You might have a First National Bank of Omaha credit card and not even know it! Here’s my analysis of their own card offers…

You will probably be surprised to learn that FNBO is the largest privately-owned bank in the country, as well as a major player in the credit card industry.

You see, not only do they issue First National credit cards, but they are also among the top 3 banks which service cards for other financial institutions and retailers – reportedly over 700 clients use them.

For example, if you have a card from Union Bank, it’s actually issued by First Bankcard (FNBO subsidiary). The same can be said about the Overstock.com MasterCard.

Of course, First National also offer cards under their own name. I’ll review each of their offers for you but please be aware that they are known for being quite conservative with it comes to approval. So if you don’t have excellent credit, your odds of qualifying might not be so good.

First National Bank American Express

This credit card has no annual fee and gives cash back of 2% at gas stations and grocery stores, and 1% elsewhere.

Keep in mind that even though it’s branded as an American Express, the card is managed/issued by First National. The AmEx logo just represents the payment network that transactions are processed over. Fortunately, that still entitles cardholders to get the standard AmEx benefits on eligible purchases; extended warranty, purchase protection, travel accident insurance, and auto rental insurance (secondary coverage).

Verdict? This is definitely among the best credit cards out there for those 2 categories. However it still falls short of the Blue Cash Everyday from American Express which gives 3% at grocery stores, 2% at gas stations, 1% on everything else, and no annual fee.

First National Bank Graphite American Express

This one comes with higher rewards, but at a cost – a $99 annual fee, although it is waived for the first year.

For that you get 3% on airlines, 2% on gas and grocery, and 1% everywhere else. Like the card above, this one also operates over the AmEx payment network, but is not issued by them. You get the AmEx features mentioned above.

Verdict? Ultimately the difference between the Graphite and the other AmEx is the 3% rewards on airlines. Is that worth paying $99/year for? Review my math and see how it fits in with your spending pattern:

• With the average 1% cash back card, if you spend $4,950 per year on airlines you will have earned $49.50 cash back.
• If you spend $4,950 on airlines using this specific First National credit card, your 3% would have earned $148.50 cash back.
• The difference between $148.50 and $49.50 = $99.00 which is the same as the card’s annual fee.

That means if you spend about $5,000+ per year on airlines, then it’s worth paying the $99 for the Graphite AmEx. If not, there’s no point in paying $99 to upgrade your rewards.

Maximum Rewards Platinum Edition Visa Card

Unfortunately this card isn’t nearly as exciting as their AmEx cards. All you get with this card is 1 point per dollar. Granted, there’s no annual fee, but still this is nothing to write home about.

Of course the question is… how much are their points worth? Well you can redeem for merchandise, gift cards, travel, etc. The usual credit card reward options more or less.

The best redemption values come from $50+ gift cards (5,000 pts for $50 gift card = 1 cent per point). If you’re up for travel, it’s possible to get a higher value. Examples:

Those are 4 of 29 different tiers and each of them gives more or less the same – up to 1.20 to 1.25 cents per point. Of course that’s assuming the price of your ticket comes in on the higher end of the tier. If you spend 20,000 points for a $205 plane ticket, that’s not much more than 1%.

Verdict? The biggest disappointment is that there are no special categories for you to earn higher rewards. However on the bright side, the ability for your points to be worth slightly more than 1% (when redeemed for air travel) is definitely nice.

First National Bank of Omaha Discover

Similar to their AmEx cards, transactions on this card are processed over the Discover payment network, but it’s not issued by Discover. So when you call customer support, you are speaking with First National Bank of Omaha.

With no annual fee and up to 5% cash back, this is perhaps the most intriguing offer in this bank’s credit card lineup. Here’s how it works…

On regular spending…

On spending that earns additional rewards…

Now as you notice, the fine print doesn’t actually specify what these “qualifying” transactions are. So I called up First National’s cardholder customer service and asked. The answer? Surprisingly all purchases qualify. I thought it would only be specific categories, but the service rep said that all purchases count. And “Qualification Period” refers to the 12 months, resetting on the date the account is opened.

