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The Platinum Card® from American Express card is annual fee waived for military.
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The American Express® Gold Card military benefits offers active duty troops and their military spouses no annual fees and a huge 60,000 point welcome offer with $4,000 spend in the first 6 months.
The American Express Military Lending Act (MLA) program is world famous for waiving the annual fees on all American Express cards, including The Platinum Card® from American Express and the American Express Gold Card.
Learn how to apply for the Amex Gold Card on our partner's secure site.
American Express® Gold Card
Learn how to apply on our partner's secure site
- $250 Annual Fee waived for US military and spouses
- Earn 60,000 Membership Reward® Points after spending $4,000 on eligible purchases with your new card in the first 6 months of Card Membership
- Earn 4x points at restaurants, plus takeout and delivery in the US
- Earn 4x points on US supermarkets (up to $25,000 per year, then 1x points) – includes OCONUS Commissaries
- Earn 3x points on flights booked directly with the airline or on amextravel.com
- No foreign transaction fees – great for the 4x on restaurants when travelling for fun, OCONUS TDY, or PCS!
- $120 Uber Cash on Gold: Add your Amex Gold Card to your Uber account and each month automatically get $10 in Uber Cash for Uber Eats orders or Uber rides in the U.S., totaling up to $120 annually.
- $120 per year Dining Credit: Earn up to $10 per month in statement credits when you use your Amex Gold at Grubhub, The Cheesecake Factory, Goldbelly, Wine.com, Molk Bar, and select Shake Shack locations. Enrollment required.
- Choose between the Gold or Rose Gold version when you apply.
- Read my full review of the Amex Gold card for military, terms apply
The Amex Gold Card is perfect for military troops and family members who dine out, order delivery, get takeout, or buy groceries and want to earn valuable Amex Membership Reward points.
Amex Gold Card Military Benefits
The chief military specific benefit on the Amex Gold card is the $250 annual fee waived for active duty troops, Guard and Reserve on 30+ day active duty orders, and military spouses. Other key benefits include the welcome bonus of 60,000 points after spending $4000 in the first 6 months of Card Membership.
Both the active duty servicemember and the civilian spouse can open up their own account. You do not need to be authorized users on the account. You will both get your fees waived. Check your eligibility for MLA benefits in the MLA database. This can double your annual benefits!
Jamie and I recorded two episodes on the Military Money Manual Podcast on the Amex Gold card and the best cards for military spouses. You can listen in the players below or on Spotify or Apple.
Amex Gold 60k Bonus
Currently the Amex Gold card is offering the opportunity to earn a 60,000 point welcome bonus after you meet the minimum spend requirement of $4,000 in the first 6 months of Card Membership. This is the largest bonus I have seen in years on this card.
At 11 cents per point, the Amex Gold Card welcome offer is worth $6600, which is more than minimum spend required!
60,000 points can be cashed out through the Schwab Platinum card for $750 (at 1.25 cents per point) or transferred to over 20 travel transfer partners for maximum value. Now is a great time to earn the points and then cash them in latter for when travel opens back up.
Learn how to maximize your Amex points in my free Ultimate Military Credit Cards Course. Or check out the Military Money Manual Podcast for more military travel hacking tips.
60,000 Amex points are worth approximately $1200 if you transfer to a partner airline or hotel. Usually I can get 2 cents of value per Amex Membership Reward points.
Sometimes you can get much more than 2 cents per AMEX point. For example, I recently booked a round trip, first class flight for my wife and me to go to Japan next year.
These flights would have cost $27,000, but I I cashed in 240,000 AMEX MR points instead for a valuation of over 11 cents per AMEX MR point. Here's two screenshots comparing the cash price vs the points price.
Amex Gold Bonus Categories: Food!
The bonus categories for the Gold card include 4x on restaurants worldwide, which is even better than the 3x points on dining with Chase Sapphire Reserve.
The Gold card also offers 4x points on US supermarkets up to $25,000 per year. This could be worth 100,000 Amex MR points if you spend a lot on groceries!
If you value Amex MR points at 2 cents or greater, this is an even better return on supermarket spending than the Amex Blue Cash Preferred with 6% cash back on US supermarkets ($95 annual fee waived for military).
US military Commissaries overseas are eligible for the 4x points on US supermarkets. If you're stationed in Japan, South Korea, Germany, England, Spain, Italy, or Bahrain, you can use this card on base at the Commissary.
The no foreign transaction fees on this card make it perfect for OCONUS TDY, PCS, and deployments. If you like to travel internationally on vacation, you need this card in your wallet.
This card is an excellent compliment to the Amex Platinum card. The Gold card earns more points (4x vs. 1x) on restaurants and US supermarkets than the Platinum card. I compared the Amex Gold vs Amex Platinum to see which is better for military servicemembers.
The Platinum card earns 5x on airfare, vs the Gold card's 3x points on airfare booked directly with the airline or on amextrael.com. Therefore, use your Platinum card for airfare and your Gold card for groceries and dining out!
Having both cards in the military makes perfect sense since the annual fees are waived on both. That's $800 in annual fees waived if you get both cards!
Amex Rose Gold Card for Military
The Amex Rose Gold card is a special edition of the Amex Gold Card. It has all the same perks, benefits, and the annual fee is still waived for military servicemembers and spouses.
The rose gold color is very distinctive. It also sounds very distinctive when you tab it on the table. Both the Amex Gold and Rose Gold card are made of metal.
I personally picked up one of these rose gold cards as soon as it was offered earlier this year.
How to Get Amex Gold Card Military Fee Waiver
US military servicemembers and spouses can usually get their $250 annual fee waived on the Amex Gold Card without even calling in.
If you open the card while you or your spouse is on active duty, your fees will be waived under Amex Military Lending Act or MLA policy. You can confirm your MLA eligibility in the MLA database.
