The American Express Green Charge Card is a mid-tier card for food and travel. Its annual fee is higher than its closest competitors, but the Green card could be worth considering for certain travelers. Most people are better off with no-fee cards which out-earn the Green.
FEATURES AT A GLANCE
- $150 annual fee
- No foreign transaction fees
- 3x points on dining (restaurants, takeout, delivery)
- 3x points on travel (including public transit, airfare, hotels, car rentals, and more)
- 1x points on everything else
- AMEX Offers
SIGN UP BONUS
The sign-up bonus on AMEX cards varies often. As of June 2023, you can earn 60,000 points ($600) after spending $3,000+ in your first 6 months, plus 20% back on travel and transit as statement credits, up to $200. Even accounting for the $150 annual fee (AF) this is a good introductory bonus.
In autumn 2021, the Green card publicly offered 45,000 or 50,000 points after spending $2,000+ in your first 6 months of holding the card, plus up to 12 months of 0% APR. This was at least a 22.5% ROS (Return on Spend) not including cash back, miscellaneous benefits, or the annual fee. And until the end of 2021, AMEX Green offered 12 free months of Uber Eats Pass ($120 value).
OTHER BENEFITS OF THE AMERICAN EXPRESS GREEN
- $189 CLEAR Plus credit (already free or discounted through Delta or United)
- $100 Loungebuddy credit
- Purchase protection (up to $1,000)
- Extended warranty protection (1 year)
- Emergency assistance hotline
- Trip Delay Insurance (up to $300 per trip for delays of 12+ hours)
- Lost baggage insurance (up to $1,250 per bag)
- Car rental insurance (secondary coverage)
The card also allows people to get “premium seats” and “exclusive access to ticket presales and Card Member-only events in a city near you.”
At one point, the card had a discount on Away luggage (no longer offered)
RESTRICTIONS AND CREDIT SCORE
Recommended credit score: 670+
Although American Express is widely accepted, it doesn’t have the same acceptance rate as Visa or Mastercard, especially overseas. It’s good to have a backup card when traveling.
Also note that this is a charge card, not a credit card, and the usual AMEX restrictions apply.
MAXIMIZING REWARDS WITH AMERICAN EXPRESS
AMEX added the option to redeem points for cash at $0.01 each in 2021. This gives the sign-up bonus a $600+ value. Transferring to travel partners can make points more valuable. However, the options can be limited, depending on cardholder location and travel preferences. (We’ll write a post soon on who the best transfer partners are.)
The Green card is aimed at people who like eating out and traveling. The travel category covers every option except gas station purchases, which is helpfully versatile. The downside is that the 3x point earn rate doesn’t outdo no-fee cards, and other benefits may be outclassed.
The $289 in annual credits (CLEAR and Loungebuddy) can be useless for people who carry cards like the American Express Platinum or Chase Sapphire Reserve. These cards include free lounge access and Global Entry credits. Some people do like CLEAR, and it’s cheap with the Green card. (CLEAR is normally $109-119/yr, or $180/yr for people who can’t figure out airline membership sign-ups for United/Delta, as of 2021.)
Using even just the CLEAR credit does offset the $150 annual fee. However, there are other options which make the annual credits unnecessary.
ALTERNATIVES TO THE GREEN CARD
For 3x points on dining and travel without an annual fee, we’d first recommend the Wells Fargo Autograph. It earns 3% cash back in 5 categories.
With a medium annual fee ($95) the Citi Premier is another alternative; it earns 3x points on dining, airfare, hotels, groceries, and gas. It doesn’t cover ground transportation, though.
For a large annual fee ($395-695), check out the Chase Sapphire Reserve or US Bank Altitude Reserve. These cards can easily pay for themselves depending on your preferences, including perks like better lounge access and Global Entry reimbursement. You may also like the American Express Platinum or Capital One Venture X. The Venture X is especially easy to use: it pays for itself if you spend at least $300 per year on flights and/or hotels.
Other examples of alternatives include:
- Penfed Pathfinder Rewards
- Chase Sapphire Preferred
- Citi Custom Cash
- Chase Freedom Flex
- US Bank Altitude Go
Then for everything else, any 2+% card without foreign transaction fees, such as PenFed Power Rewards.
CONCLUSION
The Green isn’t the worst card for eating out and traveling, but no-fee cards are usually better. The $150 annual fee is difficult to justify compared to other options. The main advantage is simplicity (one card instead of two no-fee cards) and consumer protection options (trip delay insurance, baggage insurance, and purchase protection) which many cards stopped offering. Premium cards have better benefits though, and may have a lower effective annual fee after considering all their perks.
The main reason to get the Green card is the large sign-up bonus, but the annual fee effectively lowers it. Not the best deal, but it’s still tolerably enticing and the Green isn’t a “bad” card. It’s definitely good in the short-term (12 months). Its long-term benefit depends on your personal lifestyle. Overall, we’d recommend other cards instead of the AMEX Green.
For small spenders, the Green’s annual fee is excessive. For big spenders, cards like the Sapphire Reserve or Altitude Reserve are far better. So it’s difficult to justify the Green card.
We rate the Green card 2 out of 5 stars. ⭐⭐
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Note: This review was last updated in June 2023. Details may have changed since then. Please do your own research where applicable, to ensure you’re getting the best deal. Or contact us directly to take advantage of our personalized consulting services!