The Amex Green card just got a makeover, with a record-high 60,000-point bonus and up to $200 in travel statement credits

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• The American Express® Green Card - Product Name Only just got a refresh, with a record-high welcome bonus offer and improved benefits.
• New cardholders can earn American Express® Green Card - Intro Bonus, but only for a limited time. This is your last chance to earn the offer.
• The points from the bonus are worth around American Express® Green Card - Featured Reward Value in travel when you transfer them to airline and hotel partners.
• The travel statement credit isn't as straightforward as it sounds, but it's a great deal if you can use it.
• Read Insider's guide to the best American Express credit cards.

Until now, the American Express® Green Card - Product Name Only has often been overshadowed by its flashier premium credit card siblings — most notably The Platinum Card® from American Express - Product Name Only (The Platinum Card® from American Express - Annual Fee annual fee) and the American Express® Gold Card - Product Name Only (American Express® Gold Card - Annual Fee annual fee).

While the American Express® Green Card - Editorial Name Only is a more affordable option for earning Amex points with a comparatively low annual fee of American Express® Green Card - Annual Fee, its welcome bonus offer has lagged behind other cards.

That's now changed with its record-high limited time offer for the card: A whopping American Express® Green Card - Intro Bonus. Usually, the bonus ranges from 40,000 to 45,000 points with no travel credit after meeting minimum spending requirements, so this is a significant upgrade, but this is your last chance to apply for this offer. Plus, if you max out the travel statement credit, you'll offset the entire annual fee (and then some) for the first year.

Here's why it's a great time to have a fresh look at the American Express® Green Card - Editorial Name Only.

We're focused here on the rewards and perks that come with each card. These cards won't be worth it if you're paying interest or late fees. When using a credit card, it's important to pay your balance in full each month, make payments on time, and only spend what you can afford to pay.

Amex Green Card: Earn a record-high 60,000 points plus up to $200 travel statement credit

Folks who like to earn credit card rewards for free travel have always faced a bit of a conundrum with respect to cards that earn Amex Membership Rewards points. The best cards with the highest welcome offers and generous benefits cost a pretty penny, and low to no-annual-fee cards, while useful, tend to offer bonuses that are mediocre at best (such as the Amex EveryDay® Credit Card from American Express - Product Name Only, which offers just Amex EveryDay® Credit Card from American Express - Intro Bonus).

The American Express® Green Card - Editorial Name Only has long been the middle ground, but the annual fee of American Express® Green Card - Annual Fee is still hard to stomach for some. Now it's a lot easier to justify, especially for the first year.

Amex Green Card bonus

To start, the points from the card's welcome bonus of American Express® Green Card - Intro Bonus are worth around American Express® Green Card - Featured Reward Value, based on Insider's points and miles valuations. We calculate Amex points value at 1.8 cents when you transfer points to American Express Membership Rewards transfer partners like Delta and Air Canada Aeroplan.

The nice part of this bonus is the up to $200 in travel statement credits, but it's not quite as good as it sounds. You don't get your first $200 in travel purchases on the card reimbursed; instead, you'll get 20% back (as a statement credit) on travel purchases in the first six months, up to a maximum of $200 in credits.

Essentially this means you'd have to spend $1,000 in travel to maximize this benefit ($1,000 x 20% back = $200), so if you don't have paid travel coming up, this part of the bonus could be a non-starter. That said, you may well want to use your American Express® Green Card - Editorial Name Only to pay for travel, because it earns 3x points in a wide variety of travel and transit categories, including:

• Hotels
• Airfare
• Vacation rentals
• Cruises
• Tours
• Car rentals
• Campgrounds
• Travel purchases made through American Express Travel
• Travel purchases on third-party sites (like Expedia)
• Trains
• Subways 
• Buses
• Taxicabs
• Ferries 
• Parking
• Tolls
• Rideshare (like Uber and Lyft)

So, even if you don't have plans to fly or stay anywhere, you could potentially max out the intro offer's travel credit if you're a commuter.

Amex Green Card benefits

The American Express® Green Card - Editorial Name Only already comes with statement credits that can help offset the annual fee, though they're not the sole reason to open the card. The annual CLEAR Plus® credit of up to $189 can cover the cost of a non-discounted membership, and the card also comes with up to $100 in LoungeBuddy credit.

That's all fine and well if you're a frequent traveler through the major airports that offer CLEAR Plus® or lounge access, but if you're from a smaller city or don't travel that often, these credits probably won't matter to you. But there are other Amex Green card benefits that are appealing to travelers that don't require signing up for a subscription.

While the American Express® Green Card - Editorial Name Only isn't on our list of best credit cards with travel insurance, it does offer valuable coverage when you use it to pay for your trip, including:

• Trip delay insurance: If your flight is delayed 12 hours or more, you'll get up to $300 in reimbursement per trip (max two claims per year)
• Baggage insurance: If your bags are lost, stolen, or damaged, you could be reimbursed up to $10,000
• Car rental insurance: When you use the card to pay for your rental and decline the agency's collision damage waiver, you could be covered for up to $50,000 (exclusions apply, and coverage is secondary which means it only covers amounts your personal or other insurance doesn't cover)

Cardholders also qualify for extended warranty coverage (up to $10,000) and purchase protection (up to $1,000) on eligible items bought with the card. And there are no foreign transaction fees to worry about when you use your Amex Green overseas.

Have a look at our guide to the best travel credit cards if you're planning to open a new card, because there are other cards on the market that offer similar bonuses and more benefits for a lower annual fee (such as the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card - Product Name Only). And be sure to check out our side-by-side comparison of the Amex Green, Gold, and Platinum to find the card that best fits your lifestyle.