The American Express® Gold Card and Bilt Mastercard® are solid cards that let you earn rewards on multiple spending categories.
The Amex Gold is a great card for earning points at restaurants, U.S. supermarkets, and flights booked directly with airlines. Cardholders can also enjoy up to $424 in annual credits and nice travel and purchase protections.
The Bilt Rewards Card lets you earn valuable travel rewards on rent payments without fees while offering bonus points on dining and travel purchases. This no-annual-fee card stands out for its unique rent payment feature and strong travel benefits like rental car coverage and trip protection.
This article will compare each card based on several factors to help you make an informed decision on which card is the best to add to your wallet.
Full Reviews: American Express® Gold Card and Bilt Mastercard®.
Overview of Each Card
- Pay Rent Without Fees and Earn 1 Point Per Dollar on Rent (up to 100,000 Points Per Calendar Year)
- No Annual Fee
- 3x Points on Dining
- 2x Points on Travel
- Transfer Rewards to Airlines and Hotels
- Cell Phone, Primary Rental Car, and Trip Delay Insurance
Welcome Bonuses
Amex Gold:
The Amex Gold currently offers the following welcome bonus:
You may be eligible for as high as 100,000 Membership Rewards® Points after you spend $6,000 in eligible purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership. Welcome offers vary and you may not be eligible for an offer. Apply to know if you’re approved and find out your exact welcome offer amount – all with no credit score impact. If you’re approved and choose to accept the Card, your score may be impacted.
Welcome Bonus Eligibility
You may not be eligible to receive a welcome offer on the American Express Gold card if you have or have had:
- American Express Gold
- American Express Platinum Card®
- The Platinum Card from American Express Exclusively for Morgan Stanley
- Platinum Card® from American Express for Charles Schwab
- Previous versions of the above cards.
Bilt Mastercard:
The Bilt Mastercard® stands out in an interesting way when it comes to welcome bonuses. Unlike most rewards credit cards, you won’t find a traditional sign-up bonus offering a set number of points after meeting a spending requirement.
The card makes up for this by offering unique bonuses in other ways. Many new cardholders receive an email offering 5x points on all purchases up to $10,000 within the first five days of card membership – potentially netting you 50,000 Bilt points right off the bat.
Earning Rewards
Amex Gold:
The Amex Gold earns Membership Rewards points and offers some very nice points multipliers to help you earn a lot of points:
- 4 points per dollar on dining at restaurants worldwide, on up to $50,000 in purchases per calendar year (then 1x points).
- 4 points per dollar U.S. supermarkets on up to $25,000 per calendar year (then 1x points).
- 3 points per dollar on flights booked directly from the airline or booked on AmexTravel.com.
- 2 points per dollar spent on prepaid hotels and other eligible purchases booked on AmexTravel.com.
- 1 point per dollar on all other eligible purchases.
Bilt Mastercard:
The Bilt Mastercard® earns the following rewards when you have at least five posted transactions per billing cycle:
- 5 points per dollar on Lyft purchases.
- 3 points per dollar on dining.
- 2 points per dollar on travel purchases.
- 1 point per dollar on rent payments without any transaction fees, up to a limit of 100,000 points per year.
- 1 point per dollar on everything else.
Winner:
Tie. Both the Amex Gold and Bilt Mastercard® offer great rewards for dining. The Amex Gold is better for spending at U.S. supermarkets and on flights booked directly with airlines, but the Bilt Rewards card offers the ability to earn points on rent and better rewards on general travel purchases.
Card Benefits and Perks
Amex Gold:
The American Express Gold card offers the following benefits for its cardholders:
$120 Dining Credit: Earn up to $10 in monthly statement credits when you pay with the Amex Gold Card at participating dining partners, including Grubhub, The Cheesecake Factory, Goldbelly, Wine.com, and Five Guys. Enrollment is required.
$120 in Uber Cash: Get up to $10 monthly Uber Cash for U.S. Uber Eats orders and rides when you add your American Express Gold Card as a payment method. Your Uber Cash can be redeemed using any American Express card.
$100 Resy Credit: Get up to $50 semi-annually in statement credits after you pay with the Amex Gold to dine at U.S. Resy restaurants or make other eligible Resy purchases. Enrollment is required.
$84 Dunkin’ Credit: You can earn up to $7 in monthly statement credits after you enroll and pay with the American Express® Gold Card at U.S. Dunkin’ locations.
