Expired: AMEX Check Out — Another Easy $10 Deal

The $10 promotion expired on 2015.9.7. If there are any further updates, we’ll let everyone know.

A few days ago, AMEX rolled out another new service: AMEX Check out. It works essentially the same way as services like PayPal and Visa check out. On participating shopping sites, you log directly into your AMEX online account, and it automatically fills in your address and card details so you can check out right away. Naturally, we’re big fans of new services like this, because new services often mean lots of opportunities for deals. This time, AMEX is giving us a nice $10*X opportunity, where X is the number of AMEX credit cards you have, including authorized user cards.

Overview

Use AMEX check out at the following sites: barkbox.com, us.burberry.com, laithwaiteswine.com, ledbury.com, newegg.com, sabon.com, ticketmaster.com, virginwines.com, warbyparker.com, wsj.com, or wsjwine.com. After completing one purchase, you can receive a $10 statement credit (posted directly to your credit card, similar to an AMEX OFFER).

According to the terms, each account can get one $10 credit per merchant. For example, you can get it once at newegg and once again at ticketmaster. This has been confirmed to be once per store. So far, people have already received $10 per card at newegg, ticketmaster, and sabon, so you can feel comfortable making purchases.

Steps

We’ll use buying a Home Depot e-gift card on newegg.com as an example. The same idea applies to other sites and other items.

• Go to newegg.com
• Add the item you want to buy to your cart

• At checkout, choose AMEX Check out

• Log in to your AMEX online account and select the credit card you want to use for payment. You may need to verify with a security code; just choose to receive the code by email or phone.
• After verification, you’ll need to log in to your Newegg account. Once you log in or create a new account, you’ll see the order you just started. Click submit to complete it.
• A few minutes later, you’ll receive the newegg order confirmation and a welcome email from AMEX Check out

• In about three business days, you should receive the $10 from AMEX Check Out

Things to Note

• When using AMEX check out on newegg, you may run into errors, or the AMEX check out logo may disappear after using it once. It’s recommended to buy through the newegg mobile or iPad app to avoid this issue.
• On newegg, you can complete this purchase by buying gift cards, but note that different gift cards may have purchase limits. If one account exceeds the limit, the order may be canceled. The solution is to buy different gift cards or wait 48 hours before buying again.
• The terms say that one AMEX online account can only receive one $10 credit, but readers have reported that if multiple AMEX cards are in one account, each card can receive it. Of course, if each of your AMEX cards has its own separate account, then each account should be able to get it as well.
• AMEX-issued authorized user cards can also create separate accounts, so they can qualify too. However, non-AMEX-issued cards (FIA, BBVA, MACY, etc.) and AMEX prepaid cards such as Redbird, Bluebird, and Serve do not qualify, because they do not have a corresponding AMEX online account.
• Based on reader testing, there does not appear to be a minimum spending requirement. As long as the purchase amount is greater than 0, you can get the $10. I tested items priced at 0 on newegg and did not trigger the AMEX Check Out welcome email. But when I tested a $0.4 game DLC (search for online and then sort by price, and you’ll see lots of cheap items—just pick any one), I received the welcome email. Based on AMEX’s usual pattern, the credit should arrive a few days later.

• This promotion ends on 9/7/2015, so there is plenty of time to take advantage of it, but earlier is better.
• There are reports that AMEX Check Out will appear on Amazon on 7/15. If you already have something you need to buy on Amazon, it may be worth waiting.
• Right now, choosing AMEX checkout directly in the first step may produce an error. So it’s recommended that in the first step you choose “Secure Checkout,” then in the third step choose AMEX checkout, and the payment should go through successfully. This works on desktop; I have not tried the mobile app again. (Thanks to helpful reader eagle)
• At each store, you only need to register one username. Each time you pay, just choose a different card within AMEX check out.
• Ticket Master has canceled many orders. Money from earlier payments will be refunded, and the $10 will also be clawed back. According to other blogs, you can continue buying TM items, but this time you may not receive the AMEX Check Out email. Even so, after the purchase is completed, the $10 should still post.

Some Purchase Ideas (compiled from readers and various blogs)

The idea is to buy any cheap item priced above 0, which should trigger the AMEX $10 credit. So for your first purchase using AMEX check out, buying anything under $10 is positive value, and of course, the cheaper the better. If you already need something from that site anyway, just buy it directly.

