100,000 miles welcome bonus showdown: AMEX Platinum Charge vs StanChart Beyond Card

If memory serves, the last time we saw a 100,000 miles welcome bonus was back in July 2019 with the launch of the StanChart X Card— an offer that lasted just six days!

But you know how sometimes you wait forever for a bus, then two appear at the same time? It’s the same with credit cards, because the AMEX Platinum Charge and StanChart Beyond Card are both running concurrent 100,000 miles welcome offers.

AMEX Platinum Charge	StanChart Beyond Card
Apply	Apply

100,000 miles might not get you as far as it did in 2019, but it’s still enough for a one-way Suites award to Sydney, plus a Spontaneous Escapes getaway to Bali. Besides, it’s not just the welcome bonus— both cards offer additional perks like unlimited airport lounge access, dining discounts, hotel elite status and more.

If you’ve been agonising over the two offers, here’s my take on how they compare, and which one is more attractive.

Overview: AMEX Platinum Charge & StanChart Beyond Card 100,000 miles welcome offers

	AMEX Platinum Charge	StanChart Beyond Card
	Apply	Apply
Validity	Approved by 28 May 25	Apply by 30 June 25
Eligibility	Min. income not stated	Min. income S$200K
Annual Fee	S$1,744	S$1,635
Min. Spend	S$8,000 in 90 days	S$20,000 in 90 days
Welcome Bonus	93,750 miles + S$100	100,000 miles
Base Miles	6,250 miles	30,000 to 80,000 miles
Total Return	100,000 miles + S$100	130,000 to 180,000 miles
Cost Per Mile*	1.75 cents	1.64 cents
*Cost per mile is derived from the bonus miles divided by annual fee. In the case of the AMEX Platinum Charge, the annual fee has been offset by S$100 to reflect the cash component of the welcome bonus

Validity

Both of these welcome offers run till the middle of 2025, so you still have some time to deliberate. However, they don’t overlap perfectly:

• For the AMEX Platinum Charge, you must be approved by 28 May 2025
• For the StanChart Beyond Card, you must submit your application by 30 June 2025

Do note the differences not just in dates, but language.

The StanChart Beyond Card requires you to submit your application by the deadline, but the AMEX Platinum Charge requires you to be approved by the deadline. This means you’ll want to leave some additional buffer for the latter; I’d recommend a week to be safe.

Eligibility

The StanChart Beyond Card has a minimum income requirement of S$200,000. It’s not clear how rigidly this is enforced, but it’s likely there will be concessions for Priority Banking (PB; minimum AUM: S$200,000) or Priority Private (PP; minimum AUM: S$1.5M) customers who do not meet the minimum income requirement. 

The AMEX Platinum Charge used to have an official income requirement of S$200,000 (unofficially: S$150,000), but removed it a few years ago. All applications are now subject to regulatory guidelines (MAS minimum: S$30,000) and “internal assessment”. 

That said, it’s no big secret that American Express is more concerned about your willingness to pay the S$1,744 annual fee than your ability to afford it. There have been many reports of individuals with incomes well below six-figures getting approved, and this would definitely be the easier of the two cards to get.

Annual fee

The AMEX Platinum Charge has an annual fee of S$1,744, which is 7% higher than the StanChart Beyond Card’s S$1,635.

Honestly though, if you’re even considering either card then this shouldn’t be a substantial difference.

Minimum spend

The AMEX Platinum Charge requires a minimum spend of S$8,000 in 90 days. This is a significant amount of money, yet feels like a pittance compared to the StanChart Beyond Card, which requires a minimum spend of S$20,000 in 90 days.

But there are qualitative factors to consider too.

	AMEX Platinum Charge	StanChart Beyond Card
CardUp	✅	✅
Charitable Donations	✅	❌
Education	✅	❌
Private Hospitals	✅	❌
SC EasyBill	❌	✅

Meeting the minimum spend for the AMEX Platinum Charge is easier, not only because the required amount is lower, but also because it includes spending on charitable donations, education, and private hospitals—categories that are excluded for the StanChart Beyond Card.

