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American Express® Gold Card review: The gold standard for foodies

One of the few cards to serve food fans valuable travel rewards and annual dining

 /  18 min
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Snapshot

5.0

Bankrate rating
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Rating: 5 stars out of 5

Bottom line

The Amex Gold card is an incredible option for earning travel rewards at restaurants and U.S. supermarket purchases. But the annual fee and lower rewards value for non-travel options likely make this a poor fit for occasional travelers or households just looking for cash back on everyday spending.

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  • Rewards value
    Rating: 4.7 stars out of 5
    4.7 / 5
    APR
    Rating: 2 stars out of 5
    2 / 5
    Rewards flexibility
    Rating: 4 stars out of 5
    4 / 5
    Features
    Rating: 5 stars out of 5
    5 / 5
Good to Excellent (670 – 850)
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Recommended Credit
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Intro offer

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$1200

Offer valuation

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3X - 4X

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Annual fee

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American Express® Gold Card Overview

The American Express® Gold Card is one of the best travel rewards cards thanks to the numerous food and travel perks that appeal to big spenders who can afford its $250 annual fee. It offers generous ongoing rewards for airfare, restaurant and U.S. supermarket purchases. It also comes with hundreds of dollars worth of annual credits that can help offset the annual fee.

While these annual credits could be valuable, they come with restrictions and may not apply to restaurants or hotels you frequent. And since the value of your earned rewards drops considerably if you don’t book through the Amex travel portal, occasional travelers could get better value out of a different card.

  • Credit Card Cash Back

    Rewards

    • 4X points on restaurant (including takeout and delivery in the U.S.) and U.S. supermarkets purchases (on up to $25,000 in supermarket purchases per year, then 1X points)
    • 3X points on flights booked directly with airlines or via American Express Travel 
    • 1X points on all other purchases
    • Rewards value: Up to 1 cent per point when redeemed through American Express (around 2.0 cents on average through the right transfer partner)

    Expert Appraisal: Exceptional
    See our expert analysis

  • Rewards

    Welcome offer

    • 60,000 points after spending $6,000 in purchases within the first six months of card membership

    Expert Appraisal: Good
    See our expert analysis

  • Credit Card Search

    Rates and fees

    • $250 annual fee
    • No foreign transaction fees
    • No intro APR on purchases
    • No intro APR on balance transfers
    • 21.24 percent to 29.24 percent variable ongoing APR (Pay Over Time)

    Expert Appraisal: Unimpressive
    See our expert analysis

  • Congrats

    Other cardholder perks

    • Up to $120 in annual dining credits (as up to $10 in monthly statement credits) for purchases with GrubHub, The Cheesecake Factory, Goldbelly, Wine.com, Milk Bar and select Shake Shack locations
    • Up to $120 annual credits for Uber Cash (as $10 in automatic monthly Uber Cash) toward Uber Eats orders or Uber rides in the U.S.
    • Up to $100 in experience credits with The Hotel Collection stays you book through American Express Travel (minimum two-night stay required)
    • Carries several travel protections, including baggage insurance, car rental loss and damage insurance
    • Issuer-exclusive benefits, including Pay It Plan It and American Express Experiences with American Express Preferred Access
    • Complimentary Shoprunner membership (enrollment required)

    Expert Appraisal: Good
    See our expert analysis

American Express Gold pros and cons

Pros

  • Checkmark

    This card has some of the best travel rewards rates on dining and groceries.

  • Checkmark

    The card’s welcome offer is impressive considering the annual fee, and you have six months to meet the spending requirements.

  • Checkmark

    The annual bonus credits help justify the annual fee.

  • Checkmark

    It has solid travel and shopping protections and benefits, including complimentary hotel upgrades (if available) and baggage insurance.

  • Checkmark

    There is no preset credit limit, so the amount you can spend adapts based on factors such as your purchase, payment and credit history.

Cons

  • The $250 annual fee is steep and could be hard to justify if you don’t take advantage of the card’s annual credits and travel transfer partners.

  • Hotel stays, rental cars or other travel purchases other than flights do not earn bonus travel rewards.

  • Unlike some competing premium rewards cards, it doesn’t offer lounge access, trip cancellation/interruption insurance or everyday rewards on transit purchases.

  • Points only redeem at a 1:1 rate for flights through the American Express Travel portal; redeeming points as a statement credit also reduces the point value and limits your long-term earning potential.

Why you might want the American Express Gold

Foodies with an appetite for travel will find it hard to beat the Amex Gold’s inclusive bonus categories, five-star rewards value and generous annual credits toward dining and hotel activities.

Rewards: Top-shelf value across comprehensive food categories

Out of all of American Express’ cards, the Amex Gold possibly provides the greatest number of point-earning opportunities (especially for frequent diners) with its categories that reward everyday spending. Few cards carry bonus categories for restaurants and U.S. supermarkets as well as dining credits all on one card. The American Express Gold further sets itself apart by offering one of the highest rewards rates for these categories.

