The card could have great long-term value, but only if you take advantage of its PayPal bonus category
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3.4
Bottom line
This card has limited features, but its high flat-rate and bonus rewards could make it a winner for PayPal users.
Rewards rate
2% - 3%Earn 3% cash back on PayPal purchases Get 2% cash back* every day, every purchase, every time you use your card. No exceptions. No rotating categories to keep track of
Annual fee
Intro offer
N/APay over time APR
Regular APR
The PayPal Cashback Mastercard® could be a hit for people who use PayPal and has the potential to be a great no-annual-fee rewards card for everyone else.
This card offers unlimited 2 percent cash back on all purchases — a great flat rewards rate — and 3 percent back when you shop with PayPal. Few flat-rate cards go the extra mile by offering bonus categories and a flat rate higher than the typical 1 percent cash back found with most cash back cards.
Unfortunately, you may not easily figure out which purchases earn 3 percent cash back. It’s unclear how many stores let you make purchases through your PayPal account; some may only allow direct debit card or credit card payments.
The card also lacks a sign-up bonus, intro APR offers and other benefits that help give rewards cards long-term value. Here’s what you need to know about the PayPal Mastercard and how it stacks up against the best cash back cards.
Expert Appraisal: Typical
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Expert Appraisal: Weak
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Expert Appraisal: Unimpressive
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Expert Appraisal: Unimpressive
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Offers a unique combo of 2 percent cash back on all purchases with the chance to earn 3 percent cash back at merchants that accept Paypal.
The card charges no annual fee, making it affordable to pair with other rewards cards.
PayPal integration makes this a great card for people who use PayPal and want to manage their card, payments and cashback rewards all in one place.
The card has no sign-up or intro offers, limiting the card’s initial value compared to other cash back cards.
Your favorite stores may not be eligible to earn 3 percent cash back, and authorized users can only earn up to 2 percent cash back on all purchases.
This card’s APR can be higher than other cash back credit cards.
The PayPal Cashback Mastercard will be great for earning extra cash back without an annual fee if you use PayPal. You earn boosted cash back rewards for purchases using PayPal, solid flat-rate cash back rewards for all purchases and the card integrates seamlessly with the PayPal app.
On top of its impressive 2 percent flat cash back rate on all purchases, the PayPal Mastercard offers a bonus rate of 3 percent cash back on PayPal purchases, including at stores that let you pay using the PayPal app. A powerful combination of rewards like this can set PayPal users up wells fargoto earn outstanding rewards on nearly every purchase they make, whether using PayPal or not.
Most flat-rate cash back rewards cards — like the Wells Fargo Active Cash® Card and the Citi® Double Cash Card — only offer a flat rate on general purchases, with no additional bonus categories. Flat-rate rewards programs like these can keep things simple and hassle-free, but you may miss out on a higher rate in your biggest spending categories.
By pairing a flat 2 percent rewards rate on general purchases with 3 percent cash back on PayPal purchases, the PayPal Mastercard combines the best features of flat-rate and bonus-category cash back cards. However, to earn 3 percent cash back, you must be the primary cardholder. You also have to make purchases through your PayPal account, which you can do online or in-store as long as the merchant accepts PayPal as a form of payment. If the store doesn’t accept PayPal, you’ll earn 2 percent cash back.
Rewards cards with boosted cash back rates sometimes have annual fees that eat into your yearly rewards balance. There are exceptions to this rule, like the Blue Cash Everyday® card from American Express and the Citi Custom Cash® Card, but spending caps hamper these cards’ long-term value. The PayPal Cashback Mastercard joins these top cash back credit cards as one of the most generous rewards cards that cost nothing to hold, but leads the pack as a competitor that doesn’t place a rewards cap on its highest rewards category.
The PayPal Mastercard’s lower barrier of entry and long-term savings potential make it a worthy addition to anyone’s wallet who regularly uses the PayPal app to make in-store or online purchases. Although this card may lack value for people who don’t use PayPal, it’s a solid alternative to other flat-rate cash back cards if you want to start using PayPal.
