American express charge cards offer the convenience and security of a credit card, without the interest charges and over limit fees. Unlike a traditional credit card, charge cards must be paid in full each month. In this way, there are never interest charges, and your credit limit is set based on your purchasing history.
American Express charge cards offers some of the best rewards and customer service available. Here is a list of the must exclusive American Express charge cards available, including the new ZYNC card designed specifically for young adults.
| American Express(R) Premier Rewards Gold Card |
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- Membership Rewards(R) bonus: 15K points, redeemable for select gift cards valued at $150, when you spend $1,000 in your first three months of card membership
- Membership Rewards(R) points multiply fast! Earn 3X points on airfare, 2X points on gas and groceries, 1X points on everything else
- Exclusive access to Gold Card Destinations and events – Enjoy special travel packages and amenities at hotels worldwide, as well as select concerts, shows, major sporting events, and more, nationwide
- No annual fee for your first year – a $175 savings
- Get approved in 60-seconds.
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| Intro APR |
Intro APR
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APR |
Annual
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Balance
Transfer |
Credit
Needed |
| N/A |
N/A |
N/A |
See Terms* |
No |
Excellent |
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| American Express(R) Gold Card |
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- Earn 10K Membership Rewards(R) points, redeemable for select gift cards valued at $100, when you spend $500 in your first 3 months of Card membership
- Exclusive access to Gold Card Events – select concerts, shows, major sporting events, and more.
- Purchase Protection covers loss, theft, and damage of eligible items within 90 days of purchase
- Redeem Membership Rewards(R) points for an exclusive array of travel, shopping, dining and entertainment rewards.
- Get approved in 60-seconds.
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| Intro APR |
Intro APR
Period |
Regular
APR |
Annual
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| N/A |
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$125 annual fee |
No |
Excellent |
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| The Platinum Card(R) from American Express |
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- 25,000 Membership Rewards(R) points bonus, redeemable for one domestic round-trip Coach-Class airline ticket, when you spend $1,000 during your first three months of Card membership
- New GLOBAL Travel benefits: Priority Pass select airport club access, No Foreign Transaction Fees, Global Entry expedited U.S. immigration pass
- Up to $200 in Airline Fee Credits annually to cover incidental charges on your airline of choice, including checked-baggage fees
- Complimentary Companion Airfare with purchase of qualifying First- or Business-Class international ticket
- 24/7 Platinum Card(R) Concierge service for assistance with reservations, travel, gifts, and more
- FINE HOTELS & RESORTS Program: exclusive upgrades and amenities at over 700 boutique, resort, and luxury hotels worldwide
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| Intro APR |
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APR |
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| N/A |
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$450 annual fee |
No |
Excellent |
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When you are evaluating credit card offers, please make sure to read the terms and conditions on the credit card issuer’s website, as they may have changed since the information was last updated on this site.
Disclaimer: This content is not provided or commissioned by American Express. Opinions expressed here are author’s alone, not those of American Express, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by American Express. This site may be compensated through American Express Affiliate Program.
Published or updated May 29, 2011.
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My wife and I were prepared this year. We estimated how much we would be spending on gifts and put that money in a savings account earlier this year. Then we used our gift list to watch for deals online and in retail stores. We ended up spending well under our estimate and finished shopping two weeks before Christmas. It’s the best gift we’ve ever given ourselves. For future years, we’re thinking about opening a money market account for year-round gift purchases.
This year, we planned ahead better and, with list in hand, we got 90% of our gifts at yard/garage sales and thrift stores. For the other 10% we worked the online deals and paid very little for any of it. For instance, we took advantage of the Kodak Friends $15 giveaway for the two of us (for a total of $30) so we could print out $30 worth of pictures of our son from the last 5 years to send to the grandparents and other relatives. We also traded in an old Playstation game for credit on Amazon for $22 and used another free $3 in credit from Amazon they were giving away to get a gift for a niece who has to contend with her Bday being right next to Xmas.
