Review of the Amex EveryDay and Amex EveryDay Preferred Credit Cards

American Express offers this pair of unique cards: the Amex EveryDay® Credit Card and the Amex EveryDay® Preferred Credit Card.

What makes them different? They give you extra points if you use your card a certain number of times during a billing period. They’re meant to be used “every day.”

You’ll get the most rewards value from one of these cards if you use it frequently at U.S. supermarkets, and U.S. gas stations too with the Preferred. If you can transfer your Membership Rewards points to a travel partner you can get the best value for them, but the normal redemption options can be pretty rewarding too.

The EveryDay Preferred card is an upgraded version of the regular EveryDay card, and it comes with an annual fee. But for that you’ll also earn points at a higher rate and get a better bonus for using your card frequently.

These cards both have solid 0% intro APR offers before the regular 12.99%–23.99% Variable APR kicks in.

Our Ratings: 5 out of 5 Stars

Why we like these cards

We give both of these cards 5 out of 5 Stars because they’re basic rewards cards, but they have very interesting rewards programs. They’re good, but they’re not must-get cards.

• You can earn valuable Membership Rewards points for no annual fee (EveryDay Card) or a low annual fee (EveryDay Preferred).
• These cards provide more rewards when you use them more in a given month. We’ve never seen a bonus point program like this on any other cards, and it can be a very rewarding feature if you’re able to take advantage of it every month.
• The EveryDay card has a great 15 months 0% intro APR offer for purchases. After the intro period, the regular 12.99%–23.99% Variable APR applies.
• The EveryDay Preferred has a 12 months 0% intro APR offer, which is not bad. After the 0% period, the regular 13.99%–23.99% Variable APR applies.
• Depending on your purchasing habits and how often you’ll use the card, the annual fee for the EveryDay Preferred could easily pay for itself.

Why these cards could be better

• If you don’t meet the purchase threshold each month you won’t earn as many points.
• Earning and redeeming points can be a little confusing, since it takes some work to figure out how you should redeem points to maximize their value. Instead, you could go for the simplicity of cash back with the Blue Cash EveryDay or Blue Cash Preferred card from American Express (learn more in our side-by-side Blue Cash card comparison).
• You’ll be charged a fee for foreign transactions.
• The EveryDay Preferred has a $95 annual fee you’ll need to pay.

These cards get 4 Stars because they’re good card offers for their respective prices. But you may be able to earn a higher cash back equivalent with other cards depending on where you spend and how you redeem points, which is why these cards didn’t get 5 Stars. See some alternatives to the Amex EveryDay cards below.

Insider Advice: Using One of These Cards as Part of Your Credit Card Strategy

• Get the frequent purchase bonus: The main reason to have one of these cards is the bonus you get for using it a certain number of times in each billing cycle. If you don’t think you’ll be able to get to the minimum number of transactions each cycle, you can probably earn more rewards value with other cards.
• These cards are good for everyday spending: Use one of these cards for small transactions or recurring bills to help you trigger the bonus each month and maximize the points you’re earning.
• Use self-checkout: If you shop at a store that offers self-checkout, you can ring up your purchases in a few groups to get a couple extra transactions. Or, ask the cashier to ring an item or two up separately.
• Made for groceries and gas: Use one of these cards as your go-to card at U.S. supermarkets, and U.S. gas stations too if you have the EveryDay Preferred.
• You only need one EveryDay card: You probably won’t want both of these cards in your wallet since they’re so similar, so choose the one that’s a better fit for your spending.
• Consider other cards: If you already have a card that rewards you for spending at supermarkets, consider whether one of these cards would be more rewarding as a possible replacement.
• Maximize reward potential: You may want to get one of these cards just to use at U.S. supermarkets (or U.S. gas stations and amextravel.com if the Preferred version make sense for you). Then you could use a different rewards credit card for purchases at other merchants to maximize your rewards.
• Add authorized users: Add an authorized user or two to your account to help you reach the reward threshold more quickly. Be sure to only add people you trust.
• Start with the no-fee EveryDay card: If you’re unsure about these cards, you could start with the no-annual-fee EveryDay, and then evaluate your spending on the card after a year. If the annual fee would have been worth it to you, consider upgrading to the EveryDay Preferred.
• Offset the EveryDay Preferred’s annual fee: If you have the EveryDay Preferred, be sure to earn enough points each year to offset the annual fee. You can do this by spending as little as $2,112 per year, if you redeem for 1 cent per point.
• Think about transferring your points: Consider how you redeem your points, as there is a wide range of values you could get per point depending on how you redeem. You can transfer your points to a partner airline to potentially maximize their value.
• Pay a balance off for 12 months at no interest: There’s a solid 12-month 0% introductory APR offer for purchases with the EveryDay card. After the intro period, the regular 12.99%–23.99% Variable APR applies. The same goes for the Preferred, 12 months at 0% interest for purchases. After the 0% period, the regular 13.99%–23.99% Variable APR applies.

