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Starwood and American Express are now offering an increased signup bonus of 35,000 Starpoints on both the personal and business versions of the SPG Amex Credit Card after you use your new card to make $3,000 in purchases within the first 3 months of card membership. The offer is valid through 30 March 2016 and appears to be the highest Starpoints offer ever seen on this card.
Link to offer for personal card
Link to offer on business card
The Starwood AMEX Cards
The Starwood Amex is one of the longest serving loyalty cards out there and has been a favorite for many people for quite a long time. Neither card has amazing earning potential due to the fact that they doesn’t offer any bonus categories but it’s one of the very few ways with which you can collect Starpoints – and they’re still highly prized.
The points earning structure with the Starwood Amex Cards is simple:
- 2 Starpoints/$ on spend at SPG Hotels
- 1 Starpoint/$ on all other spend
Benefits of Both Cards
- The credit card gives holders 5 nights and 2 stays credit toward elite status
- No foreign transaction fees
- Free in-room premium internet access
- Amex’s highly rated extended warranty/return protection/purchase protection
Benefits Exclusive to the Business Card
- Complimentary, unlimited Boingo Wi-Fi on up to four devices at more than 1,000,000 Boingo hotspots worldwide.
- Complimentary access to the Sheraton Club lounges at various Sheraton properties around the world
Annual Fees
Both cards come with an annual fee of $95 which is waived in the first year.
Is The Card Worth Having?
Definitely, yes.
The card is a good way to earn Starpoints without actually staying at Starwood properties and, with Starpoints converting to most major airline loyalty programs in a 1:1 ratio, they are an excellent loyalty currency to hold.
In addition, Starwood will add a 5,000 bonus to every transfer of 20,000 points that you make to an airline loyalty program making Starpoints even more valuable.
I use my card for any unbonused spend I have as, with my valuation of Starpoints (around 2.2 cents each), that gives me the best return on my spend.
There’s also the Marriott takeover of Starwood to consider.
Marriott is affiliated with Chase and, as that is unlikely to change any time soon, it’s highly likely that American Express will have to stop issuing the SPG Amex cards sometime in the near future. In fact, that could be why we’re suddenly seeing the highest offer ever seen on the Amex SPG cards – American Express is trying to gather as many card users as possible before they can no longer offer the cards any more.
If the SPG Amex cards follow a similar trajectory to the US Airways credit card (after the merger with American) then we can expect American Express to strongly incentivize cardholders not to give up the cards once Marriott completes its takeover of Starwood – and that’s always good for those who hold the cards.
Bottom Line
I have no horse in this race as I don’t benefit from anyone signing up for the card but I do think that any serious points & miles collector should have this card in their wallet.
The SPG Amex may not be way ahead of the field as it once was but it still earns one of the best loyalty currencies out there and that counts for a lot. Given the choice of earning 1 point/$ in any single loyalty program I’d choose SPG every time – some may disagree with me but I suspect most will agree.
