Which Amex card should I get for airport lounge access?

Which Amex cards actually include lounge access

Only the premium tier does. The Platinum Card and Business Platinum carry the full Global Lounge Collection, and the Delta Reserve cards carry Delta Sky Club access. The Amex Gold, Green, and the cheaper Delta Gold and Delta Platinum cards include no lounge membership at all, which surprises many applicants because the card names sound premium.

What counts as an eligible visit

Lounge entry always requires a same day boarding pass, and several networks add conditions. Delta Sky Club entry requires you to be flying Delta that day, and each entry draws down your annual visit allowance: 10 visits a year on the Platinum Card, 15 per Medallion year on the Delta Reserve. Both cards unlock unlimited Sky Club visits after you spend 75,000 dollars on the card in a calendar year.

Centurion Lounge access on the Delta Reserve is narrower than people expect: you must be flying Delta that day on a ticket purchased with the Reserve card. The Platinum Card's Centurion access has no airline restriction.

Priority Pass through Amex requires one time enrollment, and the Amex version of Priority Pass does not include the airport restaurant credits some other cards' Priority Pass memberships offer.

Guest rules are where the value quietly changes

Amex ended free Centurion guests for most cardholders. Bringing family into a Centurion Lounge on a Platinum Card costs 50 dollars per adult and 30 dollars per child aged 2 to 17, up to two guests, unless you spent 75,000 dollars on the card in the prior calendar year, which restores complimentary guests.

Delta Sky Club guest visits also run 50 dollars per person. If you mostly travel with a partner or kids, multiply every planned lounge visit by your party size before deciding any of these fees are worth it.

Amex also tightened Centurion Lounge guest rules as of July 8, 2026: guests must now be booked on the same flight as the cardholder to be admitted, so a companion flying separately later that day no longer qualifies. Layover access was capped too, cardholders can now enter up to 5 hours before a connecting departure instead of any time during a long layover.

How to choose based on your flying

• check_circleFly many airlines, mostly alone: Amex Platinum, since Centurion plus Priority Pass covers most large airports.
• check_circleFly Delta heavily: Delta Reserve, because 15 Sky Club visits beats the Platinum's 10 and the card adds Delta perks like a companion certificate.
• check_circleFly Delta heavily and want Centurion access on non Delta days too: the Platinum, or both cards if the math genuinely works.
• check_circleFly a few times a year: skip lounge cards and buy day passes or use a card with occasional passes instead.
• check_circleTravel as a family: price guest fees first; often a cheaper card plus paid lounge visits wins.

Do not buy lounge access you will not use

Lounge access only converts to real value when your home airport has lounges you can enter and your layover pattern gives you time to use them. Before paying 650 to 895 dollars, list your five most common airports and check which eligible lounges exist there. If the answer is one Priority Pass lounge in a far terminal, the honest value of the benefit is close to zero.

Common questions

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