Why I’m Keeping My Amex Gold Card Despite the Increased Annual Fee

When I first heard about changes and an increased fee on the American Express^® Gold Card, I immediately made up my mind to cancel the card when the next annual fee rolls around. That should be any day now, since my cardholder anniversary falls around this time of year.

After reading through the new benefits — and learning that I was actually wrong about some of them — I’ve changed my mind about the card. (Yes, you can tell my wife I just admitted I was wrong on something.)

Here’s why I’ve decided to keep my Amex Gold card open, despite the increased $325 annual fee (rates & fees).

Overview of Changes on the Amex Gold Card

The annual fee on the Amex Gold card has increased from $250 to $325 per year (rates & fees). That change is effective immediately for new applicants, and it will take effect for existing cardmembers with cardmember anniversary dates starting in October 2024.

Other major changes include:

• Color Options: Choose either Classic Gold or Rose Gold when applying for the Amex Gold card.
• New $100 Resy Credit: Receive up to $100 in statement credits annually (available as up to $50 each half of the year) when you use your card to dine at U.S. Resy restaurants or make other eligible Resy purchases. You don’t need a Resy account to receive the credits, but enrollment is required.
• New $84 Dunkin’ Credit: Receive up to $84 in statement credits annually (available as up to $7 each month) for purchases at U.S. Dunkin’ locations using your card. Enrollment is required.
• Merchant Update for $120 Dining Credit: Cardholders can receive up to $120 back annually (available as up to $10 per month in statement credits) on eligible purchases at Grubhub, The Cheesecake Factory, Goldbelly, Wine.com, and Five Guys upon enrollment.
• Bonus Earning Cap at Restaurants: Amex Gold cardholders earn 4x Membership Rewards points per dollar spent at U.S. supermarkets — up to $25,000 per year, then 1x. That’s not changing. However, there will be a new annual limit on the 4x earnings at restaurants worldwide. After $50,000 of eligible purchases, the earning rate will drop to 1x.

Benefits That Aren’t Changing

These features of the Amex Gold card aren’t changing:

• Updated Earning Rates: You’ll still earn 3x points per dollar spent on flights purchased directly with the airline or via AmexTravel.com, 2x points on prepaid hotel and other eligible purchases booked through AmexTravel.com, and 1x point on other purchases.
• Monthly Uber Cash: Receive up to $120 annually in Uber Cash (available as $10 in Uber Cash per month) for Uber rides and Uber Eats orders. You’ll receive the monthly Uber Cash after adding your card as the payment method in your Uber account.

Why I’m Keeping My Amex Gold Card Anyway

A $75 increase in the annual fee means you should reevalute the Amex Gold card’s benefits to see what value they provide. What value will I get from the perks? Let’s take a look.

• Restaurant Earning Rate: I won’t come close to spending $50,000 at restaurants in a calendar year, so the new spending cap won’t affect me.
• Change in Dining Credit Partners: I like the addition of Five Guys. I rarely use this perk, and I’ll gain $10 in monthly value.
• Addition of Dunkin’ Credits: This might surprise you, but my nearest Dunkin’ is 15 minutes away by car. That said, I’ll still use this credit here and there when passing a Dunkin’ on the highway or on long layovers at the airport. I’ll give it half the $84 value (so $42) since I might not use it some months.
• Addition of Resy Credit: I was very wrong about how these Resy credits work. When I heard “Resy can help you get hard-to-find reservations,” I assumed Resy only had fancy restaurants — the type I rarely visit. And I assumed you had to pay through Resy for these services, which might include extra fees not found when paying directly at the restaurant. Luckily, that’s not true. There’s a pizza shop a few blocks from my house that’s available on Resy, so this is a happy surprise. I’ll definitely use this benefit and can pay directly with the merchant.

Understanding the Resy benefit — and realizing I was wrong about it — changed my mind about the Amex Gold card. Adding the potential savings on pizza over the next year plus coffee and food each month will overcome the annual fee increase.

There’s also another positive here: My annual fee on this card should hit my account any day now. That means my card will renew at the previous annual fee as existing cardholders will pay the higher annual fee for renewals in October 2024 and beyond.

In all, I’m pretty sure I will keep this card even with the higher price tag, given the value I’ll obtain from the benefits, but I do get another year to make sure I really obtain the value I think I’ll get.

