Blue Cash Preferred Review 2026
Apply and find out your welcome offer. As High As $300 cash back* after you spend $3,000 in purchases on your new Card within the first 6 months of Card Membership. Welcome offers vary and you may not
See offerYou'll leave SwitchWize. Verify terms with the issuer.
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Your card estimate
Net first-year value
First year
+$505
Rewards + bonus - fee - interest drag
Ongoing year
+$205
Excludes one-time welcome offer
SwitchWize take
Cash-back optimizer
Bonus value
$300
Rewards
1% cash back
Annual fee
$95
APR
19.49%-28.49%
Quick summary
What this card is, in plain words
Blue Cash Preferred has a $95 annual fee. It earns 1% cash back on everything else, and more on 5 categories (the highest is 6% cash back on groceries). It charges a 2.7% foreign transaction fee.
What to consider
- The $95 annual fee is charged every year, so the rewards have to be worth more than that.
- It charges a 2.7% fee on purchases made abroad.
- The 6% cash back rate on u.s. supermarkets stops after the cap. Up to $6,000 in purchases per calendar_year.
Pros & cons
- Sign-up bonus worth $300
- Annual fee: $95
Derived from the current rate, fees, and terms we track for this product. Confirm the latest details on the provider’s site.
Card truth label
Terms that decide whether this card fits
Fees
What this card can cost you
- Annual fee
- $95
- Foreign transaction fee
- 2.7% of each purchase
- Balance transfer fee
- Not verified yet
- Cash advance fee
- Not verified yet
- Late payment fee
- Not verified yet
- Authorized user fee
- Not verified yet
Earning rates
What you earn, by purchase type
Groceries
6% cash back
Streaming
6% cash back
U.s. supermarkets
Up to $6,000 in purchases per calendar_year
6% cash back
Gas
3% cash back
Transit
3% cash back
Everything else
1% cash back
Fee Reality
What the credits on this card are actually worth
This card advertises $240 in annual credits. We scored how hard each credit is to use: signing up, how often it resets, which stores it works at, and how you redeem it. We estimate a typical cardholder realizes about $24 (10%) of that value against a $95 annual fee.
Net estimated cost after credits: $71/yr
Our verdict: close call — worth a manual review against your own usage.
Confidence grade C — an estimate from our scoring model, not a survey. See how we worked this out.
Benefits and protections
Each item below was checked against the issuer's own published terms. Coverage limits and exclusions apply, so confirm them with the issuer.
Protections
- Car Rental Loss and Damage Insurance
- Extended Warranty (calendar year)
- Purchase Protection (calendar year)
- Return Protection (calendar year)
Perks and credits
- Amex Offers
- Amex Presale Tickets and Amex Reserved Tickets
- Cash Back at Amazon.com Checkout
- Disney Streaming Credit (annual)
- Dispute Resolution
- Global Assist Hotline
- Instant Card Number (one time)
- Online Account Management
- Send & Split
Offer history
How today's bonus compares
Welcome offer needs verification
See terms
Observed Recently
12-month best
See terms
0 tracked observations
Signal
At or near tracked best
Last history update Recently
Terms history
Has the fee or APR changed?
No change in annual fee or APR range detected since tracking began (2026-06-21 00:00:00+00). Tracked since Jun 21, 2026 across 5 tracked readings — not a signal to act by any deadline, just context on whether today's terms match what was first tracked.
Best for
- People whose spending matches the rewards structure
- Applicants who can use the welcome offer responsibly
- Cardholders who pay in full
- People comparing net first-year value
Not for
- Carrying a balance long term
- Applying only for a bonus without a payoff plan
- Spending more to earn rewards
- Anyone who cannot meet issuer approval requirements
Decision checks
Apply only if these checks pass
$95 annual fee
19.49%-28.49% variable
Spend requirement: $3,000 in 6 months
American Express terms control approval, pricing, and rewards
How you earn
Caps, exclusions, merchant coding, and redemption values can change the real return. Verify issuer terms before applying.
If you carry a balance, compare payoff cost before rewards. Interest can erase rewards quickly.
The $95 annual fee needs to be offset by rewards, credits, or travel value.
Comparison set
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Questions
Common questions
What is the annual fee for the Blue Cash Preferred?
The Blue Cash Preferred has a $95 annual fee, according to American Express's page checked Oct 31, 2026.
Does the Blue Cash Preferred charge foreign transaction fees?
Yes. American Express lists a 2.7% foreign transaction fee for the Blue Cash Preferred.
How do I earn rewards with the Blue Cash Preferred?
6% cash back on groceries; 6% cash back on streaming; 6% cash back on u.s. supermarkets; 3% cash back on gas; 3% cash back on transit.
Sources
Where these figures come from
Fees and APR, Earning rates, Benefits and protections
https://www.americanexpress.com/us/credit-cards/card/blue-cash-preferred/ · checked Nov 5, 2026
Earning rates
https://www.americanexpress.com/us/credit-cards/ · checked Jun 21, 2026
We could not verify the balance transfer fee, cash advance fee, late payment fee, authorized user fee for this card yet, so we do not show a figure.
Bottom line
Is Blue Cash Preferred worth it?
Apply and find out your welcome offer. As High As $300 cash back* after you spend $3,000 in purchases on your new Card within the first 6 months of Card Membership. Welcome offers vary and you may not
Worth it if: People whose spending matches the rewards structure
Skip it if: Carrying a balance long term