Your guide to the American Express referral programme

With the American Express refer a friend programme, you can earn up to 90,000 Membership Rewards points or £150 cashback a year for recommending an Amex card to your friends and family. You need to share your referral link with them, and if they apply and are approved, you’ll both be rewarded.

We’ve put together a step-by-step guide to the programme, including which cards are eligible and what rewards you can get.

Credit cards from American Express

Whether you’re looking for a card that lets you earn rewards or one that offers payment flexibility on forthcoming purchases, American Express has a wide range to match a variety of financial requirements.

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Name	Product	Rewards earn rate	Max. intro bonus	Annual/monthly fees	Representative APR	Ratings	Link	Incentive	Representative example
The American Express Rewards® Credit Card Finder Award		1 point per £1 spent	10,000 points	£0	28.8% APR (variable)	Finder score ★★★★★ User survey ★★★★★	Check eligibility Read review	Earn 1 Membership Rewards® point for every £1 spent thereafter. Earn up to 90,000 bonus points per year through refer a friend, 4,000 points awarded for every friend approved. 1 point = 0.45p (min 1000 points) to shop, other rewards have differing conversions	Representative example: When you spend £1,200 at a purchase rate of 28.8% (variable) p.a., your representative rate is 28.8% APR (variable).	Compare	loading Fetching your data...
British Airways American Express® Credit Card Finder Award		1 point per £1 spent	5,000 points	£0	28.8% APR (variable)	Finder score ★★★★★ User survey ★★★★★	Check eligibility Read review	New Cardmember Offer: Earn 25,000 bonus Avios when you spend £3,000 in your first 3 months of account opening. Terms Apply	Representative example: When you spend £1,200 at a purchase rate of 28.8% (variable) p.a., your representative rate is 28.8% APR (variable).	Compare	loading Fetching your data...
American Express® Platinum Cashback Everyday Credit Card Finder Award		1% cashback	£100	£0	28.8% APR (variable)	Finder score ★★★★★ User survey ★★★★★	Check eligibility Read review	New cardmember offer: Get 5% cashback on your purchases (up to £100) for the first three months of Cardmembership. Terms apply. Spend £0 to £10,000 and receive 0.5% cashback on all purchases. Spend over £10,000 and receive 1% cashback on purchases.	Representative example: When you spend £1,200 at a purchase rate of 28.8% (variable) p.a., your representative rate is 28.8% APR (variable).	Compare	loading Fetching your data...
American Express® Nectar Credit Card Finder Award		3 points per £1 spent with selected partners 2 points per £1 spent elsewhere	20,000 points	Year 1 - £0, Year 2 onwards - £25 per annum	34.3% APR (variable)	Finder score ★★★★★ User survey ★★★★★	Check eligibility Read review	Earn 20,000 bonus Nectar points when you spend £2,000 in your first 3 months. Earn a minimum of 3 Nectar points for virtually every £1 spent at Nectar partners, and 2 Nectar points for virtually every £1 spent elsewhere.	Representative example: When you spend £1,200 at a purchase rate of 28.8% (variable) p.a. with a fee of Year 1 - £0, Year 2 onwards - £25 per annum, your representative rate is 34.3% APR (variable).	Compare	loading Fetching your data...
American Express® Platinum Cashback Credit Card Finder Award		1.25% cashback	£125	£25 per annum	34.3% APR (variable)	Finder score ★★★★★ User survey ★★★★★	Check eligibility Read review	New cardmember offer: Get 5% cashback on your purchases (up to £125) for the first three months of Cardmembership. Terms apply. Spend £0 to £10,000 and receive 0.75% cashback on all purchases. Spend over £10,000 and receive 1.25% cashback on purchases.	Representative example: When you spend £1,200 at a purchase rate of 28.8% (variable) p.a. with a fee of £25 per annum, your representative rate is 34.3% APR (variable).	Compare	loading Fetching your data...
The Marriott Bonvoy American Express Card Finder Award		6 points per £1 spent with selected partners 2 points per £1 spent elsewhere	20,000 points	£75 per annum	46.6% APR (variable)	Finder score ★★★★★ User survey ★★★★★	Check eligibility Read review	Earn 6 points for every £1 spent at eligible Marriott properties. Earn 2 points for virtually every £1 spent elsewhere. Earn up to 90,000 bonus points per year through refer a friend, 9,000 points awarded for every friend approved. Points can be redeemed for hotel stays of varying values (min 15000pts)	Representative example: When you spend £1,200 at a purchase rate of 28.8% (variable) p.a. with a fee of £75 per annum, your representative rate is 46.6% APR (variable).	Compare	loading Fetching your data...
American Express® Preferred Rewards Gold Credit Card Finder Award		3 points per £1 spent with selected partners 1 point per £1 spent elsewhere	20,000 points	Year 1 - £0, Year 2 onwards - £160 per annum	72.4% APR (variable)	Finder score ★★★★★ User survey ★★★★★	Check eligibility Read review	2 points earned per £1 spent on travel related purchases and spending abroad. 3 points for every £1 spent when booking through American Express Travel.	Representative example: When you spend £1,200 at a purchase rate of 28.8% (variable) p.a. with a fee of Year 1 - £0, Year 2 onwards - £160 per annum, your representative rate is 72.4% APR (variable).	Compare	loading Fetching your data...
British Airways American Express® Premium Plus Card Finder Award		3 points per £1 spent with selected partners 1.5 points per £1 spent elsewhere	25,000 points	£250 per annum	108.9% APR (variable)	Finder score ★★★★★ User survey ★★★★★	Check eligibility Read review	Earn 25,000 bonus Avios when you spend £3,000 in your first 3 months of Cardmembership. Terms apply. 18+, subject to status. New Cardmembers Only	Representative example: When you spend £1,200 at a purchase rate of 28.8% (variable) p.a. with a fee of £250 per annum, your representative rate is 108.9% APR (variable).	Compare	loading Fetching your data...
American Express The Platinum Card Finder Award		2 points per £1 spent with selected partners 1 point per £1 spent elsewhere	30,000 points	£575 per annum	458.2% APR (variable)	Finder score ★★★★★ User survey ★★★★★	Check eligibility Read review	Earn 2 points per every £1 spent on amextravel.co.uk and 1 point per every £1 spent elsewhere.	Representative example: When you spend £1,200 at a purchase rate of 28.8% (variable) p.a. with a fee of £575 per annum, your representative rate is 458.2% APR (variable).	Compare	loading Fetching your data...
Vitality American Express® Credit Card (Vitality Members only) Finder Award		0.5% cashback	N/A	£0 (but £4.75 fee for the Vitality programme)	44.3% APR (variable)	Finder score ★★★★★ User survey ★★★★★	Read review	0.5% on £1 to £10,000 of yearly spend and 1% thereafter. Paid on anniversary. Must spend £3,000 annually to earn cashback. Earn up to 2% additional cashback on first £1,000 spend each month based on Vitality products held and monthly activity points earned. New cardmember offer: earn £100 statement credit when £2,000 spent in first three months.	Representative example: When you spend £1,200 at a purchase rate of 28.8% (variable) p.a. with a fee of £6.5 per month, your representative rate is 40.0% APR (variable).	Compare	loading Fetching your data...
American Express Basic Charge Card Finder Award		N/A	N/A	£0	N/A (this product is a charge card).	Finder score ★★★★★ User survey ★★★★★	Read review	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.		Compare	loading Fetching your data...