These factors make the Amex Gold not only one of the best cards for restaurants but one of the best for groceries as well — especially if you plan to transfer points to travel partners.

When you redeem your Membership Rewards, booking travel or transferring your points to American Express travel partners (usually at a 1:1 value, but varies by partner) are the most valuable uses for your points. Points are worth 1 cent each when redeeming for flights or upgrading your airfare class through the American Express Travel portal, and just 0.6 cents apiece when redeemed on other options.

However, Amex Gold’s lucrative transfer partners are one of its key strengths. Bankrate estimates American Express Membership Rewards points are worth around 2.0 cents each on average when you take advantage of one of the issuer’s highest-value travel transfer partners. 

Perks: Some of the richest dining perks available

The Gold Card is one of American Express’ premier travel cards, and it doesn’t disappoint with its excellent benefits for foodies. The major benefits you’re most likely to lean on are the annual credits for participating restaurants (including Grubhub, The Cheesecake Factory, Goldbelly, Wine.com, Milk Bar and select Shake Shack locations), eligible experiences at The Hotel Collection properties and Uber rides or Uber Eats orders. Just the dining and Uber credits nearly make up for the annual fee, but taking advantage of all three features would more than offset the annual fee without eating into your rewards spending.

The Hotel Collection can earn you $100 back on qualifying dining, spa services, resort activities and more (depending on the property). You may squeeze value from the dining and food delivery credits more frequently, and the monthly Uber Cash is the most flexible perk since it can go toward rideshare travel as well (if your card is linked to the Uber app). This provides rich, ongoing value for both dining delivery gourmands and frequent ridesharers, and makes the American Express Gold one of the best cards for Uber

Welcome offer: Good head start on your next trip

As a new cardholder, you can earn an impressive 60,000 Membership Rewards points after spending $6,000 in purchases within your first six months of card membership. Based on Bankrate's latest point valuations, this welcome offer could be worth around $1,200, which gives Amex points a value of around 2.0 cents per point on average when transferred to a high-value travel partner. Even redeemed through American Express, it could still be worth an impressive $600 at 1 cent per point.

This is a solid welcome offer, but the spending requirement is quite high compared to some competing cards. For example, the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card not only has a potentially more valuable welcome bonus (75,000 miles), it only requires you to spend $4,000 in your first three months. On the other hand, the Amex Gold gives you more time to reach the spending requirement. Which is a better fit will depend on your spending habits.

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Bankrate Insight

If you want to maximize your rewards, you can save up a few extra points over time with two other methods. The Amex Offers program allows you to activate limited-time deals with participating retailers and earn bonus points (usually up to a spending cap). You can earn a 10,000-point referral bonus (up to 55,000 points per year) when someone you refer applies to and opens any American Express card.

Why you might want a different travel card

The Amex Gold can certainly be worth its weight in food-focused annual credits and rewards rates. However, the annual fee may be intimidating for some spenders, especially if they’re expecting the rich serving of travel perks other premium cards may provide.

Rates and fees: Charges a sizable annual fee

Although the Amex Gold card packs plenty of annual credits and reward opportunities, the hefty $250 may give some applicants second thoughts. Whether the American Express Gold is worth the annual fee depends mainly on how much you plan to spend annually with the card, or if you’ll be able to take advantage of the perks that come with it. 

If you plan on traveling in the future and you dine out or shop at supermarkets often, the value of its perks and rewards could be worth the annual fee — especially if you use transfer partners to get more value from your points. In fact, our ongoing value estimates show that the average spender may not have much trouble offsetting the $250 price tag. Making up for the annual fee could be more challenging if the annual dining credits’ eligible restaurants and food services don’t fit into your usual dining plans, though. It can also be tiring keeping track of your rewards to make sure you’re spending enough to justify the cost of the card.

Travel benefits: Competing cards have stronger features

If you plan to use the American Express Gold as your primary travel card, it’s worth noting that this card is focused more on food-related features than on travel. The 3X-point travel category only rewards flights booked directly with airlines or through the American Express Travel portal, and the other travel perks are unremarkable compared to the annual fee.

The perks are certainly still more than worth the annual fee, but you won’t receive popular benefits like complimentary airport lounge access, expedited airport security service credits, trip cancellation/interruption insurance or annual airfare credits.

First-year value vs. ongoing value

Your first year with the Amex Gold is undoubtedly where you’ll see the most value because of its generous welcome offer — up to $600 value through the issuer — and essentially double the ongoing value of the card. However, the perks and rewards could provide enough value for many spenders to more than make the annual fee worthwhile. Generous offers from American Express add plenty of value with dining credits, Uber Cash and hotel experience credits. These three perks could be worth up to $340, which would more than help make up for the $250 annual fee.

