If you're looking for a statement premium rewards card, it's hard to look past the American Express Preferred Rewards Gold credit card. As you'd expect from a card with this many adjectives in its name, it's a truly premium offering, with meaningful rewards and a hefty annual fee to match. If you're planning to stick with this card once the annual fee kicks in, you could benefit from an additional 5,000 points when you spend in month 15 of your membership.
As such, it's really designed for big-spending customers who are confident they'll not carry a balance from month to month, and who are serious about getting as much as possible from their credit card. For everyone else, there's plenty of other Amex options out there.
There's no getting away from it: a gold Amex is quite a statement. In the Finder offices we call this one the "Am-Flex". If you use your credit card heavily but don't carry a balance from month to month, Amex's Preferred Rewards Gold Card really can offer meaningful benefits – including airport lounge access and reward points by the truckload. Here are the specs in detail:
| Issuer | American Express |
| Network | Amex |
| Representative APR | 88.8% APR (variable) |
| Annual/monthly fees | Year 1 - £0, Year 2 onwards - £195 per annum |
| Loyalty scheme | Points |
| Incentive | New Cardmembers earn 20,000 Membership Rewards® Points when you spend £3,000 in the first 3 months of Cardmembership. T&Cs Apply. UK 18+, subject to status. Get 20% cashback at 1,000+ restaurants until 19 May 2024. |
| Incentive on opening | New Cardmembers earn 20,000 Membership Rewards® Points when you spend £3,000 in the first 3 months of Cardmembership. T&Cs Apply. UK 18+, subject to status. |
| Additional Rewards Info | Access to tickets for must-see music, theatre and film events, often before they go on sale to the general public with American Express Experiences. Travel accident insurance on public transport when tickets are charged on the card. Global Assist support 24/7 when you travel outside of the UK. Eligible for American Express Connect where cardmembers can choose offers from selected retailers to obtain discounts or cashback. Cardmembers are eligible for two £5 vouchers per month (£10 total), when they spend at Deliveroo on their Gold Card. Get 20% cashback at 1,000+ restaurants until 19 May 2024. |
| Lounge access | 4 complimentary Priority Pass airport lounge visits every year to use at over 1,300 airports globally. |
| Purchases | 31% |
| Purchases interest-free period (days) | 56 |
| Balance transfers | 31% |
| Potential costs | 4.0 ★★★★★ |
| Doing its job | 4.5 ★★★★★ |
| Extras | 4.5 ★★★★★ |
| Overall Finder score | 4.0 ★★★★★ |
| Minimum monthly payment | 2% or £25 (whichever is greater) or the total of any interest, default fees and charges, 1/12th of annual fee plus 2% of the outstanding balance. |
| Annual/monthly fees | Year 1 - £0, Year 2 onwards - £195 per annum |
| Balance transfer fee | 3% (min. £3) |
| Foreign usage charge (EU) | 2.99% |
| Foreign usage charge (rest of world) | 2.99% |
| Cash advance fee | 3% (min. £3) |
| Late payment fee | £12 |
| Replacement card fee | £0 |
| Duplicate statement fee | £2 |
| Exceeding limit fee | £0 |
| Additional card fee | £0 |
| Dormancy fee | £0 |
| Minimum Age | 18 |
| Residency | UK resident and has a UK bank or building society account. |
| Availability | Available to new customers |
When we received this card at the Finder office, there were some murmurs of “I thought it would be more… gold”. It’s a sort-of deep gold – less bling than it could have been, but when it catches the light you’ll want your sunnies at the ready.
Plenty of card issuers throw the terms “gold” or “platinum” around without really meaning it, but Amex’s Preferred Rewards Gold Card does stay true to the original concept. It offers meaningful rewards for people who use their credit card heavily and aren’t deterred by an annual fee. This is the network’s preferred card: they’d prefer you to take this one over one of the more entry-level products.
New applicants will benefit from a waived fee in the first year plus a lump sum of Membership Rewards points (subject to a minimum spend) that could potentially be redeemed for a free flight. From then on, it’s points on all purchases, annual anniversary bonuses and ongoing benefits like American Express Experiences. Frequent travellers can take advantage of perks including hotel room or car hire upgrades and airport lounge access.
You can track your spending in real time and watch your points piling up (hopefully!) in Amex’s very respectable mobile app. The app also lets you turn on/off a range of handy alerts – you can get updates whenever a purchase is made, when you’re within a specified amount (you choose the amount) from your credit limit, when your statement is ready and when a payment is due (again, you get to specify how much notice you want). You can also browse and activate offers for nearby merchants.
You can also hook the card up to Apple Pay, or just use Amex Pay if you’re on Android, but in our opinion this is a card that deserves to be seen!
Within a few days of your new card landing you’ll be sent another – your Priority Pass membership card. This is the one you’ll need to get into a lounge (not your credit card – that won’t work). Amex has a network of VIP lounges covering 300+ airports worldwide. Your first four lounge visits each year are on Amex. After that you’ll need to pay a small fee.
We put the lounge access deal to the test at Gatwick’s No.1 lounge and had no problems at all.
Whenever you make purchases on the card, you’ll earn points – one for every pound. You’ll earn double points when you spend in a foreign currency (unfortunately the currency conversion fee of 2.99% will outweigh the effective 1% that you’ll earn in points) or directly with airlines and triple points when you spend through American Express Travel – the company’s in-house travel agency.
As well as all this there’s your hefty welcome bonus and anniversary bonus (both subject to a minimum spend requirement) plus a bonus if you refer a friend and they’re approved.
