The best referral offers, welcome deals and extra savings.
Here are some of the special deals running right now.
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There are loads of ways you can get more from an American Express credit card other than the ongoing cashback rewards. And they start when you first apply.
First is either a referral bonus or cashback site bonus. These generally are worth between £10 and £25, depending on the card and where you get the link.
Next is the welcome bonus for those who haven’t had an Amex in 24 months. These come with cashback, reward and points based cards. These can easily be worth £100 or more, depending on the card.
Finally there are extra offers available every month on the card, with the Shop Small promotion among my favourites.
Standard welcome offers
If you’ve not had an American Express card in your name in 24 months you’ll be eligible for a welcome bonus when you sign up and meet specific spending thresholds.
You might be eligible for a bonus from the Platinum card and British Airways cards as an existing cardholder – it depends on which card or cards you have. I’ve explained more in this article.
The highest paying standard welcome promotions are:
| Card | Bonus | Value | Fee |
| American Express Preferred Rewards Gold credit card | 20,000 Amex Membership points + 3,000 points for spending | £115 | £0 (£195 in year two) |
| American Express Cashback credit card | 5% on first £2,500 spent | Up to £125 | £25 |
| Nectar American Express credit card | 20,000 Nectar points + 2,000 points for spending | £110 in Nectar points | £0 (£30 in year two) |
Boosted welcome offers
These offers are sometimes boosted and it’s often worth waiting for these deals to come along. Once to look out for include:
- Up to 25,000 rather than 20,000 for the Amex Preferred Reward Gold (usually spring and winter each year. Last ran March to May 2025)
- 80,000 rather than 50,000 for the Amex Platinum (usually spring and winter each year. Last ran March to May 2025
- 60,000 rather than 30,000 for the BA Amex Premium Plus (usually late winter and early autumn each year. Ran January to February 2025)
- £25 off the Amex Cashback card
When these and other deals are running we’ll share the basics below, with links to more detailed articles explaining the offer in full.
Current boosted offers
Amex Platinum: 80,000 points plus £100
Until 27 May 2025 new eligible cardholders can get an increased the welcome bonus (worth £450) if they spend £10,000 in six months, and there’s a £100 cashback offer on top via cashback sites.
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: 30,000 points + £70
Running until 27 May 2025 is this offer to get an increased 30,000 Amex Reward points (up from 20,000) on the American Express Preferred Reward Gold card.
You can get another 10,000 if you go via a referral link, worth £50, or better still up to £70 via a cashback site. We’ve more details in our full analysis of this welcome deal.
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.
| Card | Standard bonus | Extra bonus | Fee | Ends? | Cashback site bonus? |
| Amex Cashback Everyday | 5% cashback in first three months, capped at £100 | 5% increased to first £125 for first five months | None | Unknown | £10 via Quidco* |
Previous boosted offers
These are the most recent offers on other cards, to give you an idea of what could be coming.
British Airways Amex Premium Plus: 60,000 bonus Avios (ended)
Until 25 February 2025 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.
| Card | Standard bonus | Extra bonus | Fee | Ends? | Cashback site bonus? |
| Amex Cashback | 5% cashback in first three months, capped at £125 | £25 | £25 | Unknown | £25 via TopCashback* |
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Extra welcome offers
Whether you’re eligible for a welcome bonus or not you should always apply for an Amex via a refer-a-friend link or cashback site. These can be worth anything from a fiver to more than £100, depending on the card.
It’s impossible to say which is best as the rates change per card and can sometimes be increased. So I’d check both options and go for the one that pays the most.
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 offers
Very rarely there are promotions to get you to upgrade your card. The bonus won’t be as good as the welcome deals for newbies, but it’s worth taking a look. You’ll see if you’re eligible in your Amex account.
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 additional credits and benefits from the Platinum card.
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.
Don’t forget that £650 annual fee that comes with the Platinum
More credit card deals
Check out all the latest offers for new credit cards
Extra offers
Most cards: 10% off dining
Check your Amex offers to see if you can activate 10% cashback as credit at participating restaurants until 30 June 2025.
Sadly, it won’t be on every Amex card, but should at least be on the Gold, Reward, Cashback and Platinum cards.
The list of locations is London heavy, but there are places across the UK as well as chains like Honest Burger, Pure Comptoir and Gaucho.
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: £50 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 until the end of June 2025 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.
Dining: Up to £400 free credit a year with Amex Platinum card
This offer is for people with the full Platinum Amex. Every six months until 31 December 2025 you’ll get £100 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 £650 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.
I discovered your site and vid, thanks for the content!
Your YT video from a year+ back recommends to get a cashback/Nectar first and then go for gold or platinum. My ultimate goal is gold/plat. How quickly can I upgrade from a cashback to one of those? Straight away or do I have to wait a certain time?
Hi Andy
Sadly, I signed up for a Premium Plus Card, which I have been accepted for, but not through the promotion link and therefore I’ve missed out on the extra Avios. I’ve been now told, since my application has been approved, no promotion can be applied at this stage but i could reapply after 90 days. Do you have any advice on whether to close the account before paying for the card and wait for another promotion to come up, get a different amex card instead or just go with it?
Hi Andy, i am just coming to the end of my first Amex gold reward year. I am not eligible for the Barclaycard avios card and my husband just jumped to the BA card for the extra points offer. Got any advice on what i should do? Thanks 🙂
Hi Andy, Let’s say I have cancelled my American Express Preferred Rewards Gold credit card after owing it for a year. May I know how long I need to wait so that I can reapply for the same card without being charged an annual fee?
Many thanks!
Hi Andy,
Thanks for the great article.
I was looking at applying for the BA Premium Plus Card (with the annual fee). However, when I look on the Amex website I can only see the sign up bonus boosted to 35,000 not 70,000.
Am I missing something?
Yep, it’s got to be via the British Airways Executive Club (it’s free and quick to join). All is explained above
Hi there, I’m a bit confused by this bit
The Premium Plus card comes with a £250 annual fee, so you’ll need to factor this in. Unless you want to keep spending on it to trigger the BA Companion Voucher (effectively 2-4-1 on flights), I’d suggest you downgrade to the free BA Amex after you’ve got the bonus. This will issue you with a pro-rata refund. So if that’s after three months, you’ll get around £187 back. That’s an overall profit of £463.
How is it £463 profit please?
Many thanks
As explained, you’d convert the 70,000 bonus Avios, and the 4,500 points earned via spending into Nectar points. That’s worth just under £500. Three months of the charge will cost you £63 (give or take, depending when you cancel), so you’d end up with a profit of £430
Hi Andy, with this 70k avios points offer do utility payments through energy providers such as octupus energy count towards the £3k spending in order to trigger the bonus? Or is there stricter criteria on what purchases and spending is counted towards the £3k?
Thank you.
There shouldn’t be
Plus card : So can i just buy a car, get the point, cash them out and then cancel the card ?\
433 pound profit on the plus card.
Hi Andy, thanks for all the tips across the website
I have a question though – do you not need to be FCA regulated to operate as an introducer to credit offers in the way you do in this article? It was always my understanding that linking to regulated products in this way wasn’t allowed without authorisation?
Only if you have an affiliate (I.e paid advertising) agreement with them
Hi Andy,
Firstly, top quality content mate keep it up!
Is there a way to obtain the £20 PayPal credit without actually spending (losing) the £100? A bit like how we can get £5 from the Halifax Rewards Account by just “spending” £500 on Revolut.
Sadly I don’t think so – it needs to be an actual transaction