11 Best Cash-Back Credit Cards of October 2023

Cash-back credit cards are popular because they provide tangible, easy-to-understand benefits. Who doesn’t like getting a credit on their monthly credit card statement or — better yet — actual cash deposited into the account of their choice? Cash-back credit cards can be even more popular than our top-rated gas credit cards and travel rewards cards.

But not all cash-back credit cards are created equal.

Some offer the same cash-back rate on all purchases. Others offer higher rates on certain spending categories, such as groceries or gas, and lower rates on everything else. Still others provide bonus cash back on rotating spending categories every quarter. A few accrue cash back on both purchases and monthly payments.

And some cash back cards even offer hybrid models, with cash back on certain spending categories and different types of rewards (such as airline miles) on others.


Best Cash-Back Credit Cards

Each of the cards on this list does at least one thing really well, whether it’s offering a particularly high cash-back rate or providing an exceptional interest-free balance transfer promotion. Our best overall pick is the one we think offers the most value to the greatest number of potential users.

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Chase Freedom Unlimited is the best overall cash-back credit card due to its varied cash-back rewards program, long 0% intro APR on purchases and balance transfers, and generous sign-up bonus.

Cash back accrues as Chase Ultimate Rewards points. If you have another eligible Chase credit card, including the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card or Chase Sapphire Reserve® Card, you can transfer points earned through Freedom Unlimited to those accounts. That could boost your redemption rate by up to 20% and open up potential transfers to over 10 Chase travel loyalty partners with loyalty currencies that could be worth even more.

Pros

  • No annual fee
  • Longer-than-average 0% intro APR on purchases and balance transfers
  • No foreign transaction fee

Cons

  • Chase cards eligible for travel partner transfers have annual fees
  • Mediocre baseline cash-back rate

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Of all the cards on this list, the U.S. Bank Cash+® Visa Signature® Card has the best rotating cash-back rewards program.

You earn 5% cash back on your first $2,000 in combined eligible purchases each quarter on two categories you choose. Your options may change over time, but current categories include gyms and fitness centers, department stores, fast-food restaurants, and movie theaters.

See rates and fees for more information.

Pros

  • No annual fee
  • Earn unlimited 2% cash back in an additional purchase category of your choice
  • Long 0% intro APR period
  • Above-average sign-up bonus

Cons

  • Must manually activate your bonus categories each quarter
  • Overly specific 5% categories

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The Citi® Double Cash Card has the best flat-rate cash-back program on the market. But getting its full value means paying your bill in full each month.

As long as you’re a cardholder in good standing, you’re guaranteed to earn 1% cash back on all eligible purchases. You earn another 1% back on balance payments, provided you make the minimum payment each month. So to achieve the effective 2% cash-back rate, you must pay your balance in full, which is advisable anyway.

Pros

  • No annual fee
  • Longer-than-average intro balance transfer APR offer
  • No foreign transaction fee

Cons

  • No way to earn more than 2% cash back
  • No sign-up bonus
  • No intro APR on purchases

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The Blue Cash Preferred® Card from American Express is the best cash-back credit card for people with moderate to heavy grocery budgets.

It earns 6% cash back on all U.S. supermarket transactions, up to a $6,000 annual spending limit. Once you hit $6,000, you still get 1% back on U.S. supermarket purchases.

Pros

  • Earn up to 6% cash back in other popular categories, including digital media and streaming services
  • Longer-than-average 0% intro APR on purchases
  • Above-average welcome offer for new cardholders

Cons

  • Has a $95 annual fee after the first year (see rates and fees)
  • No 0% intro APR on balance transfers

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As cash-back credit cards go, the Capital One Quicksilver Cash Rewards Credit Card couldn’t be simpler. All eligible purchases made with this card earn 1.5% cash back, with just one exception: 5% cash back on eligible hotel and car rental bookings made through Capital One Travel.

Plus, there’s no limit on how much cash back you can earn and no minimum threshold to redeem your rewards.

Pros

  • No annual fee
  • Generous intro APR on purchases and balance transfers
  • No foreign transaction fee

Cons

  • Mediocre baseline cash-back rate
  • Must book through Capital One to get 5% back on eligible travel

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The Instacart Mastercard® is the best card for those days when you just don’t want to deal with the grocery store. It might not be your everyday, all-the-time credit card, but if you’re like me, you’ll use it more often than you’d expect.

The value is certainly there. The Instacart Mastercard earns 5% cash back on Instacart app and Instacart.com purchases, and you get a free year of Instacart+ when you sign up. Instacart+ benefits include free delivery on orders over $35 and another 5% back when you pick up in-store.