BEST FOR DINING

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American Express^® Gold Card

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The rating for this card has been determined by our own industry experts who know the in's and out's of credit card products. Bonuses, rewards as well as rates and fees are all taken into account. Compensation from the issuer does not affect our rating. We only recommend products we either use ourselves or endorse.

This is the best card for food lovers who dine out at restaurants (worldwide), order take-out and want big rewards at U.S. supermarkets!

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American Express^® Gold Card

This is the best card for food lovers who dine out at restaurants (worldwide), order take-out and want big rewards at U.S. supermarkets!

Welcome Offer

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.

60,000 points

UP's Bonus Valuation*:

$1,200

Annual Fee

$325

APR

See Pay Over Time APR

Credit Recommended

Upgraded Points credit ranges are a variation of FICO^®Score 8, one of many types of credit scores lenders may use when considering your credit cardapplication.

Good to Excellent (670-850)

Why We Like This Card

The American Express^® Gold Card is a game-changer.

With this card, you can earn 4x Membership Rewards points at restaurants, up to $50,000 per calendar year, and you’ll also earn 4x Membership Rewards points at U.S. supermarkets on up to $25,000 per calendar year, then 1x.

There isn’t another card on the market that offers a 1-2 punch like this. Of course, there are several other benefits of the Gold Card as well, including extra monthly dining rewards and more.

Pros & Cons

Pros

• 4x points per dollar at restaurants worldwide, up to $50,000 per calendar year; then 1x thereafter
• 4x points per dollar at U.S. supermarkets, up to $25,000 per calendar year; then 1x thereafter
• 3x points per dollar on flights purchased directly from airlines or at AmexTravel.com

Cons

• $325 annual fee (rates and fees)
• No lounge access

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Card Highlights

• 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 4X Membership Rewards^® points per dollar spent on purchases at restaurants worldwide, on up to $50,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year.
• Earn 4X Membership Rewards^® points per dollar spent at US supermarkets, on up to $25,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year.
• Earn 3X Membership Rewards^® points per dollar spent on flights booked directly with airlines or on AmexTravel.com.
• Earn 2X Membership Rewards^® points per dollar spent on prepaid hotels and other eligible purchases booked on AmexTravel.com.
• Earn 1X Membership Rewards^® point per dollar spent on all other eligible purchases.
• $120 Uber Cash on Gold: Add your Gold Card to your Uber account and each month automatically get $10 in Uber Cash for Uber Eats orders or Uber rides in the U.S., totaling up to $120 per year. Effective 11/8/2024, an Amex Card must be selected as the payment method for your Uber or Uber Eats transaction to redeem the Amex Uber Cash benefit.
• $84 Dunkin' Credit: With the $84 Dunkin' Credit, you can earn up to $7 in monthly statement credits after you enroll and pay with the American Express^® Gold Card at U.S. Dunkin' locations.
• $100 Resy Credit: Get up to $100 in statement credits each calendar year after you pay with the American Express^® Gold Card to dine at U.S. Resy restaurants or make other eligible Resy purchases. That's up to $50 in statement credits semi-annually. Enrollment required.
• $120 Dining Credit: Satisfy your cravings, sweet or savory, with the $120 Dining Credit. Earn up to $10 in statement credits monthly when you pay with the American Express^® Gold Card at Grubhub, The Cheesecake Factory, Goldbelly, Wine.com, and Five Guys. Enrollment required.
• Explore over 1,000 upscale hotels worldwide with The Hotel Collection and receive a $100 credit towards eligible charges with every booking of two nights or more through AmexTravel.com. Eligible charges vary by property.
• No Foreign Transaction Fees.
• Annual Fee is $325.
• Apply with confidence. Know if you're approved for a Card with no impact to your credit score. If you're approved and you choose to accept this Card, your credit score may be impacted.
• Terms Apply.

Financial Snapshot

• APR: See Pay Over Time APR
• Foreign Transaction Fees: None

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Final Thoughts

My initial reaction was to cancel the Amex Gold card, thinking I couldn’t get enough value from the new benefits to justify the increased annual fee. However, understanding how the benefits work — with Resy in particular — changed my mind. I’m keeping my Amex Gold card open for the foreseeable future.