New Amex Platinum benefit: $180 in PayPal credits — here’s how to maximize it

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The snowball of benefits in The Platinum Card® from American Express continues to gain momentum in 2021.

Already one of the best Amex credit cards, it now comes with 75,000 Amex points after spending $5,000 on purchases within the first six months of account opening. Additionally, you’ll earn 10x points at U.S. gas stations and U.S. supermarkets, on up to $15,000 in combined purchases, during your first 6 months of card membership.

We estimate that those 75,000 bonus points alone are worth $1,350 in travel (though it can be worth literally 10x more if you know the best way to use Amex points). Targeted offers of 100,000 bonus also are appearing! And it’s got loads of ongoing benefits to boot.

Unfortunately, Amex pulled the card’s temporary 2020 benefits of up to monthly $20 credits toward streaming and wireless telephone services — a bummer, as just about everyone with the Amex Platinum put those to good use. However, a new and extremely easy-to-use benefit has filled its place. From Jan. 1 to June 30, 2021, you’ll receive up to $30 in PayPal credit each month.

I’ll give you a quick how-to, and show you why this benefit is so great.

New Amex Platinum benefit: Up to $30 credit per month with PayPal

Coronavirus refuses to let the travel industry fully rebound. Until it goes away, credit card issuers will keep finding ways to make you feel appreciated.

The Amex Platinum is one of the best travel credit cards in existence, but that doesn’t do us much good at the moment. That’s why they’ve unveiled a new monthly PayPal statement credit that’s really useful and pretty easy to use.

So why is this benefit so handy? Tons and tons of stores take PayPal as a form of payment — so it’s about as good as American Express handing you $30 in cash every month.

Here are some important terms:

• You will only receive a monthly credit of up to $30 between Jan. 1 and June 30, 2021 — a maximum potential savings of $180 if you open the Amex Platinum in January
• The credit will only trigger if you make your purchase in USD
• Your purchase must be made with a U.S. merchant (who also accepts PayPal)
• Authorized users don’t get their own credit (though they can use the account holder’s credit

Take a look at how to use the credit at Walmart.com.

Step 1. Find the items you want and head to checkout

You can perform your normal shopping on the Walmart website, and go to the payment page. There, you’ll see multiple options for payment: Credit card, gift card, or “more.” Click the last one.

Step 2. Choose PayPal

From the handful of options below, choose PayPal Checkout. PayPal Checkout will let you pay for your purchase with a credit card that you’ve added to your PayPal account. You’re still using your credit card for the purchase, except PayPal is paying Walmart for the item, and charging your credit card for it. In other words, it’s like you spent money with PayPal instead of Walmart.

Step 3. Make sure you’re using the Amex Platinum

If you haven’t used PayPal Checkout before, you’ll be led to your PayPal account before making your purchase. There, you will see a list of all the credit card accounts you’ve added to PayPal. Be sure you select the Amex Platinum as your payment method, or you won’t trigger the $30 credit!

This process should work for other websites that accept PayPal as a payment method. Tons of other retailers accept PayPal, including Airbnb, Apple, Best Buy, Hotels.com, Netflix, Spotify and more.

Bottom line

A monthly $30 PayPal credit is basically like getting a $30 check in the mail. You can use it for just about anything if you’re creative enough. But remember, this feature is scheduled to disappear on June 30, 2021 — so to get the most value from it, be sure to apply in January if don’t already have the card. Current cardholders will want to set a reminder to use the credit every month.

The potential to get $180 in value from this perk further lowers the effective out-of-pocket you’ll spend on the Amex Platinum’s $550 annual fee (see rates and fees). The card could save you $1,000 each year if you can use most of the benefits — and that’s being on the conservative side. Check out our post on the Amex Platinum benefits to see a full rundown of every perk.

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For rates and fees of the Amex Platinum, click here