Amex Trifecta: the optimal combination of American Express cards

Each American Express card comes with its own perks and benefits. But if you combine three particular cards, you can easily offset each card’s annual fees, while earning the maximum value possible from your rewards points. Here’s what is called the “Amex trifecta” and how to properly use it.

What’s the Amex trifecta?

The Amex trifecta is a combination of three American Express cards with membership rewards. Each card complements each other, allowing you to earn the highest rewards on your purchases. The cards that make the Amex trifecta are:

• The Platinum Card® from American Express
• American Express® Gold Card
• The Blue Business® Plus Credit Card from American Express

Amex trifecta breakdown

How much can you earn with Amex trifecta?

Here’s a look at what you might expect to earn given average spending values with these three Amex cards.

With annual spending similar to our example, you would earn 90,000 points each year, not counting the welcome offers for the first year. This is a value of up to $900, which is enough to pay the annual fee for both the American Express® Gold Card and The Platinum Card® from American Express and get $100 on top.

If you use the fee credits and the cards’ benefits, you’ll get an additional value of more than $1,300.

Compare Amex trifecta credit cards

Want to know more about the Amex trifecta cards? Click on “view details” or “Apply now” to get a closer look.

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Name	Product	Filter values	Rewards	Purchase APR	Annual fee
American Express® Gold Card			3x points on directly-booked flights; 4x at restaurants; 4x at US supermarkets on up to $25,000 annually (then 1x points)	See pay over time APR	$250	Apply now View details	Earn up to 4x points on select purchases, a bevy of travel perks, and a welcome offer worth up to $600 with this upper-mid tier travel card. Rates & fees	Compare	loading Fetching your data...
The Platinum Card® from American Express			10x points at US gas stations and US supermarkets on up to $15,000 combined in the first 6 months, 5x points on directly-booked flights or on flights and hotels on Amex Travel. 1x points on all other purchases. Starting January 1, 2021, your 5x points on flights will be capped on up to $500,000 annually (then 1x points).	See pay over time APR	$550	Apply now View details	One of the most valuable premium travel cards, featuring two welcome offers worth up to $4,500, multiple travel credits and unrivaled lounge access. Rates & fees	Compare	loading Fetching your data...
The Blue Business® Plus Credit Card from American Express			Earn 2x Membership Rewards® points on everyday business purchases such as office supplies or client dinners. 2x applies to the first $50,000 in purchases per year, 1 point per dollar thereafter.	0% intro for the first 12 months (then 13.24% to 19.24% variable)	$0	View details	Earn 2x Membership Rewards® points on everyday business purchases on up to $50,000 with no category restrictions. Rates & fees	Compare	loading Fetching your data...

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How to maximize the Amex trifecta

To make the most of your Amex trifecta cards, here’s what you need to do:

• Use the right card for the right purchases. Each card earns accelerated points on select categories. Make sure to:
  • Use The Platinum Card® from American Express for hotel and airline purchases.
  • Use the American Express® Gold Card at US supermarkets and restaurants worldwide.
  • Use The Blue Business® Plus Credit Card from American Express on all other purchases.
• Earn the welcome offer. Two of the three cards come with generous welcome offers. If you clear it, you can earn rewards points worth more than $2,700.
• Use the fee credits. You get a total of $800 credits to use at hotels, airlines, dining and Uber rides, plus benefits worth $550. Make sure you use them to offset the annual fee.
• Use the intro APR period. The Blue Business® Plus Credit Card from American Express is the only credit card with a 0% intro APR period on purchases. If you’re looking to make a large purchase and pay it off for up to a year without interest, use this card.

Bottom line

Combining the three American Express cards: The Platinum Card® from American Express, American Express® Gold Card and The Blue Business® Plus Credit Card from American Express can be an excellent strategy to maximize your rewards, especially if you spend money on airfare, hotels, dining worldwide and at US supermarkets. Plus, you get other generous perks that can make this card combination even more valuable.

However, if you think this card combination won’t work for you, compare other credit cards and make your own trifecta.

Frequently asked questions

• Is there another three-card combination like the Amex trifecta?

  Yes, there’s the Chase trifecta, which combines:

  • Chase Freedom Flex℠
  • Chase Freedom Unlimited®
  • Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card or Chase Sapphire Reserve®.

  Chase also has a business card trifecta, consisting of:

  • Ink Business Cash℠ Credit Card
  • Ink Business Unlimited℠ Credit Card
  • Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card

• Is there another card to add to Amex trifecta?

  Blue Cash Preferred® Card from American Express can be a useful addition to the Amex trifecta. However, you earn cashback instead of points:

  • 6% back at US supermarkets on up to $6,000 annually, 1% thereafter.
  • 6% back on select US streaming services, including Apple TV and Music, Amazon Music Unlimited, Audible, Disney+, ESPN+, Spotify, Netflix and Hulu.
  • 3% back at US gas station and transit, including trains, taxicabs, rideshares, ferries, tolls, parking, buses and subways.
  • 1% back on all other purchases.