The Rakuten American Express Card Review
2025.12 Update: The new offer is $200, only for Dec 17. [Expired] The offer is now $100 as usual.
2025.10 Update: The new offer is $100.
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Features
- $100 Offer: get a $100 bonus when you spend $1,000 in the first 90 days. The recent best offer is $200.
- Earn an extra 4% cash back on Rakuten purchases; earn an extra 5% cash back on Rakuten dining partners; earn 2% cash back on groceries and restaurants; and earn 1% cash back on everything else.
- You can choose to link your Rakuten account with AmEx Membership Rewards (MR) account, and transfer its cash back to MR points at a 1:1 ratio. You can also choose to link your Rakuten account with Bilt account, and transfer its cash back to Bilt points at a 1:1 ratio for a limited time (after 2026.5 the ratio will be 1:0.5 or more according to your Bilt account status).
- No annual fee.
Disadvantages
- There’s a cap on the extra 4% cash back rate on Rakuten purchases: up to $7,000 in a calendar year.
- The issuer is small (powered by Imprint, issued by First Electronic Bank).
- It has foreign transaction fee, so it's not a good choice outside the US.
Summary
You can buy almost anything on Rakuten, so this card is essentially a 4% online shopping card. The biggest limitation is the $7,000 a year cap.
Historical Offers Chart
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