The Amex EveryDay® Credit Card review

Quick highlights

• Rewards rate: 2X points at U.S. supermarkets (up to $6,000 per year, then 1X), 2X points on prepaid rental cars booked through American Express Travel and 1X points on all other purchases
• Welcome offer: 10,000 points after spending $1,000 on purchases within the first three months
• Annual fee: $0
• Purchase intro APR: 0 percent intro APR for 15 months
• Balance transfer intro APR: 0 percent intro APR for 15 months (on balance transfers requested within 60 days of account opening)
• Regular APR: 18.24 percent to 28.24 percent (variable)

Current welcome offer

After spending only $1,000 within your first three months, you can earn 10,000 Amex Membership Rewards points.

Membership Rewards points are worth the most when they’re redeemed through the American Express Travel portal or partner travel programs, valued at 2.0 cents, based on Bankrate’s latest points and miles valuations. That means this welcome bonus can be worth up to $200, but it can drop in value if you spend points on non-travel rewards.

Offers worth $200 seem to be the current average intro bonus for credit cards with no annual fee, but keep in mind this offer’s travel-oriented footnote.

Rewards

The Amex EveryDay earns Membership Rewards points, which are known as some of the most valuable rewards in the credit card world. If you’re gearing up for your next trip, this card is a decent resource to earn travel rewards just by stocking your pantry.

Earning rewards

Earning rewards with the Amex EveryDay credit card is easy since there are only two bonus categories to keep track of: 2 points per dollar spent at U.S. supermarkets and on prepaid rental cars booked through the American Express Travel portal. Unfortunately, this rate reverts to 1 point per dollar once you spend more than $6,000 per year (that’s $500 a month) at U.S. supermarkets. Also, any other purchase will gather 1 point per dollar.

Luckily, the 20 percent extra points feature can earn you an additional 20 percent points back each month if you make 20 or more separate purchases with your card in a billing period.

But even if you maximize the 2X-point U.S. supermarket category’s $6,000 spending limit in conjunction with the extra points feature, you’ll only earn a total of 14,400 points (worth about $288 toward travel).

Redeeming rewards

On paper, Membership Rewards points have a lot of redemption options to choose from. But in actuality, your points are worth much less if you don’t use them to book travel through the Amex Travel portal or find a transfer partner program with a 1:1 conversion rate.

You can choose to redeem for statement credits, gift cards and merchandise or spend them to cover card charges or online shopping purchases with select retailers (like Amazon.com and rental cars through Amex Travel). Instead, we recommend saving up your points for travel opportunities down the road. If you feel like you’d rather have cash back in hand than sit on your travel rewards, you might want to consider a cash back card.

Your points are worth the most — 2.0 cents — when you find the right travel booking or transfer partner.

Outside travel, American Express’ rewards calculator shows that your point value can drop steeply on select redemptions, but 0.6 to 0.7 cent values are common for choices like statement credits or online merchant purchases.

However, a new special offer allows select cardholders will be able to redeem reward points at a boosted 1 cent-per-point rate to cover card charges — a 40 percent increase from the standard 0.6 cent redemption value for statement credits. Travel might still be a more valuable use of your rewards, but it’s an offer worth considering if you’ve shelved your travel plans for now.

As an entry-level card, you won’t find the Amex EveryDay card brimming with valuable travel perks. Nevertheless, the standard American Express features it comes with might be helpful for your normal shopping needs.

Pay It Plan It

The Pay It Plan It alternate payment features could be handy in a pinch if you want to keep recent purchases separate from your balance.

Pay It lets you take care of purchases under $100 immediately, which makes it easier to track your rewards spending on small items. Plan It is a bit more substantial, allowing you to shift qualifying $100+ purchases to fixed-payment plans over an extended period. Just make sure the monthly installment plan fee isn’t more expensive than the interest would have been.

Complimentary ShopRunner membership

Once you sign up for ShopRunner (enrollment required), you’ll receive free two-day shipping and returns on items with more than 100 participating retailers.

Travel and shopping protections

The Amex EveryDay card only comes with two travel or shopping protections:

• Car rental loss and damage insurance: When you pay with your card and decline the auto rental agency’s coverage, your rental vehicle can be covered for damage or theft in eligible territories.
• Purchase protection: You can be reimbursed for the cost of repair or replacement in case your covered item is damaged or stolen within 90 days of the purchase date.

