Can You Upgrade Your Amex Card

How Much Are Amex Points Worth

American Express Membership Rewards points are one of the most valuable credit card program currencies.;

Theyre transferable meaning you can transfer them to Amexs comprehensive list of airline and hotel partners, including Delta, , and Hilton and you can redeem them directly within the Amex Travel portal. While you can also redeem your Amex points for statement credits or on Amazon or GrubHub/Seamless purchases, theyre most valuable when you use them to book travel.

We recommend checking both transfer partner rates and the travel portal before using your points to book travel. You can often get more value by transferring points to partners, but its not always guaranteed.;

Thats because, according to Amex, points values differ depending on how you use them. You can transfer to travel partners at a 1:1 1:2 point to point ratio meaning that for every point you transfer, you can get anywhere from 1 to 2 points within the partners program. Travel bookings through the portal may be worth anywhere from 0.5 cents to 1 cent per point.

On the other hand, online shopping will only net you 0.5 cents per point. A statement credit will net you a similar value, at 0.6 cents per point.

Avoiding Annual Fees With Retention Offers

A huge driver for why people cancel their cards is because they dont want to pay the annual fee. This is really understandable for cards that have annual fees in the $200-$500 range. But did you know that you can avoid these annual fees sometimes or at least get them effectively cut down?

You can do this by getting something known as a retention offer. These are offers that go out and are usually based on things like your spend in a given year and also your history with American Express.

So lets say that you have put $50,000 worth of spend on a Platinum Card and you have had that card for a handful of years.

In that case, you could expect to get some kind of offer with the annual fee waived, partially waived, or given an offer of Membership Rewards.

Sometimes you might have to put additional spend on your card to earn the Membership Rewards but other times they will just give them to you outright.

You dont always have to put a significant amount of spend on the card to get a retention offer, though. But generally the more spend you put on it the better your odds of getting a retention offer.

To inquire about a retention offer the easiest way is to just simply call the number on the back of your card and let them know that you were thinking about canceling your card but wanted to see if there are any incentives to prevent you from canceling.

Can You Upgrade Your Starter Card

If you have a secured card, you may have the ability to easily upgrade after a few months of responsible usage. The Discover it® Secured Credit Card, for example, allows you to graduate to an unsecured card eight months after account opening. Discover will review your payment history and decide whether to return your $200 deposit and move you to an unsecured card.

While the Discover it Secured Credit Card does offer cardholders 2% cash back at gas stations and restaurants, on up to $1,000 each quarter, and 1% on all other eligible purchases, it might not be a great option for you if you want more rewards or need a higher credit limit.

• Rewards

  Earn 2% cash back at Gas Stations and Restaurants on up to $1,000 in combined purchases each quarter. Plus, earn unlimited 1% cash back on all other purchases automatically.

• Welcome bonus

  Discover will match all the cash back you’ve earned at the end of your first year

• Annual fee

• 3% intro balance transfer fee, up to 5% fee on future balance transfers *

• Foreign transaction fee

*See rates and fees,;terms apply.

You May Like: What Credit Score Is Needed For Allegiant Credit Card

Youve Previously Earned A Welcome Bonus For The Amex Platinum Card

Traditionally, when you upgrade to a new card, you are not eligible for the public welcome bonus that the card currently offers. So if youve never received a welcome bonus for the Amex Platinum card before, youd be much better off just applying for the card outright as the welcome bonus is often worth more than $1,300 in travel based on our valuations.

If youve already received a welcome bonus on the Amex Platinum card, though, then you would not be forfeiting any points should you decide to upgrade your Amex Gold card.

How Could Applying For A New Credit Card Affect My Credit

Applying for a new card typically requires a hard credit inquiry, which may temporarily lower your credit score. And submitting multiple applications in a short amount of time could also give lenders a negative impression of your financial situation.

Your credit utilization, another factor involved in credit scoring, is worth considering, too. In general, experts say to avoid using more than 30% of your total credit. If youâre approved for a new line of credit, the percentage youâre using is likely to change.

Changes to your credit score also depend on how much credit youâre approved for and whether you close your original accountâespecially if itâs your oldest line of credit. Thatâs because credit scores are partly based on how long your credit accounts have been open.

Also Check: How To Check Your Visa Credit Card Balance

Should You Close Your First Credit Card When You Open A New One

You shouldn’t close your first credit card because the length of your credit history makes up 15% of your FICO credit score, and it’s affected by three factors: the average age of your accounts, the age of your oldest account and how long it’s been since you opened an account.;

If you close your account, you’ll negatively impact the average age of your accounts and the age of your oldest account and undo some of the positive work you did opening a card in the first place.

Ma recommends that if you plan on keeping your card open, you should periodically monitor it to make sure there is no unauthorized spending. You’ll also want to make sure you use it from time to time, otherwise the issuer could close it due to inactivity.

