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The Points Guy paid $10,000 to become an American Express Centurion card cardmember.
- $7500 one-time initiation fee
- $2500 annual fee
There is no signup bonus.
It takes around $250,000 – $350,000 in spend in a year across American Express products to be able to request an invitation to the Centurion card ($500,000+ to request a Business Centurion card).
And the card is basically just an American Express Platinum card with a few add-on benefits.
Here are demographics of Platinum and centurion cardholders.
Like the Platinum card, Centurion cardmembers receive:
- Lounge access. Both Platinum and Centurion members get access to Delta lounges (when flying Delta same day, but no free guests); Centurion lounge access (Centurion members get better champagne than Platinum members and reserved tables); Priority Pass Select.
- Starwood status. Both Platinum and Centurion members receive Gold status.
- Hilton status. Platinum members receive Gold status, Centurion members Diamond, but there’s not much of a material difference in published benefits between the two status levels.
- Fine Hotels & Resorts bookings. Luxury hotel reservations with throw-ins like breakfast, upgrades, and late checkout. Centurion members generally get an extra throw-in benefit.
Unique Centurion elite status benefits are:
- IHG Rewards Club Platinum status. For all those times that Centurion members stay at Holiday Inn. Platinum is not even top tier and even the top elite level offers super weak benefits. (And Intercontinental hotels have their own separate status program: Ambassador)
- Delta Platinum status. Although The Points Guy writes “Delta Platinum status has been nice for flexibility in changing awards and earning more miles on Delta flights” it’s actually a hobbled Platinum status that doesn’t get bonus miles for flights.
Both card products get an airline fee credit, Global Entry application fee reimbursement, and concierge services. The Centurion concierge can be a designated person, rather than luck of the draw with Platinum, but it’s the same company and not a true high end concierge service (and is often considered to lag mid-tier services like Bluefish).
With the personal (but not business) Black Card you may receive luxury gifts — such as gift cards for luxury retailers who want to introduce themselves to you.
Ultimately you’re paying $7500 upfront plus an incremental $2000 a year over the Platinum Card for Delta Platinum elite status. That won’t be close to worth it for most people — save the money, use some of it for paid domestic first class (your upgrade percentage is higher that way anyway), if you must.
With the Centurion card you used to get:
- Starwood Platinum
- Hyatt Diamond
- US Airways Platinum
Now with the Black Card you’re really paying for prestige and exclusivity. It was cool when Kanye West dropped references to it in 2004. But that was… 2004.
I went to the malls and I balled too hard/ ‘Oh my god is that a black card?’/ I turned around and replied, ‘Why, yes/ But I prefer the term African-American Express’
First of all Centurion Amex card holders are not supposed to not have any limits on their cards !!
This is what we were promised when we signed up. In fact we Centurion Card holders were promised a lot of things by paying that huge Membership fee!
It has become quite apparent, particularity in the last five years that the promises made to cardholders are no longer valid.
One just has to read the newspapers to know that Amex has financial problems big time!
I have always paid my accounts in full by the due date, in fact I was always made clear to me that my Amex Statement must be paid in full by the due date. It clearly states this on the card Statement. However, lately, in the last several years I have been getting what I consider to be harassing calls from Amex asking when I am going to pay my account, usually about two weeks before it is due.
Recently I booked a 25th Wedding Anniversary Cruise. I had a lot of Amex Reward Points sitting unused due to the fact That Amex dropped the Travellers Cheque(Rewards) program. I decided to use those points towards airfare. I was advised by Centurion Travel that the Rewards Point Redemption would be immediate and the airfare credit would show up immediately on my statement. Cardholder Services said something slightly different . I was told by Card Services that the redemption would take a few days,. I was told repeatedly, that it would only take a few days at the most for the Redemption to come through. I was assured that there would be no problems putting through the Reward Redemption.
The airline tickets were charged immediately to my to my card, but low and behold no Reward Redemption 7 days later.
The excuses of why the Redemption did not go through are very imaginative to say the least, Welcome to Amex!!!
My statement date closes on the 7th day of every month, meaning that I now had to pay additionally for airline tickets that were supposed to be covered under the Amex Rewards program.
There is absolutely no way it should have taken 7 days to process any Point Redemption!!.
This is absolutely unacceptable to me.
My experience with Amex overall is that if it sounds too good to be true it usually is.
I and my family have been promised a lot over the years by Centurion Travel ,Centurion Concierge, and Card Services. More often than not we have been disappointed for one reason or another:
Car Services that were booked through Amex don’t show up to pick us up upon Disembarkation of cruise ships: 3 or more times.
Carey Limo not showing up in NYC to pick us up at least 3 times.
Carey Limo charging me for services we did not receive at least 3 times.
Being Promised an autograph by Sidney Crosby, booking a hotel for that reason, only to find out a half hour before the hockey game this was never going to happen!! A very disappointed son, who as his mother I had to look into his face to explain that Amex Screwed up big time, and promised us something they were never going to deliver !
