Making the Most of American Express Blue Cash Everyday

Owning the Blue Cash Everyday® Card from American Express is one thing. Getting the most value out of it is another thing entirely.

To get the most cash back, you need to know where to use it. The Blue Cash Everyday® Card from American Express offers bonus cash back at grocery stores, gas stations and select department stores and 1% back everywhere else. With an annual fee of $0, there’s no cost to carrying it, so if you prefer, you can save it for places where you get the bonus and use a higher-paying flat-rate card for other purchases.

Here are our tips for making the card work harder for you:

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Use it at the supermarket: The Blue Cash Everyday® Card from American Express earns 3% cash back at U.S. supermarkets on up to $6,000 a year, and 1% after that. That rate makes it a great choice if you’re looking to get some money back from your weekly trip for groceries. If you don’t think you’re likely to buy $6,000 worth of groceries in a year, you don’t have to leave the bonus cash back on the table. Many supermarkets also sell gift cards to a wide variety of retail establishments. Buy gift cards, use them yourself and expand that 3% rate to purchases other than just milk, bread and peanut butter.

Nerd Tip

If you spend more than $50 a week at the grocery store, consider upgrading to the Blue Cash Preferred® Card from American Express. It has an annual fee of $75 but offers higher cash-back rates, including 6% at grocery stores. See our comparison of the two here.

Use it at gas stations and department stores: Offering an unlimited 2% on gas and department store spending, this card is a great candidate for commuters and general consumers alike. So next time you’re at the pump, remember to swipe with your  Blue Cash Everyday® Card from American Express if you want to earn 2% back.

Spend enough to get the sign-up bonus: The Blue Cash Everyday® Card from American Express comes with a sign-up bonus, but you need to meet spending requirements to get it: Special Offer - Get up to $300 back. Offer Ends 6/15/2016. That includes $100 back after you spend $1,000 on the card in the first 3 months. Plus, get 10% back when you use the card at U.S. wireless telephone service providers in 2016, up to $200.

If you hit the spending threshold — which shouldn’t be too hard if you remember to use the card — you’ll start off your relationship with the Blue Cash Everyday® Card from American Express with a nice chunk of cash.

How to redeem your rewards: The Blue Cash Everyday® Card from American Express’ reward dollars can be redeemed directly as a statement credit, making them just about as good as cash. Simply log into your American Express account and click “Use Reward Dollars” to apply the credits toward your statement. Reward dollars must be redeemed in increments of $25, with a $25 minimum.

Finance a purchase: Whether you’re looking to hold off on paying for a larger purchase or you’re looking to pay it off over time without interest, the Blue Cash Everyday® Card from American Express starts off with an APR of 0% on Purchases for 12 months and 0% on Balance Transfers for 12 months, and then the ongoing APR of 13.24%-23.24% Variable.

If you do decide to hold a balance during the 0% APR period, be sure to make at least the minimum monthly payment, or else you risk losing the benefit and may have to pay your balance sooner than you had anticipated.

Kevin Cash is a staff writer at NerdWallet, a personal finance website. Email: kcash@nerdwallet.com. Twitter: @kevin_cash.

from NerdWallet
https://www.nerdwallet.com/blog/credit-cards/maximize-value-american-express-blue-cash-everyday/