Blue from American Express
American Express is a premium credit card company that caters to customers with good credit scores that spend often on credit. Not just anyone can become a customer, but if you can get your foot in the door the rewards and perks you can earn are well worth the effort. American Express is known to have industry leading customer service, great consumer protections, and the ability to get in touch with a live support representative no matter where you are or what time it is.
One of American Express' most popular credit card lines is the Blue line. These are consumer oriented cards that offer the ability to earn great rewards in either points or cash back. You can redeem those points and cash reward dollars in a variety of ways ranging from travel discounts to gift cards to statement credits. Which program and card you select depends completely on where you typically spend your time and money. There is a card for every occasion: normal spending such as grocery stores or travel expenses if you find yourself flying a lot.
American Express Blue Sky Credit Card
If you travel a lot for work and need a card to put your expenses on, or if your family is on the road a lot, the American Express Blue Sky is a great credit card for you. You will earn 1 point for every dollar spent on the card with no cap on the number of reward points you can earn. Unlike some travel credit cards, you are not limited to earning points just on your travel expenses. Your spending at the grocery store, mechanic, and drug store will generate points for you. You can also get 2,500 points for referring someone to the program – and they will get 2,500 points as well.
Once you have accumulated points you can convert them into travel rewards. While this is a travel oriented card, if you do not have any significant travel plans coming up, you can earn a simple credit to your account balance or a gift card to your favorite restaurant. You will enjoy maximum rewards by converting points to travel rewards. To convert, all you need is 7,500 points. Those points can be redeemed for a $100 statement credit on eligible travel expenses put on your card. If you prefer a gift card you can begin redeeming with as little as 3,250 points. How much you will get in gift cards for those points is dependent on which retailer you want a gift card from. Cash statement rewards can be converted by having 6,500 in points, which will get you a $50 statement credit.
Your American Express Blue Sky credit card offers significant travel perks ranging from saving you money when you travel to helping you during travel emergencies. The program offers discounts such as free room upgrades at select hotels or discounts and cash back at car rental agencies. If you are away from home often you can even get a discount for sending flowers to a spouse back at home. Some of the travel protections include a global hotline if you need medical, legal, or financial assistance while traveling abroad, car rental loss and damage insurance, and a guarantee that your reserved room will be available even if you arrive late.
American Express Blue Cash Everyday Credit Card
It can be hard to find a good credit card cash back program. Some people prefer to be rewarded with cash because that cash can be spent anywhere: on travel, on your electric bill, or put into a savings account for future needs. American Express offers one of the best cash back programs available with the Blue Cash Everyday credit card.
With the Blue Cash Everyday card you can earn an unlimited amount of cash back through your normal everyday spending. The amount of cash back you can earn is dependent upon where you spend money on the card. For money spent at supermarkets you will earn 3% cash back. For money spent at gas stations and grocery stores you will earn 2% cash back. If your spending doesn't fall into these categories, you will still earn 1% cash back. Unlike other programs, these categories do not rotate. You do not have to keep track of where you can earn the most cash back this month or quarter. There are also no tiers to impact how much cash back you are earning, and no minimum spending required. You can earn an unlimited amount of cash back from the moment you open the account. You will also earn $25 for every person you refer to open a new Blue Cash card. American Express also offers you the ability to convert your reward dollars into gift cards for select retailers. In some instances you can get more money in gift card form than you could in straight cash back or statement credits.
You will not pay an annual fee for using this card, which means your normal spending can generate a large amount of cash back for free. And just because this is a cash back card does not mean you will not get other perks. This card provides car rental loss and damage insurance as well as protecting items you purchase from accidental damage or theft for the first 90 days of ownership. If you buy something and later decide you want to return it, but the retailer won't take the item back, AMEX will reimburse you up to $300 per item (up to $1,000 per year). Most purchases that come with a manufacturer's warranty will enjoy an automatic one year extension of the warranty.
