Pros
- $0 annual fee
- Good welcome bonus offer
- High rewards rate
Cons
- Spending caps on rewards
- 2.7% foreign transaction fee
- Balance transfer fee
Blue Cash Everyday Review Summary
The Blue Cash Everyday® Card from American Express is a good all-around credit card for people with good credit or better. The Blue Cash Everyday Amex has a $0 annual fee, offers an intro APR of 0% for 15 months, and rewards cardholders who spend $2,000 in the first 6 months with a $200 statement credit. Blue Cash Everyday also gives ongoing rewards of 1 - 3% cash back, depending on the purchase category, provided as statement credits.
The Blue Cash American Express card isn’t all helpful, however, as it has a balance transfer fee of 3% (min $5) and a regular APR ranging from 18.49% to 29.49% (V) after the 0% intro period ends. It’s also important to make sure that purchases at U.S. supermarkets, U.S. gas stations and U.S. online retail purchases account for a significant amount of your spending. The 1% earning rate on other purchases is merely the market average for a rewards card.
Blue Cash Everyday Review Highlights
$200 Initial Bonus
Charging at least $2,000 to this card during the first 6 months that you have it will earn you a $200 statement credit. The credit will be applied to your bill within eight to twelve weeks of meeting the spending threshold.
Many of the market’s premier rewards cards require you to spend double that amount within the same timeframe to earn their initial bonuses. And while they tend to offer a lot more value in absolute terms — $400, for example — Blue Cash Everyday lags a bit behind in terms of initial earning rate. For additional context, the market average for a cash back credit card is $230.
1 - 3% Cash Back
The Amex Blue Cash Everyday Card gives 3 times more in rewards than the average cash back credit card in several spending categories. In particular, you’ll earn 3% cash back at U.S. supermarkets, up to $6,000 spent per year – a spending limit most people won’t reach. You’ll also get 3% cash back on gas at any station in the U.S. and on U.S. online purchases (up to $6,000 spent per year in each of these categories).
Purchases that don’t qualify for these bonus categories will earn just 1% back – about average for a cash rewards card. That’s important considering that your credit figures to be well above average if you can get approved for Blue Cash Everyday. It’s also important to note that these categories do not change, unlike some cards that switch where you’ll earn at a maximum rate on a quarterly basis.
0% Intro Financing For 15 Months
Blue Cash Everyday is in the top tier of financing cards, thanks to an extended 0% term that applies both to new purchases and balance transfers. This 15-month head start on interest has the potential to save you hundreds.
For example, you could pay off a $1,500 purchase with 15 monthly payments of $100 each without incurring interest using Blue Cash Everyday, but it would take 18 months and cost an extra $227 to pay off that balance in $100 increments with the average new credit card, which has a 20.16% APR.
Just don’t overlook the card’s 3% (min $5) balance-transfer fee if you’re interested in paying down existing debt.
$0 Annual Fee
Without an annual fee to worry about, you won’t need to spend a certain amount to justify keeping your card open, which enables you to keep your credit history long and your score high.
Blue Cash Everyday Review Lowlights
Above-Average Regular APR
You need good credit to get approved for this card, but you probably won’t get a regular APR that reflects such a score. Its regular APR range is 18.49% - 29.49% (V).
The lowest rate you can get from Blue Cash Everyday is reserved for people with the most pristine credit, and it does not compare all that favorably to the average APR among credit card offers for people with excellent credit (15.16%). Similarly, the highest possible option is actually above the 23.87% average for people with fair credit.
This all just goes to show that you should not carry a balance from month to month with your Everyday Card, except responsibly during the first 0% intro APR months.
2.7% Foreign-Transaction Fee
If you ever travel abroad or make purchases through internationally based merchants, there will be some days you’ll have to leave your Everyday Card on the sidelines in light of its 2.7% foreign transaction fee. You may have already anticipated that, however, considering that American Express is not nearly as widely accepted abroad as Mastercard and Visa.
Other Things To Consider About Blue Cash Everyday
No Over-Limit Fee
Over-limit fees have largely disappeared in the wake of the CARD Act, which necessitates that you opt in for the ability to spend in excess of your spending limit for an issuer to charge you for doing so. Even if you do opt in, the fee can’t exceed the amount by which you’re over your limit. So this feature of the Blue Cash Everyday® Card from American Express is nice but should not be overvalued.
It’s also important to note that the lack of a fee for going over limit does not guarantee that such transactions will be approved for American Express. Credit-card companies approve over-limit transactions at their own discretion and reserve the right not to do so.
Cash Back Provided As “Reward Dollars”
Despite the inclusion of the word “Cash” in the card’s name, you technically won’t be earning cash back when you use it. Rather, you’ll earn “reward dollars,” which can be redeemed for a statement credit or, from time to time, the likes of gift cards and merchandise. This shouldn’t present any problems, practically speaking, unless American Express ever decides to change the value of a reward dollar. It’s also worth mentioning that there is no minimum redemption amount.
Assorted Amex Benefits
Simply being an American Express credit-card customer gets you certain privileges, including “exclusive” entertainment opportunities and a special 24/7 global assistance hotline. These types of perks are not unique to American Express, though, and how often you’ll actually take advantage of them is probably pretty questionable.
Blue Cash Everyday vs. the Competition
| Info | Blue Cash Everyday® Card from American Express | Blue Cash Preferred® Card from American Express | Citi® Double Cash Card – 18 month BT offer | Capital One Quicksilver Cash Rewards Credit Card |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Annual Fee | $0 | $0 intro 1st yr, $95 after | $0 | $0 |
| Bonus Offer | $200 | $250 | N/A | $200 |
| Rewards Rate | 1 - 3% Cash Back | 1 - 6% Cash Back | 2% Cash Back | 1.5 - 5% Cash Back |
| Purchase Intro APR | 0% for 15 months | 0% for 12 months | N/A | 0% for 15 months |
| Transfer Intro APR | 0% for 15 months Transfer Fee: 3% (min $5) | 0% for 12 months Transfer Fee: 3% (min $5) | 0% for 18 months Transfer Fee: 3% intro fee ($5 min) for each transfer in first 4 months, after that 5% ($5 min) for each transfer | 0% for 15 months Transfer Fee: 3% |
| Regular APR | 18.49% - 29.49% (V) | 18.49% - 29.49% (V) | 18.49% - 28.49% (V) | 19.24% - 29.24% (V) |
| Editors' Rating | 4.2 | 4.7 | 5 | 4.4 |
| Details, Rates & Fees | Learn More Rates & Fees Terms Apply | Learn More Rates & Fees Terms Apply | Learn More | Learn More |
Ask the Experts
To help people better understand what the American Express Blue Cash Everyday Card brings to the table, WalletHub posed the following questions to a panel of experts. You can see who they are and read their responses below.
1. Why do you think the American Express Blue Cash Everyday Card limits its bonus rewards rates to purchases made in the U.S.?
2. What do you think is the biggest misconception that people have about American Express credit cards?
3. When do you recommend getting one credit card with good bonus rewards in multiple spending categories (such as the American Express Blue Cash Everyday Card) versus several cards, each with standout rewards in a particular category?
Ask the Experts
Signal Companies’ Professor of Management and Professor of Marketing at the Tuck School of Business, Dartmouth College
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Ph.D., Instructor, Department of marketing, Southeast Missouri State University
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Professor of Marketing, Olin Business School, Washington University in St. Louis
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