When you buy something using links found on our site, we may earn a small affiliate commission. This content is reviewed & supervised by The Los Angeles Times Commerce Team.

American Express® Business Gold Card: Easy to Earn 4X Points

American Express® Business Gold Card review
KEY TAKEAWAYS
  • The American Express® Business Gold Card is worth it if you run a business and want to generate points based on day-to-day purchases.
  • What we think: The Amex Business Gold Card is a spectacular option for those who can look past the $375 annual fee. Its various perks and automatically adjusting bonus categories can make it well worth the cost if you’re willing to redeem your points for travel.
  • The welcome bonus offers 70,000 points if you spend at least $10,000 in the first three months.
  • Rewards are awarded based on which two out of six categories account for most of your spending.
  • Top-tier 6x point rewards max out after $150,000 in spending; points are just 1 per dollar after.
  • You can redeem points for purchases through Amex or transfer points to Amex’s hotel or airline partners.
  • Consumers with good to excellent credit have the best chance of card approval.
SUMMARY

Running a business means constant spending. The American Express Business Gold Card simplifies this process by offering categorized rewards that help you earn rewards effortlessly. It’s a practical solution to offset the everyday costs of business operations.

In this Amex Business Gold card review, we’ll look at important topics like:

  • Is the Amex Business Gold card worth it?
  • Amex Business Gold card rewards
  • Amex Business Gold card fees, rates and limit

Equipped with this knowledge, you can decide if this American Express card is right for you or not.

PROS & CONS

Pros

  • Earns Membership Rewards points for flexible redemption options
  • 4X points categories adapt to your spending automatically each billing cycle
  • Generous welcome offer

Cons

  • High annual fee
  • Spending cap of $150,000 annually for 4X rate
  • High spending requirement for welcome offer
American Express® Business Gold Card
LEARN MORE
Key Information
Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points (on up to $150,000 per year, then 1X) on 2 categories where your business spends the most each billing cycle and 1X points on other eligible purchases. $375 annual fee.

Is the American Express® Business Gold Card worth it?

The American Express® Business Gold Card has a whopping $375 annual fee (see rates and fees), which can be a bit daunting. The reality is, however, that the card offers so many ways to get statement credits, earn points and avail yourself of other key services that it’s hard to not come out ahead.

If you’re running a business and find yourself swiping your card throughout the day, the Amex Business Gold could be the business rewards card you’ve been waiting for.

Not convinced? Alternatives to the American Express® Business Gold Card

Advertiser Disclosure

The Business Platinum Card® from American Express

The Business Platinum Card® from American Express
LEARN MORE Rates & Fees / Terms Apply on Bankrate's secure site
Key Information
Earn 5X Membership Rewards® points per dollar on flights and prepaid hotels through American Express Travel, 1.5 points per dollar on eligible business expenses and purchases of $5,000+ (up to $2 million yearly), and 1 point per dollar on other eligible purchases. $695 annual fee.
Show More Show Less

The Blue Business® Plus Credit Card from American Express

The Blue Business® Plus Credit Card from American Express
LEARN MORE Rates & Fees / Terms Apply on Bankrate's secure site
Key Information
Earn 2X Membership Rewards® points on everyday business expenses up to $50,000 per year (then 1X points). $0 annual fee.
Show More Show Less

Capital One Venture X Business

Capital One Venture X Business
LEARN MORE on Bankrate's secure site
Key Information
Earn unlimited 10X miles on hotels and rental cars and 5X miles on flights booked through Capital One Travel, earn unlimited 2X miles on all other purchases. $395 annual fee
Show More Show Less

American Express® Business Gold Card: Rewards

Welcome bonus

The Amex Business Gold card has a welcome offer on tap for newly approved cardholders. By spending at least $10,000 on eligible purchases (all bought with your Amex Business Gold card, of course) within the first three months of membership, you can earn 70,000 rewards points.

Earning rewards

You get 4x points per dollar for the two categories your company spends the most in each billing cycle. That rate applies to the first $150,000 of applied purchases and then drops to just 1 point per dollar.

There are six eligible categories in total:

Redeeming rewards

You can redeem your Membership Rewards points online via the American Express website or using the mobile Amex App. Some of the easiest redemptions are gift cards for spas, travel and Amazon shopping.

You can also transfer your points.

Hotel programs eligible for Amex point transfers include (with point redemption ratios in parentheses):

These are 18 high-value airline programs open to Amex rewards points transfers.

Here are their names as well as their transfer ratio:

American Express® Business Gold Card: Benefits

Travel benefits

Eligibility and Benefit level varies by Card. Terms, Conditions, and Limitations Apply. Please visit americanexpress.com/​benefitsguide for more details. Underwritten by Amex Assurance Company.

Shopping benefits

Eligibility and Benefit level varies by Card. Terms, Conditions, and Limitations Apply. Please visit americanexpress.com/​benefitsguide for more details. Underwritten by Amex Assurance Company.

Business benefits

Dining and entertainment benefits

Statement credits

Another perk of the Amex Business Gold card is monthly statement credits of up to $20 per month for a possible total of $240 per year. Spend those credits on delivery services (package or food) or office supplies and you could essentially cancel out nearly two-thirds of your annual fee.

