Coinbase Card Review: Fees, Cashback and Variable Crypto Rewards

Coinbase Card is a free Visa prepaid card for US residents that spends from a Coinbase account. It has no monthly fee, no foreign transaction fee and no ATM fee from Coinbase. Rewards are paid in crypto at a variable rate that Coinbase shows only in the app, so there's no headline cashback figure to compare.

Coinbase Card is a single program with one plan, and there are no tiers, no staking and no subscription. It's a different product from the Coinbase One Card, which is an American Express credit card.

Coinbase Card cashback

Coinbase Card pays crypto rewards at a variable rate, and Coinbase shows the current rate for each reward asset only in the app.

According to Coinbase, the reward rate is variable and you check it in the app. You choose a reward asset from a rotating list, and each asset has its own rate. The Coinbase Card page uses 1% back in BTC and 1.5% back in USDC as examples.

If the app shows 1% on your chosen asset, $2,000 of monthly spending would earn $20 a month, but Coinbase can change the rate at any time.

There is one plan for everyone, and you don't need to hold a token, pay a subscription or spend a set amount to earn rewards.

Coinbase Card fees

Coinbase Card has no monthly fee, no card fee and no foreign transaction fee, according to the fee schedule from Pathward, the card's issuer.

The short-form fee schedule lists $0 for the monthly fee, per-purchase fees, ATM withdrawals, balance inquiries and inactivity, and states that no other types of fees are charged. A payment in euros or yen costs nothing extra from Coinbase.

The cost that isn't on the schedule is the spread. Spending USD or USDC is free, but when you pay with BTC, ETH or another crypto, Coinbase sells it at the moment of payment and includes a spread in the price. Coinbase doesn't publish that spread for card payments, so the simplest way to avoid it is to keep spending money in USD or USDC.

Coinbase Card ATM withdrawal fees

Coinbase Card charges $0 for ATM withdrawals, both in the US and abroad, according to the Pathward fee schedule.

The ATM operator can still add its own charge. A withdrawal funded with crypto other than USD or USDC also carries the spread, so withdrawing from a USDC or USD balance is cheaper.

Coinbase publishes no free allowance because there's no Coinbase fee to waive in the first place.

Is Coinbase Card safe?

Coinbase Card is custodial: the crypto and dollars you spend sit in your Coinbase account, and Coinbase holds the keys.

The card is a Visa prepaid debit card issued by Pathward, N.A., under a Pathward cardholder agreement. Coinbase runs the account and the app, while Pathward issues the card.

Coinbase Card is a prepaid card, not a credit card, so you can only spend what's already in your Coinbase account and there's no credit line or interest. Because Coinbase holds the funds, your balance depends on Coinbase as a company. It's sensible to keep only what you plan to spend in the account that funds the card.

Who should get Coinbase Card

Coinbase Card suits US residents who already keep money on Coinbase and want a free card with $0 foreign transaction and ATM fees from Coinbase.

The zero international fee makes it a reasonable travel card, as long as you spend from USD or USDC. On $1,000 of spending abroad from a USDC balance, Coinbase charges nothing, while a bank card with a 3% foreign transaction fee would charge $30. Paying with other crypto adds a spread you can't see in advance.

For anyone choosing a card for cashback, the missing rate is the problem. Cards that publish a fixed rate make it easier to know what you'll earn. The comparison below shows the strongest alternatives in your country.

Where Coinbase Card is available

Coinbase Card is available only in the United States, for residents of every state except Hawaii.