Does Amex Platinum Cover CLEAR? Credit, Enrollment, Timing

Yes, the American Express Platinum Card covers CLEAR+. Charge your CLEAR+ membership to an eligible Platinum Card and Amex reimburses you with up to $209 in statement credits per calendar year, which covers the full $209 standard annual membership fee.¹ The credit reimburses whatever amount actually hits the card, so a discounted membership produces a smaller credit, not the full $209.²

How the Statement Credit Works

The credit is tied to the calendar year. It resets every January 1 and does not roll over.³ Once the CLEAR+ charge posts to your eligible card, the statement credit usually appears within a couple of days. Amex’s official window is up to six to eight weeks.¹

The $209 cap applies per card account, not per person. Charges made by additional card members count, and you can use the credit toward a CLEAR+ membership for someone else, as long as it’s paid with your eligible Amex card.¹

A few things won’t trigger the credit. Payments made through electronic wallets, third-party apps, or gift cards don’t qualify. CLEAR+ gift cards run through a third-party vendor and are excluded.³ And if the CLEAR+ fee is later refunded, Amex reverses the statement credit.¹

Enrolling So the Credit Triggers

The reimbursement is not fully automatic. You have to enroll in the benefit and pay CLEAR directly with the right card.

Log in to your American Express account, open Rewards and Benefits, select Benefits, find the CLEAR+ statement credit tile, and enroll.³
Sign up for CLEAR+ (or update your payment method if you’re already a member) and pay with your eligible Platinum Card.¹
Finish enrollment in person at an airport CLEAR+ location, bringing a government-issued photo ID for the biometric setup.⁴

CLEAR+ memberships auto-renew. If your card number changes because of a replacement, update the payment method with CLEAR so the renewal actually posts to the right card. Otherwise the annual renewal charge may go through on a different card and the credit won’t trigger.

Airline Discounts and the Credit

Several airline loyalty programs offer discounted CLEAR+ pricing. United MileagePlus members, for example, pay between $129 and $199 depending on elite tier; Premier 1K members pay $129, and Global Services members get it free.⁵ Delta SkyMiles and Alaska Airlines loyalty members also have access to discounted rates.

Amex reimburses the exact amount charged, up to $209. Pay $169 with a United Premier Silver discount and you get a $169 credit, not $209.² The unused portion of the annual cap can go toward an add-on membership for another adult on your CLEAR+ account (which costs $125), so long as that charge also lands on the same Amex card during the same calendar year. In practice, an airline discount plus the Amex credit can cover a primary membership and a family add-on for little or nothing out of pocket.

One trap worth flagging: if you have a discount through Delta or United, make sure the CLEAR+ charge still runs on your Amex Platinum, not on a co-branded airline card. The credit only triggers when an eligible American Express card is billed.³

What You Actually Get With CLEAR+

CLEAR+ speeds up one part of airport security: identity verification. Instead of waiting to show ID and a boarding pass to a TSA officer, you go to a dedicated lane, verify yourself at a CLEAR Pod using facial recognition or fingerprint scanning, and are then escorted to the front of the TSA screening line.⁶ The service is available at more than 60 airports along with various stadiums and arenas.⁷

A standard membership covers one person for $209 a year. Up to three additional adults can be added at $125 each, and children 17 and under use the CLEAR+ lane free when accompanied by a member. Military service members and government employees qualify for a $125 rate.⁷

CLEAR+ vs. TSA PreCheck and Global Entry

CLEAR+ and TSA PreCheck solve different problems and work best together. CLEAR+ handles the ID check at the front. TSA PreCheck speeds up the physical screening itself: shoes, belt, and light jacket stay on, and laptops and liquids stay in the bag.⁶

The Platinum Card covers both, through two separate benefits. The CLEAR+ credit is the $209-per-year credit described above. The Global Entry or TSA PreCheck credit is a distinct benefit worth up to $120, available once every four years per eligible card account.⁸ Global Entry costs $120 and includes TSA PreCheck; TSA PreCheck on its own costs $79.95 for five years.⁶ Because the two Amex credits are separate, a cardholder can use one to cover CLEAR+ and the other to cover Global Entry or TSA PreCheck with no out-of-pocket cost.⁹

CLEAR also sells a bundle for new members: pay for CLEAR+ and TSA PreCheck together, and CLEAR refunds the $79.95 PreCheck application fee once both enrollments are complete.¹⁰

Other Amex Cards With the Same CLEAR+ Credit

The Platinum Card isn’t the only Amex card that carries this benefit. The same $209 annual CLEAR+ statement credit is offered on the Business Platinum Card, the American Express Green Card (which has a $175 annual fee), the Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card, and the American Express Corporate Platinum Card.¹¹ The credit is per card account, so a household holding more than one eligible account could, in principle, cover more than one CLEAR+ membership.

Timing the Credit Around January 1

Because the credit resets on January 1, a cardholder who opens the account late in the year can use one credit before December 31 and another shortly afterward in January, applying the second to an add-on or a second membership.³ Most of the Platinum Card’s other statement credits also refresh on January 1, so late December is a good time to check that each one has been used before it expires.¹²

1
American Express. CLEAR+ Statement Credit Benefit
2
Forbes. Amex Platinum CLEAR
3
The Points Guy. Guide to Using the Amex Platinum CLEAR Credit
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American Express. Is CLEAR Membership Worth It
5
United Airlines. CLEAR Membership
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CLEAR. CLEAR vs TSA PreCheck
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CLEAR. CLEAR Plus
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American Express. Expedite Your Travel
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NerdWallet. TSA PreCheck vs CLEAR
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TSA PreCheck by CLEAR. TSA PreCheck by CLEAR
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American Express. CLEAR+ Statement Credit BenefitGuide to Using the Amex Platinum CLEAR Credit
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NerdWallet. Amex Platinum December