Amex Gold 2026 Refresh: What Changed
What improved
The refreshed Gold keeps its $325 annual fee and adds a few real upgrades. Prepaid hotels booked through Amex Travel now earn 5x instead of 2x, the card adds complimentary Hertz Gold Plus Rewards Five Star status, and the up-to-$10-per-month dining credit gained new partners in Buffalo Wild Wings and Wonder. The Gold's core strengths, 4x at restaurants and 4x at U.S. supermarkets on capped spending, are unchanged. See best cards for dining.
What to watch
A few changes cut the other way. Goldbelly and Wine.com left the monthly dining credit on June 30, 2026, so if you used the credit on those, you will need to shift to a remaining partner. The welcome offer's spending requirement also rose from $6,000 to $8,000 over the first six months, making the sign-up bonus harder to earn even where the headline points figure is higher. See welcome bonus history.
The honest verdict
This is a soft refresh rather than an overhaul. The everyday earning that makes the Gold a top dining and grocery card is intact, and the higher hotel rate and new credit partners are modest pluses. The dropped credit partners and higher welcome spend are the trade-offs. If you already value the Gold for restaurants and supermarkets, nothing essential changed; if you were chasing the sign-up bonus, note the higher spend. See are annual fees worth it.
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