Verdict? 5% on everything is mighty impressive. It is, but to understand the true cash back value you need to look at the spending requirements to earn that.

Say you spent $20,000 over 12 months, this is what you would have earned:

0.005% x $2,500 = $12.50
1.00% x $7,500 ($2500.01 thru $10,000) = $75.00
4.00% x $3,750 ($10,000.01 thru $13,750) = $150.00, plus the normal 1% = $187.50
1.00% x $6,250 ($13,750.01 thru $20,000)  = $62.50
—————————————————————————————————–
Grand Total = $337.50 cash back for spending $20,000

That equals a 1.69% rebate. Which is obviously great, but if your annual spending is below the sweet spot (the range between $10,000 and $13,750) then none of your spending would have qualified for the extra 4% and therefore, your rebate average would actually be below 1%.

Verdict? Excellent program for anyone who averages at least $1,000+ in monthly spending. However that still won’t beat the cards that give you 2% cash back on all spending.

Platinum Edition MasterCard

If you’re rewards chaser, sorry this one is not for you. It doesn’t offer any rewards, but it does come with a relatively low interest rate. There’s no annual fee.

As I write this review the APR ranged from 9.99% to 17.99% (based on your credit score/history). If you came in on the low end of that range, 9.99% is a few points lower than most credit cards these days. Also when I checked, there was a intro APR of 0% for 12 months on purchases and balance transfers.

Verdict? My guess is that the credit score requirements are going to be more lenient on this one, compared to the AmEx and Discover cards. So if your credit isn’t top-notch and you just want a First National Bank credit card, this would probably be the one to apply for.

Platinum Edition Visa Card

This is basically the same as the First National MasterCard, except obviously, this one’s a Visa.

The interest rate ranges are the same on this one and it also advertised the 0% for 12 months on purchases and balance transfers.

Verdict? A good no-frills card if you are a balance carrier. Like the Platinum Visa card, this is not the best choice for the rewards chaser who pays their bill in full.

Overall conclusion?

First National Bank of Omaha gives good rewards, and when I called them while writing these reviews, I received friendly US-based customer service. Even though their rewards might not be the absolute best, they’re definitely among the best and I think this bank has a bright future. I wouldn’t be the least bit surprised if 10 or 15 years from now, their credit card popularity rivals Chase, Citi, and the other big boys. Because obviously, the First National credit cards are gunning for that territory given their generous rewards.

Review written or last updated April 2012

Despite being one of the biggest and most popular luxury hotel brands in the world, you might be surprised to hear that up until 2 years ago, Hyatt never issued their own branded card.

Why not? Well the rumor was because they weren’t interested in having one, unless it could be the best hotel credit card on the market.

So did they accomplish that goal or not? Well review it for yourself… I think there’s a strong case that they did!

The best card offer ever?

We all know cardholder promotions have been pretty enticing lately, but the new Chase Hyatt credit card offer takes it to a whole new level…

Two free nights at any Hyatt, worldwide! Sure, some hotel cards will reel you in with a promotion for a free stay but then when you dig into the fine print, you discover they only give it to you at their lowest level properties. That’s NOT the case with the Hyatt 2 free nights promotion. Take a look for yourself – there are NO sneaky exclusions in the application’s fine print!

No sneaky exclusions… it’s refreshing to see a credit card offer that! So how much is this signup bonus actually worth? Well obviously the room rates vary by location but to give you an idea, I priced out a 2-night stay for fall 2012 at a couple of their high profile properties…

The Paris Vendome location is especially valuable, considering the dollar to euro conversion. Is this the most valuable credit card promotion ever? I can’t imagine the Hyatt card will run such a generous offer for long… so you definitely don’t want this one to pass you by.