Regularly, not receiving a follows up on my emails or telephone reservation requests from Centurion Concierge.
Regularly being disconnected, most often by Centurion Concierge.
Calling from Overseas many times , and feeling frustrated so many times that the agent did not want to help(“because it is night time in Toronto, and the Toronto Office is closed, I am just basically an answering service”), being told I would have to wait for the next morning when Toronto Offices Opened, and or till the Booking agent showed up for their shift.
I could go on and on.
Being falsely told by Amex Card services that it did not matter if the redemption did not go through, before my statement date ended. being told I would not have to pay for the almost $16,000 dollars in airfare charges even if the redemption went through after the statement was rendered. The truth is by waiting for a point Redemption to come thorough you are jeopardizing you credit rating should you listen to Card Services and not pay your credit Card statement in full on the due date. You would also find your self paying interest on the full balance that was due at the time the statement was rendered, not just interest on the unpaid amount.
I asked to get this agents comments in writing via email, he refused, I asked to speak to a supervisor the agent refused to put me through to a supervisor.
It is clear to me that Centurion Cardholders are being mislead, by card service agents who have no true concept what it means to pay a statement Balance in full by the due date!
Finally being told a Rewards Redemption was immediate or at the very least would take several days is incorrect as I have experience first hand. It has taken me 7 days, and now I have a huge unwanted and unnecessary credit of $16,000 dollars on my account.!
Wondering why, and have been for quite some time, Why Centurion Card Still exists with Amex??
Absolutely wondering why I even bother to complain to Amex? They really don’t care. The “we are there to help and make your dreams come true” just does not exist.
I have been a Cardholder since 1996, and this steady decline in service just has to be addressed.
Don’t bother with the Amex Centurion Card, you won’t get what you were promised, and will eventually and unnecessarily end up disappointed somehow somewhere.
Besides, less and less businesses are taking Amex at all. So where are you going to actually be able to use the card? These businesses also have their major complaints about Amex too!
The article must be a rehash of an “OLD” post. STARWOOD status? Starwood no longer exists, purchased and merged with Marriott.
US Airways? How long has US Air merged with American? Officially US Airways merged with American in 2013. The last official US Airways flight was 2015
@Charlie this is a nearly 4 year old article
The only useful (and indeed it is) is the 50% off points needed for air travel through their portal. For short haul flight premium cabins, the points needed are often less than the mileages needed through redemption from the airlines and the availability is the same as cash tickets, plus you can still earn miles. Given how frequent airlines devaluate their currency nowadays, the fee may be justified for frequent flyers.
Other than that, I don’t see any significant value from this card.
I have been a American Express Cardholder since 1994. I am not not sure when I became a Centurion Cardholder but at least 10 plus years ago. Over those 10 years I have continued to experience a steady decline in all the services provided by Amex. You absoluting are not getting what you think you are getting by having this card.
You cannot rely on Amex Travel personnel, you cannot rely on Amex Concierge personnel. I have simply started to rely on myselt to get things done in an accurate and timely manner .
Hotels definitely cost more if booked though Amex. What am I getting in return, a package of 6 small dates at my Fine Hotels and Resorts hotel in Amman Jordan.!!
Every service associated with booking through Amercian Express Centurion travel is at least double and sometime triple in price. Quite frankly, the Annual Membership fee is paying for any small extras these hotels are providing.
The Travel agents are definitley getting a commission of some sort. I once got a quote from Celebrity Cruises without the use of Amex Travel; I then decided to book with Amex travel and received a new Amex quote. Let me be frank, there was certainly a price increase difference on the Amex quote for the same booking. When I pressed Amex travel I was told they do get commisions.
Ultimately, this card is becoming harder and harder to use in Canada and I have noticed a trend in the USA as well. Merchants simply don’t want to pay the higher rate( I believe it is 3%) to Amex in order to offer the card to their customers. Futhermore, I have several Amex Gift cards from point redemptions that have become quite difficult to use because no one (merchants) know how to processs them, especially as these cards are in Canadian funds not US funds. So what is the card worth un US funds.? I called Amex and they could not tell me what the equivlant amount was on that day. In my esteem a total waste of a point redemption if traveling to another country.
Nothing is free ever. The same holds true for the American Express Centurion card. The so called “Prestige” equivocates to a total rip off. You really don’t need a card that does not live up to everything that it advertises do you??
AMEX Centurion is a joke ! And AMEX, as a whole, has been blacked out in my country (Portugal). So no more Amex cards here . I suppose Europe will follow suit !
Thank you so much for your reply Sir. My hats off to Prortugal for initiating this boycott. As always the Europeans are so much more progressive than we are in North America. Something I truly admire on many levels. I think Amex is on its way out in North America as well. I fully suspect there will be a Class action lawsuit against Amex in the near future. The Americans love class action Lawsuits so I am waiting for them to take the lead. False advertising and False respresentation are great places to focus. Thanks you for your comments.