JCB Marukai Premium Card Review (discontinued)
Updated October 27, 2017.
The Facts
The Math
Starting Year 2, if your annual spending is $5,000, you will earn a total of $145 (2.9%) cashback per year, as $1,000 x 1% + $2,000 x 2% + $2,000 x 3% + $50 - $15 = $145. After that, the more you spend, the closer to 3% you will be.
One way of looking at this card once your annual spending exceeds $5,000 is a 3% cashback card with an effective annual fee of $5, as $1,000 x (3% - 1%) + $2,000 x (3% -2%) + $15 - $50 = $5. When you have large annual spending, you cashback rate will be so close to 3% that you will forget about the $5 effective annual fee.
Obviously, in terms of cashback, JCB Marukai Premium is better than competitors such as USAA Visa (2.5% cashback when you keep a monthly direct deposit of at least $1,000, with no annual fees, USAA membership is required), Alliant Visa Signature (2.5% cashback with a $59 annual fee), Citi DoubleCash (2% cashback with no annual fees), etc. However, you need to reside in one of the nine states to be eligible, and JCB's smaller credit lines and narrower acceptance will still discourage many who are eligible.
The Conclusion
Even better than Alliant Visa Signature, JCB Marukai Premium is an excellent cashback card for eligible residents. The reason why it doesn't land on our Top 10 list is the fact that it is not available in all states of the U.S.
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The Facts
- Only available for residents in the state of California, Connecticut, Hawaii, Illinois, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, Oregon or Washington
- Annual Fee: first year free and $15 thereafter
- Signup Bonus: none
- Rewards: up to 3% cashback: 1% on the first $1,000 annual purchases, 2% on the next $2,000 annual purchases, 3% on purchases over $3,000 annually. You also earn an additional $15 bonus when your annual spending exceeds $1,000 or $50 bonus when your annual spending exceeds $5,000.
- You actually earn rewards points: one to three points per $100 spent; points are redeemed for statement credits at 1:1 ratio; each redemption has to be at least 10 points; points expire at the end of the next calendar year after they are earned.
- Other Facts: JCB usually offers small credit lines. JCB is also a global payment processing network, just like Visa or MasterCard, and partners with Discover to use its network in the U.S. In general JCB's coverage is not as wide as Visa or MasterCard.
The Math
Starting Year 2, if your annual spending is $5,000, you will earn a total of $145 (2.9%) cashback per year, as $1,000 x 1% + $2,000 x 2% + $2,000 x 3% + $50 - $15 = $145. After that, the more you spend, the closer to 3% you will be.
One way of looking at this card once your annual spending exceeds $5,000 is a 3% cashback card with an effective annual fee of $5, as $1,000 x (3% - 1%) + $2,000 x (3% -2%) + $15 - $50 = $5. When you have large annual spending, you cashback rate will be so close to 3% that you will forget about the $5 effective annual fee.
Obviously, in terms of cashback, JCB Marukai Premium is better than competitors such as USAA Visa (2.5% cashback when you keep a monthly direct deposit of at least $1,000, with no annual fees, USAA membership is required), Alliant Visa Signature (2.5% cashback with a $59 annual fee), Citi DoubleCash (2% cashback with no annual fees), etc. However, you need to reside in one of the nine states to be eligible, and JCB's smaller credit lines and narrower acceptance will still discourage many who are eligible.
The Conclusion
Even better than Alliant Visa Signature, JCB Marukai Premium is an excellent cashback card for eligible residents. The reason why it doesn't land on our Top 10 list is the fact that it is not available in all states of the U.S.
© 2018 DrCreditCard.net All rights reserved.