Amex Gold Benefits Guide | Bankrate

There aren’t many cards that combine premium perks with outstanding reward-earning potential like the American Express® Gold Card does. You’ll get a lucrative welcome offer and a variety of generous benefits that go a long way toward offsetting the card’s $325 annual fee. This flexible rewards card earns American Express Membership Rewards points with excellent bonuses in everyday spending categories, making it easy to quickly rack up rewards.

The Amex Gold is a top choice for food-related purchases and provides perks equal to cards charging annual fees as high as $550. Let’s take a closer look at what the card offers, our thoughts, and how to best use these benefits.

Benefits at a glance

Here’s an overview of the rewards rates and benefits of the Amex Gold. According to Bankrate’s valuations, Membership Rewards points are worth around 2.0 cents cents each.

Rewards rates and welcome offer

• Earn 60,000 Membership Rewards points after spending $6,000 in the first six months
• 4X points on restaurant purchases worldwide (on up to $50,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points) and U.S. supermarket purchases (on up to $25,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points) (8 percent value, according to Bankrate’s valuations)
• 3X points on flights booked directly with airlines or via Amex Travel (6 percent value)
• 2X points on prepaid hotels and other eligible travel purchases booked through Amex Travel (4 percent value)
• 1X points on all other purchases (2 percent value)

Amex Gold statement credits

Perks and credits

American Express Gold Card benefits can help you save money on a variety of food-related expenses and provide solid travel and shopping benefits. Here’s what comes with your Amex Gold Card.

Dining credits

The bulk of the Amex Gold’s credits cover a wide range of dining expenses, such as:

• Up to $120 in dining credits
  

  Earn up to a total of $10 in statement credits monthly at Grubhub, The Cheesecake Factory, Goldbelly, Wine.com and Five Guys. Enrollment required. Credits don’t roll over to the next month.

• Up to $120 in Uber Cash
  

  Get $10 in Uber Cash every month, which you can use with Uber Eats or rides with Uber in the U.S. You must add your card to your Uber account and have an Amex card selected as your payment method to redeem the benefit. Your credit will be deposited automatically on the first of every month and credits don’t roll over to the next month. If you have multiple Amex cards with Uber Cash credits, these will stack together in a single transaction automatically.

• Up to $84 in Dunkin’ credits
  

  Earn up to a total of $7 in statement credits monthly at U.S. Dunkin’ locations or through the Dunkin’ app. Enrollment required. Credits don’t roll over to the next month.

• Up to $100 in Resy credits
  

  Earn up to a total of $50 in statement credits semi-annually when you pay with your card at U.S. Resy restaurants or make other eligible Resy purchases. Enrollment required. Credits don’t roll over. You can use the Resy app to find participating restaurants in your area.

Travel benefits and protections

While Amex Gold’s travel benefits aren’t as strong as those of The Platinum Card® from American Express, this card does come with a few travel insurance perks, a solid hotel credit, no foreign transaction fees and entertainment ticket access.

• The Hotel Collection credit
  

  Get up to $100 in experience credits with a two-night minimum stay when you book through The Hotel Collection through American Express Travel with your card. Experience credit varies by property. You’ll be eligible for room upgrades (based on availability) and you can book up to three rooms per stay (meaning your total experience credits could be as high as $300 for booking three rooms). There isn’t a limit on the number of credits you can claim for eligible stays each year.

• Car rental loss and damage insurance
  

  You can get secondary auto rental coverage for theft or damage (up to $50,000 per rental agreement) when you pay for an eligible rental car with your card and decline the collision damage waiver at the rental company counter. Exclusions and restrictions apply, and this benefit does not include any coverage for liability.

  You’ll also have the option to enroll to purchase primary premium car rental protection. This coverage can greatly benefit you if you rent cars frequently. When you use your card to pay rental charges, you’ll pay the same flat rate per rental for up to 42 days (instead of a per day rate the rental company may offer), including rentals of eligible luxury cars, SUVs and pickup trucks. Depending on your state and selected coverage, costs range from $12.25 to $24.95 for the entire rental period. There’s no deductible for damage and coverage limits can be as high as $100,000 per rental. You’ll also get secondary medical and personal property coverage. Exclusions and restrictions apply, and this benefit does not include any coverage for liability.

