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The Blue Cash Preferred® Card from American Express for military and military spouses offers 3% to 6% cash-back rewards categories.
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- $0 intro annual fee for the first year, then $95
- Earn 6% cash back at U.S. supermarkets on up to $6,000 per year in eligible purchases (then 1%)
- 6% cash back on select U.S. streaming subscriptions (full list here)
- 3% cash back at eligible U.S. gas stations and on transit (including taxis/rideshare, parking, tolls, trains, buses and more) purchases
- 1% cash back on other purchases
- Cash Back is received in the form of Reward Dollars that can be redeemed as a statement credit and at Amazon.com checkout.
- Get up to a $10 monthly statement credit after using your enrolled Blue Cash Preferred® Card for a subscription purchase, including a bundle subscription purchase, at DisneyPlus.com, Hulu.com, or Stream.espn.com U.S. websites. Subject to auto-renewal.
- Terms Apply, Enrollment is required for select benefits
- annual_fees (rates and fees)
- Terms apply
This is my #1 recommended cash rewards card for military personnel and their spouses. This card has the same policy that as the American Express Platinum Card®.
Cash back is given as “Reward Dollars” that can be redeemed for statement credit, gift cards, or merchandise.
I prefer statement credits, usually at the end of the year around Christmas time. I will save the cash back for the entire year and then use it to offset the increased expenses of the holidays.
I will definitely add this card as my default payment method for my Spotify, Netflix, and Amazon Prime Video account.
In this post:
Blue Cash Preferred 6 Percent Groceries
If you spend $500 per month on groceries, you could earn $360 per year in cash back (6% of $6,000 spend). If you are only getting 1% cash back with a different card, then that same $500/month spend would mean only $60 in cash back.
Some examples of US supermarkets where you can get 6% cash back on eligible purchases are:
- Safeway
- Gristedes
- Foodtown
- Foodland
- Publix
- Meijer
- Shoprite
- Stop and Shop
- Vons
- Whole Foods
- Winn-Dixie
- Online supermarkets such as FreshDirect
Military Commissaries on base are also eligible for the 6% cash back. This works both in the States and on bases outside the States such as Ramstein, Kadena, or Kunsan. Here's the full list of Commissaries that code as grocery stores on credit cards.
Note that superstores such as Amazon, Target, and Walmart and warehouse clubs such as BJ's, Costco, and Sam's Club DO NOT count as supermarkets according to Amex. Shopping at these locations does not earn 6% cash back.
Blue Cash Preferred 6 Percent Streaming Services
6% cash back on streaming services including:
- Amazon Music
- Apple Music
- Audible
- CBS All Access
- Direct TV Now
- ESPN+
- Fubo TV
- HBO Now
- Hulu
- iHeartRadio
- Kindle Unlimited
- MLB.TV
- NBA League Pass
- Netflix
- NHL.TV
- Pandora
- Amazon Prime Video Unlimited
- Showtime
- Sling TV
- SiriusXM Streaming and Satellite,
- Spotify
- YouTube Music Premium
- YouTube Premium
- YouTube TV
Check here for the latest “Select U.S. Streaming Subscriptions” that count towards the 6% cash back.
Amex Blue Cash Preferred
The Blue Cash Preferred® Card from American Express is an excellent “forever card” that you should add to your military wallet.
I've moved it to the top of my top recommended cash back cards for US military personnel and military spouses.
The Blue Cash Preferred makes an excellent supplement to your core Amex travel card portfolio which should include the:
- American Express Platinum Card®
- American Express® Gold Card
- Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant® American Express® Card
- Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card
- Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card
This card gives you 6% cash back on the first $6,000 per calendar year (then 1%) on your most basic life purchases of online streaming and groceries at U.S. grocery stores. It doesn't have any rotating categories to track or sign up for.
Learn how to apply for the Amex Blue Cash Preferred or see the other best cash back cards for military.
Amex Blue Cash Preferred FAQ
Yes, this is a great cash back card that every military servicemember should have in their wallet. The welcome bonus offer is definitely worth earning with the minimum spend required.
Military Commissaries count as supermarkets for Blue Cash Preferred. Also Safeway, Gristedes, Foodtown, Meijer, Shoprite, Stop and Shop, Vons, Whole Foods, Winn-Dixie, and online supermarkets such as FreshDirect.
Yes, the Amex Blue Cash Preferred has a credit limit. Usually it's treated as a credit card with a fixed credit limit, sometimes as high as $10,000 or more.
Can you break down the Blue Cash vs the Gold card? Both target the “U.S. Supermarket” category as a large part of their reward deal. I am betting you would recommend getting both but where would this fall on your ordering of the best cards for military members to get(https://militarymoneymanual.com/best-credit-cards-active-duty-military/)? Should one get this before or after the Gold Card and what would you use each for?
For those wondering, I found an answer. On the breakdown of the Gold Card that I found on Aug 26, 2022 it says “If you value Amex MR points at 2 cents or greater, this is an even better return on supermarket spending than the Amex Blue Cash Preferred with 6% cash back on US supermarkets ($95 annual fee waived for military).”
So if comparing for Supermarket spending then Gold beats Blue Cash Preferred but Blue Preferred has the streaming category that Gold doesn’t have meaning that Blue Cash Preferred would still have some use.