Amex Business Platinum vs Chase Sapphire Reserve for Business: Which premium business card is the best fit?

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The  Chase Sapphire Reserve for Business^SM (see rates and fees) and The Business Platinum Card® from American Express are two of the best premium business cards on the market. While both have higher annual fees, each card offers thousands in benefits each year. As long as you can take full advantage of what these cards offer, either one could make sense for you.

Below, we share the details for both of these travel business cards, so you can decide which one is a better option for you.

The Chase Sapphire Reserve for Business has an annual fee of $795, and the Amex Business Platinum carries a fee of $895 (see rates and fees).

Premium cards have higher annual fees. While both cards offer more than the annual cost in value, you’re committing a large amount of money. So it’s important to make use of the card’s perks to get your money’s worth. We’ll discuss more about how to do this below.

New Chase Sapphire Reserve for Business cardholders can earn 200,000 points after spending $30,000 on purchases in the first six months of account opening. With the Amex Business Platinum card, you can earn a bonus as high as 200,000 Membership Rewards® points after spending $20,000 on eligible purchases within the first three months of card membership.

Both of these cards earn valuable transferable rewards, and both cards offer the same size bonus. The difference comes down to how much you need to spend to qualify for the bonus.

While both of these cards earn the highest rate of rewards through their respective travel portals, they still offer a generous return in other categories.

The Chase Sapphire Reserve for Business earns rewards at the following rates:

• 8X points on Chase Travel℠ purchases
• 5X points on Lyft rides through Sep. 30, 2027
• 4X points on flights and hotels booked directly
• 3X points on social media and search engine advertising
• 1X points on all other purchases

The Sapphire Reserve for Business could be a good fit for business owners who frequently travel, as it offers up to 4X for flights and hotels booked directly, and up to 8X if using Chase’s travel portal. The rewards offered on social media and search engine spending can help reward businesses expanding their digital footprint.

The Amex Business Platinum card offers:

• 5X points on flights and prepaid hotels booked on AmexTravel.com
• 2X points on eligible travel purchased through AmexTravel.com
• 2X points on purchases in key business categories and on eligible purchases of $5,000 or more (on up to $2 million of these purchases per calendar year)
• 1X points on other eligible purchases

It’s worth noting, you’ll only earn the additional 2X Membership Rewards ® points on up to two million dollars in eligible purchases. The eligible categories are:

• U.S. construction material and hardware suppliers
• U.S. electronic goods retailers and software & cloud system providers
• U.S. shipping providers
• Eligible purchases of $5,000+

The Amex Business Platinum, on average, offers a lower rewards rate, but it covers more unique categories, including one that is based on your total spend, not a specific product. That makes this card valuable for businesses that frequently make larger purchases of $5,000+.

Both the Chase Sapphire Reserve for Business and the Amex Business Platinum offer a number of ways to redeem the points you earn, from cash back to paying with points at eligible shops. However, you’ll typically get the most value out of your points when you transfer them to one of your cards’ travel partners. Amex offers 21 options while Chase has 14, and there is overlap between the two.

Both of these cards allow you to use your points to directly pay for travel through the respective travel portal. Chase has Points Boost, which can increase the value of your points for these redemptions, and Amex has a Pay with Points feature. These are nice options to have because you can book any available flight or hotel and aren’t subject to award restrictions.

With the Chase Sapphire Reserve Business card, the Points Boost feature may increase the value you receive when you use Chase points to pay for Chase Travel bookings. You’ll receive two cents per point when you book hotels that are part of The Edit℠ collection, and up to two cents per point for other select hotels and flights.

The Amex Business Platinum has a special feature when you use Pay with Points to book a flight with your selected airline. For these bookings, you’ll receive a 35% points rebate (up to one million points back per calendar year).

With both of these cards carrying substantial annual fees, it’s not surprising that both come loaded with additional perks, from sought-after airport lounge access to statement credits geared toward growing your business.

Lounge access

The Chase Sapphire Reserve for Business and Amex Business Platinum both offer in-depth lounge access, and while Amex might offer more options, the Chase card allows you to bring guests for no additional charge.

The Chase Sapphire Reserve for Business offers access to all Chase Sapphire Lounge® by The Club locations and a complimentary Priority Pass Select membership; the card allows for up to two complimentary guests, with each additional guest past the first two requiring a $27 fee.

The Amex Business Platinum offers access to a larger number of lounges that fall under the American Express Global Lounge Collection, including The Centurion® Lounge, 10 Delta Sky Club visits each year (when flying on an eligible Delta flight), Escape Lounges, and more. The card offers expanded lounge access, but you’ll need to spend $75,000 in a calendar year to qualify.

Statement credits

Both of these cards offer a wide range of statement credit offers.

