AmEx Doubles Rewards at Small Businesses Till End of 2016

My, how Small Business Saturday has grown.

American Express introduced its Small Business Saturday promotion in 2010 to encourage people to shop locally and support small businesses (and, of course, to use AmEx cards). Held the Saturday after Thanksgiving, it’s meantto be an antidote to the blowout sales at big-box megastores on Black Friday. Last year, AmEx said, consumersspent $16.2 billion at local small businesses on the designated day.

This year, American Express’ support of small business is expanding beyond one Saturday — and it’s offering an extra incentive for AmEx cardholders to get involved. From nowthrough Dec. 31, 2016, American Express cardholders can earn double rewards on spendingat a participating small business, both in the store and online. So if your AmEx card normally gives you 1 point per dollar spent, you’d get 2 points per dollar at participating businesses.

To find local businesses where you can earn the 2X rewards, check out American Express’Shop Small map. Plug in aZIP code to see participating stores, restaurants and other merchants. You can also enterthe name of asmall business to see if it’s eligible for the bonus rewards.

Cardholders mustregister their cards for the promotion to earn the 2X rewards. There is one big caveat: If your card already gives youbonus rewards in a category — such as 6% cash back at supermarkets when you use Blue Cash Preferred® Card from American Express — you won’t earn 2X rewards on those purchases. The promo applies only to purchases eligible for a card’s base rewards rate. Check herefor moreinformation on how bonus rewards will be applied.

American Express isn’t the only issuer that’s offering bonus rewardson specific spending during the holidays. Check out theNerds’ guide to the best credit cards for Black Friday and the holidaysto see how you can earn extra rewards at Amazon.com, department stores, wholesale clubsand more.

Ellen Cannon is a staff writer at NerdWallet, a personal finance website. Email: ecannon@nerdwallet.com. Twitter: @ellencannon.

The article AmEx Doubles Rewards at Small Businesses Till End of 2016 originally appeared on NerdWallet.