American Express Membership Rewards - What is the "best" amex card?

What is the best amex card? I was under the impression that there are certain cards which are only available via invites. I just recieved my amex blue cash, is this a good card, or should I dump it for one of there classics? Just currious, ty,
ANDY

Hello... You may want to think about doing a search in this forum. There are literally hundreds of posts describing the pluses and minuses of the various cards. So, may I suggest that you do a little reading, so what you find, and then post a more precise question on exactly what you are looking for. (ie: let us know what is important to you - miles earning, cashback, privledges, ability to pay over time, customer service, etc)

If I may be more blunt than steve100....there is no one answer for what is "best" because every American Express product is aimed at something slightly different from many of the other products. (Please compare the Starwood card with, say, the base Optima.) That's why he's asked for more detailed information on what you're looking for--also, to add to the list he provided, is there an absolute limit on what you're willing to pay as an annual fee? In addition, do you want a CHARGE CARD--meaning you pay the balance in full every month--or are you interested in a CREDIT CARD, i.e., a revolving charge along the lines of VISA or MasterCard where you have a minimum balance, etc.? Or do you want a hybrid of the two where the presumption is that you pay in full but where you have the option of extending CERTAIN--though not all--charges?

I hate to fire all these questions at you, but if you go look at the American Express web page you'll see that they now have quite the variety of cards compared with, say, 20 years ago. That's why steve100 and I ask all this. It's like so many other things in life--you get what you put in. Give everyone some more detailed info about what you want to get from your American Express and you will no doubt get a lot of responses.

I'm a very confused man, I don't understand what the advantage of having a "charge" over having a "credit". The charge seems more restrictive, and comes with annual fees. Though as I read through the forums I see many people talking about the benefits of the top of the line cards (i.e. the black card). What's the advantage of having there "charge" card to a new customer? I don't understand how possesing one is better than the blue cash. (with no fee and cashback) But there are MANY people in the forum who stick with their charge cards, basically I want to know why? Why even use AMEX? Visa has hundreds of cards without annual fees, what's AMEX's selling point?

i would suggest you start with the american express website.
it details what the headline benefits of the cards are then choose a few of the cards you like, and come back here.
SPG Amex, gives you points for hotel stays which are worth more ( to certain people) than the tiny cashback u get.

(Discussion below excludes debit cards)

I think Consumer Reports recently addressed deciding on credit cards. I suggest checking their website as well.

On a credit card (which you do not have to pay in full every month), the credit card issuer is hoping that you will not pay in full so that it can collect interest on outstanding balances. That's a primary means of income for those cards. VISA and MC are examples (Amex Blue may also be in this category). Some of these also charge an annual fee, but often such fees also entitle you additional benefits such as miles (as with Alaska's or UAL's mileage cards).

On the other hand, a charge card does not (generally) have the income stream from interest on deferred payments, so they "replace" that income by charging annual fees. Traditional Amex and Diners Club are examples. Some of the variations also allow you to defer payments on certain purchases and charge you interest on the amounts you defer. Charge cards, unlike credit cards, may not have a formal "credit limit;" so that large charges may be allowed if you have a good payment history (at one point I received approval from Amex to use my charge card to buy a car, but the dealer threw a fit so I ended up not doing so.) Also, several times I have had charge card companies contact me when they noticed unusual charges (once when I bought a computer) as a fraud prevention procedure. I have never had a credit card company call me for similar reasons.

Excluding debit cards, a vendor that takes a particular brand of card will take all versions of that card, as far as I know. If a retailers accepts Amex, they should accept all versions: Blue, Black, Gold, Starwoods, etc.

Questions for you to resolve:
(a) Do you want a charge or credit card?
(b) Geographically, where will you be using the card? (My general assumptions: VISA and MC almost universally accepted in US and well accepted abroad; Amex good to very good acceptance in US and fair acceptance abroad; Diners has low acceptance except for travel-related in US but has good general acceptance abroad)
(c) Locally, where will you be using a card? (most retailers take VISA and MC, some take Amex, relatively few take Diners except for travel and restaurants) If you want kickbacks for paying tuition,etc., make sure you know which cards your school accepts.
(d) Which benefits are important to you? (primary or secondary rental car insurance, purchase "assurance", extended warranty, free travelers checks, in-store discounts, out-of-town check cashing, airport club access, upgraded flights or rooms, and many others)
(e) Which "kickbacks" are important to you? (reward points (that can be transferred to airlines, hotels, etc.), airline points or miles, hotel points, cash rebates, in-store rebates or credit, etc.)?
(f) How much do you expect to charge over the course of a year?
(g) Based on (f), is the value of the benefits plus "kickback" you may receive worth the cost of the card over the year? (many assume an airline mile to be worth between $0.01 and $0.02; hotel miles will vary, with most considering a Starwood point (worth about the same as an airline point) to be more valuable than a Marriot point, for example)

To directly address your question, one of the "distinguishing" benefits of Amex cards is the Membership Rewards program, which allows you to earn points based on spending and transfer them to a limited number of airline, hotel, and other programs. To figure the cost, you need to include the annual fee for the card plus any additional fee to join MR. Except for the VISA/MC tied into airline or hotel programs, the versions the VISA/MC cards that allow you to earn travel rewards generally do so in an account tied to your card. If a coach ticket requires 25,000 miles, you have to charge $25,000 on the card to get the ticket. On the other hand, through MR, you can transfer the points to a particular airline program and combine it with other points you have earned in that account, so you may reach reward levels faster.

An alternative to the traditional Amex that many on this board would suggest considering for points/miles is the Starwoods Amex.

The key with the kickback is to figure out what would get you the most value. For example, I know of someone who paid his school costs with an REI card (VISA I think) and used the resulting REI points to buy a canoe. To him, that probably was more valuable than a flight to Europe, for example.

Apologies for the essay. There are a lot of alternatives out there, and the process is not a quick and easy task.

Isn't there a tool on the AmEx website that asks you a few questions and recommends you the best card for you based on your answers? I'm sure there was one on the AmEx UK website

As others have said, it's really about what you want from it. I have a BA Amex card and have just returned from Rio(I come from Scotland) and am shortly hoping to book my free flight to Tobago. I get the flight when I have spent a certain amount - one free flight per year. When I have reached the maximum spend I switch to another card which gives me BA miles.
I cannot use my card for business( as I am a lowly paid teacher!!) so have no need for some of the other types of Amex card.