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LendingTree is compensated by companies on this site and this compensation may impact how and where offers appear on this site (such as the order). LendingTree does not include all lenders, savings products, or loan options available in the marketplace.
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American Express Disclosure
Terms apply to American Express benefits and offers. Visit americanexpress.com to learn more.

American Express Disclosure

Terms apply to American Express benefits and offers. Visit americanexpress.com to learn more.

American Express® Gold Card Review

Updated on:
Content was accurate at the time of publication.
LendingTree's Review

How LendingTree Rates Credit Cards?

Our experts rate credit cards based on several factors including card benefits, bonus offers and independent research. Credit card issuers do not influence or have a say in our card ratings. Read our credit card methodology here.
4.3
American Express<sup>®</sup> Gold Card
Welcome Offer
Earn 60,000 Membership Rewards® Points after you spend $6,000 on eligible purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership. Plus, receive 20% back in statement credits on eligible purchases made at restaurants worldwide within the first 6 months of Card Membership, up to $100 back. Limited time offer. Offer ends 11/6/24.
Rewards Rate
Earn 4X Membership Rewards® Points at Restaurants (on up to $50,000 per calendar year in purchases, then 1X), Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points at U.S. supermarkets (on up to $25,000 per calendar year in purchases, then 1X). Earn 3X Membership Rewards® points on flights booked directly with airlines or on AmexTravel.com. Earn 2X Membership Rewards® points on prepaid hotels and other eligible purchases booked on AmexTravel.com. Earn 1X Membership Rewards® point on all other eligible purchases. Terms Apply
Extra Perks
$120 Dining Credit: Satisfy your cravings, sweet or savory, with the $120 Dining Credit. Earn up to $10 in statement credits monthly when you pay with the American Express® Gold Card at Grubhub, The Cheesecake Factory, Goldbelly, Wine.com, and Five Guys. Enrollment required.
Editorial Note: The content of this article is based on the author’s opinions and recommendations alone. It was not reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by the credit card issuer. This site may be compensated through a credit card issuer partnership.

The information related to the American Express® Gold Card has been independently collected by LendingTree and has not been reviewed or provided by the issuer of this card prior to publication.

Our take: The American Express® Gold Card offers some of the best rewards out there on purchases made at restaurants and U.S. supermarkets, making it the perfect card for foodies. It does not offer as much in terms of travel unless you purchase flights through the American Express portal, and it does come with an annual fee.

Who is the American Express® Gold Card best for?

Calling all foodies and frequent travelers: The American Express® Gold Card wants to reward you for doing what you love. It offers one of the highest rewards rates on purchases made at restaurants and U.S. supermarkets, as well as generous rewards on airfare purchases. These benefits come with a hefty annual fee of $325. However, the card also happens to offer statement credits on dining, Uber and hotels that can help you balance out this cost.

With the ability to transfer points to other loyalty programs, the American Express® Gold Card is extremely flexible and one of the most valuable cards for earning travel rewards points. But it doesn’t offer as much value when it comes to cash back redemptions. If you are not a frequent traveler and are looking for simpler redemption options, you may want to look at a different card.

*To see rates & fees for American Express® Gold Card, please click here.

Is the American Express® Gold Card worth it?

The card’s rewards on purchases made at restaurants and U.S. supermarkets are some of the best you can get, and its statement credits are worth over $400 — which more than covers the $325 annual fee you will pay with this card. You’ll find tons of value in its other features, including the welcome offer, travel protections, $0 foreign transaction fee and redemption value on flights.

*To see rates & fees for American Express® Gold Card, please click here.

