With a simple 2% cash back on all purchases and no annual fee, Fifth Third Cash/Back Card is a straightforward rewards card. However it’s only available to the bank’s Preferred clients.
About the Fifth Third Preferred Cash/Back card
The Fifth Third Preferred Cash/Back card is a simple, high-earning rewards card with no fuss, exclusively available to those who have a Fifth Third Preferred Banking client. Preferred Banking clients are Fifth Third customers who have $100,000 or more in combined deposits across all of their bank deposit accounts with the bank.
The Preferred Cash/Back card does not charge an annual fee and offers uncapped 2% cash-back rewards that never expire. Though it doesn’t have a welcome bonus, it does have a 0% intro APR for 12 billing cycles on balance transfers. After, a 20.24% to 29.99% variable APR applies. The balance transfer fee is 4% ($5 minimum).
Fifth Third also offers cellphone protection, which covers stolen or damaged phones, plus travel support services and ID theft protection.
Fifth Third Preferred Cash/Back basics
- Annual fee: None.
- Welcome bonus: None.
- Rewards: An unlimited 2% cash back on all purchases.
- Intro Balance Transfer APR: 0% intro APR for the first 12 billing cycles
- Regular APR: 20.24% to 29.99%.
- Balance transfer fee: Either $5 or 4% of each transfer, whichever is greater.
- Other perks and benefits: No foreign transaction fees, cellphone protection, travel support services, Mastercard ID Theft protection.
- Does the issuer offer a preapproval tool? No.
- Recommended credit score: Good to excellent.
Fifth Third Preferred Cash/Back details
Fifth Third Preferred Cash/Back rewards
The card offers a simple but strong rewards program: An unlimited 2% cash-back rewards on all purchases. The flat rewards structure is a strong value proposition, regardless of where you spend your money.
Fifth Third Preferred Cash/Back rewards potential
Using government data and other publicly available information, we estimate that a household in the U.S. that would be in the market for this card has an annual income of $84,352 and $25,087 in expenses they are likely to be able to charge to a credit card.
At that spending level, with a flat 2% rewards rate, the average household would earn $501.74 cash back annually with the Fifth Third Preferred Cash/Back card.
Fifth Third Preferred Cash/Back APR
The purchase APR for the Fifth Third Preferred Cash/Back card ranges from 20.24% to 29.99%. Balance transfers have a special introductory rate of 0% for the first 12 billing cycles, then the regular variable APR applies.
Pros
- Strong, unlimited rewards that never expire.
- No annual fee or foreign transaction fees.
- Benefits include cellphone protection, travel support services and ID theft protection.
Cons
- Only available to Fifth Third’s Preferred Banking clients.
- No welcome bonus.
- Balance transfer fee is high.
How the Fifth Third Preferred Cash/Back compares to other rewards cards
Fifth Third Preferred Cash/Back vs. Citi® Double Cash Card
If you like the idea of cash-back rewards but don’t bank with Fifth Third, the Citi Double Cash Card is a great alternative. Like the Preferred Cash/Back Card, Citi Double Cash has no annual fee, earns an unlimited 2% cash back on all purchases — 1% when purchases are made and another 1% when they’re paid off and comes with a 0% intro APR on balance transfers for 18 months. After that, the standard variable APR will be 18.74% to 28.74%. An intro balance transfer fee of either $5 or 3%, whichever is greater, applies to transfers completed in the first 4 months. After that, the fee will be 5% of each transfer (minimum $5).
Points earned on the Citi Double Cash are technically ThankYou® points, a flexible currency that can be redeemed as a statement credit, direct deposit, check or for gift cards, travel and to shop with select merchants. This redemption flexibility might be more appealing to some.
Fifth Third Preferred Cash/Back vs. Chase Freedom Flex℠
If you like the idea of a cash-back card but are also looking for greater rewards potential, the Chase Freedom Flex℠* might be a better fit. The Freedom Flex card offers a welcome bonus of $200 bonus after spending $500 on purchases in the first three months of account opening, and does not charge an annual fee.
The rewards structure on the Flex is potentially more lucrative than the Fifth Third Preferred Cash/Back, earning 5% cash back on up to $1,500 in categories that rotate quarterly (requires activation), 5% cash back on travel purchased through Chase Ultimate Rewards®, 3% cash back on dining and drugstores and 1% cash back on all other purchases.
Fifth Third Preferred Cash/Back vs. Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
For people who travel and dine out frequently, the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card is a strong alternative to the Fifth Third Preferred. As a welcome bonus, Chase Sapphire Preferred offers 80,000 points after spending $4,000 on purchases in the first three months of account opening. The card earns 5 points per $1 on travel purchased through Chase Ultimate Rewards®, 3 points per $1 on dining, select streaming services and online grocery purchases (excluding Walmart, Target and wholesale clubs), 2 points per $1 on travel purchases and 1 point per $1 on all other purchases.
While the card has an annual fee of $95, it also offers an annual $50 statement credit for hotel stays purchased through Chase. Points with this card are worth 25% more when used to book travel through Chase and you can also transfer your rewards to more than a dozen loyalty partners for potentially greater value.
*The information for this card has been collected independently by Blueprint. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.
Fifth Third Preferred Cash/Back summary
Frequently asked questions (FAQs)
Like most issuers, Fifth Third does not publish a required credit range to qualify for the Fifth Third Preferred Cash/Back card. Typically, a rewards card with above-average rates require a good or better credit score, which FICO defines as 670 or higher.
Yes, you can pay your balance at 53.com.
No, the Fifth Third Preferred Cash/Back card does not charge foreign transaction fees.