Aside from shipping, we’ve probably spent under $75 dollars for us and all of our immediate family members for Xmas using the power of thrifting and online deals.
I planned out exactly what my budget was for each person, stuck to it, and bought everything through websites that participate in Ebates or Upromise and offer free shipping. I spent my $200 budget and have gotten $8 back from Upromise and $12 from Ebates. It doesn’t seem like too much, but I effectively got 10% off, never paid for shipping, and only paid sales tax on one transaction. If you count my rebates, I came in 18% under budget!
I convinced my husband we needed a budget and downloaded You Need a Budget. Wow. All of a sudden we can see where our money is going vs. where it needs to go (and vs. Mint and Quicken, which merely told me where it went). For the first time in years, we are midway through the month and we still have money in our bank account–and we have bought almost all our Christmas presents!
This holiday season, I’m revising and carefully planning my monthly budget for 2010 and making some serious goals for the coming year. This time of year is the perfect time to do this because things slow down at work, and it’s the perfect time to think about how everything went over the last year and plan for the year ahead. Using online planning tools like Mint.com, Google Docs, and my blog, I’m carefully figuring out how much money I should save next year and how I’m going to do that. I’m very much so looking forward to keeping on top of myself and holding myself accountable to my readers and my Mint budget!
I’ve been getting Christmas gift cards at the grocery store since I get 5% cashback with my credit card at grocery stores.
The savviest way I’ve made money work more for me this holiday season is by making sure the gifts I give are what people want or need! If you want a basketball and I give you a soccer ball, studies show that you might as well not give anything at all!
It’s probably easy to project one’s own desires into the gifts we buy, hence it’s important to do as much research and planning as possible.
Loud sweaters and leg warmers for all everyone?
Happy Holidays and thanks for this opportunity to win Dough Roller!
Best,
Sam
Last year, I decided to create a small budget (~$15) per person and would only buy things that were useful to or characteristic of the person. For example, I bought my mom a bag of organic orange cinnamon tea (good quality stuff) because she’s a tea drinker. My dad got organic honey from New Zealand because one of his hobbies is bee keeping. Repeat down the list. This means the time we spent together was more memorable (as were the gifts) and they were useful and thoughtful. Since we all followed this approach, it was a more enjoyable and financially responsible experience for everyone.
This year, I’ve made a lot of change financially from switching to a high interest checking account for the bulk of my funds, to diligently tendering my emergency fund, to paying down debts before buying myself toys, and switching to a 2% cash back rewards credit card. I’ve implemented strict budgets and financial goals. Due to the fact I won’t be making a trip to visit family this year, I’ve opted to continue my frugality by sending holiday cards & making phone calls (minus the girlfriend, I actually have to buy something for her). Catching up, letting someone know you thought of them, or sharing a laugh is often as good, if not better, than an expensive gift.
Furthermore, I’m working on advising less financially responsible friends that their families will still love them even if they don’t run up those credit cards.
Our budgets were tight and we cut back in many areas to allow for a ‘normal’ Christmas for our children. This cut back included our charitable giving. I decided instead of giving money, I will give my time. In the past several months, I gave my time, instead of money, to the salvation army, helping out at a local afterschool homework club. Instead of money to a local schools fund, I have volunteer in a mentoring program and have been tutoring ELL high school students. I have also helped out in middle school after school clubs and school band.
This is the first year that we used a credit card to make all our purchases. We pay off all our complete balance at the end of the month and then collect our points. Easiest money we’ve ever made.
We did two things: 1) We agreed within the family to only buy gifts for the kids. This way the kids get to enjoy the holidays and the adults don’t have the expense of buying each other gifts; and 2) On Black Friday we signed up for ING’s Electric Orange account. They were offering $121 to sign up that day. It was a no-brainer $121 for gifts this year!