In terms of redeeming points, American Express Membership Rewards are perhaps the most versatile credit card points going. When you pay online using your card you’ll get the option to cash-in points or in the app you can just pick charges from your statement and pay them with points. Alternatively, you can even switch your points to partner programmes including those of British Airways, Hilton and Virgin Atlantic. You can book a hotel stay, car hire or a flight via the app (using your points or credit or a combination of the two) but be warned: it’s rather clunky.
However we were very impressed with Amex’s customer service, which you can contact if you have any questions about earning, redeeming or converting points. We’ve tested it several times. There’s real humans (!) at the end of the line, and they genuinely do seem to want to help you out and leave a good impression.
For more info on earning and redeeming Amex rewards, we’ve put together an in-depth guide:
Membership Rewards points overview
Rather a lot! You’ll get access to American Express Experiences (discounts on event and film tickets), American Express Offers (discounts and cashback with specific merchants) and more.
There’s also travel accident insurance – although you’ll need to opt in to this one, as it’s not automatic.
Whether or not this card is a smart bet for you will come down to how much you stand to benefit from the card’s introductory and ongoing rewards. If you anticipate carrying a balance from month-to-month, it’s possible that the interest and fees could outweigh the value of the rewards. Big spenders who travel frequently and clear their balance in full each month stand to benefit the most because they’ll hit the minimum spend requirements that lead to lump-sum points bonuses and will also be able to take advantage of the complimentary lounge visits. Realistically, merchant acceptance of Amex remains a bit of an issue (but this is getting better), so your Amex shouldn’t be the only means of payment you carry around day-to-day.
Getting the very best out of this card takes a bit of active engagement on your own part. There’s a fairly mind-blowing spread of perks to be unlocked, and some – like collecting points – don’t require you to do anything other than just use your card. Others – like getting a free bottle of wine on your next meal, cashback at specific stores or a discount on your next gig ticket – require you to have a mooch around the app or to visit the website once in a while. It’s quite fun actually, if you’re into that sort of thing!
Some of the more ruthless credit card users out there might choose to ditch their Gold Amex after the first year, but the ongoing anniversary points bonuses, the complimentary lounge visits in each cardmembership year and the ever-changing partner offers are pretty persuasive reasons not to.
London
I got this card as a financial cushion when I first moved to London after university and started a new job. It’s my first credit card and I pay it off every month. There is an annual fee but I got my first year for free. It can take a day or so for transactions or payments to show up, but the customer service is very good and they get back to you really quickly.
If there's one thing you'd tell a friend who's thinking of getting this, what would it be?
I would recommend this card if you properly take advantage of all the perks and benefits - you can also get special tickets to games and stuff like that.
Provided your device has the tech, you could bypass the password and shave literally a couple of seconds off logging-in.
Once you're logged in, you'll be presented with your current balance.
Want a push notification every time anything gets charged to the card? Prefer to just hear when you're nearing your credit limit? You're in charge.
Browse the discounts or cashback offers Amex has negotiated with its partners in your area.
Bag yourself a lump-sum points bonus. Invite a friend or relative via the app.
You can make manual repayments through American Express's app by logging in to your online banking or over the phone (0800 700 222). Alternatively, you may wish to set up a direct debit.
A direct debit protects you from forgetting to make a repayment and either damaging your credit score, getting hit with a penalty fee (£12) or losing any promotional rates as a result.
You can arrange a direct debit for repayments when you apply for the credit card. The table below shows the options available.
| Minimum amount | Fixed amount | Fixed percentage | Full amount |
|---|---|---|---|
First, you can use Finder's eligibility checker to find out if you'd be likely to get approved for the American Express® Preferred Rewards Gold Credit Card. This won't impact your credit score. If it's good news, you can then proceed to American Express's online application, which takes 10–15 minutes to complete.
As you’d expect, credit limits are tailored to the individual applicant. You can apply for a credit limit increase (or decrease, for that matter) at any time, and again, this will be subject to Amex’s approval.
Approval for any credit card depends on your status. The representative APRs shown represent the interest rate offered to most successful applicants. Depending on your personal circumstances, the APR you're offered may be higher, or you may not be offered credit at all. Fees and rates are subject to change without notice. It's always wise to check the terms of any deal before you borrow. Most of the data in Finder's comparison tables is provided by Moneyfacts.
Yes. While not quite boasting the same benefits as the Platinum card, it does nonetheless come with membership of the Priority Pass programme. Through Priority Pass you'll be able to access over 1,300 airport lounges worldwide. You'll enjoy two complimentary airport lounge visits per membership year, after which each additional visit to a lounge will cost £20. Your Priority Pass membership card will be arrive separately to your Amex card within 28 days, and it's the Priority Pass card (not your Amex) that you'll need to present at the lounge door in order to get in!
Subject to enrolment, you'll benefit from travel inconvenience and travel accident protection with this card. If you're heading overseas, you may also want to consider a dedicated travel credit card to avoid non-sterling transaction fees when spending abroad.
There's no obligation to pay off your full balance each month (you only need to make a minimum monthly payment), but it's definitely a good thing to aim to do. This is because the card's interest rates and fees are likely to outweigh any benefits if your balance is carried over from month to month. If you're looking for a card with lower interest rates, here's our guide. As with most credit cards, the Preferred Rewards Gold card offers various options allowing you to set up automated repayments, ensuring you never miss a repayment.
While your credit limit will vary depending on your circumstances, the American Express Preferred Rewards Gold card has a minimum credit limit of around £700 and an unspecified maximum limit. For more info, including details regarding annual and monthly fees, cash advances and an interest-free purchases period, here's our rundown.
Our experts score rewards credit cards to determine their value against similar products on the market. We look at a number of important factors, like welcome bonuses, introductory and ongoing earn-rates, any caps or restrictions on the points you can earn, plus the potential costs involved with running the card both in the short and longer term.
You can read more about our scoring criteria on our credit card methodology page.
