Is The Amex Gold Card Worth $325? 4x Points & $424 In Credits Says Yes

The American Express® Gold Card (application) has a $325 annual fee (Rates & Fees), which is obviously on the steep side. Fortunately the “worth it” question on the card is pretty easy to answer. Almost everyone eats, and the bonus points at restaurants and U.S. supermarkets is easy to use, and those represent real bonus categories.

However, the real question is whether you actually capture most of the more than $400 in annual credits the card uses to offset that fee — or whether they quietly expire as a coupon book you forgot about.

So rather than re-listing the card’s perks (the full Amex Gold Card review covers those), this is a first-person accounting of what I’ve actually earned and redeemed: which credits I capture every month without thinking, which ones take effort, which I forfeit, and whether the math still works for me.

Link: Learn more about the American Express® Gold Card

My running tally so far on the Amex Gold

Before getting into individual categories and credits on the Amex Gold Card, here’s where I am on the math over the past year at the time of writing:

• So far I’ve paid a $325 annual fee (Rates & Fees) (I won’t be factoring the welcome offer into the math, since obviously that makes the card more than worth it in the first year)
• I’ve used the $120 in Uber Cash, the $100 in Resy credits, and $30 worth of the dining credits, which has gotten me $250 in value back; however, I’ve had a harder time maximizing all the dining credits, and have struggled with remembering to use the Dunkin’ credits
• My family spends a lot on food (between dining out and going to the grocery store), so we’ve earned a lot of points thanks to the 4x points categories

Quite honestly, the math on this card has worked out quite well for me. I don’t want to say I’m coming out ahead on the Amex Gold Card purely in terms of the card’s credits, but they greatly help offset the annual fee, and then the 4x points is what seals the deal on this card being worthwhile. And if I could just remember to be a little more consistent with using the dining credits or using the Dunkin’ credits at all, I’d be coming out even further ahead with this product.

The welcome offer makes the first year easy

The Amex Gold Card has an improved welcome offer where you can earn a bonus as high as 100,000 Membership Rewards points after spending $8,000 within the first six months. Welcome offers vary and you may not be eligible for an offer. I value Membership Rewards points at 1.7 cents each, so to me those 100,000 points are worth $1,700 (assuming that’s what you’re eligible for).

With a full six months to hit the spending requirement — a little over $1,000 per month — this should be easy enough for most people to complete. And because of Amex’s “apply with confidence” feature, there won’t be a hard pull unless you accept the offer.

When I applied for the card, the welcome offer was “only” 60,000 points, so this is quite a bit better. I received instant approval on the card. I should also emphasize that the product isn’t available to those who currently have the card, or those who have had the card (or previous versions of the card) in the past.

On top of that, you may not be eligible for the welcome offer on this card if you have or have had American Express Platinum Card® (application). That’s why I always recommend applying for the Gold before the Platinum, since that will allow you to eventually earn the welcome offer on both cards.

I’ve of course already redeemed a lot of the points earned from the welcome offer on the card, including for a flight in Lufthansa first class, which I booked with Air Canada Aeroplan points (moved over from Amex).

The earning categories are the easiest part of the card

This is where the Amex Gold Card really becomes exciting, and where the personal version of the card is nicely differentiated from the business version of the card — the bonus categories are broad, everyday, and hard not to use. The card offers:

• 5x Membership Rewards points on prepaid hotel stays booked through Amex Travel
• 4x points at restaurants worldwide, plus takeout and delivery in the U.S., on up to $50,000 in purchases annually
• 4x points at U.S. supermarkets, on up to $25,000 in purchases annually
• 3x points on flights booked directly with airlines or through amextravel.com

Based on my valuations, that’s like an 8.5% return on prepaid hotel stays, a 6.8% return at restaurants and at U.S. supermarkets, and a 5.1% return on eligible flights. The 4x dining and 4x supermarket categories are the two that matter for most people, and they’re genuinely best-in-class.

This post made me actually audit how much spending I’ve been putting on this card, and it’s not pretty… yow, food is expensive, especially when you add two little kids to the equation! I’ll simply say that I’ve earned six figures worth of points from the 4x categories on this card.

