How does the American Express pre-sale work on Ticketmaster?

Which artist would you see if you got first dibs on tickets which technically didn’t cost you a penny? Trick question, we know it's Harry Styles. Well, with American Express (or Amex for short), you can essentially do just that.

Amex is an American financial company which specialises in credit cards. It offers a number of perks to its customers; one of them is that you can get first access to concert tickets via the Amex pre-sale, and another is that you can redeem or pay with points on any purchase on Ticketmaster. This includes the both pre-sale and reserved tickets.

For example, Pitbull had an American Express pre-sale for his upcoming BST Hyde Park show before the tickets were released to the general public days later, as did Lewis Capaldi.

You can always count on the RadioTimes.com team to explain how things work in an accessible way, particularly when it comes to ticketing like with our how to beat the Ticketmaster queue and are concert hospitality tickets worth it? guides. So here’s our latest how-to on how the American Express pre-sale works on Ticketmaster.

• Take a look at events on Ticketmaster
• Check out the latest experiences with American Express pre-sale at Ticketmaster
• Not yet an American Express cardholder? Check out the options

Jump to:

• Can I use American Express for Ticketmaster?
• How do American Express pre-sale tickets work?

Can I use American Express for Ticketmaster?

First and foremost, how do you use Amex on Ticketmaster? You can use the card as you would any other credit card, or you can use points — you earn Membership Rewards Points for every full pound of eligible spending on your card. If the points redeemed don’t cover the entire amount, the remaining balance will stay on your account.

When using points on the Ticketmaster website, it will first verify your points, then take you through to the payment page, and finally, you’ll get the very exciting "You’re in!" confirmation page.

To earn points, simply use your American Express card for everyday purchases and watch them add up, in a similar way that you would use an Advantage Card at Boots or a Clubcard at Tesco. Small ways in which you can earn points include a weekly food shop or buying petrol, and bigger ways include booking a holiday.

• Take a look at events on Ticketmaster
• Check out the latest experiences with American Express pre-sale at Ticketmaster
• Not yet an American Express cardholder? Check out the options

For more pre-sale explainers, take a look at how does the O2 Priority pre-sale work on Ticketmaster, how does the Mastercard pre-sale work on Ticketmaster, and how does the Three pre-sale work on Ticketmaster.

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As well as the ability to use your Amex card to purchase tickets at Ticketmaster, there’s also an American Express pre-sale for certain artists. The American Express pre-sale lets cardholders buy tickets for events before they are released to the general public.

Most of the time, you won’t bag better seats in an American Express pre-sale than you would in any other pre-sale or in the general on sale, however it gives you the opportunity to buy tickets before they’re widely available and hopefully increases your chances of securing tickets for popular concerts.

However, there are some special perks for American Express cardholders. One of our RadioTimes.com writers went to All Points East festival at Victoria Park back in the summer of 2019 and noticed there were designated standing areas and separate bars for the cardholders. This is because members could pick up an Amex wristband to unlock exclusive benefits on-site.

But how do you access the actual pre-sale?

To access an American Express pre-sale through Ticketmaster, simply find the event you want to attend on the Ticketmaster website, click on ‘Ticket Type’ at the top of the page, select ‘American Express Card Member Presale’, pick your tickets and check out. Remember, though — you’ll need a Ticketmaster account to pay.

• Take a look at events on Ticketmaster
• Check out the latest experiences with American Express pre-sale at Ticketmaster
• Not yet an American Express cardholder? Check out the options

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