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. “All information about the American Express® Green Card and Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Credit Card have been collected independently by Amber on Points. American Express® Green Card and Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Credit Cards are no longer available through Amber on Points.”

If you started your points journey with Chase and you’re wondering whether it’s time to branch out, the American Express® Gold Card is one of the most popular next steps.

It’s often considered the easiest way to enter the American Express Membership Rewards® ecosystem without jumping straight into premium annual fees.

Let’s chat about what makes it valuable, what rules you need to know, and how to maximize it.

Why the Amex Gold Is So Popular

The American Express® Gold Card hits a sweet spot for many families because it:

• Earns strong rewards on everyday spending (hello 4x on groceries and dining, I’m looking at you)
• Comes with monthly credits that can offset the annual fee
• Gives access to airline and hotel transfer partners
• Has a lower annual fee than the Platinum

For many households, this becomes a long-term “daily driver” card. Even with the $325 Annual Fee (Rates and Fees), this card can make up its fee quickly in credits and earnings.

Welcome Bonus: What to Expect

The Amex Gold frequently offers strong welcome bonuses, but they vary.

You may see language like:

• “Earn as high as 60,000–90,000 Membership Rewards points”
• “Earn as high as 90,000+ points”

The phrase “as high as” matters.

Sometimes the offer will include a base bonus after meeting the minimum spend requirement. Sometimes it includes additional points for spending in specific categories (like dining).

If this isn’t confusing enough, the welcome offer can vary based off of what browser you’re in or if you’re searching in incognito mode. It can even vary based off of using a desktop or mobile site. You can open this link American Express Gold incognito or copy/paste it into another browser if you don’t get the highest offer!

Credits and Perks: How to Offset the Annual Fee

Remember that semi-hefty annual fee? Lets see what you’re getting with it.

• 4X at restaurants worldwide (up to $50,000/year)
• 4X at U.S. supermarkets (up to $25,000/year)
• 3X on flights booked directly with airlines or through American Express Travel.
• 2X on prepaid hotels and other eligible purchases made through American Express Travel
• 1X on everything else

Since groceries and dining are a significant part of the budget for families, the Amex Gold card can be a simple way to turbo charge your points earnings.

The Gold card includes monthly statement credits that can help offset the annual fee if used consistently.

These often include:

• $120 Uber Cash ($10 credits monthly)
• $120 Dining credit ($10 monthly at Grubhub, The Cheesecake Factory, Goldbelly, Wine.com, and Five Guys)
• $100 Resy Credit ($50 Semi annually)
• $84 Dunkin credit ($7 monthly)

These offers can sound kind of….limited for a lot of people. So let’s take a look at some ways to maximize these credits:

• ☐$120 Uber Cash: This $10 monthly credit works with UberEats also. I typically place an order in the app for pick up (to avoid fees and tip). Chipotle, Jimmy Johns and Qdoba have all been go to’s for our family. It’s not a free meal. But its a meal we likely would have bought any way – we’re just getting a decent discount on it now.
• ☐$120 Dining Credit: If you live near a Cheesecake Factory, head in for a slice of cheesecake once a month. Or better yet, pick up a gift card in store to use at a later date. Grubhub works similar to UberEats – in that you can place an order for pick up once a month or so. If you live near a Five Guys and happen to have teenagers in your home, well, I haven’t met a teenager that doesn’t love a cheeseburger and fries! I typically use my $10 monthly Uber Credit AND $10 monthly credit at the same time. I’ll put in an order at Chipotle on UberEats and an order on my GrubHub app simultaneously and run in and grab both to-go orders. ✅✅
• ☐$100 Resy Credit: This $50 semi annual credit can be a little tougher to use. If you’re in a larger city, there may be several restaurants to choose from. In smaller cities it may be harder to maximize this credit. If the latter is your situation, I’d look at upcoming vacation destinations and see if there’s a place to use it on vacation. Additionally, sometimes you can buy gift cards at your local Resy platform restaurants and stack them to use at a later time.
• ☐$84 Dunkin Credit: The easiest way to use this is to swing in and pick up your favorite donut and coffee once a month. Alternatively, you can load $7.00 to your app once a month and build up a balance for a future purchase. If you don’t want to have to remember to manually add $7.00 each month, you can set your app to auto-add $10 each month (the smallest automatic denomination). Side note: Baskin Robbins (yes the ice cream store) is owned by Dunkin and you often can pay with all those credits you’re accumulating in your Dunkin app. Hello, ice cream birthday cake! I personally have a reoccuring reminder on my phone to add the $7 credit to my app once a month. Then when I need to take donuts to a soccer game or school party, I use my stored up credit. NBD.

Earning Membership Rewards: Why They’re Powerful

Membership Rewards points are valuable because of the variety of airline and hotel partners they transfer to. Using them for international flights is a favorite among many families!

You can also redeem them for statement credits or use them in American Express Travel®. But I suggest transferring them partner airlines or hotels.

