Amex Credit Cards: Earn Bonus Points for Adding Supplementary Cardholders | News 4 Social

American Express has launched a promotion for Canadian cardholders, in which you can earn extra points for adding additional cardholders to select accounts. The offers are valid until February 28, 2023, and are limited to specific cards.

There aren’t any fees for adding cardholders to some accounts, while others come with an additional annual fee. In some cases, the offer can be quite lucrative, especially if the additional cardholders complete the spending requirement with maximum-earning multipliers. 

Some of these offers fall squarely in the “low-hanging fruit” category, so let’s take a look at what’s on the table this time.

Add Supplementary Cardholders, Get Bonus Points

There is a new offer available on some American Express cards, and you can earn bonus points by adding additional cardholders to your account. The promotion runs until February 28, 2023, so be sure to take advantage of it before then if you have any cards that it’s valid for.

The full details for the promotion can be found on the American Express landing page.

The amount of bonus points depends on the card, and in some cases, there is a maximum amount of additional cardholders you can add to receive a bonus. The full scope of the promotion is as follows:

• American Express Cobalt Card: Earn 2,500 Membership Rewards points when additional cardholders spend at least $1,000 in the first three months, up to two additional cards.
• SimplyCash Preferred Card from American Express: Earn a $25 statement credit when additional cardholders spend at least $1,000 in the first three months, up to two additional cards.
• American Express Aeroplan Reserve Card: Earn 10,000 Aeroplan points when additional cardholders spend at least $2,500 in the first three months, up to two additional cards. Note that only paid supplementary cards are eligible for the offer.
• American Express Platinum Card: Earn 10,000 MR points when additional cardholders spend at least $2,500 in the first three months, up to two additional cards.
• American Express Gold Rewards Card: Earn 2,500 MR points when additional cardholders spend at least $1,000 in the first three months, up to two additional cards.

It’s important to note that there is an annual fee for adding additional cardholders to some of these cards, which is outlined as follows:

• American Express Cobalt Card: Additional cards have no annual fee.
• SimplyCash Preferred Card from American Express: Additional cards have no annual fee.
• American Express Aeroplan Reserve Card: Additional cards have a $199 annual fee.
• American Express Platinum Card: Additional cards have a $175 annual fee.
• American Express Gold Rewards Card: The first additional card is free, and any others have a $50 annual fee.

If you were to maximize the above offers, and if your additional cardholders complete the spending requirement (if any), you’d stand to earn the following:

• American Express Cobalt Card: 5,000 Membership Rewards points for $0.
• SimplyCash Preferred Card from American Express: $50 statement credit for $0.
• American Express Aeroplan Reserve Card: 20,000 Aeroplan points for $398.
• American Express Platinum Card: 20,000 Membership Rewards points for $350.
• American Express Gold Rewards Card: 5,000 Membership Rewards points for $50.

If you’ve been thinking about adding a supplementary cardholder to any of your accounts, be sure to take advantage of the promotion before February 28, 2023. 

Should You Add Supplementary Cardholders to your Amex Cards?

Whether or not the extra points is worth it will depend on how much value you can get out of the points when compared to the cost of acquiring them.

Of these offers, the most attractive is for the Cobalt, which would give you up to 5,000 MR points at no cost to you. You’ll also earn points made by the additional cardholders, and if they were to spend $1,000 each in any of the 5x-earning categories, you’d earn a total of 15,000 MR points. 

On the Gold Rewards Card, you can also get 5,000 MR points at a low cost of just $50, since adding the first additional cardholder is free. If both cardholders were to spend $1,000 each at a 2x-earning category, then you’d earn a total of 9,000 MR points for $50 out-of-pocket.

Furthermore, if you can manage to do all of the spending requirement on the supplementary cards on hotel or car rentals through American Express Travel Online, you’ll earn 3 points per dollar spent, which increases your total possible earn to 11,000 MR points.

On the Platinum Card, you’ll earn a total of 20,000 MR points for $350 paid for the annual fees. If both additional cardholders were to spend $2,500 each on the 3x-earning dining category, then you’d earn a total of 35,000 MR points. 

Similarly, on the Reserve Card, you can earn 20,000 points for adding two additional cardholders, and if they spend $2,500 each on Air Canada flights, you’ll earn a further 15,000 Aeroplan points for a total of $398 out-of-pocket.

Up to $50 as a statement credit on the SimplyCash Preferred Card is low-hanging fruit, but it doesn’t stand to offer as much value as the other cards. 

Maximize the Offer with Category Multipliers

The best way to maximize this promotion is to add cardholders and target spending on the highest-earning categories as they meet the spending requirement.

On the Cobalt card, this could mean adding another member of your household and then shifting all grocery spending onto that card until the minimum spending requirement is met. After that, you could shift the grocery spending to the second additional cardholder, which would net you 15,000 MR points in the end at no cost.

Similarly, on the Gold Rewards Card, you could split up some travel expenses onto the additional cards, perhaps by booking tickets one-at-a-time for a trip. Doing this would earn you 9,000 MR points for just $50 in annual fees, or 11,000 points if you do the spend through Amex Travel Online. 

For the Platinum Card, it becomes a bit trickier, as not everyone will spend $5,000 on dining over the course of three months. If you can manage to do this, though, you’d come out ahead with 35,000 MR points at a cost of $350, which isn’t bad at all, especially if you can redeem them at a higher value by transferring out to airline loyalty programs.

Additional cardholders on the Platinum Card will also enjoy the card’s benefits, such as lounge access.

Lastly, on the Reserve Card, you’d ideally have the additional cardholders spend $2,500 each on Air Canada flights, thus earning 3 Aeroplan points per dollar spent. Keep in mind that your additional cardholders will also benefit from unlimited Maple Leaf Lounge access and benefits on Air Canada flights, so if they stand to benefit from those over the course of a year, it could be worth the price of admission.

Conclusion

American Express is offering bonus points to members who add additional cardholders to their accounts. The offer is valid until February 28, 2023, so be sure to take advantage of this before then if you can squeeze the most value out of the promotion.

Ideally, your additional cardholders will complete the minimum spending requirement with the best earning categories for each card. This way, you’ll maximize the points earned from the account, which goes to offset any annual fees associated with adding cardholders to your account.

In particular, this is a great offer for the American Express Cobalt Card, since you can add cardholders at no additional cost. Even if you haven’t added this (or any of the other cards) to your portfolio, you should have plenty of time to apply and add cardholders before the promotion ends.