The card’s ongoing rewards potential should also give you plenty of chances to offset the annual fee. The average spender will earn about $492 in yearly rewards value, but it only takes spending at least $521 across your two 4X-point categories each month to break even on the annual fee if you redeem your points toward Amex air travel. However, you can whittle your monthly 4X-point category spending down to about $249 if you transfer your points to a travel partner that provides a redemption value of around 2.0 cents per point.

To make your research easier, we’ve calculated the Amex Gold 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.

Benefits and Costs First-year value Ongoing value (no welcome offers)
Yearly rewards +$492 +$492
Welcome offers +$600 value (60,000 bonus points after spending $6,000 on purchases in the first six months of card membership)
Perks (of monetary value)
  • +$120 (Uber Cash provided as $10 monthly credits that expire at the end of the month)
  • +$120 (Dining credits per year on eligible purchases)
  • +$100 (Experience credits with The Hotel Collection offer when you book two consecutive nights or more through the Amex Travel Portal, experience credit varies by property)
  • +$120 (Uber Cash provided as $10 monthly credits that expire at the end of the month)
  • +$120 (Dining credits per year on eligible purchases)
  • +$100 (Experience credits with The Hotel Collection offer when you book two consecutive nights or more through the Amex Travel Portal, experience credit varies by property)
Annual fee -$250 -$250
Total value $1,182 $582

We tried it: Here’s what our experts say

According to Emily Sherman, credit card expert and former Bankrate Senior Editor, the American Express Gold is well worth the annual fee. When she’s not using the $10 in Uber Eats credits every month or the $10 dining credit toward Grubhub for even more deliveries, she’s taking advantage of the card’s generous bonus categories:

The American Express Gold Card is by far my favorite rewards credit card. Not only does it reward me handsomely in categories I spend the most (restaurants and U.S. supermarkets, primarily), but it is packed with credits that easily make up for its $250 annual fee.

— Emily Sherman— Credit card expert

How the American Express Gold Card compares to other travel cards

The Amex Gold is a solid pick for a travel rewards card if you can take full advantage of the bonus rewards categories and credits. But other options could provide a more rewarding experience, especially if you’re looking for luxury travel perks or want better value for your travel rewards. 

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Annual fee

$250

Intro offer

60,000 Membership Rewards® Points
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Rewards rate

3X - 4X
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Recommended Credit Score

Good to Excellent (670 – 850)
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Annual fee

$395

Intro offer

75,000 miles
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Rewards rate

2 Miles - 10 Miles
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Recommended Credit Score

Excellent (740 – 850)
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Annual fee

$95

Intro offer

60,000 bonus points
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Rewards rate

1x - 5x
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Recommended Credit Score

Good to Excellent (670 – 850)
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Best cards to pair with the American Express Gold

Since the Amex Gold’s bonus rewards for travel only cover airfare, a hotel rewards card could help you rake in a lot of bonus rewards on hotel stays. Another option is to pair the Amex Gold card with a cash back card if you have a lot of spending that falls outside the Gold card’s bonus categories.

However, there are a few American Express cards worth considering that will complete the Amex trifecta if you’re looking to maximize your Membership Rewards and aren’t worried about offsetting annual fees.

Who is the Amex Gold right for?

Bankrate’s Take — Is the American Express Gold Card worth it?

The American Express Gold Card is a great choice if you’re looking for travel rewards for airfare and everyday expenses like restaurant and U.S. supermarket purchases. Add in the annual credits, which could potentially be worth more than the $250 annual fee, and this card offers a unique food-and-travel experience you may not find with another card. 

However, it’s not as versatile as other travel cards, as some travel cards offer stronger travel perks and more flexible rewards for food and travel despite a lower annual fee. 

For rates and fees of the American Express® Gold Card, please click here.

For rates and fees of the Platinum Card® from American Express , please click here.

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.

The information about the American Express Cash Magnet® Card and Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card has been collected independently by Bankrate.com. The card details details have not been reviewed or approved by the card issuer.

How we rated this card

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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:

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Written by
Garrett Yarbrough
Writer, Credit Cards

Bankrate expert Garrett Yarbrough strives to make navigating credit cards and credit building smooth sailing for his readers. After regularly featuring his credit card, credit monitoring and identity theft analysis on NextAdvisor.com, he joined the CreditCards.com and Bankrate teams as a staff writer to develop product reviews and comprehensive credit card guides focused on cash back, credit scores and card offers.

Edited by Senior Editor, Credit Cards
Reviewed by Senior Editor, Credit Cards

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Editorial Disclosure: Opinions expressed here are the author's alone, and have not been reviewed or approved by any advertiser. The information, including card rates and fees, is accurate as of the publish date. All products or services are presented without warranty. Check the bank’s website for the most current information.