Amtrak Guest Rewards Mastercard vs Amtrak Guest Rewards Preferred Mastercard

Every figure below is from the same dataset Miles computes its recommendations from. Rows the two cards agree on are collapsed at the bottom.

Economics

Dollar figures are per year unless the row says otherwise. Ongoing annual value is Miles' estimate of what the card adds per year after its annual fee: statement credits discounted for realistic use, benefits, and earning above a strong flat-rate card on a typical spending profile. First-year value is a separate net figure that includes the welcome bonus. A welcome bonus shown at its advertised maximum may not be available to every applicant; that figure is not marked as stronger. ★ marks the stronger comparable figure on other rows, and no row is marked when either figure is unknown.
Figure	Amtrak Guest Rewards Mastercard FNBO	Amtrak Guest Rewards Preferred Mastercard FNBO
Annual fee	Best: $0 $99/yr less	$99
Ongoing annual value, after fee	Best: $274 $35/yr more	$239
First-year value	$658	Best: $879 $221/yr more
Authorized user fee	—Unknown	—Unknown

Sign-up Bonus

The current welcome offer as recorded in the dataset. No winner is marked: a bonus is points times a valuation times a spend requirement you may or may not clear, and the first-year value above already prices it.
Offer	Amtrak Guest Rewards Mastercard FNBO	Amtrak Guest Rewards Preferred Mastercard FNBO
Current offer	15K points after $1K spend + 5K points after adding an authorized user, all within the first 3 billing cycles	25K points after $1.5K spend + 5K points after adding an authorized user, all within the first 3 billing cycles (Offer Expires 11/4/2026)

Earning

Percentages are the return on a dollar spent: the multiplier times what Miles values those points at. ★ marks the higher return on a row. Categories only one card earns a bonus on are marked for that card; the other earns its base rate.
Category	Amtrak Guest Rewards Mastercard FNBO	Amtrak Guest Rewards Preferred Mastercard FNBO
Rideshare	—Unknown	Best: 2X5.1%
Transit	—Unknown	Best: 2X5.1%
Travel	—Unknown	Best: 2X5.1%
Amtrak purchases	2X5.1%	Best: 3X7.7%

Benefits

Statement credits, lounge access and elite status as listed in the dataset; protections are counted, not listed. No winner is marked: twelve small credits are not more than two large ones, and the row that prices them, ongoing annual value, is under Economics.
Benefit	Amtrak Guest Rewards Mastercard FNBO	Amtrak Guest Rewards Preferred Mastercard FNBO
Statement credits	—Unknown	—Unknown
Lounge access	—Unknown	Amtrak Metropolitan Lounge (1/yr)
Elite status	—Unknown	Amtrak Guest Rewards
Protections	0	0

The same on both cards (7)

Rows where both cards state the same figure or the same earning rate. Nothing is marked, because there is no stronger side.
Fact	Amtrak Guest Rewards Mastercard	Amtrak Guest Rewards Preferred Mastercard
Foreign transaction fee	None	None
Issuer	FNBO	FNBO
Rewards currency	Amtrak Guest Rewards	Amtrak Guest Rewards
Card type	Personal	Personal
Network	Mastercard	Mastercard
All other purchases	1X2.6%	1X2.6%
Dining	2X5.1%	2X5.1%

Which one is right for you

This page shows the difference. It does not pick: the winner depends on what you spend and what you already hold, and adding these figures up without knowing that would be a guess dressed as a verdict. Ask Miles and it computes the answer against your own wallet.

Ask Miles which to get