Go here to earn 2 free nights after your first purchase

There are no resort, Internet or redemption fees for your award nights. There aren’t blackout dates either. So whether you use them to stay at a lower end location or a high profile property like those above, one thing is for sure… getting 2 free nights at a luxury hotel like Hyatt – regardless of the location – is a ridiculously generous promotion.

Earning rewards

As you would expect, with the Hyatt Visa card you earn Hyatt Gold Passport points:

• 3 points per dollar spent at Hyatt
• 1 point per dollar everywhere else

There are no limits to how many points you can earn. How much are Hyatt points worth? Well, here is the reward redemption chart for rooms as of 2012.

Based on my experience, it’s easy to get up to 1.5 to 2 cents per Gold Passport point when you convert them to free nights at their hotels. But even if you’re not familiar with the rewards program, all you have to do is look at the two room quotes above to get the gist of how valuable their points are! So this means that even though the Chase Hyatt only gives 1 pt/dollar on normal spending, keep in mind that each point can be worth a lot more than what you typically get with most cards out there.

Big benefits for a small fee

The annual fee is very reasonable at $75 and once you see the benefits, I don’t think anyone can dispute that the credit card from Hyatt is worth every penny and more.

Comes with chip and PIN – Almost no US issued credit cards come with chip and PIN technology (EMV). As a result, swiping your old-fashioned magnetic strip card at European train ticket kiosks, parking meters, and gas pumps is usually impossible. But not for the Hyatt card.

No foreign transaction fees – With the Hyatt Visa you won’t ever have to pay that pesky 3% currency conversion surcharge ever again.

Hyatt Platinum status – You get this status as long as you have their card. Is it worthwhile? As Sarah Palin would say, you betchya!

• Receive a 15% point bonus for each stay
• Option to make a late checkout request and stay until 2:00 pm
• Get the preferred rooms (those on higher floors or that are larger)
• No charge for in-room internet
• Elite member area for faster check-in

Visa Signature benefits – This is the highest tier of a Visa card you can get and therefore it comes with the most bells and whistles: concierge service, purchase security, extended warranty coverage on eligible purchases, lost luggage reimbursement, travel emergency assistance hotline, emergency card and cash replacement, auto rental collision damage waiver, roadside dispatch, Common Carrier travel accident insurance, entertainment benefits, and more. Contact Chase for the details, rules, and exclusions for each benefit.

1 free award night every year on anniversary – Every year on your account’s anniversary date, you receive 1 Award night (good for category 1-4 properties). Obviously, getting that every year easily justifies the Hyatt credit card’s annual fee of $75.

Verdict?

Many of the credit cards out there that come with good signup promotions are not ones you would want to keep for the long haul. However, the Chase Hyatt Visa is definitely an exception: with all the benefits and the free award night every year upon renewal, it definitely makes sense having a permanent place in your wallet for it.

Apply now and receive 2 free nights after first purchase

Don’t procrastinate on this one folks, because a signup promotion this generous won’t last!

It’s back for 2012! Launched on April 11th this very-limited time promotion from Chase let’s you earn up to 100,000 Avios points. Here is the fine print behind the offer:

• 50,000 points after your very first purchase
• 25,000 more points for spending at least $10k during your first year
• Plus another 25,000 pts for making another $10k in purchases the first year.

Conclusion? The 50k points bonus is a good enough reason to apply. But you especially need to apply if you spend at least $20k per year (that’s an average of $1,667 per month). Because then you’re netting a cool 100,000 miles. Chase is only running this for a very short amount of time so don’t miss it. Go here for the promotion details and how you can signup.

I’ve been a holder of the British Airways Visa Signature card for exactly one year. I applied for it back in spring of 2011, during the first and only other time Chase ran the 100,000 miles promotion.

In a moment I’ll show you just how valuable the bonus is. But first, let me explain to you why this is one of the best airline credit cards on the market… even if you don’t travel abroad!

