Compare the Features and Benefits of CitiBusiness® / AAdvantage® Platinum Select® Mastercard® and
The Business Platinum Card® from American Express

The right business credit card for you will greatly depend on your company’s expenditures and travel goals. However, the CitiBusiness/AAdvantage card is a great option for those who live near an American Airlines hub. With a $0 introductory annual fee (then $99 after the first year), it’s an affordable option if you have a small business and want to maximize the rewards earning potential for your expenditures.

With this card, you’ll earn both redeemable AAdvantage® miles for award flights and Loyalty Points to qualify for AAdvantage® elite status. For starters, you’ll earn 2x miles on cable and satellite providers, eligible American Airlines purchases, gas stations, select telecommunications merchants, and car rental merchants; and 1x miles on all other purchases (excluding cash equivalents).

Loyalty Points are much simpler: you’ll earn 1x Loyalty Point per dollar spent, no matter the purchase. Theoretically, a business owner who can spend $200,000 or more on this business credit card can earn top-tier AAdvantage® Executive Platinum elite status — even without flying!

Loyalty Points replaced American Airlines’ old AAdvantage® system of elite qualification via Elite Qualifying Miles. While those required flying, the new tier status system combines both flight miles and spending, including on AAdvantage® credit cards like this one.

The more you spend, the more perks you earn. By hitting $30,000+ in spend in a card membership year, you can earn a companion certificate that’s valid for domestic American Airlines flights. You’ll just have to pay $99 plus government taxes and fees, but this perk can help you save hundreds of dollars and get you “buy one, get one” flights.

From takeoff to touchdown, there are a few important benefits that will elevate your travel experience with American Airlines. You and up to four guests on the same American Airlines booking will get a first checked bag free (on domestic itineraries) and Group 5 preferred boarding. Not only that, but you’ll get a 25% discount that applies to inflight purchases, including food, drink and inflight wifi purchases.

With no foreign transaction fees to worry about, the CitiBusiness/AAdvantage credit card is a reliable option when you’re traveling domestically or internationally. Thanks to the card’s strong welcome bonus and solid earning rates on select business categories, you’ll be on your way to award flights in no time.

Business credit cards like the CitiBusiness® / AAdvantage® Platinum Select® Mastercard® also help you organize your personal and business expenses. There are various online tracking tools to keep tabs on your finances in your credit card account. If you’d like to add employee cards to the account, there’s no additional fee to pay — and any spending on those cards will accrue miles to the primary cardholder account.

Ultimately, when picking a business card, you’ll have to decide between earning cash rewards, airline miles, or another form of loyalty currency.

If award flights are your goal and American Airlines is your favorite carrier, there’s no better business credit card than the CitiBusiness® / AAdvantage® Platinum Select® Mastercard®.

The Amex Business Platinum is the one of the most expensive travel rewards cards on the market today. However, while its annual fee might be a bit on the higher side, the perks that come along with it are second to none, both from the business perspective as well as the travel angle.

For small business owners that hit the road (or skies) regularly, there really isn’t another card quite like this one.

On the travel perks side of things, the Amex Business Platinum has a laundry list of embedded extras from hotel and rental car elite statuses to complimentary access to airport lounges through the Global Lounge Collection. (See the key features and benefits above.)

However, this is a business card, after all, and where this card shines is in its statement credits. If you have business expenses that are with specific merchants, such as Indeed, Dell, and Adobe, the Business Platinum can tangibly help cut reduce costs. In addition, card holders get an extra half point per dollar (1.5X) on eligible purchases at U.S. construction material & hardware suppliers, electronic goods retailers and software & cloud system providers, and shipping providers, and purchases of $5,000 or more everywhere else, on up to $2 million of these purchases per calendar year. While a 1.5X bonus isn’t huge, it’s helpful that this spans a wide variety of business categories (and is capped at $2 million).

The Amex Business Platinum isn’t a card for everyone — that’s for sure. But for high-spending business owners who travel often (either for business or pleasure), this just might be the card for you.

Rates and fees for The Business Platinum Card® from American Express