Pros

  • No annual fee (for the card)
  • Broad 2% cash-back categories
  • Generous sign-up bonus

Cons

  • Instacart+ costs $99 per year unless you cancel
  • No intro APR promotion

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The Citi Custom Cash Card allows you to effortlessly customize your cash-back earnings based on your spending habits, with no manual activation required.

Just spend as you normally would and you’ll automatically earn 5% cash back on the first $500 in purchases in your top eligible spending category each month. Categories include restaurants, gas stations, select transit, select travel, select streaming services, drugstores, home improvement stores, and live entertainment.

Pros

  • No annual fee
  • Very good sign-up bonus
  • Long 0% intro APR period

Cons

  • Low baseline cash-back rate
  • $500 monthly bonus cash-back cap isn’t ideal for heavy spenders

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The Capital One SavorOne Cash Rewards Credit Card is one of the most potent cash-back credit cards on the market for folks who love both going out and cooking in.

That’s because it earns 3% cash back on all eligible dining and entertainment purchases. It gets better: Eligible Uber and Uber Eats purchases earn 10% cash back (through November 14, 2024), and eligible Capital One Entertainment purchases earn 8% cash back. There’s no cap on how much you can earn in any of these categories.

Pros

  • No annual fee
  • Above-average early spend bonus
  • Long intro APR offer

Cons

  • Low baseline cash-back rate
  • High regular APR

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The Bank of America® Customized Cash Rewards Credit Card gives you total control over your 3% cash-back category. Each quarter, you can choose your favorite option from one of six broad categories: gas, dining, online shopping, home furnishings/improvements, and travel.

You can earn 3% back on up to $2,500 in purchases each quarter. But purchases in two fixed 2% categories — grocery stores and warehouse stores — also count toward the cap. So you have to customize your spending as you see fit.

Pros

  • Above-average sign-up bonus
  • Much longer-than-average intro APR promotion
  • No annual fee
  • Earn up to 75% more cash back with Bank of America Preferred Rewards relationship

Cons

  • Must manually select 3% cash-back categories
  • 2% cash-back earnings impact 3% cash-back potential

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The Costco Anywhere Card is a premium cash-back card exclusive to Costco members. If you’re already spending $60 per year on a Costco membership (or $120 if you’re springing for the Executive Membership), and you’re able to meet Citi’s stringent underwriting requirements, this card is a no-brainer because all eligible Costco purchases earn 2% bonus cash back. If you’re an Executive member, you earn an additional 2% back on Costco and Costco.com purchases, boosting your return to 4%.

The biggest drawback is that the redemption framework is a little wonky. You have to redeem in person at Costco, and you only get your rewards once per year, after your February billing statement closes. But if you’re even interested in this card, you probably shop at Costco often enough that it won’t matter.

Pros

  • No annual fee (for the card)
  • Expansive cash-back categories
  • No foreign transaction fee

Cons

  • Costco membership costs at least $60 per year
  • No sign-up bonus
  • No introductory APR promotion

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Methodology: How We Choose the Best Cash-Back Credit Cards

We use several important factors to assess cash-back card quality and build this list. 

Most relate directly to the cards’ cash-back programs. Examples include earning rate, rewards categories, and spending caps. We also pay close attention to welcome offers (sign-up bonuses) since those magnify early spending and significantly increase (or decrease) a card’s appeal.

Cash-Back Rate

On a flat-rate cash-back card, the cash-back rate is easy to determine. It’s the rate at which cash back accrues on any eligible purchase.

Cards with tiered or rotating rewards categories still have easy-to-understand cash-back rates. For example, a card might have 3% back on groceries, 2% back on gas, and 1% back on everything else. The actual cash-back rate depends on how much you spend in each category, but only you can calculate that because only you know exactly how your spending breaks down.

Regardless, the higher the potential rate, the better the cash-back card.

Cash-Back Categories

Flat-rate credit cards win out on this point for sheer simplicity. There’s never any suspense about how much you can earn on a particular purchase.

For all other cards, we look for broad purchase categories that appeal to a wide range of potential users: think groceries, gas, and dining. The more categories, the better.

Spending Caps & Other Restrictions on Rewards

The best cash-back credit cards earn unlimited rewards, at least in some of their purchase categories. We don’t totally rule out cards with spending caps or other restrictions on earning potential, but those cards must have other things going for them to make the cut.

Redemption Options & Minimums

“Cash back” implies, well, cash back, but the details matter. The best cash-back cards let you redeem for statement credits or bank account deposits in any amount whenever you feel like it. We’re not fans of cards with high redemption minimums.

