Capital One Venture Card vs. Amex Gold Card [Detailed Comparison]

There’s no doubt that Capital One and American Express have become key leaders when we look at credit card issuers. Capital One focuses on simplicity but has a card for every type of consumer, from those who have no credit or poor credit to those who have excellent credit. American Express comes through with creative earning structures, redemption options perfect for the traveler, and adds to that a collection of valuable benefits.

You won’t go wrong selecting a card from either issuer, but today we want to zero in on just 2 popular cards that have similar redemption options but have earning structures suited for different types of consumers.

While both of our featured cards earn rewards that result in good-value travel redemptions, how you’ll get to that result varies for each card, based on your spending mix.

If you have even a slight interest in learning about either card, you’ll find value in our comparison of the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card and the American Express^® Gold Card.

Minimum Qualification Requirements

For the Capital One Venture card, Capital One recommends aa good to excellent credit score, generally 740 or above, for qualification. However, Capital One defines excellent credit as “never have declared bankruptcy or defaulted on a loan, not been 60 days late on a credit card, loan, or medical bill, and has had a loan or credit card for $5,000 or more in the past 3 years.” If you meet these criteria, it is possible you could qualify with a credit score of 700 or above.

American Express recommends a good to excellent credit score for the Amex Gold card, meaning you may be able to qualify with a score of 670 or above.

These are just guidelines — of course, the higher your score, the better the odds are for approval.

You’ll want to be sure to check your credit report for accuracy before applying for any card and check for preapproved offers that may be already waiting for you. It’s best to utilize a risk-free option such as the CardMatch tool to find these offers as the tool does not affect your credit score with a hard inquiry and minimal information is required.

Both Capital One and Amex card offers, if available to you, can be found using the CardMatch tool.

Preapproved or prequalified offers do not guarantee card approval, only that your chances for approval are better for the selected offers shown.

Bottom Line: You should aim to have good to excellent score to qualify for the Capital One Venture card and a good to excellent score for the Amex Gold card. Check your credit report to see where you stand before applying and use the CardMatch tool to see if you have any preapproved offers waiting for you.

The Value of a Welcome Bonus

Capital One Venture Card

Amex Gold Card

Hot Tip: Check to see if you’re eligible for a welcome bonus offer of up to 90,000 points with the Amex Gold card. The current public offer is 60,000 points. (This targeted offer was independently researched and may not be available to all applicants.)

There is a unique opportunity to earn a welcome bonus immediately after you’re approved for either of our featured cards. Welcome bonuses help jumpstart your earnings and in the case of these 2 popular cards, the initial rewards bonus can be very generous.

A welcome bonus is earned after meeting minimum spending requirements within a specified period of time, either within the 3 months, 6 months, or even 12 months after card approval.

The actual value you receive will depend on how you redeem your miles or points. We’ll cover more on redemption options shortly.

Bottom Line: Welcome offers, as well as the value of a welcome offer, can change periodically, so be sure to check for the most current bonus prior to applying for any card. We’ve included snapshot tables of our featured cards above that reflect current bonuses.

Earning Rewards

One of the greatest benefits of holding a rewards credit card is earning valuable rewards currencies you can redeem for something of value. Both of our featured cards offer very different reward earning structures but in the end, accomplish that exact objective.

Here’s how you’ll earn rewards on the Capital One Venture card and the Amex Gold card:

If your spending centers on everyday purchases at grocery stores, dining out, and on flights directly purchased with the airline (or Amex Travel), you’ll earn well on the Amex Gold card. However, you may have ongoing expenses that do not fall into those categories. If so, you may do better with the Capital One Venture card.

Additionally, you’ll want to consider annual fees. However, when you spend enough on either card to earn the initial welcome bonus, the value received in the first year more than offsets either annual fee.

Bottom Line: While each card has its own rewards earning structure, both offer flexible (and therefore valuable) rewards currencies that can be redeemed for travel and additional redemption options. The better card for you from an earnings standpoint will be the one that closely matches your spending mix. 

Redeeming Rewards

Both of our featured cards have similar redemption options, particularly when redeeming miles or points for travel. Let’s look closer at your options at redemption time in the order of the greatest potential value.

Receiving the best value at redemption time is one of the joys of earning rewards. We’ll get you started with how to redeem your miles and points with transfer partners in our guides on Capital One Miles transfer partners and Amex transfer partners.

We’ve also put together some creative suggestions for getting the most value from your Capital One miles and for your Membership Rewards points.

Bottom Line: While it’s easy to receive 1 cent in value when redeeming rewards with either of our featured cards, the best potential value may be realized by transferring rewards to travel partners to redeem for award flights or hotel nights. 