• Trip delay insurance
  

  If you pay for a round-trip ticket with your card and your trip is delayed by more than 12 hours, trip delay insurance can reimburse additional expenses on the card for up to $300 per covered trip, with a maximum of two claims per 12 months. This protection can be useful when a trip delay results in incidental expenses like meals, clothing or hotel stays. Coverage is secondary and other exclusions and restrictions apply.

• Baggage insurance plan
  

  You’ll qualify for baggage insurance when you pay for a common carrier fare with your credit card. This coverage is good for up to $1,250 per covered person for carry-on baggage, up to $500 per covered person for checked baggage when traveling on a common carrier vehicle (like a plane, train or bus). There is a $10,000 aggregate maximum for all covered persons per covered trip. Other exclusions and restrictions apply.

• Global Assist Hotline
  

  When you travel more than 100 miles from home, you’ll have access to 24/7 emergency assistance and coordination services, including medical and legal referrals, emergency cash wires, trip planning and missing luggage assistance. You’ll still be responsible for costs associated with third-party service providers.

• Events with Amex
  

  Get special ticket access to purchase tickets to many popular events. While available events can vary and some are invite-only, you’ll find entertainment options like theater, music, sports and more through the Amex entertainment portal. Select events may also have additional on-site benefits such as interactive fan experiences or exclusive merchandise and offers.

Shopping protections and additional services

The Amex Gold Card also has standard features that can save you money, hassle and stress. Keep in mind you have to pay for items with your card to be eligible for these benefits.

• Extended warranty
  

  You’ll get extended warranty coverage for an additional year on eligible items with a manufacturer’s warranty of five years or less for up to the actual amount charged to your card (maximum $10,000, $50,000 annual limit). Exclusions and restrictions apply.

• Purchase protection
  

  You also get American Express purchase protection to cover damage, loss or theft for up to 90 days from the purchase date for up to $10,000 per covered purchase and up to $50,000 per eligible card per calendar year. You can also get up to $500 in coverage per eligible event when a natural disaster strikes.

• Additional services
  

  The Amex Gold also gives you the following standard American Express features:

  • No preset spending limit and flexible bill payment options
  • CreditSecure: Get credit and identity monitoring and fraud assistance services for $1/day for the first 30 days, then $19.99 monthly until canceled. Enrollment required.
  • American Express MyCredit Guide: View your FICO Score and Experian credit report at any time.
  • Amex Send account: Pay Venmo or PayPal users without standard credit card fees directly from the Amex app. Enrollment required.
  • Split purchases: Split any charge with other Venmo or PayPal users directly from the Amex app. Enrollment required.
  • Pay with your digital wallet

Maximizing rewards on your Amex Gold

While the Amex Gold Card charges a $325 annual fee, the rewards and benefits can be well worth it, especially if you focus your efforts on top reward categories. Here are some tips to maximize your Amex Gold Card:

Earn the welcome bonus

Earning your welcome bonus should be your primary focus when opening any card, as you’ll get outstanding initial value and a quick boost to your rewards balance. Try to focus as much of the minimum spending requirement as possible on bonus categories for added value.

Use your card at restaurants and U.S. supermarkets

With an ffective e8 percent return on spending according to Bankrate valuations, the Amex Gold provides one of the highest reward returns in both categories, so it should be a go-to card for these purchases. If you spend $4,063 or more annually in these two categories, you’ll come out ahead of the $325 annual fee before factoring in the value of any credits you use. That equates to around $339 per month.

Both categories have high yearly spending caps before the 1X rate kicks in ($25,000 for U.S. supermarkets and $50,000 for restaurants), so you shouldn’t need a different card for these purchases. Also, while it’s difficult to do, maximizing the U.S. supermarket category can earn up to 100,000 Membership Rewards points, while maximizing the restaurant category could net you an additional 200,000 points.

