American Express® Green Card review: A fair option for infrequent flyers

The Amex Green stands out thanks to its redemption flexibility and potentially high reward value, which could make the welcome offer quite lucrative. The card also has plenty value to offer if you don’t fly often but prefer more unique travel options like camping or cruises. 

Rewards: Earn on expanded travel categories

Cardmembers can earn unlimited 3X Membership Rewards points in expanded travel categories. You also earn 3X points at restaurants worldwide (including takeout and delivery limited to U.S. restaurants), 3X points on transit and 1X points on all other purchases. So even if you don't travel often, you can earn bonus rates in non-travel categories. 

The travel category for the Amex Green is especially notable compared to other mid-tier travel cards since many eligible purchases go beyond basic airfare and hotels. You earn on travel purchases on both third-party websites and through the American Express Travel portal, and eligible purchases include options like car rentals, cruises, campgrounds and even vacation rentals. Whether you prefer to take a road trip, catch a flight or set sail, the Amex Green card’s broad travel category has you covered. 

The transit category is also surprisingly robust and isn’t a category you often find on competing travel rewards cards. This adds flexibility to the card that can elude even some premium cards, making it easier to earn rewards and offset the annual fee.  Whether you prefer to take a road trip, catch a flight or set sail, the Amex Green card’s broad travel category has you covered. 

Redemption: Flexible options and potentially high redemption value

You can redeem American Express Membership Rewards points for cash back, merchandise, gift cards and eligible travel through the Amex Travel portal, as well as at checkout with select merchants. You can also transfer points to airline and hotel Amex transfer partners like Hilton Honors, Delta SkyMiles, Air France / Flying Blue and more.

Thanks to this variety of options and travel partners, American Express Membership Rewards points are some of the most valuable you can earn, holding a 2.0 cents redemption value, on average, according to Bankrate's valuations. You’ll typically want to redeem points on options that give you a point value of at least 1 cent apiece. Booking flights with American Express Travel, selecting gift cards or transferring to certain partnering hotels and airlines might be your best choices.

Welcome offer: Solid short-term value

New cardholders can earn 40,000 points after spending $3,000 on purchases on the card in the first six months. The value of 40,000 Membership Rewards points will vary based on how you redeem them, but if you take advantage of Amex’s travel partners, you could squeeze about 2.0 cents out of each point according to Bankrate's latest valuations, making this offer worth around $800. 

This is a great value especially when you compare it to other premium travel card offers. For example, the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card offers 75,000 bonus miles when you spend $4,000 in the first three months of account opening. While the values of the welcome offers are close, with the Venture X’s being worth around $750 when redeemed for travel, the Venture X’s annual fee is much higher at $395 (See Rates & Fees).

While you might enjoy reward flexibility with this card, if you prefer more premium perks to justify the annual fee, you might look elsewhere.

Rates and fees: High fees if you carry a balance 

The Amex Green Card comes with a $150 annual fee which is reasonable for a mid-tier travel card. However, you'll need to either take advantage of this card's two annual statement credits — which are most beneficial for frequent travelers — or earn enough rewards every year to help offset the cost. And if you are looking for premium perks like an annual companion pass, a dedicated airline card might better suit you. 

Its other fees are on the higher end too. You'll pay a fee of 5 percent (minimum $10) on cash advances, plus a 29.99 percent cash advance APR if you use your card to take out cash, a late payment fee up to $40 and a returned payment fee up to $40. Using the Pay Over Time payment option carries a high Pay Over Time variable APR as well. So if you tend to carry a balance, it may cut into your rewards. 

Perks: Few luxury benefits

The Amex Green Card has some key travel benefits and protection plans, such as trip delay insurance, lost baggage insurance and secondary auto rental coverage. This card also offers several statement credit opportunities that can help offset the cost of the card’s annual fee: up to $189 in credit toward a CLEAR Plus membership each year, which can help you get through security lines faster at participating airports and other venues. venues, and a LoungeBuddy credit up to $100, which you can use to purchase lounge access in hundreds of airports worldwide. 

But occasional flyers may not find these credits worthwhile. If you don't fly a lot, then you might consider a travel awards card with a lower annual fee that has more practical perks. 

The American Express Green Card can be a strategic option that complements your lifestyle and travel capabilities. Here's how Stephanie Zito, Bankrate’s Travel Rewards Expert Contributor, puts it:

“The traditional American Express Green Card may not be the most exciting card in the Amex portfolio, but it definitely has its place. During the pandemic, I downgraded my American Express Platinum because I wasn’t using the travel benefits, and keeping the Green Card open gave me a good place to park my Membership Rewards points — while paying a much lower annual fee and still taking advantage of a good 3X earning rate at restaurants, travel and transit.”

— Stephanie Zito, Bankrate contributor

And check out why expert contributor Holly D. Johnson also loves the Amex Green card. 

Your first year with the Amex Green card is where you’ll find the most value because of its awesome welcome offer. There’s also the annual CLEAR and LoungeBuddy credit that will more than offset the card’s $150 annual fee. 

If you don’t travel enough to use the credits, the card’s ongoing rewards can also make up for the annual fee, depending on your spending. The average spender will earn about $247 in yearly rewards value, with most of that spending in the card’s 3X-point categories. Either way, the Amex Green doesn’t make it tedious to justify its annual fee, even without the focus on airline travel and hotels.

To make your research easier, we’ve calculated the Amex Green card’s first-year and ongoing value based on our card scoring formula, a $22,500 annual spend and the baseline 1-cent value through Amex.

While the Amex Green card is a solid mid-tier card, it may not be the best fit depending on your spending or travel habits. Whether you’re looking for an American Express credit card that earns American Express Membership Rewards points or a general travel rewards card, you might consider these alternatives. 

The Amex Green card pairs well with a no-annual-fee cash back card that earns in bonus categories the Green card doesn’t cover. Or if you have a business, an Amex business card could supplement your travel spending. Here are a few options that can make a solid pairing, depending on your needs.

This card could benefit occasional travelers, especially those who prefer non-flight vacation options like taking a cruise. Commuters can also take advantage of this card's elevated rewards rate.

Although the Amex Green Card has a $150 annual fee, the welcome offer and annual statement credits can more than make up for it. Paired with the ability to transfer your earned points to travel partners, you have a solid mid-level travel rewards card that can reward your everyday travel. However, make sure you will use the cardholder benefits available to you. If the card benefits aren’t a great fit, you may want to consider another travel card with different benefits or no annual fee.

Eligibility and Benefit level varies by Card. Terms, Conditions and Limitations Apply. Please visit americanexpress.com/benefitsguide for more details. Underwritten by Amex Assurance Company.

All information about the American Express® Green Card has been collected independently by Bankrate.com and has not been reviewed or approved by the issuer.

We rate credit cards using a proprietary card scoring system that ranks each card’s estimated average rewards rate, estimated annual earnings, welcome bonus value, APR, fees, perks and more against those of other cards in its primary category.

Each card feature is assigned a weighting based on how important it is to people looking for a card in a given category. These features are then scored based on how they rank relative to the features on other cards in the category. Based on these calculations, each card receives an overall rating of 1-5 stars (with 5 being the highest possible score and 1 being the lowest). 

We analyzed over 150 of the most popular rewards and cash back cards to determine where each stacked up based on their value, cost, benefits and more. Here are some of the key factors that influenced this card’s overall score and how the score influenced our review: