They are. If you were to use the Fidelity American Express card you would earn 2% from the first dollar. If I recall correctly, Blue Cash pays 0.5% on the first $6,500 (1% if you use it in the targeted categories) which means you have given up as much as $97.50. I cannot say if this is a worthwhile tradeoff for the opportunity to earn a higher rebate later, but it is straightforward to calculate if you know the total spend on the card, and the proportion in the targeted categories.