KEYAIRA SUTTON, Puppy Lover
@keykey
American Express is bad because it does not have the same widespread international acceptance that some of the other major card networks have. American Express credit cards also require good credit or better for approval, and they often come with high annual fees.
Still, American Express isn’t all bad as a credit card company. Their credit cards have some great benefits and rewards in exchange for their annual fees, including the best rewards rate for groceries on the market today and a line of charge cards with loads of travel perks.
So, take this with a grain of salt…
Reasons Why American Express Is Bad
1. American Express cards have low international acceptance.
While Amex credit cards are widely accepted in the United States, they aren’t great for use in other countries. American Express trails far behind Mastercard and Visa when it comes to international card acceptance, largely because they charge merchants higher interchange fees (or “swipe fees”) than other networks charge. These higher fees don’t affect Amex cardholders directly, but they do make merchants less likely to accept American Express credit cards.
2. Amex credit cards require above-average credit.
American Express credit cards are only available to people with good or excellent credit, so they are hard to qualify for.
3. American Express cards typically aren’t cheap to own.
Amex credit cards – especially the best ones – tend to charge relatively high annual fees.
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