There’s nothing better than saving money by doing nothing more than you normally do. AMEX Offers is just that- if you have an American Express card all you have to do is register for a specific offer and dollars come right off your bill when you make a purchase at that merchant. No muss, no fuss!

If you’re like me, shopping for the kids is easy, but splurging on yourself can be a challenge. One thing that makes it easier for me is knowing I got a great deal in the process. So I find store coupons, use a portal like Ebates, and wait for the apple of my eye to go on sale. I feel even better when I can add an AMEX Offer to my deal.

Let me give you an example. I just bought a $200 dress for a holiday party from Bloomingdales.  I’ve been watching the dress for over a month and finally a set of deals made me pull the trigger. I got 25% off from a coupon, $21 back from Ebates, and an extra $20 back just by using my American Express card. So my $200 dress went down to $150, then down again to $129, and finally to $109. That’s a price I can live with.

Great! How Do I Get in on AMEX Offers?

Well, first you do have to have an American Express card. I’m guessing most of you have one of those. Then, finding the offers is easy. Check your American Express account under “Offers and Benefits”. You’ll see a long list of offers available- I currently see 76!  Now every account is targeted for different offers, so you may not see every offer out there.

Currently I have offers with three different hotel chains, an airline, twenty restaurant chains and many retailers. Examples include Hilton, McCormick and Schmicks, Staples and too many others to list.  I easily get $300/year back on AMEX offers.

Four Things You Need to Know About AMEX Offers

• Be sure to check your spouse’s account as well as offers differ between accounts and can be used once on each. If you’re lucky you can double-dip the savings.
• You have to opt-in to an offer before you can use it.
• Offers change frequently. I check my account at least weekly for new ones. Some also have a cap, so be sure to opt-in to an offer you think you might use before the cap runs out.
• You can use any store discounts and enter through a cash back portal such as Ebates. AMEX Offers are over and above any other offer.

Have you taken advantage of AMEX Offers?  Please share your successes in the comments.