Earn as much as 5% back when you spend from the likes of American Express, Chase and Barclaycard.
You can earn cashback or rewards via both debit and credit cards. In most instances the best option is the one that pays the best rate.
If you’re worried about managing a credit card it makes sense to use a debit card more. However, credit cards do have extra perks like added consumer protection or for deposits when hiring a car.
Cashback can be spent as you wish, while rewards normally need to be transferred into vouchers and spent at specific retailers.
We’ve outlined the best options so you can earn as you spend. Below, we compare credit card rewards across Amex, Visa, Mastercard and retailer-specific cards so you can see which suits how you spend.
Some articles on the site contain affiliate links, which provide a small commission to help fund our work. However, they won’t affect the price you pay or our editorial independence. Read more here.
Best cashback debit cards
The highest ongoing rate on debit cards is via the PayPal+ scheme, where there’s 1% up for grabs at home and abroad. It’s easy to use and there are ways to increase the value of the points you earn.
Trading 212 offers a lower rate of 0.5% but it’s often boosted to a higher 1.5% if you auto-invest. You’ll also earn the cashback on overseas spending. It has a cap of £15 a month.
| PayPal+ |
| 1% cashback |
| Boosted to 1.5% if reach Gold or Black tiers |
| No fee |
| Fee-free abroad and earn cashback |
| > PayPal+ card review |
| Trading 212 |
| 1.5% cashback |
| Max £15 cashback a month |
| Must opt in to auto investment of cashback and pay one regular subscription each month with the card to qualify |
| Cashback payable daily |
| £5 for physical card |
| Fee-free abroad and earn cashback |
| > Trading 212 card review |
| > Customer reviews of T212 on Smart Money People |
Other cards
Chase now offers 2% back, but only on groceries, takeaways, restaurants and some travel costs, and you’re capped at £20 a month in cashback. You also need to have £1,000 saved with the bank every month and use the debit card at least 15 times to qualify.
We’ve not listed cards which offer money back from time to time on a changing list of retailers. This includes Monzo, Halifax and Santander. These are worth a look but are really just pot luck as to whether something is available when you want to buy something.
Occasionally there’ll be a short lived cashback offer on other cards, and we list them on our banking deals page.
Get the best of our money saving content every week, straight to your inbox
Plus, new TopCashback customers get a high paying £18 welcome offer
Best credit cards for cashback and rewards
There are different types of cashback credit card, so we’ve split this section into:
- Best American Express cashback cards
- Best Visa or Mastercard cashback cards
- Best supermarket or retailer cashback cards
- Best airline rewards cards
Cashback credit card rules
A really important rule if you are using a cashback credit card.
Always pay off the balance in full every month
There’s no point using a cashback credit card if you’re going to get charged interest on your purchase. So make sure you set up a Direct Debit to clear the full balance.
If you can’t afford to do that, then a credit card probably isn’t your best option except for emergencies. I’ve written more about clearing credit card debts, so do read that.
It’s also worth doing an eligibility check before you apply if you can. This gives you a sense of whether you’ll be accepted, though not a guarantee.
Read more about these credit card rules.
Best American Express cashback and reward credit cards
The three Amex credit cards I’d look at for everyday earning are the Cashback, Nectar or Preferred Rewards Gold card.
| Amex Cashback | Amex Nectar | Amex Preferred Rewards Gold |
| 0.75% on first £10,000 a year then 1.25% | 2 Nectar points per £1 (equivalent to 1%) | 1 point per £1 (equivalent to 0.5%) Bonus points for every £5,000 spend (boosts equivalent rate to up to 0.75%) |
| 5% welcome bonus (up to £150) in first three months | 20,000 welcome bonus if you spend £2,000 in two months (worth £100) | 20,000 standard welcome bonus if you spend £3,000 in two three months (worth £10) Often boosted to up to 40,000 points (£175) |
| Cashback payable at end of year | Points redeemable instantly | Points redeemable instantly |
| £25 a year fee | Free in first year £30 a year afterwards | Free in first year £195 a year afterwards |
| Also £10 back at Deliveroo each month, 4 free Priority Passes | ||
| Bonus £25 via referral (typical) | Bonus £20 via referral (typical) | Bonus £70 via referral (typical) |
| > Amex Gold credit card review | ||
| > Customer reviews of Amex over on Smart Money People | > Customer reviews of Amex over on Smart Money People | > Customer reviews of Amex over on Smart Money People |
| > Check your eligibility for an American Express credit card | > Check your eligibility for an American Express credit card | > Check your eligibility for an American Express credit card |
Our analysis
The highest-paying of all credit and debit cards without restrictions is the American Express Nectar, which earns you the equivalent of 1% back. This makes it a strong option to anyone searching for the best cashback credit card without spending caps. Of course, you are earning Nectar points, but as long as you sometimes shop at Sainsbury’s or Argos, that shouldn’t be an issue. It’s free in the first year.
