American Express 0% APR Credit Cards

The Amex EveryDay APR is 0% for the first 12 months your account is open. After that, it could be anywhere between 14.99% and 25.99%. The exact number will depend on your credit worthiness, 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 due date, 25 days after the end of billing cycle.

The purchase APR is the most widely applicable rate, but purchases aren’t the only transactions Amex charges interest on. I’ll go through the rest below.

Here are all the different types of Amex EveryDay APR:

• Balance Transfer: You’ll pay 0% for the first 12 months, if you request the transfer within 60 days of account opening. After that, it could be any number between 14.99% and 25.99%, depending on your credit worthiness. Your balance transfer APR and purchase APR will be the same rate.
• Cash Advance: 27.24%. Interest starts accumulating as soon as you withdraw your cash. And there’s a fee of either $5 or 3% of the transaction, whichever is higher.
• Penalty: 29.99%. 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 You can get it withdrawn by making six consecutive payments on time.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 lets you split up large purchases into monthly payments for a fixed monthly fee rather than the purchase APR. You’ll pay $0 in fees for the first 12 months after opening your account. After that, the monthly fee is up to 1.13% of the purchase.

The Amex EveryDay APR you get will depend on the transaction you’re making, when you’re making it, and your credit worthiness. It’s worth noting that other cards offer both longer intro periods and lower finance charges. For example, the Citi Simplicity interest-free period for purchases is 21 months, and the Discover it purchase APR starts at 12.24%. With two points per dollar at supermarkets and a 10,000-point after you make $1,000 in purchases, the Amex EveryDay card is best used for earning rewards, not paying balances.

American Express Plan It is a new feature that allows you to pay off large purchases on your American Express credit card with a flat fee ranging from 1.11% - 1.17% for each purchase and no interest each month. The fee will vary, depending on which card you use. Plan It is currently available only on American Express consumer cards. Charge cards and small business credit cards are not eligible.

You can use Plan it for eligible purchases either online or on the Amex mobile app. Ineligible purchases include transactions subject to a foreign transaction fee, purchases under $100, cash equivalent purchases such as gift cards and lottery tickets, and any American Express credit card fees. You’ll still earn rewards points on any Plan It Purchases made with an American Express rewards card.

Note that you’re still able to pay your American Express bill through your preferred payment method.

Here is how American Express Plan It works:

• Log in to your AmEx Mobile app or from your online account. Eligible purchases will have a Plan It icon.
• Select the Transaction you want to plan, click the Plan It icon, then click “Create a Plan.”
• Your eligible transaction will have up to three payment plan options, which include the applicable payment period and required monthly payment. A plan fee is included in your monthly payment. The fee varies based on your card’s APR and the length of the plan.
• Once you confirm your plan option, your monthly plan will be added to your minimum payment due on your next bill.
• All payments towards your Plan it account balance are first applied towards your minimum payment due. Once the minimum payment is met, any additional payments will be applied to your outstanding balance. Payments may take up to 48 hours to be reflected on your account.
• You won’t be charged future fees If you pay off your balance early. If you don’t pay off the balance by the end of the payment period, you’ll be charged interest at the regular APR on the unpaid balance.

If you have an American Express credit card with an introductory 0% APR, you wouldn’t benefit from the Plan It feature. You’re better off paying down your balance during the promotional period without incurring any interest – or additional plan fees.

What’s the fee?

Varies by card. 1.11% - 1.17%

An Amex purchase finance charge starts as low as 13.24% for the Blue Business Plus card, up to as much as 26.74% on the Delta SkyMiles cards. Purchase finance charges are often presented as an Annual Percentage Rate (APR) and are in a range from low to high. Rates are also based on creditworthiness. The higher your credit profile, the better your odds of landing a rate at the low end of the scale.

Amex cards come with different purchase finance charges, or interest rates. Amex typically charges interest on purchases beginning on the date of the transaction. Interest also applies to cash advances and balance transfers, and Amex often charges higher rates for those transactions.

Some Amex cards, such as the Blue Cash Preferred card, come with introductory 0% interest on purchases. That means the purchase finance charge does not apply throughout the introductory period. Make sure you know when the introductory 0% period expires, and what your new purchase finance charge will be.

Here are the Amex purchase finance charges:

• 13.24% - 21.24% (V): Blue Business Plus (0% for 15 months).
• 14.24% - 21.24% (V): SimplyCash Plus Business (0% for 15 months).
• 14.99 – 24.99% (V): EveryDay Preferred (0% for 12 months)
• 14.99% - 25.99% (V) : 5 Amex cards - Blue Cash EveryDay, Cash Magnet (0% for 15 months); Blue Cash Preferred; EveryDay Card (after 0% for 12 months), and Hilton Honors.
• 17.74% - 26.74% (V) Purchases APR: 11 Amex cards. Blue Delta SkyMiles and Business cards; Gold Delta SkyMiles and Business cards; Platinum Delta SkyMiles and Business (0% for 6 months) cards; and Platinum Reserve SkyMiles and Business (0% for 6 months) cards. Also includes Starwood Preferred Guest,  Starwood Preferred Guest Business, and Starwood Preferred Guest card.

Not all Amex credit cards come with a purchase finance charge. Amex has a number of charge cards such as the Gold and Platinum cards that require you to pay your entire balance in full each month. Amex charge cards will hit you with a 29.99% Penalty APR if you don’t pay the entire balance. You’ll also be charged a $38 late fee. The penalty rate will apply for the next six months, and will be lifted if you pay your balance in full – and on time during those six months.

AMEX and Best Buy has 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 AMEX rewards points card. Points can be redeemed for travel, gift cards, merchandise and more, for up to 1 cent per point.

Only AMEX Membership cards can be used to Pay with Points at BestBuy.com. Eligible cards include the Green, Gold, and Platinum cards;  the EveryDay and EveryDay Preferred cards; the Blue and Blue Business Plus cards; among others. Points are worth only .7 cents when redeemed at BestBuy.com.

Here’s how the program works: When you’re ready to check out at BestBuy.com., enter your eligible AMEX card number to review the number of points you have available. Select the number of rewards points you’d like to apply to your purchase. You can combine any Best Buy rewards certificates or gift cards to your Pay with Points purchase.

You’ll 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 AMEX card.

You do not have to have a BestBuy.com online account to use Pay with Points. You can redeem points when checking out a guest. There is no fee to redeem points on BestBuy.com.