The Amex EveryDay® Preferred Credit Card from American Express Review

If you’re looking for a card with an easy-to-earn welcome offer plus heightened Membership Rewards for everyday categories, the Amex EveryDay® Preferred Credit Card from American Express could be worth it. You’ll earn 3X points at U.S. supermarkets; 2X points at U.S. gas stations; 1X points on other purchases.

While the Amex EveryDay® Preferred Credit Card from American Express has a $95 annual fee, we estimate that the average cardholder can earn over $1,000 in rewards each year by using the card 30+ times a month and transferring Membership Rewards to loyalty program partners. This card is also a great pick for an intro APR credit card, allowing you to enjoy interest-free purchases and balance transfers for 12 months from the date of account opening.

However, some other everyday cards offer higher earning rates and more extensive benefits without an annual fee or the hassle of using the card 30+ times per month.

• Valuable welcome offer

  New card members can earn 15,000 bonus points after you use your new card to make $2,000 in purchases in your first 6 months of account opening We estimate Amex Membership Rewards points are valued at approximately 2 cents, making this welcome offer worth around $300 — which more than covers the card’s initial $95 annual fee.

  It’s worth noting that most cards with a welcome offer give you around three months to meet the minimum spend requirement, whereas the Amex EveryDay® Preferred Credit Card from American Express gives you up to six months.

• Decent rewards for U.S. supermarkets, U.S. gas stations and travel

  The Amex EveryDay® Preferred Credit Card from American Express provides decent rewards for everyday categories. You’ll earn 3X points at U.S. supermarkets; 2X points at U.S. gas stations; 1X points on other purchases.

  You can also double your Membership Rewards® points by using the card to book eligible travel through AmexTravel.com, such as airline tickets, prepaid hotel stays, vacation packages, cruise reservations and more.

  If you use your Amex EveryDay® Preferred Credit Card from American Express primarily at U.S. supermarkets and spend the maximum $6,000 per year, you’ll earn 18,000 Membership Rewards® points.That’s a $360 annual value if you can redeem those points for 2 cents each — which is often possible by transferring points to partner airlines and hotels.

• Earn 50% extra points

  Another great feature of the Amex EveryDay® Preferred Credit Card from American Express is the ability to earn 50% more points by using your card 30 or more times each billing cycle for eligible purchases.

  While returning a purchase will reduce how many reward points you can earn for that billing period, it doesn’t affect your purchase count. This means you’ll earn the bonus if you make at least 30 purchases that month, regardless of how many returns you end up doing.

  Note that you can’t earn the 50% bonus for certain transactions, including balance transfers, fees or interest charges, gift card purchases, cash advances or person-to-person payments.

• Intro APR on purchases and balance transfers

  The Amex EveryDay® Preferred Credit Card from American Express offers a 0% intro APR on purchases for 12 months from the date of account opening and a 0%, introductory APR for the first 12 months from the date of account opening on balance transfers requested within 60 days of account opening. After that, an APR of 17.74% to 27.74% variable applies, based on your creditworthiness and other factors.

  While being able to make interest-free purchases and balance transfers can help during emergencies, it’s best to use this feature with caution. Otherwise, you may struggle to repay the debt once the high interest rate kicks in.

• Travel and purchase protections

  The Amex EveryDay® Preferred Credit Card from American Express provides some basic travel and purchase benefits that can add to the card’s overall value.

  • Car rental loss and damage insurance¹: You can receive free coverage if you use this card to reserve and pay for your entire car rental. However, this benefit is secondary to your primary insurance policy, doesn’t include liability coverage, and not all vehicle types and countries are covered.
  • Access to the Global Assist Hotline²: This service provides 24/7 emergency assistance such as medical and legal referrals, emergency cash wires, missing luggage assistance and more. Terms and conditions apply.
  • Return protection³: If a seller won’t accept an item for return, American Express may refund the full price, excluding shipping and handling. This benefit is capped at $300 per item, up to a maximum of $1,000 per calendar year. Terms and conditions apply.

• Access to the Membership Rewards program

  A major advantage to this card is access to the American Express Membership Rewards® Program. If you have multiple Amex cards, you can link your accounts and consolidate all your points in one place.

  Here are the options for redeeming your Membership Rewards® points and their estimated values:

  • Transfer to travel partners: 2 cents
  • Book travel via American Express Travel: 0.7 – 1 cent
  • Purchases on Amazon.com: 0.7 cents
  • Purchase gift cards: 0.5 – 1 cent
  • Statement credits: 0.6 cents
  • Buy merchandise with points: 0.5 cents
  • Donate to charity: 0.7 cents

  American Express Travel partners

  • Aer Lingus
  • AeroMexico
  • Aeroplan
  • ANA Mileage Club
  • Avianca
  • British Airways
  • Cathay Pacific
  • Choice Privileges
  • Delta Air Lines
  • Emirates

  • Etihad
  • Hawaiian Airlines
  • Hilton Honors
  • Iberia
  • JetBlue
  • Marriott Bonvoy
  • Qantas
  • Qatar
  • Singapore Airlines
  • Virgin Atlantic

• Annual fee

  Although the Amex EveryDay® Preferred Credit Card from American Express has high-earning rates for daily spending categories, you can earn similar rewards on credit cards with no annual fee.

