American Express is making a very positive change to the popular American Express® Gold Card on June 6th 2019. The card currently earns 4 Amex Membership Rewards points on dining purchases at U.S. restaurants and this benefit will now go global. So members will be able to earn 4x points per dollar spent at restaurants internationally, anywhere Amex is accepted.
The card’s other bonus categories will remain the same, so the point earning structure looks like this:
4x points per $ at restaurants (previously U.S. restaurants only)
4x points per $ at U.S. supermarkets (up to $25,000 then 1x point per $)
3x points per $ on flights booked directly with airlines or through Amex Travel
1x point per $ on all other purchases
Changing the dining category to international does make sense since the card is billed as a “travel credit card” and has no foreign transaction fees. But when you earn only one point per dollar, it would be likely be kept in the wallet in favor of other cards that offer bonus points or cash back on dining internationally, such as the Citi Prestige (5x ThankYou points on dining) or the Uber Visa Card or Capital One Savor (both 4% cash back on dining). Now travellers can whip out the gold card knowing they are getting good value when dining on international trips.
Sabrina Sodja, vice president of U.S. consumer charge cards at American Express told Nerd Wallet:
“We know dining is a top interest category for our Gold Card members, and we know they’re avid travelers…We want to make sure they’re getting value in all the ways they want to — dining in, dining out, and dining abroad.”
The Amex Gold Card was revamped with new benefits such as a $120 dining credit and increased point earning in October 2018, with a special limited edition Rose Gold Card to celebrate the relaunch. This adjustment corrects one of the only weaknesses of the Gold Card and will come into effect on June 6th.
