How to american express black card?

Now, American Express has loosened its grip on the Black card ever so slightly.

If you're not familiar with the Centurion Card, you're not alone. There's an air of mystery surrounding the card's perks, but what sets the card apart from others is the personal concierge service it offers cardholders. You may get a glimpse of what it's like to be a cardholder in Reddit posts or occasional articles. Delivering ice for your drinks, dropped off by helicopter to a remote island resort, is just one example of the lengths a Black card concierge will go to.

According to American Express, "We go above and beyond to help you from planning a vacation to dealing with an emergency." However, that's just the beginning of what you can ask for. According to a former concierge, if it's legal, the team will stop at nothing to fulfill your request.

Officially known as the Centurion® Card from American Express, it’s used often by big-name celebrities and business owners.

You’ve probably also heard that this card is ridiculously expensive to have — but if you just so happen to be a massive spender and crave exclusivity and customer service that stops at almost nothing, then it might work for you.

But even if you were insistent on getting the Centurion card, how do you even get it? It turns out that if you meet a few requirements (albeit hugely ambitious requirements), you can actually put your name in the hat to get invited to the Centurion card club.

In this guide, we’ll show you just how you can do that. Before that, though let’s talk about the ins and outs of this magnificently expensive card.

One of the most famous benefits that the Centurion card offers is the Centurion concierge, which is essentially a personal concierge you can leverage for numerous tasks.

With the Centurion concierge, you’ll have a dedicated point of contact assigned to you that is available 24/7, and the tasks that your concierge can assist with aren’t limited to travel-related queries. From impossible dinner reservations and help to find sold-out Christmas gifts to emergency travel plans and front-row seats at the hottest live events, your Centurion concierge is available to help with your requests.

Bottom Line: Essentially, the biggest value that Centurion card members consistently attest to is access to a personal Centurion concierge that will help plan and arrange for virtually any travel and lifestyle request you might have. These concierges will help save time and optimize your experiences.

When you hold the Centurion card, one of the biggest benefits you will enjoy is the complimentary Delta SkyMiles Platinum Medallion status, which alone is worth around $3,000 per year!

With Platinum status, you will get unlimited complimentary upgrades, a series of waived fees (including baggage charges and same-day fees), the higher-earning categories when booking paid flights, and access to Choice Benefits (including regional upgrades, extra SkyMiles, and more).

Hot Tip: For the vast majority of us, it actually makes better sense to go for The Platinum Card® from American Express, which provides many of the same benefits at a much lower cost.

One of the most impressive benefits of the Centurion card is the list of hotel chains that you get complimentary elite status with:

Additionally, there are a couple of extra elite benefit programs that you have access to:

The Centurion card is one of the best credit cards for car rental insurance if your car is lost or stolen when you decline the collision damage waiver.

You’ll also get 24/7 premium roadside assistance with up to 4 complimentary services per year.

One other (very) handy benefit you get is access to the Centurion Auto Program, which most people know as offering deals and discounts when buying premium cars, as well as preferred pricing luxury rentals, and driving experiences like on-track events and off-road excursions.

And lastly, with this card, you’ll get Hertz Gold Plus Rewards President’s Circle and Avis President’s Club elite status.

Hertz Gold Plus Rewards President’s Circle affords you the following special benefits:

On the other hand, Avis President’s Club is an invitation-only elite status that gets you the following benefits:

Another handy benefit of the Centurion card is the if you book your cruises via Amex Travel and have a booking of 5 nights or more, you will receive $100 to $500 in credits per stateroom, as well as 1 extra Membership Rewards point per $1 spent on these bookings.

Here are the eligible cruise partners:

The Centurion card is known for its benefits. And although the benefits above are fantastic, we aren’t finished yet! Here are some of the other terrific perks you will enjoy, noting that some of these benefits require enrollment:

This isn’t a full list by any means — but you get the point. There are a lot of perks that come with this card.

