I wrote about the launch of the new American Express Explorer credit card just over a week ago, and interest in the new card is definitely growing.
However, cue drum-roll… we’ve now confirmed that the Explorer earns Starwood Preferred Guest points, and not only that, as the transfer rate to Starwood Preferred Guest from the Membership Rewards Gateway is the same as Membership Rewards Ascent, the effective Starpoint earn rate on this card is an excellent 1 point per $.
If you like getting into the nooks and crannies of the best points redemptions out there, this is a pretty big deal! Starwood Preferred Guest not only have a wide range of good value hotel redemptions, they also partner with most major frequent flyer programs globally, so the Explorer card opens up many, many more points redemption opportunities at a respectable Starpoint effective earn rate.
This also means the 100,000 Membership Rewards points Explorer sign up bonus is worth a very respectable 50,000 Starpoints.
Here’s a screenshot of an Explorer cardholder logged into their Amex online account, with the Starwood and Hilton transfer options showing:
Starwood Preferred Guest transfer rates across the key Amex-issued Membership cards
There’s no doubt that, if you’re across the value of Starpoints and they are a part of your points redemption options, then this is getting more and more complex to compare the points-earning options on offer from Amex.
Let’s bring in a table to help with an overview of the effective Starpoint earn rates* of the key Membership Rewards cards here in Australia. Tip: sort this table by the spend categories important to you to get a feel of the highest earning Starpoint cards.
SPG Effective Earn Rates – Starpoints earned per $ spent
| Membership Rewards Card | General Spend | Dining | Travel | Supermarkets | Fuel | Utilities | Points Cap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| American Express Explorer | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | None |
| American Express Platinum Edge | 0.5 | 0.5 | 0.5 | 1.5 | 1 | 0.25 | None |
| American Express Platinum Charge | 0.5 | 1.5 | 1 | 0.5 | 0.5 | 0.25 | $300000 per year, 0.25 SPG/$ after |
| American Express Business Accelerator | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0.25 | $50000 per year, 0.25 SPG/$ after |
| American Express David Jones Platinum | 0.5 | 0.5 | 0.5 | 1.5 | 1.5 | 0.25 | None |
| American Express David Jones | 0.5 | 0.5 | 0.5 | 1.5 | 1.5 | 0.5 | None |
*The effective earn rate is the calculated point per $ earn rate of a particular loyalty program of flexible program points (like Membership Rewards points) once transferred.
Membership Rewards & Starwood Preferred Guest
Amex Membership Rewards have a few different flavours – the Platinum Edge and Charge cards which many points-collectors will know well are linked to Membership Rewards Ascent, while the Explorer is linked to Membership Rewards Gateway.
I just updated the guide to Membership Rewards today to explain the differences in both programs in detail, but in short, Membership Rewards Gateway provides the means for American Express to increase the headline earn rates on their Gateway-linked credit cards while reducing the transfer rates to partner points programs.
I’m not going to get deeply into the merit of that strategy here – in short, I don’t particularly like it as it is confusing, but it’s not too detrimental to the Membership Rewards offering as a whole – yet.
The general outcome is that with Gateway-linked cards, 1 Membership Rewards point does not generally = 1 frequent flyer point like Membership Rewards Ascent.
However, this is not the case with Starwood Preferred Guest. The transfer rate from Membership Rewards Gateway to SPG for Gateway is the same as Ascent, at 1 Membership Rewards point = 0.5 Starpoints.
The same logic also applies for Hilton HHonors points, but we’re not as excited about those as the transfer rate to Hilton, and per point value proposition is not as high.
Why is this a good thing?
Taking a step back for a second, you might wonder why you should care about this.
Let’s be clear – this concept is really for those who are deep into wringing all the value they can out of their hard-earned points by mixing and matching the right loyalty program for the goal redemption they have in mind.
There are, of course, many opportunities to redeem Starpoints for Starwood’s vast number of hotels globally.
