HSBC Cash Rewards Mastercard Review: No Longer Available

» This card is no longer available

The HSBC Cash Rewards Mastercard® credit card had stopped accepting applications as of December 2021. See our best cash back credit cards for other options. Below is our review from when the HSBC Cash Rewards Mastercard® credit card was still available.

• • •

The defining feature of the HSBC Cash Rewards Mastercard® credit card is a first-year rewards rate that you won't find on most other cash-back cards in its class.

Instead of an upfront sign-up bonus, it earns 3% back on all purchases within the first 12 months of opening your account, up to the first $10,000 in spending. After that, you earn 1.5% back on everything.

That 3% rate is eye-catching, especially for a $0-annual-fee card. But it's really just a repackaging of a traditional bonus offer.

If you're planning to spend $10,000 in your first year, you'd get just as much value back from a normal 1.5% flat-rate card with an upfront $150 sign-up bonus. And if you spend less than that in Year One — but still enough to snag that upfront bonus — the HSBC Cash Rewards Mastercard® credit card is the worse deal of the two.

The card does offer multiple redemption options beyond just cash, which may appeal to those seeking flexibility. But those options typically aren't a good value and require you to jump through some hoops.

» MORE: How to make the most of the HSBC Cash Rewards Mastercard® credit card

HSBC Cash Rewards Mastercard® credit card: Basics

Card type: Cash back.

Annual fee: $0.

Sign-up bonus: None.

Rewards: Earn an introductory 3% cash back on all purchases in the first 12 months from account opening, up to the first $10,000 in purchases. After that, the card earns 1.5% back on everything.

You also have the option of redeeming your rewards for things like travel, merchandise or gift cards. But when you do that, you typically get less than full value — as low as 67 cents on the dollar for gift cards and 80 cents for travel and merchandise — so those options are not a wise use of rewards.

APR: 0% intro APR on purchases and balance transfers for the first 12 months, then a variable APR of 12.99%-22.99% will apply.

Balance transfer fee: 4% of the amount transferred, or $10, whichever is greater.

Foreign transaction fee: None.

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 18.74%-29.74% Variable APR. The fee for balance transfers is 3%, and the annual fee is $0. 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 sign-up bonus, which the issuer phrases this way: "UNLIMITED BONUS: Only Discover will automatically match all the Miles you’ve earned at the end of your first year. For example, if you earn 35,000 Miles, you get 70,000 Miles. There’s no signing up, no minimum spending or maximum rewards. Just a Miles-for-Miles match."

The HSBC Cash Rewards Mastercard® credit card is a solid option for those who want a flat-rate cash-back card with a few unique features.