American Express 

American Express used to be in a different category. For many years, all they offered were charge cards (also called a "travel and entertainment card") because they required that you pay off your balance in full each month. Charge cards?the American Express personal (a.k.a. "Green cards") and Gold cards?are still the majority of the cards they issue. 

But American Express has also added credit cards to their menu. Their cards include Blue, Optima, and Optima Platinum. All allow a consumer to pay in full or pay over time. The Blue card has a built-in Smart Chip to give consumers "an added level of security when shopping on-line." 

One of the advertised benefits of AmEx charge cards is the fact that there is "no preset spending limit." This doesn't mean that American Express is going to allow you to spend as much as you possibly can on the card. It just means you don't know how much they will allow you to spend. (They are flexible about this.) Their computers keep track of your spending and, if it looks like you are going overboard, someone might call you to find out what's going on, freeze your card if it looks like you aren't going to be able to pay the bills, or even decline some of your purchases. 

American Express' greatest pride, however, is their customer-service staff, which they say goes above and beyond that of other card companies. That, along with lots of perks, is primarily what they seem to be banking on for success. 

The first benefit that comes to many people's minds when they think of an AmEx card may not be service, however, but prestige. Millions of Americans now hold American Express cards, and even college students can get them, but the perceived exclusivity of the card still attracts new customers. 

Department-Store Cards 

Department-store cards are easy to get, but they are often very expensive. Although these cards are almost always "free" in terms of annual fees, if you don't pay off the balance in full, the finance charges are often astronomical?sometimes as high as 26 percent and almost never under 18 percent. 

Perhaps the only good reason to get department-store cards is the opportunity for special sales and discounts. Department stores often send their charge customers advance notice of sales, hold private sales for them, and offer periodic discounts on merchandise. If you rarely pay off your cards in full each month, however, don't use high-rate department-store cards; pull out a low-interest-rate bankcard instead. 

Gasoline Cards