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One of American Express’s most popular consumer cards is set to get a refresh in the near future, and here’s what we know so far about what those changes will entail.
Amex Gold Card renewals scheduled for the next few weeks
American Express tends to refresh its card portfolio more frequently than many other card issuers. During a recent Q2 2024 earnings call, American Express CEO Steven Squeri announced that the personal version of its Amex Gold Card will be refreshed in the coming weeks.
Below is a portion of the earnings conference call transcript, which also includes some background on AmEx’s strategy (bold is by me).
For example, in executing our strategy of regular product refresh, we focused on building value into our premium cards to make them highly attractive to customers of all ages and geographies, which would add many new premium cardholders to our customer base, increase engagement with existing customers, and allow us to price them accordingly.
We plan to refresh approximately 40 products around the world by the end of this year. As part of this, We look forward to introducing our revamped Gold Card to U.S. consumers in the coming weeks.These are in addition to around 20 refreshed and updated products announced during the first half of the year.
For reference, as of the time of this posting, the Amex Gold Card has the following core value proposition:
- The annual fee is $250
- It offers 4x points at restaurants worldwide, 4x points at U.S. supermarkets (on up to $25,000 in spend per calendar year), 3x points on flights booked directly with the airline or through Amex Travel, and 1x points on all other purchases.
- It offers up to $120 in dining credits per year ($10 per month) to be used at select restaurants and services, as well as up to $120 in Uber Cash per year ($10 per month).
Details of the rumored changes to the American Express Gold Card
All we officially know at this point is that the Amex Gold Card will be getting a refresh in the coming weeks, with more details to be announced soon. Officially, it’s not yet clear what changes will be made.
but, Credit Dr. and US Card Forum Someone found new card terms online and will let you know that apparently changes are coming. I want to stress that this is just a rumor and of course the actual changes could be different than what we know so far. That being said, rumors are that the changes will be as follows:
- Annual fees could increase by $75, from $250 to $325
- The card will likely maintain the same bonus categories, but the 4x points at restaurants may be limited to the first $50,000 in spending each year.
- The card will allow customers to earn up to $100 in Resy credits per year in the form of $50 credits every six months on purchases made at restaurants that offer reservations through Resy.
- The card offers up to $84 in Dunkin’ Donuts credits per year in the form of a $7 monthly credit valid for purchases at Dunkin’ Donuts.
- The card will likely retain up to $120 in annual dining credits, but Milk Bar and Shake Shack will be removed and replaced with Five Guys.
- The card will provide $10 in Uber Cash credits per month, with up to $120 in Uber Cash credits per year.
- The card will likely have a new card design option in white gold (in the past, the card has had gold or rose gold options)
I don’t have any inside information beyond what was shared above, so I can’t say if these changes are as rumored. Assuming these changes are true, here are my general thoughts:
- The value proposition of many Amex cards is increasingly focused on offering credit in monthly, quarterly, and semi-annual installments, which leads to splitting and isn’t ideal for the average consumer, but can lead to great value if you’re smart and willing to put in the effort.
- Personally, I’d take the maximum $100 in Resy credits per year at face value and use them to offset the $75 annual fee increase.
- The $7/month Dunkin’ Donuts credit is kind of ridiculous, but it could be useful to some, and I see it as a bonus perk compared to the current value proposition.
- The 4x points cap on dining won’t affect the vast majority of people, but it’s clearly not good for dining superusers (who AmEx presumably doesn’t make much money from).
My general view is that even with these changes in place, the value proposition of the card remains fundamentally unchanged — this is the card people who are interested in dining get, and if that applies to you, the value of the card should still be checkable.
Over time, rising annual fees will likely motivate some existing members to cancel their cards, but at the same time, there will likely be just as many (or more) who will realize the potential value and sign up.
Conclusion
The CEO of American Express has revealed that the Amex Gold card will be getting a refresh in the coming weeks, and while no official changes have been announced, there are some rumors about what those changes will be, which could include an increase in the annual fee, a cap on bonus points at restaurants, and some new credits.
What do you think about this Amex Gold Card refresh and the rumored changes?