Reason #1: Higher reward value vs. the other guys

Last year the British Airways frequent flyer program (Executive Club) started using Avios points instead of miles. It’s a bigger program, with more ways to earn/spend your points.

• 1.25 Avios points for every dollar spent
• 2.50 Avios points per dollar on British Airways

As I’m sure you know, most airline cards only give you 1 mile (or point) on regular spending. However the British Airways credit card offers you 25% more points on these purchases. Best of all, you can do a lot with the points, which I will demonstrate next…

Reason #2: Your points will go a long ways

Here an example of the number of Avios points needed for a one-way flight from Chicago to London:

Of course for a round-trip flight, the amount would be doubled (40,000 pts). This is why the British Airways 100k miles offer is so ridiculously generous… it’s enough points to score you 2 roundtrip tickets from the US to UK. As is the case with all mileage programs, please note you still have to pay the taxes/fees (which can run a few hundred bucks on a transatlantic flight).

Is a trip to England not your cup of tea? No worries, because you can use your Avios for a lot more. As a partner of British Airways, you can use your credit card points to book award flights on all American Airlines flights, too (except for those to/from London).

See how 25,000 points can score you a roundtrip flight to Hawaii? At the same time, I got a quote for the cash price for this ticket on the American Airlines website (which is the cheapest place to book AA flights) and the price I was quoted was $589.41.

Pay $589.41 or redeem 25,000 miles and only pay $21.80 in taxes? The value is obvious – for this particular fare you would be getting more than $0.02 value per Avios point!

Now you see exactly why this British Airways credit card promotion for 100,000 miles (Avios points) is so unbelievable. Think about it… you could use the 100,00 points to score up to 4 flights to Hawaii!

Reason #3: Your credit card benefits

It comes jam-packed with benefits:

• No Foreign Transaction Fee – Never again will you have to pay that 2-3% fee for using your card abroad.
• Travel Together Ticket – You earn one of these tickets every year you spend at least $30k on your British Airways Visa Signature card (and it’s good for 2 years after being issued). It allows you to bring a companion on your next reward flight for free – just pay the usual taxes/fees on the second ticket and that’s it. You can use the Travel Together Ticket for whatever cabin you fly, wherever BA flies, on whatever date you want (no restrictions).
• Embedded with chip and pin – Ever try using your American credit card at say, a train ticket kiosk in France? Good luck with that! Almost everywhere else in the world uses credit cards with chip and pin. Some places won’t accept your card if it doesn’t have it. This is one of the very few U.S. cards that currently comes with it.
• Visa Signature Benefits – This is the highest tier of a Visa card you can get. It means you get a number of extra perks free of charge on eligible purchases such as extended warranties, purchase protection, etc. You also get 24/7 access to the Visa Signature concierge line.

Is it the best offer ever?

I have NEVER seen a signup offer that competes with the Chase British Airways card’s 100k miles.

It’s a promotion that’s so insanely lucrative, even those who don’t travel to Europe are applying for it in a heartbeat. The $95 annual fee is peanuts compared to the benefits you are getting in return (and yes, I love it so much I just renewed my account for the 2nd year).

Not to mention, aside from the 100,000 bonus points, remember you will still be earning more value than most airline cards given the 1.25 pts/dollar on your everyday spending.

Apply now and earn up to 100,000 bonus miles!

If their cars are the ultimate driving machine, is the BMW Visa the ultimate credit card? You need to pay close attention…

Where I grew up in Michigan, you might go days without seeing a single BMW on the road. However where I now live in Los Angeles, I am willing to wager there are more BMWs on the road than say, Fords and Chevys combined. If I had a dollar every time I saw a 3 or 5 series in black, I’d be a very rich man.

On a per capita basis, I don’t think there’s any disputing that this is the most popular city for BMWs in the US. Therefore I thought it would be fitting to finally do an in-depth review of the BMW credit card. The card can be a good – or not so good – deal depending on how you spend the points.

