@Cueball73 you have me torn between two thoughts here. As others mentioned and going through this thought process as if it were myself, I would be saying two things. 1. Regardless of the deal, you want to have and carry the card that's right for you, your spend, and gives you back what you make the most of while all being within your spending ability. 2. The devil on my other shoulder however is also able to recognize a heck of a good retention offer and would not hesitate to snatch that Platinum renewal right up with $300 off. If you really, truly feel the Gold card is still all that for your spend and a cup of tea, then add it as an additional card as mentioned.
So me personally, and knowing my reasons for the cards, I'd hold onto the Platinum and 2nd that vote up above and either hold out on the Gold or add it as a new card.
@Anonymous wrote:
As stated above, just not getting enough use of platinum benefits to justify $550 fee. Also CSR kicks the crap out of all cards with its Trip delay/cancellation & rental car insurance. And their UR travel portal where points count as 1.5.
I fully agree there, the CSR is what I've opted to use for Rental Insurance and love the protection it provides in regards to air travel + delays. If you aren't getting use of the Platinum, and still can't justify the $250 fee (Taking into account the $300 retention offer) then the smart move would be to opt for the more useful option. I'm not a Gold card expert by any means so, waiting on more experienced folks to chime in.
@Anonymous wrote:
@Shadowfactor wrote:It all comes down to what you want to do, if you care about opening a new account and how much you value 50K in points.
Personally I wouldnt downgrade and miss out on the lifetime bonus on the Gold card. 50K is worth a minimum of $500 towards travel plus the $100 statement credit they are currently offering.
That's cool... so, make the spend for the $300 incentive on the Platinum first, then apply for Gold? Once I am in with Gold, close the platinum? Or wait until AF comes up? Not planning on holding both.
I would not be cancelling the plat in the first year. Wait for the next AF and then cancel if you do that. Otherwise Amex may mark you as gaming the system and you will be shutout on future SUBs.
;
@redpat wrote:Well if you are a world traveler why wouldn’t you be able to use Amex international program and all the other perks that plat offers which kick the crap out of CSR. Don’t get me wrong I have CSR but it’s getting used less and less now except it’s my main card for international usage.
Yea with this new gold card I think my CSR will get used a lot less. I'm starting to wonder what I will do when my amex plat AF hits. I'm wondering if I may keep the Amex plat for the benefits and maybe do away with the CSR. Harder to justify having both going forward. I may downgrade the CSR to a CSP for a year until I can app for a new ink card and then get rid of the CSP. As long as I have one card that allows me to transfer URs I'm good. Further devaluations to Chase URs might be the death knell for chase with me.
@Anonymous wrote:
@Anonymous wrote:Be wary of the 'pop up', taking rentention offer and then close/downgrade sounds like a really good way to get you onto that list
I'd simply stay put, there are many ways to get discount for supermarket (buy GCs when discover has amazon 5%, etc) and with the new $100 Saks credit, Platinum's effective AF may or may not be that much higher than Gold's. You have to calculate the expected gain yourself and decide for yourself whether that is really worth the risk of losing each and every AMEX sign up bonus going forward?
'pop up'? get on the list? not trying to rock the boat so much. But overall, the Gold is a better fit for my life than the Platinum which I stretched to justify. I COULD hold both, I just don't see that as wise. If I get the Gold, and cancel the Platinum after one year, will that get me on the naughty list? They swore up and down on the phone that they wouldn't do such a thing.
Pop up thing is still so new and doesn't seem to be quite clear cut as 5/24 (reddit has a spreadsheet collecting info and it looks very random) so nobody knows for sure, front line CSRs are not known to be the most dependable source of info either.
Sorry can't be of more help here, you'll probably have to decide for yourself whether the extra 'earnings' on gold card and the lower AF is worth the risk of lossing sign up bonuses going forward.
If you travel internationally, the CSR might still be worth keeping. The Gold Card is only 4x back on restaurants in US and the 3x on airfare is only when booked through Amex travel or directly through the airline. Their $100 airline credit is only incidentals and their $120 dining credit is also limited to certain restaurants. CSR is simply far more versatile and Amex just doesn't have a travel card that is as good as the CSR.
[2/2019]
@jdbkiang wrote:If you travel internationally, the CSR might still be worth keeping. The Gold Card is only 4x back on restaurants in US and the 3x on airfare is only when booked through Amex travel or directly through the airline. Their $100 airline credit is only incidentals and their $120 dining credit is also limited to certain restaurants. CSR is simply far more versatile and Amex just doesn't have a travel card that is as good as the CSR.
They almost have "one" now. Card is named (PlatGold), it gives 5x on air and "hotel", 4x on restaurants, $300 in airline credit, $200 uber credit, $120 dining credit, $100 Saks credit, among many other american express benefits that you love including complimentary gold elite status at hilton and marriot as well as no interest, all for a modest annual fee of $800
.