If you want pure cash, then go for the American Express Cashback card. You will pay £25 a year for this, but you can wipe that out in the first year by applying via a referral link You’ll be earning 0.75% on spending up to £10,000, and then a higher 1.25% if you go beyond this. This resets every 12 months.
There is a free but lower paying (at 0.5% on first £10,000, then 1%) version called American Express Everyday Cashback. However you must spend at least £3,000 a year to get any cashback on that.
Alternatively you could look at the American Express Preferred Rewards Gold credit card. You’ll only earn one Amex point (worth 0.5% if you swap it to a gift card), though it’s boosted for every £2,500 you spend above £5,000, pushing potential earnings to 0.75%. This card is initially free, but very expensive from the second year onwards, so it’s certainly only for one year. I’d also wait for when the welcome bonus is increased.
Other Amex cards
The focus of this guide is ongoing earning from spending, whether as cashback or Amex Reward points, however we’ve a longer guide to all American Express cards, their features and their welcome bonuses, including the Platinum card.
Check out this article with details of boosted referral bonuses and other extra offers with your American Express card.
Best Visa and Mastercard cashback and reward credit cards
If you want a back up credit card that’s not American Express, then the following are worth a look. They’re also all fee-free for spending overseas, which is something the Amex cards don’t offer.
| Santander Rewards | Lloyds Ultra | Barclaycard Rewards | NatWest Travel Reward |
| 3% on everyday travel, eating out and takeaways for first year, 0.25% on everything else 0.25% on all after first year | 1% for first year, 0.25% after | 0.25% | 1% on UK travel spending (including trains, planes, car rentals, hotels, buses & more) 0.1% elsewhere |
| Cashback paid monthly | Cashback paid each January | Cashback paid monthly | Cashback paid after 35 days |
| No fee | No fee | No fee | No fee |
| Fee-free abroad | Fee-free abroad | Fee-free abroad | Fee-free abroad |
| Visa | Visa | Mastercard | |
| > Santander Reward credit card review | > Lloyds Ultra credit card review | ||
| > Customer reviews of Santander credit cards over on Smart Money People | > Customer reviews of Barclaycard credit cards over on Smart Money People | > Customer reviews of NatWest credit cards over on Smart Money People | |
| > Check eligibility for a Santander credit card | > Check eligibility for the Barclaycard Rewards credit card | > Check eligibility for a NatWest credit card |
Our analysis
For all spending types, the Lloyds Ultra card is a top paying 1% card for 12 months, and then a lower but hard to beat 0.25% afterwards for a non-Amex card. It’s also fee free to use abroad.
But for petrol, trains and eating out, the 3% in year one from Santander is going to earn you more than on any card.
Alternatively, the Barclaycard Rewards pays a solid 0.25% cashback on spending at home or abroad, and is fee free.
I’ve included the NatWest Travel Reward credit card, but it’s only advantage over other cards is you can earn 1% back on holiday planning at home, such as hotels and flights – though you’d get the same with the Amex Nectar as long as the retailer accepts it. If you pick exactly the right retailers to spend at (and these are sent as “personalised offers” you could earn more in reward points.
Other cards
- NatWest Reward Black: 1% at supermarkets, 0.25% elsewhere (£24 annual fee unless a NatWest Reward current account customer) Also available from RBS
- Virgin Money Everyday Cashback: 1% cashback for the first 90 days, 0.25% after that – capped at £15 a month. Fee-free abroad
Best supermarket and retailer specific cashback and reward credit cards
These cards will earn you a decent rate at core UK retailers and supermarkets like Amazon and John Lewis. You’ll also earn on spending elsewhere, but those rates can usually be beaten by other cards listed above.