To add two honest caveats on the earning structure, from the review:

• The 5x points on prepaid hotels through Amex Travel generally isn’t worth it, because you usually forfeit loyalty points and elite benefits with your preferred hotel program when you book that way, which is potentially quite an opportunity cost
• The supermarket category excludes superstores and warehouse clubs, so don’t expect 4x points at Sam’s Club, for example

Eligibility is always determined by how the merchant is categorized, so some places you’d consider a restaurant or grocery store may not code that way, and that’s something to be aware of. It’s certainly an issue I’ve faced a few times with the card, where it didn’t code exactly as I expected.

For example, you typically expect a coffee shop to code as a restaurant for these purposes, but I’ve had a few that didn’t code that way. Fortunately I’m not spending a fortune at coffee shops, so it’s not a huge deal.

The credits, ranked by how easy they actually are to use

Here’s the heart of the “worth it” question. The Amex Gold Card offers statement credits that could save you up to $424 per year, more than offsetting the annual fee (Enrollment is required for select benefits). But they’re fragmented across several buckets, most of them monthly use-it-or-lose-it, so the headline number and the number you actually capture can be very different. Here’s how each has worked for me, ranked from easiest to hardest to redeem.

1. The up to $120 Uber Cash (easiest, good as cash)

Amex Gold cardmembers receive a $10 Uber Cash credit every calendar month, valid toward Uber and Uber Eats purchases in the United States. An Amex Card must be selected as the payment method for your Uber or Uber Eats transaction to redeem the Amex Uber Cash benefit

This is the credit I capture most reliably, because it’s effectively cash toward something almost everyone uses — a ride or food delivery. Even if you don’t take Ubers, the credit works on Uber Eats.

Personally, I generally use Lyft for rideshare and Uber Eats for food delivery, so I easily capture the full value of this credit each month on food orders alone. I wish I didn’t use Uber Eats so much that I consider it to be “good as cash,” but that’s the current reality.

2. The up to $100 Resy credit (easy with a little effort)

Amex Gold cardmembers receive a semi-annual Resy credit — a $50 credit in January through June, and a $50 credit in July through December — valid at eligible U.S. Resy restaurants, Resy.com, and in the mobile Resy app.

Because it’s semi-annual rather than monthly, it’s lower maintenance, but it requires you to actually dine at a Resy restaurant in each half of the year — which is easy in a major city and harder elsewhere.

As someone who lives in Miami, there’s absolutely no shortage of Resy restaurants, so I get full value out of this with minimal effort. Fortunately whatever part of the meal isn’t covered by the credit still earns 4x points. So over the past year, I’ve gotten the full value out of this… yay!

3. The up to $120 dining credit (medium, a struggle for me)

Amex Gold cardmembers receive a $10 monthly dining credit, for a total of up to $120 each year, valid for purchases with Grubhub (including Seamless), Buffalo Wild Wings, Five Guys, The Cheesecake Factory, and Wonder. Only purchases in the United States qualify, and you’re limited to a single credit no matter how many authorized users you have.

The catch is that it’s tied to a specific list of merchants, so it’s only “easy” if one of those fits your routine. Grubhub is the flexible one for most people.

It goes without saying we all have different spending patterns. Personally, I sort of struggle with the credit. I don’t remember the last time I went to a Buffalo Wild Wings, Five Guys, or The Cheesecake Factory (nothing against them, they’re just not near me), and I don’t even know what Wonder is. So that leaves Grubhub.

I try to use the dining credit on Grubhub whenever I can, but to be honest, many months I forget. That’s because Uber Eats and DoorDash are the primary delivery apps I use. The $10 isn’t necessarily that huge of an incentive to remember, which is why it sometimes slips my mind.

4. The up to $84 Dunkin’ credit (hardest, unless you’re a regular)

Amex Gold cardmembers receive a $7 monthly Dunkin’ credit, earned after using your enrolled card to pay at more than 9,000 Dunkin’ locations nationwide.

This is the most polarizing credit on the card. If there’s a Dunkin’ on your commute, it’s basically free coffee. If there isn’t, it’s $84 of the headline credit total that you may very well forfeit — and it’s worth subtracting from the card’s advertised value when you do your own math.

I have read that a $7 per month reload would trigger the credit as well, so that you could accrue the credit. I probably should’ve been taking advantage of that all along, but this is also where “credit card fatigue” kicks in, and I just forget to even focus on this.

After all, on some level this credit card game is supposed to be fun, rather than just spending every month chasing dozens and dozens of credits. Or maybe I just have too many cards? 😉 So yeah, unfortunately I’ve been losing $84 per year in value with this credit by not taking advantage of it.