Use your dining credits

Dining and Uber Cash credits are only offered as up to $10 in monthly statement credits which don’t roll over from month to month. If you don’t use them, you lose them. Take the time to add your Amex Gold Card as the preferred method of payment to your Uber, UberEats, GrubHub and Dunkin’ accounts. Your Amex Gold has you covered no matter what you’re in the mood to eat. UberEats and GrubHub cover all types of restaurants — from fast food to fine dining. Think of the credit as an easy way to cover taxes and tips. Get breakfast from Dunkin’ on Amex once a month and try a nice restaurant semi-annually to use your Resy credit.

Take advantage of Amex Offers

Adding Amex Offers to your card is a great way to earn additional rewards when you make an eligible purchase with a participating retailer or travel brand. Amex Offers are free to use, and the benefit they offer is given on top of the rewards you earn for paying with your credit card.

Sign up for the Amex trifecta

You can also maximize your Amex Gold Card by using it as part of the Amex trifecta. This trio of rewards credit cards includes the Amex Platinum Card and The Blue Business® Plus Credit Card from American Express, all of which have complementary earning structures and perks. With these three cards combined, you can maximize your spending and earn elevated rewards on any purchase. You can qualify for the business card as a sole proprietor, making it easy to establish a side hustle for extra income and rewards. Membership Rewards points are all pooled together, making it easy to quickly boost your balance.

Redeeming Membership Rewards

American Express Membership Rewards are some of the most flexible and valuable rewards you can earn. Based on our latest valuations, we value Membership Rewards at around 2.0 cents cents each when redeemed with a high-value travel partner. However, they could be much more valuable if you hit the right transfer partner at the right time.

American Express offers a wide variety of redemption opportunities, including the chance to use your points for statement credits, gift cards or merchandise. However, the best ways to spend American Express points are booking travel through the American Express Travel portal or transferring them to Amex’s hotel and airline partners.

Transferring to hotel and airline partners

You’ll generally get more value out of your points if you go with the transfer option and move your points to any of Amex’s 17 airline partners or three hotel partners.

Amex’s airline partners typically offer transfers at a 1:1 rate in increments of 1,000 points. Here’s the chart of Amex’s 17 airline partners, along with their transfer ratios and estimated transfer times:

You can also use your points to transfer to Amex’s three hotel partners. While this generally isn’t the best way to maximize your rewards, it could be useful to top off your balance for an upcoming redemption. Here are the transfer ratios and times:

Redeeming rewards with AmexTravel.com

You can also choose to redeem your Membership Rewards points when booking travel through AmexTravel.com, which functions just like other third-party booking sites. However, value varies depending on what you’re booking and you’ll generally get better value using your points for transfer partners. You may be better off earning 3X points if you pay for flights with your Amex Gold, and 2X points for prepaid hotel and other eligible travel bookings. Here’s the value you’ll get for different travel bookings:

• 1.0 cents per point for flights
• 0.7 cents per point for prepaid hotel bookings
• 0.7 cents per point for cruise bookings
• 0.7 cents per point for vacation packages

Of these options, the only worthwhile use for your points is for booking flights. Note that there is an additional fee of $6.99 for domestic flights and $10.99 for international flights. As a rule of thumb, you should strive to always get a minimum of one cent per point when redeeming Membership Rewards.

Other redemption options

Other available redemption options can be worth anywhere from 0.5 cents to 1.0 cents per point. Again, you should strive for a minimum of one cent per point. Here’s what you’ll get for your other options:

• Statement credit/points for charges: 0.6 cents per point
• Gift cards: varies, maximum of 1.0 cents per point
• Select retailers: 0.7 cents per point
• Charitable donations: 1.0 cents per point for donations up to 500,000 points per year, 0.5 cents per point after
• New York City taxi fares: 1.0 cents per point

Expert opinions on the Amex Gold

The Amex Gold is one of the most popular — yet polarizing — premium cards available. Our experts have many takes on this card, with some loving it and some opting to get rid of it. Here’s what our experts have to say about the card to help you form your opinion:

How we rank the Amex Gold

The Amex Gold card is a perennial Bankrate Awards winner and is found on many of our “Best of” lists. Here’s where our experts think the Amex Gold is a top contender:

The bottom line

The American Express Gold Card is one of the top choices for your food-related purchases, offering numerous statement credits and outstanding rewards rates. You’ll get a quality package of additional benefits and flexible redemption options that make it a great choice for people who can take advantage of the card’s perks.