RBC Cash Back MasterCard Review

Royal Bank introduced a new cash back credit card in December called the RBC Cash Back MasterCard.  Their research showed a growing consumer demand for cash back rewards, particularly one with no annual fee.

The RBC Cash Back MasterCard gives cardholders 2% cash back on groceries and 1% cash back on all other spending.  This card offers the unique flexibility to redeem your cash back rewards for a statement credit every time you reach $25, or you can let your cash back credits accumulate throughout the year and redeem them all on your January credit card statement.  This card comes with no annual fee.

Related: Best Cash Back Credit Cards

RBC Cash Back MasterCard

Here are the detailed benefits for using the RBC Cash Back MasterCard:

• 2% cash back credits on grocery store purchases
• Up to 1% cash back on all qualifying purchases and pre-authorized payments
• 1.9% for 10 months Introductory Interest Rate on balance transfers and cash advances (21.99% thereafter)
• Unlimited cash back on your purchases
• No annual fee for the primary cardholder and no extra cost for additional cardholders
• Receive a credit for the full amount every time your Cash Back balance exceeds $25, or let it accumulate all year for a credit in January

It’s important to note that the 2% cash back on groceries is capped at $6,000 annually.  Once you reach that ceiling, your cash back credits for grocery purchases drops to 1%.

For non-grocery purchases, you earn 0.5% cash back up to a maximum of $6,000 per year and 1% cash back on all non-grocery spending in excess of $6,000 per year.

How Much Cash Back Will I Earn?

To maximize your cash back rewards you should try to use your credit card for every purchase (as long as you pay it off every month).  Using your credit card for groceries is easy, but you can also set-up automatic bill payments with your RBC Cash Back MasterCard so that your cable, cell phone and utility bills are all helping you earn cash back credits.

I spend approximately $2,600 per month on my credit card, including $600 on groceries.  Here’s what my annual cash back credits will be from using the RBC Cash Back MasterCard:

• 2% cash back on grocery purchases (up to $6,000 per year) – $120
• 1% cash back on grocery purchases thereafter – $12
• 0.5% cash back on all non-grocery purchases (up to $6,000 per year) – $30
• 1% cash back on all non-grocery purchases thereafter – $180

Total cash back credits per year = $342

Final thoughts

The RBC Cash Back MasterCard is a good no fee cash back credit card for someone who spends at least $500 per month on groceries.  With a total cash back rebate of about 1.1%, this card is a better option than other basic no fee rewards cards like the PC MasterCard.

However, this RBC product is not quite in the same league as the top cash back credit cards in Canada, like the MBNA Smart Cash MasterCard and the Capital One Aspire Cash World MasterCard, which return closer to 1.5% cash back.