American Express Guide

[Deleted User]

It really depends what you want to achieve with the card although my preference is for earning Amex Member Reward points with the Gold card over Cashback (I have both cards).

MR points can be exchanged for may different things and at various ratios from Airline miles to hotel points to vouchers. Vouchers are probably the least profitable conversion and you will often get better value exchanging them for hotels etc - for example I recently traded around 17k MR points for 50,000 Club Carlson points, enough for a completely free night at the May Fair hotel in London (value approx £350).

If you spend at least £2k in the first three months you will receive 20,000 bonus MR points. You will also receive 2 points on all travel/supermarket/petrol spend and Amex run regular offers for cardmembers for discounts/extra points.

Aside from the points the other benefits of the gold card are fairly minimal. You will get a couple of free passes for airport lounges each year and some basic travel insurance. However, if you really want to start benefiting from rewards cards then the Gold card is a good 'foot-in-the-door' with Amex if you wanted to apply for other cards in the future. Bear in mind that the Gold card is a charge card, not a credit card - the is no preset limit but you have to pay in full each month, you can't carry a balance.

If you do apply for the card then I'd recommend switching most of your spending to it as if you're putting £2k a month through your barclaycard then you are missing out on a minimum of 24,000 MR points (probably much more due to double points etc) a year. At worst this is worth (for example) 24,000 British Airways miles - enough for a couple of return flights to destinations in western europe or a single return to (for example Moscow, Istanbul etc).

As for where to apply, don't go directly to the Amex website as you don't get any extra benefit. Your options are either going via a cashback website (Top Cash Back or Quidco) or by getting a referral from an existing member (such as me!). If yo go the referral route you will receive an extra 2,000 (so 22,000 in total bonus points) and I get some too. A (very) basic valuation on points would be 1 point = 1p so if you can get more than £20 cashback via another site then go that route, if not then go for the referral. If you'd like a referral or have any other questions then feel free to PM me.

Cycrow

if you dont do alot of travelling, then you may find the amex points are not really worth it and a cashback card might be a better option.

You also need to look at what benefits you are getting with the card, the more expensive amex cards (ie cost more annually) tend to have more benefits attached to them, but if you dont make use of them, then its not worth paying the extra for something you would use

InsideInsurance

wildcath2k wrote: »

My question is, once my first anniversary freebie period is over, will it still be worth me having this option? Or do I opt for the Platinum (fee free) but at a mere tiered 1.25%, post first free 3 months? Bearing in mind all the big spend to come in this next six months to 12 months?

Firstly, The Platinum Card is a charge card that gives MR points and a number of additional perks such as free hotel room upgrades etc. The card you are referring to is one of the Platinum Cashback Credit Cards.

The chargecards from AmEx and the the MR system is very much geared towards people that travel a lot. Without doubt if you do and you prefer to travel at above economy/ basic level then these cards can give great value even considering the fees.

If you don't travel that much or are more a budget traveller then you are probably going to be better at looking for something like a cashback card and/ or something like a tesco clubcard.

Once you get into the rewards/ cashback card club it is then the simple case of pushing as much of your expenses as possible through the cards as long as card handling fees dont apply.

tjs10

Hi wildcath2k,

The best way is to be referred by an existing cardholder as that way you get extra points!

Instead of the usual 20,000 points for spending £2,000 in 3 months you would get 22,000 points. (For the sake of full disclosure, by referring you I would also get some bonus points but this is at NO additional cost to you.)

Everything else about the card is identical whether you follow the referral link or not.

I do not know enough about you or your spend to say whether the Preferred Rewards Gold Card is the most suitable for you but if you do decide to apply for it I would suggest applying via a referral link as both you and the referrer could get extra points for doing so.

Referral links for Amex cards can be found on the Amex Card referral thread here:

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showpost.php?p=63330661&postcount=57
If you would like to be referred by me, my details are in post no 57.

rob711

Hello folks,

I was looking at getting an AmEx Platinum Cashback Everyday card.

However, I have been issued a Corporate AmEx card from work.

Will this affect the introductory 3 months of increased cashback percentage for new members?

Thanks all!

OllyM

No it won't, you're still entitled to the new cardholder offers.

rob711

OllyM wrote: »

No it won't, you're still entitled to the new cardholder offers.

Excellent news!

Thanks very much.

unsaltedrhino

£5 credit when linking to TripAdvisor and writing a review (goo.gl/9oWKSm) and £25 credit when spending 2 x £25 at restaurants in the London Restaurant Festival (goo.gl/VPiJ8u)

matt_66

On the Cashback card page, when the article talks about new card holders, does this mean new to AMEX or to that particular card?

I have an AMEX Everyday cashback card but I want a Platinum cashback in time for the Christmas spend.

aronmatt3

Yes, you can use American Express in PayPal. You can use any debit or credit card in your PayPal account.