What's the deal with credit cards, anyway?
Users often ask questions here like: Which credit card is right for me? Which one is recommended and for what reason? In the past, I have briefly touched on the Amex/Miles & More + Revolut model due to your inquiries. Now I'd like to offer you a (reasonably) detailed explanation of it.
What is it about?
This post will cover the following topics:
1. Amex Platinum credit card
2. Miles & More Gold Credit Card
3. miles/reward points?
4. revolut current account
5. recommendation - is it worth it?
6. payback points
7. conclusion
8. welcome bonus/current promotions (valid until 01.11.2023)
1. Amex Platinum Credit Card
There are not only advantages with the Amex Platinum card, but also two important disadvantages. Firstly, the card is not accepted everywhere, especially in restaurants this can occasionally be the case. Secondly, it comes with an annual fee, namely 700€ for the business variant and 720€ for the private variant. A lot of money for not much. What do you get in return?
Identical Platinum Private + Business benefits:
- 24/7 personal and telephone customer service
- Dedicated booking portal for flights, accommodations and car rentals with exclusive offers for Platinum cardholders only
- 200€ travel credit per year, refunded by Amex after booking flights or hotels
- 200€ Sixt Ride credit per year
- Worldwide lounge access at over 1200 airports for cardholder and one companion
- Status upgrades and discounts with hotels and car rental partners
- Comprehensive insurance package, including international travel health insurance, travel cancellation insurance, travel interruption insurance, luggage insurance, travel accident insurance, travel comfort insurance (in case of flight or luggage delay) as well as rental car comprehensive insurance and motor vehicle protection letter
Platinum Private add-on:
- 150€ restaurant credit, which is refunded after payment by Amex
- 120€ streaming credit per year, e.g. for Netflix
Platinum Business add-on:
- 200€ Dell credit per year, which will be reimbursed after Amex purchase
Important differences between the private and business versions:
- With the Business Card, coverage applies regardless of card use, and there is no deductible.
- The status with the Global Hotel Alliance (GHA Discovery) is only available for the private version.
- The second business card is free of charge (in my case I gave it to my mother, alternatively the cost can be shared with someone else).
In addition to the benefits already mentioned, you will receive 1 Reward Point for every Euro you spend. If you activate the "Turbo", there are even 50% more points. These points can either be converted into miles at various airlines or used for payment.
One question that many Amex Platinum customers ask themselves over time: What is a "limit" anyway? Since the fees for the business card are tax deductible, the question of whether the card is worth it is almost a milkmaid's calculation.
The other advantages, such as discounts at various companies and special offers are constantly changing, so I won't list them here. Since you can also easily inform yourself about it :)
2. miles & more gold credit card
The Miles & More Gold credit card also offers a range of benefits and is comparatively inexpensive, with an annual fee of "only" 138 euros.
Benefits at a glance:
- No expiration of collected miles with Lufthansa
- You receive one mile for every 2 euros spent
- Comprehensive insurance package: travel cancellation and interruption insurance, fully comprehensive insurance for rental cars, international travel health insurance
Additional information on insurance benefits:
International travel health insurance is valid regardless of card use. All other insurance benefits are only covered if the respective payment was made with the Miles & More Gold credit card.
3. miles/rewards points?
With both cards you can earn points for your sales.
Lufthansa card: The deal here is pretty simple. You earn miles that you can use for Lufthansa store purchases or to book and upgrade flights. Most of the time, you'll get the best value if you use the miles for upgrades or take advantage of the offers on meilenschnaeppchen.de, especially those from partner airlines.
Amex: With this card, you earn Reward Points that you can also exchange for miles on various airlines. There are many bloggers who regularly give tips for the optimal exchange of rewards into miles.
