M&T Visa® Signature Credit Card Review

M&T VISA® SIGNATURE CREDIT CARD REWARDS

Strategizing about how to maximize your rewards can be the bane of a credit cardholder's existence, but the M&T Visa® Signature Credit Card makes it simple and straightforward with unlimited 1.5% cash back for every dollar you spend, no annual or foreign transaction fees and a respectable balance transfer offer.

Flat-rate cash-back credit cards keep popping up, but M&T Visa® Signature Credit Card's features and perks remain among the best even as newcomers join the fray. In particular, the ease of knowing you'll earn 1.5% back regardless of where you use your card, combined with the flexible redemption opportunities with the M&T Visa® Signature Credit Card, make this a card worth checking out.

Take a look at a few more features:

• 10,000 bonus points after $500 in purchases made in the first 90 days from account opening
• 0% introductory APR on balance transfers for 12 months (a 4% balance transfer fee will apply)
• No foreign transaction fee
• Redeem points for cash, gift cards, merchandise, travel and other rewards
• Chip-enabled card
• Works with Apple Pay™
• Visa® Signature benefits, including complimentary 24-hour concierge service, travel protection, rental car insurance, perks at luxury hotels and zero liability

FEATURED CARD

 

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• Earn a $250 statement credit after you spend $3,000 in purchases on your new Card within the first 6 months.
• $0 intro annual fee for the first year, then $95.
• Buy Now, Pay Later: Enjoy $0 intro plan fees when you use Plan It® to split up large purchases into monthly installments. Pay $0 intro plan fees on plans created during the first 12 months from the date of account opening. Plans created after that will have a monthly plan fee up to 1.33% of each eligible purchase amount moved into a plan based on the plan duration, the APR that would otherwise apply to the purchase, and other factors.
• Low Intro APR: 0% on purchases and balance transfers for 12 months from the date of account opening. After that, your APR will be a variable APR of 19.24% - 29.99%. Variable APRs will not exceed 29.99%.
• 6% Cash Back at U.S. supermarkets on up to $6,000 per year in purchases (then 1%).
• 6% Cash Back on select U.S. streaming subscriptions.
• 3% Cash Back at U.S. gas stations.
• 3% Cash Back on transit (including taxis/rideshare, parking, tolls, trains, buses and more).
• 1% Cash Back on other purchases.
• Cash Back is received in the form of Reward Dollars that can be redeemed as a statement credit or at Amazon.com checkout.
• Get up to $120 in statement credits annually when you pay for an auto-renewing subscription to Equinox+ at equinoxplus.com with your Blue Cash Preferred® Card. That's $10 in statement credits each month. Enrollment required.
• Thinking about getting the Disney Bundle which can include Disney+, Hulu, and ESPN+? Your decision made easy with $7/month back in the form of a statement credit after you spend $9.99 or more each month on an eligible subscription (subject to auto renewal) with your Blue Cash Preferred® Card. Enrollment required.
• Terms Apply.

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See Rates and Fees

Terms and Limitations Apply

Credit Needed:

Good, Excellent

WHAT OUR EDITORS LIKE MOST ABOUT THE M&T VISA® SIGNATURE CREDIT CARD

With the M&T Visa® Signature Credit Card, customers earn unlimited 1.5% cash back on every dollar they spend and a get sign-up bonus of 10,000 points - good for $100 in cash - after they make $500 in purchases within the first 90 days. You can then receive your cash back in the form of statement credits, savings or checking account deposits or MasterCard® Bonus cards.

In general, the M&T Visa® Signature Credit Card is a good option for a low-fee card. There's a 0% introductory APR on balance transfers for 12 months and no annual fee. Additionally, the M&T Visa® Signature Credit Card doesn't have a foreign transaction fee on purchases made outside the U.S. All these things together mean you can reap savings if you regularly travel abroad, want to transfer a balance from a high-interest rate card or intend to use this card for everyday purchases, especially during the first year.

POTENTIAL DOWNSIDES OF THE M&T VISA® SIGNATURE CREDIT CARD

There are some downsides.

