Amazon American Express review

March 17, 2025: The Amazon Business Prime American Express Card is the credit card that Amazon and Amex offer to small business owners. While the Amazon American Express does offer increased rewards on business services like AWS and the option of getting 90-day terms, the card’s cap on 5% earnings at Amazon and its frustrating rewards redemption mechanism might make the personal Amazon card a more compelling option

Advertiser disclosure: Cards and Points has partnered with CardRatings for our coverage of credit card products. Cards and Points and CardRatings may receive a commission from card issuers. Some or all of the card offers that appear on this site are from advertisers. Compensation may affect how and where card products appear on the site. The site does not include all card companies or all available offers. Opinions, reviews, analyses & recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed or approved by any of these entities. Terms apply to all credit card benefits.

Our review of the Amazon Business Prime American Express Card

Cards and Points Rating: 3.5/5.0
Read more about our star ratings.

The Amazon Business Prime American Express Card is Amazon’s card for small business owners. The Amazon American Express offers 5% back or 90 day terms on U.S. purchases at Amazon.com, Amazon Business, AWS, and Whole Foods Market.

The card’s 5% rewards are capped at $120,000 in purchases each year which is disappointing, considering that the personal Amazon Prime Visa doesn’t cap its 5% rewards. If you’re a business owner who spends a lot at Amazon.com, the personal card might be a better choice, since you’ll only earn 1% back after spending beyond the rewards cap.

While the card does include the trifecta of Amex consumer insurance benefits—purchase protection, return protection, and extended warranty—its rewards cap, the fact that you can’t redeem your rewards for cash back directly, and the card being tied to the original account you signed up with (see our experience, below) means that this card, which could easily be a five-star card, gets a lesser rating.

For most people, the Prime Visa is a better choice.

Terms apply to American Express benefits.

Amazon Business Prime American Express Card at a glance

Annual fee: annual_fees
Requires paid Amazon Prime membership.
Foreign transaction fee: foreign_transaction_fee
(See Rates and Fees)

The Amazon Business Prime American Express Card offers 5% rewards on up to $120,000 of eligible Amazon spending, including U.S. purchases at Amazon Business and AWS. (After $120,000 of eligible spending, you’ll earn 1% for the remainder of the calendar year.)

Welcome offer

Best welcome offer: bonus_miles_full
Learn how to apply.

This welcome offer is earned as an Amazon gift card.

Rewards

• 5% back or 90 day terms on U.S. purchases on Amazon.com with an eligible Prime Membership.
  5% rewards are limited to the first $120,000 of purchases of 5% eligible purchases each calendar year. Afterward, you will earn 1%. Purchases financed with 90 day terms do not count toward this cap. 5% eligible Amazon purchases include U.S. purchases at:
  • Amazon.com
  • Amazon Business
  • AWS
  • Whole Foods Market
• 2% back on U.S. purchases at restaurnats.
• 2% back on U.S. purchases at gas stations.
• 2% back on wireless phone services purchased directly from U.S. service providers.
• 1% on other purchases.

Rewards are earned Amazon Rewards, which can be used toward eligible purchases at Amazon.com and Amazon Business or toward a charge on your statement. Rewards cannot be directly redeemed for cash back or a statement credit.

Benefits

Consumer insurance benefits

• Extended Warranty.
• Purchase Protection.
• Return Protection.

Travel insurance benefits

• Baggage Insurance Plan.
• Car Rental Loss and Damage Insurance.

Welcome offer: Get an Amazon gift card

Annual fee: annual_fees
(See Rates and Fees)

Best welcome offer: bonus_miles_full
Learn how to apply.

This welcome offer is earned as an Amazon gift card.

Rewards: Not quite as useful as cash back

The Amazon Rewards you’ll earn with the Amazon American Express aren’t quite as useful as cash back you’ll earn on other cards. We’ll cover more on that below, but here’s what the card earns on purchases:

• 5% back or 90 day terms on U.S. purchases on Amazon.com with an eligible Prime Membership.
  5% rewards are limited to the first $120,000 of purchases of 5% eligible purchases each calendar year. Afterward, you will earn 1%. Purchases financed with 90 day terms do not count toward this cap. 5% eligible Amazon purchases include U.S. purchases at:
  • Amazon.com
  • Amazon Business
  • AWS
  • Whole Foods Market
• 2% back on U.S. purchases at restaurnats.
• 2% back on U.S. purchases at gas stations.
• 2% back on wireless phone services purchased directly from U.S. service providers.
• 1% on other purchases.

The quirks of the Amazon Amex rewards

The Amazon American Express does not earn cash back—it earns Amazon Rewards—and the difference might make your rewards much harder to use than you’re expecting.

