A Prepaid Card With Big Crypto Rewards

Crypto May 8, 2024

What could be improved

While there’s a lot to like about the Crypto.com Card, it also has some issues.

Most benefits require staking

To unlock the most value from a Crypto.com Card, you need to stake CRO. The basic Midnight Blue card doesn’t have much in the way of benefits. It’s best to at least get the Ruby Steel card, which requires a $400 commitment.

Not only do you need to stake crypto for 180 days, you need to keep it staked to keep most card benefits. This isn’t a big deal if you’re comfortable staking CRO and understand the price will fluctuate. If you don’t want to invest in CRO, then this isn’t the card for you. In that case, look at our credit card reviews to find a card that’s a better fit.

Many popular credit cards include sign-up bonuses. These offer bonus rewards, either in cash back or points, that new cardholders can earn. There are quite a few bonuses worth $200 or more, and some even top $500 in value.

The Crypto.com Card doesn’t have this type of offer. It’s worth comparing what kind of bonus you could get from a credit card before going with a Crypto.com Card.

SEE TOP PICKS: Best Sign-Up Bonus Credit Cards

Restrictions on rewards

It’s easy to miss, but the terms of this card’s rewards program exclude many types of merchants. To give a few examples, you won’t earn rewards on any of the following purchases:

Utilities services
Computer software programs
Souvenir and novelty shops
Personal or business insurance policies

SEE THE FULL LIST: Restrictions of CRO Rewards Program

It’s normal for rewards cards to exclude certain types of transactions, such as money wires. But Crypto.com excludes much more than the norm. That can be frustrating if several of your purchases don’t make the cut.

Monthly rewards caps

Another frustrating restriction is the monthly rewards limit with some card tiers. The Ruby Steel card can earn up to $25 in rewards per month, and the Royal Indigo and Jade Green can earn up to $50.

That means you only earn rewards on your first $2,500 per month in eligible purchases with one of these cards. Rewards cards that offer flat rates, like 1% or 2% on purchases, normally offer unlimited rewards. The fact that these versions of the Crypto.com Card don’t is disappointing.

Transaction limits

There are limits to how much you can load onto a Crypto.com Card, withdraw, and spend. Limits depend on the card tier and can be found in the “Fees & Limits” section on the Crypto.com app.

For example, the Midnight Blue card has purchase limits of $10,000 per day and $15,000 per month. All Crypto.com Card options have a maximum balance of $25,000.

Volatility of crypto

Cryptocurrencies are notoriously volatile. That includes CRO, the cryptocurrency you’d need to stake for a Crypto.com Card. CRO is also the type of crypto rewards the card earns, although those rewards can easily be converted to other cryptos or cash.

Let’s say you buy $4,000 of CRO to get a Crypto.com Card in the Royal Indigo or Jade Green tier. You’d be committing to staking CRO for at least 180 days. After that time is up, it’s entirely possible that your $4,000 investment is now worth $8,000 or more. On the other hand, it could also have plummeted to under $1,000 in value.

LEARN MORE: What Is Cryptocurrency?

Prepaid card

Prepaid debit cards like the Crypto.com Card have a couple disadvantages compared to credit cards:

You can’t build your credit with a prepaid card. If you follow good payment habits with a credit card, it can raise your credit score.
You need to load funds onto your prepaid card whenever you want to use it. With a credit card, you can make purchases on credit (up to the card’s credit limit) and pay them back later.

LEARN MORE: How Credit Cards Work

To be fair, prepaid cards also have their advantages. You can’t get into any debt or hurt your credit score with a prepaid card. But a credit card is much more convenient, since you can use it without needing to load money first.

Replacement and inactivity fees

Crypto.com charges the following fees:

$7 to reissue a Midnight Blue card
$50 to reissue any other card
$4.95 per month after 12 months of inactivity

It also used to charge $50 to get a new card after upgrading, but it has currently waived that fee.

Prepaid cards often charge these kinds of fees, so this is another area where credit cards have an edge. Most credit card issuers will ship you a new card free of charge when yours is lost, stolen, or you upgrade it. They also typically don’t charge inactivity fees.

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