The Morgan Stanley Credit Card from American Express

Card Details and Application Link
The Morgan Stanley Credit Card from American Express

FM Mini Review: Decent no-fee card thanks to its 2X category bonuses, but you do need to have a Morgan Stanley account to apply.


Card Type: Amex Credit Card

Base
Travel
Dine
Shop

Earning rate: ⚬ 2X U.S. Restaurants ⚬ 2X select U.S. Department Stores ⚬ 2X Car Rentals Purchased Directly from Select Car Rental Companies ⚬ 2X Airfare Purchased Directly from Airlines

Big spend bonus: $100 after $25K card membership year spend

Noteworthy perks: Invest with rewards (1 point = 1 cent)

Rewards

Amex Membership Rewards points can be incredibly valuable if you know how to use them. In general, if you use Membership Rewards points to pay for merchandise or travel, you won't get good value from your points. One exception is with the Business Platinum card where you'll get a 35% point rebate when using points to book certain flights. This gives you approximately 1.5 cents per point value, which is pretty good. Another exception is with the Business Gold Card where you'll get a 25% point rebate when using points to book certain flights. This gives you approximately 1.33 cents per point value. If you don't have either card, then your best bet is to transfer points to airline miles in order to book high value awards. More details can be found here: Amex Membership Rewards Complete Guide.

Application Tips


Amex Application Tips



  • Safe to Apply: Amex is the safest bank for trying your luck at earning a new welcome bonus offer. They don’t usually issue a hard pull when denying your application, and if you already have an Amex card, they won't usually issue a hard pull when approved for another one. Plus, they’ll now warn you during the application process if you’re not eligible for the bonus.

  • Lifetime Rule: If you've ever had the same card before, you are most likely prohibited from earning a welcome bonus offer for the card if you apply now. Fortunately you'll be warned during the application process if this is the case. Amex is known to "forget" that you've had a card after about 7 years.

  • 90 Day Rule: You can get at most two credit cards within 90 days. This rule does not apply to Pay Over Time (charge) cards.

  • 5 credit card max: Amex usually won't approve applications for new credit cards if you already have 5 or more Amex credit cards or 10 or more charge cards.

  • Better Offers: You may be able to get a better offer than the best available public offer. Details here.

  • Hard inquiries combine into 1 when approved same day


Check application status here.
If denied, call reconsideration: 877-399-3083 (new accountholders); 866-314-0237 (current accountholders)


Related Cards (Membership Rewards)

Card Offer
The Platinum Card® from American Express
150K points + $200 in statement credits
150K after $6K spend in 6 months + $200 in statement credits for purchases in the first 3 months. Terms apply.
(Offer Expires 6/7/2023)

$695 Annual Fee

Info about this card has been collected independently by Frequent Miler. The issuer did not provide the details, nor is it responsible for their accuracy.

Alternate offer: Resy Offer: 100K after $6K spend in 6 months plus 10x dining for 6 months on up to $25K spend. Terms apply.

Recent better offer: 125K after $6K in the first 6 months + 15x when you Shop Small in the US and at restaurants worldwide on up to $25K in eligible purchases in the first 6 months [Expired 1/20/22]

The Business Platinum Card® from American Express
150K points
150K points after $15K spend in the first 3 months. Terms apply. (Rates & Fees)

$695 Annual Fee

Info about this card has been collected independently by Frequent Miler. The issuer did not provide the details, nor is it responsible for their accuracy.

Alternate offer: Targeted online offer of 170K points after $15K spend in the first 3 months See this post for details.Targeted online offer of 120K points after $15K spend in the first 3 months + 10x at office supply and hardware stores up to $7500 in spend See this post for details.

American Express® Gold Card
90K points + $200 in statement credits
90K points after $4K in purchases in the first 6 months + $200 statement credit for purchases in the first 3 months. Terms apply. (Rates & Fees)
(Offer Expires 6/7/2023)

$250 Annual Fee

Info about this card has been collected independently by Frequent Miler. The issuer did not provide the details, nor is it responsible for their accuracy.

Recent better offer: 90K after $4K in the first 6 months + 20% back at restaurants for the first 12 months up to $250 back [Expired 6/8/22]

American Express® Green Card
60K Points
60K after $3K spend in first 6 months + 20% off travel and transit purchases for first 6 months. Terms apply. See Rates & Fees

$150 Annual Fee

Recent better offer: This is the best we've seen

American Express® Business Gold Card
70K Points
70K points after $10K spend in 3 months. Terms apply. (Rates & Fees)

$295 Annual Fee

Alternate offer: Some are targeted for an offer of 130K points after $10K in purchases in the first 3 months. You can see this post for more details Targeted Business Gold offer for 130K (Highly YMMV)

Recent better offer: 70K points + up to $300 in statement credits: 70K points after $10K spend in 3 months + up to $150 in statement credits for US shipping purchases and up to $150 in statement credits US advertising purchases. [Expired 4/7/21]

The Blue Business® Plus Credit Card from American Express
15K points
15K after $3K spend in 3 months. Terms apply. (Rates & Fees)

No Annual Fee

Alternate offer: Some people have been targeted for an offer in their online account for 75K points after $15K in purchases in their first 12 months.

Recent better offer: 20K after $3K spend in 3 months (Expired 6/21/17)

The Amex EveryDay® Preferred Credit Card from American Express
15K Points
15K after $1K spend in 3 months. Terms apply.

$95 Annual Fee

Info about this card has been collected independently by Frequent Miler. The issuer did not provide the details, nor is it responsible for their accuracy.

Alternate offer: Some people click through and find that they are targeted for an offer of 30K points after $2K spend in 3 months.

Recent better offer: 30K after $2K in first 3 months

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[…] excuse for the mistake is that I was distracted by another Morgan Stanley Amex card: The Morgan Stanley Credit Card from American Express.  I vaguely knew that such a card existed, but I had never paid much attention to it before.  […]

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[…] Membership Rewards card: Amex EveryDay or Morgan Stanley Credit Card.  The advantage of the latter is that it offers uncapped 2X rewards for select department […]

Mike

Found this card interesting. Any DP is applied without Morgan Stanley brokerage account?