Blue Cash Preferred Review

The Blue Cash Preferred annual fee is: $0 intro 1st yr, $95 after. Starting the second year, the card is much more expensive than the average credit card. Blue Cash Preferred's rewards help cover the cost. Its standard $150 initial bonus covers at least a year's annual fee. You will have to spend $3,000 in the first 6 months to earn the bonus.

This card also offers 20% cash back on Amazon.com purchases for the first 6 months (up to $200 back), 6% cash back at U.S. supermarkets (up to $6,000 spent per year), 6% back on select U.S. streaming subscriptions, 3% back at U.S. gas stations and on transit, and 1% back on all other purchases, earned as statement credits. So, the value of the rewards could possibly exceed the annual fees multiple times over.

Ultimately, it is worth noting that there are several rewards credit cards with no annual fee you could check out.

The American Express Blue Cash Preferred benefits include rental car insurance, purchase protection, return protection, extended warranties, and access to exclusive events. Blue Cash Preferred cardholders also earn lots of rewards.

Best American Express Blue Cash Preferred Benefits

• Rental car insurance
• Purchase protection
• Return protection
• Extended warranty
• American Express Experiences
• Global Assist® hotline
• Pay It Plan It®
• Amex Send & Split™ (enrollment required)
• $0 fraud liability
• Year-end account summary
• Bonus cash back rewards

There are plenty of worthwhile Amex Blue Cash Preferred benefits, but don't forget that the card comes with an annual fee of $0 intro 1st yr, $95 after. Also, all of the benefits on purchases have exceptions to the coverage, along with other fine print, so be sure to consult your benefits guide for the full details.

The Amex Blue Cash Preferred supermarkets list includes Gristedes, Foodtown, Meijer, Shoprite, Stop and Shop, Vons, Whole Foods and Winn-Dixie. These U.S.-based supermarket chains all earn 6% cash back on the first $6,000 in combined purchases charged to the Blue Cash Preferred card each calendar year. Online supermarkets such as FreshDirect also get 6% cash back, up to the combined limit. To qualify, purchases must be classified with the merchant category code for supermarkets and grocery stores.

According to the Amex website, the Blue Cash Preferred supermarkets list is not exhaustive, meaning that similar supermarket chains located in the U.S. may also earn 6% cash back. Retailers such as Target and Walmart, however, are not considered supermarkets, making them ineligible for the bonus rewards. Other excluded merchants include warehouse clubs, specialty food stores, gourmet stores, convenience stores and more.

To find out if a merchant qualifies for 6% cash back, take a look at a recent billing statement and check the merchant category code listed with each transaction. On the Blue Cash Preferred card, you should see “Grocery Stores” under each eligible purchase.

The Blue Cash Preferred® Card from American Express foreign transaction fee is 2.7%. This is the surcharge applied to all transactions made outside of the U.S. That includes both purchases in another country and stateside transactions through an internationally-based merchant.

All American Express cards with foreign transaction fees charge 2.7%. This includes the Blue Cash Preferred® Card from American Express's companion card, the Blue Cash Everyday® Card from American Express. The percentage other issuers apply to foreign transactions varies, but will range from 1%-3%. Capital One, Discover and USAA are the three major issuers with no foreign transaction fees on any of their cards.

The Blue Cash Preferred® Card from American Express is ideal for everyday purchases. But it may not be the best option for travel. It offers 6% cash back on grocery purchases, up to $6,000 spent per year, and 3% at gas stations. There's also a $150 statement credit for spending $3,000 in the first 6 months. Cash back rewards can be redeemed for statement credits, gift cards and merchandise. The Blue Cash Preferred® Card from American Express's annual fee is $0 intro 1st yr, $95 after.

