American Express Gold Card Review
This card gives you big discounts at restaurants and supermarkets in the United States, as well as on airfare, throughout your first six months as a cardholder, you can earn a handsome welcome bonus.
The American Express Gold card outperforms the competition by giving you four membership benefits for every dollar spent on almost anything you eat or drink, up to $120 in dining credit and $120 in Uber cash. With a $250 annual cost that is justified by the benefits the card provides.
Card Ratings Editor’s Analysis: Pros And Cons
Pros
- Spend $4,000 on eligible purchases with your new Card within the first six months to earn 60,000 bonus Membership Rewards points.
- 4x points on restaurant purchases, 4x points on U.S. supermarket purchases (up to $25,000 a year), 3x points for $1 on flights booked with airlines or through AmexTravel.com, and 1x points per $1 on everything else.
- Up to $120 in dining credits: When you pay with the Gold Card at Grubhub, Seamless, The Cheesecake Factory, Ruth’s Chris Steak House, Boxed, and certain Shake Shack locations, you can earn up to $10 in monthly statement credits.
Cons
- Only cardholders who are frequent travelers can get the most out of the rewards and balance the fee of an annual charge of $250.
American Express Gold Card Benefits
- New cardholders can receive 60,000 Membership Rewards points after spending $4,000 on eligible purchases with the card in the first six months of membership. The Membership Reward (MR) points earned by the American Express Gold Card are extremely versatile, as they can be used to book travel directly, transferred to over 20 airline and hotel partners, and redeemed for Amazon.com purchases using the Shop with Points feature.
- When you use the American Express Gold Card to dine at restaurants, including takeout and delivery, you’ll earn 4X Membership Rewards points per dollar spent; 4X points at U.S. supermarkets (up to $25,000 per year in purchases, then 1X); 3X points on flights booked directly with airlines or on amextravel.com; and 1X point per $1 on all other purchases.
It offers the following travel benefits
- Hotel credit: When you book a stay of at least two consecutive nights with American Express Travel at over 600 properties, you’ll get a $100 hotel credit to spend on eligible dining, spa, and resort activities, as well as a room upgrade if available.
- No foreign transaction fee.
- Car rental loss and damage insurance.
- Dining benefits and Uber cash up to $120 a year.
American Express Gold Card Annual Fee
It has a $250 yearly cost, which is justified by the reward of $120 in Uber cash and $120 in eating credit, which would offset $240 of the $250 annual fee.
American Express Gold Card Credit Score
To be approved for the American Express Gold Card, you must have good to excellent credit, as well as a revolving credit payment history, a total number of open cards, and an average age of accounts open.
Potential Downsides Of The American Express Gold Card
The American Express Gold Card unlike other credit cards allows you to carry a balance on some, but not all, charges. The advantage is that you’re less likely to accrue interest; but, if you’re contemplating this card, be prepared to pay off amounts in full every month.
American Express Gold Card Cardholders Scores
| Current Scores | Past Score (avg.) | |
| Overall Score | 80.9 | 86.8 |
| Rewards Program satisfaction | 8.0 | 8.6 |
| Customer Service | 8.3 | 8.9 |
| Website/App Usability | 8.1 | 8.6 |
| Likelihood of Continuing to Use | 8.2 | 9.0 |
| Recommend to a Friend/Colleague | 8.0 | 8.6 |
How The American Express Gold Card Compares To Other Cards
- American Express Gold Card vs Chase Sapphire card
The Chase Sapphire Reserve card, which offers luxury travel rewards and a flexible redemption option, is a good alternative to the American Express Card. It has a higher annual cost of $550, it comes with a slew of travel perks, including a $300 yearly trip reimbursement.
Chase also provides a fantastic welcome offer of 50,000 bonus points after spending $4,000 on purchases in the first three months, however, American Express Gold has a higher welcome bonus and offers more rewards on restaurants and purchases.
- American Express Gold Card vs Blue Cash Preferred Card from American Express
If travel incentives aren’t important to you, but rewards on supermarket purchases are, you might want to consider American Express’s Blue Cash Preferred Card. This card does not receive additional points on flights like the Gold card, but it does offer 6% cash back on up to $6,000 spend annually in US supermarkets (then 1%), as well as 6% back on select US streaming subscriptions. In addition, get 3% back on transportation purchases and gas stations in the United States. It also has a far more affordable $0 yearly charge for the first year, followed by $95.
The Gold card may be worth the annual charge if you fly or eat out frequently, but the Blue Cash Preferred Card may be a better option if you’re searching for a card with a cheaper annual fee.
- American Express Gold Card vs American Express Business Platinum Card
The Platinum Card from American Express, with more premium travel privileges and a $695 annual fee to match, could be a fantastic option for you if you’re seeking some of the best travel features on the market and can justify paying a higher price.
It comes with a $100,000 welcome bonus, which is $40,000 more than the Gold Card, as well as access to lavish travel perks.
Is The American Express Gold Card Worth It?
The American Express Gold Card is worthwhile for those who travel regularly, eat out frequently, and may benefit from the card’s additional benefits. While the annual charge of $250 is a tad on the high side, it may easily be offset by taking full advantage of the card’s numerous features.