PayPal announces new rewards for its PayPal Cashback Mastercard | ZDNet

PayPal announced Tuesday new changes for its PayPal Cashback Mastercard. The card is being relaunched today to include 3% cashback for purchases utilizing PayPal at checkout, in addition to earning 2% cashback for all other purchases.

Current PayPal Cashback cardholders will be able to earn the new rewards starting April 6th. The new card can be applied for by select PayPal customers beginning today, with applications opening for more customers in the coming weeks. The PayPal Cashback Mastercard has no annual fee and there is no limit to the number of rewards the card earns. 

Cardholders can add the card to their PayPal wallet for easy and secure payments. And for a limited time, new cardholders can earn a one-time $100 cash back bonus on their first $500 spent with the card.

Along with the new card, PayPal is offering users a revamped interface in the PayPal app and on its website. According to the press release, it’s been redesigned to provide cardholders with a simpler and more intuitive way to manage rewards and purchases, and to make it easier for them to make payments.

PayPal’s 2% cashback is on par with the best flat-rate no annual fee credit cards available, like the Citi Double Cash Credit Card and the Wells Fargo Active Cash Card. But the addition of a 3% cashback category puts it slightly ahead of the pack.

Also: Citi Double Cash review: Earn a solid return on spending

Using PayPal online at checkout is available at a wide variety of popular merchants, including Best Buy, Target, eBay, Apple, and Walmart, among others. According to a spokesperson for PayPal, customers using PayPal at checkout won’t incur any additional transaction fees, making it a lucrative option.

And while shopping in stores, keep an eye out for PayPal QR codes. Scan the code and use the PayPal app to pay with your PayPal Cashback Mastercard selected to earn 3% cashback for the transaction. 

Rewards are automatically added to the cardholder’s PayPal account. From there, they can be used to fund purchases or be transferred to a linked bank account.

The card comes with basic Mastercard protections, including Mastercard ID Theft protection and Mastercard Global Service to cover lost or stolen cards. Mastercard will also monitor your TransUnion credit report for any unusual changes that might indicate fraud. But other than that, it doesn’t offer too much, so the main draw is its high rewards rate.

“The new PayPal Cashback credit card was designed so PayPal customers can earn rewards and get cash back for everyday purchases no matter what categories they spend in that month,” said Susan Schmidt, VP of Consumer Credit for PayPal, in the release.

The PayPal Cashback card is issued by Synchrony and can be used anywhere Mastercard is accepted.