American Express benefits rightfully give the issuer a reputation for high-end, high-cost credit and charge cards. But as AmEx expands from its Platinum and Black roots to everyman credit cards and even prepaid debit cards, benefits have begun to vary widely based on the card. Here’s a comprehensive breakdown of the most popular American Express personal charge and credit cards, their associated benefits, and any fees, rewards and signup bonuses that we think should inform your decision. There are also a number of business American Express credit and charge cards, like the Plum Card, the Business Platinum, and so on, but for claritys sake well focus on personal cards here. Happy nerding!
American Express’ rewards cards pay out in Membership Rewards points, which we value at the standard 1 cent per point and which are generally pretty easy to redeem in small amounts. We won’t go into the details of the program; for a full review, check out our review of the Membership Rewards points.
Airline Merger Results In A New Credit Card for Frequent Fliers
21 Jul
Posted by Shannon Reyes as Credit Cards
The United and Continental merger results in a new credit card offer for frequent fliers. The United MileagePlus Explorer Card from Chase is trying to catch the attention of a select group of frequent fliers, those with good or excellent credit. The card is offering a few new perks, such as a free checked bag, priority seating, 25,000 bonus miles after an initial purchase and no annual fee for the first year.
For those consumers familiar Continental OnePass Plus card or those who are already cardmembers you dont have to worry. Chase is making this transition as smooth as possible and cardmembers will still be able to receive all the benefits of the new card and you wont have to change cards to do so. As of right now, Chase is keeping $85 annual fee in place for the Continental One Pass cardholders.
United-Continental Merger Creates New United Credit Card
19 Jul
Posted by Shannon Reyes as Credit Cards
The new combined credit card that grew out of the Continental-United merger more closely resembles the Continental OnePass than the card’s predecessor, the United Mileage Plus. Now that the two airlines have become one in the eyes of God and travelers, the old United credit card is being phased out and replaced by the newbie, the United Mileage Plus Explorer. While slightly higher annual fee may make the newcomer seem like a step down, the increased rewards rate, perks and travel benefits more than make up for a slight fee increase. Dont let the fee fool you: its a pretty great airline credit card.
*United says that this perk is only worth $50 roundtrip, but were not quite sure why.
So do these shiny new perks and the bumped-up rewards rate make up for the increased annual fee? We think so. The savings on waived checked baggage fees, which can amount to $100 for a roundtrip flight, will make up for the annual fee by themselves.
New Household Bank Credit Card: 2% back for Bad Credit
12 Jul
Posted by Shannon Reyes as Credit Cards
The new Household Bank credit card has an offer that we’ve more or less never seen before: 2% cash back on a credit card for bad credit is unusual enough, but Household Bank offers the same deal on its Household Bank MasterCard. Household follows in the tradition of its parent company HSBC’s subsidiary, Orchard Bank. Both lenders go out of their way to help those with bad credit to rebuild their credit histories without paying exorbitant fees or interest rates. Unlike other banks whose sole target is those with bad credit, Household Bank and Orchard Bank offer clear and reasonable terms.
The Household Bank credit card’s offer is unusual for bad credit offerings: to start with, it offers pretty substantial rewards, the kind you usually see with good or excellent credit. It gives a flat 2% on all purchases, redeemable for cash or gift cards. The annual fee is pretty darn reasonable: $0 or $39. There’s no processing fee, unlike the other Household Bank MasterCard offer.
Regions Bank will now offer the Western Union global money transfer service and the Western Union expedited bill pay service across 1,700 of its branch locations in the U.S. As a Regions Bank accountholder, you can now send and receive domestic or international money transfers and make same-day payments conveniently and quickly to members of Western Unions growing Biller network. The services will be available later this year at Regions Bank branches in the 16 states the bank serves. Plans also include offering Western Union online services to Regions Bank online customers.
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