Gold and platinum credit cards were once considered symbols of prestige, known for offering high credit limits and exclusive access, often reserved for the elite.

Today, however, they’re much more accessible.

While gold and platinum cards still offer perks like rewards and higher credit limits, the benefits vary from card to card. Some may include travel insurance or access to exclusive events, while others focus on earning reward points.

It's important to note that some premium cards charge high annual fees, while others impose relatively small fees, or none at all. If you're considering a card with an annual fee, it's worth evaluating whether the benefits justify the cost before applying.

Popular options include the Amex Gold, American Express Platinum, Barclaycard Platinum, and First Direct Gold Card, but there are many other choices available as well.

You’re most likely to get a gold or platinum credit card if you have a good credit record. 

Some of the most exclusive credit cards will be invitation only, but others will be more easily accessible. For example, although you might need to meet minimum income requirements, there’s at least one credit card that is available to those with annual salaries of under £7,000. (The First Direct Gold credit card only asks for a minimum annual income requirement of £6,800.)

Exact eligibility criteria will vary depending on the card you’re applying for. As an example, if you want to apply for the American Express Platinum credit card, you will need to have no history of bad debt, a permanent UK home address, a UK current account and earn at least £35,000 a year – if you don’t, you won’t qualify for the card. 

To be eligible for the welcome reward points and travel credit bonus that comes with the card, you must also spend £10,000 on the card in the first six months and not have held a personal American Express credit card that earns points in the past 24 months.

Many providers reserve their most exclusive deals and highest credit limits for their gold and platinum cards.

But, in and of themselves, the colour of a credit card has little bearing on how good it is at what it does.

We've seen examples of gold cards you can qualify for with annual salaries of less than £7,000.

That means you'll need to choose the best card for you based on what it offers.

The good news is that there is a lot on offer with gold and platinum cards.

Just keep in mind that you will usually need a good credit score to qualify.

While the features for each card differ, they do come with a range of different perks, which aren't necessarily exclusive to platinum cards:

Our eligibility checker matches you with the credit cards you're most likely to get based on your circumstances.

We then tailor the results depending on what you're looking for - a gold card, for This way you can rule out cards you're less likely to qualify for ahead of time, so you won't hurt your credit score by putting in applications that are later rejected then having to make another application.

That's because it uses a “soft search” credit check when comparing cards for you, which doesn't appear on your credit file to anyone except you.

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