Up to $100 in Hotel Credits: Explore over 1,000 upscale hotels worldwide with The Hotel Collection and receive a $100 credit towards eligible charges with every booking of two nights or more through AmexTravel.com. Eligible charges vary by property.
No Foreign Transaction Fees (rates & fees): The Amex Gold’s lack of foreign transaction fees makes it an ideal choice for international purchases, especially considering you can earn 4 points per dollar at global restaurants (on the first $50,000 spent per calendar year, then 1 point per dollar).
Travel and Purchase Benefits
Trip Delay Insurance: When your trip is significantly delayed due to covered reasons like equipment failures or severe weather, this protection reimburses you for reasonable expenses including lodging, meals, toiletries, and medication. The coverage activates when you pay for travel with your card and extends to family members on the same itinerary, though you’ll need to seek reimbursement from the travel carrier first.*
Baggage Insurance Plan covers your baggage if it is lost, damaged, or stolen and you purchase your ticket with this card.*
Secondary Rental Car Insurance: This card provides backup protection for rental car damage or theft when you charge the full rental to your card.*
Extended Warranty Protection: When you purchase items with your credit card, you’ll get an extra year of warranty coverage on eligible items that have original manufacturer warranties of up to five years. This valuable perk means you can protect expensive electronics and appliances that come with longer manufacturer warranties without paying extra for store protection plans*
Return Protection allows cardholders to receive a refund for purchased items within a certain timeframe for items that merchants may not accept for return.*
ShopRunner Membership: As a cardholder, you’ll enjoy a complimentary ShopRunner membership, which provides free 2-day shipping and free returns at over 100 participating online retailers. This benefit can help frequent online shoppers save on shipping costs and streamline the return process.
Amex Offers: As an American Express cardholder, you can access Amex Offers. These targeted, limited-time promotions provide discounts or bonus points on purchases with select merchants. Offers are added to your card, and you’ll receive either a percentage or dollar amount back as a statement credit when you meet the offer terms. While offers vary and may not always align with your spending habits, this perk can be valuable when an offer matches your preferences.
* Eligibility and benefit level varies by card. Terms, conditions, and limitations apply. Please visit americanexpress.com/benefitsguide for more details.
Bilt Mastercard:
The Bilt Mastercard® offers nice benefits for a no annual fee card, including:
Primary Rental Car Insurance: When you rent a car and pay with this card, you’ll receive comprehensive coverage including damage and theft protection. Simply decline the rental company’s collision damage waiver and charge the entire rental to your card to activate coverage. This insurance covers damage, theft, and valid loss-of-use charges worldwide.
Cell Phone Protection: When you use your card to pay your monthly phone bill, you’ll receive valuable coverage against damage or theft of your device.
Trip Delay Insurance: When your trip is significantly delayed due to covered reasons like equipment failures or severe weather, this protection reimburses you for reasonable expenses including lodging, meals, toiletries, and medication. The coverage activates when you pay for travel with your card and extends to family members on the same itinerary, though you’ll need to seek reimbursement from the travel carrier first.
90-Day Purchase Protection: Your new purchases are covered against damage and theft for 90 days when you use your card. This protection helps safeguard your eligible items right from the moment you buy them.
Trip Cancellation & Interruption Insurance: This protection reimburses you for non-refundable, prepaid travel expenses if you need to cancel before departure or cut your trip short due to covered situations like severe illness or weather events. Coverage activates when you pay for your trip with the card, but it’s important to note that reimbursement only applies for specific covered reasons rather than any cancellation.
Referral Program: Earn 2,500 Bilt points for each friend who gets approved for the Bilt Mastercard using your referral link, plus receive a 10,000-point bonus for every fifth successful referral. You can earn rewards for up to 50 total referrals, meaning significant earning potential through sharing the card with friends and family.
No Foreign Transaction Fees: You’ll save money on every purchase while traveling internationally since this card doesn’t add the typical 3% surcharge that many other cards impose.
Winner:
The Amex Gold wins. Apart from the travel and purchase protection that it offers, it also comes with hotel, dining, and Uber credits.
Value of the Annual Fees
Amex Gold:
The American Express Gold has a $325 annual fee (rates and fees), which is offset by up to $424 in annual credits, trip and purchase protections, and extra points on dining, flights, and U.S. supermarkets.
Bilt Mastercard:
The Bilt Mastercard® has no annual fee for both primary cardholders and authorized users, making it one of the best no-fee cards available.
Winner:
The Bilt Mastercard® offers a lot of great benefits for no annual fee. Plus, you don’t have to worry about spending annual credits to justify its annual fee.
