Amex Gold Charge Card is one of American Express’s two charge cards. But it does have a reputation and is part of Amex Trifecta (Plat Travel, MRCC & Gold Charge). Let’s find out if it is really gold.
What is a Charge Card?
Charge cards are similar to credit cards but not identical. One significant difference is that you can roll over your balance on credit cards; however, the full balance of the charge card should be cleared.
Overview: Amex Gold Charge Card
Here is a complete overview of the Amex Gold Charge :
| Type | Rewards |
| Joining Fees/Annual Fees | Rs. 1000 Plus Taxes |
| Welcome Benefits | 4000 Points + 4000 Points (If Applied via Referral) |
| Renewal Fees | Rs. 4500 Plus Taxes |
| Reversal of Annual Fees | NA |
| Renewal Benefits | 5000 Bonus Points [For 2nd Year] |
| Forex Markup Charges | 3.5% Plus Taxes |
| Lounge Access | Nil |
| Default Reward Rate | 0.50% |
| Maximize Reward Earn By | Milestones & Reward Multiplier |
| Redemption Maximization | Transfer Points to Partners & Gold Collection |
| Stand Out Feature | Gold Collection |
Amex Gold Charge Card Eligibility
To be eligible for an Amex Gold Charge Card, you need to meet the following eligibility criteria:
- Age Above 18 Years
- Annual Income of more than INR 6 Lacs
- Good credit history and no payment defaults
- Live in one of the Amex serviceable cities in India.
Annual Fees
- The first-year fee of the Amex Gold Charge card is INR 1000 plus taxes.
- From the second year onwards, the fee increases to INR 4500 plus taxes.
Welcome Benefits
- You will receive 4000 Bonus Points as welcome benefits upon paying first-year fees and spending INR 10K within 90 days of card activation.
- If you apply via this link, you will also earn 4000 Bonus Points. [Limited Period Promotion]
Renewal Benefits
- The renewal benefit is only for 1st renewal.
- You will earn 5000 Bonus Points on 1st renewal.
- You won’t find renewal benefit details on the Amex Gold Charge Card page.
- However, you can see the renewal benefit of 5000 Bonus Points on fee payment while applying.
Fee Wavier on Amex Gold Card
- There is no fee waiver on the Amex Gold card.
- For 1st renewal, you get 5000 Amex Points, but not for 2nd or later renewal.
- I recommend calling Amex Customer Support to check if you can get the fees waived. There is no 100% probability of a fee waiver, and you may also be offered bonus points instead.
Annual Fees on Add-on Cards
- You can get two complimentary Amex Gold Charge Add-on cards.
- From the 3rd supplementary card, charges of INR 1500 for every card are applicable.
Amex Gold Reward Earning
- Earn 1 Amex reward point for every INR 50 spent on almost everything with an Amex Gold Charge Card.
Exclusions
You don’t earn any points with Amex Gold spending on:
- Insurance
- Cash Transactions
Amex Gold is one of India’s few cards with only two limitations. However, the earning of points is capped.
Monthly Capping
Amex Gold earn points on everything except Insurance and cash withdrawals, but there is monthly capping:
| Spending On | Monthly Points Capping |
| Utility | 10000 |
| Fuel | 5000 |
| Reward Multiplier [Per Customer] | 25000 |
Milestone Earnings
- You will earn 1000 Bonus Amex Points after six transactions in a calendar month, each more than INR 1K.
| Milestone | Earnings |
| INR1000*6 Transactions Per Month | 1000 Bonus Points |
So, by spending INR 72K a year, you can earn 12K Bonus Points and 1.4K regular points.
Annual Earning Potential
The earning potential of most Amex cards is always good, and so is with Gold Charge Card.
| Criteria | 1st year | 2nd Year | 3rd Year |
| Spending | INR 240K | INR 240K | INR 240K |
| Base Earning (Points) | 4800 | 4800 | 4800 |
| Milestone Earning (Points) | 12000 | 12000 | 12000 |
| Reward Multiplier Bonus [5x] | 19200 | 19200 | 19200 |
| Total Reward Points | 36000 | 36000 | 36000 |
| Welcome/Renewal Benefits (Points) | 4000 | 5000 | Nil |
| Sign Up Benefits If Applied Via This Link | 4000 | Nil | Nil |
| Maximum Total Points Earned | 44000 | 41000 | 36000 |
One of the most significant benefits of the Amex Gold Charge Card is that you earn 5x points when shopping for Reward Multiplier, including when purchasing vouchers. Amex also offers spend-based offers twice a year, which will further increase the reward rate.
Watch Out for Amex Offers
Amex sends offers regularly. Some offers are bonus points like on insurance or 24x via reward multiplier, or some are spend-based. These offers are frequent; however, there is no 100% surety that you will be targeted for the offer. In most cases, you will have to enrol for the promotion.
