Estimate the cashback or points a card earns on your spending — and whether the annual fee is worth paying.
Annual rewards
$576
2% effective rate.
Including welcome bonus.
After the annual fee.
On $28,800 of annual spending, this card earns $576 in cashback or points — an effective 2% across all your spending. After the $95 annual fee that's $481 net, or 1.67%. In the first year, the $200 welcome bonus lifts the net to $681.
A card's annual fee is only worth paying if the extra rewards beat a good no-fee card. Your spending earns $576, comfortably above the $95 fee. You'd need to spend about $4,750 a year at this rewards rate just to break even on the fee against a 0% card — compare the net rate, not the headline rate.
A 2–3% rewards rate is meaningless against a 20%+ APR. Carrying a balance costs far more in interest than any card pays in rewards, so rewards cards are only worth it if you clear the statement in full each month. If you carry a balance, ignore rewards and focus on the lowest rate or a payoff plan.
The best card depends on your spending mix. Run two or three cards against the same spending to see which nets the most after fees — sometimes a simple flat-rate no-fee card beats a category card with a fee.
Compare rewards cardsWorked scenarios with the full analysis, so you can see how the numbers move before entering your own.
A card paying 3% on groceries, dining and gas with a base 1% and an annual fee, plus a welcome bonus.
Annual rewards
$576
On $28,800 of annual spending, this card earns $576 in cashback or points — an effective 2% across all your spending. After the $95 annual fee that's $481 net, or 1.67%. In the first year, the $200 welcome bonus lifts the net to $681.
A card's annual fee is only worth paying if the extra rewards beat a good no-fee card. Your spending earns $576, comfortably above the $95 fee. You'd need to spend about $4,750 a year at this rewards rate just to break even on the fee against a 0% card — compare the net rate, not the headline rate.
A 2–3% rewards rate is meaningless against a 20%+ APR. Carrying a balance costs far more in interest than any card pays in rewards, so rewards cards are only worth it if you clear the statement in full each month. If you carry a balance, ignore rewards and focus on the lowest rate or a payoff plan.
A simple card earning 2% on everything with no annual fee — often the best default.
Annual rewards
$576
On $28,800 of annual spending, this card earns $576 in cashback or points — an effective 2% across all your spending. After the $0 annual fee that's $576 net, or 2%. In the first year, the $200 welcome bonus lifts the net to $776.
A 2–3% rewards rate is meaningless against a 20%+ APR. Carrying a balance costs far more in interest than any card pays in rewards, so rewards cards are only worth it if you clear the statement in full each month. If you carry a balance, ignore rewards and focus on the lowest rate or a payoff plan.
The best card depends on your spending mix. Run two or three cards against the same spending to see which nets the most after fees — sometimes a simple flat-rate no-fee card beats a category card with a fee.
Compare rewards cardsA big-spending household where high category rewards justify a larger annual fee.
Annual rewards
$1,692
On $68,400 of annual spending, this card earns $1,692 in cashback or points — an effective 2.47% across all your spending. After the $250 annual fee that's $1,442 net, or 2.11%. In the first year, the $600 welcome bonus lifts the net to $2,042.
A card's annual fee is only worth paying if the extra rewards beat a good no-fee card. Your spending earns $1,692, comfortably above the $250 fee. You'd need to spend about $10,106 a year at this rewards rate just to break even on the fee against a 0% card — compare the net rate, not the headline rate.
A 2–3% rewards rate is meaningless against a 20%+ APR. Carrying a balance costs far more in interest than any card pays in rewards, so rewards cards are only worth it if you clear the statement in full each month. If you carry a balance, ignore rewards and focus on the lowest rate or a payoff plan.
Modest spending where any annual fee is hard to justify against a no-fee card.
Annual rewards
$216
On $12,000 of annual spending, this card earns $216 in cashback or points — an effective 1.80% across all your spending. After the $0 annual fee that's $216 net, or 1.80%. In the first year, the $150 welcome bonus lifts the net to $366.