  If you don’t think you’ll maximize the $6,000 grocery category or use the card at least 30 times each month to get the 50% bonus, you might be better off going with the no-annual fee version of this card.

• Spending cap on rewards

  If you want to maximize your grocery spending rewards, keep in mind that this card comes with an annual cap of $6,000. Up to that amount, you’ll earn 3x rewards. After that, the rate drops to 1x.

  For those planning to surpass that amount, you might want to check out our list of best grocery store credit cards.

• Foreign transaction fees

  This card isn’t the best fit for travelers wanting an everyday card to use while overseas. The Amex EveryDay® Preferred Credit Card from American Express is subject to foreign transactions fees of 2.7% of each transaction after conversion to US dollars.

  Plus, the everyday reward categories like grocery stores and gas stations only apply to purchases made within the U.S.

• Minimal travel benefits

  This card’s only travel benefits are car rental insurance and access to the Global Assist Hotline. In comparison, other similar cards offer perks like trip cancellation and baggage insurance.

  For example, you can earn a $50 annual hotel credit after booking one hotel stay via the Chase Travel^SM portal with the Chase Sapphire Preferred^® Card, which also has a $95 annual fee.

• Limited redemption options

  You get the biggest redemption value when transferring your Membership Rewards® to one of American Express’s travel partners — often up to 2 cents per point. You can also get a good redemption rate when using points to book travel through AmexTravel.com.

  Besides these options, most redemption options, including cash back, are worth less than 1 cent per point.

Amex EveryDay® Credit Card from American Express

 
If you want to earn Membership Reward points through American Express but aren’t ready to commit to an annual fee, the Amex EveryDay® Credit Card from American Express could be a better choice. Like the annual fee version, this basic card offers a decent welcome offer and rewards on everyday purchases, although at slightly lower rates.

You’ll earn 10,000 Membership Rewards® points after you use your new Card to make $2,000 in purchases in your first 6 months — a little less than the Amex EveryDay® Preferred Credit Card from American Express. The earning rate at U.S. supermarkets is 2x instead of 3x, with the same $6,000 annual cap.

The Amex EveryDay® Preferred Credit Card from American Express is the better choice for a balance transfer or new purchase. You’ll get an intro APR on balance transfers and new purchases with a longer introductory period. Both cards also offer bonus points if you make a certain amount of purchases per month, with the no-annual-fee version earning 20% after 20+ purchases, versus 50% after 30+ purchases with the Amex EveryDay® Preferred Credit Card from American Express.

Citi Custom Cash^® Card

 
If you want to earn top rewards on your grocery purchases without paying an annual fee, the Citi Custom Cash^® Card may be your best option. It allows you to earn 5% cash back on the first $500 spent in your top spending category each billing cycle. Eligible categories include grocery stores, restaurants, gas stations, drug stores, home improvement stores, fitness clubs, live entertainment and select streaming service, travel and transit purchases.

If groceries are your top spending category every month, you’ll earn $25 in cash back on your grocery purchases — or $300 total for the year — before you hit the spending cap. That’s one of the best returns on groceries of any card around.

The drawback is that you’ll only earn 1% cash back on all other purchases. If you want a single card that you can use for all your everyday purchases, the Amex EveryDay® Preferred Credit Card from American Express is the better way to go.

Blue Cash Preferred^® Card from American Express

 
The Blue Cash Preferred^® Card from American Express offers a higher earning rate on U.S. supermarket purchases, simpler rewards and no requirement to use the card 30+ times a month.

Cardholders earn 6% Cash Back at U.S. supermarkets on up to $6,000 per year in purchases (then 1%), 6% Cash Back on select U.S. streaming subscriptions, 3% Cash Back at U.S. gas stations and on transit (including taxis/rideshare, parking, tolls, trains, buses and more), 1% Cash Back on other purchases. Terms apply.

You can easily redeem rewards for statement credits or at Amazon.com checkout. If you don’t want to deal with the complexity of transferring points and you want one of the most rewarding cards for everyday purchases, the Blue Cash Preferred^® Card from American Express is the better choice.

If you’re looking for an everyday card that can help you earn accelerated American Express Membership Rewards® points, then getting the Amex EveryDay® Preferred Credit Card from American Express could be a good move.

However, the Amex EveryDay® Preferred Credit Card from American Express isn’t the only card for high-earning everyday categories. For example, the Blue Cash Preferred^® Card from American Express charges an annual fee but gets you 6% on U.S. supermarkets versus only 3% with the Amex EveryDay® Preferred Credit Card from American Express.

Note that the Amex EveryDay® Preferred Credit Card from American Express charges fees when used overseas. If you want a versatile card to take abroad, check out our list of best no foreign transaction fee cards.