The Rewards

Earning

Amex EveryDay

This card earns the equivalent of 0.5%–2.4% cash back when you use the normal redemption methods, depending on how much you spend, where you spend, and how you redeem your points. With a point transfer, you could potentially earn up to 3% cash back or more.

So, if you use this card to make at least 20 purchases in a given billing period (about a month’s time), you’ll get a 20% bonus on however many points you earned. Membership Rewards points don’t expire as long as the account is open and in good standing, so you can save up points over time without worrying they’ll go away.

Let’s say you earned 500 points and had over 20 transactions in the previous statement period. 20% of 500 is 100, so you would get an additional 100 points, for a total of 600 points during that statement period. One way to look at this percentage-based point bonus is that if you hit the bonus, it’s the equivalent to earning 2.4 points per dollar at U.S. supermarkets, and 1.2 points per dollar for other purchases.

As you can see in the Redeeming section, there are a variety of ways to redeem your points. And you’ll get a different value for them depending on how you redeem.

If we assume a value of $0.01 per point and you always hit the transaction threshold to trigger the bonus, you’re basically earning the equivalent of 1.2% to 2.4% cash back with this card, depending on the categories of your purchases. If you don’t hit the threshold, you’ll be getting the equivalent of 1% to 2%. But remember, you could get more by redeeming your points in a way that values them above $0.01.

Amex EveryDay Preferred

This card earns the equivalent of 0.5%–4.5% cash back with the normal redemption methods. Point transfers may be able to provide the equivalent of more than 6% cash back in some cases.

For its $95 annual fee, you get better rewards than the basic version:

You’ll need to use this card 30 times in a given billing period — or an average of about once per day — to earn the 50% point bonus.

As an example, say you earned 500 points during a statement period where you hit the bonus: 50% of 500 is 250, so you’d get 250 extra points, or 750 points total.

When you hit the threshold that’s the equivalent of earning 4.5 points per dollar at U.S. supermarkets, 3 points per dollar at U.S. gas stations, and 1.5 points per dollar for all other purchases.

You’ll be able to redeem points with this card just like the basic EveryDay described above. So, assuming a value of 1 cent per point, if you hit the threshold you’ll get the equivalent of 0.75% to 4.5% cash back with this card. If you don’t hit the threshold you’ll earn the equivalent of 0.5% to 3% cash back. What you get will depend on the categories of your purchases, and you could get more by redeeming your points in a way that values them above 1 cent per dollar.

Comparison: Which card should you use?

These cards offer several ways to earn points. And, as you can see, you have the potential to earn a lot more points with the Preferred card.

The unique value of these cards come from the point bonuses for frequent spending, but the question is: will you really use one of these cards enough to earn the bonus?

You may find it difficult to use the basic EveryDay card 20 times per month. And no doubt many people would have a hard time using the EveryDay Preferred 30 times per month to get the 50% bonus (unless you go out of your way to make a lot of tiny purchases). Remember, if you’re not hitting that transaction threshold you’re not using these cards to their full potential.

Thankfully there is a way around this — you can sign up your (trusted) friends and family as authorized users on your account, which will give them their own cards to use. Having 2 or more people spending with the card will make it much easier to reach those thresholds.