With Amazon Rewards you essentially have two options for redeeming your rewards:

• Pay for eligible Amazon purchases at checkout.
• Redeem for a credit to offset a charge posted to your statement.

Redeeming your rewards for an Amazon purchase isn’t terribly compelling. If you use your Amazon Amex rewards to pay for an Amazon purchase, you won’t receive 5% rewards on that purchase which, in our view, is the whole point of getting an Amazon credit card.

Sure, you can redeem your rewards for a statement credit to offset a charge that has posted to your account, but that severely limits how you can redeem your points. If you only have a $300 charge post to your account in a month, you can only redeem $300 worth of rewards. If you have less than that, you can’t redeem your rewards at all and if you have more than that, you’ll have to wait for another charge to post before you can access your rewards.

If Amazon and Amex made the rewards on this card redeemable as a simple statement credit, that would go a long way toward increasing the value of the card.

Benefits: Uncommonly good Amex consumer insurance benefits

The Amazon Amex offers a surprisingly good set of Amex consumer insurance benefits for a card with no annual fee. Few cards without an annual fee carry Amex’s Return Protection benefit. Here are the benefits of the Amazon American Express card.

Terms apply to all benefits. Enrollment required for some benefits.

Consumer insurance benefits

• Amex Extended Warranty covers eligible purchases with an original manufacturer’s warranty of five years or less. Coverage is up to one additional year, up to $10,000 per purchase, and $50,000 per eligible card.
• Amex Purchase Protection can reimburse you for losses caused by damage or theft of your eligible purchase, for up to 90 days from the date of purchase. Coverage is up to $1,000 per eligible purchase and $50,000 per eligible card.
• Amex Return Protection can refund the full purchase price, up to $300 per items and $1,000 per account per calendar year, if you try to return an eligible item to a merchant within 90 days and the merchant won’t take it back.

Travel insurance benefits

• Amex Baggage Insurance Plan covers the replacement cost of baggage in the event of baggage damage or loss when traveling on a common carrier ticket that you booked with your card. Coverage is up to $500 per covered person for checked-in baggage.
• Car Rental Loss and Damage Insurance provides secondary coverage against damage to or theft of a rental vehicle that you rent using your card. Vehicles rented in Australia, Italy, or New Zealand are excluded.

Our experience: Good promise, frustrating rewards

I really wish that I had more positive things to say about this card. The Amazon Amex card is so close to being a great card, but my experience with the card has been an exercise in frustration.

I got the Amazon Business Prime American Express Card so that I could separate my small business spending from personal Amazon spending. I knew about the cap on the 5% rewards, but I didn’t realize how much of a hassle the rewards would be.

My business purchases are typically larger—think computers and office equipment—so I’m currently sitting with several hundred dollars of unredeemed rewards. Since, I can only redeem rewards for Amazon purchases at checkout or redeem them for an offsetting statement credit, I either need to forego rewards on one of my Amazon purchases or wait until I can make a right-sized purchase on my Amazon Amex.

But perhaps even more frustrating is that I found a quirk about how Amex associates your card with your Prime account that has effectively bricked my card. I previously had an Amazon account with Prime under a gmail address and I originally signed up for this card using that Amazon account.

When I closed that account to move my business Amazon spending to a business email address, the card got converted to the non-Prime version: the Amazon Business American Express Card, which only earns 3%. Further, I found out that there is no way to associate my card to a new account, so I’m stuck with earning 3% unless I open up a new Business Prime Amex card under my new account.

This card has the potential to be a really good option for small businesses that make a lot of purchases from Amazon, but until Amex and Amazon make the rewards easier to use, uncap the rewards, and allow you to associate your card with a new Amazon account, I’m sticking with my Prime Visa.

Is the Amazon American Express right for you?

The Amazon Business Prime American Express Card won’t be the right Amazon credit card for everybody, but here are some reasons why the card might be best for you:

• You spend money with Amazon Business and AWS. The Prime Visa doesn’t offer 5% cash back on these Amazon purchases, so you’ll want the Business Prime to earn maximum cash back if you spend money on these services.
• You want Amex’s consumer insurance protections. Cash back isn’t the only reason to get a card. While the Chase Amazon personal card offers extended warranty and purchase protection, Amex is generally seen as having better consumer insurance protections.
• You are getting the card for extended payment terms. Getting 90 days to pay for your purchases might be your priority, so get this card if you care more about payment terms than cash back.