To pay or not to pay?

Issued by BMW Financial Service, their credit card comes in two flavors:

• No-Fee BMW Rewards – With this version you pay no annual fee.
• Performance Plus Rewards – For a $50 annual fee, the application describes it as a way to “earn valuable travel, merchandise, and spa rewards.”

Both of the BMW credit cards have interest rates which are quite low; the application lists the prime rate + 6.99%-17.99% (depending on your credit score/creditworthiness). Since the prime rate is 3.25 as of 2012, that means your interest rate ranges from 10.24% to 21.24%. On the bottom end, that’s a low APR.

But what about the rewards? As you can probably guess, the second version offers more rewards and benefits… but is it worth chucking over $50 for?

The no-fee BMW Visa card

The good news? I applaud BMW for being transparent and upfront regarding how much the points are worth during redemption. Unlike most credit cards, they don’t use tiers and tricks to disguise the value. Rather, they just use nice round numbers so you can clearly calculate what you’re getting (examples in a moment).

The bad news? The value you’re getting is hardly exciting. If you apply for the basic BMW Visa you earn:

• 1 point per $2 spent on purchases
• Double points for gasoline purchases
• No caps on how many can be earned

So how much are these points worth? Well you have the option of redeeming them for lease/loan rewards, car maintenance services, and BMW merchandise.

Maintenance and Accessories: You can cash out points for “BMW Center Dividends” which can be applied towards service, maintenance, and accessories from the dealer of your choice. They convert like this:

As I said, they’re clean conversion ratios but since you’re only earning 1 point per $2, these Dividends calculate out to mean a 1/2% rebate on regular purchases and 1% on gas.

Lifestyle Merchandise: This is what they call their apparel, accessories, and gifts.

$100 certificate = 10,000 points
$200 certificate = 20,000 points

That means the value realized is the same as the maintenance/accessories.

Excess Wear & Use: Same conversion as the above two options. Each 10,000 points = $100 towards excess wear and use charges on your lease.

Additional Lease Miles: This option appears to be the best deal if you have the regular Visa card from BMW, because your points will be worth more.

Let’s look at the last one, since 100,000 points is an easy number to work with. Last I checked, the price BMW charges for extra lease miles is $0.16 on the 3 series, 5 series, and SUVS. $0.22 for the 7 series.

0.16 x 5,000 miles = $800
0.22 x 5,000 miles = $1,100

Your BMW credit card rewards (from non-gas spending) will be worth 0.8% to 1.1% when used for miles, depending on what you drive. Obviously that percentage may skew up a tiny bit once you factor in the double points on gas. Regardless, it appears to be the wisest way to use points if you have this card. Of course, if you don’t lease this option won’t be avail.

Verdict?

When there are so many other no fee MasterCard and Visa credit cards on the market that pay 1% to 5% cash back, I don’t see why getting this version of the BMW credit card will be logical.

While it does have platinum benefits like warranty manager, auto rental insurance, emergency cash and card replacement, etc. the customer service rep I spoke to told me these benefits are administered through Visa. If that’s true, there are a number of no fee credit cards on the market with comparable benefits for Visa Signature, but better rewards value than what the BMW Visa offers.

The $50 BMW Visa card

The “Perfomance Plus Rewards” credit card offers more points:

• 1 point per $1 spend on all purchases
• No cap on how many points can be earned

As you are about see, the value of these points will convert to at least the equivalent of a 1% rebate on spending and sometimes more, if redeemed strategically. Since I can’t login to a BMW credit card account to give this a full test run, I am relying on the information supplied with the card application/marketing material (and fortunately, it’s quite thorough).

The focus of the rewards is travel and here are 5 examples:

1. Ritz-Carlton

35,000 points can get 1 night at 33 Ritz-Carlton locations worldwide. In addition to the free night, there’s also breakfast for two, access to the Ritz-Carlton club, and 5 food and beverage presentations (if you’re not familiar with these, read the Ritz Carlton Visa Signature card review).

