Best American Express Balance Transfer Credit Cards

American Express does not offer balance transfers from other issuers’ accounts to any of its credit cards. In general, balance transfers allow you to shift high-interest debt from your current account to another issuer’s credit card and pay off the balance, presumably at a reduced interest rate.

For a look at some of the top balance transfer cards on the market, check out WalletHub’s Best Balance Transfer Credit Cards page.

How to Choose a Balance Transfer Card

The objective of a balance transfer is to save money on interest, so you will want a card with a low introductory APR on balance transfers. Just be sure to pay off the transferred balance in full before the introductory rate expires. Otherwise, the remaining balance will accumulate interest daily at the card’s regular APR.

You can find out how much a balance transfer card with a low intro APR will save you in interest charges by using WalletHub’s balance transfer calculator. This tool will also recommend credit cards that may help you save money and get out of debt faster.

American Express balance transfer fees are $5 or 3% of the transferred amount, whichever is greater. Nearly all American Express cards that offer balance transfers charge that same 3% transfer fee, including Cash Magnet, Blue Cash Everyday, Blue Cash Preferred and Blue Business Plus. The exception is the Amex EveryDay card, which has a $0 balance transfer fee for the first 60 days. After that, Amex’s standard $5 or 3% or transfer fee would apply.

Transfer fees are a key component of a balance transfer. You can only transfer balances, including transfer fees, up to your available credit limit. Transfer fees apply to each balance that you transfer to an American Express card.

American Express balance transfer cards are at the low end of the 3%-5% transfer fee range that most issuers typically use. Capital One cards with 0% balance transfer APRs also have 3% transfer fees. Chase cards are at the high end of the scale with a 5% balance transfer fee, except for one notable exception. Chase Slate offers a $0 transfer fee if you request a transfer in the first 60 days after opening an account. After that, it jumps to 5% along with the other Chase balance transfer cards.

Balance transfers don’t hurt your credit score directly, but transferring a balance can indirectly cause credit score damage. When you apply for a balance transfer credit card, for example, it will generate a hard inquiry on your credit report, causing a slight dip in your credit score.

If you transfer a balance to an existing credit card account, however, there is no hard inquiry and no credit score damage. A balance transfer could still result in high credit utilization, though, and allow you to rack up more debt than you can afford to repay. Both of those things can hurt your credit score.

So, the act of transferring a balance itself won’t affect your credit, but it will indirectly alter several key components of your credit profile, from utilization to the age of your accounts. These changes might lower your score a bit in the short term. But over time, interest savings and the ability to pay off your debt faster should make transferring a balance a net positive for your credit score.

You can use WalletHub’s free credit score simulator tool to get a sense of how a balance transfer might affect your credit score.

How Balance Transfers Can Help or Hurt Your Credit Score

• Credit Inquiries Hurt: If you apply for a new balance transfer card, the resulting hard inquiry will likely cause a slight dip in your credit score for up to 12 months.
• Lower Account Age Hurts: Adding a new balance transfer card will reduce the overall age of your accounts, which can have a slight negative impact on your score.
• Increased Utilization Hurts: Keep an eye on how the transfer affects your account’s credit utilization. Making a transfer will usually add 3%-5% to your debt due to balance transfer fees. If your utilization is over 30% of your credit limit, that’s not good for your score.
• Missed Payments Hurt: If you don’t continue to make payments to your original creditor while the balance transfer is being processed, your credit score will suffer. Balance transfers can take up to three weeks, or be completed in just a few days, after you make a request or apply for a card.
• Reduced Utilization Helps: If you leave your old credit card(s) open, adding a new card will reduce your utilization ratio across all accounts, assuming no additional spending. The utilization on the card you transferred the balance from will drop, and it will increase on the card you transferred the debt to.
• Low Interest Helps: Balance transfer cards often have 0% introductory APRs. This gives you the chance to pay off your balance faster, since the full amount of your payments will go to the principal rather than interest. This is good for your score long-term.
• Less Debt Helps: A balance transfer can help you reduce your debt load. That’s important because how much debt you owe is a key ingredient in your credit score. The less, the better, since people with little-to-no debt are in a more stable position financially.