The Centurion card comes with relatively lackluster bonus categories — people who hold this card aren’t exactly looking to optimize for rewards. Since the benefits are the main driver, the Centurion card follows this earning structure:

Hot Tip: Learn about the best ways to earn and redeem Membership Rewards points for maximum value in our helpful guides!

Currently, there are 3 types of fees associated with the Centurion card. And as you can imagine, they are hefty:

So after all is said and done, the big question is: Is the Centurion card worth it?

For the vast majority of us, the answer is no. Most of the allure of this card comes from the “wow” factor of holding this status symbol.

But unless you’re going to be frequently using your concierge or intend on using lavish memberships like at PS LAX and Equinox, you’re probably better off just sticking to a card that gets you 80% of the way there, such as The Amex Platinum Card or the Amex Business Platinum card.

Hot Tip: See our detailed comparison of the Amex Platinum card vs. Centurion card to see which travel rewards card you should be considering.

Although there isn’t a published, sure-fire way to get invited to the Centurion card club, there are certain “soft” requirements you can meet to maximize your chances of getting approved. Here are the basic tips you can follow:

One of the most intuitive requirements to get the Centurion card is to be an existing Amex cardholder in good standing. What does this mean?

Well, if you’ve been blacklisted by Amex due to delinquencies and bankruptcies, you should probably kiss your Centurion card dreams goodbye.

In general, the absolute minimum history you must have with Amex is 1 year, so even if you’re a big spender on Chase cards or Capital One credit cards, you’ll need to “get your foot in the door” with a card like Amex Platinum card or Amex Business Platinum card.

Although Amex doesn’t publish a spending threshold to get invited, a solid rule of thumb is that you need to make at least $250,000 in annual purchases across all of your Amex cards.

So for example, if you spend $150,000 on your Amex Platinum card and $200,000 on your American Express® Gold Card per year, your aggregate spending across these 2 cards would be around $350,000.

Practically speaking, spending $250,000 per year doesn’t guarantee admission — in fact, the range is rumored to be $250,000 to $500,000 in annual purchases. And the spending requirements will also vary depending on the card product you’re looking for.

For example, the Centurion card is rumored to require around $250,000 to $350,000 in annual spending, while the Business Centurion® Card from American Express is said to require around $400,000 to $500,000 in annual spending.

Even if you meet the spending and relationship requirement, you may not get proactively invited to the exclusive Centurion card club.

Luckily, you can now request an invite! Follow these steps to request an invite:

In this guide, we outlined all of the perks and benefits associated with the Centurion card. We also walked through the fees associated with this card, as well as how you can position yourself to get invited to this card.

If you want an ultra-premium card that confers some of the world’s best travel and lifestyle benefits at all costs, the Centurion card could be a good fit for you.

For most of us, though, the Amex Platinum card actually makes a lot more sense, because you can get most of the same perks for a lower price. Even though the card’s fees are hefty, there are tons of benefits and perks that you can take advantage of to make it a lifelong keeper!

The information regarding the Corporate Centurion® Card from American Express was independently collected by Upgraded Points and not provided nor reviewed by the issuer.

For the car rental loss and damage insurance benefit of the Centurion® Card from American Express, car rental loss and damage insurance can provide coverage up to $75,000 for theft of or damage to most rental vehicles when you use your eligible card to reserve and pay for the entire eligible vehicle rental and decline the collision damage waiver or similar option offered by the commercial car rental company. This product provides secondary coverage and does not include liability coverage. Not all vehicle types or rentals are covered. geographic restrictions apply. Eligibility and benefit level varies by card. Terms, conditions and limitations apply. Please visit americanexpress.com/benefitsguide for more details. Underwritten by AMEX Assurance Company. Car Rental Loss or Damage Coverage is offered through American Express Travel Related Services Company, Inc.

For the baggage insurance plan benefit of the Centurion® Card from American Express, eligibility and benefit level varies by card. Terms, conditions and limitations apply. Please visit americanexpress.com/benefitsguide for more details. Underwritten by AMEX Assurance Company.