I was able to save quite a lot this Christmas by planning ahead and using the internet. I made my shopping list and then watched for and searched for sales, free offers, discounts, and coupons. I was able to get great deals on all the gifts I wanted and free shipping on most it! Even some of the gifts (like photo calendars) were free! There have been lots of printable coupons, too, that I was able to use at local stores for things like toys, clothing, and toiletries. I subscribe to many blogs that post these deals and also to newsletters of the shopping sites. It really takes only a few minutes a day to skim through what’s available and it’s been well worth the time! An added bonus…I did a lot of my Christmas shopping in my pajamas with a cup of hot cocoa at hand!
The only thing I did was give gifts that will allow people to earn more money and educate themselves on how to make money work for them. I am giving out finance books and money to be used to buy stock on sharebuilder. The money must go toward the purchase of stock. And the book, well hopefully they will help my family understand the power of compound interest and investing. I used money but the end results will produce greater returns.
The savviest way I made my money work harder for me this holiday season was to have the kids give homemade and personalized gifts for friends and family and to have everyone spend more time doing volunteer work and helping elderly neighbors. I want the kids to understand Christmas is way too commercialized and isn’t supposed to be all about expensive gifts, and homemade baked goods and arts and crafts type presents make great gifts too.
I was laid off last September, so frugal holiday shopping is even more essential for me this year than usual. As an incurable list-maker, I made a list and winnowed down the number of people I’m gifting to just 4 individuals. I set a maximum budget in advance and on my list I made 4 columns, one for the recipient, another for possible gift items, which i jotted down as they came to me, the next column for what I actually purchased and the last column tracked a running total to ensure i wouldn’t overspend.
I’m pretty satisfied with my purchases, even though everything’s been considerably scaled down. It’s the thought that counts and in past years, I must admit to buying in volume at times to make up for possible lack of original ideas.
I use reward sites like Swagbucks to earn Amazon gift cards to purchase holiday presents. I’m able to purchase gifts at little or no cost out of pocket to me!
This holiday season I will not be gifting nor receiving. I had saved up several thousand dollars and spent a small portion on new clothes (with cashback credit cards and cash rebate sites, of course). The rest went toward student loans and building a portfolio in my Roth IRA. And it feels great!
This holiday season I will not be gifting nor receiving. I had saved up several thousand dollars and spent a small portion on new clothes (with cashback credit cards and cash rebate sites, of course). The rest went toward student loans and building a portfolio in my Roth IRA (up 4% so far). And it feels great!
The savviest way that I am having my money work harder for me this holiday season is by lending a small portion of it through Peer-to-Peer lending websites like Lending Club or Prosper. I’ve been earnings a great rate of return, much better than a savings account or money market fund.
To make our money work harder this holiday season, my wife and I made it a point to plan our Christmas shopping & expenses ahead of time this year, and by doing most of our shopping in advance, prior to Thanksgiving even, it allowed us to avoid getting caught up in the mad rush of holiday consumerism and spending and stick to our planned budget. It has also made the week before Christmas a lot more relaxed!
to make my money work harder this holiday, I bought delicious holiday foods for my family to enjoy instead of gifts. we shall feast on shrimp,clams,mussels and leg of lamb. food memories with family are better than gifts that will be used sometimes just once.
To be in budget, I made a list almost 5-6 months ago and shopped online only to save on taxes and free shipping directly to my relatives. For many folks I m buying financial books, fianancial audio CD those who I know are lazy to turn pages and can listen while driving to work. So far I havent crossed my budget and bought all I needed.
This year I took 2 exchange students so I can support my mortage, I was extra careful with my job market and all. I was able to make 20 payments on my mortgage so far.
Oh I love this topic! Here’s what I did this year.
First, I purchased some gifts that provided extra kick-backs for me. For example, I decided to purchase Marriott gift cards for a few relatives, because Marriott rewarded all gift card purchases with 10 Marriott Reward points per dollar. Not only will the recipient love their gift but I’ll be rewarded with points toward a night’s stay.
