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The £300 British Airways American Express Premium Plus Card is worth it if you'll spend £15,000 a year on it and use the voucher for business class (Club World) or another premium cabin. The voucher saves one person's Avios, and business-class rewards cost far more Avios than economy, so a Club World voucher saves much more: in our hypothetical example, 170,000 Avios against 60,000 for a long-haul economy return, the best the free card's voucher can do. If you'd only ever book economy, or you won't reach £15,000, keep the free British Airways American Express Credit Card. Premium Plus's extra earn rate alone rarely covers the fee (Amex UK Premium Plus, Amex UK BA Credit Card, BA voucher terms, all checked 13 Nov 2026).
What we'd check first: your last 12 months of card spending that you could move to Amex. If it's under £15,000, neither card earns a voucher and the comparison is just 1 vs 1.25 Avios per pound. If it's over, ask yourself honestly which cabin you'd book.
The two cards side by side
| Free BA Amex Credit Card | BA Amex Premium Plus | |
|---|---|---|
| Annual fee | £0 | £300 |
| Avios per £1 on purchases | 1 | 1.25 |
| Companion Voucher spend target | £15,000 per card year | £15,000 per card year |
| Voucher cabins | Economy only: "Euro Traveller, World Traveller and economy class cabins only" | "Any cabin", plus "enhanced access to Reward Flight seats within British Airways Club World" |
| Voucher validity | 12 months | 24 months |
| BA tier points | none | From 1 April 2027: "1 British Airways tier point for every £10 of eligible spend, up to 3,000 tier points each British Airways Club collection year" (1 April – 31 March) |
| Minimum income on application page | £15,000 | £35,000 |
| Representative APR (Amex's example) | 29.1% APR variable | 135.7% APR variable (includes the £300 fee) |
You can't hold both: each application page asks you to confirm you don't already have the other card. Both vouchers can be used on British Airways (including CityFlyer), Iberia (including Iberia Express and Air Nostrum) and Aer Lingus (including Aer Lingus UK and Emerald Airlines) Reward Flights, booked through BA.
What the voucher is worth
With a voucher, you pay the Avios for one person and the taxes, fees and charges for both. In BA's words, the member pays "the Avios for one person and the taxes, fees and charges for both". The voucher therefore saves one person's Avios. For scale, BA publishes these "from" examples, dated "correct as of May 2026" (BA Reward Flights):
- Europe, the UK and Ireland: from 10,000 Avios + £2.50 each way (20,000 Avios + £5 return).
- Further afield: from 55,000 Avios + £150 return. BA doesn't name the cabin for this example.
- Business (Club World): from 154,000 Avios + £350 return.
Those are dated examples and may have changed, so we don't use them as current prices. For the maths below we use hypothetical return prices per person: 24,000 Avios + £20 in Europe, 60,000 Avios + £200 long-haul economy and 170,000 Avios + £500 in Club World. On those figures the free card's economy voucher saves up to 60,000 Avios, and Premium Plus's saves up to 170,000 in Club World. Peak dates, longer routes and partner airlines' variable charges change the numbers. Our guide to Avios pricing covers how BA prices reward seats.
Worked examples
All hypothetical. They use the hypothetical reward prices above (not BA prices) and value Avios at an assumed 1p each, which is a working assumption, not a price. They also assume you find two reward seats on the same flight, which is never guaranteed.
Example A: a couple who want Club World. £15,000 a year on the card earns the voucher on either card.
- Premium Plus: 18,750 Avios earned, and the voucher saves 170,000 Avios on a hypothetical Club World return. Two seats cost 170,000 Avios + £1,000 (2 × £500) instead of 340,000 Avios + £1,000.
- Free card: 15,000 Avios earned. The voucher can't be used in Club World, so the best comparable use is a long-haul economy return, saving 60,000 Avios (hypothetical).
- Difference: (170,000 − 60,000) + (18,750 − 15,000) = 113,750 Avios. At 1p that's £1,137.50, against the £300 fee: about £838 ahead on Premium Plus. The fee breaks even if you value Avios at about 0.26p.
Example B: a couple who only ever fly economy. The same £15,000 a year, and both vouchers used on the same economy trip. The only difference is 3,750 extra Avios, about £37.50 at 1p, against £300. Premium Plus is about £263 behind. The 24-month validity and the option to upgrade your plans are worth something, but probably not £263 a year.