For the trip cancellation and interruption insurance benefit of the Centurion® Card from American Express, eligibility and benefit level varies by card. Terms, conditions and limitations apply. Please visit americanexpress.com/benefitsguide for more details. Underwritten by New Hampshire Insurance Company, an AIG Company.

For the return protection benefit of the Centurion® Card from American Express, eligibility and benefit level varies by card. Terms, conditions and limitations apply. Please visit americanexpress.com/benefitsguide for more details.

For the purchase protection benefit of the Centurion® Card from American Express, eligibility and benefit level varies by Card. Terms, conditions and limitations apply. Please visit americanexpress.com/benefitsguide for more details. Underwritten by AMEX Assurance Company.

For the extended warranty benefit of the Centurion® Card from American Express, eligibility and benefit level varies by card. Terms, conditions and limitations apply. Please visit americanexpress.com/benefitsguide for more details. Underwritten by AMEX Assurance Company.

The American Express Centurion Card, colloquially known as the Black Card, is a charge card issued by American Express. It is reserved for the company's wealthiest clients who meet certain net worth, credit quality, and spending requirements on its gateway card, the Platinum Card. The firm does not disclose the exact requirements to receive an invitation to carry the card. The Centurion Card is minted out of anodized titanium, laser-engraved, and accented with stainless steel. The card reports to credit bureaus and does not maintain a pre-set credit limit. It is considered a status symbol among the affluent.

In 1988, an article in The Wall Street Journal newspaper reported that an exclusive black American Express membership card that was never advertised had been discontinued a year earlier. The article claimed that during a trial run that lasted almost four years, the card "was held by an ultra-select group of consumers who numbered fewer than 1,000 around the world." Lee Middleton, a spokesman for American Express, confirmed the card's existence to the Journal and said that it was given to clients who had a "substantial banking relationship" with American Express Bank Ltd., the New York parent of American Express's bank subsidiaries in Switzerland. Services included "dispatching limousines or helicopters for clients, booking their vacations and finding medical care in exotic places." Middleton said American Express abandoned the black card in 1987 because the newly introduced Platinum Card offered "95% of the black card's services." In 1999, American Express introduced the Centurion Card, a black charge card aimed at the company's wealthiest cardholders. In a 2018 episode of the Netflix show Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee, Jerry Seinfeld, who appeared in American Express commercials in the 1990s, claimed to have received the first Centurion card after contacting the company's president about the rumored existence of an exclusive black card.

Doug Smith, the director of American Express in Europe, told the fact-checking website Snopes.com that there "had been rumors going around that we had this ultra-exclusive black card for elite customers. It wasn't true, but we decided to capitalize on the idea anyway. So far we've had a customer buy a Bentley and another charter a jet." The website lists unverified descriptions of cardholder requests, such as dispatching a motorcycle rider to the shores of the Dead Sea to retrieve a handful of sand and couriering it back to London for a child's school project. In 2009, Luxury Card successfully registered "Black Card" as a U.S. trademark. American Express later sued as the name was similar to its Centurion Card, which it contended was widely known as the "Black Card." The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York ruled that Black Card, LLC's trademark of the name "Black Card" should be canceled on grounds that it was merely descriptive. As of 2019, it uses the registered trademark under license.

Since its introduction, the Centurion card has only been issued to clients invited by American Express to apply for it. The selection criteria the company uses to identify potential cardholders has been subject to speculation. Select media reports speculate an annual spending requirement of $100,000 to $250,000 on the Platinum Card to be considered for eligibility. In most countries where the card is issued, it's made of anodized titanium with the information and numbers laser etched into the metal. In some locations, such as Israel, EMV "chip" plastic cards, which also include the ExpressPay contactless payment technology, are issued. The Centurion Card comes in personal and business variants.

The largest known purchase made with the Centurion card is the Nu couché painting by Amedeo Modigliani, which businessman Liu Yiqian bought for US$170,405,000 at a Christie's auction in New York in 2015.

