Charles Schwab Amex Platinum Military | Waived Annual Fee

The American Express Platinum Card^® for Schwab is one flavor of The Platinum Card^® from American Express, the most popular card for servicemembers and military spouses.

Just like the classic Amex Platinum, the annual fee on the Charles Schwab Amex Platinum is waived for active duty military and military spouses.

The Schwab Amex Platinum allows you to cash out American Express Membership Rewards^® at 1.1 cents per point. This is a huge benefit and greatly increases the flexibility of your Amex points.

If you can't find a good Amex airline or hotel transfer partner, you can always cash out your Amex Membership Rewards points for 1.1 cents each with the Schwab Amex Platinum card. 100,000 Amex points could turn into $1,100 cash. That's a significant cash boost!

You can learn how to apply for the Schwab Amex Platinum on the Schwab credit card page.

Amex Platinum Versions

Currently there are 4 flavors or versions of the Amex Platinum card:

• The Platinum Card^® from American Express, also known as the “vanilla Platinum”
• American Express Platinum Card^® for Schwab
• The Platinum Card^® from American Express Exclusively for Morgan Stanley
• The Platinum Card^® from American Express Exclusively for Morgan Stanley

You can apply for all 4 versions of the card and hold multiple accounts of all 4 versions at once. For instance, I have 7 Amex Platinum cards. I pay no annual fees since I opened the cards while on active duty.

Charles Schwab Amex Platinum Benefits

The Charles Schwab Amex Platinum has all the same benefits as the original Amex Platinum. This allows you to double up on annual benefits such as:

• Get $200 back in statement credits each year on prepaid Fine Hotels + Resorts® or The Hotel Collection bookings, which requires a minimum two-night stay, through American Express Travel when you pay with your Platinum Card®
• $240 Digital Entertainment Credits: Up to $20 in monthly statement credits when you use your Platinum card to pay for: Peacock, Audible, Sirius, Disney+, The Disney Bundle, ESPN+, Hulu, and the New York Times. Enrollment Required.
• $200 Uber Cash: Uber VIP status and up to $200 in Uber savings on Uber Eats and rides
• $200 Airline Fee Credit: Up to $200 in statement credits per calendar year in baggage fees and more at 1 qualifying airline
• $100 annual Saks Fifth Avenue credit, can be used for gift cards, enrollment required
• $189 CLEAR^® Credit: Use your Card and get up to $189 back per year on your CLEAR® membership. CLEAR® is available at select airports and stadiums.

All of the above benefits are offered per open account. So if you have an original Amex Platinum and a Charles Schwab Amex Platinum account opened at the same time, you will double up on your annual benefits. Your spouse can also double up, allowing you to 4x your annual Amex Platinum benefits!

You can learn how to apply for the vanilla Amex Platinum card below:

• The Platinum Card^® from American Express – learn how to apply
• Annual fee of $695 waived for US military personnel and spouses
• Earn 80,000 Membership Rewards® points after you spend $6,000 on purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership.
• Earn 5x points on airfare booked directly with airline or on amextravel.com up to $500,000 per calendar year
• Earn 5x points on prepaid hotels at amextravel.com
• Get $200 back in statement credits each year on prepaid Fine Hotels + Resorts(R) or The Hotel Collection bookings, which requires a minimum two-night stay, through American Express Travel when you pay with your Platinum Card®
• $240 Digital Entertainment Credits: Up to $20 in monthly statement credits when you use your Platinum card to pay for: Peacock, Audible, Sirius, Disney+, The Disney Bundle, ESPN+, Hulu, and the New York Times. Enrollment Required.
• $200 Uber Cash: Uber VIP status and up to $200 in Uber savings on Uber Eats and rides
• $200 Airline Fee Credit: Up to $200 in statement credits per calendar year in baggage fees and more at 1 qualifying airline
• $100 annual Saks Fifth Avenue credit, can be used for gift cards, enrollment required
• 40 Centurion Lounges and 1200+ Priority Pass airport lounge access for free
• $189 CLEAR® Credit: Breeze through security with CLEAR® lanes available at 100+ airports, stadiums, and entertainment venues and get up to $189 back per calendar year on your membership when you use your Card.
• $300 Equinox Credit: Get up to $300 back per calendar year on the Equinox+ digital fitness app, or eligible Equinox club memberships when you pay with your Platinum Card. Enrollment required.
• $155 Walmart+ Credit: Cover the cost of a $12.95 monthly Walmart+ membership with a statement credit after you pay for Walmart+ each month with your Platinum Card. Cost includes $12.95 plus applicable local sales tax. Plus Ups are excluded.
• No foreign transaction fees
• Heavy metal card that looks and feels really cool. Apply and select your preferred metal Card design: classic Platinum Card(R), Platinum x Kehinde Wiley, or Platinum x Julie Mehretu.
• The Platinum Card^® from American Express – learn how to apply
• Read my full review of the Amex Platinum card for military, terms apply

You are eligible for the welcome bonus on the Schwab Amex Platinum card, even if you already earned a welcome bonus on the The Platinum Card from American Express. The Schwab Amex Platinum is considered a different product from the classic Amex Platinum.

Therefore the Amex lifetime restriction on one bonus per lifetime per card doesn't matter here. That means you can double up on your Amex Membership Reward points earned through the welcome bonus!

I recommend that most military servicemembers and military spouses open up the vanilla Amex Platinum first and then a Charles Schwab Amex Platinum afterwards. The Schwab Amex Platinum adds more Amex points to your stash, adds increased flexibility for cashing out Amex points, and doubles your recurring annual benefits.