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Based on our review methodology, the American Express® Gold card scored 3.8 out of 5. The company scored best in the security category because it takes many steps to protect cardholder data.
The company earned average scores in the rates and fees and customer service categories. While the American Express® Gold Card doesn’t charge foreign transaction fees, it has a high annual fee, and many other costs are on par with other cards in the same category. Plus, while the card issuer provides 24/7 customer service through multiple channels, it has an overall negative reputation on platforms such as Trustpilot and the Better Business Bureau (BBB).
In the sections below, we dig into the details behind the scores we gave in each category.
Here’s the card’s fee schedule:
Annual fee: $325 See Rates & Fees
Cash advance fee: The greater of $10 or 5% of the advance amount
Late or returned payment fee: $40
Foreign transaction fee: $0
Annual fee for additional cards: $0 (up to five cards)
The Gold Card doesn’t offer a 0% promotional annual percentage rate (APR). If you carry a balance from month to month, it will be subject to the Pay Over Time APR of 20.24%-29.24%. If you miss a payment due date, your account may be subject to a 29.99% penalty APR until you make six consecutive on-time payments. Cash advance APR is 29.49%.
The American Express® Gold Card has many features and benefits. Here they are at a glance:
You can earn points for using your card as follows:
4x points at restaurants worldwide (capped at $50,000 in spend), then 1X points for the rest of the year.
4x points at U.S. supermarkets (capped at $25,000 in spend), then 1X points for the rest of the year.
3x points on flights booked directly via an airline or American Express® Travel
2x points on prepaid hotels and other eligible travel expenses booked through American Express® Travel
1x points on all other eligible purchases
Points may be worth up to $0.01 each, depending on how you redeem them. Let’s say you want to redeem 10,000 points. You could get:
Up to $100 in gift cards.
Up to $100 to book travel.
$70-$100 to pay at checkout.
$60 in statement credit.
You’ll generally get the most bang for your buck if you redeem your points to cover travel expenses or obtain certain gift cards. Redeeming your points for statement credit nearly cuts their value in half.
Members can earn statement credits when they use their card to make purchases at select partners. Credits include:
Dunkin credit: Up to $84 per year ($7 per month)
Resy credit: Up to $100 per year ($50 semiannually)
Dining credit: Up to $120 per year ($10 per month)
You can also receive up to $10 per month ($120 annually) in Uber Cash when you add your Gold Card to your account and use it to pay for your ride or delivery.
Gold cardholders also have access to several travel-related benefits, including:
The Hotel Collection: If you book two or more nights at a participating hotel via American Express® Travel, you can receive up to a $100 credit towards eligible charges* with every booking of two nights or more through AmexTravel.com. *Eligible charges vary by property.”
Global Assist® Hotline: If you’re more than 100 miles from home and experience a problem, you can call the hotline 24/7. Assistance may include emergency cash wires, referrals to medical or legal professionals, or help with lost luggage.
Baggage insurance: If you pay for your entire fare with your Gold Card and your baggage is lost, damaged, or stolen, you may be eligible for up to $1,250 in coverage for your carry-on and up to $500 in coverage for your checked luggage (in excess of the coverage provided by the common carrier).
Car rental insurance: If you pay with your Gold Card and decline the rental company’s collision damage waiver (CDW), you may be covered if the vehicle is stolen or damaged. Liability coverage is not included.
Your Gold Card features a few other perks, such as:
Events with Amex™: You’ll have special access to sporting, musical, and theatrical event tickets.
Purchase protection: If an item you purchased with your card gets lost, stolen, or damaged within 90 days of when you bought it, you may be eligible for reimbursement (up to $10,000 per covered item and $50,000 in a calendar year).
Extended warranty: Items purchased with your card may be eligible for an additional year of protection beyond the original manufacturer’s warranty. (The original warranty must be five years or less). Coverage is limited to the value of the purchase up to a maximum of $10,000 per item and $50,000 in a calendar year.