American Express Blue Cash Preferred foreign transaction fee and more:

• Foreign transaction fee: 2.7%
• When the foreign transaction fee applies: On all transactions outside of the U.S. and through an internationally-based merchant.
• Annual Fee: $0 intro 1st yr, $95 after.
• Introductory APR: 0% for 12 months on purchases.
• Cash advance fee: 5% (min $10) of the balance.
• Maximum Late Fee: $40
• Regular APR: 13.99% - 23.99% (V)

(800) 677-0232 or the number on the back of your card to find out your balance.nnUnfortunately, it's no longer an option to inquire about your balance in a Home Depot store.You can check your Home Depot® Credit Card balance online by signing in to your account. Alternatively, call (800) 677-0232 or the number on the back of your card to find out your balance.

(800) 677-0232 or the number on the back of your card to find out your balance.nnUnfortunately, it's no longer an option to inquire about your balance in a Home Depot store.Unfortunately, it's no longer an option to inquire about your balance in a Home Depot store.

A credit score of 700+ is needed for the Blue Cash Preferred card. That means you need at least good credit for high chances of approval.

However, some forum posts online report getting approved for Blue Cash Preferred with scores as low as 675.

Having said that, it is also worth noting that your credit score is not the only thing the issuer takes into consideration. Your credit history, annual income, existing debt, and derogatory marks on your credit also matter.

The good thing is you can see if you're pre-qualified for an American Express card by using their online pre-qualification tool.

Amex Blue Cash Preferred is worth it for cardholders who spend enough to recoup the value of the card's $95 annual fee (waived the first year) in rewards earnings. The easiest way to do that is by spending $3,000 within 6 months of opening an account. That will trigger the Blue Cash Preferred card's $150 initial bonus, which will pay for the annual fee for a couple of years.

The Blue Cash Preferred card will continue to be worth it if you consistently charge purchases to the card after meeting the initial bonus, especially in its bonus rewards categories. To break even on the annual fee, you could spend $1,584 on groceries and streaming services per year, $3,167 on gas and transit, or $9,500 on purchases not in those categories. Of course, your spending will probably be a mix of all those categories.

Ultimately, the best way to figure out if Blue Cash Preferred is worth it is to figure out how much you spend in each category per year, determine how much you would earn in rewards based on that, and then compare the rewards value to the annual fee. If you break even or make money, the card is worth it. If not, you should consider a cheaper card.

There is no longer an Amex Blue Cash Preferred department stores bonus. The card used to offer 3% cash back at select department stores, but it ended that bonus category in July 2019. Currently, the card gives cash back in several other bonus categories. Cardholders get 6% cash back on the first $6,000 spent per year at U.S. supermarkets, unlimited 6% back on streaming services, 3% back on transit and gas purchases, and 1% back on all other purchases. The Blue Cash Preferred Card also has an annual fee of $0 intro 1st yr, $95 after.

If you want a card that offers bonus cash back at department stores, consider the Amex Blue Cash Everyday Card. It gives 2% cash back at select U.S. department stores, including J.C. Penny, Kohl's, Macy's, Nordstrom, Saks Fifth Avenue, Bloomingdale's and 9 others. The card also offers bonus cash back on gas and supermarket purchases. The Blue Cash Everyday Card has a $0 annual fee.

These are the Blue Cash Preferred card's rewards:

Blue Cash Preferred is a great rewards card choice for people who usually spend on groceries, streaming services, transit purchases and gas. It's not for everyone, though, because you need at least good (700+) credit in order to get approved.

The Blue Cash Preferred Amazon bonus is 6% cash back on Amazon Music, as part of the Blue Cash Preferred Card's bonus rewards on streaming services. All other Amazon purchases earn only 1% cash back, since they don't fall into any of the Blue Cash Preferred Card's bonus categories.

Grocery purchases from Amazon do not count toward the “supermarkets” bonus category. Plus, Amazon Prime, and its video streaming service Amazon Prime Video, are not included in the “streaming services” category.

So if you have an Amazon Music subscription, it's a good idea to charge it to your Blue Cash Preferred card. But you may want to consider using a different credit card for normal Amazon purchases. You'll earn more rewards with the Amazon Store Card by Synchrony Bank or the Amazon Credit Card by Chase.

It's also good to note that while some Amex cards allow you to redeem rewards directly for Amazon purchases, that's only available with points cards. You can't do it with cash back cards like Blue Cash Preferred.