If you’re trying to decide between these two cards, first consider how much you’ll spend at U.S. supermarkets. If you spend the full $6,000 per year in the U.S. supermarket category, you’ll earn 12,000 points with the regular EveryDay card or 18,000 points with the EveryDay Preferred.

Assuming a value of $0.01 per point, that’s $120 in rewards versus $180 in rewards. That $60 difference alone is not enough to cover the annual fee of the EveryDay Preferred. And that means you’d get more value out of the basic EveryDay card.

However, now let’s assume you’re hitting the bonus threshold each month. Now, if you spend the full $6,000 per year at U.S. supermarkets, you’ll earn 14,400 points with the regular EveryDay card or 27,000 points with the EveryDay Preferred.

Assuming a value of $0.01 per point, that’s $144 in rewards versus $270 in rewards. And that $126 difference more than covers the annual fee of the EveryDay Preferred. This doesn’t even consider the additional rewards you can earn at U.S. gas stations or Amex Travel with the EveryDay Preferred.

You may need to do a little math and consider your spending to decide which card can earn you more when you factor in the annual fee. But as you can see it’s possible you can come out way ahead with the Preferred version. That will happen if you spend enough at U.S. supermarkets and U.S. gas stations, and take advantage of the whopping 50% bonus you get for having at least 30 transactions per month.

Redeeming

Both of these cards earn Membership Rewards points, which can be redeemed in a variety of ways. Each card has the same redemption options, and the points they earn will be worth the same amount. However, since the EveryDay Preferred offers up to 3X points with a 50% bonus, you’ll be able to get a higher cash back equivalent with that card compared to the basic EveryDay.

There are three main options for redeeming your points:

• Normal redemption methods (flights, hotel reservations, gift cards, point of sale): 0.5–1.0 cents per point
• Point transfer to frequent traveler loyalty program: highly variable point values, more than 1 cent per point in some cases
• Statement credit: 0.6 cents per point

Unlike with some other rewards cards, the points you get with the EveryDay cards aren’t worth very much when you cash them in for statement credits. Instead, your best options will be either the normal redemption methods, which provide up to 1 cent per point, or point transfers where you might get more than that.

For most people, it will probably be easiest to use the normal redemption methods like flights and gift cards. But if you can save up your points for a big point transfer to your favorite loyalty program, you could potentially get much more value out of them.

We’ll go over some examples of the normal redemption methods, showing what you can get for your points. And then we’ll go over a couple of point transfer examples, one using the basic EveryDay card and the other using the EveryDay Preferred. In these examples we’ll assume that you’re trading in 10,000 Membership Rewards points, unless otherwise noted.

The cash back equivalent you get on any redemption will depend on how you earned your points, so we show ranges for each card below. If you earn at a higher rate, like 3X points per dollar, you’ll get the higher end of the range. If you’re only getting 1X point per dollar, you’ll get the lower end of the range. The high end of the ranges also includes the point bonus you can get with the card, 20% for the EveryDay and 50% for the EveryDay Preferred.

Travel

When redeeming for travel expenses you’ll have several options, but the most valuable is for airline flights. The main way is to redeem through American Express Travel, though there are a couple other travel services you can use as well. You’ll be able to redeem 10,000 points in the following ways.

Gift Cards

For 10,000 points, you can get a gift card of up to $100 for a variety of merchants. Here are just a few.

Point of Sale and Entertainment

You can use your points at checkout with the following merchants. 10,000 points will get you:

We recommend that you actually avoid using your points to pay for purchases at checkout. When you do, you won’t earn any points on that purchase. So pay for purchases as normal to earn points, and then redeem your points in other ways.

Transferring to Loyalty Programs

Membership Rewards points can be transferred to different airline and hotel loyalty programs. The Plenti retail program is included too.

We’ll go over the basics of point transfers, and then provide two real-world examples: the first using the EveryDay, and the second using the EveryDay Preferred.

Most transfers are at a 1:1 rate, though some are different. And there are also limited-time offers and special deals occasionally. There’s a fee of $0.0006 per point when transferring to U.S. airlines, with no charge for any other transfers. And different programs will allow you to transfer points in different increments, like 500 points at a time or 1,000 points at a time.

