Our Favorite Benefits on Credit Cards With No Annual Fee Our Favorite Benefits on Credit Cards With No Annual Fee

Our Favorite Benefits on Credit Cards With No Annual Fee

by Jenna Hansen
June 28, 2023
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Credit cards are frequently discussed for the benefits they provide. In fact, these benefits typically are listed as a way to justify a card's annual fee. But what about credit cards with no annual fee that also offer great benefits? In this article, we'll go over the perks you don't want to miss on some of our favorite cards without annual fees.

American Express

Statement credits with the Blue Cash Everyday® Card from American Express

The Blue Cash Everyday offers several benefits in the form of monthly statements credits, yet the card has no annual fee (Rates & Fees). You can receive $7 per month, up to $84 annually, as a statement credit when you spend $9.99 or more per month on The Disney Bundle. The bundle includes Disney+, Hulu, and ESPN.

screenshot of what's in the Disney Bundle

Additionally, you can receive $15 per month in statement credits, up to $180 annually, when you purchase meal solutions through Home Chef.

Before you can receive the statement credits, you need to enroll for both of these benefits through the Amex Benefit Dashboard.

ShopRunner

Next, Amex has a partnership with ShopRunner that lets you receive free two-day shipping when you purchase eligible items. Use your card to enroll in a free ShopRunner membership here. The following cards have this benefit:

American Express Experiences

Lastly, Amex cardholders can access pre-sale and cardholder-only tickets through American Express Experiences for tickets to music, theater, sports, dining, fashion, and more. As you search for tickets, filter by Invite-Only, Card Member Early Access, or Card Member Access. From here, you can complete your purchase through Ticketmaster.

people at an outdoor concert at night
Credit: Yvette de Wit/ Unsplash

The following no-annual-fee Amex cards offer this benefit:

Bank of America

On the first full weekend of each month, you can use your Bank of America card for free general admission to over 225 cultural institutions around the U.S. Museums On Us is available to all Bank of America, Merill, and Bank of America Private Bank members. You can see the full map of museum locations here. To visit, just present your Bank of America card plus a photo I.D. at the admission counter.

inside an art museum
Credit: Amy-Leigh Barnard/ Unsplash

The following Bank of America cards have no annual fee and include this among their benefits:

Capital One

Several Capital One cards offer statement credits for an Uber One membership. Benefits of Uber One include $0 delivery fees on eligible food, groceries, and more through Uber Eats, up to 10% off orders through Uber Eats, and member pricing on Uber rides.

You can enroll for this benefit with the following cards:

To be eligible for this benefit, use your eligible card to pay your monthly membership fee. Then, you will receive a statement credit each month that covers the fee. This benefit is good through November 14, 2024. Additionally, cardholders of the Capital One Quicksilver Cash Rewards Credit Card can receive credit for up to six months of Uber One membership through November 14, 2024.

Chase

Interestingly, many Chase cards have similar benefits and perks. In this section, we'll break down each of these benefits and show you which Chase cards offer them while paying no annual fee. It's important to note that you must use the card to pay for your purchases for these benefits to be in effect.

DashPass and Instacart+

Chase has partnerships with DoorDash and Instacart, meaning many cards offer free memberships and monthly credits. With DoorDash, get three months of DashPass for free. Then, you can receive nine months at a 50% discount. You can click here to get set up; this benefit runs through December 31, 2024.

Instacart offers three months of Instacart+ and a $10 quarterly credit. Go here to get set up; this perk is available through July 31, 2024.

The following cards offer these benefits:

Extended warranty and purchase protection

An extended warranty extends the time of a regular manufacturer's warranty by one additional year. In specific, this applies to eligible warranties of three years or less. Purchase protection covers your new purchases for 120 days against damage or theft. You can receive up to $500 per claim and $50,000 per account. The following cards offer these benefits:

GoPuff

Get a $10 statement credit each month when you use your card to make a GoPuff purchase of at least $10. There is no enrollment required, just use your card to pay. This has the potential to save hundreds of dollars each year if you have multiple Chase cards.

Gopuff banner advertising Chase benefits, which is available on several credit cards with no annual fee

The following cards offer this credit:

Lost luggage/Baggage delay

If you or an immediate family member have luggage that is damaged or lost by an airline, you're covered up to $3,000 per passenger. Baggage delay coverage reimburses you for essential purchases like toiletries and clothing for delays over six hours, up to $100 a day for three days.

Rental car collision damage waiver

Charge the entire rental cost to your card and decline the rental company's collision insurance. Coverage is provided for theft and collision damage for most cars in the U.S. and overseas. This benefit is included on the following cards:

Note: Other than the United Gateway Card, these cards have foreign transaction fees. Take this into consideration if you're choosing a rental car company outside of the U.S.

