Different Amex cards come with different benefits, some of which are better-suited for certain spenders than others. All of the cards come with varying annual fees, benefits and rewards structures, so choosing the best card for you will depend on your financial situation and rewards goals. Choosing a card with a lower annual fee, for example, will save you some money up front but these cards also typically come with less benefits and protections.
What Benefits Does Amex Offer?
All Amex cards come with sweet benefits—but they’re different depending on the card you choose.
In 2022, 70% of millennials and Gen Zers with American Express cards reported that they planned to use their Amex cards to cover the bulk of their purchases when traveling internationally over the summer. In 2023, 70% also said they planned to save on their trips by leveraging credit card points. This suggests that many Amex cardholders are here for the travel benefits. But Amex benefits don’t stop at travel perks.
The Platinum Card® from American Express (Terms apply) earns 80,000 Membership Rewards Points after spending $8,000 on eligible purchases on the card in the first 6 months of card membership. Plus you get 5 Membership Rewards Points per dollar for flights booked directly with airlines or with American Express Travel on up to $500,000 per calendar year, 5 points per dollar on prepaid hotels booked with American Express Travel and 1 point per dollar on other eligible purchases, a $200 annual airline credit and access to thousands of airport lounges that certainly justify the hefty annual fee for the avid traveler.
Meanwhile, the Blue Cash Everyday® Card from American Express (Terms apply) doesn’t have an annual fee, but you don’t get the same travel perks. Instead, however, you can earn 3% cash back at U.S. supermarkets, U.S. gas stations, and online retail purchases in the U.S. (on up to $6,000 in each category per year in purchases, then 1%), and 1% cash back on other purchases. Cash back is received in the form of Reward Dollars that can be redeemed as a statement credit or at Amazon.com checkout. This one may be the better choice for someone who is seeking more of an everyday-kinda card.
Then there are airline- and hotel-specific cards. The Delta SkyMiles® Gold American Express Card (Terms apply), for example, can save you 15% on award travel through Delta, while a hotel card like the Marriott Bonvoy Bevy™ American Express® Card (Terms apply) will earn you 6 Marriott Bonvoy® points per dollar of eligible purchases at hotels participating in Marriott Bonvoy, 4 points per dollar at restaurants worldwide and U.S. supermarkets (on up to $15,000 in combined purchases at restaurants and U.S. supermarkets per calendar year, then 2 points) and 2 points per dollar on all other eligible purchases.
In other words: It’s worth considering your spending habits to do the math on which Amex card makes the most sense for you.
How Big Is the American Express Credit Card Network?
Amex is widely accepted domestically. In fact, according to the 2022 Nilson Report, you can use your Amex at 99% of places in the U.S. that accept payment via credit card.
If you’re worried about the one percent of places that don’t take Amex, Amex has a super easy “Find Stores & Retailers” tool so you can search by business name or location within the United States. You can filter by category (dining, shopping, entertainment, services, travel or business services). You can also filter to “shop small,” search for a new listing, sift through places with recent activity or only look for those that accept contactless payments.
Is American Express Accepted Everywhere?
While most places in the U.S. do take Amex, it’s worth keeping in mind that some major retailers, like Costco, don’t accept it. At Costco, your best bet is the $0 annual-fee Costco Anywhere Visa® Card by Citi*, which doubles as a membership card with cash-back benefits. But we wouldn’t recommend this Visa card as your everyday credit card, and we certainly wouldn’t suggest it for adventure aficionados seeking the kind of travel perks outlined above.
Using your Amex gets tricky when you travel abroad. Sure, many Amex cards don’t have a foreign-transaction fee, but you might have a little more difficulty finding places that accept your Amex card in the first place. That’s because American Express typically charges higher merchant fees than other credit card networks. In other words: It’s more cost-efficient for many businesses (especially low-margin ones) to take Visa or Mastercard instead.
In fact, Visa credit cards made up 38.73% of all transactions worldwide in 2022, according to the Nelson Report. Meanwhile, the Mastercard brand made up 24% of the market share. In comparison, American Express credit card transactions made up just 4.61% of all credit products around the world.
So if you are a frequent international traveler and you’re looking for a go-to card from another network that you can use overseas without paying foreign transaction fees, you should check out our list of best travel cards. It’s worth keeping a Visa or Mastercard with you on the road as a backup if your Amex isn’t accepted.
