Amex Everyday Card vs. Amex Everyday Preferred Card

American Express credit cards have long been seen as a status symbol. Amex cardholders are called “members,” and that membership comes with a lot of perks and benefits. Not every Amex card has the same benefits, however.

Many people have multiple cards for different uses; their travel rewards card, their store cards, and an everyday card that gets used for most purchases. It can be difficult to know which card to choose for that – especially when they seem to be identical. The Amex Everyday card and Amex Everyday Preferred are two cards that are similar, but different in some important areas.

Card Comparison

Amex Everyday Card

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American Express Everyday Card

• Annual Fee: $0
  
• ​APR: 0% for first 12 months; 14.24% – 24.24% variable APR after that
  
• ​​Benefits: Earn 2x points at grocery stores, 1x points on everything else, and receive 20% more points on purchases if you use the card more than 20 times in a month
  
• Category: Rewards Credit Card

The purpose of the Amex Everyday card is exactly what it sounds like; it’s a card meant to be used for your everyday purchases. While some cards only offer benefits like cash back or rewards on certain kinds of purchases, the Everyday card offers reward points on every purchase. Those points can be cashed in through the Amex Membership Rewards Program for everything from travel to gift cards, merchandise, or event tickets.

Using the card at grocery stores nets you 2X points, meaning that if your purchase is $100 you’ll receive 200 points; that offer is good up to $6,000 worth of grocery purchases each year. If you use your card more than 20 times in a month, you’ll also receive 20% more points on those purchases.

You also get access to the AmexTravel website, which is one of the most-hailed perks of American Express membership. The site offers unparalleled access to special travel offers, event tickets, and more. Any trips, vacation packages, or hotel stays booked through the website on the card give you double points as well.

The Everyday card has no annual fee, and an introductory rate of 0% for the first 12 months on both purchases and balance transfers. After that, your rate is variable based on Prime and your credit history, running from 14.24% to 24.24%. Other introductory benefits include a bonus of 10,000 reward points (worth about $190) if you use your card for $1,000 in purchases in the first 3 months.

The average Everyday Card member has a credit score of 676, but some get approved at as low as 630.

Amex Everyday Preferred Card

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American Express Everyday Preferred Card

• Annual Fee: $95
  
• ​APR: 0% for first 12 months; 14.24% – 24.24% variable APR after that
  
• ​​Benefits: Earn 3x points at supermarkets, 2x points at gas stations and amextravel.com, and 1x points on everything else
  
• Category: Rewards Credit Card

The Everyday Preferred is much like the regular Everyday card, with a few extra perks. Like the standard card, if offers 0% APR for the first 12 months, with a jump to 14.24%-24.24% APR after that.

It also offers the 2X reward points at AmexTravel.com, and both cards come with Roadside Assistance, car rental loss and damage insurance, extended warranty protection, and travel accident insurance. They also both come with Global Assist, which is a 24/7 hotline offering emergency coordination and assistance to any member traveling over 100 miles from home.

Other benefits include dispute resolution, purchase and return protection, and a year-end summary of charges so you can track your spending and make adjustments if needed.

At first glance, the Amex Preferred card might seem exactly like the regular Amex Everyday card. Unlike the Everyday card, however, the Preferred card has an annual fee of $95. That might seem a bit exorbitant, but Preferred offers you 3X points on supermarket transactions, instead of the standard card’s 2X. You also get double points at gas stations, and 1X points on everything else.

Depending on your spending patterns, that annual fee might pale in comparison to the amount of rewards points you get.

It also has a higher point bonus if you make $1000 in purchases in the first 3 months; you’ll get 15,000 in rewards points to spend on the Membership Rewards website. If you use the Preferred card 30 times or more in a month, you also get 50% more points on those purchases, which will add up fast.

Getting approved for the Preferred card is about the same as the Everyday; with a score of 680-700 needed, it might be worth your time to go ahead and apply for the Preferred card if you want the higher point bonuses and earning power.

Conclusion

The cards are very close to being equal; it comes down to two things. First, whether you’re willing to pay an annual fee for the card or not (and whether it’s worth the fee to you); secondly, whether you’ll use the card enough to take advantage of the higher point earnings. Either way, the Amex Everyday card is one of the best values out there, and widely viewed in either incarnation as one of the best rewards cards for the average consumer.