Petal® 2 "Cash Back, No Fees" Visa® Credit Card Review
Jennifer Doss
Last Updated: February 15, 2024 Petal® 2 "Cash Back, No Fees" Visa® Credit Card
CardRatings Editor's Analysis: Pros & Cons
- Usually those with no credit history are limited to secured credit cards, which rarely offer rewards. This card is great for anyone looking to build their credit while also earning rewards, with up to 1.5% cash back on eligible purchases (after making 12 on-time monthly payments).
- Reporting to all three major credit bureaus to help build a credit score.
- No fees of any kind, including no annual fee, no late payment fee and no foreign transaction fee. (RegAPR APR applies)
- This is a card for people with no credit history - not poor credit. If you have significant delinquencies or a bankruptcy on your record, you may not be approved.
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PETAL 2 CREDIT CARD SCORE NEEDED
Until now, credit card options for those without a credit score were limited. In many cases, people had no choice but to make an upfront deposit for a secured credit card. Or, if they were approved for an unsecured card, their spending limit may have been very low. However, the new CardName changes all that. (Petal credit cards are issued by WebBank, Member FDIC)
The Petal 2 Cash Back No Fees Visa Credit Card is ideal for those who have solid money management skills but no credit history. Applicants without a credit score can link to their bank account to prove their creditworthiness. For those approved, credit limits start at $300 and run to as much as $10,000. The card not only provides access to credit for those with no score, but it offers cash back:
- 1% cash back on all eligible purchases upon card activation
- 1.25% cash back on all eligible purchases after making six on-time monthly payments
- 1.5% cash back on all eligible purchases after making 12 on-time monthly payments
- 2% - 10% cash back when you shop with select merchants.
Beyond that, the Petal 2 Visa Card comes with these additional perks:
- No fees of any kind, including no annual fee, no late payment fee and no foreign transaction fee
- Reporting to all three major credit bureaus to help build a credit score
- Easy money management through the Petal app
Top Features
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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.
PETAL 2 CASH BACK
We love that the CardName is not only willing to approve applicants with no credit history, but it provides them rewards to boot. Its cash back percentage is competitive with other cards, and it's designed in a way to encourage responsible money habits. All cardholders start with 1% cash back on eligible purchases. That amount increases to 1.25% after six on-time monthly payments and then 1.5% after 12 on-time monthly payments. Additionally, cardholders can earn 2% - 10% cash back from select merchants (the list is available via the Petal mobile app) thanks to the card's Offers program. Just use your card with any of those merchants and the extra cash back is automatic – there's no need to sign up, keep up with rotating categories or worry about a cap. Merchants included vary, but could include Gap, Casper, Lowe's Home Improvement and more.
The Petal 2 Visa Credit Card also gets kudos for being fee-free and extending credit limits of up to $10,000 to new cardholders, something you won't get with a secured credit card. Petal reports to all three major credit reporting bureaus - Experian, Equifax and TransUnion - to help users build their credit score.
Another reason to like the Petal 2 Visa Card is its security features. Cardholders can temporarily freeze their accounts at any time. Customer service is available 24/7, and Petal's user-friendly app makes it easy to track spending for both your credit card and bank account in one place.
POTENTIAL DOWNSIDES OF THE PETAL 2 VISA CREDIT CARD
While 1.5% cash back is similar to the standard rates offered by other cash-back cards like CardName discontinued, the initial 1% cash back rate is lower than what you could get elsewhere. What's more, unlike many other rewards credit cards, there is no welcome cash back bonus available for the CardName.
Although the Petal 2 Visa Credit Card is a great starter card for those with no credit, don't confuse it as a card for those with poor credit. If you have significant delinquencies or a bankruptcy on your record, you may not be approved.
Another potential downside of the Petal 2 Visa Card is that you can't use it for cash advances. Also, be aware that if you carry a balance, you'll pay an APR that currently ranges from RegAPR. That can easily wipe out any cash back rewards you earn with the card if you don't pay your balance in full each month.
PETAL 2 VISA CREDIT CARD CARDHOLDER SCORES
CardRatings conducts a survey annually to learn what actual cardholders think of their cards. Here are the results:
| Current Scores | Past Scores | |
|---|---|---|
| Overall Score | 75.5 | 80.2 |
| Features Satisfaction | 7.6 | 8.1 |
| Customer Service | 7.1 | 8.1 |
| Website/App Usability | 7.5 | 8.3 |
| Likelihood of Continuing to Use | 8.2 | 7.8 |
| Recommend to a Friend/Colleague | 7.6 | 7.8 |
*Scores above reflect the results of surveys with actual cardholders. Full methodology below.
