Platinum Preferred break-even: the ¥33,000 fee pays back from about ¥3M a year with ¥100,000 a month in card-funded investing

Sumitomo Mitsui Card Platinum Preferred costs ¥33,000 a year and earns 1% as a base. On everyday spending alone it never beats the free 1.2% Recruit Card, however much you spend. It wins only for people who use card-funded investing (tsumitate) through SBI Securities: with ¥100,000 a month invested, from ¥3M of yearly card spend; with ¥50,000 a month, from ¥4M.

What the ¥33,000 fee buys (the issuer's terms)

• Base rate 1%; annual fee ¥33,000 (family cards free).
• The loyalty bonus is 10,000 points per ¥1M spent the previous year, up to 40,000 points (reached at ¥4M). It is not paid in the first year.
• Card-funded investing earns 1% every month, plus a once-a-year top-up on that year's total investing: +1% when yearly card spend is ¥3M or more and +2% at ¥5M or more (not paid in the first year). The monthly limit is ¥100,000.
• Overseas spending earns +2 points per ¥100 on top of the 1% (3% in total). At Reward Up partners such as hotel-booking sites, up to +9% is added to the 1%.
• A one-time welcome bonus of 40,000 points for ¥400,000 of spend within three months of the month of joining (first year only).

The issuer's examples: with ¥5.5M of yearly spend and ¥1.3M invested, the yearly top-up is 2% (26,000 points); adding the monthly 1% (13,000 points) gives 39,000 points. With ¥3.5M of spend and ¥1.2M invested, the top-up is 1% (12,000 points), plus the monthly 12,000, for 24,000 points.

When it beats two free cards

The comparison is against two no-fee cards: Recruit (1.2%) for everyday spending and Rakuten Card (0.5%) for investing. The table shows Platinum Preferred minus those two, on everyday spending only (+ means Platinum Preferred is ahead).

At ¥5M a year with ¥100,000 a month invested, Platinum Preferred is worth ¥93,000 against ¥66,000 for the free pair — ¥27,000 ahead. At ¥3M it is ¥9,000 ahead, and at ¥2M it is ¥11,000 behind. The turning point is the yearly card spend that lifts the investing rate to 2%, ¥3M.

Who it suits, and who it does not

It suits people who spend at least ¥3M a year on the card (ideally ¥5M or more) and invest ¥50,000–¥100,000 a month through SBI Securities. People who use the hotel-site Reward Up boosts (up to +9%) come out further ahead than the table shows, since those are not included.

It does not suit people who do not invest through the card or who spend under ¥3M a year; they do better with a free 1.2% card plus a free investing card. In the first year the 40,000-point welcome bonus usually covers the fee, but the table shows year two onward.

To test your own numbers, enter monthly spending and investing in the credit card rewards calculator. The verdict list is in Credit card verdicts.