There are rewards cards you can get for fancy perks like lounge access, and then there are the ones you use to earn serious points. Fancy perks can be great, but if you need lots of points like I do, you need to know about two cards I love.
There are two big points-earning cards in my wallet that I turn to a lot because they earn 4 points per dollar spent in some very popular categories — which adds up much faster than just earning 1 or 2 points per dollar.
But before we dive into earning 4 points per dollar, know that the American Express® Business Gold Card has a huge100,000-point welcome bonus you can earn after you spend $15,000 on the card in the first three months. That welcome bonus is worth a whopping $2,000 according to TPG’s January 2025 valuations.
Be sure to check out some potentially surprising tips on who might be eligible to get a business card.
If you don’t have a small business of any sort or just prefer a personal card, that’s fine because the American Express® Gold Card is another underrated earning superstar. Its welcome bonus lets you earn 60,000 bonus points after $6,000 in spending over six months. TPG values this bonus at $1,200 since you can transfer the points to Amex’s hotel and airline partners for some great redemptions.
The Business Gold Card earns 4 transferable Membership Rewards points per dollar spent in two of six possible categories each month that automatically adjust based on your spending in that billing cycle (on the first $150,000 in combined spending each calendar year, then 1 point per dollar). My favorite categories are U.S. restaurants, U.S. gas stations and monthly wireless charges from U.S. wireless service providers.
The 4-points-per-dollar categories on the Amex Gold Card don’t change based on your spending, but do include both worldwide restaurants (on up to $50,000 in spending per calendar year) and U.S. supermarkets (on up to $25,000 per calendar year). Think of how much you spend monthly on groceries and eating out, and then multiply by four to get a flavor for all the points you’ll earn!
Here are other things to know about these two top cards in my wallet to see if they are right for yours:
Posts in this newsletter contains references to products from one or more of our advertisers. We may receive compensation when you click on links to those products, and this may impact how or where they appear. For an explanation of our Advertising Policy, visit this page.
You are receiving this email because you opted in atthepointsguy.com.
Where to find us:
The Points Guy 100 5th Ave., 16th Floor New York, NY 10011 USA USA
If this newsletter was forwarded to you, you can subscribe here.
Advertiser Disclosure:
The cards we feature here are from partners who compensate us when you are approved through our site, and this may impact how or where these products appear. We don’t cover all available credit cards, but our analysis, reviews, and opinions are entirely from our editorial team. Please view our advertising policy and product review methodology for more information.
Editorial Note: Opinions expressed here are the author’s alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, airlines or hotel chain, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities.