Several popular brands accept PayPal, which means you’ll have enough flexibility to maximize this card’s boosted rate just about anywhere. PayPal lists the merchants that accept PayPal as a payment method on its website. It includes a comprehensive list of popular fashion, travel, entertainment, electronics, and athletic brands.
This card provides added convenience and functionality by integrating with the PayPal app. You can manage your card, PayPal account, cash back, rewards redemptions and mobile wallet from within the app. Although tracking card activity in issuer-specific applications is not always complicated, the PayPal app gives you a one-stop location for managing your money.
Not only can seamless in-app integration protect you from credit card fraud with PayPal’s security features, like encryption and fraud detection, but you can use the PayPal app to view your card account details and PayPal activity in one place. Plus, you can use the PayPal app to make purchases using your PayPal Cashback Mastercard, meaning you won’t need to enter card details every time you make an online purchase. If you’re wary about online purchases using your credit card, the PayPal app can be a barrier between your card information and the merchants you’re shopping with. Although exceptions to this process exist, merchants typically receive payments from PayPal, and your information remains private.
PayPal also displays your cash back balance in the PayPal app. To redeem your rewards, you just need to select your cash back balance and choose a redemption method. You can redeem cash back rewards for PayPal purchases, a direct deposit to your bank account or as a statement credit. Redemptions for PayPal purchases can be more convenient than standard credit card rewards, especially if you’re a frequent PayPal user. Redemptions for PayPal purchases appear during checkout, where you can apply your rewards balance as a payment method to cover part or all of your purchase.
If you don’t use PayPal, this card will be tough to maximize, and you should consider other options. However, even if you are a PayPal user, the convenience that this card brings to your wallet comes at a cost. This card lacks some outstanding features like a welcome offer, an intro APR period and the many perks and benefits that several other cards offer.
If you were hoping to get a headstart building a cash back balance with your next credit card, you might be disappointed to learn that the PayPal Cashback Mastercard doesn’t have a welcome offer. Cash back cards, even those with no annual fees, frequently carry welcome offers with which cardholders can earn anywhere from $50 to $250 worth of cash back for meeting a minimum spending requirement. Although spending requirements can inspire overspending, the extra cash back is often worth it.
Welcome offers bring a lot of value for new cardholders, but usually signal where that card stands in the competition. You’ll see a lot of no-annual-fee cash back cards from several issuers with welcome offers that hover around $200 in value. This amount is usually the most competitive. The amount of a card’s welcome offer and its spending requirement can be the deciding factors for your next card application. However, the PayPal Cashback Mastercard doesn’t compete with the welcome offers from other issuers. It might even be a fair trade-off as a rewards credit card with outstanding ongoing value for PayPal users. If you use PayPal regularly, this card can bring long-term value with boosted cash back, as opposed to the short-term value welcome offers have.
Consider another rewards or cash back card if you want a welcome offer. Finding a card’s sign-up bonus that’s competitive with other cards’ offers will be a good start. However, you’ll want to consider the rewards rates on each card before deciding. If PayPal makes up a majority of your purchasing budget, you might be better off earning a regular 3 percent back on PayPal purchases than you are a one-time $200 cash back bonus.
Intro APR periods are sometimes a lifeline for cardholders who want a break from interest payments to whittle down their credit card debt. Or they’re a great feature for new cardholders who want to chase a welcome offer’s spending requirement. The PayPal Mastercard doesn’t have an intro offer for either new purchases or balance transfers, making it a poor choice for current cardholders who want to transfer a balance or finance a large, upcoming purchase.
Lacking intro APR offers doesn’t necessarily mean it’s a bad credit card, but intro offers can bring peace of mind and convenience for cardholders new to credit or recovering from debt. Without interest-free periods, you’ll be at risk of accumulating high-interest credit card debt with the PayPal Mastercard, and it can set you up for losing all of the cashback you earn to interest payments.
Not to mention, this card has a relatively high ongoing APR. On the low end, it’s a manageable 19.99 percent variable. However, this card’s APR can be as high as 31.99 percent, far above the current average credit card interest rate. An intro APR offer wouldn’t change the ongoing APR beyond its period, but it could make managing interest easier in your first year with the card.