Send and split: You can send money to loved ones without paying the Venmo or PayPal credit card fee. You can also split purchases and receive payments from others directly to your card as a statement credit.
The American Express® Gold Card doesn’t have a set spending limit. Instead, the amount you can charge to your account adapts based on your purchasing habits, payment history, and credit standing.
You can pay your American Express® Gold Card bill in three different ways:
In full
Pay Over Time
Plan It®
Paying in full each month helps you save money in interest, but if that isn’t possible, you can spread your payments over multiple billing cycles.
Any balance you carry over month to month is subject to your Pay Over Time APR (20.24%-29.24%) and Pay Over Time spending limit. While your account has no overall spending limit, American Express® will cap the amount you can borrow beyond your current billing cycle.
When you make a purchase of $100 or more, you can set up a Plan It® payment plan of three to 24 equal monthly installments. Your Gold card allows you to have up to ten plans at a time. Plans are subject to a monthly fee based on your selected repayment term. You can get an idea of what your fee would be by using the Plan It® Pre-Purchase Calculator.
American Express® takes data security seriously. Here are some of the things the card issuer does to keep your personal and financial information safe:
Uses SafeKey to verify your identity when you’re shopping online (may require you to enter an emailed or texted code, tap an app notification, or scan your face or fingerprint)
Monitors your account continuously for suspicious activity
Sends alerts via email, text, or mobile app when unusual spending is detected
Makes it easy to report fraud online or by phone
Complies with Payment Card Industry Data Security Standards
Plus, when you add your American Express® Gold Card to your digital wallet, your account details don’t get stored on your device.
American Express® makes it easy to learn about the company's credit cards. You can find a clear rundown of the benefits and costs of each card on the issuer’s website.
Unfortunately, American Express® doesn’t disclose its qualification criteria publicly. A customer service representative also couldn’t provide that information via phone.
You can apply for the card online. The one-page application is simple and asks questions about the things you’d expect, like your identity and income.
Filling out the application results in a soft inquiry on your credit report. Your credit score won’t be impacted unless you’re approved for and accept the card.
If you’re approved, you may be able to receive an instant card number to use virtually. The company will mail your physical card within five to seven days of application approval.
Once you’re a cardholder, you can manage your account via the American Express® mobile app, available for both iOS and Android devices. You can use the app to:
See your balance, available credit, and payment due
Make a payment
Track rewards
Find special offers
Freeze your card or request a replacement
The app is highly rated by Apple device users (4.9 out of 5 stars) and reasonably well-rated by Android device users (3.9 out of 5 stars). Some reviewers praised the app for being helpful and user-friendly. However, others noted that a recent update made the app less effective.
You can get in contact with an American Express® member service representative 24/7 in three different ways:
By phone – 1-800-528-4800 (line for existing cardholders)
Online
Via the mobile app
You must be logged into your account or mobile app to initiate a chat with a representative. I couldn't test these contact methods since I’m not an American Express® customer.
However, I did call the number for potential credit card applicants – 1-888-297-1244. Representatives are available on this line from 8a to 11p EST, seven days a week.
Initially, I was placed into an automated system, but after responding to a couple of easy prompts, I got connected with a representative within one minute. The person I spoke with was friendly and answered all of my questions.
They were ready to help me apply for the account then and there or help me find a card that better met my needs. The call was overall a positive experience.
We spoke with two current American Express® Gold cardholders – certified financial planner (CFP®) and owner of The Ways to Wealth, R.J. Weiss, and CFP® and owner of Arch Financial Planning, LLC, Cecil Staton – to hear their opinion.
On Membership Rewards® points:
Weiss said, “I've had the Gold Card for a few years now. As a family of five, groceries are one of our largest monthly expenses, so getting 4X on grocery store spending and being able to transfer points to travel partners makes the card worth it for our household.”