But where this gets really interesting – Starwood partner with many, many global frequent flyer programs, all with their own different quirks, benefits (and weaknesses). The Starwood transfer opportunity allows you to really move points around and find the right program for the job.
Not only that, but Starwood provide a 5,000 Starpoint bonus for each transfer of 20,000 Starpoints to their partners, increasing the value of your points even further (by another 25%, to be precise).
A good place to explore the vast range of Starwood-linked redemption opportunities is right here in our range of SPG redemption guides.
How this works in practice
To get you started, here are a couple of examples of how the Explorer card, with a 1 Starpoint per $ earn rate, could help maximise the value of your points.
| Route / Airline | Starwood Partner | Price in Starpoints | Qantas Point Comparison Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sydney / Melbourne / Brisbane one way Qantas Business Class | British Airways Executive Club (Avios) | 9000 | 16000 |
| Australia to Asia Zone 2 (e.g. Singapore, Hong Kong) one way with Qantas, Cathay or British Airways | American Airlines AAdvantage | 40,000 + low taxes | 60,000 + high taxes |
| Australia to Asia Zone 1 (Japan, Korea) one way with BA / Cathay / Japan Airlines First Class | American Airlines AAdvantage | 50,000 + low taxes | 112,000 or more + high taxes |
These are just a few examples that come to mind immediately – we’ll do a full round up of Starwood-linked opportunities in coming weeks. And those figures above aren’t considering the 5,000 Starpoint transfer bonus either.
And then there are the hotel redemption opportunities out there – I’ve loved using Starpoints for stays in Whistler, Fiji and many other places.
Enjoying some snow at the Westin Whistler
Here’s the full list of Starwood airline transfer partners:
| Frequent Flyer Programs | Exchange Ratio - Starpoints:Airline Miles |
|---|---|
| Aegean Airlines | 1:1 |
| Aeromexico Club Premier | 1:1 |
| Aeroplan/Air Canada | 1:1 |
| Air China Companion | 1:1 |
| Air New Zealand Airpoints | 65:1 |
| Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan | 1:1 |
| Alitalia MileMiglia | 1:1 |
| All Nippon Airways (ANA) Mileage Club | 1:1 |
| American Airlines AAdvantage | 1:1 |
| Cathay Pacific Asia Miles | 1:1 |
| Asiana Airlines | 1:1 |
| British Airways Executive Club | 1:1 |
| China Eastern Airlines | 1:1 |
| Delta Air Lines SkyMiles | 1:1 |
| Emirates Skywards | 1:1 |
| Etihad Airways | 1:1 |
| Flying Blue | 1:1 |
| Gol Smiles | 2:1 |
| Hainan Airlines | 1:1 |
| Japan Airlines (JAL) Mileage Bank | 1:1 |
| Jet Airways | 1:1 |
| Korean Air | 1:1 |
| LATAM Airlines LATAM Pass | 1:1:5 |
| Lufthansa Miles and More | 1:1 |
| Qatar Airways | 1:1 |
| Saudi Arabian Airlines | 1:1 |
| Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer | 1:1 |
| Thai Airways International Royal Orchid Plus | 1:1 |
| topbonus loyalty | 1:1 |
| United Mileage Plus | 2:1 |
| Virgin Atlantic Flying Club | 1:1 |
| Virgin Australia | 1:1 |
Words of caution and (hopefully) wisdom
This info should be considered with some caution – there’s always a catch.
First, there’s always the risk that Amex could change the transfer rate to Starwood Preferred Guest from Membership Rewards Gateway. However, the same transfer rate from Membership Rewards to Starwood has existed with the David Jones cards for several years without issue until now.
We’ve covered the different terms and conditions for bank rewards programs here – and in theory if Amex did decide to change this, they could do so with no notice. But I would be really surprised if this both happened, and happened with no notice too.
Secondly, there’s the impending Starwood and Marriott merger, which could see the SPG program be merged into Marriott rewards by late 2017 at the earliest. So definitely don’t rely solely on Starwood Preferred Guest’s ongoing existence as a sole justification for getting into the Explorer card.