Welcome Offers

Most cash-back credit cards offer some sort of welcome incentive for new cardholders. We prefer incentives that are both generous and easy to attain, requiring minimal spending spread over several months. 

0% APR Promotions

No-APR purchase and balance transfer promotions are equally enticing for new cardholders planning major purchases or debt payoffs. 

Surprisingly, some of the best balance transfer credit cards and 0% APR purchase credit cards are also among the best cash-back credit cards.

Card Fees

Cash-back credit cards tend to go easier on fees than premium travel rewards cards, but that doesn’t mean the category is totally free of annual fee options. We give preference to low-fee cards . Cash-back cards with annual fees must demonstrate serious value to be included on this list.

Cash-Back Credit Card FAQs

Not quite sure you have a handle on the wooly world of cash-back credit cards? Get the answers to some of the most common questions asked by your fellow cash-back novices.

Do You Need a Good Credit Score to Get a Cash-Back Credit Card?

Often but not always. 

The best cash-back credit cards generally require applicants to have good to excellent credit — usually indicated by a FICO credit score above 700, and sometimes even higher. If you don’t meet that threshold, work on building your credit before applying for these premium products.

But several cards on this list accept applications from people with fair or even impaired credit. Students, in particular, have more rewards credit card options than ever — and they’re a group that’s not known for having great credit.

How Much Can You Earn With a Cash-Back Credit Card?

Even the most generous cash-back credit cards rarely offer more than 5% cash back on eligible purchases. Cards that offer more than 2% or 3% cash back typically require holders to keep track of specific spending categories or respect purchase limits.

That said, some cards have partnerships with specific retailers that allow them to offer eye-popping returns on eligible purchases — sometimes 10% or more. Be on the lookout for those deals and activate them quickly when they’re available since they usually don’t last long.

Should You Pay Off Your Cash-Back Card Balance in Full?

Yes. Some offer 0% APR promotions for new cardholders, but regular cash-back credit card APRs usually range from somewhere north of 10% to more than 20% in some cases. 

At those rates, carrying a balance for even a single month can seriously eat into your cash-back earnings. And habitually carrying a balance from month to month more than negates your cash-back earnings, adding to the actual cost of your purchases.

In other words, don’t let the promise of cash back lull you into letting your card balances grow over time. It’s almost never worth it. If you need to carry a credit card balance from month to month, opt for a low-APR credit card instead.

And if you worry about your ability to keep your credit card spending to a level that allows for in-full payments each month, choose a credit card with a low spending limit or a secured credit card that requires you to make an upfront cash deposit.

How Much Do Cash-Back Credit Cards Cost?

Ideally, nothing. Most of the cards on this list don’t charge annual fees, and more than a few waive foreign transaction fees too. If you pay your bills in full and on time, you might never pay more than your actual charges.

Take the time to review the fine print, though. Otherwise, you might be blindsided by fees you didn’t realize the card issuers could charge.

Final Word

Stuck between a few really solid cash-back credit cards, unable to choose the one that’s best for your needs?

Time for some perspective. Yes, it’s true that you’d do fine with many if not all the cash-back cards on this list, but that doesn’t mean you should settle for a product you don’t absolutely love.

To find the best fit, ask yourself a few questions:

  • Where do I spend the most money?
  • How do I want to be able to redeem my cash-back rewards?
  • Am I willing to pay an annual fee if it means earning at a higher rate or earning more cash back overall?
  • Am I planning to make a major purchase or balance transfer that I need 0% APR financing for?
  • How important is a generous welcome offer to me?

Use your answers to chart the course forward. Chances are they’ll help you narrow your list further and perhaps point you to the ideal card. 

For rates and fees of the Blue Cash Preferred® Card from American Express, please visit this rates and fees page.

For rates and fees of the American Express Cash Magnet® Card, please visit this rates and fees page.

1Offer is exclusive to Bread Cashback American Express Credit Card holders enrolled in the Bread Cashback program. Cash back can be redeemed as statement credit or direct deposit. This rewards program is provided by Comenity Capital Bank and its terms may change at any time. For full Rewards Terms and Conditions, please see comenity.net/breadcashback/termsandconditions

2Review important rate, fee, and other cost information. 

3Certain terms, conditions, and exclusions apply. For more details, visit https://www.americanexpress.com/us/network/breadfinancial/breadcashback 

Credit card offers are subject to credit approval. 

American Express is a registered trademark of American Express. This Card is issued by Comenity Capital Bank pursuant to a license from American Express.

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