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The Amex Platinum is known for its many benefits. A few of these benefits come in the form of credits that can be used on things like certain travel expenses and in this case on Saks Fifth Avenue.
These credits can be a great way to offset the high annual fee of this card but you need to know how to maximize them to get the best value, especially since there are a number of restrictions.
In this article, I will tell you everything you need to know about the Amex Platinum Saks Fifth Avenue $100 credit. I will cover how to sign up for the two $50 credits, how to maximize them, and also cover things like gift cards and Saks Off Fifth purchases. And finally, I will show you what type of products you can purchase for $50 or under.
Table of Contents
What is the Amex Platinum Saks Fifth Avenue $100 Credit?
The Amex Platinum Saks Fifth Avenue $100 credit is a special perk offered by the American Express Platinum Card. Platinum Cardmembers are given two $50 statement credits each year — one credit can be used from January through June and the other credit can be used from July through December. Keep reading below to find out more details about how this credit works.
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How to use the Amex Platinum Saks Fifth Avenue $100 Credit
Enroll
In order to use the Amex Platinum Saks Fifth Avenue $100 credit, you must first “enroll” in the benefit (this just means you need to click a button).
It only takes a couple of seconds to enroll and all you have to do is sign into your account and then head over to the benefits page for the Platinum Card. Locate the “Shop Saks with Platinum,” click “Learn More” and then follow the steps to enroll.
ShopRunner
You should also make sure to enroll with ShopRunner. This is a complimentary service that you get with many American Express cards liked the Platinum Card and it offers the following benefits from select retailers:
- Free two-day shipping
- Free return shipping
- Specials deals and discounts
Saks Fifth Avenue is one of these “select retailers,” so ShopRunner will help you to maximize the value of your credits since you won’t have to worry about shipping and might even be able to find a special deal or discount.
Amex Platinum Saks Fifth Avenue $100 Credit rules
This credit is a little bit tricky so you want to make sure that you have read through the terms and conditions before you attempt to use it.
Two $50 credits
As mentioned, the $100 credit is per calendar year but is broken up into two halves: a $50 credit usable from January through June and an additional $50 credit usable from July through December. If you do not use up the entire $50 credit in each half of the year, the credit will not roll over to the next half.
Authorized users
Authorized users will not be given their own additional Saks credit. However, they still can take advantage of the credit attached to the primary cardmember’s account. Authorized users typically cannot enroll in this benefit and will need to get the primary account holder to enroll for them.
Only eligible purchases will activate the credit
The credit is only eligible at valid at Saks Fifth Avenue online or at locations in the US and US Territories. So if you are traveling internationally don’t you try to use this credit because it likely will not work. Also, the credit is not valid for online purchases that are shipped outside of the US.
Outlets and Saks Off Fifth
The credit is not valid on purchases at outlet locations like Saks Off Fifth (in stores and online). The credit also excludes purchases at restaurants located within the store and Online Bill Pay for Saks Credit.
Gift Cards
Saks Fifth Avenue Gift Cards are excluded by the terms and conditions. Some people have had success purchasing them in store (available in $50 increments) but you never know when the gift card restriction may be enforced.
Purchasing gift cards online is a little bit more difficult because the minimum is $150 for physical gift cards and eGift cards are not processed by Saks Fifth Avenue. Worth noting: I believe Saks Fifth Avenue Gift Cards can be used at Saks Off Fifth.
If you wanted to sell your Saks gift card online at a website like Cardpool, you could net $39 from a $50 gift card.
Electronic wallets
In most cases you need to make the payment directly with the store to activate the credit. If you are processing the payment through a third party or an electronic wallet this could cause some issues and you may not be eligible for the benefit.
Good standing
In order to take advantage of this benefit your card needs to be in good standing. This means that your card cannot be canceled and you cannot have an overdue balance.
Pay Over Time
If a charge for an eligible purchase is included in a Pay Over Time feature balance on your Card Account, the statement credit associated with that charge may not be applied to that Pay Over Time feature balance. Instead, the statement credit may be applied to your Pay In Full balance.
Items to use your Amex Saks credit on
The Saks credit is good for covering many accessories, beauty products, and random purchases usually suitable for gifts (I have some specific examples below).
One tip I have is to find an item to purchase is to simply take advantage of the filter on the online store. You can easily filter down products by price and there is a specific filter for products priced at $50 so that is an easy way to see what you can get for $50.
In order to access this filter, the first thing you should do is select your department. In my case, I selected “men’s -> accessories.” Then, simply click on the filter for price and you will see the option to limit the display to products at $50 or under. You can also sort by price (lowest to highest and vice versa), so it’s not difficult to quickly scan for items you might be interested in.
The filters will show you items that are currently priced under $50, so in some cases you can find items that were originally priced much higher than $50 for a true bargain. And remember, if you have ShopRunner, you will get free two-day shipping.
When I did this search here are some of the items I found:
- National Park Journal for $41
- Polo Ralph Lauren hats for $39.50
- Many pairs of Paul Smith dress socks for $30
- Saks dress socks for $20
- Ped socks for $15
- Travel kits
- iPhone cases
- Gloves
- Shoes (heavily discounted)
Another good category to search for men is grooming. You will be able to find a lot of quality face creams, eye creams, after shaves, and other things of the sort. I personally purchased a container of Clinique men’s anti-aging lotion for around $40 and I have to say that I have been pretty pleased with the purchase.
A lot of the colognes will be more expensive than $50 dollars so you may have to come out of pocket if you want to get some of those.
If you search the luggage and travel section for products under $50 dollars as you might expect you will not find much. However, if you are in the market for a small travel kit or for luggage covers you will find some of those.
They do have some luggage tags for around $75 but I don’t like that they don’t use official airport codes for the tags. Also, if you are willing to shell out a little bit for travel kits you will find more of those in the $50-$150 range (remember you can sort from lowest to highest price).
I didn’t dive deep into the women’s section but there are over 3,000 items under $50 in the beauty department alone, so I don’t think you’d have trouble finding something. And finally, there are also a lot of items for kids that you can find under $50.
Amex Platinum Saks Fifth Avenue $100 Credit FAQ
Sign-in to your Amex account and then head over to the benefits page for the Platinum Card. Locate the “Shop Saks with Platinum,” click “Learn More” and then follow the steps to enroll.
The terms and condition state to allow 2 to 4 weeks after an eligible purchase is charged for the credit to hit your account. However, in reality a lot of times this credit may hit within 2 to 5 business days.
If your credit does not post to your account within four weeks then you should call the number on the back of your card to inquire about the credit (online purchases may take a little bit longer to process than in-store purchases).
The $100 credit is per calendar year but is broken up into two halve. You’ll receive a $50 credit usable from January through June and an additional $50 credit usable from July through December.
Authorized users will not be given their own additional Saks credit but they can use the credit attached to the primary cardmember’s account.
The credit will not work at purchases at outlet locations like Saks Off Fifth (in stores and online).
Final word
The Amex Platinum Saks Fifth Avenue $100 credit was an unexpected addition to the Platinum Card in my opinion. Personally, I have become more interested in buying quality face lotions over the past few years (thanks in large part to the nice amenity kits I’ve received flying in business class and first class). So it is pretty easy to utilize the $50 credit two times a year in my case. In other cases you might have to get a little bit more creative or simply think about buying gifts that could be suited for other people.
Daniel Gillaspia is the Founder of UponArriving.com and the credit card app, WalletFlo. He is a former attorney turned travel expert covering destinations along with TSA, airline, and hotel policies. Since 2014, his content has been featured in publications such as National Geographic, Smithsonian Magazine, and CNBC. Read my bio.