How It Works

The American Express Blue Cash Everyday is a credit card that returns a prescribed percentage of specific types of purchases to the customer. Cash rewards are not automatic, but have to be requested. Cash rewards are awarded in the form of “Reward Dollars” that the customer can redeem for cash, gift cards or merchandise. Unlike other cash reward cards, this one has no cap on the amount of Reward Dollars that any specific customer can earn. Chase and Capital One cash-back cards have been available for some time, and it appears that Amex is focused on providing the greatest value of all cash-back cards.

The card pays varying amounts in rewards. It pays its highest percentages on purchases made at locations that typically sell everyday items. This is in stark contrast to other cash reward cards that pay higher rates of rewards on occasional or big – ticket items. This card pays:

• 3% at supermarkets
• 2% at gas stations and department stores
• 1% at other types of retailers

Another benefit is that American Express welcomes new users by offering a $100 reward when the new account holder spends $1,000 in eligible purchases during the first three months that s/he holds the card. There is no annual fee, so the value of the initial Reward Dollars is not diminished either by an annual fee or a usage fee.

Pros and Cons

The current version of the card must not be confused with its predecessor. Originally, customers earned 5% on everyday purchases and 1.25% on other types of purchases, but only after spending $6,500 using the card within the calendar year. Customers complained that the spending threshold was far too high. American Express responded by eliminating the spending threshold entirely. What this means for customers is that they can begin earning cash rewards from the beginning, and earn those rewards on every purchase they make using the card.

Another advantage of this card is that there is no cap on the number of Reward Dollars that customers can earn. This is in stark contrast to most other cash – back cards, which limit the monetary value of cash rewards available to any single customer in a calendar year. This is not the case with this card. There is no limit to the number of Reward Dollars that any customer can earn by using the card.

The interest rate on this card can be seen as a “pro” by many users, but as a “con” by others. There is no interest at all for the first twelve months, but after that, the interest rate will be either 17.24%, 20.24% or 22.24%, depending on the customer’s credit history. How this is an advantage is that the only way the card can be valuable is if the customer pays off the full balance each month. Otherwise, any rewards accumulated will be decimated by the high interest rates. The high interest is an advantage in that encourages payment of the full balance each month.

The only potential con that surfaced from research for this American Express Blue Cash Everyday review is the generic caution about the use of credit cards in general. Using any card for most purchases and even using it to pay other bills can be dangerous for irresponsible borrowers. Amex is unlikely to extend credit to those with such a history, but card customers do need to remain aware of what they are spending between statements.

Why to Apply

There are not many reasons to apply for most standard credit cards, but this one offers many:

• No annual fee
• No interest for twelve months
• No additional charges for additional account users or their cards
• Highest rewards paid on life’s most common purchases and needs
• No minimum purchase thresholds
• Flexible payments that allow payment over time
• Use the card to make automatic payments, earning Reward Dollars even on bills not originating with Blue Cash Everyday
• Discounts at several retailers, including Hertz and 1-800-FLOWERS.com
• Free $25 Flemings card when paying a bill of at least $100 at Flemings using the card
• Travel accident insurance included
• Car rental loss and damage insurance coverage
• Accident insurance for card holder and family members
• Unlimited cash rewards potential
• Accrued Reward Dollars never expire

The bottom line is that Blue Cash Everyday from American Express is an excellent credit card program overall, and it appears to be the best cash back card available for those with superlative credit.

Top Five Benefits of Chase Freedom

1. If a Chase Freedom credit card holder makes purchases in the amount of $500 in three months, this card holder will be entitled to $200 in cash back, and this goal would be relatively easy for most card holders to accomplish.
2. People do not have much time to meet the following goal, but because the holidays are coming up, they might be able to do it. If they purchase $1,500 on their Chase Freedom Visa cards by December 31 of this year, they will receive 5% cash back on their purchases from the following establishments:
   • Restaurants
   • Department stores
   • Movie theaters
   • Charities
3. The Chase Freedom credit card offers people chances to receive more opportunities to earn cash back. Every three months, a new category will be added that makes it possible for people to earn 5% cash back, such as for supermarkets, gas stations, drugstores and stores dedicated to home improvement.
4. As long as people retain their cards, they will earn 1% cash back when they use the card at all other establishments.
5. This card also offers benefits for those who use it to make purchases online. Using this card at participating online stores entitles card holders to a maximum of 10% cash back on their purchases.

Terms
This card gives people a 0% introductory APR for balance transfers. Card holders who transfer their balances from other credit cards within the first month of owning the card will qualify for the 0% annual percentage rate for a full year. The fee for transferring balances is only three percent of the balance. If they qualify, it’s possible that the transfer fee will only be five dollars.

The card also offers a six-month introductory rate of 0% APR for purchases made with the card. After the introductory periods are over, the APR will increase to 17.99%. Also, the card holders will enjoy the fact that they will never have to pay an annual fee for this card.

The card gives people a chance to avoid having to pay any interest on the purchases they make. Those who obtain this card will have three weeks to pay their balances in full after the close of each month’s billing cycle. If they do this, no interest is charged on these purchases.

