Best AMEX cards?

[wasCB14]

You might look at Blue Cash Preferred.

Sadly the $95 Marriott card I have is closed to new applications. You'd have to get it by getting the premium ($450) card and downgrading after a year. I recently used the 35k point certificate from it (as well as a 50k certificate and some points) for several 20k rooms for a family trip. Not a glamorous redemption, but they would have otherwise expired in a few months, and the only other Marriott stay I had considered for another recent trip was 60k for the night in question.

And those 20k rooms were at by far the nicest property near the national park we were visiting. They would have otherwise been about $140 each before taxes.

[SouthJamaica]

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@socalchef00 wrote:

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@increasingmyfico wrote:

It totally depends on you. The Gold card is a good earner if you spend a lot at restaurants and grocery stores. It is a charge card so you should expect to payoff the full balance every month. AMEX has a lot of different cards. They have cash back options and point options. Will you be traveling a lot? What are you looking for in your next card? I started with the Gold and Blue Cash Preferred. Your mileage may vary. No matter which cards you select Amex is a good company to build a relationship with. 

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Ohh, for some reason I thought it was an actual credit card not charge card. I'd like a credit card, even though i'd still probably pif, I'd like the option just in case to carry over.

We do alot of restaurants and grocery, less travel at the moment. But I'd rather not have a charge card.

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What I didn't like about it being a charge card was the uncertainty of not knowing what your limit is.

Also the charge cards all seem to have excessive annual fees.

[SouthJamaica]

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@socalchef00 wrote:

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@wasCB14 wrote:

Do you fly a lot?

Stay in hotels a lot?

Which airlines/chains?

Your home airport(s)?

Do you eat out a lot?

Shop at regular grocery stores or more at wholesale clubs like Costco?

Do you buy a lot of electronics or other things that come with warranties?

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So I was informed that its a charge card, so maybe not the gold card.

But no, I don't fly or travel alot , at least not yet. But we usually fly Southwest and stay at the Marriott when we do travel.

We do use Resturants, Grocery of course, and every day purchases would be nice with rewards too.

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So if you want a cash back card, and you want an Amex, you might want to look at the Blue Cash Everyday, the Blue Cash Preferred, and the Cash Magnet.

[wasCB14]

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@SouthJamaica wrote:

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@socalchef00 wrote:

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@wasCB14 wrote:

Do you fly a lot?

Stay in hotels a lot?

Which airlines/chains?

Your home airport(s)?

Do you eat out a lot?

Shop at regular grocery stores or more at wholesale clubs like Costco?

Do you buy a lot of electronics or other things that come with warranties?

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So I was informed that its a charge card, so maybe not the gold card.

But no, I don't fly or travel alot , at least not yet. But we usually fly Southwest and stay at the Marriott when we do travel.

We do use Resturants, Grocery of course, and every day purchases would be nice with rewards too.

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So if you want a cash back card, and you want an Amex, you might want to look at the Blue Cash Everyday, the Blue Cash Preferred, and the Cash Magnet.

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Note that BCE and CM have mediocre rewards and no extended warranty feature. You're not getting the front-line customer service reserved for Platinum cards, either.

You'll get good customer service on disputes and the spend tracking tools are nice (perhaps more useful for business cards than personal ones).

But when the features get watered down that much, is there really any point in having an Amex?

(Other than upgrade/downgrade bonus churning, that is.)

[Anonymous]

IMO, it doesn't make a whole lot of sense to choose an issuer and then look for one of their cards.    You MIGHT consider the issuer once you find a card that looks great and check here to see if ReallyBadBankThatWillRipYouOffandSpitYouOut Inc has a good reputation (but even then you are going to generally get a mixed response of "They are great" and "Avoid at all costs" depending on individual experiences)

Find something that rewards, in a way you want (points/cashback/perks), your spending patterns and then see if you stand a reasonable chance of a successful application

[wasCB14]

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@Anonymous wrote:

IMO, it doesn't make a whole lot of sense to choose an issuer and then look for one of their cards.    You MIGHT consider the issuer once you find a card that looks great and check here to see if ReallyBadBankThatWillRipYouOffandSpitYouOut Inc has a good reputation (but even then you are going to generally get a mixed response of "They are great" and "Avoid at all costs" depending on individual experiences)

Find something that rewards, in a way you want (points/cashback/perks), your spending patterns and then see if you stand a reasonable chance of a successful application

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Absolutely.

Amex is the only issuer where people conclude they need one before they've looked at the options.

[GApeachy]

@socalchef00  (a little tidbit) Just from personal experience with the BCE and BCP is the unique "Send & Split" feature where you can send $2k to your Venmo acct. without any fees and is not considered a cash advance.

But here's a link where I had inquired not long ago about certain cards and available cl for doing so:

ficoforums.myfico.com/t5/Credit-Cards/Amex-Send-amp-Split-available-credit-limit/m-p/6436914

[socalchef00]

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@SouthJamaica wrote:

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@socalchef00 wrote:

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@wasCB14 wrote:

Do you fly a lot?

Stay in hotels a lot?

Which airlines/chains?

Your home airport(s)?

Do you eat out a lot?

Shop at regular grocery stores or more at wholesale clubs like Costco?

Do you buy a lot of electronics or other things that come with warranties?

---

So I was informed that its a charge card, so maybe not the gold card.

But no, I don't fly or travel alot , at least not yet. But we usually fly Southwest and stay at the Marriott when we do travel.

We do use Resturants, Grocery of course, and every day purchases would be nice with rewards too.

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So if you want a cash back card, and you want an Amex, you might want to look at the Blue Cash Everyday, the Blue Cash Preferred, and the Cash Magnet.

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Thanks

[CYBERSAM]

@socalchef00  Blue Cash Preferred® Card is the best overall Credit Card I found AMEX had for me. There is an AF but you make it back with all the perks.

AMEX has other specialty cards as others mentioned, but I use BCP as of one my main CCs 👍

[socalchef00]

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@CYBERSAM wrote:

@socalchef00  Blue Cash Preferred® Card is the best overall Credit Card I found AMEX had for me. There is an AF but you make it back with all the perks.

AMEX has other specialty cards as others mentioned, but I use BCP as of one my main CCs 👍

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Thanks, I'll look into that one