Finally, we also need to remember that the transfer rates to the more common programs we know and love are still better by going direct – KrisFlyer, Asia Miles, Velocity, Etihad Guest and Skywards all should be excluded as options via Starwood, of course. And given that, the comparison with other Amex-issued Membership Rewards cards becomes more complex.
You’ll earn 1.5 points per $ in each of these programs ‘natively’ with Membership Rewards Gateway with the Explorer, compared to a range of different point earn rates for different spend categories based on each card. I’ll do another comparison on this down the track.
Summing up
The American Express Explorer is new on the market, and it’s interesting to see the new points-earning avenues it might be opening up.
Starpoints are a valuable currency, and we’ll try and highlight some of the best transfer partners and redemption opportunities in some upcoming guides, as well as uses of Starpoints for aspirational hotel stays.
Alongside the Starpoint earn, there are a handful of other small differences to some of the other Amex-issued cards which we’ll get into in coming weeks.
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Keith, what impact does the new SPG-Marriott merger conditions that take effect in Aug 2018 mean for Amex Explorer in terms of the conversion rate of Membership Rewards to SPG points. Currently it’s 1000 MR to 500 SPG. Do we know if this will change to 1000 MR to 500 Marriott or adjusted to account for the SPG devaluation, i.e. 1000 MR to 1500 Marriott?
Hi Gloria, we mention in our guide to the SPG-Marriott merger:
Hey guys,
I signed up to the American Express Explorer this month and have already spent the required $3000 to get the 100,000 point bonus. From your experience how long does it take for the points bonus to show up in my account?
Also, how do I then convert the points to SPG?
Thanks
The offer states that:
but I found that they posted within a couple of days when I reached the amount. You may want to phone Amex to confirm you definitely have met the minimum spend (remember, annual fees don’t count).
You can then convert your Amex points to SPG here.
Hi Keith – I’ve been looking closely into SPG points, as I’m considering getting this card, but my reservation is that although the points look valuable, I’m concerned about the transfer times to airline partners, especially as I usually try to book a few award seats at a time for family. I note that in some instances, it can take up to 2 weeks for points to transfer, and I note that only some airlines (eg, AA) allow for awards seat to be held, but my understanding is that even then, it wouldn’t be held for 2 weeks. I assume there is no easy answer to this question unfortunately!
Your site is great – very valuable insights.
You’ve hit the nail on the head! Starpoints are really valuable but can take a few days (and in some cases 1-2 weeks) to transfer, so that’s the risk involved.
Hi Keith, I hold an US Amex card (last one opened within 18 months). Will that preclude me from availing the 100k sign up bonus with the Australian Amex Explorer card? The terms and conditions specify that it’s ‘American Express Australia Ltd’…
Gloria – you should be eligible, the requirement is specific to Australian cardholders.
Hi Keith
Re: the ‘SPG Effective Earn Rates – Starpoints earned per $ spent’ table. I’m pretty sure the utilities column for both David Jones should read 0.5 per $1.
Thanks
Thanks for this, corrected!
I am a bit late to this party 🙂
if I am reading this correctly:
Explorer Card points to SPG is 1:1
SPG to Asia Miles is 1:1
Explorer Card points to Asia Mile is 4:3
so if I transfer my Explorer card points via SPG to Asia Miles, effectively I will gain an extra 25% in points?
Not quite.
Explorer earns 2 Membership Rewards Gateway (MRG) / $.
MRG to SPG is 2:1, making Explorer earn rate 1 SPG per $.
MRG to Asia Miles is 4:3, making Explorer earn rate 1.5 Asia Miles per $.
You can pick up 25% extra points when transferring 20k SPG to Asia Miles, so max earn rate could be considered as 1.25 Asia Miles per $ via SPG.
Hi Keith, and others.
Novice here, excuse my possible naivety.
I bank with the NAB, who provided me with a Velocity-linked Platinum Amex card..will I be exempt from the bonus, even though the card is through the NAB?
