American Express has some of the best rewards and travel cards available however they often come with hefty annual membership fees. Though you generally get more rewards and perks the higher your membership fee it can still feel like a big pill to swallow by paying hundreds of dollars each year to have one of their credit cards.
For example, the American Express Gold Card comes with a $250 annual membership fee. That seems like a lot of money, especially just for the privilege of owning the card. But when you start to dig into some of the benefits this card can make a lot of sense depending on your spending habits. Some of the benefits are:
- $10 monthly dining credit at select restaurants
- $10 monthly Uber Cash that works on Uber Eats and Postmates
- Access to the American Express Hotel Collection which includes a $100 experience credit when booking a two-night stay
- No foreign transaction fees
These benefits are on top of the generous Membership Rewards earning structure:
- 4x per $1 spent on restaurants worldwide
- 4x per $1 spent on U.S. supermarkets
- 3x per $1 spent on flights booked on amextravel.com or directly with the airlines
- 1x per $1 spent on everything else
If you’re able to utilize the card benefits each month it can help offset or erase the cost of the annual membership fee.
Using the $10 monthly dining credit and the $10 monthly Uber Cash equates to $240 of the $250 annual membership fee alone! If you’re already spending money at the restaurants included in the benefit and use Uber or Uber Eats then the annual fee doesn’t seem so bad.
What is an American Express Retention Offer and Why Would You Want One?
Even with all of the benefits American Express provides on each card, there might be times you don’t use all the benefits. The benefits might not fit your lifestyle. You might just forget the benefits exist. You might realize the annual membership fee is not in your budget. And so on and so forth.
This is where the American Express retention offer steps in.
A retention offer from American Express is an incentive to both you and the company for you to keep using the card. The benefit to American Express is the company keeps you as a customer. The benefit to you is bonus membership rewards points or a statement credit to help offset the cost of the annual membership fee.
I have received three American Express retention offers over the years and they all follow a similar pattern:
- Spend $2,000 in 3 months on your American Express Gold card and receive 15,000 Membership Rewards
- Spend $3,000 in 3 months on your American Express Platinum card and receive a $400 statement credit
- Spend $3,000 in 3 months on your American Express Platinum card and receive 20,000 Membership Rewards
With retention offers, there is always a minimum spend requirement within a specific time frame, usually three months, and then you earn a statement credit or Membership Rewards.
The retention offer you receive from the customer service representative is unique to you. And while it is not known how it is decided which offer you are given there seems to be some correlation between the annual spend on your card and the retention offer. Generally, the more you spend on your card throughout the year the higher statement credit or amount of Membership Rewards points you can earn.
It’s easy to see how retention offers can help offset the cost of the annual membership fee. Some years I have come out several hundred dollars ahead of offsetting the fee when combining the retention offer and utilizing the benefits of the card.
How to Ask for the Retention Offer
There are two ways you can communicate with American Express customer service. Over the phone or online chat on the American Express website.
I’ve always asked over the phone, so I will provide a sample script based on the three retention offers I have received to give you an idea of what to expect.
Customer Service Representative #1: Good morning this is American Express, how I help you today?
Me: Hello, I’m thinking of possibly canceling my American Express Gold Card today and was wondering if I qualify for any retention offers. The annual fee seems high and I’m not sure if I want to keep the card.
CSR #1: Okay, let me verify some of your information.
Me: gives information such as card number and other basic contact information. I’m purposely cutting this part of the conversation out.
CSR #1: Let me transfer you over to the customer retention department. One moment please.
CSR #2: Good morning! Thanks for calling American Express, who do I have the pleasure of speaking with today?
Me: Hi good morning, this is Morgan. How are you doing?
CSR #2: I’m doing well, thank you for asking. How can I help you today?
Me: I’m thinking of possibly canceling my American Express Gold Card today and was wondering if I qualify for any retention offers. The annual fee seems high and I’m not sure if I want to keep the card. I already have a Chase Sapphire card that I use which has a lower annual fee.
CSR #2: Okay, can you verify your name and card number and I’ll look into your account?
Me: again, leaving this information out of the conversation since it is just verifying your basic information.
CSR #2: Thank you for verifying. While I check to see if there are any retention offers available let me explain some of the benefits of this card. This card comes with a $120 annual dining credit, $120 per year in Uber Cash, access to The Hotel Collection in addition to earning 4x on dining and 4x at restaurants. I also want to remind you that American Express offers are available to add to your card and are another way to save money. Are there any benefits that you like in particular?
Me: I like that the card is focused on groceries and dining, however, I don’t always eat where the dining credit is allowed.
CSR #2: I understand. Just so you know the dining credit can be used at Grubhub and Uber Cash can be used with Uber Eats.
Me: I know and I use those sometimes. Grubhub and Uber Eats sometimes charge extra fees though so it doesn’t always seem like a $10 monthly credit.