However, the StanChart Beyond Card uses on the Mastercard network, which is more widely accepted than American Express. It also benefits from lower processing fees when using CardUp, or its in-house SC EasyBill platform.

Welcome bonus, base miles and total return

I hope this isn’t an anticlimax, but the AMEX Platinum Charge doesn’t actually have a 100,000 miles welcome offer; it’s more accurately described as 93,750 miles + S$100. 

Why? The 100,000 miles that American Express advertises includes the base miles from the S$8,000 minimum spend. At the regular earn rate of 0.78 mpd, that’s an extra 6,250 base miles, resulting in a total of 100,000 miles. 

In contrast, when the StanChart Beyond Card advertises 100,000 miles, they really mean it. This figure does not include the base miles earned from the S$20,000 minimum spend, which could be anywhere from 30,000 to 80,000 base miles depending on the currency you spend it in.

All that said, I’m still willing to consider the AMEX Platinum Charge’s welcome offer as “100,000 miles”, because of the S$100 statement credit. If you value a mile at 1.6 cents each, which isn’t so outlandish, that S$100 becomes 6,250 miles, making it 100,000 miles on both sides.

What about transfer partners?

While the quantity of miles on offer may be similar, the quality is very different. The AMEX Platinum Charge has 11 transfer partners, compared to just two for the StanChart Beyond Card.

	AMEX Platinum Charge	StanChart Beyond Card
	✅	✅
	✅
	✅	✅
	✅
	✅
	✅
	✅
	✅
	✅
	✅
	✅

This means that 100,000 miles with the AMEX Platinum Charge is significantly more useful than 100,000 miles with the StanChart Beyond Card. 

For example, someone who wanted to fly from Singapore to Los Angeles in Business Class could transfer his AMEX Platinum Charge’s welcome bonus to EVA Air Infinity MileageLands, where the award costs 75,000 miles. If he had chosen the StanChart Beyond Card, his welcome bonus would come up short, because the same route costs 107,000 miles through KrisFlyer. 

What about the other benefits?

While the 100,000 miles welcome offer grabs all the headlines, we should also consider the rest of the benefits when deciding which card offers the better deal.

	AMEX Platinum Charge	StanChart Beyond Card
Local Spend	0.78 mpd	1.5-2 mpd
FCY Spend	0.78 mpd	3-4 mpd
Bonus Spend	1.95 mpd (SIA & Scoot) 7.8 mpd (10Xcelerator)	8 mpd (FCY dining, PP)
Statement Credits	~S$1.9K	N/A
Airport Limo	N/A	2x (PB & PP)
Lounge Access	Main + All Supp.	Main + 4 Supp.
Dining Perks	Chillax Dining vouchers Love Dining	Accor Plus Explorer Plus (PP) Birthday meal
Travel Perks	Fine Hotels & Resorts Int’l Airline Pgm 1N Plat Stay Hotel elite status Rental car elite status	Business Class upgrades Hotel elite status Rental car elite status
World Elite Benefits	No	Yes

It’s probably too much to drill down into every single aspect, but here’s the ones I think are worth highlighting. 

Earn rates

	AMEX Platinum Charge	StanChart Beyond Card
Local Spend	0.78 mpd	1.5 mpd (Regular) 2 mpd (PB, PP)
FCY Spend	0.78 mpd	3 mpd (Regular) 3.5 mpd (PB) 4 mpd (PP)
Bonus Spend	1.95 mpd (SIA & Scoot) 7.8 mpd (10Xcelerator)	8 mpd on FCY dining (PP)

The AMEX Platinum Charge is not a card you get for earning miles. It earns a mediocre 0.78 mpd on most local and overseas spending, and 1.95 mpd on Singapore Airlines and Scoot. The only punch it packs is 7.8 mpd at 10Xcelerator merchants, but these aren’t the kind of places that most people visit every day.

On the other hand, the StanChart Beyond Card is geared towards rewarding cardholders for spending. A regular cardholder will earn an uncapped 1.5 mpd on local spend, and 3 mpd on overseas spending, increasing to 2 mpd for local spend, 4 mpd on overseas spending and 8 mpd on overseas dining for Priority Private cardholders.

