How Does Apple Card Stack Up Against Other Cashback Credit Cards?

Apple Card is one of the most buzz-worthy credit cards in the market. The card has a slick, mobile-first interface and incentivizes cardholders to use Apple Pay by giving them 2% cash back on purchases. Apple Card also offers 3% cash back on purchases made with Apple and a handful of other merchants.

But how does Apple Card stack up against competitors in this space? According to the latest Credit Card Value Index rankings, Apple Card ranked 80th out of the 250 cards in the Index. Among no annual fee cash back credit cards, Apple Card ranks relatively low at number 15 in the Index.

The Credit Card Value Index takes four factors into account when scoring cards: rewards, fees, acquisition offers, and benefits.

Rewards

According to our estimates, Apple Card customers can earn as much as $934 in rewards over two years. The Index assumes that the majority of point of sale purchases using Apple Card take advantage of the accelerated rewards for using Apple Pay — including grocery, gas, and other physical retail purchases, as well as mobile wallet spending.

Apple Card does not have a new customer acquisition offer, so its score suffers compared to cards like Chase Freedom Unlimited and the Discover It Card. Chase Freedom Unlimited cardholders can earn as much as $1,330 over two years, including the $200 new customer bonus. The Discover It Card similarly has a higher two-year earn rate, with cardholders potentially getting $1,155 in rewards — which includes Discover's unique first-year Cashback Match offer.

In categories where consumers can't use Apple Pay, such as merchants like Amazon, the card earns a flat 1% cash back on purchases. Compared to the Wells Fargo Active Cash Card, which gives 2% cash back on all purchases, Apple Card falls short in its rewards potential.

Benefits

Apple Card does earn points in the Index for its unique Daily Cash feature. Where most rewards cards make the cardholder wait until the end of their billing cycle to earn rewards, Apple Card's Daily Cash gives cardholders near real-time rewards earnings.

Benefits are another area where competing cards outperform Apple Card. The card lacks purchase protection, return protection, extended warranty, cell phone protection, and other benefits found on no annual fee cash back cards like the Amex Blue Cash Everyday and Wells Fargo Active Cash.

Bottom Line

Apple Card provides the greatest potential value for customers who spend heavily on Apple products and with its preferred 3% cash back partners. But when compared to other cards based on the average spending of American consumers, Apple Card ranks low in the cash back rewards segment.

Top No-Annual-Fee Cash Back Cards — Current CCVI Rankings