Shop With More Confidence

Purchase Protection

Your new camera was stolen. You knocked over your new lamp moving your couch. Sometimes the unexpected happens. But when you use your Eligible Card for Covered Purchases, itâs nice to know Membership can help protect your Covered Purchases from accidental damage or theft for up to 90 days from the Covered Purchase date. Please read important exclusions and restrictions.

Dispute Resolution

If there is a fraudulent or incorrect charge on your statement, American Express will work with you to help resolve the issue.

Read Also: Can I Get My Credit Card Debt Forgiven

How To Upgrade Your Amex Gold Card

Requesting an upgrade with your Amex Gold card is a very straightforward process, and you have 2 options for doing so. The first is by calling the customer service number on the back of your Amex Gold card and telling the representative that youd like to upgrade to the Amex Platinum card. Your second option is to use the chat feature on the American Express website, though be advised that they might still ask you to call the customer service line to finalize the upgrade.

Why You Can Trust Bankrate

At Bankrate we strive to help you make smarter financial decisions. While we adhere to strict editorial integrity, this post may contain references to products from our partners. Here’s an explanation for how we make money. The content on this page is accurate as of the posting date; however, some of the offers mentioned may have expired.

Recommended Reading: How To Withdraw Money From Credit Card

Upgrading An Amex Green To The Amex Gold

At times, targeted offers to upgrade a card may be a compelling option for some. Select American Express® Green Card cardholders are being offered 40,000 Membership Rewards points after spending $2,000 within the first three months when they upgrade their card to the Amex Gold . ..

Remember, the current publically available Amex Gold welcome offer is 60,000 Membership Rewards points after spending $4,000 on purchases within the first six months, so you still will miss out on 20,000 points. However, you wont have to worry about a new inquiry on your credit report.

The information for the Amex Green Card has been collected independently by The Points Guy. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.

If You Travel But Don’t Want To Pay For The Amex Platinum: Amex Green Card

Read more: Amex Green Card review

You’ll earn 3 points per dollar on all eligible travel, which includes everything from subway fare to hotels to flights. You’ll also earn 3 points per dollar at restaurants worldwide. In terms of points-earning, this puts the Amex Green Card on par with the Chase Sapphire Reserve®, which also offers 3x points in these spending categories .

Other benefits include up to $100 in statement credits toward CLEAR membership each year**, and up to $100 in statement credits per year toward LoungeBuddy purchases** .

The Amex Green card has a $150 annual fee, but that’s relatively moderate, especially if you can take advantage of those two annual statement credits.

The Amex Business Platinum Card is Amex’s top-of-the-line business card, and it has many of the same perks you’ll find on the personal Platinum Card, including up to a $200 airline fee credit each year**, access to airport lounges including Centurion Lounges and Priority Pass lounges**, and up to a $100 credit to cover the application fee for Global Entry or TSA PreCheck.

Read more: Amex Business Platinum card review

It also offers several benefits that cater to business owners, such as a 50% points bonus on purchases of $5,000 or more and up to $200 in annual statement credits for Dell purchases** .

You May Like: How To Transfer Money Off Credit Card

Your Credit Card Isnt Even Offered Anymore

If your credit card has been discontinued, its likely because the card issuer has replaced it with a better card. In some cases, you may even have the option of upgrading your current card to the new one instead of applying for it separately.

Just keep in mind that you typically dont qualify for a cards sign-up bonus if you upgrade to it from a different card. Issuers require that you apply for it as a new cardholder.

Check Upgrade Offers And Compare Credit Cards

To get started with a card upgrade, check with your credit card issuer to see what upgrade offers are available to you. You can do this by calling the number on your card or accessing your account online.

If youâre a Capital One cardholder, you can to see if you have any offers available.

Not a Capital One cardholder? Or thinking about applying for a new Capital One card? Explore Capital One rewards cards and benefits to see if one might be right for you.

Learn more about Capital Oneâs response to COVID-19 and resources available to customers. For information about COVID-19, head over to the;Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.;

Government and private relief efforts vary by location and may have changed since this article was published. Consult a financial adviser or the relevant government agencies and private lenders for the most current information.

We hope you found this helpful. Our content is not intended to provide legal, investment or financial advice or to indicate that a particular Capital One product or service is available or right for you. For specific advice about your unique circumstances, consider talking with a qualified professional.

Related Content

Don’t Miss: Is Paypal Credit Card Good

How Do I Know If Im Eligible To Upgrade Or Downgrade My Credit Card

Theres no hard-and-fast rule. Id had the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card for about a year before downgrading, but each credit card issuer has its own policy for determining whether you qualify for an upgrade or downgrade.