American Express® Gold Card overview

    • Earn 60,000 Membership Rewards® Points after you spend $6,000 on eligible purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership. Plus, receive 20% back in statement credits on eligible purchases made at restaurants worldwide within the first 6 months of Card Membership, up to $100 back. Limited time offer. Offer ends 11/6/24.
    • Get the American Express® Gold Card in either the Gold, Rose Gold or Limited-Edition White Gold metal design. White Gold design is only available while supplies last.
    • Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on purchases at restaurants worldwide, on up to $50,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year.
    • Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent at US supermarkets, on up to $25,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year.
    • Earn 3X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on flights booked directly with airlines or on AmexTravel.com.
    • Earn 2X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on prepaid hotels and other eligible purchases booked on AmexTravel.com.
    • Earn 1X Membership Rewards® point per dollar spent on all other eligible purchases.
    • $120 Uber Cash on Gold: Add your Gold Card to your Uber account and each month automatically get $10 in Uber Cash for Uber Eats orders or Uber rides in the U.S., totaling up to $120 per year.
    • $84 Dunkin' Credit: With the $84 Dunkin' Credit, you can earn up to $7 in monthly statement credits after you enroll and pay with the American Express® Gold Card at Dunkin' locations.
    • $100 Resy Credit: Get up to $100 in statement credits each calendar year after you pay with the American Express® Gold Card to dine at U.S. Resy restaurants or make other eligible Resy purchases. That's up to $50 in statement credits semi-annually. Enrollment required.
    • $120 Dining Credit: Satisfy your cravings, sweet or savory, with the $120 Dining Credit. Earn up to $10 in statement credits monthly when you pay with the American Express® Gold Card at Grubhub, The Cheesecake Factory, Goldbelly, Wine.com, and Five Guys. Enrollment required.
    • Explore over 1,000 upscale hotels worldwide with The Hotel Collection and receive a $100 credit towards eligible charges with every booking of two nights or more through AmexTravel.com. Eligible charges vary by property.
    • No Foreign Transaction Fees.
    • Annual Fee is $325.
    • Terms Apply.
  • Recommended Credit
    Credit scores ranges may vary. Your individual chance at approval may vary due to factors such as creditors using a particular variation at their discretion
  • 660 720 850
    Good / Excellent
  • Foreign transaction fees: None
  • Personalized travel services
  • Global Assist® Hotline
  • Baggage insurance plan
  • Car rental loss or damage insurance
  • The Hotel Collection benefit
  • Complimentary ShopRunner membership, upon enrollment
  • American Express Preferred Seating
  • Extended warranty
  • Purchase protection

Intro Purchase APR

N/A

Regular Purchase APR

See Pay Over Time APR

Intro BT APR

N/A

Regular BT APR

N/A

Annual Fee

$325

Cash Advance Fee

Either $10 or 5% of the amount of each cash advance, whichever is greater.

Foreign Transaction Fee

None

Balance Transfer Fee

N/A

Pros and cons of the American Express® Gold Card

Pros

  • Generous rewards rate
  • Welcome offer
  • Dining credit
  • Uber Cash benefit
  • Travel insurance and shopping protections
  • No foreign transaction fees
  • Hotel benefits
  • Flexible rewards redemption options

Cons

  • Annual fee
  • Poor value for cash back
  • Cannot carry a balance on some purchases
  • No lounge access or complimentary elite status
  • Statement credits can be difficult to use

What we like about the American Express® Gold Card

  • Rewards rate

    The American Express® Gold Card is one of the most rewarding cards when it comes to food purchases. It offers an exceptionally high earning rate on restaurant and U.S. supermarket purchases. You’ll earn 4X Membership Rewards® Points at Restaurants (on up to $50,000 per calendar year in purchases, then 1X), Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points at U.S. supermarkets (on up to $25,000 per calendar year in purchases, then 1X). Earn 3X Membership Rewards® points on flights booked directly with airlines or on AmexTravel.com. Earn 2X Membership Rewards® points on prepaid hotels and other eligible purchases booked on AmexTravel.com. Earn 1X Membership Rewards® point on all other eligible purchases. Terms Apply.

    If you take advantage of American Express transfer partners, you can increase the value of your points to make this one of the most valuable cards for travel rewards.

  • Welcome offer

    The American Express® Gold Card lets you earn 60,000 Membership Rewards® Points after you spend $6,000 on eligible purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership. Plus, receive 20% back in statement credits on eligible purchases made at restaurants worldwide within the first 6 months of Card Membership, up to $100 back. Limited time offer. Offer ends 11/6/24.

    This can be a very valuable bonus, depending on how you use it — you can get $650 in travel through Amex’s travel portal and possibly even more value by transferring your points to an airline partner like Delta Air Lines.

