Amex Platinum vs Gold 2026: €720 or €240, Worth It?

The honest answer in one question

Forget the brochures. Amex Platinum vs Gold comes down to a single question: how many times were you at an airport last year? Double digits, and the Platinum’s lounges and hotel status pay for themselves. Single digits, and you’re paying a premium for perks you’ll watch go unused: the Gold is your card. Everything below just shows the working, using the terms American Express Germany lists on its product pages as of August 18, 2026.

What changed with Amex Platinum and Gold in 2026?

If you’ve read an older comparison, you’re working from the wrong numbers. Three corrections:

• The Amex Gold now costs €20 a month, so €240 a year. Until 2025 it was €12 a month (€144 a year), and the first year was often waived. Both are history since the relaunch as a metal card (gold or rose gold). In exchange there are new fixed credits: up to €20 a month toward a SIXT+ car subscription, 2 x €25 SIXT rent credit a year, €5 a month FREENOW taxi credit, and 2 x €40 Lodenfrey shopping credit a year, up to around €430 combined.
• The Amex Platinum still costs €60 a month (€720 a year), but its credits have grown: €200 online travel credit, €150 dining credit, €200 SIXT ride credit and €100 shopping credit (2 x €50 Lodenfrey), so €650 a year.
• The welcome bonus now splits two ways: applying direct at Amex gets you statement credit (Platinum up to €340, Gold up to €200); through a referral you instead get points (Platinum up to 85,000, Gold up to 50,000 Membership Rewards points).

Amex Platinum vs Gold: the direct comparison

As of August 2026, sourced from americanexpress.com/de-de. Both cards charge a 2% foreign transaction fee on non-euro purchases and 4% (minimum €5) at ATMs. Credits and bonuses change, so confirm current terms on the application page.

Where the Amex Gold wins

Both cards earn the same Membership Rewards points, 1 point per euro, so the Gold isn’t a lesser currency; it’s the same currency for a third of the fee. If you’ll use the new credits (a SIXT+ car subscription, the occasional rental car, FREENOW taxis, one Lodenfrey purchase), you get back up to around €430 a year and effectively pay nothing for the €240 fee. On top of that there’s family travel insurance, a 90-day return policy, and a welcome bonus of up to 50,000 points through a referral link. For anyone not flying double digits, the Amex Gold simply comes out ahead.

The honest catch: if you don’t drive, don’t take taxis and don’t shop at Lodenfrey, you’ve paid €240 for points with no lounge access and no hotel status. In that case the American Express Card at €60 a year (free from year two at €9,000 spend) is the smarter points card.

Where the Amex Platinum wins

The Amex Platinum earns its €720 with perks the Gold doesn’t have: access to over 1,550 airport lounges at more than 500 airports for you plus one guest (works on Platinum supplementary cards too, though Lufthansa lounges drop out of the collection from October 1, 2026, replaced by ‘Lounge on the Go’ airport vouchers), status upgrades with Hilton Honors Gold, Marriott Bonvoy Gold Elite and, since late July 2026, ALL Accor Gold, a complete travel insurance package, and €650 a year in credits. At around ten or more flights a year, the lounges alone can justify the fee, the welcome bonus can cover most of a flight, and hotel status plus points can turn four nights into five. For a traveler flying at that pace, the €480 gap in fees over the Gold isn’t a cost; it’s an investment that returns several times over.

The break-even math: €720 against €240

Here’s how the math works out with August 2026 terms:

• Amex Platinum: €720 in card fees minus €650 in credits (€200 Amex Travel, €150 dining, €200 SIXT ride, €100 Lodenfrey) nets to around €70 a year, if you genuinely spend every credit. Skip SIXT ride and never book €200 through Amex Travel, and you’re really paying closer to €300 to €400. In return you get lounges for two, hotel status and the insurance package.
• Amex Gold: €240 in card fees minus up to around €430 in credits (SIXT+, SIXT rent, FREENOW, Lodenfrey) nets to around €0 or even a small surplus, if you run a car subscription, rental cars and taxis through the card. Without that spend, the full €240 stands.
• First-year welcome bonus: 85,000 Membership Rewards points (Platinum) is worth around €425 even at a conservative €0.005 per point, and 50,000 points (Gold) around €250. Both bonuses are for new cardholders only, with no primary card of that product in the last 18 months, and are forfeited if you cancel within the first 12 months.

The catch on both

Neither card escapes three Amex realities. First, credits only count if you use them: an unused monthly credit is money gone. Second, both charge a 2% foreign transaction fee on every non-euro purchase and 4% (minimum €5) at ATMs, Platinum and Gold alike. Third, Amex isn’t accepted everywhere, so whichever you pick, carry a no-fee Revolut card for foreign currency, cash and the shops that take only Visa or Mastercard. (If you’re weighing points cards against no-fee FX cards more broadly, see Amex vs Revolut.)

Which should you pick?

• Pick the Amex Gold (€240/year) if you fly single digits, want points without a premium fee, and will at least partly use the SIXT, FREENOW and Lodenfrey credits.
• Pick the Amex Platinum (€720/year) if you’re at the airport ten or more times a year and will genuinely use lounges, hotel status and the €650 in credits.
• Still unsure? Start on the Gold and upgrade after your first year: both earn the same points, so nothing is wasted.

Frequently Asked Questions

Amex Platinum or Gold: which should I get?

Get the Amex Platinum (€60/month, €720/year) if you fly enough to genuinely drain lounge access, hotel status and the €650 in annual credits. Get the Amex Gold (€20/month, €240/year) if you want to earn Membership Rewards points and will use the up to around €430 a year in SIXT, FREENOW and Lodenfrey credits, but don’t need lounges. The simplest test: count your airport visits last year. Double digits leans Platinum; single digits leans Gold.

What’s the difference between the Amex Gold and Platinum?

Both earn the same Membership Rewards points, 1 point per euro. The Platinum adds access to over 1,550 lounges (Global Lounge Collection), hotel status with Hilton Honors and Marriott Bonvoy, €650 in annual credits and a larger welcome bonus, for €60 a month (€720 a year). The Gold has no lounges and no Hilton or Marriott status, costs €20 a month (€240 a year), and instead brings up to around €430 in mobility and shopping credits plus travel insurance. The Gold’s once-common free first year no longer exists since its relaunch as a metal card.

Is the Platinum worth the extra fee over the Gold?

Only if you’ll use what the €480 gap in fees buys: lounges, hotel status, the travel insurance package and the larger credits. On paper, the Platinum nets out to around €70 a year after its €650 in credits, and the Gold to around €0 after its up to around €430 in credits, both assuming full use. If you fly ten or more times a year, lounges for two easily cover the difference. If you don’t, you’re paying a premium for perks you’ll leave on the table, and the Gold’s everyday earning quietly wins.

Can I get the Gold first and upgrade to Platinum later?

Yes. Many people start on the Amex Gold at €20 a month, learn how they actually travel, and switch to the Platinum once their flying justifies it. Both earn the same Membership Rewards, so points you bank on the Gold carry over in value. Important: canceling or product-switching within the first 12 months forfeits the welcome bonus retroactively, so upgrade only after your first year is up.

Verdict

There’s no universal winner, only your travel pattern. Frequent flyer? The Amex Platinum at €720 is built for you, and its €650 in credits pushes the net cost down to around €70. Everyone else? The Amex Gold at €240 is the quietly smarter buy, as long as you use its mobility credits. Apply through whichever link matches you below, and you’ll get up to 85,000 or 50,000 points instead of statement credit. See the complete lineup, including Revolut and country-specific cards, in our credit cards guide.