Top 7 Reasons to Get the Amex SimplyCash Credit Card

This is a reminder that the sign up bonus for the SimplyCash® Business Card from American Express is ending April 27, 2016. The offer is giving first time applicants a $250 statement credit after spending $5,000 on qualifying purchases on the Card within the first 6 months of Card Membership. This card is only a year old, and most likely after this limited time offer will not have a sign up bonus. This is a new-ish card from American Express that came out last February and for awhile now has had no sign up offer. This card also comes with no annual fee.

• Key Link: SimplyCash® Business Card from American Express

So here are the top 7 reasons to get this card:

1. 5% cash back at US office supply stores and wireless phone services purchased directly from U.S. wireless providers. Getting 5% cash back with these two spend categories is great, especially since many office supply stores (i.e., Staples, Office Depot, etc.) sell gift cards to many other merchants. So you can think of it as getting 5% cash back at a variety of merchants. In regards to wireless phone services, I know many families easily spend $400/month, so getting $240 back over the course of the year can add up. For both categories, this is up to the first $25,000 spend and then goes down to 1% cash back.
2. 3% cash back at a category of your choice. You can select one out of the seven given categories to receive the 3% back, up to $25,000. I personally like the option of being able to get 3% cash back on either hotel rooms or and gas stations (airfare is good too, but I like to stick to Chase credit cards for the extra protection). Remember though, you can only select 1 category and cannot change it again until the following year (December 1 – January 31). These categories include:
   • Airfare purchased from airlines
   • Hotel rooms purchased from hotels
   • Car rentals purchased from select car rental companies
   • U.S gas stations
   • U.S. restaurants
   • U.S. purchases for advertising in select media
   • U.S. purchases for shipping
3. Access to the American Express OPEN Savings program. I wrote about this more here, but essentially you can get up to 10% back as a statement credit at participating merchants. This includes, for example, 10% back at Hertz and 5% back at Hyatt. There are stipulations to each program, so make sure to look at the prior post about the certain caveats. If you were to stay at Hyatt hotels often, for example, and selected the 3% cash back at hotel rooms, this would end up giving you 8% cash back. You can read more about saving money at Hyatt with an Amex OPEN card here.
4. The sign up bonus. While the sign up bonus is slightly less than some of the other cash back credit card sign ups (compared to the Barclaycard Arrival card), it is the highest bonus we’ve seen for the card. When the offer is over, my assumption is that it will go back to no sign up offer.
5. Receive statement credits with Amex Offers. Since this is an American Express credit card, you’ll be eligible to take advantage of more American Express offers. This means you can earn statement credits at many popular merchants with a credit card that doesn’t have an annual fee! If you partake in these offers then you are already ahead!
6. No annual fee. This card comes with no annual fee, EVER!
7. Sign up offer available again and again. A little less than a year ago, American Express put a policy in place where you are only able to get the sign up bonus once per American Express personal credit card in a lifetime. Well, since this is a business credit card that rule does not apply. The terms specifically state: “Welcome bonus not available to applicants who have or have had this product within the last 12 months.” Since this is a new-ish card, the chances of you having this card previously but not having it in the past 12 months is slim, but for down the line this information is good to know!

While this card is not for everyone, but as you can see above there is still some value in the card. It is also more valuable for those that prefer cash right away. I still prefer to use my Chase Ink Plus card on the 5% cash back categories since I value every dollar spent to be closer to a 10% return, but… points can always value and having cash in the pocket now is preferable to many. It also does not bring one of the strongest sign up bonuses, but remember it is a no annual fee card. If you cannot afford another hit on your credit report, then I’d let this one go and save it for a card with a bigger sign up bonus, but if you are in the safe zone this is a good one to consider.

Key Links: 

• SimplyCash® Business Card from American Express: Limited time offer – $250 statement credit after you spend $5,000 on qualifying purchases on the Card within the first 6 months of Card Membership; No annual fee; Your application must be received by April 27, 2016. Earn cash back with the following rewards structure:
  • 5% cash back on the first $25,000 spent annually at US office supply stores and wireless phone providers
  • 3% cash back on the first $25,000 spent annually at your category of choice (select one out of seven categories)
  • 1% cash back on other purchases

*Terms and limitations apply

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