Staton shared a similar thought, “As an American Express® Gold cardholder, my favorite perk is the increased earning categories when spending on the card. I justify yearly card expenses by putting dining and groceries on the card. This card would be best utilized by someone who wants to maximize the points earned for every dollar spent on groceries and dining.”
On statement credits:
“I find that the Uber credit, as well as the Resy credit, are really easy to use, which is a positive and helps offset the annual fee. However, I've rarely used the other credits, such as the Dunkin or Dining credit,” said Weiss.
Staton advised, “This card would not be suitable for someone who doesn't want to keep track of using all the benefits before expiration. Currently, you have to keep track of an Uber, Dunkin, dining, and Resy credit that is used or lost.”
We also checked Reddit to see what other cardholders think. In general, their experience aligns with Weiss and Staton’s.
The card may be worthwhile if you frequently use it at restaurants or grocery stores. However, it’s inconvenient to keep track of the different statement credits.
While some cardholders are satisfied, American Express® doesn’t have the best reputation online. On Trustpilot, the card issuer has earned 1.4 out of 5 stars across 4,500 reviews, with 79% of reviewers giving the company one star.
The company doesn’t fare better on the BBB website. American Express® is not BBB accredited, has an F rating from the platform, and has earned just 1.1 out of 5 stars from reviewers.
The BBB noted that it only publishes 20% of the grievances lodged against the company due to complaint volume. In addition, as of January 16, 2025, American Express® was court-ordered to pay $108.7 million in civil penalties for allegedly engaging in deceptive marketing practices.
Please note: We have contacted the American Express® public relations department regarding these issues and are awaiting comments from a representative.
Amex Gold | Amex Platinum | |
Annual fee | $325 | $695 See Rates & Fees |
Base rewards |
|
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APR | See Pay Overtime APR | See Pay Overtime APR |
Sign-on bonus | 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. | Earn 80,000 Membership Rewards® Points after you spend $8,000 on eligible purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership |
The American Express® Gold is likely a good fit if you want a card that generously rewards you for food purchases and gives you a solid amount of points if you use it to book travel. The American Express® Platinum is probably the better option if you want a true travel rewards card. It offers a lucrative rewards structure for booking excursions and a long list of perks that enhance and protect your journeys.
We do extensive research about the card before writing our review. Here’s some of what we consider:
Rates and fees: What are the costs associated with having the card? Do the benefits of the card outweigh the expense of keeping it?
Features and benefits: What rewards can you earn for using the card? What other perks can you access?
Security: Does the card issuer take data security seriously? What steps does the company take to keep your information safe?
User experience: Is the card easy to learn about, apply for, and use? Can you access your account via a mobile app?
Customer service: How easy is it to get help with your account? Does the card issuer have a good reputation?
We give the card a one to five rating in each of the above categories, with five being the best and one being the worst. Then, we calculate the average of the five ratings to arrive at the Editor’s Score.
Despite the high annual fee, the American Express® Gold is worth it in the first year if you earn the welcome bonus (valued at up to $1,000, depending on how you redeem the points). You can also get a solid return on investment in subsequent years if you fully use the card’s other benefits.
For instance, the Dunkin, Resy, and dining statement credits and Uber Cash give you $424 annually. Then, if you earn Membership Rewards® or file a baggage insurance or extended warranty claim, you can come out even further ahead (assuming you don’t pay interest on your purchases).
American Express® doesn’t publicly disclose its qualification criteria for the Gold Card (or any card). However, based on other sources, you need a good to excellent credit score to get approved, making the card harder to obtain than an account designed for borrowers with poor or fair credit.
Yes, the American Express® Gold Card is made with metal. You can choose a gold or rose gold colored card if you’re approved for an account.
It’s unclear how much income you need to qualify for an American Express® Gold Card because the card issuer doesn’t publicly disclose that information. However, you should ideally earn enough to pay off your monthly card balance. That way, you can avoid paying interest.
Disclosure: Terms apply to American Express benefits and offers. Enrollment may be required for select American Express benefits and offers. Visit americanexpress.com to learn more.