  • Dining credit

    You’ll earn up to a total of $10 in statement credits monthly when you use your American Express® Gold Card at Grubhub, The Cheesecake Factory, Goldbelly, Wine.com and Five Guys — for an annual savings of up to $120 per calendar year. Enrollment is required. If you’re able to use this credit each month, you can make up for a large portion of the card’s annual fee.

    Note, the credit is not valid on gift cards or merchandise purchases.

  • Uber Cash benefit

    The card also includes a valuable benefit for frequent Uber users that can cover some of the card’s annual fee. Once you add your American Express® Gold Card to your Uber account, you’ll automatically get up to $10 in Uber Cash each month (for a total of up to $120 per year) to use on Uber Eats or Uber rides in the U.S.

  • Hotel benefits

    When you book two nights or more with The Hotel Collection through AmexTravel.com, you’ll get a $100 experience/property credit.

  • Travel and shopping protections

    The American Express® Gold Card offers a number of valuable protections on travel and shopping, similar to the other top travel cards like the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card:

    • Purchase protection
    • Baggage insurance: Covers up to $1,250 for carry-on baggage and up to $500 for checked baggage on trips booked using your American Express® Gold Card.
    • Global Assist® Hotline: Available 24/7 for emergency assistance and coordination services including medical and legal referrals, emergency cash wires and missing luggage assistance when you travel more than 100 miles from home.
    • Extended warranty
    • Rental car insurance: Covers rental vehicles for up to 30 consecutive days per rental agreement for damage or theft up to $50,000. Coverage is secondary to your primary insurance policy.

    If you are looking for additional protections, The Platinum Card® from American Express comes with all of the same protections plus others like trip delay and trip cancellation insurance and return protection for a higher annual fee. The Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card also comes with extra benefits like trip interruption/cancellation insurance.

  • No foreign transaction fees

    Along with the other great travel benefits offered with this card, there is no foreign transaction fee, making it a good option to use for international travel. However, acceptance is limited in other countries, so make sure it is accepted before you head out on your trip, or consider bringing another card along.

  • Flexible rewards redemption options

    American Express Membership Rewards® points can be redeemed for statement credits, travel, merchandise, gift cards and more. Depending on what you redeem your points for, they can be valued at anywhere from 0.5 cents to 1 cent per point. Flights booked through the American Express Travel portal are valued at 1 cent per point, with hotels at 0.7 cents per point.

    You can get a much better value by transferring points (mostly at a 1:1 ratio) to one of 20 American Express transfer partners including:

    • Delta SkyMiles® (1:1)
    • Emirates Skywards (1:1)
    • Marriott Bonvoy™ (1:1)
    • Hilton Honors (1:2)
    • JetBlue TrueBlue (2.5:1)

    Visit the full list of partners for details.

What to look out for with the American Express® Gold Card

  • High annual fee

    The American Express® Gold Card charges a substantial annual fee of $325. That said, the dining, Uber and hotel credits can more than cover that amount each year.

    Also know there is no annual fee for up to five additional cards. The annual fee for six or more cards is $35 per card.

  • Statement credits can be difficult to use

    Although the statement credits offered on dining and Uber are nice perks that can get you up to $240 total back to use toward the $325 annual fee, the credits can be difficult to use. The dining credit only applies to a few restaurants, Grubhub and a handful of food-related websites. The credit can also only be used in $10 monthly increments.

    Similarly, the Uber Cash benefit can only be used in $10 monthly increments and comes with other restrictions. The credit is only valid for rides and Uber Eats in the U.S., and you must link your eligible card to your Uber account. Unused balances for both the dining and Uber credits do not carry over to the next month, so if you don’t use your credit that month, you will lose it.

  • Poor value outside of airfare redemptions

    If you’re looking to redeem your rewards for anything besides airfare, you won’t get a good value with the American Express® Gold Card. It only offers a good return on airfare booked directly on AmexTravel.com. Other travel purchases, such as hotels and car rentals, are worth less than 1 cent per point. Also, you’ll lose value on your points if you use them for cash back since statement credits are only worth 0.6 cents per point.

    In comparison, the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card gives you far more flexibility with your points. You can redeem points for any travel purchase through its portal for a value of 1.25 cents per point, and you can get 1 cent per point for statement credits in case you need to cash them out.

