USAA is known for its financial products catered toward military personnel, and the USAA Cashback Rewards Plus American Express® is arguably their best card to date. This, of course, presumes you are looking for a rewards card rather than the one offering a lower APR. Like other USAA cards, this one also offers a number of military benefits, as well as a few shopping and travel perks. Here are the details…
- 5% cash back on gas and military base purchases (up to $3,000), 2% back for grocery store purchases (up to $3,000), and unlimited 1% on everything else.
- Exclusive military benefits
- AMEX shopping and travel perks.
- No foreign transaction fee
- No annual fee
How It Works?
Cash back: This card offers 5% cash back for gas and military base purchases such as those made at commissaries, exchanges, and shops at the base, up to $3,000 in purchases per year. Also, it gives 2% cash back for grocery store purchases (again up to $3,000), and 1% cash back on everything else. Once the annual cap is reached, your purchases earn 1% cash back for the rest of the year. There is no limit to the 1% cash back and rewards do not expire. The rewards are received every year in January for the cash back earned in the prior year.
USAA MemberShop: From where cardmembers can shop with popular retailers such as Macy’s and The Home Depot, and earn additional rewards and savings.
Extended warranty: Up to one year of additional warranty on the manufacturer or U.S. store brand warranty for purchases made with the card.
Military benefits: Including a low APR of 4% on balances for up to 12 months during deployment or PCS, and on existing balances at the time you enter active military duty until one year after you complete active duty. In addition, cardmembers can qualify for a rebate on finance charges accrued during service in a qualified military campaign.
Travel benefits: These come included with many Amex cards, and include concierge services, collision waiver coverage for rental vehicles, and travel accident insurance for you and your family. Also, there is no foreign transaction fee.
APR: 12.40% – 26.40% variable, based on your creditworthiness.
Costs
- 12.40%-26.40% APR
- 3% Balance Transfer Fee ($200 maximum)
- $0 Foreign Transaction Fee
- $0 Annual Fee
Pros
- Up to 5% cash back on gas and military base purchases – not many cards offer 5% back and if they do, users are often forced to “deal” with rotating categories.
- No tiers – for some reason many USAA credit cards have a tiered approach to rewards. That’s not the case with this card – it doesn’t force you to reach a certain threshold in your spending.
- Military benefits – USAA credit cards are known for their benefits designed for military personnel and their families. Other cards seldom offer comparable perks.
- No foreign transaction fee – making this card great for travelling to other countries.
Cons
- Annual rewards – many cards offer monthly for quarterly rewards. With this (and other USAA cards for that matter), you’ll get your rewards once per year in January.
- Caps on 5 and 2 percent categories – you will only receive 5% and 2% cash back for purchases up to $3,000 per year (per category), after which you’ll get just 1%. Caps are expected with 5% cash backs, but we would expect them to be slightly higher.
Is This The Card For You?
Hands down, this is the best rewards card with military benefits. If you are looking to get some percentage back on you gas and purchases at military bases, as well as on grocery store purchases — go for the USAA Cashback Rewards Plus American Express®. You won’t find a similar product… anywhere. So go get it now! 😉