Extra perks and benefits are sometimes merely icing on the cake for a credit card’s value, so you shouldn’t expect much. In fact, you shouldn’t expect a lot of extra value when it comes to any no-annual-fee credit card, but this doesn’t mean you should change your standards if you want a portfolio or perks.
The PayPal Mastercard carries the minimum network benefits for cardholders, including zero fraud liability protection for unauthorized purchases, lost and stolen card reporting and emergency card replacement. These perks can give you peace of mind and make handling emergencies easier, but other issuers offer much more for their cardholders.
For instance, some no-annual-fee cash back cards have complimentary memberships and statement credits available for cardholders.
Unless you start collecting interest charges, the PayPal Cashback Mastercard is a low-cost card with an excellent cash back rate. But considering the card’s limited features, other cash back cards might be a better fit.
Annual fee
Intro offer
Rewards rate
Earn 3% cash back on PayPal purchases Get 2% cash back* every day, every purchase, every time you use your card. No exceptions. No rotating categories to keep track of
Recommended Credit Score
A FICO score/credit score is used to represent the creditworthiness of a person and may be one indicator to the credit type you are eligible for. However, credit score alone does not guarantee or imply approval for any financial product.
Annual fee
Intro offer
Rewards rate
Earn 2% on every purchase with unlimited 1% cash back when you buy, plus an additional 1% as you pay for those purchases.
Recommended Credit Score
A FICO score/credit score is used to represent the creditworthiness of a person and may be one indicator to the credit type you are eligible for. However, credit score alone does not guarantee or imply approval for any financial product.
Annual fee
Intro offer
Earn a $200 statement credit after you spend $2,000 in purchases on your new Card within the first 6 months.
Rewards rate
3% Cash Back at U.S. supermarkets on up to $6,000 per year in purchases, then 1%. 3% Cash Back on U.S. online retail purchases, on up to $6,000 per year, then 1%. 3% Cash Back at U.S. gas stations, on up to $6,000 per year in purchases, then 1%. 1% Cash Back on other purchases.
Recommended Credit Score
A FICO score/credit score is used to represent the creditworthiness of a person and may be one indicator to the credit type you are eligible for. However, credit score alone does not guarantee or imply approval for any financial product.
Since the PayPal Cashback card already offers a generous flat rate and the chance to earn boosted rewards for PayPal purchases, consider pairing it with a rotating category card that has outstanding rewards rates in other categories.
The PayPal Mastercard isn’t right for everyone, but it could be the next best addition to your wallet if you are any of the following types of spenders.
The PayPal Cashback Mastercard offers a top-notch flat rewards rate on both general purchases and online or in-store shopping through PayPal. This rare combination gives the card good long-term value — as long as you can take advantage of the PayPal bonus category. If you’re already a PayPal user and have a good idea of the stores that let you use your PayPal account, this card could be a good fit — especially if you don’t already have a card that earns 3 percent cash back or more at these locations.
For everyone else, it won’t be easy to find out where PayPal is accepted. PayPal lists some merchants, such as Walmart, Best Buy, and Home Depot, but it doesn’t offer a full list of merchants. And some merchants are selective with how they accept PayPal. For example, Target only accepts PayPal on Target.com and the Target app. If you don’t shop at stores that earn the higher rate, you may be better off with a different flat-rate card with better perks.
*If you have previously opened a Rewards Checking account or do not open one as part of this application process, you are not eligible for the Upgrade Cash Rewards Elite Visa® welcome bonus offer.
The information about the Chase Freedom Flex℠ and Chase Freedom Unlimited® has been collected independently by Bankrate.com. The card details have not been reviewed or approved by the card issuer.
We rate credit cards using a proprietary card scoring system that ranks each card’s estimated average rewards rate, estimated annual earnings, welcome bonus value, APR, fees, perks and more against those of other cards in its primary category.
Each card feature is assigned a weighting based on how important it is to people looking for a card in a given category. These features are then scored based on how they rank relative to the features on other cards in the category. Based on these calculations, each card receives an overall rating of 1-5 stars (with 5 being the highest possible score and 1 being the lowest).
We analyzed over 150 of the most popular rewards and cash back cards to determine where each stacked up based on their value, cost, benefits and more. Here are some of the key factors that influenced this card’s overall score and how the score influenced our review:
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