Is the Amex Business Gold Card Worth It?

The American Express® Business Gold Card is a mid-level card for small-business owners. Because the card earns American Express Membership Rewards points, you may be wondering whether you should open this card. Let’s explore the cost and benefits of this card to see if it’s worth a spot in your wallet.

Welcome Offer

The welcome offer on the American Express Business Gold Card varies, but it’s usually quite generous. The minimum spending requirement might be high for some, so the applicants for this card will need to make sure they can meet the high minimum-spending requirement to earn the welcome offer. Even if you can spend the minimum amount, assess whether you have better options (i.e. opening two cards with lower minimum-spending requirements instead).

Annual Fee

The Amex Business Gold Card charges an annual fee of $375 (see rates & fees).

Earning Rates

Cardmembers earn 4X points per dollar spent on the two top categories where your business spends the most each billing cycle. Here are the categories:

Some of the spending categories include:

• Purchases made in the U.S. on:
  – Online, TV and radio advertising
  – Computer hardware, software and cloud systems from select technology providers- Gas stations
  – Restaurants, including takeout and delivery

You can find more details about the categories on American Express’ site.

Keep in mind that quadruple points per dollar applies to the first $150,000 in combined purchases in these categories annually. You’ll earn 1X point per dollar after meeting that threshold.

You also earn 1X point per dollar on all other purchases outside of the above categories.

Card Benefits

Besides earning Membership Rewards points, the card offers several benefits for small business owners.

Spending and Payment Options

• Pay Over Time option: Eligible purchases can be paid over time (with interest).
• No preset spending limit: Some cards have limits on the amount that can be charged. However, with this card, the amount you can spend adjusts based on factors, such as purchase, payment and purchase history.

Business Services

• Employee cards: Businesses can add employee cards to the account.
• Connect to QuickBooks: Transaction details can be downloaded into Quicken software for easy recordkeeping.
• Vendor Pay by Bill.com

Travel Benefits

• No foreign transaction fees: Save on fees on purchases made abroad (rates & fees).
• Access to The Hotel Collection: Book a room with The Hotel Collection through American Express Travel^® and get a $100 hotel credit and a room upgrade (when available).
• Global Assist Hotline: Access 24/7 emergency assistance when you’re away from home.¹
• Baggage insurance plan: Get reimbursed for lost, damaged or stolen baggage.²
• Car rental loss and damage insurance: You’re covered for damage to or theft of a rental vehicle (coverage is secondary and does not include liability coverage).³
• Trip delay insurance: Coverage is provided for delays more than 12 hours.⁴

Consumer Protections and Other Benefits

• Amex Offers: Amex has rotating offers and incentives for various merchants to help save businesses and individuals money.
• Extended warranty: Amex offers extensions on manufacturers’ warranties of one additional year.⁵
• Purchase protection: Covered purchases are protected 90 days from the purchase date for theft or accidental damage.⁶

Redemption Options

The Amex Business Gold card earns Membership Rewards points, one of the most valuable flexible currencies. There are many great ways to redeem Membership Rewards points.

• You can redeem points on amextravel.com, which will generally get you a value of about 1 cent per point for flights and 0.7 cent per point for prepaid hotels.
• You can transfer points to one of 21 airline and hotel transfer partners, including Etihad, Iberia, British Airways, All Nippon Airways (ANA), Delta Air Lines and many more. Occasionally, American Express offers transfer bonuses, when for a brief time period they offer 10% to 40% more miles upon transferring to an airline or hotel partner. You can get tons of value when transferring points to partners, whether it be an economy deal (Delta runs Flash Deals all the time) or long-haul business class round-trip flights on some of the world’s most luxurious airlines.

Alternative Business Card Options

Let’s take a look at some other business cards that compete with the Amex Business Gold card.

The Business Platinum Card® from American Express

The Business Platinum Card® from American Express has an annual fee of $695 (see rates and fees).

You can earn 5X Membership Rewards points per dollar spent on flights and prepaid hotels booked through American Express Travel^®. You can also earn 1.5X points per dollar spent on purchases totaling $5,000 or more and purchases of any amount in these categories (on the first $2 million in purchases per year):

• Electronics goods retailers, software and cloud service providers
• Construction materials and hardware supplies
• Shipping providers

The card boasts many luxury travel benefits, including an annual airline credit of up to $200 for incidental fees (enrollment required) and access to The Centurion Lounges. Additionally, there are many benefits for small-business owners, such as a up Annual Dell credits and up to $120 in annual wireless phone credits (issued as up to $10 every month, enrollment required), among others.