Deal Or No Deal? They don’t list the 33 locations so without knowing them it’s hard to determine the value, but I would say this is still a deal because the conversion value is most likely going to be at least slightly above $0.01/point.

2. Hyatt or Wyndham Hotels/Resorts

10,000 points will buy a $100 gift certificate that can be used at the aforementioned hotels.

Deal or No Deal? With 1 point per $1 this is like getting 1%. That’s pretty average as far as credit card rewards are concerned.

3. Air Travel

With the high price of airfare these days, this is probably going to yield the highest value:

Deal or No Deal? This has the potential to be a good deal, as long as your flight isn’t in the wee hours of the morning or with unnecessary layovers. Unfortunately I can’t use the BMW credit card login to check how this works (what your flight options are). But if you have the $50 BMW Visa Platinum card, I’m willing to bet this will probably be the best way to spend your points if you want maximum value.

4. Merchandise Rewards At Partners

For a minimum of 20,000 reward points you get a $200 gift card from over a couple dozen partner retailers like Macy’s, Coach, Nordstrom, Eddie Bauer, and Toys R Us. You can get gift cards of higher amounts too – add increments of 10,000 points for each additional $100.

Deal or No Deal? This is straightforward 1% conversion. Not bad, but not great… just middle of the road when it comes to credit card points.

5. Marriott Rewards

You can get Marriott gift certificates at the ol’ $100 for 10k points conversion. But you will probably be getting a much better deal than that if you go with another available option… redeeming 50k points for a 3-night stay at a Marriott Gold Villa (10 domestic locations to choose from). These villas are 2 bed, 2 bath, complete with a kitchen and whirlpool tub.

Deal or No Deal? Divide 50k points ($500) by 3 and you get about $133 per night. Does renting one of these villas cost more than that? I would certainly say so. You will most likely be getting more than a 1% conversion with this, making it a good way to spend your BMW Visa card rewards.

Verdict?

This version does come with a number of additional travel benefits such as lost luggage assistance, emergency ticket replacement, trip planning assistance, and others. Although nice to have, I would not consider them to be especially unique since many hotel, airline and travel credit cards offer similar benefits. So I wouldn’t recommend applying just for the BMW Visa benefits.

However with the rewards, you are going to be getting at least 1.0% and sometimes even higher. Is it worth it for you? Well I would recommend basing your decision on the airfare and hotel reward options and whether or not you want to pay $50 to get them.

Other Recommendations?

• American Express Premier Rewards Gold Card – high rewards + premium benefits = exceptional value
• Chase Sapphire Preferred – generous rewards program centered around travelers
• American Express Platinum – see for yourself why the $450 membership fee is worth every penny

Back in summer of 2011, American Express launched a prepaid card. I’ve noticed many hailing it as their first prepaid card, but actually there’s the AmEx Pass that’s been out for a while now, although that is mainly geared towards teens.

Is it a debit or credit card?

American Express prepaid credit cards? Or debit cards? Actually… neither!

Since this new card doesn’t allow you to buy anything on credit, it’s definitely not a credit card. Most stories I’ve seen so far has referred to them as being prepaid AmEx debit cards. That’s a closer description but if you want to be nit-picky about it, these aren’t exactly debit cards either by definition.

But that’s all semantics, let’s get into the good, bad, and ugly aspects of this new card.

The Good For

Almost no fees
Let’s be honest here… most of the prepaid card issuers are famous for nickel and diming customers with fees, fees, and more fees. I’m not claiming all are rotten but a lot of them definitely are.

With AmEx’s new prepaid reloadable card you won’t be shook down with a million different fees. In fact, getting the card itself is completely free and you can order it online. There are no activation fees, no fees for calling customer service, no monthly or yearly fees, no purchase fees, and no overdraft fees.

