American Express has a long and illustrious history dating back to 1850. It was formed by the same founders as the famous Wells Fargo and Company as an express mail company. Wells and Fargo had a disagreement with another founder named Butterfield about opening an office in California. So they went on to form Wells Fargo and work with the famous Pony Express.

Eventually American Express merged with Wells Fargo, and other express companies, railroads and steamship companies. In 1882 American Express began expanding into financial services by launching a money order business.

On October 1, 1958 American Express launched its credit card business. The first Am-Ex cards were made of paper and had the account number and card member's name typed in. In 1959, American Express was the first credit card company to issue plastic credit cards. Then in 1966, American Express issued their first Gold cards and in 1984 they came out with Platinum cards.

In 1987, American Express introduced their first credit card product called the Optima Card. Before this all American Express cards had to be paid in full each month. The introduction of the Optima card allowed customers to carry a balance. Optima cards were closed to new members in July of 2009 but similar benefits are available from the Blue card including cash back, extended time for payments and other rewards.

American Express now offers a wide variety of cards to meet different needs. Check out the list below to find the right card for you.