Amex EveryDay Preferred Card Review: Earn Up to 50% Bonus Points

The Amex EveryDay® Preferred Credit Card offers a variety of perks. It has bonuses in everyday spending categories, a 0% intro APR, and flexible rewards points, all for a reasonable $95 annual fee. (See rates and fees.) Terms apply. While this card is good in several areas, it doesn't knock it out of the park anywhere. Get all the details on the good and the bad in our Amex EveryDay® Preferred Credit Card review.

This credit card is a good fit for: Frequent shoppers who use their credit card regularly. Those who make at least 30 purchases per statement period will unlock more rewards from this card.

Top perks

This American Express card has several useful benefits.

Up to 3 points per $1

With the Amex EveryDay® Preferred Credit Card, you earn:

• 3 points per $1 at U.S. supermarkets, with a cap of $6,000 in eligible purchases per calendar year
• 2 points per $1 at U.S. gas stations
• 2 points per $1 on eligible travel purchases made on amextravel.com
• 1 point per $1 on other purchases
• Terms apply

Overall, this card has a decent rewards rate on gas and groceries. It isn't quite competitive with the premier rewards cards, but there's a way you can earn more back.

OTHER OPTIONS: Best Rewards Credit Cards

Earn 50% more points

American Express didn't pick this card's name out of a hat. You actually benefit if you use your card every day. When you make 30 or more purchases in a billing period, all those purchases will earn 50% more points. It's an interesting feature that you won't find with most credit cards. Terms apply.

With 50% more points, you can earn:

• 4.5 points per $1 at U.S. supermarkets (on up to $6,000 in eligible purchases per calendar year)
• 3 points per $1 at U.S. gas stations
• 3 points per $1 on travel purchases made on amextravel.com
• 1.5 points per $1 on other purchases

While this definitely improves the card's rewards rate, be careful not to change your spending habits to earn more. If you start spending money you normally wouldn't just to hit 30 purchases per billing cycle, you're not really coming out ahead.

0% intro APR on purchases and balance transfers

This American Express card has a 0% intro APR on purchases for the first 12 months from account opening (see rates and fees). It also has that same 0% intro APR for 12 months on balance transfers requested within the first 60 days. Once the intro period ends, the go-to APR (18.24% to 28.24%, variable) applies going forward. Terms apply.

Although this isn't the absolute longest 0% intro APR period, it still gives you a year without paying interest. You can use that time to pay off new purchases or pay down credit card debt. However, if you have a lot of debt, you're probably better off with one of the best balance transfer credit cards. Most of these have longer 0% intro APR periods and don't charge an annual fee.

SEE MORE: Best 0% APR Credit Cards

Valuable rewards points

Since this card earns American Express Membership Rewards points, you'll have a couple of great ways to redeem them. The best option is to transfer your points to an American Express travel partner, and that includes a large number of airlines and hotels. If you transfer your points wisely, you could find an award booking where you get well over $0.02 per point.

Even if you can't find a transfer opportunity for the travel you want, you can always use the Pay with Points feature on American Express travel. This lets you book a cash airfare ticket using your points, and you'll get $0.01 per point when you do. Terms apply.

LEARN MORE: A Complete Guide to American Express Membership Rewards Points

Travel and purchase protections

As is the case with most American Express cards, this card has several great complimentary protections. On eligible purchases, it provides:

• Purchase protection
• Return protection
• Extended warranty
• Car rental loss and damage insurance

What could be improved

There are a few pesky issues you should know about before applying for this American Express card.

Foreign transaction fee

Foreign transaction fees add an extra cost onto purchases made abroad and in a foreign currency. In this case, it's an extra 2.7%. That's disappointing. Most rewards cards with annual fees, and even many no annual fee cards, don't charge a foreign transaction fee. For going outside the United States, you'll need to pick a travel credit card without this fee to avoid unnecessary extra costs.

COMPARE OPTIONS: Best Travel Rewards Credit Cards

Small welcome offer

This card has a welcome offer of 15,000 points after you spend $2,000 in qualifying purchases within the first 6 months. Terms apply. While it's easy enough to earn, this is a small amount, especially for a card with an annual fee. Some cards in the same price range have welcome offers of 50,000 points or more.

TOP PICKS: Best Credit Card Sign-Up Bonuses

Limited bonus categories

Another area where this American Express card falls short of the competition is its bonus categories. It has a few, and in areas where many consumers have high spending. But in this annual fee range, there are credit cards with more bonus categories and higher rates.

Rates do get a lot better if you use the card at least 30 times per billing cycle to earn 50% more points. Terms apply. But that's a lot of purchases, and it could incentivize spending more than necessary. Considering how costly credit card debt can be, you don't want to end up with unhelpful spending habits just to boost your rewards.

A FICO® Score of 670 or higher is recommended to apply for the Amex EveryDay® Preferred Credit Card. American Express could approve you with a lower credit score, as some applicants have been successful without reaching that mark. But this card is aimed at people with good credit to excellent credit.

If your credit score is lower, your best bet is to try some fast ways to build credit first. Remember also that American Express looks at your entire credit and financial profile when you apply, so there are other important factors, too.

RELATED: How to Find Out Your Credit Score

The $95 annual fee of the Amex EveryDay® Preferred Credit Card can be worth it, depending on how you use the card. Before you apply for it, check out more credit card reviews for the type of card you need. That way, you can see if there's a better option available.

For example, if you have high spending at U.S. supermarkets and U.S. gas stations, then you could easily get your money's worth. Let's say you max out this card's supermarket rewards by spending $6,000 per year in that category. You'd earn 18,000 to 27,000 points, depending on how often you also made at least 30 purchases per billing cycle. Those would be worth at least $180 to $270 in travel, and potentially much more if you transfer your points.

On the other hand, if you're looking for an intro 0% APR credit card or a balance transfer card, paying an annual fee isn't worth it. When you're trying to save money on interest, it doesn't make sense to pay unnecessary credit card fees. There are plenty of no annual fee cards with 0% intro APR offers.

READ MORE: Best No Annual Fee Credit Cards

You make 30-plus purchases every month and you have high spending on groceries and gas.

Truth be told, the Amex EveryDay® Preferred Credit Card is one of those cards that fills a very small niche. It doesn't have the biggest welcome offer, and it only earns well if you use it often enough to earn 50% more points. If you don't, you can probably find top credit cards that offer more value, whether you're looking for travel rewards, cash back, or a 0% intro APR.

Our Credit Card Methodology

At The Motley Fool Ascent, we rate credit cards on a five-star scale (1 = poor, 5 = best). Our rating criteria includes rewards rates, welcome bonuses, fees, and perks like travel credits and 0% intro APR offers to evaluate our ratings.

We combine these factors with an evaluation of brand reputation and customer satisfaction to ensure you're getting the best card recommendations. Learn more about how The Ascent rates credit cards.