American Express offers three main Membership Rewards business cards in Japan:
- American Express Business Green Card
- American Express Business Gold Card
- American Express Business Platinum Card
All three let business owners consolidate company expenses, issue employee cards, and earn Membership Rewards (MR) points. However, they target very different types of businesses.
Business Green is the lower-cost option for managing everyday business expenses. Business Gold adds free hotel nights, dining benefits, and stronger business perks. Business Platinum is designed for businesses that can take advantage of multiple employee cards, premium hotels, airport lounges, and frequent business travel.
American Express Business Cards in Japan: Full Comparison
| Benefit | Business Green | Business Gold | Business Platinum |
|---|---|---|---|
| Annual Fee | ¥13,200 | ¥39,600 | ¥165,000 |
| Additional Cards with Benefits | ¥6,600 each | ¥13,200 each | First 4 free; ¥13,200 from the 5th |
| Additional Cards without Benefits | Free* | Free* | Free |
| Maximum Additional Cards | 99 | 99 | 99 |
| Base MR Earning | ¥100 = 1 MR | ¥100 = 1 MR | ¥100 = 1 MR |
| Membership Rewards Plus | ¥3,300/year | ¥3,300/year | Complimentary, enrollment required |
| ANA Course | ¥5,500/year | ¥5,500/year | Complimentary, enrollment required |
| Annual Cost for 1:1 ANA Transfers | ¥8,800 | ¥8,800 | ¥0 |
| Business Free Stay Gift | — | ¥3M spend: 1 night; ¥5M: 2 nights | 1 night upon renewal |
| Travel Credit | — | — | ¥20,000 |
| Hotel Elite Status | — | — | Multiple hotel statuses |
| Fine Hotels + Resorts | — | — | Yes |
| The Hotel Collection | — | Yes | Yes |
| Priority Pass | — | — | Cardmember + 1 guest complimentary |
| Centurion Lounge | — | — | Cardmember + 1 guest complimentary |
| Participating Japan Airport Lounges | Cardmember + 1 guest complimentary | Cardmember + 1 guest complimentary | Cardmember + 1 guest complimentary |
| Business Dining | — | 2+ diners: one eligible course complimentary | Premium dining benefits |
| Pocket Concierge | — | 10% cashback, up to ¥10,000/year | 10% cashback, up to ¥20,000/year |
| Business Backing Program | — | — | Up to ¥30,000/year |
| Platinum Secretary Service | — | — | 24/7/365 |
| Dell Benefit | — | Up to ¥14,000 cashback/year | Yes |
| Expense & Accounting Tools | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Foreign Transaction Fee | 3.5% | 3.5% | 3.5% |
*Business Green and Business Gold additional cards without benefits have no card fee, but an unused-card administrative fee of ¥3,300 may apply under qualifying conditions.
👉 Official American Express Business Card Comparison
American Express Business Green Card: The Lower-Cost Option
American Express Business Green Card（アメリカン・エキスプレス®・ビジネス・グリーン・カード） is the most straightforward of the three.
It makes the most sense for sole proprietors and smaller businesses that primarily want to separate personal and business expenses while earning Membership Rewards.
Its core value is simple:
Business expense management + employee cards + Membership Rewards + basic business travel benefits.
Business Green also works with business and accounting services such as freee, Moneytree, and Yayoi, along with services designed to simplify corporate expense management.
One surprisingly useful benefit is airport lounge access. At participating American Express airport lounges in Japan, the cardmember and one guest can enter free of charge.
If you don’t need hotel benefits, Priority Pass, or premium travel perks, Business Green may be all you need.
👉 American Express Business Green Card Benefits
👉 American Express Airport Lounge Benefits
American Express Business Gold Card: The Best Balance
American Express Business Gold Card（アメリカン・エキスプレス®・ビジネス・ゴールド・カード） is where the lineup becomes much more interesting for businesses with meaningful annual spending.
Instead of simply offering more travel benefits, Business Gold turns regular company expenses into hotel stays, dining benefits, and other business perks.
For a company already spending several million yen each year on advertising, software, equipment, travel, or other card-eligible expenses, Business Gold can offer a particularly attractive middle ground.
¥3 Million and ¥5 Million Are the Key Spending Thresholds
One of the most valuable Business Gold benefits is the Business Free Stay Gift.
| Eligible Calendar-Year Spending | Business Free Stay Gift |
|---|---|
| ¥3,000,000 | 1 night |
| ¥5,000,000 | 2 nights |
This is different from the personal Gold Preferred Card, where ¥2 million is the important spending threshold.
For Business Gold, the numbers to remember are ¥3 million and ¥5 million.
If your company naturally generates this level of card spending, the thresholds may be much easier to reach through business expenses than through personal spending.
👉 Business Free Stay Gift Details
Dining and Business Benefits
Business Gold also adds several benefits that Business Green doesn’t offer.
With Business Dining Collection by Gourmet Coupon, booking an eligible course for two or more adults at participating restaurants can provide one complimentary course.
