What Credit Score Is Needed for an American Express Card?

American Express cards have many varieties including the Green Card, Gold Card, Platinum Card, and Blue Card. Each credit card or charge has its own features and specific credit score requirements. As a general rule, applicants need to have a FICO score of at least 680 to be approved. Your FICO score is your measure of credit risk, and you can get this information through several consumer reporting agencies available in the U.S. and Canada like Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion.

Compared with other brands, AmEx Cards require a much higher minimum credit score. Still, it very much depends on the type of card you are applying for. Some of their popular cards like the Gold and Platinum charge cards as well as the Blue Cash may require an even higher minimum FICO score than their standard products. Based on several reviews gathered from different customers online, one must possess a FICO score of 720 or even higher to be approved for an American Express card.

The Green Card, which is a charge card that has been around for many decades, requires much more loose credit score requirements compared to the credit card since any balance you have must be paid in full each month. For this product, the lending risk is essentially much lower and the consumer cannot use the card to carry debt. Applicants are said to have a FICO score of mid to high 600s to be approved for the Green Card.

A notch higher than the Green Card is the American Express Gold Card. It works mostly the same as the Green Card since it is also a charge card, but with the additional perks like rewards that can be used for travel, dining, shopping, and many more. As expected, it has a slightly higher minimum credit score requirement of around 725 to 750, which is also about the same range as the Platinum and the Blue cards require.

A huge part of the minimum credit score requirement is also determined by the prevailing economic conditions. It means that it could change and the minimum requirement can lower if the economic situation gets better. After 2008, financial liquidity started to tighten up and credit card companies enforced stricter rules.

Another important thing is that you do not automatically get approved for a credit card even if you meet the minimum credit score. They also take into consideration a host of other factors like income, work history, total and available debt, and relationship with American Express when deciding whether to approve or deny your application. Your credit score is just one part, but a very important one at that, which will decide whether or not you can avail of an AmEx Card.