The card, available for personal and business use, offers services such as a dedicated concierge and travel agent; complimentary companion airline tickets on international flights on selected airlines with the purchase of a full-fare ticket; personal shoppers at retailers such as Gucci, Escada, and Saks Fifth Avenue; access to airport clubs; first-class flight upgrades; membership in Sony's Cierge personal shopping program and dozens of other elite club memberships. Hotel benefits include one free night, when at least one paid night is booked during the same stay, in every Mandarin Oriental hotel worldwide once a year (except for the New York City property), and privileges at hotel chains like Ritz-Carlton, Leading Hotels of the World, and Amanresorts. The card also features complimentary enrollment in Easirent Car Hire Platinum Service and the Avis Rent a Car President's Club.

Centurion Card members, like Platinum Card members, get complimentary access to the American Express Centurion Lounges at several US airports. They also get no pre-set credit limit access to Priority Pass lounges around the world, plus additional lounge privileges based on the country their card is registered in. For example, Centurion cardholders in Canada also receive full access to Maple Leaf Lounges, a lounge network provided by Air Canada. At busy times, Centurion members have access to areas reserved for them. There are also drink options at the bar that are exclusive to Centurion members. As of 2015, they have a Champagne option of Veuve Clicquot and a single malt scotch by Balvenie. US cardholders earn 1 rewards point per dollar on all eligible purchases and 1.5 rewards points per dollar on purchases over US$5,000 (Up to 1 million additional points per calendar year).

Since the inception of the card, members have received a copy of Departures, which is also sent to all Platinum Card cardholders. In 2004, American Express Centurion members in the US began receiving an exclusive "no name" magazine, which was not available by any other means. Starting with the Spring 2007 edition, this magazine was officially titled Black Ink. The magazine is available only to individual Centurion cardholders, not to the business-edition customers. European, Asian, and Australian Centurion members receive quarterly the Centurion magazine published by Journal International GmbH (Munich, Germany). In June 2011, the Centurion magazine website was launched, offering daily updates for Centurion Card members. According to Journal International, the average age of a Centurion reader from Europe or the Middle East is 49 years. Centurion has been published since 2001 and has a circulation in Europe and the Middle East of 44,100, in Asia of 13,900, and in Australia of 6,000.

American Express does not disclose a list of Centurion cardholders but a number of celebrities have been associated with the card.

During the filming of a backstage interview at the 2007 BRIT Awards, Noel Gallagher held his Centurion card up to the camera and said "You have to earn a ridiculous amount of money per year to own one of those." In a 2009 interview with talkSPORT, Gallagher said, "I do own a black Amex card that has no pre-set credit limit credit and cannot be denied anywhere. I could walk into a showroom selling Boeing 747s and, regardless of whether I could afford it, they'd have to accept the card."

Former Top Gear presenter Jeremy Clarkson wrote in a 2004 article for The Times of London newspaper that he lied about his salary to obtain a Centurion card after reading "an interview with some chap who'd got a fist full of cards in his pocket and claimed that the more shiny examples, specifically the much-coveted black American Express, gave him certain privileges." Clarkson ultimately decided to cancel the card after being unimpressed with its benefits.

The Centurion card has become a status symbol in the music industry, especially in hip-hop culture. In 2002, Bloomberg News reported that rapper Sean "P. Diddy" Combs used the card to buy 400 cocktails at a bar in Los Angeles. In the song "Doing It Way Big" (2003), Lil' Kim sings: I smack niggas 'cross the face with a Centurion card / Who don't believe I'm (doing it way big). Lil' Kim later posed with a Centurion card attached to a diamond-studded necklace for a Nylon magazine photoshoot. In the song "Last Call" (2004), Kanye West refers to the card with the lyrics: 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". In "Welcome Back" (2004), Mase sings: Amex black card / Shopper of the year. In "Get It Poppin'" (2005), Fat Joe sings: I got that black no limit American Express card. In Einmal um die Welt (2012), German rapper Cro says his girlfriend can buy what she wants because he has "an American Express, and of course the black one." Other singers including Ariana Grande, Beyoncé, Jay-Z, Lady Gaga, Bow Wow, Nelly Furtado, Lil Wayne, Nickelback and Tyler, The Creator (Lumberjack, CALL ME IF YOU GET LOST{2021}) also mention black cards in their song lyrics but not a specific American Express product.

