American Express - Card With Perks on Another Level

American Express is mentioned as often as its not-so-direct competitors Visa and Mastercard. The brand that is still going strong today offers a different kind of card benefits, on a higher level of indulgence.

Ian Ng

6/4/20241 min read

black android smartphone on brown wooden table
black android smartphone on brown wooden table

A Card That Is Not So Common, Yet Well-Known

American Express right from the beginning is distinct in what it offers to its customers, differentiating itself from the likes of VISA and MasterCard: Benefits tagged with luxury.

High Annual Fees? Not A Problem for AMEX Customers

Your usual credit card charges you in the range of $200 - $300 in annual fees. On the other side, charging thousands of dollars in annual fees is standard procedure for American Express.

This is not a problem if a customer's disposable income is more than enough to cover these charges.

What you get in return, is various complimentary lounge access, hotel elite tier statuses, and exclusive dining benefits.

The Myth of the Black Card - That Is AMEX's Story To Tell

You often hear people talking about black cards that grant its users seemingly endless spending power - the issuer turns out to be American Express.

They call it the Centurion Card, which is also an invite-only card, which makes it even more exclusive than the already well-known AMEX cards.

No Interest Charged - Only Under One Condition

Their famed Charge Cards also do not accrue interest, with one catch - spent amount has to be paid in full each time.

Pairing this with a requirement of spending a significant sum of credit to qualify for certain benefits, it is clear who American Express is targeting - the affluent who don't mind splurging with credit cards and repaying the full amount on time.

Another good thing that comes from this is, users will be diligent in monitoring their spending on AMEX cards than on a normal credit card.

Now Issuing More Credit Cards

As on AMEX's official website, they are now issuing more credits with premium class benefits, which are still competitive compared to cards from other payment networks.

This further expands its customer base, and brings in more business in this day and age.