American Express® Gold Card Review

The American Express® Gold Card offers solid perks and rewards for dining and groceries, which makes it the perfect card for foodies.

Card summary

The American Express® Gold Card is valuable because it earns 4 points per dollar spent at restaurants and U.S. supermarkets, which is one of the highest in the credit card industry. The $250 annual can be worth it after considered the dining and airline credits.

Card rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Ratings and opinions are of More Money More Choices editors. It’s not influenced or endorsed by any card issuer or financial institution.

Benefits and perks

Compared to premium credit cards, the American Express® Gold Card has a low annual fee of $250.

Related: Best premium credit cards for luxury perks

With a lower annual fee, the card packs a lot of perks for foodies. The following are the benefits of the card:

1. $120 dining credit. You’ll receive a $10 statement credit per month for purchases with Grubhub, Seamless, The Cheesecake Factory, Ruth’s Chris Steak House, Boxed, and participating Shake Shack locations.

2. $120 Uber Cash. Each month, you’ll get $10 in Uber Cash to use for Uber Eats or Uber Rides in the U.S.

3. $100 airline fee credit. Each calendar year, you’ll select one airline to receive up to $100 of statement credit for incidental air travel fees.

4. The Hotel Collection. When you book The Hotel Collection through American Express Travel for at least two consecutive nights, you’ll get a $100 hotel credit, and room upgrades, if they’re available.

5. Travel insurance. The card comes with baggage insurance, which covers lost, damaged, or stolen bags. It also has car rental loss and damage insurance, so you can decline the coverage offered by the rental company.

Offers, fees, and interest rates

The following is basic information about the card Amex Gold, including rates, fees, and offers:

• Annual fee: $250, and there’s no annual fee for up to 5 additional cards. If you’d like 6 or more additional cards, they’re $35 each.
• Bonus offer: 60,000 miles after spending $4,000 within the first 3 months from account opening.
• APR for purchases: 15.99% to 22.99%, based on your creditworthiness.
• APR for cash advance: 25.24%.
• Foreign transaction fee: None.

How to earn points

With the American Express® Gold Card, you’ll earn a different number of Membership Rewards points based on the type of purchases you make. The following are the reward rates:

• 4 points per dollar spent at U.S. supermarkets up to $25,000 per calendar year.
• 4 points per dollar spent at restaurants, including takeout and delivery.
• 3 points per dollar spent on flights booked directly with airlines or through American Express Travel.
• 1 point per dollar spent on all other purchases.

Redeeming points and transfer partners

If you spend a lot on dining and groceries, you’ll rack up plenty of Membership Rewards points. The points can be redeemed for the following purposes:

• Transfer points to transfer partners.
• Cover card charges.
• Pay with points at checkout.
• Shop with points.
• Redeem for gift cards.
• Book or upgrade travel.
• Donate to charity.

When you transfer Membership Rewards points, the airline partners and Nectar transfer at a 1:1 ratio.

For hotels, 1 Membership Rewards point will get you 2 Hilton Honors points, 3 Radisson Rewards points, and 2 Membership Rewards points transfers to 3 Marriott Bonvoy points.

At Club Eurostar, 1,500 Membership Rewards points will get you 100 Club Eurostar points.

Competitors

Although the Amex Gold is one of the top cards for dining and groceries, there are a few other cards that compete with it. They are as follows:

• American Express® Green Card
• Citi Prestige
• Hilton Honors Aspire
• Capital One Savor® Rewards
• Chase Sapphire Reserve or Preferred

American Express® Green Card

In general, the American Express® Green Card is more focused on travel, while the Gold is better for everyday spending. However, the Green does earn 3 points per dollar spent at restaurants, including takeout and delivery.

It has an annual fee of $150, and offers the following:

• $100 annual credit for CLEAR®.
• $100 credit for lounge access through LoungeBuddy.
• 3 points per dollar spent on travel and transit.

Citi Prestige

The Citi Prestige has a higher annual fee of $495. It’s earns 5 points per dollar spent on dining, which is a strong reward rate. It also comes with many benefits, such as the following:

• 5 points per dollar spent on travel.
• 3 points per dollar spent on hotels and cruise lines.
• Twice per year, you’ll get a complimentary 4th-night free benefit.
• Global Entry or TSA PreCheck application fee credit.
• $250 annual travel credit.
• Complimentary Priority Pass Select membership.

Hilton Honors Aspire

For a top of the line hotel co-branded card, the Hilton Honors Aspire credit card is one of the best in the market. It has an annual fee of $450, and includes the following benefits:

• 14 points per dollar spent on Hilton purchases.
• 7 points per dollar spent on dining and select travel purchases.
• 3 points per dollar spent on all other purchases.
• Complimentary Hilton Honors Diamond Status.
• One free weekend night each year.
• $250 Hilton resort statement credit.
• $250 airline fee credit.
• $100 Hilton on-property credit.
• Complimentary Priority Pass Select membership.

Capital One Savor® Rewards

At an annual fee of $95, the Capital One Savor® Rewards card doesn’t earn points. Instead, you’ll earn 4% cash-back on dining purchases, which is more beneficial to some people because you can spend the cash on anything.

You’ll also earn 4% cash-back on entertainment purchases, and 2% cash-back on groceries.

Chase Sapphire Reserve or Preferred

Both Chase Sapphire cards are exceptional. The Reserve has an annual fee of $550, and the Preferred is $95.

The Chase Sapphire Reserve earns 3 points per dollar spent on dining, while the Preferred earns 2 points per dollar spent.

They both earn Chase Ultimate Rewards, which is a valuable points currency because when you redeem the points through the portal, you’ll get 25% more value with the Preferred, and 50% more with the Reserve.

Additionally, the Chase Sapphire Reserve offers a $300 annual travel credit, complimentary Priority Pass Select membership, and Global Entry or TSA PreCheck application fee credit.

Frequently asked questions

Conclusion

If your spending regularly revolves around dining and groceries, the American Express® Gold Card is fantastic. It’s also considered a mid-priced card, as the annual fee isn’t as high as other premium cards. The Amex Gold also completes the perfect Amex Trio with the Platinum, and Blue Business card.

More resources:

• Citi Prestige review
• Capital One Venture review
• What does APR stand for?

Photo courtesy of American Express.