Disclaimer: This blog post is not financial advice. I am not a financial advisor. It is purely intended to be the honest opinion of the author. You should always think carefully before entering into any form for credit agreement.

If you’re new to collecting credit card travel reward points then look no further than the American Express Preferred Rewards Gold Credit Card.

This classy-looking bit of plastic is an ideal card for beginners, offering you the perfect blend of solid points-earning potential and low financial risk.

This was the first rewards credit card that I got and if you haven’t had a travel rewards card before, in my view this is what you should be starting your points journey with.

Furthermore, right now is also a pretty good time to apply. Here’s why.

Key features and benefits of the American Express Preferred Rewards Gold Card

• £195 annual fee, but free for the first year.
• Earn 20,000 Membership Reward Points (MRP) when you spend £3,000 in the first three months. Currently enhanced to 28,000 points (you can get an extra 7,000 points on top of this if you apply with a referral code. Contact me, if you want one).
• Cardholders earn one Membership Reward Point per £1 spent on the card.
• Earn 3x points per £1 spent with American Express Travel and 2x points per £1 spent on purchases made directly with airlines.
• Earn 2,500 bonus points every time you spend £5,000, up to 12,500 bonus points in a year.
• Four complimentary airport lounge passes per year.
• £5 back twice a month on Deliveroo purchases
• Flexibility to convert Membership Reward Points into a number of different reward schemes, including a variety of travel loyalty partners including British Airways (Avios) and Virgin Atlantic, amongst others.

A fully comprehensive list of the full features and benefits for the card can be found on the American Express website.

The representative APR is 87.3% variable and the purchase rate on purchases is 30.0%.

Reward credit cards like this should always be paid off in full each month to avoid paying significant interest.

The interest accrued from rolling a balance would counteract the benefit you would have gained from collecting points, so always clear that statement balance in full!

Why apply for the American Express Preferred Rewards Gold Credit Card first?

In my view, there are three main reasons why you should start with this card, of which the third is the most crucial.

1. There is no annual fee for the card in the first year, which means that it is not costing you anything to hold the card whilst you get used to using a rewards credit card and decide if it’s for you. A low-risk option.
2. Points are transferrable to Avios, which is, in my view, the best travel loyalty reward programme in the UK.
   But even if you decide against trying to secure flights, the points can still be used for other things, such as Nectar points.
3. If you apply for this card and earn the Welcome Bonus (which is a realistically achievable target for a lot of people) you will STILL qualify for the Welcome Bonus on the British Airways American Express Premium Plus Card.
   This is a key route to collect points/Avios quickly, helping you to amass enough points to redeem on flights.
   If you hold either of the British Airways American Express cards BEFORE the American Express Preferred Rewards Gold card, you will not qualify for the Welcome Bonus on both cards. It’s important to apply for them in the right order!

If you want to book a decent flight to somewhere good, I cannot understate the importance of trying to hold American Express cards in the right order as this will greatly enhance your potential to grow your points quickly.

I’ll be doing a separate blog on what I consider to be the correct order, but in the meantime, my guide to saving up points for a flight to Japan explains why.

Welcome Bonus points offer is decent

The current Welcome Bonus offer on the American Express Preferred Rewards Gold card of 28,000 Membership Reward Points is pretty decent and with no annual fee for the first year, it means it is an easy way to accrue a lot of points.

You can boost that amount to 35,000 points with a referral code. More details on that below.

Overall summary

In summary, the American Express Preferred Rewards Gold Credit Card is THE ideal beginners card for travel reward points.

Not only is it free for the first year, but the Welcome Bonus offer is good and you can still qualify for the Welcome Bonuses on other key travel reward cards after holding the AMEX Gold card.

If you want to dip your toe into the travel reward points world with nothing to lose then this is as safe a bet as they come.

Get a referral code and earn even more points

If you have referral code, right now you can boost your American Express Preferred Rewards Gold card Welcome Bonus to a whopping 35,000 points.

That’s enough points for a one way off-peak economy ticket from the UK to Tokyo!

If you have decided to apply for the card and want to take advantage of this offer, you can contact me directly, to request a referral code and receive further instructions.

Referral codes earn new card holders extra points and also earn the supplier of the referral code points as well, so everyone’s a winner.

If you have any further questions about the card before taking the plunge, feel free to contact me and I’ll be only too happy to help.