Travel Benefits and Protections

Travel benefits and protections can save you money, deliver peace of mind, and provide protection during your travels. Both of our featured cards travel well as there are no foreign transaction fees charged on either card (see rates and fees).

Here’s how our cards compare when we look at additional travel benefits and protections:

Capital One Venture Card

• Global Entry or TSA PreCheck Fee Reimbursement — Charge the applicable fee to your card and receive up to $100 as a statement credit.
• Auto Rental Insurance* – Use your card to rent an eligible vehicle and you may be covered for physical damage and theft of the vehicle
• Lost Luggage Reimbursement — You may be eligible for reimbursement due to theft or misdirection
• Roadside Dispatch — Pay 1 flat service fee for roadside assistance that includes basic towing, jump-start, emergency fuel, lockout service, and tire changing. Additional terms and conditions apply.
• Travel Assistance Services — Receive 24/7 assistance with translation service referrals, medical and legal referrals, emergency cash, and more.

Amex Gold Card

• Car Rental Insurance — Pay for the entire rental with your card, decline the agency’s collision damage waiver coverage, and receive secondary coverage. The card also comes with the option to purchase Premium Protection for 1 low price that covers the entire rental period up to 42 days. Coverage prices range from $12.95 to $24.95 for the entire rental period.
• Trip Delay Coverage — Receive up to $300 if your trip is delayed more than 12 hours.
• Luggage Insurance — Up to $1,250 for damaged, lost, or stolen carry-ons and up to $500 for checked baggage.
• Global Assist Hotline — Receive help 24/7 when traveling more than 100 miles from home.
• Travel Accident Insurance — Receive up to $250,000 for accidental death or dismemberment.
• The Hotel Collection Benefits — On stays of 2 nights or longer booked with your card, you’ll receive a $100 on-site property credit, an upgraded room (when available), and 2x earnings.

Shopping Benefits and Protections

Shopping benefits and protections can save you money on eligible purchases and provide protection should damage or theft occur to qualifying items purchased with your card.

Bottom Line: The Capital One Venture card and Amex Gold card come with similar travel and shopping benefits and protections. However, the Amex Gold card may have the edge with monthly dining statement credits and Uber Cash credits, if you can utilize these benefits.

Capital One Venture Card vs. Amex Gold Card — Summary

We’ve gone into some detail about how our featured cards stack up in each of the key categories but it’s now time to reflect on the overall comparison and look at the attributes of both cards side by side.

Here’s how the cards compare overall.

Alternative Cards To Consider

Capital One VentureOne Rewards Credit Card

If you’re looking to earn rewards on every purchase you make but don’t want to pay an annual fee, the Capital One VentureOne card is a nice alternative.

Blue Cash Preferred^® Card from American Express

If earning on everyday purchases such as those at supermarkets, streaming service subscriptions, on transit, and at gas stations is important to you, you’ll find the card will work well for earning rewards on those purchases.

You’ll also find an introductory 0% APR on purchases offered with the card (regular APR, as shown above, will apply after the introductory period).

Chase Freedom Unlimited^®

Another option for earning on every purchase you make without having to pay an annual fee is the Freedom Unlimited card.

The card pairs nicely with Chase premium cards, including the Chase Sapphire Preferred^® Card or the Chase Sapphire Reserve^®. Transfer Chase points earned on your Freedom Unlimited card and receive up to 50% more in value when redeeming points for travel purchase via the Chase travel portal.

Final Thoughts

While the Capital One Venture card and Amex Gold card offer nice redemption values when redeeming rewards for travel, the better card for you will be the 1 that matches your spending mix and your preference of how much you want to spend on an annual fee.

The Amex Gold card could be a match if you spend a lot at the grocery store, on dining, or on flights via the airline or Amex Travel. The Capital One Venture card with its flat-rate earnings makes it a match for earning on all of your purchases, not just those in select bonus categories.

Regardless of the card you select, you will want the value received to offset the annual fee. In the first year, earning the welcome bonus on either of our featured cards should accomplish that objective.

Any ongoing card value will be determined by how your spending mix is rewarded each year, the value you receive at redemption time, and how many of the benefits you utilize.

For Capital One products listed on this page, some of the above benefits are provided by Visa® or Mastercard® and may vary by product. See the respective Guide to Benefits for details, as terms and exclusions apply.

The information regarding the Chase Freedom Unlimited^® was independently collected by Upgraded Points and not provided nor reviewed by the issuer.

For rates and fees of the American Express^® Gold Card, click here.
For rates and fees of the Blue Cash Preferred^® Card from American Express, click here.
For rates and fees of The Platinum Card^® from American Express, click here.
For rates and fees of The Business Platinum Card^® from American Express, click here.