Start Your Travel-Hacking Journey with American Express

If you’re just beginning your rewards-card adventure and want a card that helps you earn real value while you spend, you’re in the right place. Whether your goal is to earn points for flights, hotel stays or to get smarter about everyday spending, Amex offers two excellent starter cards. Here’s how these cards help beginner travel-hackers:

• ✅ Build spending habits & credit history: Use everyday purchases (groceries, gas, online retail) to hit your welcome bonus.

• ✅ Learn the rewards system: Get used to bonus categories, redemption options and how to maximize value before jumping into ultra-premium cards.

• ✅ Unlock travel potential: One of the cards earns transferable points (Green) which can unlock flights, hotel stays and upgrades — a key travel-hacker move.

• ✅ Low-risk entry with room to grow: One card has no annual fee (Blue); the other has a moderate fee and stronger benefits when you’re ready.

Let’s dive into each.

1. Blue Cash Everyday® Card

What it is

A no-annual-fee everyday cash-back card from Amex designed for regular spending including groceries, gas, and online retail.

Current Public Offer

Earn a $200 statement credit after spending $2,000 in eligible purchases within the first 6 months of card membership.

Annual Fee

$0

Rewards Structure & Key Benefits

• 3% cash-back at U.S. supermarkets (up to $6,000 per year in that category) then 1%.

• 3% cash-back on U.S. online retail purchases (again up to $6,000/year) then 1%.

• 3% cash-back on U.S. gas stations (same cap) then 1%.

• 1% cash-back on other eligible purchases.

• Additional benefit: Up to $84 in annual streaming credit ($7/month) for using the card on a qualifying Disney+/Hulu/ESPN+ subscription

Pros

• No annual fee — very beginner-friendly.

• Straightforward bonus categories (groceries, gas, online retail) that match everyday spending.

• The welcome offer ($200) gives a nice tangible benefit right away.

Cons

• It’s cash-back based; not transferable travel points — so less flexibility for award flights/hotel upgrades.

• The bonus categories are capped ($6,000/year) after which the rate drops to 1%.

• If you later decide you want full travel-hacker flexibility (flights, hotels, upgrades) you’ll likely outgrow this card.

Ideal For

• Someone new to rewards credit cards who wants simplicity, no annual fee and decent everyday returns.

• Someone whose major spending is groceries, gas or online shopping rather than frequent travel.

• Someone who wants to get comfortable with the Amex ecosystem before moving up.

2. Amex Green® Card

What it is

A mid-tier rewards card from Amex that earns Membership Rewards® points (not just cash back) and offers 3× earnings in travel, transit and restaurant categories.

Current Public Offer

Earn 40,000 Membership Rewards® points after spending $3,000 in eligible purchases within the first 6 months of card membership

Annual Fee

Approximately $150 (check your exact offer)

Rewards Structure & Key Benefits

• Earn 3× points per $1 spent on restaurants worldwide (including U.S. take-out & delivery).

• Earn 3× points per $1 spent on transit purchases (rideshare, trains, tolls, etc.).

• Earn 3× points per $1 spent on travel purchases (airfare, hotels, car rentals, home shares) worldwide.

• Earn 1× point per $1 on other purchases.

• No foreign transaction fees.

Pros

• Membership Rewards points offer real flexibility: you can transfer to airline/hotel partners and often get more value than cash back.

• Strong bonus categories if you travel, dine out or use transit frequently.

• Moderate annual fee relative to what you could earn if you use those categories.

  
  

Cons

• There is an annual fee, so you’ll want to make sure you’ll use the card’s benefits and bonus categories to justify the cost.

• If you don’t spend much in travel/transit/dining, you may not get the full value.

• The 40,000-point bonus is solid, but unlocking the best value requires you to redeem wisely (transfers etc.).

  
  

Ideal For

• Someone ready to move beyond cash back and into the travel-points game.

• Someone who travels reasonably often, uses ride-share/transit or eats out and wants more value from those categories.

• Someone comfortable paying an annual fee and ready to redeem points for travel or partner awards.

✅ Important: The “Welcome Bonus Eligibility” Rule You Must Know

When applying for Amex cards and aiming to maximize the welcome bonus, there are key rules to know:

• You can earn a welcome bonus for a particular card product once in your lifetime (or at least once every many years).

• Amex uses “card-family” rules: If you’ve held or currently hold a higher-tier card in that family, you may not be eligible for the bonus on a lower-tier card in the same family.

• For our cards here:

  • The Green card belongs to the Membership Rewards® “family” (Green → Gold → Platinum). If you apply for Gold or Platinum first, you might lose the Green’s welcome offer.

  • The Blue Cash Everyday card belongs to the cash-back family (Blue Cash Everyday → Blue Cash Preferred). If you apply for the higher version first, you may lose the bonus on the Everyday version.

  
  

• Tip: If you plan to eventually get multiple cards and maximize bonuses, apply in the entry tier first and then up-grade/move up — don’t start high and lose eligibility.

📝 Side-by-Side Comparison Table

✈️ Sample Redemption Scenarios

Here are two sample scenarios to show how the value adds up. These are hypothetical but based on typical valuations.

Scenario A: Blue Cash Everyday®

You open the card, hit the $2,000 spend and get the $200 statement credit.You also spend $6,000 at U.S. supermarkets during the year and $3,000 at U.S. online retail, and $2,000 at gas stations.

• From supermarkets: 3% of $6,000 = $180 cash back

• From online retail: 3% of $3,000 = $90 cash back

• From gas: 3% of $2,000 = $60 cash back

  
  

• Other purchases: say $5,000 other spend at 1% = $50TOTAL cash back in first year: $180 + $90 + $60 + $50 = $380 + $200 welcome credit = $580 total value, all with $0 annual fee.→ This is how a no-fee card can still yield real value if your spending aligns.

  
  

Scenario B: Amex Green® Card

You open the card, hit the $3,000 spend, earn 40,000 points. Let’s assume you value each point conservatively at 1.4 cents(typical average for Amex points if used well). The Point Calculator

• Welcome bonus value: 40,000 × $0.014 = $560 You spend annually: $5,000 on travel & transit & dining combined (3× points) and $5,000 on other purchases (1× point).

• Bonus category spend: $5,000 × 3 = 15,000 points → valued at ~ 15,000 × $0.014 = $210

• Other spend: $5,000 × 1 = 5,000 points → valued at ~ 5,000 × $0.014 = $70TOTAL “first-year value”: $560 + $210 + $70 = $840, minus the $150 annual fee = net value ~$690.And if you transfer points to a great airline partner, point value might go up (1.6 cents or more) boosting your return further. NerdWallet→ This is how a moderate-fee card can pay off if you use it wisely.

Final Recommendation for Beginners

If I were advising someone who’s just starting out:

• Begin with the Blue Cash Everyday card if you want a low-risk, no-annual-fee card to build good habits, earn something meaningful from everyday spend, and get comfortable in the rewards-card space.

• Choose the Amex Green card if you know you spend reasonably in dining, transit/ride-share, travel, and you’re ready to use transferable points for travel instead of just cash-back.

• Always keep the welcome-bonus eligibility rules in mind: once you claim a bonus for a card family, you might lose future chances. Apply smartly and in the right order.