The Centurion card has been used as an on-screen prop.

In Quantum of Solace, James Bond hands a Centurion card to a travel agent with a private jet chartering company to pay for a flight to Bolivia. The payment is declined by MI6 as the intelligence service seeks to strip Bond of his duties and revokes his credit cards and passports. The Centurion replica used in the film was part of the Bond in Motion exhibition at the London Film Museum.

In the pilot episode of the USA Network medical comedy-drama show Royal Pains, Tucker Bryant, the young heir to a family fortune earned from inventing the blender, injures himself crashing his father’s Ferrari. He tells a doctor to "go into my wallet and get the little black card that says American Express on it" and flies by helicopter from the Hamptons to Mount Sinai Hospital in Manhattan.

In an episode of the NBC crime-drama show Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, one character is described as "by the look of his black American Express, very rich."

In two episodes of the HBO comedy-drama show Succession, Kendall and Siobhan Roy, heirs to a media fortune, use their Centurion cards at a bar and a coffee shop.

In an episode of the CBS sitcom Two and a Half Men, internet billionaire Walden Schmidt uses the card to buy groceries.

In an episode of the tvN romantic-drama show Crash Landing on You, businesswoman Yoon Se-ri uses the Centurion card to purchase clothing for Ri Jeong-hyeok.

The card is shown in episode 3 S4 of Carl Weber's tv Series The Family Business on BET when the women tells the man he needs a better wedding ring to purpose and suggest they go to Tiffany's to which he replies "I cannot afford that" to which she pulls out a Centurion card and tells him " But I CAN" .

In Lauren Weisberger's novel Everyone Worth Knowing, the protagonist Bette remarks on her coworker paying for dinner with the card: "There it was, the mythical American Express black card. Available by invitation only to those who charged a minimum of $150,000 per year."

In Robert Crais's novel The Watchman, the daughter of a wealthy businessman is described as having a Centurion card.

The main character in Cory Doctorow's book Attack Surface uses an American Express Black card several times.

The main character, Romeo Costa, in the book Dark Romeo written by Parker S. Huntington and LJ Shen uses this card in the book.

Also known as the Centurion card, the American Express "black" card is in a different league than other premium credit cards. It's so prestigious that you have to be invited to use it, and only big spenders are eligible. Various celebrities are known to carry it as well, so it's no wonder the card has become an object of fascination for those of us who haven't been tapped to apply.

You can't just apply for it and expect to get approved; you have to receive a private invitation from American Express.

While the requirements for getting an invite for the black card aren't officially published, rumor has it that you have to be a high earner who has spent and paid off between $350,000 and $500,000 across all of your American Express accounts in a calendar year.

And once you're approved for the card, there's a $10,000 initiation fee, and a $5,000 annual fee. It makes premium credit cards like the Platinum Card ($695 annual fee) and the Amex Business Platinum Card ($695) look downright affordable.

We're focused here on the rewards and perks that come with each card. These cards won't be worth it if you're paying interest or late fees. When using a credit card, it's important to pay your balance in full each month, make payments on time, and only spend what you can afford to pay.

The Amex Centurion card isn't just a status symbol; it has some great perks, including some unique benefits like complimentary Delta elite status that you won't find on other cards.

With a black card, you can lock in hotel elite status at four major hotel chains: Marriott, Hilton, Intercontinental Hotels Group, and Relais & Châteaux. Hotel elite status gets you sweet benefits like room upgrades, late checkouts, resort and spa credits, and free breakfast.

The Platinum Card and Amex Business Platinum Card offer status with Hilton and Marriott**, but not with IHG and Relais & Châteaux.

According to The Points Guy, the black card also offers cardholders Platinum Medallion elite status with Delta. You can't get this benefit with any other credit card, and it offers you perks like complimentary upgrades and bonus miles.

