American Express Gold vs. Capital One Savor: Which is best for foodies?

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When you look for a credit card to earn rewards on groceries and dining, the American Express® Gold Card and the Capital One Savor Cash Rewards Credit Card stand out as two of the strongest options on the market. With both cards offering excellent value, CNBC Select analyzes the Amex Gold and the Capital One Savor* based on the rewards, benefits and potential ongoing value so you can make an informed choice about which card works best for you.

The Capital One Savor* comes with a welcome bonus of $300 after you spend at least $3,000 within three months of opening an account.

You have to spend more money to earn the Amex Gold's welcome bonus, but you also have a longer time period to reach that amount. Plus, the bonus provides more value than the Savor card's bonus. You may be eligible for as high as 100,000 Membership Rewards® Points after you spend $8,000 in eligible purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership. The 100,000 points are worth $1,000 when redeemed for airfare through American Express Travel, or potentially more value when transferred to Amex's airline or hotel partners like Delta or Marriott.

Both cards offer generous rewards rates.

With the Capital One Savor*, you'll earn unlimited 4% cash back on dining, entertainment and eligible streaming services, 3% at grocery stores and 1% on everything else. Additionally, you'll get 8% back when you purchase event tickets through Capital One Entertainment. Through Nov. 14, 2024, the card also offers 10% back on Uber and Uber Eats purchases.

The American Express Gold yields 4X points at restaurants worldwide (on up to $50,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X) and U.S. supermarkets (on up to $25,000 per calendar year in purchases, then 1X), 3X points on flights booked directly with AmexTravel.com, the Amex Travel App, or purchased directly from airlines and 1X points on all other purchases.

As you can see, while both cards come with high earning rates on dining and groceries, they're geared toward slightly different types of spenders. The Savor card might be a better choice for cardholders who make a lot of entertainment purchases, such as tickets for concerts, sporting events, movie theaters, amusement parks and others. The Amex Gold, however, is designed with travelers in mind and offers extra points on eligible airfare purchases.

The redemption options for the Amex Gold mark it as a trave card. You can redeem Membership Rewards points in several ways, including statement credits for charges, gift cards and purchases at select merchants, although this yields less than stellar value, from 0.6 to 1 cent per point.

However, you'll only get the full value if you redeem for airfare through the issuer's portal, in which case 1 point will be worth 1 cent. You'll get much better value out of your Amex points if you transfer them to one of Amex's travel partners, including Delta, Air Canada, British Airways, ANA, Marriott and others. This can be a time-consuming and complicated process, which is partly why the Amex Gold is best for experienced travelers.

Redeeming rewards with the Savor is much simpler. It's a straightforward cash-back card and the value doesn't change — 1 cent will be 1 cent no matter the redemption method. You can opt to redeem for a statement credit, check, gift cards or charity donations.

However, if you also hold the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card or Capital One VentureOne Rewards Credit Card, you can transfer your cash back from the Savor card onto the Venture card. These points can then be changed to Capital One Miles, which also have the ability to transfer to hotel and airline partners.

Where the Amex Gold shines is with its added perks and benefits, including:

• $120 in annual Uber Cash to use for rides or dining via Uber Eats ($10 per month; An Amex Card must be selected as the payment method for your Uber or Uber Eats transaction to redeem the Amex Uber Cash benefit.To receive this benefit, you must have downloaded the latest version of the Uber App and your eligible American Express Gold Card must be a method of payment in your Uber account. The Amex Benefit may only be used in the United States).
• Up to $120 in annual dining credits ($10 in statement credits monthly) when you pay with the Gold Card at Grubhub (including Seamless), Buffalo Wild Wings, Five Guys, The Cheesecake Factory, and Wonder.. Enrollment required.
• $100 credit towards eligible charges* at over 1,300 upscale hotels worldwide when you book The Hotel Collection through AmexTravel.com or the Amex Travel App **. *Eligible charges vary by property. **The Hotel Collection requires a two-night minimum stay.

If you regularly spend on Uber and at delivery services or restaurants that are eligible for Amex's dining credit, then you shouldn't have trouble offsetting the Amex Gold's $325 annual fee. But if you don't, you're running the risk of using these services just to justify the card's cost — which means you're spending more than you would otherwise.

The Capital One Savor* has fewer perks than the Amex Gold, however, cardholders still get benefits like extended warranty, travel accident insurance, access to *complimentary concierge services and 24-hour travel assistance, and secondary car rental insurance. These benefits are rather common for annual-fee travel credit cards and available with the Amex Gold as well.

Right now, you can also take advantage of a promotional offer available on the Capital One Savor*: through Nov. 14, 2024, the card provides a complimentary Uber One membership, which gets you discounts on Uber rides, free delivery and reduced service fees on Uber Eats orders and other perks — it normally retails for $9.99 per month. This benefit stacks nicely with the card's 10% cash back on Uber rides and Uber Eats orders.

There's a big difference between the two cards in terms of their annual fee.

The Capital One Savor* charges $95 per year — a moderate annual fee for a rewards credit card.

The Amex Gold, on the other hand, is more than twice as expensive. The card will set you back $325 per year, which can be significant if you're unsure your spending habits will help you offset the fee. (See rates and fees)

Before you decide how much you're comfortable paying for a credit card, consider the potential value it can offer. Many cards with annual fees — even high fees — easily recoup their price with rewards and perks for the right cardholder.

Both the Amex Gold and the Capital One Savor are excellent cards to consider if dining and groceries are big spending categories in your budget. That said, the Savor might be a better option if you want a simpler card that provides consistent value. The Amex Gold, on the other hand, can be a good choice for frequent travelers who can also easily use its Uber and dining credits without changing their spending habits.

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For rates and fees of the American Express^® Gold Card, click here.  

*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.