American Express Credit Cards

The American Express foreign transaction fee is 2.7% of all international transactions or $0, depending on the Amex card. There are plenty of American Express cards with no foreign transaction fee. Those cards tend to be the best options for travel.

If you’re unfamiliar with foreign transaction fees, they’re a surcharge for using a credit card with a foreign merchant. Credit cards with foreign fees usually charge 1%-3% of the purchase price. That can really add up, especially since Amex’s 2.7% foreign fee is on the higher end of the spectrum.

Here are the American Express foreign transaction fees:

• American Express cards with a foreign transaction fee charge 2.7%.
• Many American Express credit cards have no foreign transaction fees.
• Amex foreign transaction fees apply when you buy things abroad OR shop at foreign merchants online.
• Some of the best American Express cards with no foreign fees include Amex Platinum and Premier Rewards Gold as well as the PenFed Premium Travel Rewards card and the Amex cards affiliated with Starwood, Hilton and Delta.

If you’re looking for an international credit card, it’s best to get one with no foreign transaction fee, and American Express does have a good selection. But American Express cards aren’t accepted by nearly as many foreign merchants as Visa and Mastercard. So you may find yourself somewhere your Amex won’t work. And that’s why it’s probably better to have a Visa or Mastercard for travel.

The best American Express business card is the Business Platinum card because it offers up to 75,000 bonus points for spending $20,000 in the first 3 months. It also gives 5 points per $1 on flights and prepaid hotels through amextravel.com. And it offers at least 1 point per $1 on everything else. On top of that, cardholders get 35% of their points back when using them to book flights on one selected airline or when booking any first or business class flights, regardless of airline. Lastly, the Platinum card gives free access to 7 major airport lounge networks. The annual fee is $595.

If you aren’t willing to shell out many hundreds of dollars per year for an annual fee, consider the Amex Green Card.

The only American Express secured credit card is the USAA Secured American Express card. It has a $35 annual fee and requires a deposit of at least $250. The card also has a special lowered interest rate of just 4% for deployed military personnel. This card is issued by USAA, but it is on the American Express card network. There is no American Express secured credit card issued by Amex. All American Express-issued credit cards require at least good credit for approval.

To get the USAA American Express secured credit card, you must be a USAA member. You can join USAA if you are active or former military. You’re also eligible to join if your spouse or a parent is a USAA member with a USAA auto/property insurance policy.

The American Express Global Lounge Collection is a network of 7 airport lounges with more than 1,000 locations in over 120 countries. Amex Platinum, Amex Business Platinum and Amex Centurion cardholders can access them for free. The airport lounge brands that belong to the Amex Global Lounge Collection are Centurion, International American Express, Delta Sky Club, Priority Pass, Plaza Premium, Airspace and Escape.

Different lounges offer different amenities. But in general, you can expect to receive free Wi-Fi, free snacks and beverages, charging stations and comfortable seating. Depending on the lounge network and location, you might also find things like business meeting rooms, printing, newspapers, showers and more. To enter, you will need to present your credit card and ID. In some cases, you will also need a same-day boarding pass. Each lounge has their own rules about how many guests you can bring in for free and how much it costs to bring in additional guests.

The Global Lounge Collection is a valuable perk, as buying a membership for even one of these individual lounges can cost hundreds of dollars. As long as you have one of the eligible Amex cards, you get unlimited free access to each lounge.

The best American Express cash back credit card is the Blue Cash Preferred card. It offers $250 cash back for spending $1,000 in the first 3 months. Cardholders also earn 6% cash back on the first $6,000 spent per year at U.S. supermarkets. And there’s unlimited 3% back at U.S. gas stations and 1% on all other purchases. Blue Cash Preferred has a $95 annual fee. But it also gives introductory APRs of 0% for 12 months on purchases and 0% for 12 months on balance transfers.

If you don’t want to pay an annual fee, the Amex Cash Magnet card is a better choice. It gives 1.5% cash back on all purchases. Its bonus is a $150 statement credit for spending $1,000 in the first 3 months. And Amex Cash Magnet helps keep interest costs low, too. It offers 0% for 15 months on purchases and 0% for 15 months on balance transfers.

You actually can’t set an American Express travel notification. Amex is one of the few credit card companies that doesn’t allow it. Most issuers want you to tell them ahead of time when you plan on traveling, so they won’t flag your purchases as fraud if they see you spending money in another country or state. Amex, on the other hand, is confident in their ability to recognize fraud without travel notifications.

This is what American Express has to say about travel notifications on their website: “We use industry-leading fraud detection capabilities that help us recognize when our Card Members are traveling, so you don't need to notify us before you travel.” While the exact nature of how they do this is an Amex secret, some Amex customers have been able to provide insight into the process. For example, some report that Amex sent them an email saying their recent purchases indicated they’d be traveling in the near future. So if you buy plane tickets, for example, Amex will reasonably assume you’ll be going somewhere.

