Blue Cash Preferred® and Blue Cash Everyday® Card from American Express

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Several years ago, I had to cancel my credit card because I noticed fraudulent activity. That was when I realized I didn’t have a backup card. It was more inconvenient than anything, but I recognized the value of having another credit card in reserve. So I researched the best cards on the market and found a deal I couldn’t pass up – the card_name. This card is so good it actually became my primary credit card, and I relegated my old faithful to reserve status.

This card comes in two versions, the card_name and its big brother, the card_name.

These cards offer similar benefits, but the Preferred version has stronger cash back and an annual fee. That said, I broke my personal rule for having a card with an annual fee and opted to pay for the Preferred version (the card has a annual_fees) The good news – I’ve already made my money back and then some.

Let’s take a look at these cards and I’ll show you why both are great cash back credit cards for many people to own, and why the card with the annual fee may be the better option for you.

Comparing Rewards Programs for the Blue Cash Preferred vs. Everyday

Both of these cards offer an easy to remember cash back rewards program:

Blue Cash Preferred Card from American Express:

• 6% Cash Back at US supermarkets for first $6,000 per year in purchases; 1% cashback after that
• 6% Cash Back on select US Streaming services.
• 3% Cash Back at US gas stations & on transportation services, including taxis, rideshares such as Uber and Lyft, parking, tolls, trains, buses, and more.
• 1% Cash Back on purchases in other categories.
• Annual Fee – $0 intro annual fee for the first year, annual_fees (See Rates and Fees; terms apply.)
• Compare this card to other cash back credit cards

Blue Cash Everyday Card from American Express:

• 3% Cash Back at US supermarkets, U.S. online retail purchases, and gas stations for first $6,000 per categories per year in purchases; 1% cashback after that.
• 1% Cash Back on purchases in other categories.
• Receive up to a $7 monthly statement credit when you use a Blue Cash Everyday Card on select streaming services such as Disney+, Hulu, and ESPN. Subject to auto-renewal.
• Annual Fee – None
• See Rates and Fees; terms apply
• Compare this card to other cash back credit cards

How to Redeem Your Cash Back Rewards:

Cash Back is awarded as Reward Dollars which can be redeemed for a statement credit, gift cards, or shopping.

The primary difference is the Blue Cash Preferred Card from American Express offers higher cash back rewards, but it comes with a $95 annual fee. But after running the numbers for my situation, I quickly realized the $95 annual fee is well worth paying, especially in light of the current welcome offer for new card members.

Comparing the Welcome Offers

New card members who open a card_name can bonus_miles_full

New card members who open a card_name can bonus_miles_full

Also, both cards offer a 0% APR introductory rate (a reg_apr,reg_apr_type APR applies after the introductory period). Please see the American Express website for terms and conditions.

Here are more credit cards that offer new members a welcome offer.

Comparing the Annual Cash Back (Hypothetical Spending)

Let’s compare the cash back benefits over the course of the year for some hypothetical spending levels (plug in your own numbers to see how much cash you may be able to earn in a year):

Sample Annual Cash Back Rewards – Blue Cash Everyday

Spending Category	Monthly Spending	Annual Cash Back
Groceries (3%)	$500	$180
Gas (3%)	$200	$72
Department Stores (2%)	$100	$24
Other (1%)	$750	$90
Annual Fee		$0
Annual Cash Rewards	Total Monthly Spending: $1,600	$372

Sample Annual Cash Back Rewards – Blue Cash Preferred

Spending Category	Monthly Spending	Annual Cash Back
Groceries (6%)	$500	$360
Streaming Services (6%)	$50	$36
Gas & Other Qualifying Transportation (3%)	$200	$72
Other (1%)	$750	$90
Department Stores (1%)	$100	$10
Annual Fee		($95)
Annual Cash Rewards	Total Monthly Spending: $1,600	$473 (includes paying annual $95 fee)

Notes:

1. The calculations don’t include the welcome offer, since it is a one-time deal.
2. Pay attention to the difference between the gas and transportation column. The Blue Cash Preferred offers cash back at gas stations and other ground transportation. The Blue Cash Everyday only offers cash back at gas stations.
3. These are examples of common spending patterns. Adjust based on your specific spending habits and needs.

Verdict? I prefer the Preferred version by a mile (for my needs). Even after accounting for the $95 fee, the Blue Cash Preferred Card from American Express comes out well ahead. It’s possible to earn much more than this in cash returns if you have more significant expenses or pay more items with your credit card, including utilities, cell phone bills, etc.

The Annual Credit Card Fee That Pays for Itself

I’ve rarely been a fan of credit cards that have an annual fee. Plenty of great credit cards out there have no annual fees and offer solid cash rewards or other benefits.

But in this case, the higher-tiered rewards were too good to pass up. Most top-tier cash back credit cards offer a 1% cash back as their baseline rewards, then up to 5% cash back in rotating categories (often with a cap for the rotating categories). Some cards will offer as high as 2% cash back on all purchases, which is still a solid offer.

Both Blue Cash cards offer the same 1% baseline, but you don’t have to deal with the rotating categories or low rewards caps featured on many other credit cards. Since groceries and gas are two expenses we know we will always have, maximizing our rewards in those categories makes sense. We will always make enough cash back from those two categories to justify the annual fee.

In our case, we earn several hundred dollars cash back each year.

» MORE: Find out how to get the card_name.

How I Use This Credit Card

I opened this card before Christmas and promptly put all my Christmas shopping on the card. I quickly reached the spending requirement to receive the welcome offer when I combined my holiday spending with regular expenses like gas and groceries.

I also opened a joint credit card with my wife so we could both use this card on our groceries and gas more quickly and rack up the cash back. (The benefit of opening a joint card is to avoid paying two annual fees. We typically use this card for family expenses, and we each maintain individual credit cards for gifts or other purchases we don’t want to classify as family expenses).

More Card Features

These cards don’t have any minimum or maximum spending tiers for your rewards, so you don’t have to worry about juggling cards to ensure you get the most return for your time. You can redeem your rewards as statement credits, which effectively lowers your payment. And you can wait as long as you like since your rewards never expire.

My wife and I waited almost seven years to redeem our cash back. Why wait so long? Well, we were saving it for a time when we knew we would have a lot of expenses. So when we moved, we used our statement credit to purchase some furniture for our new home. In effect, we used the cash back from American Express as another savings account, albeit one that doesn’t earn interest.

American Express also offers additional features that vary by card. Some examples include fraud protection, online account management, an online shopping portal where you can redeem your rewards for a statement credit, gift cards, or shopping, extended warranties, and more.

Please read the terms and conditions before applying to verify which additional services apply to your card.

It’s All in the Details

As far as the best cash back cards on the market go, this is probably my favorite, and it’s one that I carry.

When I compared the two cards above, the Blue Cash Preferred was a more lucrative rewards card for my spending patterns. I encourage you to compare them both to see which is better for you.

I also compared them to a credit card offering a flat 2% cash back. 2% cash back for the same spending fell right between the two American Express cards. So this could be a situation where it could make sense to use one of the Blue Cash cards for the higher cash back in its respective categories and use a different rewards card for other spending, such as an airline rewards card for air travel, hotel rewards card to earn free nights, or other options.

» MORE: For cash-back options beyond those featured on this page, see our best cash-back credit cards.

Do you have either of these cards? What do you think about it?

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_{To see rates and fees for the card_name, please visit this link.}

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