There’s a second opportunity as well. Sign up for a Walmart+ monthly membership and get up to $155 each year ($12.95 per month) — plus free shipping, deals on gas at affiliated gas stations and extra-deep deals during promotional periods like Black Friday.

Fees, rates & limit

Fees

Interest rates

Credit limit

There are no Amex Business Gold card limits. Instead, you’ll need to call Amex to see what each month’s spending cap is and ask for more if you’re anticipating a large purchase.

Over time, you can increase your credit limit by using only a small portion of your available credit and making all your payments on time. This includes putting most of your purchases under pay in full rather than pay over time.

How the American Express® Business Gold Card compares

American Express® Business Gold Card vs. The Business Platinum Card® from American Express

Both of these Amex business cards are intended to help business owners earn points and support their business simply by making purchases they’d make anyway. But the Business Gold card’s rewards setup caters more toward everyday business expenses, like client lunches, paying utility bills and ensuring you have enough inventory to open shop. The Business Platinum Card® from American Express is more concerned about business travel (see Business Platinum rates and fees).

Both cards are backed by American Express, have no preset spending limit and are best suited for people with good to excellent credit scores. There is a slight edge to the Platinum card in terms of welcome offers. Their deal is 120,000 points if you spend $15,000 on eligible purchases within three months of kicking off your card membership. The Gold card offers just 70,000 points for $10,000 spent within those first three months.

Overall, though, the cards are fairly evenly matched; it’s just Gold for everyday expenses and Platinum for travel-minded business expenses.

Is the American Express® Business Gold Card right for me?

The Amex Business Gold card may be right for you if you’re looking for a way to help your business recoup expenses and maximize its financial outlook.

Something as simple as generating rewards for purchases you’d need to make anyway feels smart. You get maximum points for the spending categories you use most, and those categories can change monthly, so your rewards setup evolves alongside your business.

However, if you don’t charge many business expenses or your expenses don’t fall in one of the six covered categories, you might want to skip the Amex Business Gold.

If you don’t think the Amex Business Gold card is the best credit card for you, consider these alternatives to see if you find a better fit:

You can also check out Chase business cards or Capital One Spark business cards to learn more about your options with other card issuers.

How do I apply for the American Express® Business Gold Card?

You can learn more about the American Express Business Gold Card and apply online. You will need a good to excellent credit score of at least 670-700, plus documents that will help you fill out key information about yourself.

The application will likely ask for your:

Top American Express credit cards of 2024 Compare cards side-by-side Credit Cards with Mouse Cursor COMPARE CARDS

FAQ: American Express® Business Gold Card

Is the American Express® Business Gold Card worth it?

The Amex Business Gold card has a hefty $375 annual fee. But if you and your employees spend a big chunk of your money on items or services from one of the six main rewards categories, you could earn more than enough points to compensate for that annual fee.

What credit score do you need for an American Express® Business Gold Card?

You have the best chance of being approved for an Amex Business Gold card if you have a good to excellent credit score. That means a solid credit history with a score of at least 670 to 700.

How much does the American Express® Business Gold Card cost each year?

The Amex Business Gold card has an annual fee of $375. You can offset that cost by earning lots of points and trading in those points for helpful rewards.

How can I get the Rose Gold version of the American Express® Business Gold Card?

You can get the Rose Gold version of the Amex Business Gold card by choosing the rosy-hued card when you apply and are approved for your credit card. Other than color, these cards are identical.

How much are Amex Membership Rewards Points worth?

As of February 2024, Amex Membership Rewards Points are worth about 2.8 cents when transferred to Amex partners, 0.7 centers for direct redemptions and 1 cent each for flights booked through the Amex portal.

Which is better for business, American Express® Business Gold Card or The Business Platinum Card® from American Express?

Amex Business Platinum card benefits and Amex Business Gold card benefits have some overlap, but the first is more focused on travel while the second has a greater emphasis on day-to-day spending. You’re more likely to find the Platinum card lucrative if you spend a lot of time on the road. Otherwise, the large annual fee might be difficult to justify.

American Express is more than just a credit card issuer

The first step in growing and maintaining consistent savings is to understand your personal finances through checking and savings accounts, credit cards, and more.

If you want to save and grow your money, consider the following Amex products:

About the Author

Alana Luna (Musselman)
Alana Luna (Musselman) Writer & Content Strategist

Alana Luna (Musselman) is a versatile storyteller with over a decade of writing experience. She is passionate about helping people build their business through unique and engaging content.

Some examples of her current freelance projects include building content strategies for small businesses, completing industry research to build case studies, crafting buyer guides and more.

She has a passion and keen ability to simplify complex ideas through storytelling to make it easier for readers to understand hard-to-digest information. To accomplish this, Alana’s writing holds strong three principles – content that educates, engages and entertains.

* Opinions expressed here are those of the LA Times Compare Cards Team and have not been reviewed or approved by any advertiser or entities included within this content. See our editorial policy for more details.

All products or services are presented in this content without warranty. The information, including card details such as rates and fees, is accurate at the time of publish. Please visit each bank's website directly for the most current information.

BACK TO TOP