Max out the first-year intro rewards rate, travel abroad with it, redeem smartly, and pick the right companion card.
Updated Sep 6, 2024 11:54 a.m. PDT · 2 min read Written by Sara Rathner Senior Writer/Spokesperson Sara Rathner
Senior Writer/Spokesperson | Credit cards, travel rewards, debt payment
Sara Rathner is a NerdWallet travel and credit cards expert. She has appeared on the “Today” show and CNBC’s “Nightly Business Report,” and has been quoted in The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, Yahoo Finance, Time, Reuters, NBC News, Business Insider and MarketWatch. Before joining NerdWallet, Sara worked at The Motley Fool for nearly 10 years. She also worked as a freelance personal finance writer and paraplanner and has a bachelor's degree in journalism from Northwestern University.
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The HSBC Cash Rewards Mastercard® credit card has been discontinued. However, certain HSBC credit cards are still available in the U.S. Otherwise, see our best cash-back credit cards for other options.
The HSBC Cash Rewards Mastercard® credit card hits many of the right notes as a cash-back card: The earning rate is in line with similar cards, and the $0 annual fee makes it easy to keep in your wallet for a long time.
But a few unique perks help this card stand out in a crowded field.
It offers the ease of a flat-rate card that earns the same amount of cash back wherever you use it — but you'll get a special promotional rate in the first year. And unlike a lot of other cash-back cards, this one travels well.
Here’s how to make the most of the HSBC Cash Rewards Mastercard® credit card .
In lieu of a traditional upfront sign-up bonus, the HSBC Cash Rewards Mastercard® credit card pays 3% cash back on the first $10,000 you spend in the first year you have the card. From that point on, you’ll earn an unlimited 1.5% cash back on all purchases, which has become the gold standard among flat-rate cash-back cards .
At a 3% earning rate, anyone who spends around $833.33 per month in the first year would net $300 in cash back.
“ If you time major purchases to fall within the first year of having this card, you can maximize the introductory cash-back rate while sticking to your budget. ”
Of course, if your typical monthly spending is less than that, it’s not worth spending more than you normally would just to get additional cash back. But if you time major purchases to fall within the first year of having the HSBC Cash Rewards Mastercard® credit card , you can maximize the introductory cash-back rate while sticking to your budget.
Typically, even the best cash-back cards on the market aren't ideal for international use because — unlike many travel rewards cards — they tend to charge foreign transaction fees of between 3% to 5% on every purchase.
That can add up over the course of any trip abroad.
“ The card is a solid travel buddy, with no foreign transaction fees to worry about and the worldwide acceptance of a Mastercard. ”
But the HSBC Cash Rewards Mastercard® credit card is a solid travel buddy, with no foreign transaction fees to worry about and the worldwide acceptance of a Mastercard. Pack it with you on your next international journey.
If you want to keep it simple, it’s hard to beat the 3% cash back you’d earn in the first year. But it can pay to pair the HSBC Cash Rewards Mastercard® credit card with another cash-back card or two, especially once you pass $10,000 in spending in the first year.
After all, 1.5% cash back is good, but that still isn’t the highest cash-back rate around.
Happy to use one card for everything? Once you no longer earn the higher cash-back rate, consider the Citi Double Cash® Card . It earns 1% cash back as you spend and 1% back when you pay your bill, for a total of 2% cash back on all purchases. The annual fee is $0 , but there’s a foreign transaction fee, so keep your HSBC Cash Rewards Mastercard® credit card on hand to use when you travel internationally.
Want to earn more in the first year of having the HSBC Cash Rewards Mastercard® credit card ? The Chase Freedom Flex® earns 5% cash back on up to $1,500 in spending on quarterly rotating bonus categories that rotate every three months (category activation required). In the past, categories have included things like grocery stores, restaurants and gas stations. So you could use the Chase Freedom Flex® whenever you shop in that quarter’s bonus category, and use the HSBC Cash Rewards Mastercard® credit card everywhere else. The Chase Freedom Flex® has an annual fee of $0 and offers this sign-up bonus: Earn a $200 Bonus after you spend $500 on purchases in your first 3 months from account opening. But again, because the Chase Freedom Flex® charges a foreign transaction fee, the HSBC Cash Rewards Mastercard® credit card can remain your faithful travel companion.
Willing to pay an annual fee? If so, you can earn even more in certain spending categories while using the HSBC Cash Rewards Mastercard® credit card everywhere else. Are groceries your biggest expense? The Blue Cash Preferred® Card from American Express earns 6% cash back at U.S. supermarkets on up to $6,000 in spending per year (1% after that). Terms apply ( see rates and fees ). You'll get a welcome bonus: Earn a $250 statement credit after you spend $3,000 in purchases on your new Card within the first 6 months. Terms Apply. This card's current offer includes a $0 intro annual fee for the first year, then $95. If you prefer going out over staying in, the Capital One Savor Cash Rewards Credit Card earns 4% cash back on dining out, entertainment and eligible streaming services, plus 3% back at grocery stores (ideal once you pass the intro 3% cash-back period on the HSBC Cash Rewards Mastercard® credit card ).
The HSBC Cash Rewards Mastercard® credit card provides more redemption options than some competing cards do. However, in this case, “more” doesn’t necessarily equal “better.”
“ Extra redemption options make this card more flexible, but redeeming for a statement credit is the simplest way to get value out of your rewards. ”
As with most cash-back cards, the most effortless way to redeem with this card is by getting a statement credit.
You do have other redemption options, including things like travel, merchandise or gift cards. But those redemptions generally offer you less than full value for your rewards. Travel and merchandise, for instance, offer values as poor as 80 cents on the dollar. For gift cards, it can be as low as 67 cents on the dollar. Some of these options, too, may require minimum redemption thresholds.
With this card, redeeming for cash back in the form of a statement credit truly is the simplest way to get value out of your rewards. Besides, if travel points and miles are more your speed, travel rewards cards generally offer higher-value sign-up bonuses and easier travel redemptions. The HSBC Cash Rewards Mastercard® credit card shines brightest as a cash-back product.
Prefer your cash back in the form of, well, cash? If you have an eligible HSBC consumer checking or savings account, you can opt to redeem rewards as a direct deposit.
You won’t get any kind of bonus for having a bank account with HSBC (unlike, say, what the Bank of America® Customized Cash Rewards credit card can offer for being a Bank of America Preferred Rewards ® client).
But the ability to get cash back in two ways is a nice added benefit to banking and having a credit card with HSBC.
To view rates and fees of the Blue Cash Preferred® Card from American Express , see this page . The information related to the Capital One Savor Cash Rewards Credit Card has been collected by NerdWallet and has not been reviewed or provided by the issuer of this card.
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Sara is a NerdWallet travel and credit cards expert. She has appeared on the “Today” show, Nasdaq and CNBC’s “Nightly Business Report.” See full bio.
