New at-home Variis by Equinox fitness benefit on Amex cards starts today

Today Amex has launched a new statement credit benefit for Variis by Equinox: Platinum cardholders will receive $25 per month in statement credits toward a monthly membership to the at-home fitness app and other cards will receive $10 monthly credits (for a limited time on most cards). Note that the monthly app membership costs $39.99 before statement credits. See more detail below.

Update: The offer terms have been updated below to indicate that this benefit can be used up to 9 times on the Platinum card by 6/30/21 or up to 3 times on most cards by 4/1/21.

The Deal

• American Express has partnered with Variis by Equinox to offer statement credits to Amex cardholders who subscribe to the Variis fitness app starting today (October 9, 2020) as follows:

  • Existing Platinum Card Members: $25 back each month in statement credits (up to 9 uses / $225 back). Expires 6/30/21.

  • Existing Blue Cash Preferred Card Members: $10 back each month in statement credits (I believe this will be up to 9 uses like the Platinum card, but YMMV).

  • Other eligible Card Members: $10 back each month in statement credits for the first three months (up to 3 uses / $30 back). Expires 4/1/20.

• Direct link to sign up

Quick Thoughts

At-home fitness has become all the rage during 2020, with many people putting focus on staying fit while working from home (and with gyms closed for long stretches in many states).

If you’ve otherwise been paying for some type of at-home fitness program, you could potentially save some money here. Given that Variis by Equinox costs $39.99 per month, Platinum cardholders will pay a net $14.99 after statement credits and other cardholders will pay a net $29.99. Keep in mind that most cards only get the $10 statement credit for three months ending 4/1/21. However, the way that is worded, I expect this benefit is planned to continue on Platinum and Blue Cash Preferred Cards into the foreseeable future.

Update: The terms of the offers, as pictured below, indicate that the number of times they can be used will be limited. The Platinum card offer can be used up to 9 times. The offer on most cards can be used 3 times. See details in your Amex Offers. Here are screen shots:

Platinum card offer:

Regular Amex card offer:

Personally, I was disappointed that Platinum cardholders don’t get enough in credit to get a free membership for a while. Fifteen bucks a month is still more than I’m willing to pay — though take my opinion with a grain of salt. This pic was taken four years ago today after my second Chicago marathon finish, which proves that I have the capacity for some modicum of athleticism, which you wouldn’t know if you saw me trying to chase my not-yet-three-year-old around the lawn today.

Still, I’m sure that some folks out there are spending the sticker price or more for some type of home fitness program. This could be a chance to get a much better deal, though I admittedly have no idea as to the quality of the app.

Note that while I shared disappointment above about the membership not being free for Platinum cardholders, I should note that the app does feature a free 7-day trial, so you do get a week to evaluate it before being charged at all, which gives you enough time for a test-drive before spending anything.

We have added this to our COVID credit card enhancements Ultimate Guide.

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