• Newegg.com
  • Cheap game DLCs (just search for DLC), priced at 0.4. Spend 0.4 and AMEX gives back 10 dollars, once per card — I personally tested this and already received all of the $10 credits
  • game code $0.49: Link 1, Link 2, Link 3 (limit 5 per link every 48 hours) Available again
  • Game DLCs, $0.99 each, net profit $9.01: Link 1 (limit 2), Link 2 (limit 5), Link 3 (limit 5)
  • Please try not to buy cheap physical items with free shipping, such as cables. First, the order may be canceled; second, it increases newegg’s shipping costs quite a bit. Just buy game codes instead.
• ticketmaster (children’s ticket $5.14)
  • Children’s ticket $5.14: Link 1
  • A newly found 3.6 ticket-price link, with 2.5 fee: Link 1 (dead now, no AMEX CHECKOUT icon)
  • Ticket price 5, fee 1. There aren’t many $5 tickets, so move fast: Link 1 (set price&selection to $5, then search). The $5 option is gone now. At the moment there are only 7.5 tickets left, 8.5 total, so each card only profits by 1.5. Your call.
  • Ticket price $5, with AMEX Check Out icon: Link 1
  • Military children’s ticket, ticket price 0.1, fee $2, with AMEX check out icon: Link 1
  • Ticket price is 0, donate $5, and you can see the AMEX check out icon: Link 1
  • Ticket price is 0, with a $3.9 processing fee at check out: Link 1 (profit is 10-3.9 per ticket)
  • Child/senior ticket $5.2: Link 1 (profit is 10-5.2 per ticket)
  • Donate $1 on ticketmaster: Link 1, Link 2, Link 3 (all three links are currently dead; please follow the blogger’s Weibo or twitter in the right sidebar, and any new links will be updated there)
  • Donate $5 on ticketmaster: Link 1, Link 2 (for each $5 used, AMEX gives back $10, once per card)
  • Ticket price is 0, donate $5, and you can see the AMEX check out icon at check out: Link 1
  • $3 child ticket: Link 1
  • Ticket price is 0.25, must buy two tickets, no donation required, with AMEX check out icon: Link 1 (thanks to an FM reader) dead
  • Ticket price is $0.1, choose military, $2 fee, with AMEX check out icon: Link 1 (thx dansdeal)
• Subscribe to WSJ magazine for $12 to get $10 back from AMEX check out plus $20 cash back from fatwallet (Updated 7.29)
  • Register for a fatwallet account: click here (skip this step if you already have an account)
  • Go to fatwallet and search for wall street
  • Select the $20 cash back offer and go to the WSJ digital magazine subscription page
  • Pay with AMEX Check out
  • After payment, WSJ will not charge you immediately (you also will not see a pending charge on your credit card)
  • After 1-2 business days, once WSJ charges you, you will see the pending charge on your credit card and also receive the AMEX CHECK OUT welcome email
  • Note 1: The WSJ site says the $12 subscription can only be used once per address, but some readers tested it with multiple email addresses and each one was still $12, so take your own risk.
  • Note 2: The blogger previously used AMEX check out to subscribe through an AA promotion and got 1700 mile, but that deal died quickly. Today the 1700 mile posted.
  • Note 3: WSJ magazine requires cancellation by phone. Please note your subscription date and cancel when the 12 weeks are almost up.
  • Note 4: The blogger has not personally tested whether the fatwallet cash back tracked successfully yet (though several readers reported that the cash back is already showing and they also received the AMEX checkout 10), so take your own risk.
  • Note 5: You only need one Fatwallet account. The terms do not limit how many times one FT account can receive it.
  • Screenshot of receiving the AA mile

• Sabon electronic gift cards — the methods for buying repeatedly no longer work, but buy 10 get 10 back still works
  • Buy a starter Sabon e-gift card
    • You can go through the TopCashback rebate site (8%) and use AMEX check out with your first card on the Sabon website to buy a $10 electronic gift card
    • You can also use any card to buy a card worth $10 or more on raise, usually for only $7-$8 (new raise users can also get a $5 sign up bonus; see the registration link at the end)
  • After receiving the code, go to Sabon again through TCB and buy a $10.01 gift card (just enter 10.01 directly in the box and ignore the .00 display afterward)
  • Log in to AMEX check out and let it auto-fill the address. On the payment page, use the previous $10 gift card first, and pay the remaining 0.01 with AMEX check out
  • Increase by 0.01 each time until you have used all of your AMEX cards
  • If you have never bought a 10.01-type egc before, then only modifying the code will make that box appear. If you have bought one egc above 10.01 before, then use that EGC to buy a $10 egc, and after receiving the egc, reorder the previous 10.01 one, then use the $10 egc plus AMEX check out to pay the remaining 10.01 (thanks to mitbbs user sioc for the idea)
  • Go to Sabon through TopCashback each time and buy a $10 egc (Sabon electronic gift cards) until all AMEX cards are used up
  • If you need to buy something at Sabon, the $10 egc can be used directly. If not, you can sell it on raise.com (a gift card marketplace) for about $6
  • If you do not have a raise.com account, you can register here (new accounts get $5 rewards; pairs well with this deal)
  • If you do not have a TCB rebate account, you can register here (new accounts get an extra $10 after earning $10 in cash back)
  • If you do not know how to use rebate sites for purchases, see “Introduction to rebate sites”

Additional screenshot: cash back received for buying a Sabon egift card through TopCashback~

Successfully sold a Sabon e-gift card on raise.com (you can probably list it at a higher price, haha)

Because of the nature of this deal, some methods are very unstable and frequently get shut down by merchants, so if you want to jump on it, do it sooner rather than later. This post only provides ideas and cannot be updated in real time, so thanks for understanding. If there are new links, they will be updated promptly on Weibo and twitter. Feel free to follow for the latest information.

Hope everyone enjoys the deal hunting~