- Bonus points (Partner Offer): Earn 50,000 bonus Membership Rewards Points when you apply through this link, are approved and spend $4000 on eligible purchases within the first 3 months (terms and conditions apply).
- Earn points: You’ll earn 2 points per $1 spent on purchases. Government spending earns 1 point per $1 spent. Points are uncapped and don’t expire.
- Travel perks: Get $400 Travel Credit every year with American Express Travel and earn up to US$100 hotel credit and room upgrades (see review for details). Use complimentary domestic and international travel insurance.
- Flight extras: Use 2 complimentary entries per year to The Centurion Lounge at Sydney and Melbourne International Airports.
- Extras: Complimentary smartphone screen cover and other card covers, plus add up to 4 free additional cardholders. Sync your card with Apple Pay, Google Pay and Samsung Pay.
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American Express Credit Cards
American Express Explorer Credit Card
Updated 20 November 2024
Partner Offer: Pack your bags with 50k bonus Membership Rewards Points when you apply through this link. Plus, get flashy lounge passes and $400 Travel Credit every year (criteria below).
You’ll be able to earn points on purchases and use a plethora of travel benefits including travel insurance, hotel credit and room upgrades where eligible. This card benefits frequent travellers and those who want flexibility in their points program.
Terms and conditions apply.
Points Earn Rate (per $1 spent)
2 points
AmexRewards Program
Amex Membership Rewards
Bonus Points
50,000 pts
Spend $4,000 in first 3 months
Pros and cons
- High interest rate on purchases
- High annual fee unless you use the travel benefits
Creditcard.com.au review
Editor Review
American Express Explorer Credit Card
Pauline Hatch
Pauline is a personal finance expert at CreditCard.com.au, with 9 years in money, budgeting and property reporting under her belt. Ask Pauline a Question about this card.
Overall Rating
The American Express Explorer card comes packed with useful travel benefits, including interesting extras like the ability to earn hotel credit and room upgrades.
The Amex Membership Rewards program is exceptionally flexible and offers loads of ways to redeem your points. If you don’t want to be tied to a frequent flyer program, you can transfer points to more than 12 major airlines including Qantas and Emirates.
Why I love the American Express Explorer card
I’ve received many comments from Amex Explorer customers who say that using the $400 travel credit each year makes this a very affordable premium card, since the value of the credit is more than the $395 annual fee.
On top of that, this card also earns points (including big bonus points) and comes with a few interesting travel benefits. A little savvy can make its value go a long way.
I’ll start by unpacking the points on offer, then the rest of the card’s features. Note: the 50,000 bonus points are a special partner offer when you apply through the link on this page.
Bonus points offer: 50,000 Amex Membership Rewards Points.
How to earn them: You need to apply online through this link and be approved, then spend $4000 on eligible purchases on your new card within the first 3 months. Points are credited to your account 8 to 10 weeks after meeting the criteria.
Being eligible: You won’t earn the bonus points if you’ve previously held any other card product issued by American Express Australia Limited in the previous 18 months. You can still apply but are ineligible for the bonus points.
Points per dollar:
- 2 points per $1 spent on everyday eligible purchases.
- 1 point per $1 spent on government spending, including payments to the ATO, Australia Post, and Federal/State and Local Government bodies.
Amex’s terms say “Eligible purchases do not include Card fees and charges, for example annual fees, interest, late payment, cash advances, balance transfers, traveller’s cheques and foreign currency conversion”. See the card’s PDS for full details on eligible transactions and government spending.