So in the end, you don’t need to set an American Express travel notification, and there’s no way to do it even if you wanted to. You should just expect Amex to figure out when you’re traveling. But if your card ever is flagged for fraud, a call to the number on the back of your card should quickly sort things out. It’s also a good idea to make sure Amex has the right phone number on file for you, so they can let you know if there’s an issue.

There are two American Express tickets benefits: 1) presale tickets, where you can buy tickets for events before they’d normally go on sale; and 2) preferred seating, where venues reserve certain seats exclusively for American Express credit card customers. Both apply to all Amex cards. American Express uses Ticketmaster as its partner site for this benefit, so all purchases will ultimately go through there. You can use both your Amex card and your reward points as payment methods. 

Here’s how American Express tickets work:

• Presale tickets: You can see what shows have American Express presales on Ticketmaster, or you can just look for a show using Ticketmaster’s search tool. Once you get to the booking stage, you’ll need to click “American Express Cardholder Presale” under “Ticket Type.” That will show you all the eligible seats. From there, you can choose your seat and pay after logging in to your Ticketmaster account. 
• Preferred seating: You can view eligible shows on Ticketmaster or search for one yourself. In the booking stage, click “American Express Preferred Seating” under “Ticket Type.” Pick a seat from the options shown. Then, log in to your Ticketmaster account to book. 
• Account requirement: You need both an Amex card and a Ticketmaster account, which you can create for free online. 
• Payment options: During the booking process, you’ll have the option to pay with either your American Express card or rewards points. But you can only use points in increments of 2,000.

The American Express tickets benefit is a nice exclusive that applies to all Amex credit card users, no matter if you have an expensive, prestigious card or not. Unfortunately,  this benefit does not apply to prepaid cards or gift cards. And while you won’t get any kind of discount when you use a credit card, , the ability to guarantee yourself a spot at events is nice.

“DSNB” is a credit report code that stands for Department Stores National Bank. DNSB issues the Macy’s and Bloomingdale’s credit cards. Each retailer has a store-only version and an American Express option that can be used basically anywhere. And that, of course, explains the first part of “Amex DSNB.” “Amex” is the credit report code and nickname for American Express. 

So there’s no reason to worry about seeing “DSNB” or “Amex DSNB” on your credit report if you have a Macy’s or Bloomingdale’s credit card, or if you applied for one in the past two years. But if that’s not the case, you should file a credit-report dispute, at the very least. Signing up for free 24/7 credit monitoring is a good idea, too. And you can read our articles about unauthorized credit inquiries and unrecognized accounts for more helpful tips. 

Notations on credit reports can be confusing, but once you know what everything stands for you’ll be able to tell if it’s legitimate.

Here’s everything you need to know about (Amex) DSNB:

• DSNB stands for Department Stores National Bank, which issues Macy’s and Bloomingdale’s credit cards. 
  
• There are two versions of each DSNB credit card: an American Express version and a store-only option. 
• “Amex DSNB” refers to a credit card on the American Express card network that’s issued by Department Stores National Bank.
• You shouldn’t ignore incorrect information on your credit reports. If you see “DSNB” despite not even having applied for a card from Department Stores National Bank, be sure to file a dispute. 

It’s also good to note that if you don’t currently have a DSNB card but you did in the past 10 years, it may still appear on your credit report. It’ll just be listed as a closed account rather than an open one. 

American Express presale tickets allow Amex cardholders to secure access to events before tickets go on sale to the general public. There’s also a “preferred seating” option to help you buy some of the best seats in the house. Amex sells these tickets through a partnership with Ticketmaster. 

You can easily purchase American Express presale tickets on the Ticketmaster website using your Amex card or rewards points. If you have a Platinum or Centurion card, you can purchase tickets directly through the Amex site. 

Here’s how to get American Express presale tickets:

1. Find the event you want to attend on Ticketmaster. 
2. Click “Ticket Type” at the top of the page where seating options are listed.
3. Select “American Express Card Member Presale.”
4. Choose your tickets and check out. You’ll need a Ticketmaster account to log in and pay.
5. Pay with your Amex card, Amex points (redeemable in 2,000-point increments), or a combination. 

Platinum and Centurion cardholders can book right from the Amex Experiences page. Just search by artist, event, or city to find what you want to attend. Click “find tickets,” and log into your Amex account. American Express will help you search for seats, and you’ll be able to purchase the tickets right away with your Amex card or points. 

If you’re a diehard fan of an artist or show, American Express presale tickets can help guarantee you a seat (and even a good one). And the best part is that this benefit is open to all American Express cardholders.