Second, I purchased a few gift cards from Plastic Jungle. So far I’ve had great luck buying gift cards there and I’ve saved between 10 – 15% on each of them. I used these gift cards to make in-store and online purchases. I also waited for sales and coupons, which further expanded my savings. On average I saved at least 25% using this technique.
Third, I used a cash back credit card for all in-store and online purchases that didn’t involve a gift card. If I went online I used cash back sites like eBates and Fatwallet. Recently I learned about ev’reward. Everyone should bookmark this site. It compares all of the cash back websites so you can get the most bang for your buck. I also saved most of my online purchases for cyber monday, because I knew a lot of sites would double cash back on that day.
Lastly, I finished half of my holiday shopping throughout the year, rather than waiting until December. When stores in my area closed I bought stocking stuffers for 10 to 25 cents on the dollar.
My family and I have agreed to “make our money work harder” for all of us by donating what would be normally giving each other to local charities.
I’ll also be spending my xmas day volunteering here in Honolulu since I’m thousands of miles away from my family. Time = Money so I’ll be utilizing my time to the best degree on Christmas as well!
Monthly saving of money in banks is very imporntant.
In order to use my money in the savviest way possible this year, I ended up spending my time more wisely as in taking the time out to make people gifts and baked goodies rather than purchasing gifts that may not be of great use to my friends and families. I’ve found that the homemade gifts(like knitted hats and scarves) are more meaningful and people seem to cherish it more because it took lots of hours to make. =)
This year, I’ve enrolled in automatic investing into index funds at Vanguard. I’m relatively young (30 years) and hence have a long investment time horizon. I feel that there was no better way for me to minimize investment risk, avoid paying transaction fees and mutual fund expenses.
Two simple words: CASH ONLY.
And to make that work, I have an easy but extensive budget tracking system. Not only do I set up my monthly budget ahead of time, but I also track every cent going out. It makes me double and triple think about purchases during this very tempting season. I also prepaid this month’s bills so I couldn’t pretend there was more slush money in my account.
I also planned ahead for the first time ever. I was done with my shopping by December 1. No gorgeous mall displays or online sales to excite me into spending money I don’t have. It’s just as fun to shop in October and November as it is in December–and I got some rockin’ deals because there wasn’t anyone else in the shops.
I’m in control for the first holiday season ever. It’s what’s keeping me on track in paying off my debts. And it will allow me to set up a very secure future.
The Family unit is taking a multi-pronged approach to the holidays leveraging many of the similar techniques listed in the comments to create a powerhouse holiday season while maximizing our debt payments.
1. We started our Christmas budget last January and have been sinking funds monthly so that everything we purchase this year comes from our Christmas Gifts budget category. That also means we know exactly how much we should spend and that’s kept our gift purchasing within the limits we set.
2. One of the largest ticket items this year is a project I’m building for my two boys. Using my woodworking skills I’ve been constructing Loft Beds for their room after they go to sleep. I have to admit this is fun becoming a self-appointed elf for the grand installation Christmas Eve while they are asleep on the couch waiting for Santa. By scrounging I’ve been able to acquire all the materials for under $75 for two beds as well as borrowing some specialized tools from friends eager to help with the cause.
3. Despite the craziness of the holiday season we’ve still been able to direct $3500 towards our debt paydown hopefully coming to fruition the end of January where we will have paid off over $63,000 in just a year.
4. And lastly we have been able to give generously which is our number one priority especially this time of year. We truly are blessed.
The first thing I did was begin shopping early. There were several great deals in October and early November that let me get a (cheap) jump start on holiday shopping. The second thing I did was use all the available credit card bonus point programs I could find (my Chase Rewards Plus Visa has offered 9x reward points on Barnes and Noble.com, for example). Given that I now use all my credit cards like cash (and pay them off each month so I have no interest), getting more bang for my buck is important to me. The great thing about the credit card rewards shopping is that it also applies to everyday items- double points for groceries with AMEX Green, quadruple points on Swiss Colony for entertaining goods that we all use during the holiday season like meats and cheeses, etc.