CSR #2: I see, so it does look like there is a retention offer available on your account today. I just want to say this is one of the best ones we have available right now. This would be for 20,000 Membership Rewards points for spending $3,000 on your card within three months.
Me: That sounds great! Do you have any other offers available for me?
CSR #2: At this time this is the only one showing as an offer on your account.
Me: Okay, thanks for checking. I’ll take the offer.
CSR #2: Great before you confirm I’ll read the terms of the offer. I’m going to discuss this more below because the terms ARE important. I’m not including a summary of the terms here for brevity. Do you confirm the offer?
Me: Yes, I confirm.
CSR #2: Thanks for accepting and thanks for being an American Express member for the last seven years. Is there anything else I can help you with today?
Me: No, thank you. Have a great day!
CSR #2: Goodbye now.
Tips for Before, During, and After a Retention Offer
I wanted to lay out a script because I know there are people out there who don’t like interacting with customer service or might find it intimidating to ask for something. As I mentioned earlier the good news is you have the option to do this over online chat so you don’t need to call in if you don’t want to talk with anyone.
Before contacting customer service I want to share some tips to consider along the way.
Tips to Consider Before Contacting Customer Service
Reach out from 8 am-5 pm if possible.
This might seem counterintuitive but the most experienced CSRs likely work first shift and will be more experienced. You’re not working “against” anyone or trying to trick anyone as they’re around to retain you as a customer. The retention department is separate from the initial customer service line, so I noted CSR #2 in the sample dialogue. Calling during prime business hours typically results in being transferred to someone friendly and knowledgeable.
You can only have one retention offer every 13 months after the close of your most recent statement.
If you’ve had one since then you are always welcome to try for one, however, it will be unlikely.
For example, if you received one on January 1st and your statement closes on January 2nd you should wait until after February 2nd of the following year before asking for another one.
Wait until your annual fee is billed to call.
This isn’t necessary, but this makes the conversation more natural because the annual fee is a reason you may want to close the card. You can ask for a retention offer at any time for any reason. I think one that centers around the cost of the card invites a natural flow with the CSR.
Tips to Consider While Talking With Customer Service
Use careful language around canceling your card.
This is especially true if you’re just fishing for an offer. Notice how I said, “I’m thinking of possibly canceling…” You don’t want to accidentally cancel your card if that isn’t your intention. You certainly can cancel your card during this conversation and the CSR will upon request so just be aware of your word choices.
Be polite.
I feel like this goes without saying, but you’re speaking with another human on the other end of the phone or chat service who has likely heard everything under the sun. Don’t be one of those people. They have no reason to lie to you and there isn’t a reason to get upset with them if you aren’t given an offer or an offer that you don’t want to accept.
You don’t have to accept the offer and can keep your card open.
This is a continuation of being polite when you don’t get the offer you were hoping for.
You can end the call or chat and try again later in hopes of getting a better offer. This has worked for some people if they wait a day or two and could be given a better off the second time though this isn’t a guarantee.
Just end the conversation with “Now that we’ve talked about this more I do not want to accept the offer today, but would like to keep my card open and think about it.” The CSR will likely warn you the offer might not be available when you call back. That is fine and true information as offers change over time.
Mention a competitor credit card.
It doesn’t hurt to drop a competitor’s name into the conversation like how I mentioned the Chase card in my conversation. American Express is competing for your business and know you have other options. Remember, this is the department where they try to retain you as a customer because they want your business. No need to say much more than what I did. This may or may not make much of a difference, but it certainly doesn’t hurt to talk about other cards you’re using.
Tips to Consider After Accepting a Retention Offer
Look out for an email from American Express.
You won’t see anything on your online account mentioning the retention offer, and won’t receive an email stating the terms of the offer. I have asked for confirmation in the past and can confirm American Express does not send one out. I do receive an email thanking me for my membership after I’ve accepted the offer. It doesn’t mention any details though.
Keep your card open for another year.
This is one of the terms of the offer. If you violate this by closing your card within a year American Express will claw back your offer and it may be difficult to open cards in the future.
Don’t do any activity that looks like “gaming.”
Another important key to the terms and conditions of accepting the offer. This includes manufactured spend and purchasing lots of gift cards to earn the retention offer. If American Express suspects you are gaming they will shut your account down and take all your Membership Rewards. I’ve explicitly been told to not buy gift cards of any kind when earning my retention offer so I have always steered clear for the three months I’m meeting the spending requirement.
Final Thoughts
While this seems like a lot of information to take in the entire interaction with American Express is just a short phone call. I remember asking for a retention offer the first time and feeling nervous about it so I wanted to provide a guide for others who might feel the same. The great part is every CSR I’ve spoken with has been friendly and not intimidating, and the entire conversation takes less than 10 minutes. The American Express retention offer is a great way to earn hundreds of dollars in value on a card you’re already using and help offset the annual membership fee.
Please share your experiences in the comments, I’d love to hear from you!