There's nothing better than knowing you have access to a comfortable airport lounge while you're traveling, especially if you have a long layover. The Amex black card gets you free access to more than 1,400 airport lounges around the world, including Amex Centurion Lounges, Delta Sky Clubs when you're flying Delta, and Priority Pass airport lounges**. You can sit back and relax on the comfortable chairs while indulging in some good food and drinks.

The airport lounge access you get as a Centurion cardholder is virtually identical to the lounge access you get with the Platinum Card and Amex Business Platinum Card.

The Centurion card added several new perks in late 2019, along with the announcement that Amex would be raising the annual fee. One of the most valuable new benefits is Equinox Destination Access Membership, which lets Centurion cardholders use any of the 100-plus Equinox gym locations in the US, UK, and Canada. This membership costs $300 per month plus a $500 initiation fee, so it's quite valuable if you're a fan of the high-end fitness club chain.

Unsurprisingly, there's no comparable benefit on the Platinum Card and Amex Business Platinum Card cards**.

The Platinum Card offers up to $100 in credits for Saks Fifth Avenue per year**, so it's only fitting that the Centurion card has an even better version of this perk.

Centurion cardholders also get up to $1,000 in credits for Saks purchases — divided into four credits of up to $250 per quarter of the year. To get the credit, cardholders just have to make an eligible Saks purchase with their Centurion card, and they'll be reimbursed up to the quarterly and annual limit in the form of a statement credit.

As a bonus, Saks stores will open their doors to Centurion cardholders outside of normal business hours — a pretty extravagant perk for those who want to make a power move or impress their non-Centurion-holding friends.

CLEAR® Plus is an expedited security membership (an alternative to TSA PreCheck), and you can use it at more than 30 airports and more than 20 sports and concert venues in the US.

The recently revamped American Express® Green Card offers a statement credit for up to $189 toward CLEAR® Plus membership, which costs $189. With the Amex Centurion card, you can also get a statement credit for the full cost of membership when you use your card to buy it. Plus, you can get statement credits to cover adding up to three family members.

An Amex black card gets you your own personal concierge whenever you'd like one. You can count on the round-the-clock concierge service to help you make travel plans or reservations at exclusive restaurants. This service can also get you tickets to just about any event and/or purchase gifts on your behalf.

Once again, the Platinum Card and Amex Business Platinum Card also offer concierge services. However, Centurion cardmembers are definitely the top priority for Amex concierge, and they get the best access to restaurant reservations and more.

If you travel abroad often, you'll love the black card's international arrival service. As long as you fly business or first class via American Express Travel, you'll be assigned to your own personal guide who will make the immigration and customs process a breeze. This isn't a benefit you can replicate with any other Amex card.

Another exclusive airport perk: Centurion cardholders get complimentary membership to The Private Suite at LAX, a private VIP terminal. But there's a big catch: You have to pay each time you use it — and it costs up to $3,000.

There are no preset spending limits with the Amex black card, so you can easily buy big-ticket items that you may not necessarily be able to pay for with other credit cards. Keep in mind, however, that you must pay off your balances in full every month.

Beyond offering elite status with more travel partners, international arrival service, and the top tier of Amex concierge service, the Amex black card stands out from the Amex Platinum and Business Platinum with its selection of wine-related benefits, such as consultations with a wine specialist and wine-buying offers.

Black cardholders also get several shopping perks, including special offers and VIP benefits with Net-a-Porter.

If you don't get an invite for the American Express black card, don't fret. Many of the benefits it offers are available on the Amex Platinum, which has a $695 fee. You'll get no preset spending limits, hotel elite status, complimentary access to airport lounges, and concierge services.

Keep in mind, no preset spending limit means your spending limit is flexible. Unlike a traditional card with a set limit, the amount you can spend adapts based on factors such as your purchase, payment, and credit history. Read our Amex Platinum card review for more details.

If you're a business user, the Amex Business Platinum Card is worth a look. It offers most of these benefits as well, and has a $695 annual fee. Read our Amex Business Platinum review to learn more.