HOW THE PETAL 2 VISA CARD COMPARES TO OTHER CARDS
Petal 2 Cash Back No Fees Visa Credit Card vs. CardName
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Neither the CardName nor the CardName charge an annual fee or late fees. CardName takes that one step further by promising to never assess a penalty interest rate either. However, unlike Petal, the Citi card isn't truly fee-free. It charges foreign transactions fees, cash advance fees and balance transfer fees.
What's more, CardName doesn't offer any rewards. It does give cardholders free access to their FICO® Score as well as the ability to choose their own payment date, but that doesn't really compete with the 1%-1.5% cash back offered by the Petal 2 Visa Card.
Where the CardName does have a significant advantage over the CardName is in its 0% introductory APR for both purchases and balance transfers offer. The zero percent rate is good on purchases for the first 12 months after opening an account, and for 21 months for balance transfers from the date of first transfer and completed within the first four months. After that, the rates jump to RegAPR which are slightly higher than those on the Petal 2 Cash Back No Fees Visa Credit Card.
Petal 2 Cash Back No Fees Visa Credit Card vs. CardName
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You won't pay an annual fee or foreign transaction fees with either the CardName or the CardName. Both cards also offer unlimited 1.5% cash back although Petal requires 12 on-time monthly payments to earn that rate while Capital One offers it immediately.
CardName also has an advantage over the CardName in that it offers a welcome bonus opportunity: Spend $500 within the first three months of opening an account and you'll get a one-time cash back bonus of $200. Capital One also extends intro 0% APR on purchases and balance transfers for the first 15 months of opening an account (balance transfer fee applies). The card's standard APRs are RegAPR.
Another advantage of the CardName is its extensive perks. In addition to allowing cardholders to redeem cash back for gift cards, statement credits or cash, the card offers extended warranty protection, 24-hour travel assistance, travel accident insurance and a host of other benefits. However, you'll need very good or excellent credit to qualify for this card.
Petal 2 Cash Back No Fees Visa Credit Card vs. CardName
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Both the CardName and the CardName are designed for those who don't have the excellent credit needed for other cards. While the Petal 2 Card is designed for those with no credit, the CardName requires CreditScoreNeeded credit.
You won't get any rewards with the CardName which puts it at a significant disadvantage to the CardName. However, it provides perks such as free credit scores and credit monitoring tools through CreditWise from Capital One. Meanwhile, the Petal 2 could give you up to a $10,000 credit line right off the bat.
Another advantage of the Petal 2 Visa Card over the CardName is its APR. While the Petal Card's APR ranges from RegAPR, CardName cardholders will pay RegAPR on their balances.
IS THE PETAL 2 CASH BACK NO FEES VISA CREDIT CARD A GOOD CARD?
The CardName is a good card for anyone with a limited credit history. While it doesn't come with some of the bells and whistles offered by other rewards cards, it has a solid cash back offer. Plus, it's hard to argue with any card that isn't going to charge you fees.
Survey Methodology: CardRatings commissioned Op4G in September 2023 to conduct surveys among 1,869 cardholders nationwide. CardRatings website analytics from Jan. 1, 2023-Aug. 31, 2023 were used to determine a selection of the most popular cards and additional cards were included to add survey breadth. Responses to each of nine questions were given on a scale of 1-10 and respondents' scores were then averaged under broad topics. To determine the overall score, responses from questions 1-8 were summed and the answer to "How likely are you to recommend this card to a friend, coworker or family member?" was double weighted. “Current Scores” reflect scores from the most recent survey (2023); "Past Scores" reflect scores from the 2022 survey.
Petal® 2 "Cash Back, No Fees" Visa® Credit Card Compared to Other Cash back Cards
Disclaimer: The information in this article is believed to be accurate as of the date it was written. Please keep in mind that credit card offers change frequently. Therefore, we cannot guarantee the accuracy of the information in this article. Reasonable efforts are made to maintain accurate information. See the online credit card application for full terms and conditions on offers and rewards. Please verify all terms and conditions of any credit card prior to applying.
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