Benefit explainers
Airline Incidental Credits Explained: What Counts, What Doesn't, and Which Card Does It Better
Airline Incidental Credits Explained: What Counts, What Doesn't, and Which Card Does It Better
Two cards in our catalog pay you back for the annoying little fees airlines tack on: the Amex Platinum ($200/year) and the Bank of America Premium Rewards (up to $100/year). Same idea, very different execution. And both of them have a long list of things that don't count — which is where most people get burned.
Which cards offer airline incidental credits?
The Amex Platinum offers a $200/year airline incidental credit, and the Bank of America Premium Rewards offers up to $100/year. The Amex credit is bigger but gated — you must select one qualifying airline first — while the BofA credit is smaller but truly automatic.
| Amex Platinum | BofA Premium Rewards | |
|---|---|---|
| Amount | $200/year | Up to $100/year |
| Cycle | Calendar year | Calendar year |
| Enrollment | Yes — must select one qualifying airline first | No — automatic |
| How it posts | Statement credit after enrollment | Automatic statement credit |
The Amex credit is bigger but gated: nothing works until you pick your airline, and you can only change it once a year (usually in January). The BofA credit is smaller but truly automatic — qualifying charges just get credited.
How to use the Amex one: select your airline in January in your Amex account. Then route every bag fee and seat fee through the card. If you forget the selection step, the entire $200 sits dead all year.
How to use the BofA one: pay airline incidentals with the card. That's it. The only way to miss it is paying with a different card out of habit.
What counts as an airline incidental credit?
Checked baggage fees, seat selection and upgrade fees, in-flight food, drinks, and entertainment purchases, pet fees, airport lounge day passes, and phone reservation fees count as airline incidentals.
These are the charges that reliably trigger the credits:
- Checked and overweight baggage fees
- Seat selection and seat upgrade fees
- In-flight food and beverages
- In-flight entertainment purchases
- Pet fees
- Airport lounge day passes
- Phone reservation fees
What doesn't count toward airline incidental credits?
Plane tickets are the big exclusion — neither credit covers airfare — and neither do award-ticket taxes and fees, mileage point purchases or transfers, duty-free purchases, or airline gift cards. On Amex, anything charged before you select your airline doesn't count either.
This list is longer, and it matters more:
- Plane tickets. The big one. Neither credit covers airfare — that's the single most common misunderstanding.
- Seat upgrades that code as fare changes (on Amex, some "upgrades" are really fare differences — those don't count)
- Airline gift cards. Amex closed the gift-card workaround in early 2026 — don't go looking for tricks; they don't work anymore.
- Mileage point purchases or transfers
- Duty-free purchases
- Award ticket fees and taxes (generally)
- Anything charged before you select your airline (Amex)
- Charges on an airline you didn't select (Amex)
How much are airline incidental credits actually worth?
The Amex $200 credit covers about 3–4 checked bags a year, and the BofA $100 credit covers 1–2. If you fly twice a year and check a bag each way, both credits are fully used. If you never check bags and always fly basic economy with a backpack, both credits are worth $0 to you — put $0 in your math, not $200.
What are the biggest airline incidental credit traps?
The five biggest traps: Amex requires you to select an airline before anything counts (no selection, no credit), you can only change that airline once a year, plane tickets never count, airline gift-card workarounds are dead, and both credits reset on January 1 each year.
- Amex: no airline selected, no credit. The #1 way people miss the full $200.
- Amex: you can only change airlines once a year. Pick wrong in January and you're stuck.
- Tickets never count. If a blog tells you to buy a $200 ticket to "use" the credit, close the tab.
- Gift-card tricks are dead. Amex shut them down in early 2026. Anyone still recommending them is working off old information.
- Both credits reset on January 1 each year. A December bag fee and a January bag fee are different years.
How PerkWatch fits
Airline credits are calendar-year money with an enrollment tripwire on the Amex side. PerkWatch tracks both: the $200 with its airline-selection reminder in January, the $100 quietly counting down — emails 7 days and 1 day before year-end if either has an unused balance. Free for one card, $2.99/month or $29/year for unlimited.
Benefit details verified October 3, 2026. Airline incidental policies are set by the card issuers and can change; Amex closed gift-card workarounds in early 2026. Confirm current eligible charges with Amex or Bank of America before relying on them.
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Sources
- PerkWatch card benefits catalog (verified 2026-09-24)