If you opened the card before active duty, you may need to apply for Amex SCRA benefits. Here is the process:
Apply for Amex Gold SCRA Benefits
- Go to your AmericanExpress.com “Account Services” tab
- Click on “Card Management”
- Scroll to the bottom and find the “Servicemembers Civil Relief Act Benefits”
Or you can go directly to the Amex “Request SCRA Benefits Now” page, located here.
Please follow these instructions here for active duty military and these instructions here for Guard and Reservists. Guard and Reservists on Title 10 and Title 32 should be eligible for Amex SCRA benefits.
Upgrade Amex Gold to Amex Platinum
While the Amex Gold card is great, you can upgrade this card to the another Amex Platinum after 1 year of card membership. Then you can open another Amex Gold (you won't be eligible for the welcome bonus). Now you'll have 2x Amex Platinums and 1x Amex Gold.
I recently upgraded my Amex Gold card to another Amex Platinum card. I then opened another Amex Gold card account to continue to have access to the 4x points on restaurants and US supermarkets.
Please note, you are not eligible for the welcome offer on this card if you have ever received a welcome offer before on an Amex Gold card or an Amex Premier Rewards Gold (PRG) card.
Because I had previously opened an Amex Gold card account and received a welcome offer, I will not be eligible for future welcome offers on new accounts.
After another year I will upgrade my new Gold card to another Amex Platinum card and the open another Amex Gold card. This process should be able to continue until I leave active duty or I hit the Amex charge card limit. Maybe I'll even get more than 11 Platinum cards!
Bottom line, the Amex Gold card is perfect for traveling military servicemembers and spouses who eat out at restaurants either at home or on the road or grocery shop. The Gold Card should be your go to card for all food purchases, whether it's making food at home or letting someone else do the cooking and clean up!
Apply for the military annual fee waived Amex Gold Card today!
American Express® Gold Card
Learn how to apply on our partner's secure site
- $250 Annual Fee waived for US military and spouses
- Earn 60,000 Membership Reward® Points after spending $4,000 on eligible purchases with your new card in the first 6 months of Card Membership
- Earn 4x points at restaurants, plus takeout and delivery in the US
- Earn 4x points on US supermarkets (up to $25,000 per year, then 1x points) – includes OCONUS Commissaries
- Earn 3x points on flights booked directly with the airline or on amextravel.com
- No foreign transaction fees – great for the 4x on restaurants when travelling for fun, OCONUS TDY, or PCS!
- $120 Uber Cash on Gold: Add your Amex Gold Card to your Uber account and each month automatically get $10 in Uber Cash for Uber Eats orders or Uber rides in the U.S., totaling up to $120 annually.
- $120 per year Dining Credit: Earn up to $10 per month in statement credits when you use your Amex Gold at Grubhub, The Cheesecake Factory, Goldbelly, Wine.com, Molk Bar, and select Shake Shack locations. Enrollment required.
- Choose between the Gold or Rose Gold version when you apply.
- Read my full review of the Amex Gold card for military, terms apply
Amex Gold FAQ
Yes, the annual fee on the Amex Gold card is waived for active duty servicemembers, spouses and dependents, and Guard and Reserve on Title 10 or Title 32 orders. This is thanks to the Amex MLA and SCRA policies.
The Amex Gold card is still metal.
If you opened the card while on active duty, there is a good chance Amex will continue to waive your annual fees as a veteran. However, if you open the card after you leave active duty, you will not get your annual fees waived.
The Amex Gold card benefits include a large welcome bonus, bonus categories to earn extra points like restaurants, US supermarkets, and travel. You also get monthly Uber and dining credits. No foreign transaction fees Amex Gold a great travel rewards card.
The Amex Gold card should be pretty easy to get with a credit score over 700.
The Amex Gold card is a charge card, meaning the balance is due in full every month. However, Amex does offer a pay over time feature, that allows you to make monthly payments towards your balance, similar to a credit card.
Hello ! I would like to get the gold card. My concern is not all commissaries code as grocery store or supermarket . Have this been a issue with you guys ?
No, it hasn’t really been an issue. Most Commissaries code as grocery store or US supermarket, even the OCONUS ones. Check out which Commissaries code as a grocery store or supermarket.
What is the process to Upgrade from Gold to Platinum?
Thank you
Covered how to upgrade Amex Gold to Amex Platinum here.
“Earn 60,000 Membership Reward Amex points after spending $4000 in the first 6 months of account opening”
Spencer, It’s 3 months now instead of 6 months, could you please double check?
I still see 6 months when I use my link here. Did you try incognito mode on your browser?
From the application: “based on your history with credit card balance transfers, American Express welcome offers, introductory APR offers, or the number of Cards you have opened and closed, you are not eligible to receive the welcome offer.” Hmmm…
But I’ve never been a Gold card holder. Current AMEX wallet is a Plat, Hilton Prestige and Aspire, Bonvoy Brilliant. Ideas?
When was your last application? Did you break any of the Amex application rules here?
so when I have multiple AMEX platinum cards. can i combine all of my benefits? or are the still separated by the different card accounts? example, with 1 platinum cards I get a monthly $15 to spend on uber eats. with 2 cards i get $30. Would I need to make 2 separate orders from ubereats? or can I lump it into 1 order?
The benefits are additive. So for instance I get $75 of Uber credits per month since I have added all 5 of my and my wife’s Platinum cards to my Uber account. Or the Saks credit I just split the transaction over 5 cards or buy 5x $50 gift cards with each Platinum card.
Spencer have you had recent luck with buying the sacks giftcards and if so was it online or in person?
In person in July 2021. All successful across 8 Platinum cards. I will try again in January 2022 when my $50 credit refreshes.