Here Are Americans' 3 Favorite Rewards Cards With No Annual Fee

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KEY POINTS

  • A recent J.D. Power study featured customer satisfaction scores for rewards cards with no annual fee.
  • The top three are the Capital One SavorOne Cash Rewards Credit Card, the Discover it® Student Cash Back, and the Blue Cash Everyday® Card from American Express.
  • All three cards offer many opportunities to earn bonus cash back.

Rewards cards that don't charge an annual fee are popular with consumers. You don't need to worry about getting your money's worth, like you do if your card has an annual fee. Plus, these cards are normally easy to use with straightforward benefits.

If you're looking for this type of credit card, there are all kinds of options available. The J.D. Power 2023 U.S. Credit Card Satisfaction StudySM could help you find the right one. It ranked credit cards by customer satisfaction, so the results are a great way to see which cards people like the most. Here are Americans' favorite no annual fee rewards cards, based on that study.

1. Capital One SavorOne Cash Rewards Credit Card

Highlights:

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  • 3% cash back on dining, entertainment, popular streaming services, and grocery stores (excluding superstores like Walmart or Target)
  • 8% cash back on Capital One Entertainment purchases
  • $200 welcome offer after you spend $500 on purchases in the first 3 months
  • 0% intro APR for 15 months on purchases and balance transfers (go-to variable rate of 19.99% - 29.99% (Variable) applies after intro period)

With 666 points on J.D. Power's 1,000-point scale, the Capital One SavorOne Cash Rewards Credit Card ranks at the top. For earning bonus cash back, it's definitely a winner. It has several bonus categories on everyday expenses, no annual fee, and a welcome offer with a low spending requirement.

Apply now for the Capital One SavorOne Cash Rewards Credit Card. (See rates and fees.)

2. Discover it® Student Cash Back

Highlights:

  • 5% cash back on everyday purchases at rotating quarterly bonus categories you activate, such as grocery stores, restaurants, and gas stations, up to the quarterly maximum of $1,500 in purchases
  • Discover automatically matches all the cash back you've earned at the end of your first year
  • 0% intro APR for 6 months on purchases (the go-to rate of 18.24% - 27.24% Variable APR applies after intro period)

Coming in second with 658 points is the card I recommend to every college student, the Discover it® Student Cash Back. It's known for its rotating quarterly bonus categories -- you need to activate them each quarter, but once you do, you earn an extremely high cash back rate.

There's also Discover's impressive welcome offer, where it matches new cardholders' cash back at the end of the first year. If you earn $250, Discover will give you another $250.

Apply now for the Discover it® Student Cash Back. (See rates and fees.)

3. Blue Cash Everyday® Card from American Express

Highlights:

  • 3% cash back at U.S. supermarkets (on up to $6,000 in purchases per calendar year)
  • 3% cash back for U.S. online retail purchases (on up to $6,000 in purchases per calendar year)
  • 3% cash back at U.S. gas stations (on up to $6,000 in purchases per calendar year)
  • $200 welcome offer in the form of a statement credit after you spend $2,000 on purchases within the first 6 months
  • 0% intro APR for 15 months on purchases and balance transfers (go-to variable rate applies after intro period, see rates and fees)
  • Terms apply

American Express was No. 1 in customer satisfaction for the fourth year in a row. One of its best cash back cards, the Blue Cash Everyday® Card from American Express, ranked third here with 655 points. With bonuses across multiple popular spending categories, this is another card that you can use to earn lots of cash back. Terms apply.

Apply now for the Blue Cash Everyday® Card from American Express.

Choosing the right rewards credit card

If there's one thing these cards have in common, it's that they all offer big cash back bonus opportunities. Each card has a valuable welcome offer for new cardholders. They also earn bonus cash back on fairly common expenses, such as groceries, dining, gas, and online shopping.

Based on the results, it seems clear that consumers value being able to earn extra cash back as much as possible.

RELATED: Best No Annual Fee Credit Cards

If the bonus categories on one of the cards fit your spending, then that could be the card for you. If not, there are plenty of other credit cards with different bonus categories, or different features entirely. Check out our best credit card picks and you should be able to find one that fits your lifestyle and spending habits.

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