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What cards can I refer and what are the potential benefits?

The rewards you and your friend can earn depend on the card you hold and specific offers available at the time of the referral. Also, your friends can either apply for the same card you have, or for a different one – you’ll both get a referral bonus anyway (unless they apply for a Basic Card).

Some examples of these cards and the rewards available are as follows:

British Airways American Express Card

If you hold a British Airways American Express Card, you’ll earn 4,000 Avios points when your friend is approved. Your friend will earn 6,000 Avios Points when they apply for the British Airways American Express Card, are approved and spend £1,000 in the first 3 months of card membership.

British Airways American Express Premium Plus Card

If you hold a British Airways American Express Premium Plus Card, you’ll earn 9,000 Avios Points when your friend is approved. Your friend will earn 26,000 Avios Points when they apply for the British Airways American Express Premium Plus Card, are approved and spend £3,000 in the first 3 months of card membership.

Preferred Rewards Gold Card

If you hold an American Express Preferred Rewards Gold Card, you will earn 6,000 Membership Rewards Bonus Points when your friend is approved. Your friend will earn 12,000 Membership Rewards points when they apply for the Preferred Rewards Gold Card, are approved and spend £3,000 in the first 3 months of card membership.

Platinum Card

If you hold an American Express Platinum Card, you will earn 12,000 Membership Rewards Bonus Points when your friend is approved. Your friend will earn 35,000 Membership Rewards points when they apply for the Platinum Card, are approved and spend £4,000 in the first 3 months of card membership.

Platinum Cashback Everyday Credit Card

If you hold an American Express Platinum Cashback Everyday Credit Card, you will earn £20 cashback when your friend is approved. Your friend will earn £10 cashback when they apply for the Platinum Cashback Everyday Credit Card, are approved and spend the first £1 on the card.

Platinum Cashback Credit Card

If you hold an American Express Platinum Cashback Credit Card, you will earn £30 cashback when your friend is approved. Your friend will earn £25 cashback when they apply for the Platinum Cashback Credit Card, are approved and spend the first £1 on the card.

Nectar Credit Card

If you hold an American Express Nectar Credit Card, you’ll earn 5,000 Nectar points when your friend is approved. Your friend will earn 21,000 Nectar points when they apply for the Nectar Credit Card, are approved and spend £2,000 in the first 3 months of card membership.

How can I refer a friend?

It’s a pretty straightforward process, and you can do it both from your browser and from the Amex app.

Step 1: Head to the American Express referral page and log in with your user ID and password or credit card information.

Step 2: You will see the bonus offers you can earn when referring a friend. Select the card you wish to refer. The website will then generate your own personal referral link.

Step 3: Share this referral link with your friends and family via email, text message, LinkedIn or Facebook. Once they open the link, they’ll see their deal and will be able to apply. It is very important to make sure they apply using your generated personal link because you will not receive your referral bonus if they sign up directly with American Express or use a different link.

Terms and conditions to note

• No spam. American Express has strong anti-spam sentiments and states that you can only send referral messages to close friends and family who have already consented to receiving this information. You should not market this offer via paid advertising or public forums.
• Referral cap. You may refer as many friends as you wish, but you can only earn up to a maximum 90,000 Membership Rewards points (or £150 cashback, or 90,000 Nectar points) through this program each year.
• Contingent on approval. The bonus rewards points are subject to your friend’s application being approved, and to any other specific conditions for the specific referral offer you use. Note that American Express will not inform you about the status of your friend’s application (whether it has been approved or declined) for reasons of privacy and confidentiality.
• New membership. This program is only open to friends or family that would be considered as new American Express members. This means the people you refer cannot hold a current Amex card and cannot have held an American Express card in the last 24 months.
• Crediting process. It may take up to 10 weeks for you to receive your earned points if your friend’s membership application is successful.

With these tips in mind, you’re all set to begin referring friends or family members who are interested in getting an American Express card. Just remember, the bonus points you can earn are subject to your friend’s application approval and offers are only available for a limited time, so make sure you check for updates and follow the steps above when you find an offer that works for you and your friend.