So all in all, I really got some great bargains, and I was sure to get the maximum benefit from my credit card rewards programs. With all the triple, quadruple, and quintuple point bonus offers available this year, I managed to hit my 10,000 point goal- and now Chase is sending me a $100 cash check!
We saved up by putting a certain percentage plus any extra into savings – rainy day fund. The rainy day came…and we are glad we have the fund to get us through it.
We also cut out holiday gifts to a much lower budget. We skipped any unnessary purchases.
Went with VOIP phone service instead of our old land line.
Got prepaid cell phones since we don’t use that many minutes. We are saving at least $500 a year compared to contract phones on this.
Signed up for ING Electric orange to take advantage of the Black Friday bonus! Can’t beat free cash. We always pay off credit cards in full, if we can’t afford it, we don’t buy it until we can. Getting the points from credit Cards also help put some extra cash to help with expenses.
Using coupons, both online codes and paper based has saved us hundreds over the year.
Hopefully win this Flip camera with these tips!
I learned who to use my money by using coupons, buying in store deals, not eating out as much, entering giveaways, and looking for new ways to earn income with my blog.
What is the savviest way I have made your money work harder for me this holiday season?
I’ve made my work harder for me this year by buying several high ticket items that we were purchasing online. Because we purchased online I was able to stack discounts, coupon codes and cash back through Bing and other cash back sites. For example. We just purchased a GPS for my father-in-law. Instead of paying full retail at the store, we purchased it online through a cash back link on Bing, buying an item that was on deep discount. In the end we ended up saving about $30-40 off the price in the store.
The saviest way that I’ve made my money work harder for me this holiday is by “Couponing” and shopping with disount codes. I May of 2009, I was introduced to a whole new world of saving money. I had know idea there was so much information online regarding saving money on groceries, necessities, household items, cloths, etc.
This year I refused to use credit cards for any of our Christmas purchases and spent strictly cash so I would not accumulate any interest charges while paying it off. Plus, I took advantage of sales on gift cards, free shipping on online purchases, and made my purchases through websites like MyPoints and eBates so I would receive a portion of my purchase back later.
Instead of purchasing jewelry and other gifts for my wife, I was able to reduce my Christmas spending by over $500. The trick – have you wife decide that she is no longer wanting to be married and only have to purchase a few items for when she moves into her new place. This will save me money now and in the future as I can reduce my household spending by over 50% to account for what she like to spend monthly. Now that is a great savings plan
My wife and I buy presents all year long that way we can spread out the cost as well as shop the best deals all year. But the biggest savings came when my wife got a part time seasonal job at a store where we could shop for every one and with her 15% discount and in stort discounts, we bought everything at 50% off if not more. As for at home, we also have switched all the christmas lights to LED lights to save even more.
This year we had to completely change our plan for Christmas. This was because of an unfortunate fall that resulted in a ruptured tendon and 12 weeks of being off my feet and housebound! My husband and I sat down and revised what we were originally planning. First, we set a budget based on reduced income since I will be getting disability from work at 60% of net salary. Second, we drew up a list and decided on an amount per person. Third, I joined ebates and searched for gifts among the various sites, especially any that offered free shipping. Fourth, we stuck to that budget which was actually easier since we were at home and able to review gifts together without all the crowds and temptation. Fifth, we saved loads on gasoline, time and wear and tear. Sixth, my husband was able to line up some gigs to bring in some extra money which we designated to a new (used) car fund. Seventh, all gifts are paid for in cash (debit card). Eighth, The time we saved we planned smarter goals for 2010 which included paying off our only debt (house) and fully funding our Roth IRA’s. Ninth, I spent time reading all the personal finance books I could. AND Tenth, we are having the best Christmas ever. We are relaxed, even with a reduced income. All gifts are paid for, we have time to spend with family and each other. What a blessed Christmas we are having!
