Amex Green Card review: Refreshed with new travel perks
If you don’t like waiting in long lines or want to make the most of your travel expenses, the updated can save you time and money on your next trip.
American Express has refreshed the Amex Green card with some new benefits like statement credits toward a CLEAR membership, LoungeBuddy, and the ability to earn lots of valuable Membership Rewards points on many travel-related purchases like hotels, subways and restaurants.
Let’s dive into the details of what the new Amex Green card has to offer.
You can apply for the Amex Green card here.
Amex Green card welcome bonus
For a limited time through January 15, 2020, you can receive up to $100 in statement credits towards any eligible purchase from Away. This credit can be used to help cover the purchase of one of the many high-quality luggage products that Away produces, from carry-on bags with batteries to keep your devices charged while on the go to stylish backpacks and weekender bags
You can also earn 30,000 Membership Rewards points after you spend $2,000 on purchases on your new Amex Green card in your first three months.
Many people will get the most value out of their points by transferring them to any of Amex’s travel partners. Here are some of the best ways to use Amex points, and what’s possible with 30,000 Amex Membership Rewards points:
- Transfer your points at a 1:1 ratio to Singapore Airlines to fly to Hawaii from the West Coast for 24,000 miles round-trip in coach
- Transfer your points at a 1:1 ratio to Choice Hotels for award stays overseas, where award nights generally cost anywhere between 6,000 and 35,000 Choice points per night
- Book up to 3 nights at a Hilton hotel by transferring points to Hilton at a 1:2 ratio, where the cheapest hotels in the U.S. generally cost 10,000 Hilton points per night
- Transfer your points at a 1:1 ratio to Avianca to book transcontinental flights in United’s Polaris Business Class, which costs 25,000 miles one-way
Membership Rewards points are flexible though and can be redeemed a number of other ways:
- Airfare through the Amex travel portal
- Cash back as a statement credit
- Gift cards
- Shop with points (such as Amazon or Walmart)
- Shop with points through the Amex Membership Rewards mall
Benefits of the Amex Green card
The Amex Green card does carry an annual fee of $150 (see rates & fees), but with it comes a slew of benefits that can make it well worth paying for.
Up to $100 annual statement credit for CLEAR
You can receive up to $100 per year in statement credits when you use your Amex Green card to pay for your CLEAR® membership.
CLEAR is designed to get you through security faster by using biometrics (like your fingerprints) to more quickly identify who you are. You won’t have to present your ID or boarding pass to the TSA agent at the podium. Simply enter the designated CLEAR lanes to validate your identity at a kiosk, and then you’ll be escorted to the front of the TSA security line.
CLEAR is currently available in a number of airports across the US as well as at select sports stadiums. And perhaps the great thing about CLEAR is that it stacks with TSA PreCheck and Global Entry, which can save you even more time.
CLEAR generally costs $15 per month (billed annually, $179 per year), but with this statement credit from the new Amex Green card, it effectively knocks it down to $79 per year. However, if you’re a Delta SkyMiles or United MileagePlus member (which anybody can become for free), you can purchase CLEAR for $119 a year, meaning the price effectively becomes $19 per year.
Here is our review of CLEAR if you’re interested in seeing how it can save you time at the airport.
Up to $100 annual statement credit for LoungeBuddy
LoungeBuddy is available as a mobile app and allows you to find and pay for access to airport lounges worldwide. These lounges are a wonderful place to relax before your flight, as well as enjoy food, drinks, and possibly even spas and shower facilities depending on the location.
Many of the best travel credit cards include lounge access as a perk. But if you come across a lounge whose membership is not included with your card, there’s a good chance you can pay for access directly through the LoungeBuddy mobile app.
And with the new Amex Green card, you’ll receive up to $100 in statement credits per year on your LoungeBuddy purchases.
How to earn points with the Amex Green card
With the Amex Green card, you can earn points for your everyday purchases in addition to multiple bonus categories. The card is especially great if you want to earn bonus points for dining or travel-related purchases.
You’ll earn 3X Membership Rewards points on all things travel, from subway swipes and window seats to hotel stays and city tours. Specifically Amex says these purchases will qualify for earning bonus points on “airfare, hotels, cruises, car rentals, campgrounds, trains, taxicabs, rideshare services, tours, ferries, tolls, parking, buses, subways, on third party travel websites, and on amextravel.com.” That’s a pretty wide variety of transactions and can make it easy to start racking up some serious points.
And if you enjoy eating out, you can also earn 3X Membership Rewards points at restaurants worldwide.
The Amex Green’s broad bonus categories make it one of the best cards for earning points.
Does the Amex Green card have a foreign transaction fee?
No, the card does not have foreign transaction fees. It got rid of the fees with this most recent refresh. (see rates & fees)
Amex Green card customer service
American Express is known by many to have fantastic customer service. You can reach them via phone, or send them a message via your online account if you have any issues regarding your account.
Is the Amex Green card worth it?
The card carries an annual fee of $150, but if you travel frequently enough to take advantage of perks like LoungeBuddy, or frequently pass through airports with a CLEAR location, it’s certainly worth considering. And when you add in the broad 3x bonus categories, you can easily earn a lot of points, whose value can also help offset the annual fee.
If you’re on the fence, also keep in mind the card is offering a limited-time welcome bonus through January 15, 2020, where you can receive up to $100 in statement credits towards any eligible purchase from Away in the first three months. You can also earn 30,000 Membership Rewards points after you spend $2,000 on purchases on your new card in your first three months.
Cards similar to the Amex Green
The Amex Green card is great for those travelers who plan to take advantage of its unique perks, like the statement credits for CLEAR and LoungeBuddy for airport lounge access. But the following Amex cards may also be of interest to you:
American Express® Gold Card: This card has a bit of a higher annual fee of $250 (see rates & fees), but also comes packed with a few more benefits. You can earn an intro bonus of 35,000 Membership Rewards points after spending $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months of account opening, and earn 4X points at restaurants and US supermarkets (on the first $25,000, then 1x), and more.
Here is our review of the Amex Gold card.
The Platinum Card® from American Express: If you’re looking for premium travel perks this is the card for you. You’ll receive up a $200 annual airline incidental fee credit on your selected airline, up to $200 in Uber credits per year, up to $100 credit for Saks Fifth Avenue per calendar year, complimentary Hilton Honors Gold status, and more.
Here is our review of the American Express Platinum.
Bottom line
The new Amex Green card has some unique benefits that can save you time and money on your travels, with perks like the up to $100 in statement credits each for LoungeBuddy purchases and your CLEAR membership.
And for a limited time through January 15, 2020, you can receive up to $100 in statement credits towards any eligible purchase from Away. You can also earn 30,000 Membership Rewards points after you spend $2,000 on purchases on your new card in your first three months.
The card does carry an annual fee of $150, but if you’re able to take advantage of the card’s benefits throughout the year, you can easily come out ahead and have the card’s annual fee more than pay for itself.
You can apply for the Amex Green card here.
For rates and fees of the Amex Green card, click here.
For rates and fees of the Amex Gold card, click here.
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