This article is a review of the Mastercard Black Card. No, not that Black Card. You may be thinking of the American Express Centurion card. This invitation-only card is for American Express’ top spenders.
The Mastercard Black Card, which this review is about, is offered by Luxury Card. It is one of three products offered by Luxury Card, the others being Mastercard Gold Card and Mastercard Titanium Card.
Eagle-eyed card seekers will notice this card has a $495 annual fee and $195 for each authorized user. But they will spot what is missing quickly: a distinct lack of a sign-up bonus. The lack of a sign-up bonus is a clear disadvantage compared to other premium cards like the Chase Sapphire Reserve and American Express Platinum. Yet the Black Card may have a spot in your travel credit card lineup.
The Mastercard Black Card Earning Rate
The Black Card earns one point for every one dollar spent. No bonus categories are available.
You can redeem accumulated points for airfare or cash back. Airfare redemptions are 2 cents each, and the cashback rate is 1.5%. Though these categories make the Black Card a competitive option, the card lacks in one critical area: a point transfer program. Amex, Chase, and Citi all have airline and hotel partners – no travel portal is needed.
Protections
The Black Card comes with all the travel and purchase protections you expect from a premium product. If you are looking for a travel credit card you’ll receive protections including:
• No foreign transaction fees.
• Travel Accident Insurance up to $250,000 for a covered trip.
• Auto Rental Collision Waiver. The card comes with secondary coverage for covered damages for a rental car when you pay for it using the card and decline the coverage offered by the rental agency.
• Onefinestay: get access to luxury homes and rentals from around the world.
• Travel assistance, medical assistance, and legal referral service.
• Trip cancellation and interruption insurance up to $5,000 for non-refundable round-trip expenses.
• Access to Mastercard® Priceless® for invitation-only travel experiences.
• Baggage delay insurance
Mastercard Black Card Perks
The Mastercard Black Card also comes with the following perks:
• Cellphone damage or theft coverage
• $5 Lyft credit each month after taking three eligible rides
• 5% cash rewards for future purchases on eligible Boxed orders when you make orders with the Black • Card
• Free two-day shipping and free return shipping when you sign up for ShopRunner membership with the Black Card
• Earn double the points for the tickets you buy via Fandango with the card, 250 points per ticket. Rack up 500 points and earn a $5 VIP + reward.
• Enroll and use your Luxury Card to purchase the HelloFresh meal kit delivery plan that works for you. You will receive 5% back that can go toward your next eligible HelloFresh delivery until September 30, 2022.
The insurances and protections are typical for premium cards. But the perks are unique. The Black Card is one of the few cards – if not the only – to have Boxed, Shoprunner, and Fandango as either perks or bonus spending categories. If you use one of these services, the Mastercard Black Card may serve as a way to get additional discounts or services.
Mastercard Black Card Concierge Service
However, according to its ads, the Black Card stands out in its Luxury Card Concierge service.
Luxury Card describes the service as:
“Unforgettable moments don’t just happen. You need personal assistance that inspires you to discover something new and the tools to make it come to life. We’ll ensure your experience is exceptional, safe, and stress-free.
Call, request, receive. It’s really that easy and that fast. At no extra costs, our Concierge service connects you with specialists 24/7, anywhere, by phone, email, text, or the Luxury Card App. Your time is valuable—let our professionals assist you with everything from everyday tasks to unique experiences and anything in between.”
A busy high-income professional may find this service very useful. We suspect, however, that the card’s other less competitive features may serve as the gravity bringing this piece of metal back to Earth.
What is the competition?
Chase Sapphire Reserve
The Chase Sapphire Reserve offers something the Mastercard Black card does not: a sign-up bonus and a 60,000-point bonus. In addition, the card has access to Chase’s Ultimate Rewards program. This versatile program allows cardholders to transfer points to airline and hotel partners. The annual fee is $550. The Chase Sapphire Reserve offers many of the same protections as the Black Card. Earnings rates for specific categories may be more appealing. The Chase Sapphire Reserve confers the following earnings rate structure:
• Ten points per dollar on hotels and car rentals purchased through Chase Travel.
• Ten points per dollar on dining purchases through Chase Ultimate Rewards.
• Five points per dollar on flights purchased through Chase Travel.
• Three points per dollar on all other travel and dining purchases worldwide.
• One point per dollar on everything else.
At face value, the Reserve offers potentially more benefits. But there is something to be said for The Black Card’s simple reward rate earning structure. The Black Card’s design may be vital if you do not want to use this card for multiple spending categories or have other cards that meet your needs in different categories.
The Platinum Card from American Express
The Platinum Card from American Express has a similar advantage. Amex offers the Membership Rewards program that is transferrable to airline and hotel programs like Ultimate Rewards. Right now, Amex offers 100,000 Membership Rewards points after you spend $6,000 on purchases in the first six months when you get approved for the card. Yes, the annual fee is a bit higher at $695.
The slight irony for Amex in comparison to the Black Card is Amex’s Centurion card is known as the “black card,” not MasterCard’s BlackCard.
The Platinum card offers concierge services like the Black Card. The Black card appears more renowned for its concierge service. But it is not clear which is better. Maybe both are not that great? Who is to say?
If concierge is very important to you and you don’t mind the lack of transferrable points, sign-up bonus, or benefits the Chase Sapphire Reserve or Platinum card offer, the Black Card may be worth a look.
We can hardly see that being the case, given the tremendous value attainable from both cards – particularly the sign-up bonus.
Lastly, the Platinum Card’s earning rate structure, like the Reserve’s, is competitive:
• Earn 10x points on eligible purchases on the card at restaurants worldwide during your first six months of Card Membership.
• Earn 5x Membership Rewards® Points for flights booked directly with airlines or with the American • Express travel portal for up to $500,000 on these purchase types per calendar year.
• Earn 5x Membership Rewards® points on prepaid hotels booked with American Express Travel.
Conclusion
The Black Card presents an intriguing proposition—premium benefits for a competitive annual fee. In addition, the card features a unique concierge service. If having someone at your beck and call is important to you, then the Black Card is worth a look. However, be mindful of the drawbacks of this card relative to its competitors – no points transfer to travel partners, relatively high annual fee, and no sign-up bonus.
