Written by FrugalTrader on Jun 9, 2010 filed under Credit Cards
After you guys gave me your favorite credit cards, I did a little research and came up with what I think are the best free cash back cards in Canada. With rewards points constantly depreciating in value, sometimes it’s best to get cold hard cash back.
Here are the contestants for the coveted title of The Top Cash Back Credit Card in Canada (all with no annual fee – updated Aug 2011):MBNA Smart Cash Mastercard (top editors pick)
- 1% cash back on all purchases.
- 3% cash back on grocery/gas purchases on spending up to $600/month. (5% for the first 6 months).
- No maximum rebate.
- Car Rental Insurance.
- Purchase Protection – 90 days insurance in case of theft or damage.
- Extended Warranty – doubles warranty up to 1 yr.
- 1% cash back all purchases
- 20% bonus cash back paid annually
- $50 bonus on first purchase
- No maximum rebate
- Price Protection – If you find a lower price on your purchase within 60 days, Capital One will refund you the difference up to $100
- Purchase Theft Protection – 120 days (instead of 90 days) insurance in case of theft or damage.
- Extended Warranty – doubles warranty up to 2 yrs (instead of 1 yr).
- Car Rental Insurance.
- Baggage Delay Insurance.
- Note: Instead of redeeming your rebate once a year, you can redeem anytime.
- 1% cash back on all purchases.
- No maximum rebate.
- Car Rental Insurance.
- Purchase Protection – 90 days insurance in case of theft or damage.
- Extended Warranty – doubles warranty up to 1 yr.
- 0.25% cash back on the first $2,000 in purchases.
- 0.50% cash back on the next $3,000 in purchases.
- 1.50% cash back on any amount over $5,000.
- Maximum rebate of $500 ($37,000 spending).
- Purchase Protection – 90 days insurance in case of theft or damage.
- Extended Warranty – doubles warranty up to 1 yr.
- Notes: Need a Costco Membership ($55/yr), rebate is collected every Janurary @ Costco as a gift card or cash.
- 1% cash back on all purchases.
- Maximum of $250 cash back / year ($25,000 spending).
- Price Protection (if you find a lower price within a certain time frame of your purchase, Citibank will refund the difference).
- 1% cash back when you spend over $1000 during a billing cycle.
- 2% cash back for purchases at Canadian tire stores and gas stations.
- No maximum rebate.
- Pays out rebate quarterly which is applied against your balance.
- 0.25% cash back on annual purchases up to $1,500.
- 0.50% cash back on annual purchases from $1,500.01 to $3,000.
- 1% cash back for net annual purchases over $3,000.
- No maximum rebate.
- Purchase Protection – 90 days insurance in case of theft or damage.
- Extended Warranty – doubles warranty up to 1 yr.
- MBNA Smart Cash: $440 (assuming I max out gas/groceries of $600/month)
- MBNA PremierRewards: $300 (no maximum)
- AMEX Costco: $395 – costco membership ($55) = $340 (but not widely accepted)
- Enrich: $250 (max)
- Capital One: $285 (but much more insurance than others)
- Cash Advantage: $300 (more if I make purchases @ CT store/gas station)
- Dividend: $281.25
Conclusions
If I was looking for a widely accepted cash back credit card, it would be a race between the MBNA and Capital One card. I think the MBNA Smart Cash Mastercard wins as we spend a lot of gas and groceries every month and it includes a decent insurance package.Depending on how much you value insurances, the Capital One card has more coverage than the rest. In addition to the 1% and 20% bonus cash back, they offer Price Protection, longer extended warranty/purchase assurance, baggage delay insurance and the choice of receiving your rebate at any time. You’ll have to decide for yourself whether it’s worth it or not.
Any thoughts?
