American Express® Green Review

Overview

The American Express® Green is a flexible travel rewards card from American Express, running on the Amex network. The American Express® Green earns up to 3x on dining, travel, and transit, so it pays you the most exactly where you already spend. It carries a $150 annual fee, so the real question is whether its rewards, credits, and perks clear that bar for the way you spend. New cardholders can earn 40,000 Membership Rewards® Points after $3,000 in 6 months.

It lands in the mid tier: a modest annual fee in exchange for stronger earn rates and a meaningful welcome offer. The right call depends on whether your spending and the perks clear that fee each year.

Our 4.5 out of 5 rating

Each score weighs the rewards rate, value after the annual fee, welcome offer, points flexibility, and perks, with every point valued at a flat 1 cent. This is our editorial assessment to help you compare cards, not a guarantee of approval or of the value you will get.

Rewards: how it earns

Where the American Express® Green earns its rewards is its bonus categories: 3x on dining (about $90 a year on the $3,000 a typical household spends there), 3x on travel (about $54 a year on the $1,800 a typical household spends there), and 3x on transit (about $22 a year on the $720 a typical household spends there). Across a full year of average household spending, the card returns roughly $402 in rewards before any welcome bonus, so the more your spending overlaps those categories, the better it does.

Every point and mile above is valued at a flat 1 cent, the same honest standard we use for every card. Run your own spending through the calculator to see what this card would actually return for you.

Pros and cons

The welcome bonus

The current welcome offer is 40,000 Membership Rewards® Points, earned after you spend $3,000 in 6 months. Valued honestly at a flat 1 cent per point, that is worth about $400. The spending requirement works out to roughly $500 per month, so make sure it fits your normal budget rather than pushing you to overspend. Stacking the welcome offer on top of a typical year of rewards and accounting for the $150 annual fee, the first year is worth roughly $652.

Is the annual fee worth it?

To come out ahead on the American Express® Green you need to clear its $150 annual fee. On typical spending it earns about $402 a year in rewards, and it carries up to $199 in statement credits. For anyone who spends in its categories, the fee is easy to justify.

Benefits and protections

Beyond the rewards, the perks and protections worth knowing about include:

• Transfer points to 20+ airline and hotel partners at 1:1
• Up to $199 CLEAR Plus credit annually
• No foreign transaction fees
• Car rental loss and damage insurance
• Trip delay and baggage insurance

Statement credits

• $199 CLEAR Plus credit

Ecosystem and transfer partners

The American Express® Green earns Membership Rewards, one of the more valuable currencies in rewards because of where the points can go. You can move points 1 to 1 to 9 airline and hotel partners: Delta SkyMiles, British Airways, Air France/KLM, Singapore Airlines, ANA, Avianca LifeMiles, Emirates Skywards, Marriott Bonvoy, and Hilton Honors. As a hub card, this is the one you route points through before transferring out. The sweet spots are usually premium-cabin flights and high-end hotel nights, where a single point can be worth well more than the 1 cent we value it at here.

Who should get it, and who should skip it

It is best for people who spend heavily on dining and travel and will earn back the $150 fee through those bonus categories and the card's perks.

Skip it if your spending does not line up with its bonus categories, or if you would rather not think about where you swipe at all.

How it compares

If the American Express® Green is not quite the right fit, these related cards are worth weighing against it:

Frequently asked questions