These days, almost no one wants to carry around big wads of cash. Pick one at random and take a look in their wallet or purse and you’ll probably notice more credit cards than cash. All over the world (and the rest of the world), Canadians are quickly becoming comfortable with the “swipe life.”
Another thing you might notice when looking at your wallet is the mind-boggling credit card options people are using. But are they all worth it?
In this review, we will compare our 5 best cash back credit cards in Canada. But we will only focus on credit cards with a cashback feature, because who doesn’t want to get money back on their spending? The cards featured in this review also operate with a no-fee policy, meaning you can use your card all year round with no fees.
Sometimes credit card providers can charge annual fees so high that they completely deplete your cash back percentage, and then some. Premium credit cards can sometimes offer many benefits such as attractive cash back, insurance coverage, travel benefits and much more.
However, even with the cashback benefit, for the high annual fees you have to pay, you will have to spend a ton of money to even recoup your annual fees in the form of cashback. This isn’t ideal for cardholders who don’t spend a lot. So if your goal is to get your spending money back for free, these cards are not for you.
Here are the five best no-fee cash back credit cards available in Canada that we think are perfect for cardholders around the world, regardless of their spending power.
Beyond the unlimited cashback feature, the credit cards featured in this review also offer other benefits such as attractive cash advance and low purchase rates, low interest rates for balance transfers, low or no foreign exchange fees, fraud protection, extended warranty and other benefits.
Quick Overview of the 5 Best Cash Back Credit Cards in Canada
1. Tangerine Cash Back Credit Card
2. Blue Sky Credit Card
3. Tangerine Global Mastercard
4. BMO Cash Back Mastercard
5. Home Trust Preferred Visa Card
1. Tangerine Discount Credit Card
Tangerine is undoubtedly the best digital bank currently operating in the country, it makes sense that its cashback credit card would find a place in this review.
The Tangerine Cash Back Card is a great no-fee card option for the following reasons:
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No annual fees, obviously
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You can choose up to 3 categories of expenses (among the 10 available on the Tangerine website) to obtain cashback. These include groceries, recurring bill payments, pharmacy purchases, furniture, home improvement, restaurants, hotels/motels, entertainment, public transportation and parking, and gasoline.
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You can choose two spending categories that match your spending habits and you get 2% cash back on all your spending in those categories. If you withdraw your cash back money to your Tangerine savings account, you can add a third spending category to your cash back profile.
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As a new Tangerine user, you’ll enjoy a promotional 4% cash back rate on your three categories for the first 3 months.
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For all other purchases outside of these 3 categories, you also benefit from 0.5% cashback
Cashback is paid at the end of each month. You can choose to receive it via your credit card or in your Tangerine savings account.
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For the first 90 days after every purchase you make, you get free purchase protection
1 year extended warranty
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You can transfer your balance to your card at the promotional interest rate of 1.95% for the first 6 months. That is, if you transfer your balance no later than 30 days after activating your card.
The Tangerine Cash Back Credit Card offers great flexibility that makes it a true contender for all credit card needs. A few things that stand out are that there is no spending limit on your 4% cash back promotional rate or on the amount of cash back you can earn. Additionally, you can also change your cashback categories at any time.
2. Blue Sky Credit Card
This card from Blue Sky Bank, at first glance, is not as lucrative as the Tangerine cash back credit card, however, it has some advantages, one of them being its promotional cash back rate for new customers.
The Blue Sky credit card uses a flat cash back rate (expressed in points), which is actually a good thing depending on who you talk to.
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No annual fees
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New users receive 10,000 Blue Sky points as a welcome bonus. Since 100 points equals $1, the welcome bonus is worth $100 and is given to you once you reach $500 in spending in your first 3 months. In perspective, that’s a whopping 20% cashback rate.
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Beyond the welcome bonus, you get 25 Blue Sky points (1.25%) for every dollar spent
Points can be used to pay for all travel expenses
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As a cardholder, you get $100,000 of insurance coverage in the event of a travel accident.
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This card gives you access to many entertainment options, thanks to its American Express provider.
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There is a referral program that gives you 5,000 Blue Sky points when you refer a friend to use the card.
It’s a good card overall. Remember, you cannot redeem your points until you reach a minimum threshold of 10,000 Sky Blue points.
3. Tangerine Global Mastercard
At this point, Tangerine is 2 for 3 with its second credit card on this list. This speaks to the effectiveness of the digital bank’s credit card offerings. This is the newest credit card offered by the bank, and it also has all the benefits of the cashback credit card.
However, the Tangerine World Mastercard has much more going for it in terms of user benefits.
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Everything about the Tangerine Cash Back credit card
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Insurance coverage for the first 31 days in the event of collision or damage with a rental car
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Your mobile device is insured up to $1,000
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You benefit from exclusive offers with selected restaurants, spas and outlets, located in more than 1000 lounges in 400 airports across the country
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Extended warranty and insurance for your purchases, subject to Tangerine’s general conditions
Although the Tangerine World Mastercard is a step up from their discount credit card, there are also restrictions on applying for the card.
To be eligible for this card, you will need to have a minimum annual personal income of $60,000. That’s much heavier than the reported minimum annual personal income of $12,000 for the Money-Back credit card.
4. BMO Cash Back Mastercard
The BMO Cashback Mastercard may not offer as lucrative a cash back rate as the other cards on this list. However, this makes up for it by widening the net for cashback-eligible purchases.
Plus, they are just as good as other options when it comes to interest rates on balance transfers.
A look at what you get with a BMO Mastercard with Cash Back it looks like this:
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No annual fees
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When you receive the card, you’ll receive a 5% cash back rate on all your purchases for your first 3 months.
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After the bonus, you get a flat 1% cashback rate on all purchases you make
During your first 9 months, you can transfer your balance at the attractive rate of 1.99%
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If you use Alamo Rent A Car or National Car, you are entitled to a 25% discount on your vehicle rental.
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Extended warranty and purchase protection on eligible purchases
5. Home Trust Preferred Visa Card
The Home Trust Preferred Visa Card offers its users a triple threat of purchasing flexibility, Visa card benefits, and of course, cash back. Today, the cashback rate is only 1%, but there are other benefits that make this credit card worth looking into.
Home Trust Preferred Visa Card will probably make more sense for frequent travelers, as they likely fly a lot and use car rentals just as much. Free roadside assistance and free currency conversion are a huge plus for this credit card and the main reason why it’s on our list.
Cash Back Credit Cards: Honorable Mentions
Even though this list is limited to five-card options, there are many more that make sense for people who don’t use their card enough to justify paying the high annual fees of premium credit cards.
Some reputable no-fee cash back credit cards are mentioned:
Conclusion
The cards on our list are proof that you can still find credit card options that offer cash back, no fees and still offer premium benefits like purchase protection, extended warranty, discounts on special services, travel insurance, fraud protection and more.
In most cases, you probably won’t find all the benefits you’re looking for on one card. It may therefore be wise to combine the right no-fee cards to maximize your cashback.
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