[Dead] Did You Know You Can Still Apply For Amex Old Blue Cash?

Amex Old Blue Cash was one of the greatest cards around, since it offered unlimited 5% cash back at U.S. supermarkets, U.S. gas stations & select U.S. drugstores such as CVS. That was nice while it lasted, but the card still has all the same perks, but with a limit of $50,000 annually for the 5% categories. And it has no annual fee.

Applying For Amex Old Blue Cash

The American Express website still has the link for the Old Blue Cash card, although it’s not easy to see. You can either right click and open the link in incognito mode, or while in incognito mode, on the Amex website go to View All Cards and under Blue Cash Everyday, you should see “Looking for an earlier version of the Blue Cash Card?“.

Analysis

The “catch” with OBC is that you have to spend $6,500 before the 5% kicks in. So you’ll have to sacrifice a bit to start earning a 5% rate at supermarket, gas stations and drugstores. The $6,500 should be spent in other categories, so it doesn’t cut into the $50,000 limit that applies to the 5% categories.

So to get the most out of the card, spend $6,500 on other purchases and then close to $50,000 at U.S. supermarkets, U.S. gas stations & select U.S. drugstores. I say “close” because it’s best to stay under that limit since there’s been reports of Amex shutting down accounts that abuse the 5% categories.

Amex doesn’t provide you with a tracker for your cash back, so you should keep track of the spending and limits. The $50,000 resets on the account anniversary.

The Math

• Spend $6,500 on other purchases at 0.5x = $32.50 cash back
• Spend close to $50,000 in 5x bonus categories = $2,500 cash back
• About $2,530 in cash back total for about $56K in spend

Guru’s Wrap-Up

This is a great card to have if you can maximize the $50K in spending annually. It’s not not good for occasional use since the first $6,500 spent don’t earn the 5% rate at supermarkets, drugstores etc. It also doesn’t have a signup bonus, so you should probably look to get some nice bonuses firstbefore taking up one of your Amex slots with this card.

Card Details

• Apply Here (try incognito if it doesn’t work)
• For your first $6,500 in purchases in a reward year, you will receive 1% on Everyday Purchases, and 0.5% on other purchases. After your first $6,500 in purchases, you will receive 5% on Everyday Purchases up to $50,000 and 1% on other purchases
• Redeem the Reward Dollars you earn for cash back in the form of a statement credit, or choose from gift cards or merchandise. Redemptions start at just 25 Reward Dollars
• APR on purchases will be a variable rate, currently 17.24, 20.24 or 22.24%, based on your creditworthiness
• Purchase protection, Return Protection and Extended Warranty on eligible items