Low interest rates and no annual fee makes the Amex EveryDay an easy card to maintain while you get the feel of a rewards program. The 15-month 0 percent intro APR on purchases (18.24 percent to 28.24 percent variable afterward) could also be helpful if this is your first rewards card and you have large purchases or travel coming up.

The downside is that it comes with a 2.7 percent foreign transaction fee, so you’ll want to use it sparingly during your time abroad.

The Amex EveryDay credit card’s rewards rate is just decent for a no-annual-fee card, and the $6,000 annual spending cap for your 2X-point category stunts this card’s rewards potential. A flat-rate cash back card may be a better value in the long run.

The Blue Cash Everyday® Card from American Express is a sibling cash back card that could be a more valuable alternative if you want flexible rewards. It has the same $6,000 annual rewards spending cap for its 3 percent cash back U.S. supermarket category (then 1 percent back), and it also earns 3 percent back at U.S. gas stations and U.S. online retail purchases (on up to $6,000 per year in purchases for each category, then 1 percent).

If you’re truly dedicated to travel and grocery rewards, you’ll discover far better benefits and reward opportunities with a premium card that charges an annual fee.

Amex EveryDay® Credit Card  vs. Bank of America® Customized Cash Rewards credit card

The Bank of America® Customized Cash Rewards credit card is a versatile cash back card that offers users with flexible spending habits their choice of a 3 percent cash back on category purchases of choice, including gas (including EV charge stations), online shopping (including cable, streaming, internet and phones), dining, travel, drugstore or home improvement each month alongside 2 percent cash back at grocery stores and wholesale clubs (up to $2,500 of combined 3 and 2 percent category purchases each quarter, then 1 percent), plus 1 percent on all other purchases.

While the flexibility of this card is competitive with others in this category, the Bank of America Customized Cash Rewards card has a unique feature that can separate it from the pack if used properly. With Bank of America’s Preferred Rewards program, users can boost their rewards from 25 to 75 percent by maintaining a specific three-month average balance (at least $20,000) across existing Bank of America deposit and Merrill® investment accounts.

When deciding between the two, it’s important to keep in mind the hurdles you must clear to gain a boosted rewards rate. If you prefer flexible cash back rewards in a variety of categories, including the top tier of your choice or already have a Bank of America deposit account, the Bank of America Customized Cash Rewards card is a fine choice. For individuals or families that focus their spending at the supermarket and want to redeem their rewards for travel, the Amex EveryDay is the better choice.

Best cards to pair with the Amex EveryDay

If you’re serious about collecting Membership Rewards points, you’ll have to bite the bullet and spring for a card with an annual fee. You should consider an upgrade to the Amex® EveryDay Preferred Credit Card first for its stepped-up reward features.

After that, the American Express® Green Card would be a great partner card to flesh out your bonus categories for day-to-day expenses. The Green card earns unlimited 3X points on eligible purchases at restaurants, transit and travel. Plus, it doesn’t charge foreign transaction fees (see rates and fees) and offers other great travel benefits, like an annual CLEAR Plus Credit.

All information about the American Express® Green Card has been collected independently by Bankrate.com and has not been reviewed or approved by the issuer.

The Amex EveryDay credit card is easy to use and accessible if you want a low-cost first rewards card, but the spending cap makes it a sluggish engine for Membership Rewards points. Even by maximizing the 2X U.S. supermarket category, your rewards will hardly make a dent in one airplane ticket by the end of the year — even with the 20 percent extra points feature each billing cycle.

The Amex EveryDay would be a better investment if this wasn’t your only American Express card, but plenty of other cash back cards could deliver more valuable long-term rewards on groceries as solo cards. Ultimately, taking on an annual fee for a premium card is almost necessary if you want access to better Membership Rewards opportunities and features for travel.

For rates and fees of the Blue Cash Everyday® Card from American Express, please click here.

All information about American Express Cash Magnet® Card, The Amex EveryDay® Credit Card from American Express, and the Amex® EveryDay Preferred Credit Card has been collected independently by Bankrate and has not been reviewed or approved by the issuer.