The Tangerine Money-Back Card is a no-annual-fee credit card offering cashback rewards on everyday spending and more in two specific spending categories you choose. Earn rates range between 0.5% base rate and 2.1% accelerated rate, depending on purchase categories. And these rates don’t offer some of the highest earning potential currently available.
However, this card offers flexibility in selecting two cashback earning categories (or three when depositing monthly earnings into a Tangerine Savings Account), such as furniture or home improvement purchases. Furthermore, there are no spending caps, so your potential cashback earnings remain limitless at a base rate or the higher accelerated rate!
Are the claims about Tangerine Money-Back Credit Cards justified? This post explores their pros and cons, the application process, and more!
Welcome Offer
Tangerine Money-Back Credit Card has several welcome offers currently for new cardholders:
Special 10% extra cashback rate on everyday purchases up to $1,000 within two months (max. of $100 cash back if approved).
Tangerine Money-Back card also features an attractive balance transfer promo for those seeking to consolidate and pay off debt at an economical rate. Transferring balances within 30 days of becoming a cardholder will reduce interest charges on transferred debt to just 1.95% for six months (subsequently returning to 19.95%) with only a 1% transfer fee applicable per balance transferred.
Earning Cash Back
One of Tangerine’s hallmark features is its cashback policy. Users earn the maximum cashback of 2% from two categories they select from the list and make purchases:
• Hotels
• Gas
• Furniture
• Restaurants
• Home improvement projects
• Public Parking lots/Transit
• Groceries
• Drug stores
• Entertainment
• Recurring bills
Furthermore, cardholders who deposit their rewards directly into a Tangerine Savings account can select up to 3 categories at a 2% cashback rate for higher cashback returns. All purchases outside these 2-3 categories earn 0.5% cash back.
Tangerine Money-Back Credit Card stands out among similar cards by having no limit to how much cashback can be earned in any category, unlike many cashback cards, which typically impose limits or caps on what cashback categories you may earn.
Redeeming Your Cash Back
Redeeming the earned cash back is made simple through Tangerine’s Money-Back program! There are two methods available to redeem the money:
Have the amount deposited into your Tangerine Savings account, providing an added benefit: being eligible to select another category to add another 2% to the total.
Have your cash back applied to your credit card balance. One feature that you will love about the Tangerine Money-Back Credit Card is that cashback redemption occurs automatically each month. Other credit cards only permit manual redemption once a year.
Perks and Features
Being a no-annual-fee credit card with an affordable minimum annual income requirement ($12k), the Tangerine Money-Back Credit Card only offers a few noteworthy perks beyond cashback rewards. However, cardholders still benefit from some basic features of like:
• Authorized users get additional cards without any payment.
• With Mastercard Zero Liability Protection, you are protected against fraud.
• Purchase Insurance covers theft, loss, and damage on most new purchases up to 90 days post-purchase date.
• Manufacturer warranties will be extended by one additional year.
Remember that those with an annual personal income of at least $60,000 (or household income over $100,000) are eligible for the Tangerine World Mastercard. It offers cashback structures like the Tangerine Money-Back Card but with additional benefits.
Fees and Rates
One of the hallmarks of Tangerine Money-Back Credit Card’s appeal lies in its no annual fee feature. However, all additional fees and rates remain standard. After its six-month promotional balance transfer period, transfers earn 19.95% interest. Other notable prices to keep an eye out for include:
1. Foreign Currency Conversion Fee: 2.50% of the transaction value.
2. Cash advance fees within Canada: $3.50
3. Cash advance fee outside Canada: $5.00
4. Dishonored payment: $25.00
5. Rush card fee: $25.00
6. Past statement reprint: $5.00 per statement
Who Is Eligible for Tangerine Money-Back Credit Card?
As stated above, the cashback feature with no annual fee is the primary attraction of the Tangerine Money-Back Credit Card. Meeting the following criteria is essential to be eligible for the card:
1. Canadian resident
2. Minimum annual gross income of $12,000.
3. Attained the minimum age for applying for a credit card according to the province or territory.
4. No bankruptcy claims in the past 7 years
Application Procedure
1. Click “Apply Now” on the Tangerine Money-Back credit card page if you already hold credentials with Tangerine or click “Sign Me Up” to submit a new application.
2. Read disclosure statements and click “Accept.”
3. Provide details such as name, birthday, email address, mobile number, Social Insurance Number (SIN), and more while filling out the form.
4. Once finished, review it before clicking Submit!
Tangerine typically delivers credit cards within 5-14 business days after accepting applications.
How Does Tangerine Money-Back Card Compare to the EQ Bank Card?
Although not technically a credit card, the EQ Bank Card can be an ideal replacement for Tangerine Money-Back Cards. The card offers 0.5% cash back with every purchase and attracts no annual fee.
However, unlike its competition, the EQ Bank Card doesn’t offer accelerated cash back in any categories and remains a prepaid credit card. It means no credit-building capabilities are present and requires having money to load it.
Tangerine Money-Back Credit Card Compared with BMO Cashback Mastercard
BMO CashBack Mastercard offers cashback rewards at a base earning rate of 0.5% without an annual fee. It also provides two accelerated categories: Groceries at 3% and recurring bills at 1%. Though their 3% cashback rate beats the 2% offered by Tangerine, a monthly spending cap of $500 makes this card unattractive to many shoppers. Therefore, the Tangerine Money-Back card holds out due to no spending caps and flexible cashback reward options (2% more cashback per bill payment option)!
Conclusion
The Tangerine Money-Back Credit Card stands out among no-annual-fee credit cards with its flexible no-minimum income requirement. It is suitable for young adults just starting their careers and those making up to $60K annually. For those earning above $60K annual income annually, it may make more sense to invest in an annual fee credit card that offers higher cash back rewards (along with additional perks and benefits), provided your purchases are mostly credit.