The best way to find out if youre eligible is to call the number on the back of your card and ask.

Generally speaking, credit card issuers may be more willing to accommodate customers whose accounts are in good standing. An issuer may look at factors such as your credit reports and scores, payment history, spending habits, debt, income, employment and overall banking relationship.

Did You Know That Closing Your Credit Card Account Might Actually Hurt Your Credit

You might think its the responsible thing to do, but what you may not realize is that when you close your card, both your credit utilization ratio and the average age of your accounts two factors that affect your credit scores could take a hit.

But that doesnt necessarily mean youre stuck with a bad credit card. If youre thinking about closing your account for example, maybe because you cant afford its annual fee or you want to earn more rewards a better option might be a credit card downgrade or upgrade.

Let me share a personal story with you about why I downgraded my credit card.

Whats not to love? The Chase Sapphire Reserve®;offers a sign-up bonus of 60,000 points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. Benefits include a yearly $300 travel credit as reimbursement for travel purchases charged to your card each account anniversary year and complimentary access to more than 1,300 airport lounges around the world with one-time enrollment in Priority Pass Select. In my opinion, if youre using these rewards, this more than makes up for the hefty $550 annual fee.

The problem was, I had already opened the older generation of the same card about a year earlier, the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card, which charges an annual fee of $95.

The cherry on top was that Chase allowed me to transfer all the points I earned through my Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card to my new account.

Don’t Miss: How To Change Usps Address Without Credit Card

Consider Your Credit Score

One thing that you will need to consider when going this route is that applying for a new credit card outright will result in a hard credit pull.

And thats not necessarily a bad thing. While your credit might take a temporary 5-10 point hit, your score will ultimately go up if you use that new line of credit responsibly.

Read More: 4 Credit Card Myths You Should Stop Believing.

When you upgrade or downgrade an account, its different: banks call it a product conversion. Essentially, you are just moving an existing line of credit to a different credit card product from that bank. From the banks perspective, it isnt a new line of credit at all and thus they do not need to pull your credit score again.

Of course, the trade-off here is that you either wont earn any points or miles, or much fewer than you could by just applying for the card outright as a new account.

Can I Switch From One Amex Card To Another

If you arent satisfied with your current American Express card, there are ways to upgrade or downgrade to a new card.

Many or all of the companies featured provide compensation to LendEDU. These commissions are how we maintain our free service for consumers. Compensation, along with hours of in-depth editorial research, determines where & how companies appear on our site.

If you have an American Express credit card that no longer meets your spending needs, you might be asking if you can switch your Amex card through an upgrade or downgrade. The short answer is yes. This request is called a product change, and there are specific situations when it is allowed.

On this page:

• What to do if you are denied a product change?

Read Also: What Is The Best Credit Card For Military

How To Upgrade A Credit Card

Many or all of the products here are from our partners. We may earn a commission from offers on this page. Its how we make money. But our editorial integrity ensures our experts opinions arent influenced by compensation. Terms may apply to offers listed on this page.

If you want to take a step up in the credit card world, it may be time to upgrade a credit card. This is a simple way to swap your credit card for one with more perks — without having to apply for a new card.

An upgrade has its benefits, but there are also some notable drawbacks. Here’s a complete look at how to upgrade a credit card and decide if it makes sense for you.

How To Maximize Chase Credit Card Rewards

There are a few things specific to Chase to remember to ensure that you dont cost yourself. For most Chase cards, you can earn a signup bonus once every 2 years

Chase Ultimate Rewards: Lose ability to transfer your points to FF programs if you dont hold one of the premium cards.

• CSR
• Chase Ink Plus

Don’t Miss: When To Pay Credit Card To Avoid Interest

Best American Express Cards

Who’s this for? If you’re whipping up a new recipe, refueling your car or streaming your favorite TV show, it’s a good idea to consider a card that rewards those purchases. The Blue Cash Preferred® Card from American Express is a great choice for anyone who regularly stocks up on groceries, drives or pays for streaming subscriptions since the cash-back program is tailored to those purchases.

Cardholders earn an industry-leading 6% cash back at U.S. supermarkets on up to $6,000 per year in purchases and 6% cash back on select U.S. streaming subscriptions. Plus you earn 3% cash back at U.S. gas stations and on transit and 1% cash back on other purchases.

The list of eligible streaming subscriptions is longer than most cards and includes Netflix, Spotify, Disney+ and more. Learn more about how Amex classifies bonus category purchases.

In addition to rewards, you can take advantage of no interest on purchases for the first 12 months your account is open .

This card has a $0 introductory annual fee for the first year, then $95 , but it can be offset by the cash back you earn and discounts you can get through the Amex Offers. There’s also a no-annual-fee version, the Blue Cash Everyday® Card from American Express, which is the best no-annual-fee Amex card .