Featured Review: Comparing High-end Credit Cards

Featured Review: Comparing High-end Credit Cards (old review NOT updated)

Updated October 22, 2018. Please see our updated review here.

In this featured review, we will compare some of most popular high-end cards in the market, which carry annual fees between $300 and $600. If you want to know about the super exclusive "black card", read our Amex Centurion review. All the following cards come with dazzlingly long lists of benefits such as airport lounge access, luxury hotel privileges, 24/7 concierge service, global assistance, by invitation only events, and some offer airline companion pass, elite hotel status, cruise privileges, etc. However, here we want to get down to the core value of each product to make the comparison simple for most readers.

Amex Platinum Card: annual fee is $550 and $175 for up to three additional Platinum Card users. The card used to dominate this niche market, but we have seen its benefits diluted over the years, mostly due to the changes in the airline industry. Amex has been adding benefits to compensate loss; thus it is still considered our benchmark. As the card comes with the annual $200 airline credit, the effective annual fee is considered to be $350. With that, Amex offers five major perks on this card: (1) up to $200 Uber annual credits (monthly credit expires by next month - that is why we don't want to make it an effective annual fee reducer), (2) up to $100 Saks annual credits (up to $50 from January to June and up to $50 from July to December), (3) 5x Membership Rewards points on airfare, (4) Fine Hotels & Resorts (FHR) which is arguably the best luxury hotel program provided by a credit card, (5) Hilton Gold status which we consider the best mid-tier hotel status in industry, and SPG (Marriott) Gold status, (6) free access to 100+ domestic lounges (Delta, Alaska, Airspace, Centurion, Priority Pass Select) and 1,000+ international lounges (American Express International Lounges, and Priority Pass Select), mostly for you plus two guests, and (7) discounted international premium economy, business, or first class tickets with 20+ airline partners. Note that for an extra $175 a year, you can have up to three additional Platinum Card users and each will have airport lounge access, FHR benefits, and Hilton & Marriott Gold status.
Amex Delta Reserve: annual fee is $450. Its three major perks are (1) access to 50+ Delta Sky Clubs for the primary cardholder only, (2) an annual domestic coach/first class companion pass, and (3) a 30K Delta Medallion Qualifying Miles (MQMs) bonus after $60K spending. It makes sense when you make use of the last two perks; otherwise you would be better off with Amex Platinum.
Amex Hilton Honors Aspire: annual fee is $450 but with the annual $250 airline credit is effectively $200. With that, this card offers four major perks: (1) complimentary Hilton Diamond status, (2) an annual free weekend night at most Hilton portfolio hotels or resorts, (3) annual $250 statement credits for purchases made at any Hilton portfolio resort, and (4) Priority Pass Select membership with unlimited access to 50+ domestic lounges and 1,000+ international lounges for you plus two guests.
Amex SPG Luxury: annual fee is $450 but with the annual $300 Marriott credits is effectively $150. With that, this card offers four great perks: (1) an annual free night at Marriott portfolio hotels or resorts with a redemption level of 50,000 points or less, (2) annual 15 night credits towards Marriott elite status, (3) free Marriott Gold status and upgrade to Marriott Platinum status after $75K annual spending, and (4) Priority Pass Select membership with unlimited airport lounge access for you plus two guests.
Chase Sapphire Reserve Visa Infinite: annual fee is $450 ($75 for each authorized user), but with the annual $300 travel credit it effectively becomes $150. It offers five major perks: (1) 3x Ultimate Rewards points on travel and dining, (2) Priority Pass Select membership with unlimited access to 50+ domestic lounges and 1,000+ international lounges for you (primary cardholder or authorized users) and two guests, (3) hotel privileges at 500+ Relais & Chateaux hotels and over 1,000 other luxury hotels worldwide through Chase Luxury Hotel & Resort Collection and Visa Signature/Infinite Hotel Collection, (4) primary rental car insurance, and (5) the highest level travel & consumer protection among all Chase cards. J.P. Morgan Reserve, a private banking version of Sapphire Reserve, adds some unwritten benefits such as complimentary United Club membership.
Chase United MP Club Visa Signature: annual fee is $450. The five major perks are (1) the full United Club membership allowing access to 50+ domestic lounges and 200+ international lounges for the primary cardholder plus two guests, (2) free checked bags and Premier Access for priority check-in, security screening, boarding, and bag handling, (3) hotel privileges at over 1,000 luxury hotels worldwide through Chase Luxury Hotel & Resort Collection and Visa Signature Hotel Collection, (4) primary rental car insurance, and (5) the highest earning rate for United miles at 1.5 mile per dollar spent.
Citi Prestige WEMC: annual fee is $450 ($50 for each authorized user), but with the annual $250 airline credit it is considered to be $200. It offers four major perks: (1) a 3-2-1 ThankYou earning structure with a potential 15%-25% annual relationship bonus, (2) access to 50+ domestic lounges (including Alaska) and 1,000+ international lounges through Priority Pass Select for you (primary cardholder or authorized users) plus two guests, (3) hotel privileges including 4th Night Free at any hotel at your choice and at over 1,000 luxury hotels through Ensemble Travel Group and World Elite Luxury Hotels & Resorts, and (4) what we consider the best travel & consumer protection provided by a credit card.
Citi AAdvantage Executive WEMC: annual fee is $450. The four major perks are (1) an annual 10K Elite Qualifying Miles bonus after $40K spending, (2) free checked bags and Priority Access for priority check-in, security screening, boarding, and bag handling, (3) a full Admirals Club membership allowing access to 50+ domestic lounges (American, select Alaska) and 30+ international lounges (American, Qantas etc.) for the primary cardholder plus two guests, and free access to 40+ domestic or international American Admirals Clubs for the authorized user plus two guests, and (4) what we consider the best travel & consumer protection provided by a credit card.
U.S. Bank Altitude Reserve Visa Infinite: annual fee is $400 ($75 for each additional card), and with the $325 annual travel credit, it is effectively only $75. You receive five major perks: (1) 3x points on travel and mobile wallet spending, which equals 4.5% travel rewards, (2) Priority Pass Select membership with 4 free visits for you plus one guest each year, (3) hotel privileges at Relais & Chateaux and through Visa Signature/Infinite Luxury Hotel Collection, (4) 12 GoGo inflight Wi-Fi passes each year, and (5) primary rental car insurance.
CNB Crystal Visa Infinite: annual fee is $0 for the first year and $400 thereafter. The annual fee is considered $150 for the second and subsequent years after using the $250 annual airline credit. With that, you receive four major perks: (1) Priority Pass Select membership with unlimited access to 1,000+ airport lounges worldwide for you (primary cardholder and up to one authorized user) and your guests, (2) hotel privileges through Visa Signature/Infinite Luxury Hotel Collection and at Relais & Chateaux, (3) 12 GoGo inflight Wi-Fi passes each year for you (primary cardholder and authorized users), and (4) $100 companion discount per trip for domestic coach class airfare. It has been reported that an authorized user will receive $250 annual airline credit as well.
MasterCard Black Card by Barclays: annual fee is $495 and $195 for each authorized user, and with $100 annual airline credit the effective annual fee is $395. It offers three major perks: (1) 2% cash equivalent travel rewards for all expenses, (2) Lounge Club membership with unlimited access to 650+ airport lounges worldwide for you and your guests, and (3) Black Card VIP Hotel & Travel program through Ensemble Travel Group, Mandarin Oriental, and Villas of Destination, which gives you booking benefits at over 3,000 luxury hotels and villas worldwide.