Luckily, we don’t have many people on our gift list this Christmas. However, we’ve opted to give our giftees gifts that are investments in some form or another, i.e. things to keep them warm, items that will help a family member dress for success as they enter the work force after grad school, investing books, etc. We look for the best deals online by using Bing & Ebates for cashback. Then we purchase it with out cashback credit cards for additional savings! The money saved will go towards either our investment accounts or our businesses.
Funny that this giveaway is being sponsored by American Express – they enabled my husband and I to make our Christmas budget go alot farther. Here’s what we did: I was sent an offer for one of their credit cards with the promotion that if I spent $500.00, I would receive 50,000 bonus points which I could redeem for a $500.00 gift card. So I got the credit card, paid for the family groceries for a month using it and then redeemed my points for a $500.00 Home Depot gift card. My husband got a similar offer which he took advantage of. With 6 adult brothers between the 2 of us to buy for plus his dad we were able to get something for everyone and still have a little left over for my husband to buy himself a new toy, oh! I mean Tool! Yes, we did have to spend $1000.00 but we spent it on things we would normally have bought anyway like food and gas. And in return we received $1000.00 to spend at Home Depot.
My wo Florida-based, twenty-something sons could not afford to come here to SC for Christmas. My husband and I wanted a tile floor in our master bathroom. We paid for their trip here and back and the materials and my sons did all the labor. The new tile floor looks great (and it increased the value of our home), I got to see my grown sons for the holidays (and they saved on gas and food for the drive here and back) and we saved serious money on the labor for the work. Everyone wins!
http://www.investdavenport.com/
They take care of me well.
We started actually using separate savings accounts that are easy to deposit and inconvenient to withdraw. That means that we actually have money at this time of the year instead of trying to scrape together and go into debt.
This year I did a lot of shopping online and watched for special deals by following money saving blogs and using coupons. We limited what we bought and are doing gift exchange for the adults in our family. I also tried to make some gifts this year like printing photos and putting them into frames and giving those as gifts.
MAKING GIFTS FROM SCRATCH & COOKING FROM SCRATCH. SAVING OLD JARS, CANDLE JARS, RIBBON, ANY LITTLE NIK-NAC THAT CAN BE CREATED OR CONVERTED INTO A PRETTY LITTLE GIFT OR TRINKET. I DO ALOT OF CRAFTING THROUGH OUT THE ENTIRE YEAR. USING COUPONS IS A MUST EVERYTIME I SHOP, IT’S A LIFESTYLE NOW. I’M A DEAL GO-GETTER & I LOVE THE RUSH! LOL
Investing all my money into college so i can get a great degree, so i can make “LOTS” of money! That’s the best way to make your money stretch. It’s cramming now & spending later! I LOVE it!
Keeping a set limit in place (and sticking to it!) is an invaluable tool to help keep you on track with your spending. That works for me. :~)
Blessings,
Kath
Well…I found being a little of a scrooge this year has helped. Saving everything!
We have made certain that we paid cash for everything we bought or made as gifts. We took advantage of the Black Friday sales and shopped online alot. We joined Amazon Prime for a free 30 day trial in order to get free shipping or used the freeshipping.com site.
This year we put a limit on our Christmas gifts for each other since we are paying off my student loan and trying to pay off debt ASAP. I had my husband make his list of everything he would like for Christmas. I went through and price-shopped like crazy trying to get the best deal for everything and anything. Needless to say I was able to get just about everything for the $ amount we were going to spend. I had to plan it out a couple months in advance, but I did it. It was all about strategic and herding around on Black Friday. We are (well I make my husband) be frugal. We research and figure out what we are going to buy first and price shop. Also we never buy spur of the moment. We have been able to pay off a big chunk of debt off this year, just due to managing our money and making smart decisions. Any income needs to be budgeted and managed. Contrary to popular belief, you really can live life at any budget, you just have to work a little harder than some.
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