The Blue Business® Plus Credit Card from American Express

The Blue Business® Plus Credit Card from American Express has a $0 annual fee (see rates and fees). The card is great for everyday purchases, as it earns 2X points on everyday business purchases such as office supplies or client dinners on the first $50,000 spent per year (1X point per dollar spent after that).

Chase Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card

The Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card has a $95 annual fee. You can earn 3X Ultimate Rewards points per dollar spent in the following categories on the first $150,000 in combined purchases per year:

• Travel
• Shipping purchases
• Internet, cable and phone services
• Advertising purchases made with social media sites and search engines

All other purchases earn 1X point per dollar.

Is It Worth It?

The Amex Business Gold card has a lucrative welcome offer, so it’s definitely worth a spot in most small-business owners’ wallets, at least for the first year. Plus, this card doesn’t count against your 5/24 status with Chase, so it could be a wise choice if you’re trying to stay under 5/24 or get there soon.

After the one-year mark, you need to see if the benefits and earning rates from the card make the $375 annual fee worth it. Many of the Amex Business Gold’s benefits are also found on other cards, so they may be redundant, depending on which other cards you hold.

If your business spends significant amounts of money on the 4X earning categories, this card may be a keeper for you if the additional points earned outweigh the annual fee.

¹You can rely on Global Assist Hotline 24 hours a day / 7 days a week for medical, legal, financial or other select emergency coordination and assistance services while traveling more than 100 miles away from your home. Third-party service costs may be your responsibility. Eligibility and Benefit level varies by Card. Terms, Conditions and Limitations Apply. Please visit americanexpress.com/benefitsguide for more details. Card Members are responsible for the costs charged by third-party service providers.

²Baggage Insurance Plan coverage can be in effect for Eligible Persons for eligible lost, damaged, or stolen Baggage during their travel on a Common Carrier (e.g. plane, train, ship, or bus) when the entire fare for a Common Carrier Vehicle ticket for the trip (one-way or round-trip) is charged to an eligible Account. Coverage can be provided for up to $1,250 for carry-on Baggage and up to $500 for checked Baggage, in excess of coverage provided by the Common Carrier (e.g. plane, train, ship, or bus). For New York State residents, there is a $10,000 aggregate maximum limit for all Covered Persons per Covered Trip. Eligibility and Benefit level varies by Card. Terms, Conditions and Limitations Apply. Please visit americanexpress.com/benefitsguide for more details. Underwritten by AMEX Assurance Company.

³Car Rental Loss and Damage Insurance can provide coverage up to $50,000 for theft of or damage to most rental vehicles when you use your eligible Card to reserve and pay for the entire eligible vehicle rental and decline the collision damage waiver or similar option offered by the Commercial Car Rental Company. This product provides secondary coverage and does not include liability coverage. Not all vehicle types or rentals are covered. Geographic restrictions apply. Eligibility and Benefit level varies by Card. Terms, Conditions and Limitations Apply. Please visit americanexpress.com/benefitsguide for more details. Underwritten by AMEX Assurance Company. Car Rental Loss or Damage Coverage is offered through American Express Travel^® Related Services Company, Inc.

⁴Up to $300 per covered trip that is delayed for more than 12 hours; and 2 claims per eligible card per 12 consecutive month period. Eligibility and Benefit level varies by Card. Terms, Conditions and Limitations Apply. Please visit americanexpress.com/benefitsguide for more details. Underwritten by New Hampshire Insurance Company, an AIG Company.

⁵When an American Express® Card Member charges a Covered Purchase to an Eligible Card, Extended Warranty§ can provide up to one extra year added to the Original Manufacturer’s Warranty. Applies to warranties of five (5) years or less. Coverage is up to the actual amount charged to your Card for the item up to a maximum of $10,000; not to exceed $50,000 per Card Member account per calendar year. Eligibility and Benefit level varies by Card. Terms, Conditions and Limitations Apply. Please visit americanexpress.com/benefitsguide for more details. Underwritten by AMEX Assurance Company.

⁶Purchase Protection is an embedded benefit of your Card Membership and requires no enrollment. It can help protect Covered Purchases made on your Eligible Card when they’re accidentally damaged, stolen, or lost, for up to 90 days from the Covered Purchase date. The coverage is limited up to $1,000 per occurrence, up to $50,000 per Card Member account per calendar year. Coverage Limits Apply. Eligibility and Benefit level varies by Card. Terms, Conditions and Limitations Apply. Please visit americanexpress.com/benefitsguide for more details. Underwritten by AMEX Assurance Company.