Is American Express Blue Cash Preferred Card Preferable for you?

The most recent card to catch my eye has been the American Express Blue Cash Preferred card, which is an improved version of the flagship Blue Cash card. It has much more generous rewards structure than other cards on the market, comparable and perhaps better than Discover More Card, the best reward card we have reviewed so far.

The pitch for the card definitely looks worth dying for in this market. Which says “6% cash back at supermarkets, 3% cash back at gas stations and department stores, and 1% back everywhere else“.

The moment you you think that the supermarket items become 6% cheaper for you, you will be seen a $75 annual fee applied.

By plain and simple mathematics, you need to spend $1,300 in grocery stores a year to compensate for the annual fee, provided you use a higher return gas card at the gas station.

this card is interesting and perhaps the best card for you if you happen to have a large family and if your super market bill generally is the highest monthly bill you pay.

I not aware of any other card, which gives more cash back on super market purchases.

6 Important Details About the Blue Cash Preferred Card

This card is one among dozens American Express offers to potential customers, so don’t feel bad if you haven’t yet discovered it. Here’s a closer look at the benefits and bugaboos:

1. Bonuses.  Blue Cash Preferred kicks back $150 in bonuses after the first $1,000 of spending. Refer a friend and you’ll receive another $75 bonus, and $75 more for every other friend who signs up for the Blue Cash Preferred card.

2. Tiered earnings. Like most other cash back cards, Blue Cash Preferred sports tiered earnings that favor shoppers and gas-guzzlers. Grocery spending outside of warehouse clubs kicks back 6% while gas purchases return 3%. Other spending kicks back 1%. Importantly, AmEx places no limits on what you can earn.

3. Annual fee. It’s not cheap to carry a AmEx Blue Cash Preferred card. There is an annual fee of $75.

4. APR on Purchases – 0% intro APR for 6 months. After that, your APR will be a variable rate, currently 17.24%, 20.24% or 22.24%

5. Other Perks – American Express promises other benefits on this card, such as extended warranty protection and guaranteed returns for unwanted merchandise. But most of Blue’s travel and shopping extras are about in line with what other cards offer.

6. Return protection – With American Express Blue Cash Preferred card, you have free return protection – if you try and return an item within 90 days, and the merchant is unwilling to take it back, American Express will refund the full purchase price, up to $300 per item, up to $1,000 annually per account.

Is this the Right Card for You?

Apply for this card if you have no debt, a large family to feed, and an extended commute for work. Cash-back bonuses should add up quickly for those who spend hundreds monthly in these two categories. Over the course of a year, your $1,000 in gas spending could net you $54 in rebates.

Yet what makes this card stand out isn’t how much it pays in gas rebates. Plenty of branded gas cards pay more. The difference comes at the supermarket, where the average American family spends $3,624 annually on groceries. Using the Blue Cash Preferred card for all that would kick back $217 in rebates, more than enough to compensate for the annual fee.

Regardless, it’s important to remember that Amex wouldn’t offer this card if it didn’t produce profits. A 6% grocery rebate won’t mean much if you end up paying 17.24% or more in interest payments.

For those who do not want to pay the annual fee, has a slightly marked down version of Blue cash, called American Express Blue Cash Every day card which caps the cash back at 3% at super markets but, this card is fee free to you.

Based on the huge cash back at super market we will give this card a rating of “Apply“. Even a 3% cash back at gas station looks lucrative.

One caution on credit card usage, the best way to handle any credit card is by paying off debt in full every month if you have to pay interest on the remaining balance otherwise.

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