Amex Offers and Hotel Collection: nice to have, not why you get the card

Two more perks on the Amex Gold Card are worth a brief mention, because they round out the card without being the reason to get it.

First, Amex Offers. One of the great features of Amex cards is access to Amex Offers, which provides savings or bonus points on purchases with all kinds of retailers. The more Amex cards you have, the more offers you’ll have access to, and they could save you hundreds of dollars per year.

For example, I recently had an Amex Offers deal for 1,200 bonus points when spending $150 with Amazon, and that could be used up to three times. Since I shop on Amazon all the time, that’s like 3,600 points for “free,” as I see it.

Second, The Hotel Collection. For staying two or more nights at select luxury hotels, you can receive extra benefits through The Hotel Collection, including a $100 hotel credit and a room upgrade if available. This is different than Amex Fine Hotels + Resorts®, which requires having a Platinum Card.

I can’t say that I’ve used this, because when it come to Amex’s hotel programs, I typically gravitate toward FHR.

No foreign transaction fees, so it travels well

The Amex Gold Card has no foreign transaction fees (Rates & Fees), so you can use it for purchases globally — and because the 4x dining category applies at restaurants worldwide, this is genuinely one of the better cards to carry abroad for meals. Just remember the 4x supermarket category is U.S.-only, so the grocery bonus doesn’t follow you overseas.

I use this card all the time for dining abroad, and it’s a good way to maximize rewards. For example, on my recent trip to Thailand, I used the Amex Gold Card for all my dining outside hotels, which included some great meals.

Where the math could break down for you

I think the Amex Gold Card is a product that has bonus categories that are about as well rounded as one could imagine, in terms of appealing to the average consumer. Everyone eats, and this card is great for those people, whether you get your food at restaurants or supermarkets.

I will say, the math on this card may break down for you if you fall into one of the following two categories:

• You struggle to actually use much of the $424 in credits, because after all, that helps a lot with offsetting the card’s annual fee, and making the math otherwise work
• You don’t spend a lot on the categories eligible for bonus points; some people don’t eat out a lot and primarily shop at Costco or Sam’s Club, in which case this might not be a great fit

Personally, the math on this card is working great for me. I do wish I more consistently maximized the credits, as I do a pretty good job, but not a great job. Based on my own usage patterns, I basically view this as a a card costing me well under $100 per year (after subtracting the value of the credits), and then I get a very well balanced return in some bonus categories for that.

I guess I just need to do a better job of actually using those Dunkin’ credits, and at least reloading my account.

Is the Amex Gold Card worth it for me right now?

For me, the Amex Gold Card is proving to be a keeper, and I plan to renew on my account anniversary, while paying the annual fee. The rewards structure on this card is excellent and simple, while the credits help make this an affordable card to hold onto. So if you ask me, the card is a clear “yes” if:

• You spend a meaningful amount on dining and/or U.S. supermarkets — the 4x there is best-in-class and easy to hit
• You’ll realistically use the monthly Uber Cash and semi-annual Resy credits, not just intend to
• At least one of the dining and Dunkin’ credits fits your real life (you frequently make purchases with eligible dining partners, or there’s a Dunkin’ you actually visit)
• You want a Membership Rewards “hub” card for transferring points to airline and hotel partners, rather than cash back

If you’d forfeit two or more of the credits, do the math on the credits you’ll actually capture before counting the full $424 — the card can still win on dining and supermarket earning alone, but the honest number is lower than the headline.

Bottom line

The Amex Gold Card is one of American Express’ best rewards cards for earning points, with 4x points on dining and U.S. supermarkets, which is hard for any other card to beat. The earning side is the easy part — almost everyone can use it.

Whether the card is worth its $325 annual fee on an ongoing basis comes down to one honest question: how many of the up to $424 in annual credits will you actually capture? The credit is real — up to $120 for dining, up to $120 in Uber Cash, up to $100 with Resy, and up to $84 with Dunkin’ — but it’s fragmented, and the gap between the headline and your real capture rate is the whole decision.

It’s easiest to make the math work if you actually spend a substantial amount on the 4x points categories, since the value of that will quickly make a material difference to your points earning.

What’s your take on the value proposition of the Amex Gold Card? Which credits do you actually capture each year, and which ones do you forfeit?

The following links will direct you to the rates and fees for mentioned American Express Cards. These include: American Express® Gold Card (Rates & Fees).