Example C: you spend £8,000 a year. Neither card earns a voucher. Premium Plus earns 2,000 extra Avios (about £20 at 1p) for £300. Keep the free card. On earn rate alone, you'd need to spend about £120,000 a year for 0.25 Avios per £1 to cover £300 at 1p.
Tier points from April 2027
From 1 April 2027, Premium Plus earns 1 BA tier point per £10 of eligible spend, up to 3,000 per British Airways Club collection year (1 April – 31 March), per Amex's terms. That cap is reached at £30,000 of spend. Tier points count towards BA Club status, which brings benefits such as lounge access. Amex's terms say the points move to your BA account each month, but "may take up to 12 weeks" in some cases. We haven't put a value on tier points in the examples, because what they're worth depends on how close you are to a status threshold. See every way into a Heathrow lounge without a business class ticket for what status gets you at Heathrow.
Rules that decide whether you can use the voucher
- The main cardholder only. "Holders of Supplementary (additional) Cards… are not eligible to receive a Companion Voucher", but their spending counts towards the main cardholder's £15,000.
- One voucher per card year. Spending more than £15,000 doesn't earn a second.
- The cardholder must travel, on the same flight and in the same cabin as the companion, and both must be booked at the same time.
- Outbound before expiry. The return can be after expiry if it's booked in the same booking.
- Cancel more than 24 hours before departure and the voucher is reissued for the rest of its validity. Cancel inside 24 hours and it's lost.
Our guide to how the BA Companion Voucher really works covers booking step by step, the charges and what to do when seats won't show.
Welcome offers and the 24-month rule
We couldn't confirm either card's live welcome offer on Amex's UK pages when we checked on 13 November 2026, so the comparison above leaves them out: the voucher, the earn rate and the fee decide it on their own. Check the current offer on Amex's application page, and read its terms, before you apply. A welcome bonus shifts the first-year maths towards whichever card carries it, but it doesn't change which voucher suits the way you fly.
Eligibility wording differs between the two cards. On Premium Plus: no new Cardmember offer if you "currently hold, or have held, any personal British Airways American Express® Cards in the last 24 months". On the free card: "any personal American Express® Cards in the last 24 months", which is any Amex, not just BA cards. Approval and offers are never guaranteed.
Our verdict, and what to do if it doesn't work out
- Get Premium Plus if you'll put £15,000 a year on it and you want Club World (or premium economy or First) for two. The voucher is the reason to pay the fee.
- Get the free card if you'll reach £15,000 but would only book economy, or if you're not sure you'll reach £15,000 at all.
- Neither, for now, if you can't put £15,000 a year on Amex. A Membership Rewards card may suit you better, because its points can go to BA and other airlines: see moving Amex points to Avios and other UK transfer partners.
If you choose Premium Plus and can't find Club World seats: search off-peak dates and other routes, and check Iberia and Aer Lingus through BA. If you're running out of time, you can use the voucher in a lower cabin; the Premium Plus voucher works in any cabin. Our guide to finding BA reward seats covers search tools and alerts.
Premium Plus vs free BA Amex FAQs
Does my partner's spending count towards the £15,000?
Yes, if they hold a Supplementary card on your account. BA's terms say Supplementary spend "will count towards the main Account holder's spend target", but only the main cardholder receives the voucher and must travel on it.
Can I earn two vouchers in a year by spending £30,000?
No. "Only one Companion Voucher can be earned in any 12-month period." With Premium Plus's 24-month validity, though, you could be holding two at once if you earn one each year. Two vouchers of the same type can go on one booking, for up to four passengers.
When does the voucher arrive?
BA says it "will normally reach your account within 10-15 working days" after Amex tells BA you've hit the target. If you're planning around a particular trip, allow for that gap.
Can I use the voucher on Iberia or Aer Lingus?
Yes, on Reward Flights booked through BA's own channels, including their subsidiaries. Their taxes and charges are variable rather than fixed, so check the total.
When do Premium Plus tier points start?
From 1 April 2027. Amex's terms say they normally move to your BA account each month, but "it may take up to 12 weeks" in some cases.