Here are some example programs, along with their transfer rates and a point conversion example. Take note that offers may change.

Let’s go through some examples to illustrate the potential value of Membership Rewards points after you convert them to a frequent traveler program. Keep in mind that there are many factors that influence the price of flights and hotel rooms. They include time of year, demand, availability, and special events. Airlines and hotel chains offer special deals and packages pretty frequently, as well. All of this will affect the value you get from your points.

While the following are actual real-world examples, the point transfer values you find for your flights and rooms may differ from what we show here.

EveryDay Card — Delta SkyMiles

Say you want to get away from wintry climes and see what the weather’s like down in Florida. For this example, imagine you’ll be flying with your family from Syracuse, New York, to Daytona Beach, Florida.

Specifically, you’ll be taking a Delta flight on February 27^th. And there will be three passengers total — you, your spouse, and your child.

The cheapest Main Cabin offer available for three passengers is for $501. That same offer would cost 58,500 Delta SkyMiles, plus $16.80 in fees.

How much would you need to spend with the EveryDay card to earn these seats? You have to transfer in increments of 1,000 with Delta, so you’ll need 59,000 Membership Rewards points.

In this example, we’ll assume that you’re earning points at the 2X rate, and also getting the 20% point bonus. That means you’ll actually be getting 2.4X points per dollar.

At that rate, you’ll need to spend $24,584 to earn 59,000 points. Then you can transfer them to Delta SkyMiles, and the transfer fee for that many points will cost $35.40.

So, the total amount spent is $24,563.20 when the fees are added in. That got you three seats valued at $501. That means your effective cash back equivalent for this transfer is 2.04%.

That’s not bad, but it’s not as good as the 2.4% you could get with the normal redemption methods, like flights and gift cards.

EveryDay Preferred Card — Hilton Honors Points

Now let’s see a transfer example using the EveryDay Preferred, which can provide more points per dollar.

After arriving in sunny Florida in our last example, you’ll all need a hotel to stay in. Let’s say you want to get a single room for the three of you at the Hilton Daytona Beach Oceanfront Resort.

This will cost about $163 per night. Or, you could get the room for 32,000 Hilton Honors points per night.

How much would you need to spend with your EveryDay Preferred to get a night in this room? Hilton Honors points have a transfer rate of 1:2. So you’ll need to earn 16,000 Membership Rewards points for this deal.

Let’s assume you earn at the 3X rate and get the 50% point bonus. That will give you an effective rate of 4.5X points per dollar for your purchases.

Getting 4.5X points per dollar, you need to spend $3,556 to earn 16,002 points. You can then transfer them to get the 32,000 Hilton Honors points you need.

So in this example you spend $3,556 to get one night in a room valued at $163. That means your effective cash back equivalent is 4.58% for this deal. 

That’s just a little bit better than the maximum of 4.5% you can get with the normal redemption methods.

How to Offset the Annual Fee

The EveryDay Preferred has an annual fee of $95, so you’ll want to use this card enough to make it worth the cost. The points you earn can offset that fee.

You can offset the $95 fee by spending a minimum of $2,112 per year. To do that you’ll need to earn at the best rate of 3X points per dollar, get the 50% bonus, and redeem for 1 cent per dollar.

The amount you’ll need to spend will depend on two things:

1. the rate that you earn points: 3X per dollar, 2X, or 1X
2. the value you get per point when you redeem them

If you earn at a lower rate and redeem for a lower value, it will take more spending. If you can redeem for a higher value, like through a point transfer, it will take less spending.

The following table shows how much you’ll need to spend to offset the annual fee in a variety of ways. You can see how much you’ll need to spend at each rate to reach the equivalent of $95. This table includes what you’ll get at several spending rates, both with the 50% bonus and without.

Most people will have a mix of spending, of course, so it won’t be so clear cut as this. But you can use this as a guide to see how much you’ll need to spend to earn those points.

As you can see, redeeming for point transfers where you get 1.5 cents per point will require the least amount of spending. It’s just $1,408 per year, as long as you earn at the 4.5X rate. But the normal redemption methods may be easier for most people, most of the time.