Redemption of Rewards Points
You can use the points earned on the Amex Gold Charge in the ways below. Here are the options:
- Use them to pay for charges or spending (INR 0.25 value per point)
- Use them on the Amex Travel Online Portal (INR 0.25 value per point)
- Use them for Gold Collection (INR 0.58 value per point)
- Use them for Vouchers (INR 0.23-INR 0.40 value per point)
- Use them by transferring Points. (Approx Value INR 0.5 to INR 1)
- Use them for Experiences.
The best way to redeem Amex Gold points is to use them for the Gold Collection or transfer them to partners.
Amex Gold 18 & 24 Karat Gold Collection
Only two Amex cards are eligible for the 18K & 24K Gold collections. One is an Amex Gold Charge Card, and the other is an Amex MRCC.
18/24 Karat Gold collection means you need to use a fixed 18K or 24K for a voucher of a single brand.
| Vouchers | 18 Karat | Value Per Point | 24 Karat | Value Per Point |
| Taj voucher | INR 9K | 0.50 | INR 14K | 0.58 |
| Shoppers Stop | INR 7K | 0.39 | INR 10K | 0.42 |
| Tanishq | NA | NA | INR 9K | 0.38 |
| Tata Cliq | INR 7K | 0.39 | INR 9K | 0.38 |
| Myntra | INR 7K | 0.39 | NA | NA |
| Reliance Digital | INR 6K | 0.33 | INR 8K | 0.33 |
| Amazon | INR 6K | 0.33 | INR 8K | 0.33 |
| Flipkart | INR 6K | 0.33 | INR 8K | 0.33 |
Transfer Partners
You can also use it to transfer your points to several airline partners and hotel partners. If used at hotels and airlines, you can get a value of one point from INR 0.5 to INR 1.
| Partner | Type | Transfer Ratio | Minimum Transfer |
| Asia Miles | Airlines | 2:1 | 800 Points |
| British Airways Executive Club | Airlines | 2:1 | 1200 Points |
| Emirates Skywards | Airlines | 2:1 | 800 Points |
| Etihad Guest | Airlines | 2:1 | 1600 Points |
| Hilton Honors | Hotels | 10:9 | 1000 Points |
| Marriott Bonvoy | Hotels | 1:1 | 100 Points |
| Qatar Privilege Club | Airlines | 2:1 | 500 Points |
| Singapore KrisFlyer | Airlines | 2:1 | 800 Points |
| Virgin Atlantic Flying Club | Airlines | 2:1 | 800 Points |
Luxury Experiences
Now, you can also buy Luxury Experiences vouchers with Amex Points. However, these luxury experiences may not be for everyone, and prices may be higher than what you may get from your points. For example, A two-night stay at The Postcard Hideaway needs 111000 points. At the same time, you can book it for around INT 50K. So, you must check the actual pricing before redeeming amex points for Luxury Experiences Vouchers.
Currently, you can use points on Adventures, Dining, and stays. This includes brands like The Postcard Hotel, DreamSetGO, Aqua Club, Brij, etc.
The Hotel Collection
You can access American Express’s The Hotel Collection with the Amex Gold charge card. Upon booking a hotel in The Hotel Collection, you are eligible for two benefits when booking for a minimum two-night stay:
- $100 experience credit that you can use on dining, spa, and resort activities.
- One Category Room Upgrade, subject to availability
These benefits are only valid for a maximum of three rooms.
Booking a hotel from the hotel collection may not always be right. However, there may be times when you would need this. It would not be my first preference but I would not completely ignore it.
Amex Gold Charge Card Other Benefits
You also enjoy these benefits with the Amex Gold Charge card:
- No-Pre Set Spending Limit
- 0% Convenience fee on fueling up at HPCL for transactions less than INR 5K
- 15% Discount at Select restaurants.
- Zero lost Card liability.
- Emergency Card Replacement
- 24X7 Card Related Assistance
Apply
If you are interested in applying for this card, you can apply via my link and earn 2K bonus points. Otherwise, everything else remains the same.
| Particulars | Normal | Referral |
| Annual Fees [1st Year] | INR 1000 | INR 1000 |
| Second Year Fees | INR 4500 | INR 4500 |
| Joining Benefits | 4000 Bonus Points | 4000 Bonus Points + 4000 Bonus Points [Limited Period till 27/02/25] |
| Apply | Normal Apply | Referral Link |
Bottomline
Amex Gold Charge is a good card that works well when used with Amex MRCC or American Express Platinum Travel Credit Card. However, it is not my first choice from Amex. It would be the Amex Platinum Travel Card, then MRCC, and then the Gold Charge Card. You may, however, get this card for the first year of welcome benefits at a fees of INR 1000 plus Taxes and spending INR 10K.