Trip cancellation/interruption

You can be reimbursed up to $1,500 per person and $6,000 per trip for your pre-paid, non-refundable fares if your trip is canceled or cut short by sickness, severe weather, and other covered situations. This post goes into more detail about what may or may not be covered. This benefit is included on the following cards with no annual fee:

Lyft and Fandango credits

The Freedom Flex also offers a $5 Lyft credit after you take three rides in one month. Additionally, when you spend $20 at Fandango, you will get $5 back. Both of these benefits are applied automatically when you make the qualifying purchases.

Citi

Round up your earnings and 10% of points back

An amazing perk of the Citi Rewards+® Card is that points earned from purchases are rounded up to the nearest 10. For example, if you make a purchase earning 342 points, it will be rounded to 350. Over time, these small amounts can add up to hundreds of extra points. You'll earn at least 10 points on all purchases, even if it's just $1.

Additionally, you get 10% of your redeemed points back each year. This applies to the first 100,000 points redeemed annually. You can find more details in our full review of the Citi Rewards+.

Citi Entertainment

Many no-annual-fee Citi cards offer access to Citi Entertainment. This is a collection of tickets to concerts, sports, arts, and cultural events. Many of these tickets are pre-sale, meaning you get first access.

To access these tickets, search Citi Entertainment for what you'd like to purchase. Once you select your tickets, you will receive a six-digit code. From here, you will either complete the process through Citi or be taken to a third-party site to finish the purchase.

You can access Citi Entertainment through the following no-annual-fee cards:

U.S. Bank

$15 streaming credit

If you use your U.S. Bank Altitude® Go Visa Signature® Card to pay for eligible streaming services 11 months in a row, you'll receive a $15 statement credit. This is available every 12 months, and it applies automatically if you pay for services like Netflix, Hulu, or Apple Music with your card each month for 11 months in a row. You'll receive the credit within two billing cycles of your 11th/final qualifying transaction.

Wells Fargo

Numerous perks on the The Bilt Mastercard®

The Bilt Mastercard® card from Wells Fargo became available to the public in early 2022, and it's become popular for the ability to use the card for rent payments without any transaction fees involved. Amazingly, you can find quite a few benefits even though the card has no annual fee (Rates & Fees). As a reminder, you must use your card to pay in order for these benefits to apply. Here are the perks:

  • Auto collision damage waiver: Receive coverage for damage or theft on most rental cars. This card has no foreign transaction fees (Rates & Fees), so it's a good choice when renting cars overseas.
  • Lyft Credit: Get a $5 Lyft credit when you take three Lyft rides in one calendar month.
  • Purchase protection. Receive up to $10,000 of coverage against theft or damage for 90 days from the purchase date.
  • Trip cancellation and interruption: Receive up to $5,000 in reimbursement for non-refundable trip expenses if your trip is canceled or interrupted for a covered reason.
  • Trip delay: Get reimbursed for meals and other expenses when your trip is delayed more than six hours due to things like weather or mechanical delays.

Many of these benefits are due to the Bilt Mastercard being a World Elite Mastercard despite charging no annual fee.

Cell Phone Protection

Lastly, and not related to a specific bank, many cards offer cell phone protection. For the coverage to be active, you must pay your cell phone bill with one of the following cards.

an unseen person looks at their smartphone; you can get cellphone insurance as one of many benefits available on credit cards with no annual fee
Credit: John Tuesday/Unsplash

These two cards offer up to $800 per claim if your phone is damaged or stolen. There is a $25 deductible per claim and a limit of two claims per 12 months:

These cards offer up to $600 in coverage if your phone is damaged or stolen. Each has a $25 deductible and a limit of two claims per 12 months:

Finally, the Freedom Flex offers up to $800 per claim and $1,000 per year if your phone is damaged or stolen.  There is a $50 deductible per claim and a limit of two claims per 12 months.

Bottom Line

As you can see, many popular banks offer cards with no annual fee that aren't devoid of benefits. With these cards, you can take advantage of a plethora of perks like extra points, travel and purchase protections, and even free memberships. You're sure to find something that benefits you.

What are your favorite benefits on credit cards with no annual fee?

For rates and fees of the cards mentioned in this post, please visit the following links: Blue Cash Everyday® Card from American Express (Rates & Fees), Delta SkyMiles® Blue American Express Card (Rates & Fees), Hilton Honors American Express Card (Rates & Fees), and The Bilt Mastercard® (Rates & Fees)

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  • July 2, 2023 at 1:49 am
    STEPHEN says:

    Free Spirit Mastercard provides Group 2 priority boarding and no expiration on Free Spirit points.

    United Gateway Visa provides access to elite-only award space on United.com

    Also, I think but can not prove that being a United Gateway Visa cardholder was a factor in getting an unexpected invitation to United’s invite-only restaurant in Newark Airport before the only United flight I have taken since the Covid-19 shut downs, as I have no elite status with United, and that flight was the lowest priced First Class ticket I could find that day from New York area to Houston.

    Reply