Redeeming Rewards
Amex Gold:
American Express Membership Rewards points are a versatile and valuable currency for travelers. The program offers numerous redemption options, with transfers to airline partners being the most lucrative way to use your points.
Amex partners with 18 airlines and 3 hotel chains, allowing you to access a wide range of travel possibilities. Some of the best redemptions include booking business class flights to Europe through Air France-KLM Flying Blue for as low as 50,000 miles one-way. Virgin Atlantic’s Flying Club offers excellent value for Delta One flights to Europe at 50,000 points, significantly less than booking directly through Delta.
For those planning a trip to Asia, transferring to ANA Mileage Club can yield incredible value. Round-trip business class flights from the West Coast to Tokyo can be booked for just 90,000 miles. Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer is another great option, especially for their renowned long-haul flights like New York to Singapore.
Domestic travelers can benefit from transferring to British Airways Executive Club for short-haul American and Alaska Airlines flights, with awards starting at just 8,250 Avios for distances up to 650 miles.
While transferring to airline partners typically offers the best value, Amex also allows direct redemptions for flights through their travel portal. However, this option generally provides lower value at 1 cent per point.
To maximize your Membership Rewards, focus on high-value airline transfers for premium cabin international flights. With strategic planning, you can unlock extraordinary travel experiences and significant savings on your next adventure.
Membership Rewards Transfer Partners [1 to 1]
|
|
|---|---|
Aer Lingus Avios
|
AeroMexico [1 to 1.6]
|
Air Canada Aeroplan
|
Air France/KLM Flying Blue
|
ANA
|
Avianca LifeMiles
|
British Airways Avios
|
Cathay Pacific Asia Miles
|
Delta SkyMiles
|
El Al [1,000 to 20]
|
Emirates
|
Etihad Guest
|
Hawaiian Airlines
|
Iberia Avios
|
JetBlue [250 to 200]
|
Qantas
|
Qatar Airways
|
Singapore KrisFlyer
|
Virgin Atlantic
|
Choice
|
Marriott Bonvoy
|
Hilton Honors [1 to 2]
|
Bilt Mastercard:
Bilt points offer versatile redemption options, with transfers to airline and hotel partners standing out as the most valuable. The program offers 18 transfer partners, including thirteen airline and five hotel loyalty programs. Notable partners include Alaska Airlines, Iberia, Turkish, and World of Hyatt, providing unique opportunities for premium travel experiences.
For those seeking flexibility, the Bilt Travel Portal allows point redemptions at 1.25 cents per point for flights, hotels, rental cars, and activities. A distinctive feature is the ability to use points towards a home down payment at 1.5 cents per point, catering to renters looking to transition to homeownership.
While other redemption options exist, such as Amazon purchases, fitness classes, and rent payments, these offer lower value and are not recommended for maximizing point value.
Keep an eye out for Bilt’s monthly Rent Day promotions and transfer bonuses, which can provide exceptional value, especially for those with Bilt elite status. These promotions have offered bonuses of up to 150% to select partners, making them prime opportunities for point transfers.
Bilt Rewards Transfer Partners [1 to 1]
|
|
|---|---|
Accor [3 to 2]
|
Aer Lingus
|
|
Air Canada
|
Air France/KLM
|
Alaska Airlines
|
Avianca LifeMiles
|
|
British Airways
|
Cathay Pacific
|
|
Emirates
|
Hawaiian
|
Hyatt Hotels
|
Iberia
|
IHG Hotels
|
Marriott
|
TAP Portugal
|
Turkish
|
|
Virgin Atlantic
|
United
|
Winner:
Tie. Bilt Rewards and American Express Membership Rewards offer nice airline and hotel partners to redeem points.
The Verdict
The Amex Gold and Bilt Rewards Card are two entirely different cards that offer unique benefits.
But the Amex Gold is the better option in this case. It has a big welcome bonus, extra perks, and the potential to earn up to 4x points that you can use with over 20 transfer partners.
The Bilt Mastercard® is a good beginner card or a secondary card. It has no annual fees and earns points on multiple categories, especially rent.
Which card are you going to choose?
- Pay Rent Without Fees and Earn 1 Point Per Dollar on Rent (up to 100,000 Points Per Calendar Year)
- No Annual Fee
- 3x Points on Dining
- 2x Points on Travel
- Transfer Rewards to Airlines and Hotels
- Cell Phone, Primary Rental Car, and Trip Delay Insurance