This is a good redemption example, but remember that if you redeem in certain ways you’ll get a lower value for your points. This could happen if you choose a normal redemption method that only offers 0.5 cents per point. Or if you make a point transfer that only grants 1 cent per point or less, for example.

So, no matter what rate you earn points at, redeem them for the best value you can get. And if there are no options that seem particularly appealing, you can hold on to your points until you see something you like.

The Benefits

The EveryDay card and the EveryDay Preferred card come with pretty standard benefits you’d expect to see on most American Express cards.

The benefits on these cards are almost entirely the same, except for extra baggage insurance with the EveryDay Preferred (at an annual fee of $95). Read the Guide to Benefits that comes with your card to learn about the specific benefits you have and how to access them.

Amex Offers

You’ll have access to discounts at a wide variety of merchants — currently there are about 80 different offers available, and the selection changes now and then.

You just need to head to the Amex Offers program and click ‘Add to Card’ for the deals you want. Then, just use your card as you normally would to make a purchase with that merchant. Your savings will appear as a statement credit later on, reducing your account balance. You may or may not earn additional rewards at the regular rate — this will depend on the particular offer.

Many of the deals can be quite valuable, saving you from $5 up through more than $100 for some of them. For most of them, you’ll need to spend a certain amount to get a certain discount. Some of the current offers include:

There are many fantastic deals waiting to be had here, though many other credit card issuers will offer a similar service. For example, Chase provides the Chase Ultimate Rewards portal, Bank of America has its BankAmeriDeals offers, and Citi has the EasyDeals service. You’ll find a range of discounts in all of them.

Save 10% on Some Utilities

Occasionally you’ll be given the opportunity to save 10% on your cable, satellite TV, and/or cell phone bills. Just find the offer and click ‘Add to Card,’ and then use your card to pay for the utility as normal.

Lowest Hotel Rates Guaranteed

If you book an eligible prepaid hotel room through Amex Travel and then find the same room being advertised online for a lower price, you can be refunded for the difference. You must submit your claim before the check-in date, and be sure to check your card details because some restrictions apply.

Entertainment Benefits

American Express offers an “Entertainment Access” benefit, which they claim provides exclusive access to pre-sale and member-only events in big cities around the world. I’ve seen this happen occasionally when a popular concert is coming to town — American Express will send out an email to cardholders, who can purchase tickets before they go on sale to the general public.

In addition to concerts, other live events like musicals are included. And there are also some more expensive options, like exclusive experiences in countries around the world.

American Express Personal Loans

Cardholders have the opportunity to apply for a loan through American Express (but only if they have been pre-approved). Loans are offered from $3,500 to $25,000, with fixed interest rates from as low as 6.90% up to 19.97%.

Shopping Benefits

Most major credit card issuers offer some shopping benefits, and these cards are no exception. Here’s a quick overview of the shopping benefits:

• Extended Warranty: Adds up to 1 year to the manufacturer’s warranty on eligible items, for warranties of 5 years or less.
• Purchase Protection: Eligible items are protected against damage and theft for 90 days after the date of purchase. This can be nice if you buy a smartphone on your credit card and drop it the next month, for example.
• Return Protection: If a retailer refuses to take back an item, American Express will provide a refund for eligible items. Up to 90 days after the date of purchase, up to $300 per item and $1,000 per year.
• Dispute Resolution: American Express will work with you to resolve any problems you have with unauthorized or unrecognized charges.

Some similar cash back cards offer a price protection benefit too. This will refund you the difference when you buy an item then find it at a lower price somewhere else shortly after your purchase. There are no such benefits on the Amex EveryDay cards.

Travel Benefits

It’s common for major credit cards like these to have some basic travel benefits. There’s nothing that stands out too much on these cards, but here’s a quick overview of the travel benefits:

• Global Assist Hotline: When traveling more than 100 miles from home, provides 24/7 access to legal, medical, emergency, and other assistance services.
• Travel Accident Insurance: Provides coverage against accidental death and dismemberment when traveling by Common Carrier.
• Roadside Assistance Hotline: If you break down on the road, Roadside Assistance will help you find nearby services to get you back on track. Third-party service charges will apply.
• Car Rental Loss and Damage Insurance: Provides coverage if your rented car is damaged or stolen, when the rental company’s own insurance is declined. Not all vehicle types and rentals are covered.
• Baggage Insurance Plan (EveryDay Preferred Only): When traveling by Common Carrier, this benefit provides coverage if your checked or carry-on bags are lost or damaged (at an annual fee of $95).

