Why you should pair the the Venture X and Amex Gold

Your wallet doesn’t have to be overflowing with credit cards for a maximized award travel strategy.

In fact, you can pair two of my favorite cards for a bevy of benefits, rewards and statement credits: the American Express® Gold Card and Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card.

These two cards combine for a simple yet strong setup, from collecting points and miles to redeeming your rewards.

Whether you’re on the market for a card duo to elevate your dream vacation or have one of these cards already, here are four reasons I believe the Amex Gold and Venture X are simply better together.

Combine the Amex Gold’s bonus categories with the Venture X’s flat-rate rewards

The Amex Gold and Venture X are both standout earners, but the way you collect rewards with each is quite different.

The Amex Gold earns Membership Rewards points at an exceptionally high rate across multiple popular bonus categories — especially if you spend a lot of money on dining and groceries (like I do). You’ll earn:

• 4 points per dollar spent on dining at restaurants worldwide* and purchases at U.S. supermarkets**
• 3 points per dollar spent on flights booked directly with the airline or through amextravel.com
• 2 points per dollar spent on prepaid hotels and other eligible purchases booked through amextravel.com
• 1 point per dollar spent on all other eligible purchases

*On up to $50,000 per calendar year, then 1 point per dollar spent

**On up to $25,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1 point per dollar spent

The Venture X complements this structure well, earning Capital One miles at a fixed rate across most purchases.

If you’re already a Venture X cardholder, you know the card provides 2 miles per dollar spent on the majority of your spending. You’ll also earn 10 miles per dollar spent on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel and 5 miles per dollar spent on flights and vacation rentals booked through Capital One Travel.

I love keeping this card in my wallet as a catch-all for everyday purchases outside of bonus categories.

When you combine the power of these two cards, you’ll always earn more than 1 point or mile per dollar spent.

Related: How credit card issuers classify travel and dining purchases

Maximize the Venture X’s travel benefits and the Amex Gold’s dining perks

The Amex Gold and Venture X hold distinct places in the rewards card market. You won’t find multiple overlapping benefits here.

Instead, pairing these two cards provides a well-rounded slate of benefits that can be used in multiple facets of travel and everyday life.

For one, the Amex Gold focuses its statement credits on dining purchases and a few travel-related perks in exchange for its $325 annual fee (see rates and fees). These include:

• Up to $120 in annual dining credit per calendar year: Earn up to $10 in monthly statement credits when you pay with the Amex Gold at participating dining partners.
• Up to $120 in annual Uber Cash per calendar year: Earn up to $10 in Uber Cash monthly for Uber Eats and Uber rides in the U.S. Uber Cash will only be deposited into one Uber account when you add the Amex Gold as a payment method and redeem with any Amex card.
• Up to $100 in annual Resy credit per calendar year: Earn up to $100 in Resy statement credits every calendar year. This credit is broken down into two up-to-$50 statement credits semiannually. To use the credit, all you have to do is dine at a participating U.S. Resy restaurant (or make other eligible Resy purchases) and pay with the Amex Gold. No reservation is required.
• Up to $100 in hotel credits per calendar year: Cardmembers who use their card to book a stay of two nights or more through Amex’s The Hotel Collection receive an up-to-$100 on-site credit for qualifying activities. Depending on the property, this could include dining, spa treatments or other activities.

Enrollment is required for select benefits.

Most of the Amex Gold’s benefits are centered on food, though monthly Uber Cash and the Hotel Collection statement credit provide some perks for travel.

As a frequent traveler, I appreciate how the Amex Gold’s benefits can help save on purchases that come up while I’m on the go. However, I’d still want more out of my card setup, specifically when it comes to travel perks such as airport lounge access.

That’s where the Venture X comes in. First of all, two of the card’s travel benefits essentially offset its $395 annual fee.

The $300 annual Capital One Travel credit can be used on any travel booking in the issuer’s portal and lowers the Venture X’s effective annual fee to $95.

The card’s 10,000-mile bonus is received each account anniversary; TPG’s January 2026 valuations place the value of these miles at $185.

When you combine these two perks, you’ll receive $485 in annual travel benefits — a can’t-miss value that provides the travel-related benefits the Amex Gold is missing.

I’ve previously used the Venture X’s travel portal credit to save $300 on a three-night stay at the Conrad Las Vegas at Resorts World. The room would’ve cost me nearly $1,000 if I hadn’t applied the credit.

Finally, the Venture X provides airport lounge access for primary cardholders and up to two guests to five Capital One Lounges and one Capital One Landing. The primary cardholder also receives a Priority Pass membership that unlocks access to 1,300-plus lounges worldwide. (Capital One’s lounge access rules will become stricter starting Feb. 1, 2026.)

The Amex Gold doesn’t provide lounge privileges, so this benefit is another complementary perk that adds more value to your setup.

Related: Why I’m happily holding on to my Capital One Venture X Rewards card for a third year

Earn a pair of valuable welcome bonuses

If you haven’t added either the Amex Gold or Venture X yet, there are two fantastic welcome offers on the table for you to collect a swath of points and miles.

New Amex Gold cardmembers can find out their offer and see if they are eligible to earn as high as 100,000 bonus points after spending $6,000 on purchases within the first six months of card membership. Welcome offers vary, and you may not be eligible for an offer.

This bonus could be worth up to $2,000 when you factor in TPG’s January 2026 valuations.

Meanwhile, the Venture X is providing an offer right now for wew applicants can earn 75,000 bonus miles after spending $4,000 on purchases in the first three months from account opening. This is the card’s highest public offer in four years.

According to TPG’s valuations, this offer is worth $1,388 when you leverage Capital One’s transfer partners. If you decide to redeem these miles at a fixed value, the bonus is worth up to $750.

If you’re targeted for the highest Amex Gold offer and maximize your Capital One miles to get the full value of TPG’s valuations, these two offers combine for up to $3,388 in value.

Related: The best credit card welcome bonuses this month

Unlock more redemption options with 2 sets of transfer partners

More choice is always a better thing. When you have high balances of Membership Rewards points from your Amex Gold and Capital One miles from the Venture X, you’ll have plenty more redemption options thanks to each issuer’s unique set of transfer partners.

For instance, Capital One miles can only be transferred to one U.S. airline loyalty program (JetBlue TrueBlue), but Membership Rewards points can be transferred to Delta SkyMiles.

Meanwhile, you can’t move Membership Rewards points to Turkish Airlines Miles&Smiles, but you can transfer Capital One miles into that loyalty program.

There are multiple overlapping partners between the two, such as Air Canada Aeroplan and Air France-KLM Flying Blue. I love using Flying Blue to book SkyTeam award seats with partners like Delta Air Lines.

For example, I transferred 15,000 Capital One miles to Air France-KLM Flying Blue to book two one-way domestic Delta flights to travel to a wedding.

Finally, when you have both currencies, you’re able to leverage transfer bonuses as they come up, which adds the ability to get more value for your hard-earned rewards.

Related: Why you should master a few credit card transfer partners, and (most likely) leave the rest behind

Bottom line

The Amex Gold and Venture X team up to create a fantastic card duo that combines high-powered earning with flexible rewards and a swath of benefits to enjoy.

There’s a solid rewards strategy to be unlocked by holding both of these cards, making this pairing a simple and effective option for many types of travelers.

To learn more, read our full reviews of the Amex Gold and the Venture X.

Apply here: American Express Gold Card

Learn more: Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card

For rates and fees of the Amex Gold, click here.

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