American Express Gold
100,000 points welcome · 5x on hotels (via portal) · $325/yr
The Gold is our #1 pick for dining and groceries because the earn rates are genuinely best in class: 4x at restaurants on up to $50,000 a year and 4x at U.S. supermarkets on up to $25,000, plus 5x on hotels prepaid through Amex Travel and 3x on flights. A 100,000-point bonus after $8,000 in six months is one of the larger offers available and lands it at #5 on our signup bonus list. The $325 annual fee is the honest sticking point, and Amex expects you to cover it with credits rather than points: $120 in Uber Cash, $120 in dining credits at Grubhub, The Cheesecake Factory, Goldbelly, Wine.com, and Five Guys, $84 at Dunkin', and $100 semiannually at Resy restaurants. Those are doled out in $10 and $7 monthly slices at specific merchants and require enrollment, so they only count if you actually spend there each month. If you do not, judge the card on the 4x rates alone and decide whether your grocery and restaurant spending clears $325 of value.
Earn rates & credits
| Category | Rate |
|---|---|
Hotels (via Portal) Hotels prepaid through Amex Travel | 5x |
Dining on first $50,000/yr, then 1x | 4x |
Groceries on first $25,000/yr, then 1x | 4x |
Airlines | 3x |
Travel (via Portal) Prepaid car rentals and cruises booked through AmexTravel.com | 2x |
Everything Else | 1x |
| Benefit | Value |
|---|---|
Uber Cash $10/month in Uber Cash for Uber Eats orders or Uber rides | $10 /mo |
Dining Credit $10/month in statement credits at Grubhub, The Cheesecake Factory, Goldbelly, Wine.com, and Five Guys | $10 /mo |
Dunkin' Credit Up to $7/month in statement credits on eligible purchases at U.S. Dunkin' locations | $7 /mo |
Resy Credit Up to $50 semiannually at U.S. Resy restaurants and other eligible Resy purchases | $50 / 6 mo |
The Hotel Collection Credit $100 credit towards eligible charges at over 1,300 upscale hotels worldwide every time you book through AmexTravel.com or Amex Travel App (requires two-night minimum). | $100 |
| Total annual credits | $424 |
Card details
Regular APR | 19.49%–28.49% variable |
Foreign transaction fee | None |
Approval odds
Product changes
Where cardholders came from before landing on this card, and what they moved it to afterwards. Thicker flows carry a larger share of the changes in that direction.
American Express GoldBased on 1 reported product change. Percentages are shares of each direction, not of all cardholders, and a small sample can swing a long way.