Cash back and offers from Amex

As mentioned when I wrote about my Discover card, I love getting cash back for behavior I was going to do anyway.  Another one of my favorite cash back credit cards is the American Express Blue Cash Everyday Card.

There are certain brand associations people have with American Express that the company is trying to adjust, and the Blue Cash Everyday Card is one of the vehicles they're using to break false perceptions.  There is no annual fee for this card, and the rewards structure encourages everyday smaller purchases, not just the large travel-related purchases people used to associate with Amex.

The Amex Blue Cash Everyday Card gives you:

• 3% Cash Back at U.S. supermarkets on up to $6,000 per year in purchases (then 1%)
• 2% Cash Back at U.S. gas stations
• 2% Cash Back at select U.S. department stores
• 1% Cash Back on other purchases.

And because it's an Amex card, you can participate in the merchant offers that Amex arranges with different companies.  For example, I just redeemed a deal for getting $10 back on a purchase of $10 or more on iTunes.  Offers like that are available from local businesses and big brands alike if you register and use your Amex card.

Now is also a good time to get the card because Small Business Saturday is coming up.  Every year since 2010, on the Saturday after Thanksgiving, Amex has encouraged its Card Members to support local businesses.  So far, they have added an incentive by providing cash back on purchases ($X back on $X+ purchases) made at a local business using a registered Amex card on that Saturday.  I'm guessing they will have some sort of cash back incentive again this year, but you can only get it with an Amex card.

As you can probably tell, I use my Amex Blue Cash Everyday Card differently than my Discover.  Because the Amex percentages are constant, I use my Discover in certain quarters for the 5% categories, and I use the Amex for groceries and department stores when they aren't one of the 5% categories.  Since I don't have a car, the gas category doesn't factor in for me, but if you do have a car, the 2% may be useful.  I also use the Amex for specific offers as they come up.  Because neither of these cards has an annual fee, I have the freedom to pick and choose whether to use a card and for what.

Right now, if you apply through one of the Amex links in this post and are approved for the American Express Blue Cash Everyday Card, you can get $100 back in statement credit after spending $1,000 on purchases in the first 3 months.