HSBC Cash Rewards Mastercard Review: No Longer Available

Solid ongoing rewards

Max out this card's first-year offer and you'll snag $300 in rewards in those initial 12 months. Thereafter, you'll get 1.5% back on everything. That's solid earning potential. But it should be noted that this is not the best deal for lower spenders who may hit, say, a $1,000 spending requirement for a traditional bonus, but not a $10,000 first-year cap. For them, a normal 1.5% flat-rate card with a $150 bonus upfront would offer greater value.

Multiple redemption options

Taking your rewards as a credit on your statement is the easiest and least restrictive option for most cardholders. But if you have an eligible HSBC bank account, you can choose to redeem your cash back as a direct deposit into that account. You can also redeem rewards for eligible charitable giving. In all three cases, you'll get full value for your rewards. There are other ways to use your rewards, including for travel (airfare, hotels, rental car, etc.), merchandise, gift cards and credit for the application fee for the TSA Precheck or Global Entry program. As noted above, redemption values for these alternatives will be poor, but you do have options.

No foreign transaction fees

Unlike many cash-back cards, the HSBC Cash Rewards Mastercard® credit card travels well abroad. You'll pay no foreign transaction fees on purchases internationally.

Valuable side perks

No upfront bonus

There's no shortage of 1.5% cash-back cards that offer traditional upfront welcome offers. One example is the $0-annual-fee Capital One Quicksilver Cash Rewards Credit Card, which offers the following to new cardholders: Earn a one-time $200 cash bonus after you spend $500 on purchases within 3 months from account opening.

Other cards offer a higher ongoing rate

The Citi Double Cash® Card earns 2% cash back on every purchase: 1% when you buy, plus 1% as you pay it off. The annual fee is $0. If you're willing to pay an annual fee — and willing and able to join the Alliant Credit Union — you could also consider the Alliant Cashback Visa® Signature Credit Card. The annual fee is $0. But you'll earn an unlimited 3% cash back on all purchases in the first year and a whopping 2.5% back on everything else.

Short 0% period compared with competitors

The HSBC Cash Rewards Mastercard® credit card offers a 0% intro APR period on purchases and balance transfers, but you can find cards with longer interest-free windows and lower balance transfer fees. The U.S. Bank Visa® Platinum Card doesn't earn rewards, but it does offer an intro 0% intro APR for 18 billing cycles on purchases and balance transfers, and then the ongoing APR of 17.74%-28.74% Variable APR. If your goal is to pay down debt, you may also consider cards that don't charge balance transfer fees.

Redemption restrictions

With the HSBC Cash Rewards Mastercard® credit card you may face certain redemption restrictions: You may be limited to using your cash rewards only for eligible airline tickets, or you may need to contact HSBC representatives for certain redemptions. There's also a $15 ticket service fee when you book airfare through the Online Travel Rewards option. For fewer redemption hurdles, consider the $0-annual-fee Discover it® Miles, which earns 1.5 miles per $1 spent on all purchases. You can redeem rewards for a statement credit to cover travel purchases or you can redeem them for other options, like cash at the same value. It offers a potentially generous welcome bonus, which the issuer phrases this way: "UNLIMITED BONUS: Unlimited Mile-for-Mile match for all new cardmembers—only from Discover. Discover gives you an unlimited match of all the Miles you’ve earned at the end of your first year. There’s no signing up, no minimum spending or maximum rewards. Just a Miles-for-Miles match. You could turn 35,000 Miles into 70,000 Miles."