A 2–3% rewards rate is meaningless against a 20%+ APR. Carrying a balance costs far more in interest than any card pays in rewards, so rewards cards are only worth it if you clear the statement in full each month. If you carry a balance, ignore rewards and focus on the lowest rate or a payoff plan.
The best card depends on your spending mix. Run two or three cards against the same spending to see which nets the most after fees — sometimes a simple flat-rate no-fee card beats a category card with a fee.
Compare rewards cardsRewards cards pay a percentage of your spending back as cashback or points — sometimes a flat rate on everything, sometimes higher rates in categories like groceries, dining or travel. Your real return is the blended rate across all your spending, not the headline category rate, since most spending falls in the 1% base category.
The math is simple but easy to overestimate. A card advertising '5% on groceries' might only earn 1.5% blended once you account for everything else you buy. This calculator applies your actual spending to each category rate to show what you'd genuinely earn in a year — and what's left after any annual fee.
An annual fee is worth paying only if the card's rewards, after the fee, beat what you'd earn on a good no-fee card. Compare the net effective rate, not the advertised rate. A $95-fee card earning 3% in your top categories might net less than a simple 2% no-fee card if most of your spending is in the base category.
The one rule that overrides everything: rewards are only real if you pay your balance in full every month. Card APRs of 20%+ dwarf any rewards rate, so carrying a balance to earn points is always a losing trade. If you sometimes carry a balance, a low-rate or no-frills card beats a rewards card every time — the interest you'd save is worth far more than the points.
A '5% category' card may earn far less blended across all your spending. Compare effective rates, not advertised ones.
20%+ interest dwarfs any rewards rate. Rewards only count if you pay in full every month.
A fee only pays off if net rewards beat a no-fee card. For many spenders, a flat 2% no-fee card wins.
A welcome bonus is one-time. Don't keep a poorly-fitting fee card for years to chase a single bonus.
Spending more to earn 2% back is spending 98% you didn't need to. Rewards should follow spending, not drive it.
It depends on your spending and the card's rates. A household spending $2,400 a month at a blended 2% earns about $576 a year. Category cards can earn more on groceries, dining or travel, but the blended rate across all spending — usually well below the headline category rate — is what actually matters. Enter your spending above for an estimate.
Only if the rewards after the fee beat a good no-fee card. Compare the net effective rate: a $95-fee card earning high category rewards might net less than a flat 2% no-fee card if most of your spending is in the base category. High spenders in bonus categories are most likely to come out ahead on a fee card.
It's your total rewards divided by your total spending — the blended return across all categories. A card with 4% groceries and 1% on everything else might have an effective rate near 1.5–2% depending on your mix. It's the honest number to compare cards by, rather than the highest advertised category rate.
No. Card APRs of 20%+ far exceed any rewards rate, so carrying a balance to earn points always loses money. Rewards are only worthwhile if you pay your statement in full every month. If you carry a balance, choose the lowest rate or focus on a payoff plan and ignore rewards entirely.
A welcome bonus can make a card worth getting for the first year, sometimes offsetting several years of an annual fee. But it's a one-time boost — after year one, judge the card on its ongoing net rewards. Don't chase bonuses on cards whose ongoing value doesn't fit your spending, especially if a fee applies every year.
The next calculations that usually follow this one.
Put up to three cards against the same spending and see which nets the most after annual fees.
See exactly when a card is paid off, what the interest costs you, and how much a little extra each month saves.
See the daily, monthly and yearly interest on a balance — and how much of every payment it quietly eats.
Built on take-home pay, with the annual costs that break most monthly budgets.
The annual total, the per-use cost, and what cancelling would be worth if invested.
Guides that explain the decisions behind these numbers.
How FICO scores are calculated, what each factor is worth, and the actions that genuinely improve a credit score versus the ones that feel productive.
Updated January 15, 2026
How to build a budget on take-home pay using the 50/30/20 framework, account for irregular annual costs, and fix the categories that actually matter.
Updated January 15, 2026
New tools, guides and the occasional thing that will genuinely save you money. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.
Developer note: this form has no backend. Connect an email provider and add a privacy policy before collecting real addresses.