American Express Gold Card Vs. American Express Green Card – Forbes Advisor

By Mireya R. Buchheit On Mar 2, 2022

Earn points for your travel expenses

If you’re looking for a global travel card and what matters most to you is earning the most for your travel purchases, the American Express® Green Card* is hard to beat. The American Express® Green Card* offers 3 points per dollar on restaurant purchases, 3 points per dollar on travel including flights, hotels, public transportation, taxis, tours and ride-sharing services and 1 point per dollar on other purchases. American Express broadly defines Green Card travel categories and includes airfare, hotels, cruises, tours, car rentals, campgrounds, travel purchases on third-party travel websites and travel purchases on amextravel.com in the category.

Occasional lounge access

The American Express® Green Card*up to $100 in LoungeBuddy credits sits in an interesting space for the traveler. Most travelers will either want access to the lounge on every trip or not appreciate it at all. If you are a traveler who appreciates having access to the lounge a few times a year, and you do not otherwise have Priority Pass or an airline lounge access benefit on one of your other cards, you you may be able to get some value out of this lounge access credit.

Travelers who appreciate more frequent lounge access will want to take a look at one of the many cards that offer airline or airport lounge access.

CLEAR Credit

CLEAR can be a great advantage if you’re a frequent flyer, as it allows you to bypass normal security and preclearance lanes at most airports. The American Express® Green Card* offers up to $100 per calendar year in statement credits when you pay for your CLEAR membership with the American Express® Green Card*.

The standard CLEAR membership price is $179 per year. Several premium credit cards offer credit for the full CLEAR membership amount.

Lower annual fees

The annual fee for the is $150, which is lower than the $250 annual fee for the American Express® Gold Card. Although annual fees are easy to compare, you should always weigh the value of bonus categories and benefits such as statement credits when evaluating cards with annual fees. If a credit card is right for you, the value of the benefits you receive may justify the annual fee.

American Express® Green Card

Up to 3 times the reward rate

Earn 3 times more Membership Rewards points on your restaurant purchases; Earn 3X Membership Rewards points on travel including flights, hotels, public transport, taxis,Read more

Welcome bonus

Earn 50,000 points

Regular APR

15.99% – 22.99% variable

Credit score

Excellent/Good (700 – 749)

Why we chose it

With generous rewards on travel, transit and dining purchases, the new American Express® Green Card is an attractive option. That said, the $150 annual fee is a bit on the high side, considering the limited benefits and lack of Gold or Platinum prestige.

Advantages and disadvantages

No foreign transaction fees
Flexible point redemption and transfer options
High reward rates on meals, travel and public transport

High annual fees
Poor base reward rate
Limited features and benefits
No introductory APR offer
No balance transfer option

Card details

Earn 50,000 Membership Rewards® points after spending $2,000 on purchases with your new card in the first 6 months
15.99% – 22.99% Variable APR on purchases
Annual fee: $150
Earn 3x Membership Rewards points at restaurants worldwide, including takeout and delivery
Earn 3x Membership Rewards points on travel including flights, hotels, public transport, taxis, tours and ridesharing services
Earn 1X Membership Rewards points on other purchases
Use Pay With Points for purchases at American Express Travel, Amazon.com, Ticketmaster, Best Buy and other retailers.
AMEX Travel benefits include: $100 CLEAR® Credit, $100 LoungeBuddy Credit, Baggage Insurance Plan, Car Rental Loss Damage Waiver, Global Assist® Hotline, and more.
Enjoy shopping benefits including purchase protection and extended warranty