Comparison

As you can see, both of these cards provide some nice benefits to help you out when shopping and traveling. But benefits like these are pretty standard on most major rewards cards, so nothing really stands out. The Amex Offers is a very good shopping portal to find discounts, though some other credit card issuers offer similar services.

The EveryDay Preferred card only has the one baggage insurance benefit that the regular EveryDay card doesn’t offer. So there isn’t a lot to consider when comparing the benefits these two cards offer.

The Costs & Fees

Comparison

When it comes to the costs and fees, there’s one real difference between these cards:

• The Preferred version has a $95 annual fee, while the basic version does not.

Notice they both have a foreign transaction fee. So if you’re planning to use your next card for purchases outside of the country, there may be a better choice for you.

Examine your shopping habits carefully before making a decision between the regular EveryDay and the EveryDay Preferred — will that $95 fee be worth it? If you spend a lot at U.S. supermarkets and make plenty of purchases to hit that 30 purchase threshold, it’s likely that the card will be worth the fee.

Customer Support

Phone Support

American Express has consistently ranked well for customer service. Last year they came in first in J.D. Power’s annual Credit Card Satisfaction Survey. They have always come in either first or second, going back to the inception of the survey.

We’ve called them a number of times to learn about their card offers. Usually we can find the answers we’re looking for pretty quickly. Sometimes we end up on hold for a bit, but in most cases it doesn’t take too long.

Occasionally, however, we’ve spoken with reps who ended up confusing the situation rather than clarifying. In those cases we could usually sort it out by speaking to someone else, or calling back to get a different rep.

Card issuers are usually quite eager to help their cardholders, and American Express is no exception. So give them a call if you’re having any problems or questions about your card.

Web Support

Amex makes it simple to find information about their consumer credit cards. You should be able to browse their cards fairly easily, and find what you’re looking for.

Once on a card page, you’ll see the most important information (as far as Amex is concerned) right up front. And you can scroll around to learn more about the rewards and benefits.

Overall it’s a pretty good design, which you should expect from one of the major credit card issuers.

The Bottom Line

The Amex EveryDay and EveryDay Preferred both have the potential to be pretty rewarding. You’ll need to decide if one of these cards is right for you:

• Will you use one of these cards enough each month to get the bonus?
• Do you already have a credit card that’s giving you more rewards at U.S. supermarkets?
• Do you already have a general-use rewards card you use for small purchases? (small purchases can help you hit the transaction threshold quickly)

If you don’t already have a card that gives you more rewards at U.S. supermarkets and you shop at them somewhat frequently, the EveryDay card might make sense since there is no annual fee. If you don’t use it enough, it won’t cost you anything.

However, maybe you know that you’ll be using the card for at least 30 transactions per month, and you’ll spend a lot at U.S. supermarkets and U.S. gas stations. In that case the EveryDay Preferred may be more than worth the annual fee for you. We saw above that if you spend $6,000 on U.S. supermarkets per year and hit the spending threshold, the Preferred card ends up being very rewarding and more valuable than the basic EveryDay.

Adding an authorized user or two could help you hit the threshold to trigger point bonuses faster. And this can be a great way to rack up rewards (as long as everyone uses his or her card responsibly).

These are both good rewards cards, but there are many other options for earning points on U.S. supermarkets and U.S. gas stations. Check out some alternatives to the Amex EveryDay Cards below.

How to Apply for the Amex EveryDay or Amex EveryDay Preferred

You can apply for these cards online, and you may get an instant decision on American Express’ website. When you apply, American Express will check one or more of your credit reports, from the three major credit bureaus.

These cards are meant for people with good to excellent credit, so you may not necessarily get one if you apply.

You may also be able to get a better offer if you check for pre-qualified offers on the American Express website.