Other notable benefits include:
- Pocket Concierge: 10% cashback, up to ¥10,000 per year
- Dell: up to ¥14,000 cashback per year
- Club Off VIP benefits
- The Hotel Collection
This is what makes Business Gold more than simply a higher-tier version of Business Green. It can convert expenses your business already incurs into tangible travel and dining value.
👉 American Express Business Gold Card Benefits
American Express Business Platinum Card: Employee Cards + Premium Business Travel
American Express Business Platinum Card（アメリカン・エキスプレス®・ビジネス・プラチナ・カード） has a very different value proposition.
Its biggest advantage isn’t one individual perk. It’s the combination of employee cards, premium hotel benefits, airport lounges, and business services.
| Key Benefit | Business Platinum |
|---|---|
| Additional Cards with Benefits | First 4 free |
| Free Stay Gift | 1 night upon renewal |
| Travel Credit | ¥20,000 |
| Hotels | Multiple elite statuses + FHR + The Hotel Collection |
| Lounges | Priority Pass + Centurion Lounge |
| Pocket Concierge | 10% cashback, up to ¥20,000/year |
| Business Backing Program | Up to ¥30,000/year |
| Platinum Secretary Service | 24/7/365 |
Four Additional Cards with Benefits Are Included
This is one of the biggest differences between Business Platinum and the lower-tier cards.
Business Green and Business Gold charge for additional cards with benefits, while Business Platinum includes the first four additional cards with benefits at no extra cost.
That can substantially change the economics for a company that needs cards for several employees.
Business Platinum therefore shouldn’t be evaluated solely based on the primary cardmember. Its value can increase significantly when multiple employees use the account.
Hotels and Business Travel Are the Real Platinum Advantages
Business Platinum offers multiple hotel elite statuses, Fine Hotels + Resorts, The Hotel Collection, Priority Pass, and Centurion Lounge access.
Card renewal also provides a one-night Free Stay Gift and a ¥20,000 Travel Credit.
Add the Business Backing Program, offering up to ¥30,000 per year in cashback, plus the 24/7/365 Platinum Secretary Service, and the difference between Business Gold and Business Platinum becomes much clearer.
👉 American Express Business Platinum Card Benefits
Which Business Card Is Best for ANA Miles?
All three cards have the same standard earning rate:
¥100 = 1 Membership Rewards point
The main difference is the cost of Membership Rewards Plus and the ANA Course.
| Card | MR Plus | ANA Course | ANA Transfer Rate* | Annual ANA Transfer Limit | Annual Cost for 1:1 ANA Transfers |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Business Green | ¥3,300 | ¥5,500 | 1,000 MR = 1,000 miles | 40,000 miles | ¥8,800 |
| Business Gold | ¥3,300 | ¥5,500 | 1,000 MR = 1,000 miles | 40,000 miles | ¥8,800 |
| Business Platinum | Complimentary, enrollment required | Complimentary, enrollment required | 1,000 MR = 1,000 miles | 40,000 miles | ¥0 |
*Transfer rate shown after enrolling in Membership Rewards Plus.
Without Membership Rewards Plus, Business Green and Business Gold transfer to ANA at:
2,000 MR = 1,000 ANA miles
Business Platinum includes both Membership Rewards Plus and the ANA Course at no additional cost, although enrollment is still required.
Also note that the 40,000 ANA-mile annual transfer limit is combined across eligible Japanese American Express Membership Rewards cards, rather than applying separately to each card.
👉 Membership Rewards Plus Details
👉 Membership Rewards Airline Transfer Partners
Business Green vs. Gold vs. Platinum: Which Should You Choose?
| Business Profile | Best Fit |
|---|---|
| Sole proprietor / lower business spending | Business Green |
| Around ¥3M–¥5M spending + hotel/dining use | Business Gold |
| Multiple employee cards + frequent travel + hotels | Business Platinum |
Choose Business Green
Choose Business Green if your main priorities are business expense management, employee cards, and earning MR points.
If you don’t need premium hotels or extensive travel benefits, there’s little reason to pay for benefits your business won’t use.
Choose Business Gold
Choose Business Gold if your business naturally generates around ¥3 million to ¥5 million or more in annual card spending and you can use the Free Stay Gift, dining benefits, and business offers.
For many established small businesses, Business Gold offers the best overall balance of the three cards.
Choose Business Platinum
Choose Business Platinum if you need multiple additional cards with benefits and regularly use hotels, airport lounges, and business travel services.
The ideal Business Platinum user isn’t simply someone who spends a lot. It’s a business that can use the combination of employee cards + hotels + lounges + business services.
Bottom Line
The three Japanese American Express Business Cards can be summarized simply:
Business Green → Lower-cost business expense management + MR
Business Gold → Business spending + free hotel nights + dining; best balance
Business Platinum → Employee cards + premium hotels + business travel
For sole proprietors and businesses with relatively modest expenses, Business Green is the straightforward choice.
Once natural annual business spending reaches roughly ¥3 million to ¥5 million, Business Gold becomes particularly attractive because of its Free Stay Gift and dining benefits.
For businesses that need cards for several employees and regularly use hotels, lounges, and premium travel services, Business Platinum can make much more sense. Its first four additional cards with benefits, combined with premium hotel and business-travel benefits, are what truly separate it from Business Gold.