The Chase Sapphire Reserve for Business provides over $2,000 in value each year through a variety of credits and other offers. You can receive:

• $500 The Edit℠ hotel credit: Earn up to $250 in statement credits for prepaid The Edit bookings you make from January to June and up to $250 for prepaid bookings from July to December. Beginning Jan. 1, 2026, you can receive up to $250 in credit for each prepaid The Edit booking (up to $500), instead of earning the credits semi-annually. There’s a two-night minimum stay requirement to qualify for these credits.
• $300 annual travel credit: Receive up to $300 in annual statement credits, automatically applied to eligible travel purchases made with your card.
• $200 Google Workspace Credit: Get your hands on business tools like Google AI in Gmail, Calendar, Drive, Meet, NotebookLM and up to $200 in annual statement credits on purchases through Google Workspace.
• $400 ZipRecruiter credit: A statement credit split into two chunks, up to $200 in statement credits from January through June and up to $200 from July through December.
• $420 in DoorDash value: Get a complimentary DoorDash Dash Pass membership (worth $120 a year) when you activate by Dec. 31, 2027. Receive up to $25 back on eligible DoorDash orders through Dec. 31, 2027. You’ll get up to $5 off one restaurant order per month and up to $10 off two non-restaurant orders per month.
• $120 Lyft credit: Receive up to $10 in monthly Lyft credit through Sept. 30, 2027.
• $100 Giftcards.com credit: Split into two credits, $50 available from January to June and another $50 from July to December.
• $120 Global Entry, NEXUS or TSA PreCheck application fee credit every four years.

You can receive over $3,000 in value every year with the Amex Business Platinum card. However, some of the credits have spending requirements. You can receive:

• Up to $600 hotel credit: Earn up to $300 in statement credits semi-annually for eligible Fine Hotels and Resorts or The Hotel Collection prepaid bookings (The Hotel Collection requires a minimum two-night stay).
• Up to $200 Hilton credit: Receive up to $50 back per quarter on eligible direct Hilton purchases. Must be a Hilton for Business member to qualify (enrollment required).
• Up to $1,150 Dell credit: Receive up to $150 in statement credits for Dell purchases and an additional $1,000 statement credit after spending $5,000+ at Dell in a calendar year (enrollment required).
• $250 Adobe credit: Earn a $250 statement credit per calendar year after you spend $600+ in eligible U.S. purchases with Adobe (enrollment required).
• $120 in wireless telephone statement credits: For purchases made directly with a wireless provider in the U.S. on your Amex Business card, earn up to $10 back per month (enrollment required).
• Up to $200 in airline fee credits: Receive up to $200 back each calendar year for incidental fees charged by your selected qualifying airline (enrollment required).
• Up to $360 Indeed.com credits: Receive up to $90 in credit per quarter for purchases made directly with Indeed (enrollment required).
• Up to $209 CLEAR Plus® credit: Receive up to $209 back per calendar year for an auto-renewing CLEAR Plus membership, excluding taxes and fees.
• $120 TSA PreCheck or Global Entry credit: Receive either a statement credit every four years after you apply for Global Entry ($120) or a statement credit every 4.5 years after you apply for a five-year membership for TSA PreCheck® (up to $85 through a TSA PreCheck official enrollment provider).

Additional perks

While a good deal of both of these cards’ value is tied up in statement credits, they also offer additional benefits and added value you can unlock if you hit a high spending threshold.

With the Chase Sapphire Reserve for Business, you’ll qualify for IHG One Rewards Platinum Elite Status, which offers perks like reward night discounts and complimentary upgrades when available. You’re also eligible for rental car benefits with Hertz, Avis and National.

If you want a card with travel insurance and other protections, this is a great option. It comes with:

• Trip delay reimbursement
• Trip cancellation and interruption insurance
• Purchase protection
• Return protection
• Extended warranty coverage
• Cell Phone protection
• Travel accident insurance
• Travel and emergency assistance
• Roadside assistance
• Primary rental car collision insurance
• Baggage delay insurance
• Emergency evacuation and transportation coverage
• Emergency medical and dental insurance
• Lost luggage reimbursemnt

After spending $120,000 in a calendar year on the card, you’ll receive:

• IHG One Rewards Diamond status
• Southwest Airlines A-List Status
• $500 in statement credits for Southwest Airlines flights booked through Chase Travel
• $500 Shops at Chase credit

The Amex Business Platinum offers complimentary hotel benefits, with Gold status for both Hilton Honors and Marriott Bonvoy (enrollment required; terms and limitations apply) and rental car perks with Avis, Hertz and National.

It also includes a range of insurance protections, including:

• Cell phone protection
• Return protection
• Trip delay insurance
• Trip cancellation and interruption insurance
• Baggage insurance
• Extended warranty protection
• Purchase protection
• Rental car coverage (secondary)

Eligibility and Benefit level varies by Card. Terms, Conditions and Limitations Apply. Please visit americanexpress.com/benefitsguide for more details. Underwritten by AMEX Assurance Company. Car Rental Loss or Damage Coverage is offered through American Express Travel Related Services Company, Inc.

After spending $250,000 in a calendar year, you’ll unlock these credits to use in the following calendar year:

• Up to $1,200 in statement credits for flights booked through AmexTravel.com
• Up to $2,400 in statement credits for Amex One AP® monthly fees (Amex’s accounts payable service)

Both of these cards tick all the boxes for a premium business card, offering high-level travel perks like hotel status and lounge access, plus hundreds of dollars worth of statement credits. Deciding between these two cards could easily come down to personal preferences; maybe you favor a specific transfer partner the Chase Sapphire Reserve for Business offers, or spend heavily in a category the Amex Business Platinum earns bonus rewards in.

Both of these cards can more than earn back any annual fees, as long as you’re taking full advantage of the statement credits, complimentary upgrades, transfer partners and more that both of these business cards provide.

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For rates and fees of The Business Platinum® Card from American Express, click here.