Best American Express 0% APR Credit Cards

The American Express interest rate is 15.99% (V) to 27.99% (V), depending on creditworthiness and the specific American Express credit card. Some cards also offer a 0% introductory interest rate, lasting for a specified number of months. Amex EveryDay, Amex Blue Cash Everyday, and Amex Cash Magnet Card offer 0% for 15 months intro on purchases. With the Amex EveryDay Preferred and Blue Cash Preferred you can make purchases for the first 12 months at 0% interest.

An American Express card with a 0% interest rate allows you to finance big-ticket purchases for several months without the costly interest charges.

Business owners have two American Express introductory 0% interest rate credit cards at their disposal. Both American Express Blue Business Plus and Amex Blue Business Cash offer 0% for 12 months intro APR on purchases.

American Express Interest Rates by Card:

• Amex EveryDay: 15.99% - 26.99% (V)
• Amex EveryDay Preferred: 15.99% - 25.99% (V)
• Amex Blue Cash Everyday: 16.99% - 27.99% (V)
• Amex Cash Magnet Card: 16.99% - 27.99% (V)
• Blue Cash Preferred: 16.99% - 27.99% (V)
• American Express Blue Card: 24.24% (V)
• American Express Blue Business Plus: 16.24% - 24.24% (V)
• Amex Blue Business Cash: 16.24% - 24.24% (V)

You will need at least good credit to qualify for an American Express credit card with a 0% interest rate. American Express will also review your payment history, employment, income, your level of debt, and other factors. If you’re applying for a business credit card, your personal credit history will play a significant role in the evaluation process.

The best way to get American Express to lower the interest rate on your credit card is to call their customer service line at (800) 528-4800 and get on the phone with a representative. You can do this by saying “representative” to the automated customer service menu.

Simply asking can be more effective than you might think. For example, many credit card users who’ve threatened to cancel their cards if they didn’t get better terms have been successful with that strategy at least once, according to reports online. People are about twice as likely to get a fee waived than a lower APR, though, so keep that in mind as you go forward.

Here’s more info about requesting a lower APR for your American Express card:

• Before calling, make sure you know your current interest rate (APR is always listed on statements) and your account or card number.
• You’ll also have better negotiating power if you’re aware of how long you’ve been an American Express cardholder and what your payment history is like.
• You can also contact customer service online, or through the Amex mobile app (for Android and iOS) to talk to a representative. 

If you don’t get a lower interest rate over the phone, it’s worth noting that your Amex card may offer Plan It. This feature helps you break up eligible purchases of $100 or more into installments over a set period of time, without your normal interest charges. Instead of charging interest on these purchases, Amex charges a monthly “plan fee”, which includes a percentage of the purchase amount and a percentage of the APR that would otherwise be charged.

The plan durations and fees will depend on your creditworthiness, but you can sign in to the American Express app to see if your purchases are eligible for Plan It.

To avoid paying interest on American Express cards, pay off the entire statement balance by the payment due date every month, or keep the account balance at $0 by not making any transactions on the card. American Express cannot charge interest on an account in either case.

If you have an American Express credit card with an introductory 0% APR on purchases, you can also avoid paying interest as long as you pay off the entire balance before the 0% rate expires. Several American Express cards, such as the Blue Cash Everyday® Card from American Express, offer promotional 0% rates on purchases for a specified timeframe.

The American Express grace period for credit cards is at least 25 days after the closing date of each billing period. That means if you enter a new billing period without an existing balance and make charges on the card, you will have at least 25 days after that billing period closes before interest begins to accrue on those charges.

Here’s where the American Express grace period doesn’t apply:

It is important to note that grace periods do not apply to certain balances. Cash advances and balance transfers will start accruing interest immediately, unless they are part of a 0% APR promotional offer. In that case, interest would not accrue until the promotional offer ends.

Here’s how the American Express grace period works:

• Length: 25 days or more
• When It Applies: You pay your bill on time and in full for at least two consecutive billing periods.
• What It Does: Gives you time to pay for purchases before interest charges kick in.
• When It Doesn’t Apply: Revolving balances, cash advances and balance transfers (excluding 0% promotions).

Grace periods are great because they essentially allow you to borrow money for free as long as you pay your bill in full and on time each month.

Here’s what happens with American Express cards with no preset spending limit:

American Express cards with no preset credit limit are different in that they must be paid in full every month. There are exceptions, though. American Express cards with no reset spending limit may allow you to carry a revolving balance after making select purchases.

This feature, named “Pay Over Time,” is granted on a case by case basis, and American Express will make it clear if your account is eligible. If you don’t pay the balance requested by its due date, your account can be charged interest and penalty fees, and be subject to cancellation. 

