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  • Garrett

    On other American Express cards like the Blue Cash you mention that they do not get the 5% at wholesale stores like Costco. Does this card give rewards at the wholesale stores at the 2% rate or would it be best to get the Costco card?

    • http://intensedebate.com/profiles/nerdwallet nerdwallet

      Hey Garrett, the Blue Cash doesn't pay its "bonus rate" of up to 5% at wholesale stores, but you still earn the "base rate" of up to 1.25%. For the Fidelity card, you earn the 2% base rate on all purchases, regardless of the store.

      Also, note that the Costco card only pays 1% on purchases at Costco. The real benefit of that card are the bonus rates on gas, dining, and travel that you accrue on purchases outside of Costco.

  • G-$

    Interesting. Fidelity started offer this 2% cash back card after Schwab started to offer it. Now Schwab stopped offering it. How long will Fidelity continue to offer this card? Answer: Likely not much longer

  • A-M

    Does anyone have experience with whether the Fidelity AmEx or Visa report your credit line to the credit bureaus? I have seen a lot of chatter, particularly around the Visa, that because they have "no spending limit" they report only the amount charged each month to the bureaus making it appear that you are using 100% of your credit limit.

    • nerdwallet

      The Fidelity AmEx definitely does report your credit line. There is a preset spending limit on that card.

      The Visa is a "Visa Signature", and there is a lot of chatter around the web about the credit lines on these cards not being reported properly (or at all), so you may want to check with Fidelity or FIA Card Services before applying to make sure.

      Unless you have a problem with Amex, however, I would skip the Visa version altogether. The rewards are higher on the Amex.

    • Anonymous

      It’s true, unfortunately (for me).  But it’s not just the Fidelity Visa.  It’s ANY Visa Signature credit card.  My Chase Freedom Visa Signature card “has no credit limit”, and they report the high balance to the credit reporting agencies. As a consequence, my FICO isn’t as high as it ought to be, because the single criticism on my credit report is that the supposed “balance” on my credit cards (I pay them off in full each month) is too high *relative to my overall credit limits*.  (I have 2 credit cards– this Chase card and a Sears Mastercard, with a $4000 credit limit.  I don’t use the Sears card at all, for the most part– it used to be a plain old Sears card only, until Citibank decided to make it a Mastercard, without even asking me.)

  • Cole

    Is there any basis for the statement that "If you have a Charles Schwab account, you may still be able to get a 2% card from them by calling their 800 number"??? I just opened a new Schwab checking/brokerage account three days ago. I have been searching for the best cash-back rewards card pretty much nonstop since then. Every time I come across a post about the Schwab 2% back card, I kick myself for not having done this research six months ago when it was still being offered. It seems like the absolute perfect card for me, straight up 2% back on everything, straight into my account, no waiting, no redeeming, no rotating rewards categories to research or opt into.

    I would LOVE to get this card, so if you have ANY idea where this information came from, how valid it is, or anything I can tell the operator at the 800 number to convince her to let me have one of those cards, PLEASE let me know!

    Thanks!

    • nerdwallet

      Hi Cole, it looks like they've completely removed the credit card from their site since this was posted. Before, the card was still there but with no Apply button, just a phone number.

      The Fidelity card is still being offered if you happen to have a Fidelity account, otherwise you could wait to see if Schwab brings the Visa back when the good times return…

      • Cole

        Thanks for the quick reply, though I should mention the "subscribe to comments" feature didn't work, just fyi. I am devastated that they are no longer offering this card.

        • nerdwallet

          I appreciate the heads up, I'll look into the issues with "subscribe to comments"…

  • BigD

    I have the Schwab Visa and its the best credit card I have ever used. Schwab has indeed removed this credit card, but they have not changed terms for current users. If they do, they will be hearing from me and will lose my business and loyalty as a customer. The rebate with a 2% unlimited card like the Schwab Visa or Amex Fidelity card will beat Amex's Blue Cash anyday!

  • http://sunkcostsareirrelevant.com slug
  • Gary

    Do the reward payouts for this card (or other cash reward cards) count as taxable income?

    • http://www.nerdwallet.com/ Tim

      Most credit cards, including this one, don’t report rewards to the IRS.

      Instead, credit card rewards are viewed as “discounts,” much like coupons.

  • guest

    Stay away. Piece of garbage. I had this for less than a month and then I cancelled it. It has tried to implement some automated system that started denying charges. Customer service took for ever to respond when I called. They didn’t even try to reach out to me, before starting to deny charges.

  • guest

    The one supposed drawback of this card has always been that “you have to open a fidelity account.” In my opinion, that is overrated. Opening an account takes 5 minutes and there are absolutely no fees on the account. You can link the fidelity account to your regular checking account and transferring your rewards over is fast, free, and easy.

    I don’t understand why the few cards that offer straight 2% cash aren’t more heavily promoted from sites like nerdwallet. It should honestly be the base line card recommended for everyone with excellent credit applying for a credit card, if we are not letting promotions get in the way of good advice. (Note: this card does not show up on the home page screener at nerdwallet, even though when you compare it to the top ranked card – using the compare function on this site – the fidelity card shows up as giving more $$$ back than the others (or as a very close second). Of course, huge upfront bonuses and big dining or groceries spending can change that. For high spenders it will almost always win).

    As to the reply that some rewards cards like AMEX Starwood Preferred or Capital One Venture Rewards yield more than 2% – common sense tells us there is nothing as flexible, easy, and sure-proof as cash. Cash is King.

    One more thing: 2% cards are especially valuable if you use multiple cards. As an example, use the Citi Forward Card for restaurants, movies, music, and books (including Amazon…for not just books) and earn 3.12% cash back (after point conversion); use PenFed for gas and get 5% cash back on gas; use your 2% cash back card for everything else. You can get north of 3% cash back with this kind of setup – and it sounds a lot more complicated than it is. Once you have the cards just remember to grab the right card at the right places (you look at your wallet and grab green, gray, or black…not so bad). Getting to 3% is not possible without a 2% baseline. And again, I am talking 3% cash – not some silly gift card.

    Final comment: Regarding the old Schwab 2% cash back (now cancelled) vs. Fidelity card – keep in mind that AMEX charges higher fees to merchants than Visa or MC. (Schwab was Visa). AMEX and Fidelity split those higher fees. So this card has a better chance of staying profitable for those two companies; just barely profitable – notice the lack of any marketing, including not paying nerdwallet (why else does it not show up on your screener?) – but profitable. Once AMEX starts losing its edge – with those higher fees – then you may see this card get cancelled.

    • http://www.nerdwallet.com/ Tim

      If you make sure that “American express” and “excellent credit” are selected, the Fidelity Amex does show up on our home page.

      • guest

        Have you tried yourself? I just did, making sure I followed your advice, and it didn’t show up.

        By the way, I honestly appreciate this site. Thank you for the service. Hands down the best out there for credit cards. Have you thought about having an advanced search option that would allow searching for card combos (to maximize rewards based on spending categories)? I know the search algorithm would have to be much more complex but if you pulled it off it would be groundbreaking for a credit card site. Not sure card companies would appreciate it.

        • http://www.nerdwallet.com/ Tim

          My apologies, “American Express” is selected by default. I meant to say to make sure “Brokerage Firms” was selected.

          • guest

            Thanks

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