The Plum Card® from American Express Review

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CardName BENEFITS

Created with business owners in mind, CardName is a straightforward, meat-and-potatoes kind of card that brings something to the table not normally associated with the American Express family of cards - flexibility. For those who like to pay their bills quickly, there is a 1.5% Early Pay discount on eligible charges when you make your payment within 10 days of receiving your statement. This discount will appear as a credit on the next monthly statement.

On the back end, if you pay the minimum payment by the due date, you have a full 60 days to pay the balance before being hit with interest charges. Bear in mind, CardName is still a charge card and you are expected to pay your balance in full. This payment flexibility amounts to a payment grace period.

Additional flexibility comes with no pre-set spending limit. This opens the door to bigger purchases, something especially attractive to business owners. CardName also has no foreign transaction fees and does not charge for additional cards. See Rates and Fees

Along with this card comes a membership in American Express Business, which carries benefits of its own. You will have access to ReceiptMatch with Quickbooks, which can help you stay on top of your business expenses. You will also have access to a members-only online mall, where you can get a 5% discount or bonus Membership Rewards points when you buy from vendors such as Hertz, FedEx, Hyatt, and Hewlett-Packard, among others. You also get access to an online forum for small business owners, sharing ideas and best practices.

FEATURED CARD

 

card_name

• Earn a $250 statement credit after you spend $3,000 in purchases on your new Card within the first 6 months.
• $0 intro annual fee for the first year, then $95.
• Buy Now, Pay Later: Enjoy $0 intro plan fees when you use Plan It® to split up large purchases into monthly installments. Pay $0 intro plan fees on plans created during the first 12 months from the date of account opening. Plans created after that will have a monthly plan fee up to 1.33% of each eligible purchase amount moved into a plan based on the plan duration, the APR that would otherwise apply to the purchase, and other factors.
• Low Intro APR: 0% on purchases and balance transfers for 12 months from the date of account opening. After that, your APR will be a variable APR of 19.24% - 29.99%. Variable APRs will not exceed 29.99%.
• 6% Cash Back at U.S. supermarkets on up to $6,000 per year in purchases (then 1%).
• 6% Cash Back on select U.S. streaming subscriptions.
• 3% Cash Back at U.S. gas stations.
• 3% Cash Back on transit (including taxis/rideshare, parking, tolls, trains, buses and more).
• 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.
• Get up to $120 in statement credits annually when you pay for an auto-renewing subscription to Equinox+ at equinoxplus.com with your Blue Cash Preferred® Card. That's $10 in statement credits each month. Enrollment required.
• Thinking about getting the Disney Bundle which can include Disney+, Hulu, and ESPN+? Your decision made easy with $7/month back in the form of a statement credit after you spend $9.99 or more each month on an eligible subscription (subject to auto renewal) with your Blue Cash Preferred® Card. Enrollment required.
• Terms Apply.

Apply Now

See Rates and Fees

Terms and Limitations Apply

Credit Needed:

Good, Excellent

CardName REQUIREMENTS

To qualify for CardName, you'll need good to excellent credit (generally considered 690 or higher).

As a charge card, you are expected to pay the balance on each statement. If you do not pay the balance within the payment period (and grace period), you could encounter a late fee. If this occurs two months in a row, the fee may increase. See Rates and Fees

For this reason, your business should have a strong, steady cash flow, allowing you to pay your balance consistently and avoid these fees.

CardName ANNUAL FEE

If you are searching for a card with low up-front costs, you'll want to look elsewhere. CardName comes with a AnnualFees annual fee. This means you'll want to be sure you'll be making full use of this card before applying and adding it to your wallet. See Rates and Fees

The way to cover the cost of the annual fee is by taking advantage of the early payment discount. What does that look like? Crunching the numbers, if you make an average of $1,400 in qualifying purchases each month ($16,800 over the course of a year) and pay your balance within 10 days of your statement to take advantage of the 1.5% discount, you will earn enough ($252) to cover your annual fee.

Aside from the early payment discount, CardName does not offer a rewards program. There is no welcome bonus and no opportunity to earn cash back or build points toward travel or other business-related expenses.

Aside from basic features, the card is lacking in perks.

HOW DOES CardName COMPARE TO OTHER BUSINESS CARDS?

CardName vs. CardName

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If you're looking for a business card that offers more in the way of rewards, the CardName is a worthy option. The CardName offers a valuable sign-up bonus of $350 when you spend $3,000 on purchases in the first three months and an additional $400 when you spend $6,000 on purchases in the first six months after account opening. Couple that with a AnnualFees annual fee and you're ahead of the game out of the blocks.

The rewards program offered is also worth noting. You earn a hefty 5% back on the first $25,000 spent annually in combined purchases at office supply stores (including computer, hardware, and software purchases), as well as on cellular, landline, internet and cable television services; 2% back on the first $25,000 spent at gas stations and restaurants each account anniversary year; and unlimited 1% back on all other purchases. This card also offers 0% introductory APR on new purchases for the first 12 months. After that, the regular rate is RegAPR.

CardName vs. CardName

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Much like CardName, the CardName is a basic card with easy-to-understand features. As the name implies, the card requires excellent credit (usually considered 720 or above) for approval.

Unlike CardName, CardName has a AnnualFees annual fee and a rewards program that can earn several hundred dollars in the first year. As a welcome bonus, you can earn $750 when you spend just $6,000 in the first three months after opening an account. From there, you can earn 1.5% cash back on all purchases, with no limits on the amount you can earn.

CardName vs. CardName

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See Rates and Fees

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So, how does CardName stack up against its sister card, CardName?

Both cards are simple cards designed for small business owners, without the bells and whistles of other cards. While there are many similarities, including access to the American Express Business features (see above), there are significant differences to be looked at before deciding which is best suited for you and your business.

For starters, CardName has AnnualFees. This can be important on a tight budget. Also, while CardName is a classic American Express charge card, CardName is a credit card, which allows for carrying over a balance from month to month. Of course, that also comes with an interest rate on that balance (RegAPR).

CardName offers a 0% introductory rate on all new purchases for 12 months after your card is issued. After that, the regular APR of RegAPR applies.

In addition, new cardholders can earn a $250 statement credit after you make $3,000 in purchases on your card in your first three months. Plus, you can earn 2% cash back on up to $50,000 in eligible purchases each calendar year. You earn 1% cash back on all eligible purchases beyond the $50,000 limit. Cash-back rewards are automatically turned into statement credits on a month-to-month basis.

WHO IS A GOOD FIT FOR CardName?

CardName is a good choice for a small to medium-sized business that value budget flexibility. The chance to earn a 1.5% discount is nice but the ability to have 60 days to pay your balance without a penalty can be even more valuable. Still, you will want to have a steady income stream to be able to keep up with your payments, as carrying over a balance is not an option with a charge card.

CardName is well suited for businesses that don't require much traveling. While it has no foreign transaction fees, it also lacks the type of rewards program that can benefit business travelers.

See Rates and Fees for CardName; See Rates and Fees for CardName