American Express Transfer Partners:

• Aer Lingus AerClub 1:1
• Aeromexico Rewards 1:1.6
• Air Canada Aeroplan 1:1
• Air France/KLM Flying Blue 1:1
• ANA Mileage Club 1:1
• Avianca Lifemiles 1:1
• Cathay Pacific 1:1
• Choice Privileges 1:1
• Delta SkyMiles® 1:1
• Emirates Skywards® 1:0.8
• Etihad Guest 1:1
• Hilton Honors 1:2
• Iberia Plus 1:1
• JetBlue TrueBlue^® 250:200
• Marriott Bonvoy® 1:1
• Qantas Frequent Flyer 500:500
• Qatar Airways Privilege Club 1:1
• Singapore Airlines | KrisFlyer 1:1
• The British Airways Club 1:1
• Virgin Atlantic Flying Club 1:1

One of my favorite ways to redeem Amex points is by transferring to Air France to fly to Europe. You can read more about Air France Flying Blue here. Also, if you see a great Hilton transfer bonus, that’s a great time to transfer points to Hilton, since they already transfer at a 1:2 ratio!

The “Move Up, Not Down” Rule

This is one of the most important things to understand with Amex cards.

American Express applies what’s commonly referred to as “family language” rules between certain cards.

In simple terms:

If you’ve had the American Express Platinum Card®, you may not be eligible for the welcome bonus on the Gold.

However:
You can usually go from Gold → Platinum and still receive the Platinum welcome bonus.

Think of it as:
You can move up the ladder.
You typically can’t move down and get another welcome offer.

Because of this, many people strategically:

1. Start with the Gold
2. Later apply for the Platinum

Order matters.

How to Keep Your Points Alive If You Close the Card

Okay friends, listen up. This is critical.

Membership Rewards points stay active as long as you have at least one open Membership Rewards-earning card.

If you close your only MR card, your points can be forfeited.

Options to protect your points:

1. Open or keep another Membership Rewards card (even a no-annual-fee option if available).
2. Transfer your points to airline or hotel partners before closing.
3. Downgrade (if eligible) instead of fully closing.

Always have a plan before canceling.

I really like the The Blue Business® Plus Credit Card from American Express. It’s a no-annual fee card and because it’s a business card, it doesn’t count against your 5/24 status. Amex is fairly generous at extending credit cards to small businesses, so it’s a great bank to dive into business cards with. (And if you’re not sure if you qualify for a business, read this article to see if you already have one).

Also, American Express pools all your Membership Rewards into one pile. So if you have multiple cards, you don’t need to worry about transferring points from card to card. They all live in your Amex account. I wish all banks did this.

How to Maximize the Gold Card

Here are simple strategies to get the most out of it:

✔ Use it as the daily driver for dining (to maximize monthly credits) and grocery spending
✔ Stack offers with Amex Offers inside your account
✔ Pair it with a Platinum later for premium benefits
✔ Transfer points strategically for flights

Additionally, having a Membership Rewards earning card allows you to set your Rakuten shopping portal to earn Amex Points. This can be an extremely lucrative way to earn lots of Amex points. You can read all about how to set it up here.

Amex Application Tips (Especially If You’re Coming from Chase)

If you’re new to American Express, here’s what to know:

1. Amex Has “Once Per Lifetime” Language

Most Amex cards include language stating you can only earn the welcome bonus once per lifetime per card.

Make sure:

• You’ve never had that specific card before
• You are eligible before applying
• You’re getting the best possible welcome bonus you can before applying

Keep in mind that Amex seems to consider a lifetime to be about 5-7 years – meaning that you may be eligible for a bonus again if it’s been that long since you closed the previous card.

2. Watch for the Pop-Up

Amex may show a “pop-up” telling you that you’re not eligible for the welcome offer.

If you see it:
Do not proceed. I mean, unless you really want the card with out the welcome bonus. In which case, proceed.

3. Amex Is Often More Approval-Friendly

Many people find Amex approvals more predictable than Chase once they’re established. Plus, once you are established with Amex, it’s likely that subsequent card applications won’t be subjected to a hard pull on your credit. My FAVORITE thing is that AMEX cards don’t do a hard pull on your credit until after you decide if you want to accept the offer. I love that.

4. You Don’t Need to Rush

Unlike Chase’s 5/24 rule, American Express does not have the same strict limitation structure.

That said, strategy still matters. Remember, move UP the chain, not DOWN the chain.

Conclusion: Is the Amex Gold Right for You?

The American Express Gold Card is often the “gateway” into Membership Rewards — and for many families, it becomes a long-term keeper card.

The key is applying in the right order, maximizing the credits intentionally, and understanding how to protect your points long-term.

If you’ve already mastered Chase, this could be your next smart move into the Amex ecosystem.

As always, I am so grateful when you use my links if you choose to apply. Please let me know if you have any questions! Xo – Amber