  • You can't carry a balance on some purchases

    Unlike typical credit cards, this card only lets you carry a balance for certain charges. American Express does offer a Pay Over Time feature, which gives cardholders the option to pay for eligible purchases of $100 or more over time with interest. However, you’ll need to pay off the remainder of your purchases at the end of the month.

    Note, enrollment for Pay Over Time is required, and you will accrue interest charges on all eligible purchases if you choose to carry a balance.

  • No lounge access or complimentary elite status

    The American Express® Gold Card does not offer lounge access, complimentary elite status or other luxury travel benefits offered by many premium travel rewards credit cards. If you’re looking to take advantage of these complimentary benefits, it may be worth it to choose a card with a larger annual fee for additional value.

Alternate rewards credit card to the American Express® Gold Card

Compare it to the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card

| Disclosures
Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card*
Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
N/A
21.49%-28.49% Variable
$95
Enjoy benefits such as 5x on travel purchased through Chase Travel℠, 3x on
  • Earn 60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening.
  • Enjoy benefits such as 5x on travel purchased through Chase Travel℠, 3x on dining, select streaming services and online groceries, 2x on all other travel purchases, 1x on all other purchases, $50 Annual Chase Travel Hotel Credit, plus more.
  • Get 25% more value when you redeem for airfare, hotels, car rentals and cruises through Chase Travel℠. For example, 60,000 points are worth $750 toward travel.
  • Count on Trip Cancellation/Interruption Insurance, Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver, Lost Luggage Insurance and more.
  • Get complimentary access to DashPass which unlocks $0 delivery fees and lower service fees for a minimum of one year when you activate by December 31, 2027.
  • Member FDIC
720 850
Excellent
*The information related to the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card has been collected by LendingTree and has not been reviewed or provided by the issuer of this card prior to publication. Terms apply

How Does LendingTree Get Paid?

LendingTree is compensated by companies on this site and this compensation may impact how and where offers appears on this site (such as the order). LendingTree does not include all lenders, savings products, or loan options available in the marketplace.


 
If you want a more flexible travel and dining rewards card that offers a valuable sign-up bonus at a lower annual fee, check out the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card.

At $95 a year, the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card offers a similar sign-up bonus: Earn 60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening.

The card offers a larger number of valuable redemption options, including cash, statement credits, gift cards, travel and products and services. Cardholders also get a 25% bonus on points redeemed for travel through Chase TravelSM, meaning you can get at least 1.25 cents per point on most of your travel redemptions.

Like the American Express® Gold Card, the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card allows members to transfer points to a variety of travel transfer partners at a rate of 1:1 to get even more value on their points. However, Chase offers different transfer partners, including United and Southwest, making the card a better fit for frequent flyers with these airlines.

While the American Express® Gold Card offers the opportunity to earn a higher rewards rate on flights booked directly with airlines or on AmexTravel.com, the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card also offers an elevated rate in a broader variety of travel categories, including airlines, hotels, motels, timeshares, car rental agencies, discounted travel sites and campgrounds, as well as operators of passenger trains, buses, taxis, limousines, ferries, toll bridges, highways, parking lots and garages.

Is the American Express® Gold Card right for you?

Deciding if the American Express® Gold Card is the right option for you comes down to what you want to get from the card.

If earning more points at restaurants, at U.S. supermarkets and on air travel is most important to you, the American Express® Gold Card could be a great fit — especially if you plan to take advantage of the annual credits, which will help offset the cost of the card’s annual fee.

But if you prefer to earn a higher rewards rate on a broader range of travel purchases — while getting more value from those points — another rewards card like the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card may be the better choice.

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Rates & Fees
|Terms Apply

To see rates & fees for American Express cards mentioned on this page, visit the links provided below:

The information related to the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card and U.S. Bank Altitude® Go Visa Signature® Card has been collected by LendingTree and has not been reviewed or provided by the issuer of this card prior to publication. Terms apply.

The content above is not provided by any issuer. Any opinions expressed are those of LendingTree alone and have not been reviewed, approved, or otherwise endorsed by any issuer. The offers and/or promotions mentioned above may have changed, expired, or are no longer available. Check the issuer's website for more details.