I am having fun seeing how far I can go with a $0 credit card wallet as I re-enter the miles and points world. As a recap, I’m not naturally inclined to the skills that seem to draw most people to this hobby, so I like the idea of keeping things as simple as possible. For example, accumulating cards that I can justify keeping year in and year out without needing to jump through coupon-optimization hoops. With this goal in mind, I decided The Blue Business® Plus Credit Card from American Express might be a good next choice.
| Card Offer and Details |
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![](http://cdn.nextinsure.com/imaging/opt/72cb8f35-39c3-4925-9965-6f0db8d5f6c7.jpg?w=300" alt="The Blue Business® Plus Credit Card from American Express" />) ⓘ $233 1st Yr Value EstimateClick to learn about first year value estimates 15K points + 0% APR for 12 months ⓘAffiliateThis is an affiliate offer. Frequent Miler may earn a commission if you are approved for this offer 15k points after $3k in eligible purchases within the first 3 months + 0.0% intro APR on purchases for 12 months from the date of account opening, then a variable rate, 16.74% - 28.49%, based on your creditworthiness and other factors at account opening. 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. FM Mini Review: 2X rewards for all eligible purchases (up to $50K per year) with no annual fee makes this card a winner. Click here for our complete card review Earning rate: 2X Membership Rewards points on all eligible purchases, up to $50K spend per calendar year (then 1X thereafter). Terms apply. (Rates & Fees) Base: 2X (3.1%) Card Info: Amex Credit Card issued by Amex. This card imposes foreign transaction fees. |
Why I chose The Blue Business® Plus Credit Card from American Express
It’s a decent “everywhere” card for me
I’ve got my main spend categories covered with the Savor card (earning 3% back at grocery stores) and the Wells Fargo Autograph card (earning 3X on gas, dining, hotels, and flights). But I’ve wanted a better card for all the other miscellaneous expenses. I’ve been using my Spark Miles card for a modest 1.5X everywhere, but I primarily got that card to open up the ability to transfer Capital One earnings to travel partners, and would happily relegate that card to the sock drawer if I can find something with a better base earning rate. 2X on all purchases up to $50,000 in a calendar year is perfect for me, because my miscellaneous expenses are unlikely to exceed that amount.
I want to find out why everyone loves Amex points so much
So far, my credit card portfolio earns me transferable points, but in two of the least buzzy and exciting transferable currencies in the hobby. (Although, Stephen did win the 100K Vacay challenge with his 100K Capital One miles!)
I have to admit, I didn’t fully understand why people felt so much more excited about Amex points than either Wells Fargo or Capital One until I visited this post by Greg and Tim to better understand Amex’s transfer partners.
For one, I’ll now have access to the following transfer partners not available through Capital One or Wells Fargo:
- ANA Mileage Club (1:1)
- Delta SkyMiles (1:1)
- Hilton (1:2)
- Marriott (1:1)
For another, Amex has transfer bonus opportunities that could make a big difference once I want to actually use my points. Here are the current Amex transfer bonuses available at the moment.
| Transfer Bonus Details | Start Date | End Date |
|---|---|---|
| 30% transfer bonus from Amex Membership Rewards to British Airways Avios | 08/03/26 | 09/27/26 |
| 30% transfer bonus from Amex Membership Rewards to Iberia Avios | 08/03/26 | 09/27/26 |
| 30% transfer bonus from Amex Membership Rewards to Aer Lingus Avios | 08/03/26 | 09/27/26 |
I was able to confirm I’d be approved before taking on a hard pull
Amex lets you essentially accept (or decline) your acceptance, allowing you to forego the hard pull to your credit score if you’re not going to be approved. I’ve added two cards to my portfolio in the last ~4 months, so I liked the idea of confirming my approval before taking on yet another hard pull.
I’m excited to see whether or not there will be Amex Offers I can take advantage of
I’ve been enjoying the offers available to me in my Capital One account, but I’m curious if Amex will have anything either more attuned to my spending, or more profitable. (You can find current Amex Offers here.) At first glance there’s nothing specific catching my eye, but I’ll have fun paying attention to my favorite points and miles blog (yes, of course this one!) to find out if anything noteworthy comes along.
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Carrie – I wanted to mention that you may want to add your new card to your Rakuten account so now you can earn MR points with Rakuten instead of just cash back. This is an EASY way to earn extra rewards that you didn’t mention here and is only an option once you have a MR earning card.
Great advice!
ok. but just remember the sith lord takes his time. and slowly plays the long game until its too late.
I appreciate that we are hearing Carrie’s voice more often in posts like this! I hope her articles become regular features instead of occasional commentaries. It’s helpful to hear a variety of approaches and perspectives on the hobby.
The “Carrie commentary” seems to be a regular weekend feature which I appreciate as much of the other weekend material is digests of the previous weeks articles or other websites.
Why exactly does this writer get the special note on every post she writes?.
What special note?
Huh? According to her bio at the end of the article, she works for FM
If you mean “Carrie commentary,” it denotes articles in a series related to her ongoing points journey. Which are distinguished from other articles of which she is the poster. I think most regular readers deduced this. Even non-regular readers. I don’t think anyone paid it the attention you seem to have. Maybe talk it over with your therapist next week.
Nicke sometimes posts articles under the section “On Nick’s Mind”; this is similar.
Welcome to the AMEX MR points ecosystem! If you do any online shopping, you can connect your Rakuten account to AMEX and get your payouts in AMEX MR points.
There’s also the Amex Rakuten card that has no fee (tbc?) and adds an additional 4x on any Rakuten purchases
Thank you! Great tip!