Alternatives: Cards to consider instead of the Amazon Business Prime American Express Card

If you find the cap on rewards stifling or don’t have prime, here are some alternatives to the Amazon American Express that you should take a look at:

• You want uncapped, easy cash back rewards at Amazon. The Prime Visa offers uncapped 5% cash back rewards at Amazon without jumping through the hoops of redeeming at checkout or offsetting purchases. The card doesn’t offer increased rewards with AWS or Amazon Business, but if you don’t spend with these particular Amazon brands, there’s little reason not to consider the personal card.
• You don’t have Prime. The U.S. Bank Shopper Cash Rewards® Visa Signature® Card can get you up to 6% cash back at Amazon, but you’ll need to pay an annual fee and the Bank of America® Customized Cash Rewards credit card can get you up to 5.25% cash back at Amazon with an $100,000+ banking relationship with Bank of America.

Take a peek at our article on the best credit cards to use at Amazon for some more ideas if you’re interested in great cards to use at Amazon.

Bottom line: The Prime Visa is better for most

Although you can get decent rewards at Amazon with the Amazon Business Prime American Express Card, the rewards cap and quirky rewards have us hesitant to enthusiastically endorse this card. We really think that the Prime Visa is a better card for most.

Amex rates and fees disclosures

• For rates and fees of the Amazon Business Prime American Express Card, see this link: See Rates and Fees

Amex insurance disclosures

Amex Baggage Insurance Plan (standard) benefit disclosure: Baggage Insurance Plan coverage can be in effect for Eligible Persons for eligible lost, damaged, or stolen Baggage during their travel on a Common Carrier (e.g. plane, train, ship, or bus) when the entire fare for a Common Carrier Vehicle ticket for the trip (one-way or round-trip) is charged to an eligible Account. Coverage can be provided for up to $1,250 for carry-on Baggage and up to $500 for checked Baggage, in excess of coverage provided by the Common Carrier (e.g. plane, train, ship, or bus). For New York State residents, there is a $10,000 aggregate maximum limit for all Covered Persons per Covered Trip. Eligibility and Benefit level varies by Card. Terms, Conditions, and Limitations Apply. Please visit americanexpress.com/benefitsguide for more details. Underwritten by AMEX Assurance Company.

Amex Car Rental Loss and Damage Insurance (standard) disclosure: Car Rental Loss and Damage Insurance can provide coverage up to $50,000 for theft of or damage to most rental vehicles when you use your eligible Card to reserve and pay for the entire eligible vehicle rental and decline the collision damage waiver or similar option offered by the Commercial Car Rental Company. This product provides secondary coverage and does not include liability coverage. Not all vehicle types or rentals are covered. Geographic restrictions apply. Eligibility and Benefit level varies by Card. Terms, Conditions, and Limitations Apply. Please visit americanexpress.com/benefitsguide for more details. Underwritten by AMEX Assurance Company. Car Rental Loss or Damage Coverage is offered through American Express Travel Related Services Company, Inc.

Amex Purchase Protection (standard) benefit disclosure: When an American Express® Card Member charges a Covered Purchase with their Eligible Card, Purchase Protection can help protect their Covered Purchases for up to 90 days from the Covered Purchase date if it is stolen or accidentally damaged. The coverage is limited to up to $1,000 per occurrence, up to $50,000 per Card Member account per calendar year.   Eligibility and Benefit level varies by Card. Terms, Conditions, and Limitations Apply. Please visit americanexpress.com/benefitsguide for more details. Underwritten by AMEX Assurance Company.

Amex Return Protection benefit disclosure: With Return Protection, you may return eligible purchases to American Express if the seller won’t take them back up to 90 days from the date of purchase. American Express may refund the full purchase price excluding shipping and handling, up to $300 per item, up to a maximum of $1,000 per calendar year per Card account, if you purchased it entirely with your eligible American Express® Card. Purchases must be made in the U.S. or its territories.   Eligibility and Benefit level varies by Card. Terms, Conditions, and Limitations Apply. Please visit americanexpress.com/benefitsguide for more details.

Amex Extended Warranty benefit disclosure: When an American Express® Card Member charges a Covered Purchase to an Eligible Card, Extended Warranty§ can provide up to one extra year added to the Original Manufacturer’s Warranty. Applies to warranties of five (5) years or less. Coverage is up to the actual amount charged to your Card for the item up to a maximum of $10,000; not to exceed $50,000 per Card Member account per calendar year.   Eligibility and Benefit level varies by Card. Terms, Conditions, and Limitations Apply. Please visit americanexpress.com/benefitsguide for more details. Underwritten by AMEX Assurance Company.

Advertiser disclosure: Cards and Points has partnered with CardRatings for our coverage of credit card products. Cards and Points and CardRatings may receive a commission from card issuers. Some or all of the card offers that appear on this site are from advertisers. Compensation may affect how and where card products appear on the site. The site does not include all card companies or all available offers. Opinions, reviews, analyses & recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed or approved by any of these entities. Terms apply to all credit card benefits.