All credit cards
American ExpressAmex Explorer
American ExpressAmex Qantas Ultimate
120,000 Qantas Frequent Flyer pointsQantas Frequent Flyer1.25
Credit cards · Side by side
Amex Explorer vs Amex Qantas Ultimate
vs
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First-year value after costs, on an assumed $2,000 a month
$219
$239 rewards + $375 bonus, less costs
$356
$246 rewards + $560 bonus, less costs
Amex Qantas Ultimate's first-year value is $137 higher than Amex Explorer's, on an assumed $2,000 a month.
An assumed $2,000 a month on the card. Drag to try yours
Figure by figure
First-year value
after costs, on an assumed $2,000 a month
$219
$356
$137 more · Higher value after costs
Sign-up bonus
in dollars, points at what a point buys
$375
75,000 Membership Rewards points
$960
120,000 Qantas Frequent Flyer points$585 more · Larger sign-up bonus
What the bonus asks
spend on the card
$4,000 in 3 months
$5,000 in 3 months
70,000 points in year one
Offer ends
3 Nov 2026
17 Nov 2026
Annual fee
ongoing, with any rewards program fee
$395
$55 less · Lower annual fee
$450
First-year fee
$395
the same as later years
$55 less · Lower first-year fee
$450
the same as later years
Rewards program
Membership Rewards
0.50¢ a point
Qantas Frequent Flyer0.80¢ a point
Earn rate
on everyday spend, at what a point buys
2
Membership Rewards points per $1 · about 1.00% back
1.25Qantas Frequent Flyer points per $1 · about 1.00% back
Purchase rate
23.99%
a year
23.99%
a year
Interest-free days
on purchases, at most
55 days
11 more · More interest-free days
44 days
Overseas transaction fee
3.50%
of each overseas purchase
3.50%
of each overseas purchase
Additional cardholder fee
None
a year for each extra card
None
a year for each extra card
Minimum credit limit
$3,000
$3,000
Complimentary travel insurance
Included
Included
Airport lounge access
Included
international
Included
international
Network
Amex
Amex
Over time
Each card's figure as it stood each week since we began tracking cards. A move shows as ▲ or ▼ in the week it happened.
As of 14 October 2026, Amex Explorer charges $395 a year and its sign-up offer is 75,000 Membership Rewards points; Amex Qantas Ultimate charges $450 a year and its sign-up offer is 120,000 Qantas Frequent Flyer points. Points are valued at what a point buys (a bank's own points at its gift card rate, airline points at 0.8¢), and the value after costs is worked out on the spend above. Each row says which figure is higher or lower; it doesn't rank the cards.
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