American Express (Amex) offers & deals

Amex Cashback Everyday card: £25 extra bonus

American Express has ditched the word “Platinum” from its cashback cards, but they work the same as before. However, there’s now an extra cashback bonus for new customers worth up to £25.

As usual, the welcome offer and additional bonus are only for people who’ve not had an Amex in their name in the last 24 months.

You can get this in addition to cashback from sites like Quidco and TopCashback. Right now it’s £10, so do check to see as it’s sometimes increased.

British Airways Amex Premium Plus (ended)

Until 8 October you can get 60,000 Avios rather than the standard 30,000 if you apply via the British Airways Executive Club. We’ve got a separate deals page explaining exactly how to take advantage of the BA Amex Premium Plus offer.

Amex Cashback card: £25 bonus cashback (expired)

New applicants to the Amex Cashback card will avoid the £25 annual fee in year one thanks to an extra £25 credit. You’ll then also earn 5% cashback in the first three months on the first £2,500 you spend.

However both parts require you to not have had any Amex in your name in the last 24 months.

You can get this in addition to cashback from sites like Quidco and TopCashback.

Amex Platinum: 40,000 points plus £400 travel credit (expired)

Until 27 August 2024 new eligible cardholders can get an extra £400 in credit to spend at Amex Travel alongside the welcome bonus (worth £200) if they spend £6,000 in three months. Along with other perks and cashback this could be worth around £900, if not more, before the £650 annual fee.

We’ve more details in our full analysis of this welcome deal.

Amex Preferred Reward Gold: 25,000 points + £70 (expired)

Running until 16 May 2024 is this offer to get an increased 25,000 Amex Reward points (up from 20,000) on the American Express Preferred Reward Gold card.

You can get another 5,000 if you go via a referral link, worth £25, or better still up to £70 via a cashback site. We’ve more details in our full analysis of this welcome deal.

Cashback site welcome bonuses

Many Amex cards will pay you an extra bonus if you apply via Quidco or TopCashback. It’s worth checking both sites to see which one pays more, and then comparing the rate to the referral bonuses.

If you’re not with either cashback site then you can also nab an extra welcome bonus on those too!

Refer-a-friend offers

Most Amex cards will give an extra bonus for signing up via a referral link. Though most of the time you’re better off going via a cashback site, they’re always worth a look – especially if they are boosted.

Obviously you can ask your friends and family if they have a link they can share with you, which you can use for any Amex you like – not just the one they have. They’ll also get a kickback for sharing their link.

To see all the different referral options click the “see all cards with a referral offer” button at the top of the page when it opens. You’ll get the rate shown for the card you select.

Upgrade Gold credit to Platinum: boosted 40,000 points

If you have the Preferred Rewards Golf card then you won’t qualify for the welcome bonus on the Platinum card, so this upgrade offer is worth a look.

You can get normally get 20,000 Amex Reward Points if you upgrade from the Preferred Rewards Gold credit card to the Platinum credit card. You’ll need to spend £4,000 in three months, so this is only for big spenders.

You’ll earn 1 point per £1 spent, so in total you’ll get 24,000 points if you achieve this. That’s worth £192 if converted to Avios, and then to Nectar points.

But right now you’ll be able to get double. So thats 40,000 points but you spend £6,000 in three months.

You’ll also get the £150 annual UK dining credit and twice yearly £50 Harvey Nicks credit.

Bear in mind you’ll need to pay £650 as an annual fee.

Upgrade Gold charge to Platinum: 20,000 points

If you have the older Preferred Rewards Gold charge card (this is slightly different from the credit card) you can get 20,000 Amex Reward Points if you upgrade to the Platinum credit card. You’ll need to spend £4,000 in three months, so this is only for big spenders.

You’ll earn 1 point per £1 spent, so in total you’ll get 24,000 points if you achieve this. That’s worth £192 if converted to Avios, and then to Nectar points.

You’ll also get the £150 annual UK dining credit and twice yearly £50 Harvey Nicks credit. So sign up now and use both offers before and after Jan 1, and that’s an extra £400.

Don’t forget that £650 annual fee that comes with the Platinum

Supplementary cards: double points bonus

Most Amex cards give you a points bonus when you add your first supplementary card (a good reason to do this once you’ve had the application approved rather than part of the initial process).

If you’re yet to do this, now is a good time to do it as the bonus is doubled until 20 October 2024 on the following cards.

• Amex Platinum: 10,000 Amex points
• Amex Preferred Rewards Gold: 6,000 Amex points
• Amex Rewards: 2,000 Amex points
• BA Amex: 2,000 Avios points
• Amex Cashback: £10 cashback
• Amex Cashback Everyday: £10 cashback

Most other cards will also give you a bonus, though they’ve not been increased for the duration of this offer.

Adding one of these cards to your account doesn’t require any credit check, and the new card won’t even appear in the other person’s credit file. It also won’t impact their ability to be a ‘new’ Amex cardholder in the future. They’re essentially a clone of your card with a different name on the front.

They’re useful as they can help you reach any welcome bonus thresholds that come with the card, while you’ll also be able to activate additional offers, such as Shop Small, on each card.

It’s important to remember if you give someone a supplementary card that all their spending on the card will be added to your bill – so make sure they understand it.

Shop Small: £5 credit with £15 spend

This is my favourite Amex offer, though it’s not as good as it used to be. In 2023 it ran from 1 to 3 December, so I’d expect a similar offer in winter 2024.

You get £5 back with each £15 spent at participating retailers, up to three times per card. More details of how to maximise your returns are in my full Shop Small guide here.

Deliveroo: 2 x £5 credit each month with Amex Gold

If you hold the Preferred Rewards Gold Amex then every month you can get £5 back on up to two Deliveroo orders. Make sure you save the offer to your card. There’s also a £5 minimum spend per order.

Harvey Nichols: £100 free credit a year with Amex Platinum card

If you have the Platinum American Express card (which comes with a huge £650 annual fee) you can now get £50 back twice a year from spending at Harvey Nichols.

The spend can be cumulative and there’s no minimum spend. So buy something for a tenner and you’ll get £10 back to your card. The offer resets on 1 July each year and you can earn up to £50 again for the second part of the year.

It’s only for primary card holders and you need to activate the offer in your account before spending. It’s due to run until December 2024.

Dining: Up to £300 free credit a year with Amex Platinum card

This offer is for people with the full Platinum Amex, not the cashback versions. Each year until 31 December 2024 you’ll get £150 dining credit to use at some top restaurants. Most do seem to be in London but there are a few around the country (mainly the Ivy chain) so you should be able to redeem the offer.

There’s also the same amount available overseas, though the locations are very limited. So I’d treat this as an extra rather than a certainty.

As with most Amex offers, you’ll need to add it to your card. It’s limited to the main cardholder only so can’t be added to supplementary cards.

The card comes with a massive £575 annual fee so I wouldn’t apply just for this offer (indeed there’s no guarantee it’ll be available to newbies) – but if you do go for it, the fee will be prorated if you cancel.