The American Express Gold card is offering a limited time sign up bonus of 90,000 point. I personally have NEVER seen a bonus so high for this card. Typically we see this new cardholder welcome bonus hang out below 50,000 miles. Yet now, the elevated bonus is available to new card holders for a limited of time after spending $4,000 on the new card in the first 6 months of membership. This too is actually twice the time that Amex typically provides to rack up spending.
Card Benefits
The Gold Amex comes with a ton of benefits and earning power. As most people know, we have credit cards that earn rewards so we can fly for free and stay in hotels for free. The Amex Gold card is no exception. Earning Membership rewards points, you can then transfer to a slew of airlines and hotels for free travel. Furthermore, you can earn points quickly with this card due to several bonus categories. Earn 4x points at Grocery stores, 4x points on dining, and 3x points on airfare booked directly with the airline. Or 3x points via all travel when utilizing Amex travel. The card earns 1 point everywhere else.
Additional card Benefits
To help offset the card fees of $250, there are two featured benefits that are great, but can be hard to fully utilized. First, save up to $120 a year on Uber Eats or Uber rides. I personally use this for Uber Eat pickup orders. Saving on the high delivery charges. Each month, American Express will add $10 to your Uber wallet. This must be utilized before the end of the month. If maximized it $120 back each year.
Secondly, there’s a similar dining credit for $10 in statement credits each month. Use the credit card for a Grubhub, Seamless, or Boxed order and receive $10 back. Or you grab a slice of cheesecake at the Cheesecake factory or a shake at Shake shack for the $10 statement credit each month.
If you use these two benefits alone, the card nearly pays for itself. Adding up to $240 in reimbursements/credits. Leaving you with just $10 to pay each year.
Finally, the card comes with a ton of other benefits which are common with American Express cards. Such as travel insurance, exclusive Amex offers, rental car CDW insurance, the hotel collection, and most importantly zero foreign transaction fees.
Membership Reward Transfer Partners
Why does 90,000 points matter. Not only can you redeem them for cash value towards an award, but better yet you can transfer them directly to several airline partners. See the chart below for hotel and airline transfer rates. Most airlines transfer at a 1:1 rate.
| Amex Airline Transfer Partner | Min Transfer | Transfer Ratio (Amex > Partner) | Transfer Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| AeroMexico | 1,000 | 1:1.6 (KM not MI) | Almost instant |
| Air Canada | 1,000 | 1:1 | Almost Instant |
| Alitalia | 1,000 | 1:1 | Almost Instant |
| Aer Lingus | 1,000 | 1:1 | Almost Instant |
| ANA | 1,000 | 1:1 | 3 days |
| Avianca LifeMiles | 1,000 | 1:1 | Almost instant |
| British Airways | 1,000 | 1:1 | Almost Instant |
| Cathay Pacific | 1,000 | 1:1 | Up to 1 Week |
| Delta Air Lines | 1,000 | 1:1 | Almost Instant |
| Emirates | 1,000 | 1:1 | Almost Instant |
| Etihad Airways | 1,000 | 1:1 | Almost Instant |
| Flying Blue Air France/KLM | 1,000 | 1:1 | Almost Instant |
| Hawaiian | 1,000 | 1:1 | Almost Instant |
| Iberia | 1,000 | 1:1 | 1-3 days |
| JetBlue | 250 | 1:0.8 | Almost Instant |
| Qantas | 500 | 1:1 | Almost Instant |
| Singapore Airlines | 1,000 | 1:1 | 1-2 days |
| Virgin Atlantic | 1,000 | 1:1 | 1-2 days |
Hotel transfer partners are below
| Amex Hotel Transfer Partner | Min Transfer | Transfer Ratio (Amex > Partner) | Transfer Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| Choice Privileges | 1,000 | 1:1 | Almost Instant |
| Hilton Honors | 1,000 | 1:2 | Almost Instant |
| Marriott Bonvoy | 1,000 | 1:1 | Almost Instant |
Bottom line
Earning 90,000 for a new card is great, especially on an American Express Gold Card. Use those 90K points to travel the world. You can transfer them to several partners to enjoy a business class flight to Europe or South American on Air Canada or any of their partners. It’s even enough for First Class on ANA! Point is, this offer is much higher than normal. So if you’ve never had this card, now is your opportunity to earn a HUGE bonus.
