American Express Serve vs Bluebird by American Express Card 2024 Review
Leave it to American Express to make things more confusing than they currently are in an already-crowded prepaid cards market.
How? By offering two very similar options for people who are looking for an alternative to a traditional checking account.
The two cards are the American Express Serve and the Bluebird by American Express account - both of which are assuredly great options.
But, chances are you just need one of these cards. So, if you were left to pick one of the two, you might have trouble identifying the features that separate them.
That's why in this review I decided to take a deep dive into the cards to compare the American Express Serve and BlueBird by American Express to break down key factors of the two accounts.
Hopefully, this will help you in your decision process. Let's get started!
American Express Serve vs. Bluebird
| Card | American Express Bluebird | American Express Serve® |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly fee | $0 | $1 ($0 in NY, TX, VT) or waived with $500 monthly direct deposit |
| Unique fund reloads | Mail in checks | None |
| ATM access | $0 at all MoneyPass ATMs, $2 at all other ATMs (surcharges may apply) | $0 at all MoneyPass ATMs, $2 at all other ATMs (surcharges may apply) |
| Unique ways to spend | Ability to write checks | None |
Prepaid Card Monthly fees: Bluebird by American Express Costs Less
Monthly fees are an absolute turn off. You hate them. I hate them. Everyone hates them. But with prepaid cards, monthly fees are often unavoidable, which is why it is so refreshing to see that American Express offers consumer-friendly fee policies.
What's the policy? When comparing the American Express Serve vs BlueBird by American Express regarding prepaid fees, the Bluebird account doesn't charge a monthly fee - a very desirable trait in a prepaid card.
Meanwhile, the American Express Serve card carries a monthly fee of $1 per month (but it's free in NY, TX, and VT). This monthly fee can be waived with any direct deposit of $500 per month.
For the who don't have a steady direct deposit source, there are alternative ways that you can make a direct deposit.
Although it isn't too difficult to avoid the monthly fee on the American Express Serve card, the fee still does pose an unnecessary hurdle for card customers. It's just simpler to not have to worry about any possible monthly fee.
Therefore, when comparing the two cards monthly fees, the BlueBird by American Express appears to be the better option.
Fund reloads: American Express Bluebird Offers More Options
If you're looking at a prepaid card, chances are it's because you need something to act as a bank account for you so you can make transactions without having to rely on cash.
But you don't want to end up losing your hard-earned money to fees for refilling your prepaid card - sort of defeats the purpose.
When comparing the American Express Serve vs. BlueBird by American Express accounts, both are free to reload your account by direct deposit, debit card, checking account, savings account, and mobile check deposit.
Customers of both cards can reload cash at the register through the retailer locations of CVS/pharmacy, Dollar General, Family Dollar, Rite Aid, and 7-ELEVEN. However, there is a reload fee (up to $3.95) that varies depending on the retailer.
Bluebird offers additional ways to load your account
Bluebird customers can reload for free at Walmart, while Serve cardmembers may have to pay a fee.
Bluebird by American Express also allows customers to mail in checks for deposit.
Mailing in checks may not be the most convenient method of depositing a check, but you'll never know when you might need to take this route, so it's great that it's an option just in case you need it.
Perhaps most convenient of all, both prepaid accounts allow customers to deposit checks through their smartphones.
Both cards offer a long list of ways to fund your account, but Bluebird simply has more options.
ATM access: Tied
Regardless of what type of account you have, you want to know that you can access your money whenever you want to, preferably for free, right? Who wants to fork over a few bucks every time you withdraw cash? No one.
That's why it's so great that both accounts have a relationship with the MoneyPass ATM network (24,000 ATMs nationwide). This provides a huge amount of free access to ATMs for customers of either card.
Cash Withdrawals
Both cards have free cash withdrawals at all MoneyPass ATMs. All other withdrawals cost $2.50 each (surcharge possible)
With the exact same level of ATM access, these cards are tied for this category.
Both accounts also allow customers to withdraw cash from their accounts at Walmart through the Cash Pickup Powered by Ria service.
You can withdraw up to $900 (up to $2,900 if the withdrawal involves a tax refund) for a fee that could cost up to $9 ($9.49 for American Express Serve). It's an expensive service that pales in comparison to a regular ATM withdrawal at a MoneyPass ATM.
Spending money: Bluebird by American Express Offers Checks
Can you imagine being charged every time that you used your card to pay for something? Many prepaid cards impose such a transaction fee.
Luckily, you won’t face those charges with either of these American Express accounts. As if that wasn't already a great perk, external bank transfers and online bill pay are also free.
As an added bonus, both Bluebird by American Express and American Express Serve have tools to help you control spending.
That means you not only get easy access to your money, but you have additional help making sure you manage it in a way that helps your finances grow.
So what are the tools? They're called Reserve accounts and they enable you to set up goal-based savings funds.
You can also use these with your significant other and/or family members by creating sub-accounts for others. You can create up to 4 sub-accounts (for anyone 13 and older). Sub-account users can:
- Use their cards to pay for purchases online or in-store
- Withdraw cash at ATMs only if it is allowed by a primary account holder
- Send money to and request money from a primary account holder
The subaccounts can come in handy for parents who want to enable their children to have some spending power. At the same time, parents can monitor the sub-accounts to teach responsible financial management.
The ability to write paper checks
Of the two prepaid accounts, Bluebird by American Express is the only one that lets you write paper checks.
In fact, most other prepaid accounts do not allow check-writing at all. That is a major reason why prepaid accounts don't usually have overdraft fees - because it's difficult to overdraw a prepaid account without checks.
Paper checks may be used less frequently but they can still come in handy. For example, your landlord may still require that you pay your rent with a check.
Bluebird by American Express takes an unconventional approach to check-writing. Customers get an order of Bluebird by American Express checks, each of which must be pre-authorized before they become valid.
In order to do that, all you have to do is log into your account and tell American Express the check number and the check amount.
The funds to cover the check will be removed from your account immediately and you'll receive a pre-authorization code that must be printed on the Bluebird by American Express check.
Any Bluebird by American Express check that is not pre-authorized will not be honored.
This extra step will prevent customers from overdrawing their accounts. Since the check funds are guaranteed, these Bluebird by American Express checks work very much like cashier's checks.
The ability to write checks is a major reason that Bluebird by American Express provides more ways for a customer to use their money. It makes the Bluebird by American Express account more like a traditional checking account from a bank.
Foreign Transactions: Bluebird is Slightly Better
When it comes to using your prepaid card account in a foreign country, both Serve and Bluebird will not allow the cards to be used to access any international ATMs.
As for card purchases, Serve will add a conversion fee of 2.7%. So, if you make an international purchase of $100, you'll pay an additional $2.70.
Bluebird doesn't charge any foreign exchange fee.
Mobile Features: Same Account Management Features
Since mobile banking has become very important when considering a new financial account, many people like to see mobile apps offered by their financial institutions.
With both accounts being offered by American Express, Bluebird by American Express and American Express Serve have well-designed and feature-packed mobile apps. In fact, they offer nearly identical capabilities.
Both apps allow you to check balances, view transaction history, add money, pay bills, and manage sub-accounts.
The key feature offered by both apps is mobile check deposit, which is free with both prepaid accounts. Pretty much everything you might need to take care of is covered!
Verdict: BlueBird by American Express is Better
After breaking down the key features of the American Express Serve and BlueBird by American Express cards, the BlueBird by American Express is the way to go for an all-around prepaid option.
There's no monthly fee and you have the ability to write paper checks - much like a checking account.
With Bluebird by American Express behaving so much like a regular checking account, American Express Serve has trouble competing with it.
