If you’re serious about long-term savings — whether for your retirement, your child’s college fund or both — you already know you need to do more than just save your pennies. You need dollars, and lots of them.
So, what if you could put a percentage of every purchase you make on your credit card into one of those investment funds? Would you do it? If your answer is yes, you may want to take a look at the Fidelity Rewards Visa Signature card from Fidelity Investments, because that’s exactly what this credit card does.
What Is the Fidelity Rewards Visa Signature Card?
The Fidelity Rewards card offers cardholders a very straightforward 2% back on all purchases, simple as that. Your reward is then deposited directly into a Fidelity account. For every $2,500 spent, a deposit of $50 is made into the investment account of your choice, and you can choose from a variety of accounts that meet your savings goals. Want your money deposited directly for retirement? Fidelity can put your 2% right into a traditional, Roth, rollover or SEP IRA. (Not sure what an IRA is? No worries: We have a full explainer on individual retirement accounts right here.) You can’t deposit directly into a 401K, however.
Prefer a brokerage account? No problem. For certain cardholders, there’s also the option of depositing your rewards into a 529 college savings account.
Of course, you can choose to spend your rewards instead of investing them, but the redemption value is lower if you choose to redeem your points for other rewards. The exact redemption rate varies, depending on how you cash in, a Fidelity spokesperson said. For instance, if you redeem rewards for retailer gift cards, the rate is .5% (10,000 points for $50 gift card).
No Spending Categories & No Limits
Not only does the Fidelity Rewards card making saving easy, there are no special spending categories and no limits or caps on the amount of rewards you can earn. Plus, the card’s variable 14.99% annual percentage rate means carrying a small balance every now and then won’t necessarily wipe out the rewards you earn. (Friendly reminder: It’s still important when using a rewards credit card to try your very best not to.)
New cardholders can get a $100 bonus after spending $1,000 in the first 90 days, but the funds must be deposited directly into a qualified Fidelity account. Qualifying accounts for both the regular rewards savings and signup bonus include:
- Fidelity Cash Management Account
- Fidelity-managed 529 College Savings plan
- Retirement account
- Fidelity Go accountÂ
The Fidelity Rewards card also comes with all the benefits provided through the Visa Signature platform, including:
- Auto rental collision coverage. Rent your automobile with your Fidelity Rewards card and you can waive the rental agency’s collision coverage.
- Emergency assistance while traveling. Find the help you need when you’re on the road.
- Purchase protection. Extra coverage for the things you buy with your card, including reimbursement for damage or theft.
- Warranty manager service. This service helps you keep track of the warranties on the items you purchase with your card.
- Lost luggage reimbursement. This service covers lost or stolen baggage.
- Travel accident insurance. This coverage will help if you’re injured while traveling.
- Roadside dispatch. Need a tow? Locked yourself out of your car? This pay-per-use service offers many benefits, including emergency roadside assistance.
- Visa Signature Concierge. Access to 24-hour complimentary assistance with everything from booking travel to getting concert tickets.
Is the Fidelity Rewards Visa Signature Card Right for You?
Even if you like the idea of of a card with no annual fee that lets you earn 2% on every purchase you make and then directly invests that money toward your savings goals, the Fidelity Rewards card isn’t for everyone. Here are a few things to keep in mind as you weigh your decision:
- Do you have a Fidelity investment account? If you don’t, you’ll want to keep in mind that you can’t use your rewards as a deposit to establish a new Fidelity account. Rewards can only be deposited into existing accounts.
- Do you have excellent credit? To qualify for the Fidelity Rewards card, you’re going to need excellent credit. If you don’t know what your credit score is, you can get your two free credit scores, updated every 14 days, right here on Credit.com using our free credit report snapshot. It provides personalized details on how you can improve your scores, including a timeline of how long it will take to do so, across five key areas affecting your credit scores. It also provides you with a personalized list of some of the credit cards you would qualify for.
- Do you prefer investing over perks or cash back? If you travel a lot, whether for work or play, you might prefer some of the benefits that travel rewards cards offer, like free upgrades, free hotel stays, waived baggage fees and other non-monetary perks. Likewise, if you’d like more flexibility in what your rewards can be used for, a cash-back rewards card might be better for you.
- Can you get higher rewards with another card? If you want more flexibility than the automated investing inherent with the Fidelity Rewards card allows, there are cards that offer higher rewards (for example, the American Express Blue Cash Preferred gives a whopping 6% cash back on up to $6,000 in purchases per year at U.S. supermarkets, then 1%), so the automated investing aspect should be particularly important to you.
Remember, whenever you’re shopping for a rewards card, it can really pay to keep your spending habits and rewards goals in mind as you compare cards. To get started, you can check out our list of the best cash back credit cards. And, no matter what type of plastic you’re on the hunt for, you can reference our expert guide to getting the best terms you possibly can on a credit card.
Note: It’s important to remember that interest rates, fees and terms for credit cards, loans and other financial products frequently change. As a result, rates, fees and terms for credit cards, loans and other financial products cited in these articles may have changed since the date of publication. Please be sure to verify current rates, fees and terms with credit card issuers, banks or other financial institutions directly.
Image: Bliznetsov