| Amazon Barclaycard Rewards | John Lewis Partnership | M&S Bank Rewards |
| 1% at Amazon (2% on big sales) 0.5% elsewhere for the first 12 months, then 0.25% | 5 points per £4 spent at John Lewis or Waitrose (equivalent of 1.25%) 1 point per £10 spent elsewhere (equivalent of 0.1%) | 1 points per £1 at M&S (equivalent of 1%) 1 points per £5 at elsewhere (equivalent of 0.2%) |
| £20 welcome credit (sometimes boosted) | Regular welcome offers | Regular welcome offers |
| Max £15 cashback a month | ||
| Redeem credit in multiples of £5 | Redeem vouchers in multiples of £5 | Vouchers paid quarterly |
| No fee | No fee | No fee |
| > Amazon Barclaycard Rewards review | ||
| > Customer reviews of Amex over on Smart Money People | > Customer reviews of John Lewis credit cards over on Smart Money People | > Customer reviews of M&S Bank over on Smart Money People |
| > Check your eligibility for an Amazon credit card | > Check your eligibility for a John Lewis credit card | > Check your eligibility for a Marks and Spencer Bank credit card |
Other cards
- Asda Money: 0.75% back at Asda, 0.2% elsewhere
Best airline reward credit cards
Fee-free versions of the following cards are available, though you’ll earn far fewer points all round.
| British Airways American Express Premium Plus | Barclaycard Avios Plus | Virgin Atlantic Reward+ |
| 1.5 Avios per £1 spent | 1.5 Avios per £1 spent | 1.5 point per £1 spent |
| 30,000 bonus welcome Avios if you spend £6,000 in three months Often boosted to 60,000 points | 25,000 bonus welcome Avios if you spend £3,000 in three months | 18,000 bonus points with first spend |
| Spend £15,000 to get a companion voucher | Spend £10,000 to get a cabin upgrade voucher | Spend £10,000 to get a companion or cabin upgrade voucher |
| £300 a year | £20 a month (£240 a year) | £160 a year |
| > Barclaycard Avios review | ||
| > Customer reviews of Amex over on Smart Money People | > Customer reviews of Barclaycard credit cards over on Smart Money People | > Customer reviews of Virgin Money cards over on Smart Money People |
| > Check your eligibility for an American Express credit card | > Check your eligibility for a Barclaycard credit card | > Check your eligibility for a Virgin Money credit card |
Our analysis
As well as earning points as you spend, the draw with these cards are welcome offers and 2-4-1 vouchers. However the latter can require huge amounts of spending – and then even more to get enough points to use alongside the vouchers, especially on non-economy seats.
Unless you are going to be spending a lot, or want to save long term for a dream trip, I prefer using cashback card and having the flexibility to shop around for deals on flights.
You can also earn points on some American Express cards, such as the Nectar, Reward, Gold and Platinum that can covert to many different airline schemes.
How to choose between a cashback and a rewards credit card
Cashback and rewards cards suit different types of spender:
- Choose cashback if you want flexibility – the money lands as cash and can be spent, saved or used to offset your statement
- Choose rewards or points if you already have a retailer or airline you’re loyal to, since points can be worth more than their cash equivalent when redeemed well
- Choose an Amex card if you shop regularly at Sainsbury’s, Argos or Nectar partners, since Amex points there behave almost like cashback
- Choose a Visa or Mastercard if you want a fee-free backup for spending abroad, since Amex isn’t accepted everywhere
Expert thoughts on cashback and reward credit cards from Be Clever With Your Cash
For anyone wanting a single recommendation from this guide, the Amex Nectar card is the standout. It’s free in year one, has no spending restrictions unlike most cashback cards, and the points are easy to use for anyone who shops at Sainsbury’s or Argos even occasionally, which covers most households at least some of the time. It’s about as close to a “just get this one” answer as we can offer.
Airline reward cards should be handled with more caution. They only really pay off for those already loyal to one airline who spend enough to clear voucher thresholds, which for most people takes far longer than expected – and the value of points can evaporate if an airline changes its redemption rules, which has happened more than once in the past few.
Flexible cashback beats speculative points that might only ever be “worth it” in theory.
It’s also worth flagging that cashback and rewards credit cards only ever make financial sense when the balance is cleared in full every month. The 0.5–2% earned back is trivial next to the 20%+ APR most of these cards charge on any carried balance, so only get one if you know you have the discipline to treat it like a debit card that happens to pay you back.
The best credit card deals
Check out my list of the best credit card offers and promotions
