Great Card If
- You’re an investor in Bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies
- You use Coinbase for your Bitcoin or cryptocurrency investments and hold your assets on the platform
Don’t Get If
- You don’t invest in Bitcoin or cryptocurrency
- You don’t use Coinbase or keep your crypto in cold storage
Coinbase One Card — Is It Worth It?
If you’re an investor in Bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies, and Coinbase is the primary exchange where you trade and hold your cryptocurrency assets, then the Coinbase One card could be an excellent choice for you.
Although the Coinbase One card has a $0 annual fee, it requires a Coinbase One membership that costs $49.99 annually.
The exact amount of rewards you’ll earn depends on the U.S. dollar amount of assets you hold on the exchange. All cardholders earn at least 2% back. Those with an average monthly asset value of $10,000 to $50,000 earn 2.5% back, those with $50,000 to $200,000 earn 3% back, and those with $200,000 or more earn 4% back on up to $10,000 in purchases per month.
That said, if you don’t hold $10,000 or more in assets with Coinbase, there is not much of a competitive advantage of this card for you relative to any other 2% cash-back credit card you could hold.
However, if you have a sizable amount of assets on the Coinbase platform, you may find that the Coinbase One card is extremely lucrative relative to other cards, especially when considering the additional benefits associated with the card being on the American Express network.
Coinbase One Card Top Benefits and Perks
Here is a look at the benefits and perks you can expect as a Coinbase One card member:
- Coinbase One benefits: Since the card requires a Coinbase One membership for $49.99 per year, here are the perks that come along with that:
- $0 trading fees on the first $500 per month in trades, but a spread applies to each trade
- Boosted USDC rewards: Earn 4.25% APY on your first $10,000, then 3.85% on USDC holdings exceeding that.
- Most staking rewards: 5% staking rewards on Ethereum, Solana, and other eligible assets.
- $120 transaction credits on Base: Receive $10 per month in transaction credits in sponsored smart wallet gas on Base.
- Retail protection: Provides coverage for eligible items purchased with your card if damaged or stolen within 90 days of the purchase date, up to a maximum of $1,000 per loss and a total of $50,000 per 12-month period.
- Extended warranty: Doubles the original manufacturer’s warranty, up to a maximum of 12 months, on eligible items purchased entirely with your card.
- Return protection: Provides coverage if you attempt to return an eligible item within 90 days from the date of purchase, and the merchant does not accept it in accordance with its return policies. You can receive coverage up to a maximum of $300 per item and up to a total of $1,000 annually.
- Car rental loss and damage insurance: Provides secondary rental car insurance coverage when you decline the rental company’s policy and pay with your card for up to $50,000 in coverage.
- Trip cancellation and interruption insurance: Provides reimbursement up to $1,500 for nonrefundable expenses paid when the entire fare is paid with your card.
- Lost or damaged luggage insurance: Provides up to $1,000 in reimbursement due to direct physical loss and damage to checked or carry-on luggage.
- Access to Amex Offers: Earn additional rewards or statement credits with select merchants each month via the rotating selection of Amex Offers.
Best Ways To Earn and Redeem Your Rewards
You can earn rewards by using your Coinbase One card for everyday purchases, especially if you have a Coinbase balance that qualifies you to earn 2.5% back or more. The higher your average monthly balance with Coinbase, the more you’ll earn for each purchase.
When you have between $10,000 and $50,000 in average monthly assets, you’ll receive a 25% boost to 2.5% back on all purchases. If you have an average balance between $50,000 and $200,000, you’ll receive a 50% bonus of 3% back on all purchases, and an average balance of $200,000 or more gets you a 100% bonus of 4% back on up to $10,000 in purchases per month.
You won’t have too many decisions when it comes to redeeming your rewards, as all of your rewards come in the form of Bitcoin deposited into your Coinbase account at the end of your statement period. From there, you can trade the Bitcoin for another cryptocurrency asset or sell it for U.S. dollars or USDC.
Alternative Cards to the Coinbase One Card
The Robinhood Gold card is another good choice for those seeking investment-focused rewards, thanks to its 5% back on travel purchases made through the Robinhood travel portal and 3% back on all other purchases.
You can then use your cash-back rewards to purchase investments on the Robinhood platform, which includes Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies as investment options.
While the card does not have an annual fee, it does require a Robinhood Gold subscription billed at $5 per month, similar to the Coinbase One card. Additionally, it offers perks such as purchase security, return protection, trip interruption insurance, rental car insurance, and no foreign transaction fees.
The U.S. Bank Smartly card has a similar setup to the Coinbase One card, in which the amount of cash-back rewards you’ll earn is tied to the amount of assets you hold with U.S. Bank.
With it, you’ll earn at least 2% back on all purchases, with the ability to boost that up to 2.5% with assets between $10,000 and $49,999, up to 3% back on assets between $50,000 and $99,999, and up to 4% back on up to $10,000 in purchases per month with assets greater than $100,000.
While the card has a $0 annual fee, you must have or open a U.S. Bank Smartly Savings account with a minimum opening deposit of $25. Only combined qualifying balances with U.S. Bank in a consumer Smartly Checking or Safe Debit account are eligible for boosted rewards.