Bottom Line

Balance transfers won’t hurt your credit by themselves. But they affect other elements of your credit that could bring your score down a little temporarily. Still, the benefits will outweigh the negatives in the long run, as long as you plan to repay most, if not all, of your balance during your card’s low introductory APR period.

Where people get into trouble is trying to use a balance transfer to support unsustainable spending habits, thinking 0% balance transfer credit card offers are always available. They’re not, and learning that the hard way is a very expensive mistake. So make sure to use a balance transfer calculator to make a payment plan.

If you want to make a payment on an American Express balance transfer credit card, one option is to mail a check or money order payable to American Express to:

American Express
Bill Payment
P.O. Box 650448
Dallas, TX 75265-0448

To transfer a balance to a new Amex card, select the balance transfer option on the online application. Then, enter your existing card’s account number and the amount you’d like to transfer. You can only transfer a balance up to 75% of your credit limit. You won’t know your credit limit until you’re approved for the card though.

You can also request a balance transfer by phone. Call 1 (800) 528-4800 within 60 days of account opening to qualify. American Express does not approve balance transfer requests after 60 days.

American Express balance transfer cards come with an introductory APR of 0% for 12 to 15 months. In most cases, there’s a transfer fee of $10 or 3% of the balance transferred, whichever is greater. American Express only allows balance transfers from non-Amex credit cards.

The Amex EveryDay card does not offer balance transfer checks, but you can initiate a balance transfer from your online account or by calling the number on the back of your card.

It can take up to 10 days for balance transfers to be processed, but there's no guarantee yours will be handled in that timeframe. If the creditor you're transferring debt from needs to be paid by check rather than electronically, your request could take longer to process.

You can’t just pay your monthly American Express credit card bill with another credit card and continue using it. No credit card company allows that. Most only accept payment by bank transfer, debit card, check or money order.

But you can pay your Amex with a credit card if you do a balance transfer. Transferring a balance is basically the same thing as using one credit card to pay another. However, you need to open a new credit card account to get a good deal, so it’s not something you can do every month.

American Express does not offer new balance transfer deals to existing customers, at least not on the same card. Once your Amex card’s balance transfer offer runs out, there’s no way to get another promotional APR on that card. You can still transfer a balance to the card at any time.

You can check if your card is eligible for balance transfers through your online account. From the Account Services menu, find the “Card Management” tab and click “Transfer Balances.” If there’s a balance transfer offer available, click the corresponding link. Enter the account number(s) for your other creditor(s) and the amount you want to transfer, along with the name and address associated with the account(s). Then, just confirm and submit the request. You can only transfer amounts up to 75 percent of the card’s credit limit or $7,500, whichever is less.

Just keep in mind that you can’t transfer a balance from one Amex card to another Amex card. And you can only transfer balances from credit cards, not from loans.

Transferring a balance to an American Express credit card should take 2-3 days, after Amex approves your transfer request. Current Amex cardholders can expect a decision within 48 hours, while it can take up to 10 days if you’re applying for a new account.

So the full process, from the time you request a balance transfer to when Amex pays your other card’s issuer and the balance shows up on your American Express card account, can take anywhere from 4 to 12 days.

It’s different if you’re transferring a balance from an American Express credit card to a card from another issuer. The timeframes vary by credit card company. But you can check out the major issuers’ policies in WalletHub’s Balance Transfer Report.

The American Express® Gold Card does not allow balance transfers. In general, balance transfers allow you to shift high-interest debt from your current account to another issuer’s credit card and pay off the balance, presumably at a reduced interest rate.

For a look at some of the top balance transfer cards on the market, check out WalletHub’s Best Balance Transfer Credit Cards page.

How to Choose a Balance Transfer Card

The objective of a balance transfer is to save money on interest, so you will want a card with a low introductory APR on balance transfers. Just be sure to pay off the transferred balance in full before the introductory rate expires. Otherwise, the remaining balance will accumulate interest daily at the card’s regular APR.

You can find out how much a balance transfer card with a low intro APR will save you in interest charges by using WalletHub’s balance transfer calculator. This tool will also recommend credit cards that may help you save money and get out of debt faster.

You can transfer a balance to your Optima credit card. The exact terms of the balance transfer should be available in your terms. If you don't have them anymore, call the number on the back of your card and ask.