Statement credits

💳 Platinum Statement Credits
Credit	Amt.	No. of Trxns.
Local Dining	S$100 per 6 mo.	Multiple
Overseas Dining	S$100 per 6 mo.	Multiple
Lifestyle	S$200 per 6 mo. (min. S$300 spend)	Single
Entertainment	S$17 per mo.	Multiple
Airline	S$100 per 6 mo. (min. S$300 spend)	Single
Fashion	S$75 per 6 mo.	Multiple

The AMEX Platinum Charge offers cardholders S$1,354 worth of dining, shopping, entertainment and travel credits each year, known collectively as the Platinum Statement Credits.

These credits used to be awarded on an annual basis, but from 2025 onwards are awarded half-yearly. This means that cardholders can enjoy 1.5 year’s worth of credits in their first membership year.

To illustrate, suppose your card is approved in April 2025. On approval, you’ll receive the following credits, which need to be spent by 30 June 2025. 

• H1 2025 Local Dining credit
• H1 2025 Overseas Dining credit
• H1 2025 Lifestyle credit
• H1 2025 Airline credit
• H1 2025 Fashion credit 

On 1 July 2025, you’ll receive the following credits, which need to be spent by 31 December 2025:

• H2 2025 Local Dining credit
• H2 2025 Overseas Dining credit
• H2 2025 Lifestyle credit
• H2 2025 Airline credit
• H2 2025 Fashion credit 

On 1 January 2026, you’ll receive the following credits, which need to be spent by 30 June 2026:

• H1 2026 Local Dining credit
• H1 2026 Overseas Dining credit
• H1 2026 Lifestyle credit
• H1 2026 Airline credit
• H1 2026 Fashion credit 

Each month, you’ll also receive the S$17 Entertainment credit.

When the time comes to pay the 2nd year’s membership fee in April 2026, you’ll have enjoyed a total of S$1,929 in credits, split into:

• S$300 Local Dining credits
• S$300 Overseas Dining credits
• S$600 Lifestyle credits
• S$300 Airline credits
• S$225 Fashion credits
• S$204 Entertainment credits

At this point, you’re free to cancel the card if you wish.

Now, it’s a separate question altogether as to whether you should take these at face value, because of the various restrictions (for example, the Local Dining credit is now limited to 13 fine dining restaurants, none of which are Love Dining eligible).

Most people will take some kind of haircut to account for that, but only you can decide what percentage is appropriate.

Lounge access

💳 Main Cardholder
	AMEX Platinum Charge	StanChart Beyond Card
Priority Pass	∞ (+1 guest every time)	∞ (+6 guests per year)
Plaza Premium	∞ (+1 guest every time)	Access via Priority Pass
Centurion Lounge	∞ (+2 guests every time)
Delta Sky Clubs	∞ (When flying Delta)
Lufthansa Lounge	∞ (When flying Lufthansa)

💳 Supplementary Cardholder(s)
	AMEX Platinum Charge	StanChart Beyond Card
Priority Pass	8x visits 1x supp. card	∞ 4x supp. cards (+6 guests per year)
Plaza Premium	∞ All supp. cards (+1 guest every time)	Access via Priority Pass
Centurion Lounge	∞ All supp. cards (+2 guests every time)
Delta Sky Clubs	∞ All supp. cards (When flying Delta)
Lufthansa Lounge	∞ All supp. cards (When flying Lufthansa)

The AMEX Platinum Charge has the upper hand when it comes to lounge variety. In addition to Priority Pass Lounges, cardholders can also access Centurion Lounges, and Delta Sky Clubs or Lufthansa Lounges when flying on Delta or Lufthansa respectively. 

It also has the upper hand with regards to guest benefits. The principal cardholder can bring one guest into Priority Pass Lounges , while both the principal and supplementary cardholders can guest 1-2 companions into the Plaza Premium or Centurion Lounges.

In contrast, the StanChart Beyond Card only has access to Priority Pass lounges, with a six-guest allowance per year that is shared between the principal and supplementary cardholders. 