• The welcome bonus is just okay. Compared to other cash-back rewards cards, the M&T Visa® Signature Credit Card's sign-up bonus is modest at 10,000 points (or $100 cash) for $500 in purchases made in the first 90 days.
• Rewards do not expire, but... your rewards balance will be forfeited on the first day of the calendar month following the month in which your account becomes an inactive account. An inactive account refers to an account that has not used the associated credit card to make a purchase in the previous 12-month period.
• That balance transfer fee. At 4%, it's a bit high. Most cards tend to have a 3% balance transfer fee.

You also need excellent credit to get the M&T Visa® Signature Credit Card, so if you're still building or re-building your credit history, you'll likely want to look for a different card.

HOW DOES THE M&T VISA® SIGNATURE CREDIT CARD COMPARE TO OTHER CARDS?

M&T Visa® Signature Credit Card vs. CardName

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If the M&T Visa® Signature Credit Card sounds appealing to you, you'll probably like CardName as well. It shares some similar traits, notably with its unlimited 1.5% cash back. But we're getting ahead of ourselves. Here are some of the highlights that you'll want to consider:

• You'll get a one-time $200 cash bonus after you spend $500 on purchases within three months from account opening. That's a serious welcome bonus, a 40% cash back bonus. (The M&T Visa® Signature Credit Card offers a 20% cash back bonus.)
• You'll earn an unlimited 1.5% cash back on every purchase (as we just mentioned and as is the case with M&T Visa® Signature Credit Card).
• No annual fee. It's always nice to avoid those annual fees.
• No foreign transaction fees.
• You can get up to six months of complimentary Uber One membership statement credits through 11/14/2024
• Book hotels and rental cars through Capital One Travel, and you'll earn unlimited 5% cash back. Terms apply.
• Enjoy 0% intro APR on purchases and balance transfers for 15 months; RegAPR APR after that; balance transfer fee applies (just to repeat and maybe more clear: there's no interest paid on that balance during those 15 months; you'll just have to pay the balance transfer fee).

M&T Visa® Signature Credit Card vs. CardName

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This isn't much of contest, honestly. CardName offers more rewards than M&T Visa® Signature Credit Card.

You will get:

• 6.5% cash back on travel purchased through the Chase Travel℠
• 4.5% cash back on drugstore purchases and dining at restaurants, including takeout and eligible delivery service
• 3% on all other purchases
• After your first year or $20,000 spent, enjoy 5% cash back on Chase travel; 3% cash back on drugstore purchases and dining; and unlimited 1.5% cash back on all other purchases

Plus, the intro offer of an additional 1.5% cash back on everything you buy (on up to $20,000 spent in the first year) - worth up to $300 cash back is a great perk!

Then there are other things to like such as no annual fee and a 0% intro APR for 15 months (before RegAPR applies). But it's not a card to take on a trip overseas as it has a foreign_fee. The M&T Visa® Signature Credit Card does not have a foreign transaction fee.

M&T Visa® Signature Credit Card vs. CardName

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At first glance, it looks like CardName won't offer as much as the M&T Visa® Signature Credit Card. You get 1% cash back the moment you buy something, but you get another 1% cash back after you pay the credit card statement for those purchases (as long as you're making at least the minimum payment on time). So ultimately you're getting 2% cash back. M&T Visa® Signature Credit Card gives you 1.5% cash back. Not bad, but not 2%. Citi is a CardRatings advertiser.

There are other selling points, notably:

• An 18-month, zero interest offer on balance transfers before regular RegAPR APR applies (M&T Visa® Signature Credit Card has a balance transfer zero-interest offer, but it's for 12 months.)
• No annual fee. (Same for the M&T credit card.)
• The rewards are unlimited. As long as you are spending money, you'll get 2% cash back, in those two stages of 1%.

WHO SHOULD GET THE M&T VISA® SIGNATURE CREDIT CARD?

Anyone who prefers cash instead of points and wants a simple, no-fuss card that also includes perks should consider this card. The balance transfer promotion and low fees are two other good reasons to take a long look at the M&T Visa® Signature Credit Card.