[PROMOTION] 20,000 Sign Up Bonus Points with the American Express Starwood Preferred Guest Business and Regular Credit Cards

American Express is finally offering a higher sign up bonus for its two Starwood Preferred Guest credit cards. The sign up bonus went up from 10,000 to 20,000 points. The American Express website may not be fully updated yet, however the links below provide a direct link to the promotion.

The highlights of the American Express Starwood Preferred Guest Credit Card are as follows:

• $120 annual fee
• Earn 20,000 sign up bonus points after you spend $500 in the first 3 month
• Earn 1 point for every $1 spent on all purchases
• Receive a Free Weekend Night Award at hotels and resorts worldwide when you spend $40,000 a year
• Receive Starwood Gold Preferred Guest status when you spend $30,000 a year

The highlights of the American Express Starwood Preferred Guest Business Credit Card are as follows:

• $150 annual fee
• Earn 20,000 sign up bonus points after you spend $1,000 in the first 3 month
• Earn 1 point for every $1 spent on all purchases
• Receive a Free Weekend Night Award at hotels and resorts worldwide when you spend $40,000 a year
• Receive Starwood Gold Preferred Guest status when you spend $30,000 a year

It actually makes no sense to me that the annual fee is higher on the business version of the credit card, especially considering that there isn’t any real additional benefit for having the business version of the credit card. So the question is, whether the annual fee is worth it?

I value Starpoints at 2.3 cents a piece; therefore, 20,000 points is worth $460 if you can leverage the points that well. It really depends on what you redeem your points for.

That being said, what I really hoping to see was for the annual fee to be waived. If I had to trade, I would have rather kept the 10,000 sign up bonus with the first year fee waived instead. Consequently, I think I will hold off signing up for this credit card. I am still struggling with paying an annual fee just to get bonus points.

Hopefully we will see a promotion where the annual fee is waived soon.

See also:

• [ANALYSIS] Starwood Preferred Guest