However, one crucial difference is that the Priority Pass memberships issued by American Express are not eligible for non-lounge experiences such as airport restaurants or spa treatments. There is no such restriction for the Priority Pass memberships issued by Standard Chartered.

Elite status

AMEX Platinum Charge	StanChart Beyond Card
Avis President’s Club Hertz Gold Plus Rewards Five Star Hilton Honors Gold Marriott Bonvoy Gold Pan Pacific DISCOVERY Platinum Radisson Rewards Premium	Avis President’s Club Brilliant by Langham Ruby CentaraThe1 Platinum GHA DISCOVERY Titanium I Prefer Titanium My Millennium Prestige ONYX Rewards Platinum Swiss-Belexecutive Platinum Connoisseur

Both the AMEX Platinum Charge and StanChart Beyond Card offer elite status with various hotel and rental car chains.

While the StanChart Beyond Card has more partnerships, I’d say that it’s a tie overall. The “heavy hitters” would be Hilton Honors Gold (AMEX Platinum Charge) and GHA DISCOVERY Titanium (StanChart Beyond Card) as both tiers offer complimentary breakfast, arguably the most useful benefit of all. 

Which one should you take?

I think this decision really boils down to two things:

1. How much spending do you have planned for the next 12 months?
2. What status do you have with Standard Chartered?

How much spending do you have planned?

If spending S$20,000 in the next 90 days seems unrealistic, then the StanChart Beyond Card isn’t for you. This is the highest minimum spend requirement I’ve seen for a welcome offer in recent history, and even though you could meet it with platforms like CardUp or SC EasyBill, these come with additional fees (and not everyone has S$20,000 worth of bills to charge anyway).

Besides, it’s not just about the first 90 days. The StanChart Beyond Card is designed to reward big spenders, with its uncapped, market-leading rates of up to 8 mpd. If you just meet the minimum spend for the welcome offer and then put the card in the drawer, you’re not really making the most of it.

In contrast, there’s really no reason to spend on your AMEX Platinum Charge beyond the welcome bonus period, apart from 10Xcelerator merchants, Love Dining, or other situations where you have no choice but to use it. 

So if you have plans to spend big in the next 12 months, the StanChart Beyond Card will offer a more generous return. 

What status do you have with Standard Chartered?

The StanChart Beyond is one product, with three tiers.

• Regular: No minimum AUM required
• Priority Banking (PB): Minimum AUM S$200,000
• Priority Private (PP): Minimum AUM S$1,500,000

All three tiers pay the same S$1,635 annual fee, but the benefits are different.

PB and PP members enjoy two complimentary airport limo rides, as well as better earn rates. PP members also enjoy an Accor Plus Explorer Plus membership, which comes with two complimentary hotel nights per year and up to 50% off dining.

Therefore, if you had PB or PP status with Standard Chartered, then the Beyond becomes even more attractive.

Conclusion

AMEX Platinum Charge	StanChart Beyond Card
Apply	Apply

Those looking for a bumper sign-up bonus will have two to choose from over the next few months, with the AMEX Platinum Charge and StanChart Beyond Card going head-to-head with 100,000 miles welcome offers.

If you’re the type who invests the time to min-max, then the AMEX Platinum Charge is probably the better choice. Not only is the minimum spend lower, it has a wider range of transfer partners that let you stretch the bonus further with alternative frequent flyer programmes. The statement credits are finnicky, but they’re still worth something, and together with Love Dining, Hilton Gold and the one night Platinum Stay, it’s hard not to come out on top in the first year.

But if you’re the type who intends to continue spending on your new card even beyond the welcome bonus period, then the StanChart Beyond Card is likely to be more rewarding. With uncapped earn rates of 1.5 to 8 mpd, it’s practically goading you to spend. It also has a “better” Priority Pass membership that lets you visit restaurants and spas, and if you’re a Priority Banking or Priority Private customer, you enjoy additional perks for the same annual fee. 

Of course, there’s nothing stopping you from getting both cards, assuming you can meet the minimum spend and don’t mind paying more than S$3,000 worth of annual fees! That might be excessive though, so take the time to research both options carefully before pulling the trigger.

Which 100,000 miles offer do you think is better?