Qualifications and the Application
Those who have a credit score of at least 750 may feel free to apply for Chase Freedom cards online. The application is on a secure website, so people can be assured that their personal information is safe. They will need to give their names, addresses and financial information as well as contact information, and they will be able to quickly submit their applications to Chase Bank.

Applying online is safe and secure and gives people a chance to receive an answer as to whether or not they have been approved in a much faster manner than mailing in their applications. This Chase Freedom card review is all that is necessary to have the desire to apply for Chase Freedom cards.

Some credit cards make it easier to earn rewards these days. Chase Rewards Card with Blink is one card that doesn’t even require a swipe. All you need to do is to bring your card toward the credit card readers with a special sensor. The card reader then rings up the transaction. There is no paper to sign (very environmental friendly too). The Blink card readers are now widely available at fast-food restaurants like Wendy’s and McDonalds.

Just think about something that costs $5.55 and you will end up paying 6.03 with tax. If you don’t have the exact change (I bet most people don’t), you will end up giving a $7 and getting about $.97 changes in coins. That could be annoying. Just use your credit cards, save time and hassle. Your cashier will certainly appreciate it. And every dollar you spend earns you 1 point. In the case of Chase rewards card, 100 points will give you $1 back with minimum 2500 points to be able to redeem. Just by purchasing breakfast and lunch everyday can earn you $25 rewards quicker than you think. It’s the only card that I use everyday for every purchase – breakfast, lunch, pen, stamp, snack, transportation, you name it! I have earned many $25 gift cards from Chase ever since I signed up for the Chase rewards card.

To earn even more rewards with every credit card purchase – beware of promotions like double reward points. From time to time, especially during holiday shopping season, card issuers offer double or triple reward points during a certain period of time. Even though the promotion is free, you still have to log into your account or call customer service to sign up. Department store reward cards usually offer you like 3 days to 1 week to shop so you can earn more rewards. Some of the stores occasionally promote a certain hot items and you can earn up to 5 times the regular reward points if you purchase a special items. There are a lot ways to earn rewards quickly. The bottom line is that you don’t need the merchandise, never buy it.

One quick way to earn cash back without spending too much is to sign up a new reward credit card. Card issuers like Citibank and Capital One offer cards that give you $100 to $200 cash back after you spend $500 in purchase within the first 3 months of account opening. Capital One even offers 50% bonus cash. Let’s say you earn $240 cash back over the year you will get $120 as bonus cash. With one-time $100 bonus offer you will earn $460 in total cash back the first year. How easy is that? The regular cash back is 1% on all purchases – that means the more you spend the more cash reward you will earn. You also have the choice to redeem cash rewards via check, account credit, or gift cards. Our recommendation is always get a check – that gives you the maximum flexibility. You can use the cash to buy gift cards, toys, gadgets, or whatever you feel like.

So if I apply for more cash back reward cards I can earn more cash back? If you apply for 5 cards and each card requires a minimum purchase of $500 during the first 3 months you actually have to spend $2500 in total by the end of the 3rd months. If you do want to take advantage of the one-time bonus cash offer I highly recommend you to get one card at a time so you can manage your spending easily. Some cards require you to carry a balance during the intro period – make sure you pay off the entire balance before the intro periods ends. Otherwise you might have to pay more financial charges than the bonus cash you earn.

It’s probably not the best approach to earn money by signing one numerous cards even if you have excellent credit. Having too many cards are difficult to manage. 10 cards will have 10 different due dates each months. Besides the regular cash back rate is 1%. Having more cards don’t mean you will earn more. You still have to spend more money to get the reward.

One or two cards are good enough in my opinion. Keep it simple to manage and avoid late fees and financial charges. What do you think?

Most the cash back cards only give you maximum 5% at grocery and gas stations. When you sign in your Discover account online you will be able to select from a wide range of merchants and get up to 15% cash back through the shopping portal. For example, if you are looking to buy a new TV for $1,000 on bestbuy.com you can visit discovercard.com first and then buy through their shopping portal. You will bet getting 10% cash back with 8 weeks. The saving is huge – spending $1000 will get $100 back, $2000 will get you back $200. Even with small purchase like a DVD movie or a new monitor will give you a generous rebate check. The electronics retailers are just one of many merchants available at disocovercard.com. Toys, books, flowers, software, wireless, travel, restaurant certificates, and many more discounts available just for Discover card customers. Earning rewards is easier than ever. You can either redeem for cash or gift cards for use at your favorite stores.

Discover is the first credit card issuer to offer cashback rewards in America. And now there are currently over 50 million Discover card members and it’s growing. Many use the card every day for every purchase for a simple reason – more cashback rewards. Discover has expand the cashback offer to a number of specialized cards. If you travel a lot, Miles by Discover will rewards you miles for every dollar you spend. You can even get bonus mile redeemable for flight tickets when you sign up.

Update: For 2011 holiday season you get $150 cashback bonus when you spend $100 in the first 90 days. That’s a great news for holiday shoppers. That’s mean your $1000 worth of gifts will only cost you $850. Excellent deal. If that’s not enough, make sure to shop through discover.com shopping mall to take advantage of 5% 6to 20% cashbonus back. There are more ways to claim your rewards too – choose from Partner gift cards, merchandise, Discover gift cards, Charity, or Cash.