Thanks,
You would still be eligible for the bonus, as your current Amex isn’t Amex-issued. <a href=”https://www.pointhacks.com.au/bank-issued-vs-amex-issued-american-express/>More about this here.
Sorry for the delayed reply!
Hi Keith,
Do you know if this card has foreign transaction fees for use abroad? Thanks!
It does – 3%.
Thanks! One more question. How does the $400 travel credit work? What transactions count? Also is it once per calendar year like the USA cards or once per annual fee?
It works differently to US cards – you need to book through Amex Travel, so it’s more like a $400 credit with their specific travel agent. You can check rates out through Amex Travel online. And it’s cardholder year, rather than annually.
Hi Keith,
If a cardholder have both Membership Rewards Gateway and Membership Rewards Ascent cards. How will it work in Amex System?
As now I have several Amex cards some with Membership Rewards Ascent, some with Membership Rewards Ascent Premium . Amex automatically add all the point to Membership Rewards Ascent Premium.
Generally, unless you get lucky and Amex intervene, you maintain seperate MR accounts for each card account. This is usually the case with Edge and Charge cardholders – if you have them combined currently into Ascent Premium this is great, but not too common.
Before Centurion, I have my Edge, Reserve cards points all go to Platinum Charge account. Now all go to the Centurion account.
Don’t know what will happened if I get one Membership Rewards Gateway card.
Have you tried?
Hi Keith,
The SPG Effective Earn Rates – Starpoints earned per $ spent for American Express Platinum Charge seems wrong. Travel should be $1=2 Amex=1 SPG
Thanks, fixed 🙂
Is the ability to transfer to SPG only available if you hold another AMEX card with the ability to transfer to SPG?
SPG is not listed as a transfer partner for this card on the Amex website?
The cardholder I checked is not an existing primary cardholder of any other American Express card. SPG is listed as a partner in the Membership Rewards Gateway terms but there was no transfer rate listed, so I was interested to see what it ended up being once I finally got access to check it out.
Keith – thoughts on including Diners Club in the effective points earn table? That card (and to a lesser extent it’s baby brother MC) has been my go to SPG earner for some time.
Sure, will add it in. Nice to ‘meet’ a Diners cardholder! What’s your take on the card – how is acceptance, and how was the application process?
It has it’s quirks for sure. I have to call and chase up missing points at least once a year. I use the card for all supermarket and fuel spend. And of course I use the MC for all ATO bills. Acceptance is patchy outside of the big retailers. It’s not even funny anymore the number of restaurants that don’t accept it. But an effective rate of 1.875 AA miles per $ on the Diners card and 0.78 on the MC is not to be sniffed at (those earn rates are obviously when washed via SPG).
Application was pretty straightforward, although they insisted on calling my accountant.
Appreciate you sharing. Sounds like the MC with ATO is a no-brainer, if you can get the card in the first place.
Hi Keith
Ive signed up! via your link 😉
Already with AMEX so didn’t get the bonus but very worthwhile card to have. Esp as no cap on points earnt.
Very interesting about SPG points to AA and the significantly less points/taxes. Just wondering how does AA compare with CX/Asia Miles for points required for those comparisons you have to Asia Zone 1 and 2.
ie worthwhile going via SPG to AA, or similar/easier just to go direct to CX? obviously not Qantas !
Hi Keith, KB
Another great discovery here. As you recommended, i also signed up with this card using your link with intention of redeeming the points with Asiamiles for Business class travel between Hongkong and Melbourne. I would personally prefer to transfer the points to SPG and then AlaskaMiles.
Pros: with AMEX Explorer 100k bonus point, technically i could gain up to 62500 points with Alaskamiles which will cover a return trip between MEL and HKG (60k miles needed) + reasonable tax charges. With transferring directly to Cathay (asiamiles) i would only get 75000 points which is still 5000 miles short of a return trip
Cons: Asiamiles generally has a better access to the Cathaypacific award seats than rest of the Oneworld partners + alaska.
Great points. We will definitely get stuck into some points-redemption comparisons with Explorer and SPG in the next week or so.