4. revolut checking account
Revolut offers a free checking account where you can exchange foreign currencies at very good conditions. So if you go on vacation outside the euro zone, you can easily change your money and pay with it abroad. A special bonus is the possibility to earn miles. How to do it? It's very simple:
Normally, you have to transfer money to your account in order to make payments. But at Revolut you can also use your MM Gold card to deposit money for free. This means that you can already earn a lot of miles with your regular spending. Whether it's rent, cell phone contract, loans, insurance, taxes, gym or other subscriptions - just have everything debited from your Revolut account. For example: with 1.500€ monthly expenses you earn 9000 miles per year (1.500 x 12 x 0,5).
Why do I use both cards - the Amex and the Miles & More? I'll explain it to you with an example:
I book a flight with Lufthansa and earn miles thanks to my Miles & More number. I pay for the flight with my Amex and get more miles (i.e. Reward Points). To load money to my Revolut account, I charge my MM card and get miles for that as well. I then pay the Amex bill by transferring money from my Revolut account. This way, I generate additional miles on the MM card for every transaction with the Amex.
5. recommendation/is it worth it?
Recommendations:
- Beginners and people with low turnover, at least one vacation per year: Miles and More Gold + Revolut. You no longer have mileage expiration, "low" fees, and don't need an additional insurance package for rental cars. Ideal for those who want to try it out first.
- High turnover and spending, at least one vacation per year: Amex + MM + Revolut. You can earn a real lot of miles and will appreciate the benefits of upgrades and lounge access on your next trip at the latest.
- Professionals: Amex + MM + Revolut. An absolute must. The card costs are tax deductible, so the effective cost of 700€ at a tax rate of 42% is reduced to 406€ per year. That alone makes the card worth it, even if you don't use the Reward Points.
Is it worth it?
If you love to travel, the answer is a resounding yes. I myself love to travel and also enjoy taking short trips. I wouldn't want to miss the lounge access at airports (food 6 drinks for free after security checks, comfortable seating, etc.). In addition, there are travel credits and special offers that I like to take advantage of. In addition, I usually rent a scooter, motorcycle or car on vacation to be mobile (except in countries like Sri Lanka). So for me, the offer is definitely worth it from the very first vacation.
6. payback points
The AMEX Payback card is free and can be linked to your account. Every few months there are promotions like "50x points at Rewe" etc.. In such cases, you can just buy some Amazon vouchers and enjoy the extra collected points. Personally, I don't do this because the points generated elsewhere are already enough for me and I don't want to bother with more.
7. conclusion
I am extremely satisfied with both the performance and the service at Amex. I have used the 24/7 hotline several times, and each time all my concerns have been taken care of in an exemplary manner. I find the annual fee to be justified and feel it is reasonable compared to the services received. Anyone who has studied the subject a bit or also actively uses the card will probably come to the same conclusion.
8. welcome bonus/current promotions (valid until 10.10.2023)
Both Amex and MM often offer welcome bonuses in the form of miles or reward points. The amount of these bonuses varies, and it is of course most worthwhile to apply for the cards when the bonus is particularly high.
Currently, this is the case with both providers; there are attractive bonuses for both the referred and the referrer.
I try to keep the post up to date - as soon as there are new offers after that, I'll enter it.
Current offer MM:
- 30,000 award miles
- 2 Lufthansa Business Lounge Vouchers
- Voucher for a weekend rental at Avis
Current offer Amex:
- Platinum Business: 75,000 Reward Points
- Platinum Private: 55.000 Reward Points
Please note: The bonus is usually linked to certain conditions, such as a minimum purchase in a specified period. You can find the exact details in the terms and conditions.
Ref links to receive the welcome bonus:
- Amex Platinum Business <- press on it
- Amex Platinum Private: Unfortunately, as a business customer, I cannot make this offer.
- MM Gold: If using a ref link for MM Gold, the bonus would be less than the current offer, only 10,000 miles. Please use the offers with Lufthansa, they are much better than the refer-a-friend offer.
I hope it is halfway clear and gives you some added value :) If you have questions, or something is incomprehensible, just check again!