platinum Reserve gets 3X on Reward Multiplier

American Express Platinum Reserve credit card gets 3X Membership Reward Points on Reward Multiplier.

Standard Reward Rate: 1 MR point/Rs 50 ~1% to 2%
3X Reward Rate: 5 MR points/Rs 50 ~3% to 6%

Complimentary EazyDiner Prime Membership

The American Express Platinum Reserve credit card gets EazyDiner Prime membership. We need to call the helpline and ask them to enrol our card into the benefit.

EayzDiner Prime will get you 25% to 50% discount at participating restaurants
2000 EazyPoints as joining bonus
2X EazyPoints on EazyDiner spends

Accor Plus Traveller Membership

Accor Plus replaces the Taj Epicure membership that was available earlier with the Platinum Reserve. We get the Accor Plus Traveller membership that comes with 20 status nights. However, we do not get the dining and stay vouchers that we would have got if purchased directly from Accor Plus. Accor Plus Traveller memberships include:

Up to 50% off on dining at over 1,400 participating Accor hotel restaurants across Asia Pacific, plus 15% off on drinks in Asia.
Up to 50% savings with exclusive member offers and hotel packages at more than 1,000 participating Accor hotels in Asia Pacific.
Members’ Rate at minimum 10% off the best available public room rate Elite membership status with a bonus of 20 Status Nights in ALL – Accor Live Limitless, Accor’s global lifestyle loyalty programme.
Access to exclusive member events such as celebrity masterclasses, unique wine and dine experiences and more.

Complimentary Airport Lounge Access

Fuel Surcharge Waiver

American Express Platinum Reserve credit card gets a 0% convenience fee for HPCL fuel pumps. This is valid for all transactions of value less than Rs 5000. So, you can potentially use your Amex Plat Reserve card at HPCL fuel pumps to hit the milestone. You will not get regular MR points but you will get the milestone bonus.

Other Benefits & Charges

Fuel Surcharge Waiver: Not available except at HP fuel pumps
Foreign Currency Markup: 3.5%+GST ~4.13%

Rewards Redemption

There are multiple other options for redeeming the MR points on the Amex Platinum Reserve credit card on the go. These include electronics, luxury and lifestyle products, fashion accessories, and instant gift vouchers for various brands. We can even pay for transactions or book travel using MR points. The MR point value in these options is around 25p per point.

But, you can also redeem your MR points for the Platinum Travel collection or the 18K/24K Gold collection if you have the Platinum Travel or Gold Charge/MRCC. All MR points get pooled into a single account.

Transfer to Airlines/Hotel Loyalty Programs

Amex MR points are also one of the most versatile ones when it comes to using them for airline and hotel loyalty programs. We get multiple transfer partners. But, the most valuable one is Marriott Bonvoy with its 1:1 transfer ratio.

Is the Amex Platinum Reserve worth it?

The most rewarding credit cards from Amex are MRCC, Platinum Travel and Gold Charge. These three are also fondly referred to as the ‘Amex Trifecta’ by credit card enthusiasts. When it comes to rewards, the Platinum Reserve is still behind these three cards even after the recent revaluation of its rewards and benefits. While the new Accor Plus Traveller membership is a nice touch, it does not get the stay and dining vouchers that come with the direct purchase. That would have added some value to the card’s benefits.

We feel the 10K annual fee on the Platinum Reserve is still too high considering we can get better rewards with a lesser annual fee using the Amex Trifecta. The USP of the Platinum Reserve was the Centurion Lounge access. Previously, we could access these coveted lounges with Plat Charge as well as Plat Reserve. Amex has not added this benefit back on the Plat Reserve after it was removed in 2023.