The Amex EveryDay APR is 0% for the first 15 months your account is open. After that, it could be anywhere between 15.99% - 26.99% (V). The exact rate will depend on your creditworthiness and will be determined when you open your account. You won’t have to pay any interest on purchases if you always pay off your balance by the due date, 25 days after the end of each billing cycle.

The purchase APR is the most widely applicable rate, but purchases aren’t the only transactions Amex charges interest on.

Here are all the different types of Amex EveryDay APR:

• Introductory Purchase & Balance Transfer APR: 0% for 15 months
• Regular APR: 15.99% - 26.99% (V), based on your credit standing. Your purchases will accrue interest at this rate once the 15 months introductory period is over.
• Cash Advance APR: 28.24% (V). Interest starts accumulating as soon as you withdraw the cash. And there’s a fee of 5% (min $10) for each cash advance transaction.
• Penalty APR: 29.99% (V). The penalty APR can be applied once you miss a payment or have a payment returned. You can get it withdrawn by making six consecutive payments on time.
• Plan It Fee: The Amex Plan It feature allows you to pay off large purchases into monthly payments for a fixed monthly fee rather than the purchase APR. You won’t pay fees for the 15 months introductory APR period. After that, the monthly fee along with the number of purchases and plans you can combine and their duration will vary based on factors such as creditworthiness, purchase amount(s) and your account history.

In addition, the Amex EveryDay card offers 10,000 points after spending $2,000 in the first 6 months. With this card you can also earn 2 points per $1 spent on travel booked through amextravel.com and at supermarkets (up to $6,000 per year), and 1 point per $1 spent on all other purchases. So, it’s best used as an everyday spending-rewards card.

It’s worth noting that there are other cards that offer both longer intro periods and lower finance charges. For example, the U.S. Bank Visa® Platinum Card interest-free period for purchases is 20 billing cycles (17.49% - 27.49% (V) regular APR, based on creditworthiness, thereafter). Another good option is the Simmons Bank Visa® which has a regular APR of 12.5% (V).  

Yes, American Express and Best Buy have an offer known as the Pay with Points program. It allows you to redeem earned American Express Membership Rewards points toward purchases on BestBuy.com. You can use Pay with Points on all purchases except e-gift cards. The offer applies only to online purchases; in-store purchases are not eligible.

You earn Membership Rewards points with every qualifying purchase you make with an American Express rewards points card. Points can be redeemed for travel, gift cards, merchandise and more, for up to 1 cent per point.

Here’s how the American Express – Best Buy program works:

• You do not need a BestBuy.com online account to use Pay with Points. You can also redeem points when checking out as a guest. There is no fee to redeem points on BestBuy.com.
• When you’re ready to check out at BestBuy.com, enter your eligible American Express card information and click “See Points Balance” to view the available points balance and their dollar value.
• If you already have an eligible American Express card saved to your Bestbuy.com account, after you first click “See Points Balance”, you will automatically be shown your points balance during future checkouts with BestBuy.com.
• Select the number of rewards points you’d like to apply to your purchase. You can choose to pay for your entire purchase or only part of it using your American Express Membership Rewards points. You can also combine any Best Buy rewards certificates or gift cards in your Pay with Points purchase. Then, enter the dollar amount you would like applied to your purchase and finalize the checkout process.
• You will receive a statement credit for the cash equivalent of all points redeemed within 2-4 business days of the purchase. If you redeem points for part of your purchase, the remaining balance will be charged to your American Express card.

Aside from the Pay with Points program, Amex Offers is a discount program offered through select American Express cards. So if you’re an American Express cardholder, it’s definitely worth checking out Amex Offers and seeing which brands you may get discounts for.

The American Express Platinum card interest rate is around 18.99% to 25.99% (V) for purchases made using the card's Pay Over Time feature, depending on the cardholder's credit history and American Express account history, among other factors.

The Pay Over Time feature applies to purchases that Amex approves for a longer payment period. Purchase amounts in a Pay Over Time balance will also be subject to a monthly fee of up to 1.33%. American Express Platinum card does not have an interest rate for other purchases because it is a hybrid card (combining features of a regular credit card and those of a charge card), which means a cardholder must pay off all purchases not included in the Pay Over Time balance in full every month. Cardholders who are not using Pay Over Time, may use the Plan It feature to pay off large eligible purchases in exchange for a flat fee and no interest.

American Express Platinum card also charges a penalty interest rate for late payments of 29.99% (V) and a cash advance interest rate of 28.24% (V) - each cash advance transaction is also subject to a 5% (min $10) fee. The penalty rate applies if you don't pay the regular balance in full each billing period. For cash advances, American Express charges interest daily beginning on the transaction date.