Robinhood launched the robinhood platinum card at its "Take Flight" event on Wednesday, pricing the new premium card at $695 annually, $200 less than American Express Platinum's $895 fee.
The card advertises 10% back on hotels and rental cars, 5% on flights and dining, and 1% on other spending, while Amex Platinum offers 5x points on flights and prepaid hotels and 1x on other purchases.
Robinhood's top rates apply only when customers book through its Banking app, dropping to 1% for direct airline or hotel bookings, and American Express still lets cardholders earn 5x when booking directly with airlines, with transfer partners like Delta and Marriott extending point value.
Perks Limits And Ecosystem Trade Offs
Robinhood bundles a $300 flexible travel credit and a $500 hotel credit, totaling $800 in potential annual savings, but the hotel credit is split into two $250 installments and requires two-night minimum stays booked through the app.
American Express counters with a $200 airline fee credit and a $200 hotel statement credit, plus about $400 in estimated on-property perks such as free breakfast and late checkout, and it also includes Centurion Lounges in addition to Priority Pass access.
Both cards include Priority Pass lounge access, Global Entry or TSA PreCheck reimbursement, and no foreign transaction fees, yet Robinhood's lounge network and Amex's less crowded Centurion Lounges differ in user experience.
Robinhood claims more than $3,000 in annual benefits, but some items target niche users, including a $250 autonomous rides credit valid in only a few US cities, $250 in DoorDash credits, Oura and Function Health memberships, and $200 toward wearables.
Redemption paths also diverge, with Robinhood requiring a brokerage account to receive cash back funneled into its investment platform, while Amex points transfer freely or convert to statement credits and the Robinhood card is launching invite-only with a waitlist.
