Check out these Canadian credit cards to earn cashback and save money with their no annual fee feature.
Key Comparisons
| BMO CashBack® Mastercard®* for students | RBC Cash Back Mastercard | |
| Estimated Credit Score | 300 | 660 |
| Annual Fees | N/A | N/A |
| Interest Rate | 20.99% | 19.99% |
| Insurance Coverage | Yes | Yes |
| Pros | 1. Get 3% cash back on food purchases once the welcome offer expires, 1% cash back on automatic bill payments, and limitless 0.5% cash back on all other purchases. 2. The most adaptable redemption possibilities available for any Canadian credit card (even compared to premium cash back cards). 3. Extra benefits including extended warranties and purchase protection, as well as rentals and Cirque du Soleil ticket savings. | 1. Gives cashback bonuses of up to 2% on groceries for a maximum of $6,000 in annual spending. 2. Get 3 cents off per liter of petrol when filling up a car at Petro-Canada. 3. Linking your RBC cash back card to your DoorDash account will waive the delivery fee and provide a free DashPass membership. |
| Cons | 1. Only 0.5% of purchases made outside of boosted categories have a standard earn rate. 2. Monthly grocery spending and recurring bill payments are both limited to $500 each. 3. The 5% cash back welcome offer has a cap of $100 (equivalent to $2,000 in purchases). | 1. Cash back rewards drop to 1% after you accumulate $6,000 in grocery charges and 0.5% cash back on everything else up to $6,000. 2. No travel insurance or other perks. 3. Foreign transaction fee of 2.5%. |
Key Benefits of BMO CashBack® Mastercard®* for students
Welcome Bonus and Annual Fee
You begin with a big welcome offer worth up to $125, earning 5% cash back on all of your first three months’ worth of purchases, with a $2,500 maximum spend. Following that, you’ll receive the standard cash back incentives for each category as described above. Other credit cards typically come with a high annual charge to offset their larger welcome bonuses, better features, and richer rewards programs. You may use the BMO CashBack Mastercard for students to establish credit and receive cash back rewards without having to spend anything to keep it in your wallet because it has no annual fee.
Cashback and Discounts
Even though this credit card’s base cash back earn rate is only 0.5%, it nonetheless guarantees that you will get at least that much cash back on every purchase you make. That’s a great perk for a credit card with no annual fee. We all spend money on the bonus cash back categories—3% on grocery and 1% on recurring bills—on a regular basis. You can save up to 25% on rentals from National Car Rental and Alamo Rent A Car locations if you ever need to rent a car or van (for example, for a short road trip or to move into a new apartment).
Credit Score Booster
One of the simplest ways to start and gradually raise your credit score is to obtain and appropriately use a credit card. Of course, when you’re young and have little income, as when you’re a student, it can be difficult to get a credit card. If you use one of these credit cards for students, like the BMO CashBack Mastercard for students, and pay it off completely each month, it can help you raise your credit score.
Key Benefits of RBC Cash Back Mastercard
Interest-free Grace Period
If you pay your bill balance in full by the due date, you will have a minimum of 21 days without being charged interest on fees or new purchases. If your statement balance is not paid in full by the payment due date, interest will be charged from the transaction date until we receive your payment for the complete amount you owe. All fees and purchases on the bill for that month are subject to this. There is no interest-free term for cash advances. Cash withdrawals, balance transfers, use of RBC Royal Bank® credit card cheques, some forms of bill payment, and actions that resemble cash withdrawals are all considered cash advances. Interest accrues from the day the cash advance is made until we get your entire payment.
Cashback and Rewards
It provides up to 1% cash back on all other purchases (0.5 percent cash back on the first $6,000 in purchases, then 1% cash back every $1,000 after that with no cap), and 2% cash back on grocery store purchases (on the first $6,000 in purchases, then 1% cash back every $1,000 after that with no cap). The main benefit of the card is that it offers straight cash back, the simplest and most adaptable type of credit card reward. Additionally, Petro-Canada gas stations offer a terrific benefit for individuals who frequently fill up with 3 cents off each liter and a 20 percent bonus on Petro Points. You will receive 1.5 percent cash back on all of your purchases up to $25,000 in annual expenditure.
Other Benefits
The RBC Cash Back Mastercard incorporates chip and PIN technology to secure the security of your account, making online shopping highly safe. If you lose your credit card or think it could have been stolen, you can lock it right away via the RBC mobile app. Since locking it is merely a temporary fix, you can always unlock your credit card if you locate it later. Sadly, credit card theft happens frequently. I hope it never crosses your mind. But even if it does, your RBC Cash Back Mastercard has 0% liability protection, so you won’t be held accountable for any fraudulent purchases made by a third party.