The bottom line is that each of these products targets a certain group of consumers and can be of great value even with the seemingly hefty annual fees. Finally, let's summarize our comparison based on the four most sought out perks:

Airport Lounge Access: While they all have some coverage of airport lounges when it comes to international travel, for domestic airport lounge access in U.S. which is harder to obtain through premium cabin travel or elite status, a frequent flyer of a particular airline has very limited choice. If you are a Delta flyer, you can't beat the value and perks of Amex Platinum; however, if you need Delta MQMs in addition to Sky Club access, Amex Delta Reserve will be a great choice. If you are an American flyer, Citi AA Executive will most likely be your best bet. For United flyers, United MP Club Card is a solid option while JPM Reserve is probably the card you will get if you qualify due to its exclusivity and enhanced features.
Luxury Hotel Privileges: All cards come with some sorts of luxury hotel benefits, but you have to look into the details to decide which fits your need better. If you frequent luxury hotels, Amex Platinum has long been considered the best option due to FHR's wide coverage of over 900 luxury hotels and resorts worldwide, consistent benefits, and various promotions. Citi Prestige's offer of 4th Night Free benefit at any hotel and privileges at 1,000+ luxury hotels through Ensemble Travel Group and World Elite Hotel Collection, provides similar benefits but has its own unique strength. MasterCard Black Card VIP program, via Ensemble Travel Group, Mandarin Oriental, and Villas of Destinations, is another great alternative. Visa Infinite Hotel Collection (via Chase Sapphire Reserve, US Bank Altitude Reserve, CNB Crystal) is also worth considering, due to the enhanced benefits over regular Visa Signature cards. If you frequent Hilton portfolio hotels, you will find Amex Hilton Aspire extremely valuable. Even if you only stay a few times at Marriott portfolio hotels, you will probably be interested in Amex SPG Luxury. Finally, you may still get good value out of Visa Signature Hotel Collection (via United MP Club, and any Visa Infinite cards mentioned above), World Elite Luxury Hotels & Resorts (via AA Executive, Citi Prestige, or MasterCard Black), and Chase Luxury Hotel & Resort Collection (via Chase Sapphire Reserve, Chase United Club).
Rewards: Citi Prestige's 3-2-1 earning structure with great flexibility in redemption (transferrable to 10 partners including Singapore, Cathay Pacific, Flying Blue) used to be the best among all high-end cards when it comes to rewards. However, introduced in August 2016, Sapphire Reserve earns 3x Ultimate Rewards points on travel and dining, which beats Citi Prestige's bonus categories, and still offers points transfer capability to 11 partners including United, Singapore, British, Korean, Southwest, and Hyatt. Introduced in May 2017, Altitude Reserve offers 3x points on travel and mobile wallet spending, and even though the points can't be transferred into frequent traveler miles/points, their value can be fixed at 1.5 cents, essentially making the bonus categories returning 4.5% travel rewards. Starting October 2016, Amex Platinum offers 5x points on airfare, and Membership Rewards points can be transferred to 20+ partner programs including Delta, British, Air Canada, ANA, Singapore, etc. United MP Club Card returns 1.5 miles per dollar spent and is very attractive when you are collecting United miles. When you spend at least $60K a year, Delta Reserve returns 1.5 miles per dollar spent but Delta miles are generally not as valuable as many other airline miles. MasterCard Black Card returns fixed value 2% cash equivalent travel rewards for all purchases.
Reach Elite Status Faster: While several cards come with some elite like perks such as priority security lanes, priority boarding and waived baggage fees, only two cards offer a way to reach the next level of elite status faster through spending. Delta Reserve's 30K MQMs bonus after $60K spending could be huge to a Delta flyer. Citi AA Executive's 10K EQMs bonus after $40K may seem not much, but American EQMs are extremely hard to come by thus it may still make sense to some.