So how is American Express making money you ask? Well, since your purchases are processed the same as a credit card, the merchant has to pay those credit card processing fees. AmEx is hoping your purchase volume brings in enough processing fees to offset the costs they have to pay to advertise, issue, and manage these prepaid accounts.

Better customer service
I don’t have any personal experience/reviews to share, so I can’t conclusively judge this card’s customer service. But given that it’s American Express, I expect it will be a heck of a lot better than the service you get with most other prepaid debit cards. According to the AmEx website, service is available 24 hours a day via 1-866-207-7970.

Several excellent benefits for free
If you have an AmEx charge or credit card, chances are you already know about these great benefits:

• Purchase Protection: Covered items which are stolen or accidentally damaged during the first 90 days will be reimbursed.
• Fraud Protection: The AmEx website says they will refund charges if your card is lost or stolen (much safer than cash, right?).
• Global Assist: In a nutshell this is a help line you can call when you are traveling more than 100 miles from home. They won’t actually pay for the help you need, but they will provide free guidance/advice in how to get that help. For example, if you need help finding an emergency dentist overseas or you lost your passport, they should be able to direct you to the right people.
• Arranging Roadside Assistance: This benefit isn’t that exciting since AmEx is not actually paying for the roadside assistance, but they will arrange the service for you without charge. You can use this up to 5x per year.

Qualifications (almost everyone will qualify)
So what AmEx Prepaid card requirements? Well since there’s no credit check, it doesn’t matter how bad your credit history is! The application says:

• You must be 18 years of age or older
• Cards cannot be shipped outside the US
• Cannot be shipped to Arkansas or Vermont

Pretty painless requirements, right? You will have to supply your Social Security/tax ID number but rest assured, this has nothing to do with your credit history. ALL prepaid cards are required by law to obtain this info from customers due to the Patriot Act.

Helps you build history with AmEx
Now this is awesome. By having and using the card, you can establish a history/reputation with American Express which may lead to you getting invited to apply for a charge card. Here’s how their website describes the “Make Your Move” program:

The Bad

ATM fees
You get one free withdrawal per month with an AmEx Prepaid Card (which is better than almost every other prepaid card on the market) but beyond that, you will be charged $2.00 per withdrawal. Then you also need to take into account the additional fees the ATM operator may charge you on top of that, because the two bucks just goes to American Express.

The Ugly

Reloading with cash
If you don’t want to pay any fees to reload, then you have to transfer funds either from (a) bank account or (b) another American Express card.

The problem with this is that many people who use reloadable prepaid cards don’t have a checking account nor a credit card, let alone an American Express. I’m not claiming that’s the case with everyone who this card would appeal to but certainly a good chunk of people fall under this umbrella.

If you don’t have a bank account or an AmEx card, you will need to reload with cash using a GreenDot MoneyPak (which is used for many other prepaid cards, too). You can pick up a GreenDot MoneyPak at drugstores, convenience stores and load money onto it for a fee, which is often $4.95.

Typically the most you can load onto it is $500 so that means right off the bat, that $4.95 equals almost 1% of your money. If you load $250 on it, the $4.95 equals almost 2%. As you see the less you load, the more your fee is percentage-wise.

Verdict?

If you can reload your American Express Prepaid Card using a bank account or other AmEx card, then this is definitely a good deal compared to almost every other prepaid cards on the market. There are no application fees, no monthly fees, and no annual fees!

However if you need to use the GreenDot MoneyPak those fees definitely suck, but at the same time, they are comparable to what you would be paying on other prepaid cards. So overall, this prepaid card from AmEx isn’t perfect but it appears to be the best one out there.

Use this link to get a AmEx Prepaid Card for free

By the way if the reason you are interested in a prepaid card is because you have bad credit and can’t get approved for a regular credit card, then you might want to consider applying for a secured credit card. The downside is those require deposits of $200 and up. However approval is almost guaranteed and yes, the fees are high, but at least the account will help build your credit if used responsibly.