Charles H. Miller
American Express has two similar cards you will want to consider using for buying such items as groceries and gas. The Amex EveryDay® Credit Card and Amex EveryDay® Preferred Credit Card both come with sign-up bonus points, while enabling its owners to easily earn additional points (which can later be redeemed for travel services). The former has no annual fee, while the latter costs $95 per year. Here are the details…
Highlights
- 10,000 / 15,000 sign-up bonus points
- 20% / 50% extra points
- 0% intro APR on purchases and balance transfers for the first 12 months, then 13.24% – 23.24%
- 3% Balance Transfer Fee (minimum $5)
- $0 or $95 Annual Fee
How These Two Cards Work
Points: With the Amex EveryDay® Credit Card, you earn double points at US supermarkets (up to $6,000 per year, then 1x) and 1x points on other purchases. Also, 20% extra points are earned when/if you make 20 or more purchases in a billing period (less returns and credits). On the other hand, the Amex EveryDay® Preferred Credit Card gets you 3x points at US supermarkets (again, up to $6,000 per year, then 1x), 2x points at US gas stations, and 1x points on other purchases. Plus, if you pay with the card 30 or more times in a billing period, you will get 50% more points on those purchases. Once earned, these points can be used to redeem travel services through American Express’ travel portal. Alternatively, you can transfer points to select loyalty programs.
Sign up offer: 10,000 or 15,000 bonus points with Amex EveryDay® Credit Card and Amex EveryDay® Preferred Credit Card, respectively. In order to qualify for this bonus, you are required to make $1,000 in purchases within your first 3 months of card membership.
Travel benefits: AMEX is known for its travel services, including baggage insurance, car rental insurance, and travel accident insurance. Also, card members get access to a roadside assistance hotline and a Global Assist Hotline.
Shopping perks: These would include extended warranty and purchase protection. The former will get you an extra year of warranty whenever you buy an item that has a warranty of five years or less, while the latter ensures that your purchases are covered from theft and damage for 90 days. Also, American Express may refund the full purchase price of an eligible item (up to $300 per item and up to a max of $1,000 per calendar year) if you return the item within 90 days from the purchase date and the merchant won’t accept the return.
Entertainment access: With Amex EveryDay® card cards, you gain access to special discounts and presales for shows, sporting events, and concerts, along with invites to cardmember-only events.
APR: Both Amex EveryDay® Credit Card include 0% introductory APR on purchases and balance transfers for the first 12 months, after which APR goes to anywhere between 13.24% and 23.24%, based on your creditworthiness.
Annual Fee: The Amex EveryDay® Credit Card has no annual fee, while the Amex EveryDay® Preferred Credit Card comes with a price tag of $95 per year.
Costs
- $0 / $95 Annual Fee
- 0% intro APR on purchases and balance transfers for the first 12 months, then 13.24% – 23.24%
- 3% Balance Transfer Fee (minimum $5)
- 2.7% Foreign Transaction Fee
Pros
- Sign-up bonus that is easy to reach. No need to overspend to get your bonus points.
- Extra points that are again within reach. You don’t have to buy gazillion different products to get extra 20 or 50 percent bonus points.
- Travel and shopping perks that come include with many American Express credit cards.
Cons
- Foreign Transaction Fee means you’ll want to carry a different card when travelling abroad. Guess that’s why this is the EveryDay card.
- Annual fee in the case of Amex EveryDay® Preferred Credit Card. We’re not convinced it’s worth the money.
Head to Head Comparison
Should You Get a Amex EveryDay® Credit Card?
American Express’ line of EveryDay cards are, as their name say, for everyday use. If you go for one of these cards, you will have no problems reaching the required minimum for bonus points. And the same goes for sign-up bonus – it’s easy to reach.
Once you collect enough points, you can redeem them for travel service, and here’s the thing – once you decide to travel abroad, you should use some different card. That’s strange given the suite of travel benefits these two Amex cards include. Then again, that’s why Amex (and other banks for that matter) have special cards for traveling. Amex EveryDay® cards are for everyday items like groceries and gas.
