US Cash-Back Credit Card Emerging Features Benchmark 2021

How 10 of the Leading No-Fee Cash-Back Credit Cards Stack Up on Offering Card Prospects’ Most Valued Features

Report by David Morris  | Sep 27, 2021
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Table of Contents
Executive Summary
Key Findings
Introduction
Leading Cash-Back Credit Card Programs in 2021
No. 1: Cash-Back Rewards
No. 2: Security and Control
No. 3: Earning Rewards
No. 4: Shopping
No. 5: Redeeming Rewards
No. 6: Payment Flexibility
No. 7: Advanced Digital Features
Methodology
Terms and Definitions
Survey Demographics
Appendix
Read Next
Sources
Media Gallery
About This Report
This inaugural study ranks 10 leading cash-back credit cards (with no annual fee) by the degree at which they offer 49 emerging cash-back credit card features, weighted by how highly cash-back credit card prospects value those features.
Topics
Credit & Debit
Payments
United States
Table of Contents
Executive Summary
Key Findings
Introduction
Leading Cash-Back Credit Card Programs in 2021
No. 1: Cash-Back Rewards
No. 2: Security and Control
No. 3: Earning Rewards
No. 4: Shopping
No. 5: Redeeming Rewards
No. 6: Payment Flexibility
No. 7: Advanced Digital Features
Methodology
Terms and Definitions
Survey Demographics
Appendix
Read Next
Sources
Media Gallery

Executive Summary

3 KEY QUESTIONS THIS REPORT WILL ANSWER:

  1. Which key emerging features do prospective US cash-back credit card customers value most?
  2. Which of these features can best attract and retain customers?
  3. How do top cash-back credit card programs compare against their competitors on key features or categories of features?

WHAT’S IN THIS REPORT? Cash-back credit card innovation has been boosted to new heights by the convergence of digitization (driven by the pandemic), competition, and consumer behavior. In this inaugural study, the Insider Intelligence “US Cash-Back Credit Card Emerging Features Benchmark 2021,” we identify the emerging features that prospective cash-back credit card users find most valuable, and rank 10 leading cash-back credit cards (with no annual fee) according to the degree at which they offer these features.

Top 5 Most In-Demand Cash-Back Credit Card Features (% of respondents who call feature
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KEY STAT: Among 47 cash-back credit card features, rewards are front and center. Two of the top five features are exclusive to cash-back rewards, while another two apply to earning rewards more broadly.

Here’s what’s in the full report

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Table of Contents

  1. Executive Summary
  2. Key Findings
  3. Introduction
  4. Leading Cash-Back Credit Card Programs in 2021
  5. No. 1: Cash-Back Rewards
  6. No. 2: Security and Control
  1. No. 3: Earning Rewards
  2. No. 4: Shopping
  3. No. 5: Redeeming Rewards
  4. No. 6: Payment Flexibility
  5. No. 7: Advanced Digital Features
  6. Methodology
  1. Terms and Definitions
  2. Survey Demographics
  3. Appendix
  4. Read Next
  5. Sources
  6. Media Gallery

Charts in This Report

Top 5 Most In-Demand Cash-Back Credit Card Features (% of respondents who call feature "extremely valuable")Most In-Demand No-Annual-Fee, Cash-Back Credit Cards According to US Consumers, June 2021 (benchmark score*)
Leading No-Annual-Fee, Cash-Back Rewards Credit Cards According to US Consumers, June 2021 (benchmark score*)Leading No-Annual-Fee, Cash-Back Credit Cards for Security and Control According to US Consumers, June 2021 (benchmark score*)
Leading No-Annual-Fee, Cash-Back Credit Cards for Earning Rewards According to US Consumers, June 2021 (benchmark score*)Leading No-Annual-Fee, Cash-Back Credit Cards for Shopping According to US Consumers, June 2021 (benchmark score*)
Leading No-Annual-Fee, Cash-Back Credit Cards for Redeeming Rewards According to US Consumers, June 2021 (benchmark score*)Leading No-Annual-Fee, Cash-Back Credit Cards for Payment Flexibility According to US Consumers, June 2021 (benchmark score*)
Leading No-Annual-Fee, Cash-Back Credit Cards for Advanced Digital Features According to US Consumers, June 2021 (benchmark score*)US Consumers Interested in Using a Cash-Back Credit Card, by Household Income, June 2021 (% of respondents )
US Consumers Interested in Using a Cash-Back Credit Card, by Demographic, June 2021 (% of respondents in each group)Cash-Back Credit Card Features that Are Most Valuable to US Consumers, June 2021 (% of respondents)
Types of Purchases that Would Be Most Valuable for Earning Rewards According to US Consumers, June 2021 (% of respondents)Expenses on Which US Consumers Would Most Like to Spend Cash-Back Rewards*, June 2021 (% of respondents)
Credit Card Account Access Methods Used by US Consumers, June 2021 (% of respondents)

authors

David Morris

Contributors

Grace Broadbent
Research Analyst, Payments & Commerce
Daniel Decea
Researcher, Financial Services
Na Li
Director, Primary Research
Reuben Loewy
Director, Report Editing
Jaime Toplin
Senior Analyst
Daniel Van Dyke
VP, Content
Julia Woolever
Senior Report Editor