Tangerine World Mastercard Vs. Tangerine Money Back: Which card should I choose? 

Tangerine World Mastercard Overview

The Tangerine World Mastercard is a great entry-level travel credit card. It’s great for those who want to take advantage of enhanced insurance coverage and airport lounge access. Notably, the card doesn’t have an annual fee and earns cashback rewards instead of travel points. The card lets you select up to three changeable categories to earn 2% cashback. The remainder of your categories will earn 0.5%.

The card provides various features, including airport lounge access, Boingo Wi-Fi access, and Mastercard Travel Rewards. Additionally, it offers four types of insurance, including rental car collision and mobile devices.

To be eligible for this card, applicants must meet specific criteria, such as having a gross annual income exceeding $60,000 or a gross household income exceeding $100,000. An alternative option is maintaining a minimum balance of $250,000 in a Tangerine savings or investment account.

Tangerine Money-Back Overview

The Tangerine Money-Back Credit Card is a great overall entry-level credit card. As with the World Mastercard, you can earn up to 2% cashback with no annual fee. Again, you can select up to three changeable categories, while the remainder earns 0.5%. However, the card lacks the enhanced benefits that the World Mastercard offer.

To be eligible for this credit card, applicants must meet specific criteria, including having a gross annual income of $12,000 or more, being of the age of majority in their province or territory, and being a permanent resident of Canada. Moreover, applicants must have a clean financial history, free of bankruptcies over the past seven years.

Overall, the Money-Back Credit Card is an accessible and appealing option for those looking for a low-cost credit card with the potential to earn rewards on their everyday purchases.

Comparison of Features

The Tangerine World Mastercard is better if you meet the qualification criteria. Both cards have the same fees, yet the World Mastercard has enhanced features. This includes more insurance and travel benefits such as DragonPass lounge access and Boingo Wi-Fi. As a result, you receive more benefits for no added cost. However, the Money-Back Mastercard is still an excellent option for those who can’t qualify.

Factor	Tangerine World Mastercard	Tangerine Money-Back Card
Fees & Interest Rates	Identical fee structure – no annual fee, 19.95% interest rate on purchases & cash advances	Identical fee structure – no annual fee, 19.95% interest rate on purchases & cash advances
Rewards	2% cashback on 2-3 customized categories, 0.5% on other purchases	2% cashback on 2-3 customized categories, 0.5% on other purchases
Welcome Bonuses	– Extra 10% cashback in first 2 months, up to $100. – 1.95% balance transfer APR for 6 months.	– Extra 10% cashback in first 2 months, up to $100. – 1.95% balance transfer APR for 6 months.
Income Requirements	$60K personal or $100K household	$12K personal
Insurance Coverage	Purchase protection, extended warranty, rental car, mobile device	Purchase protection, extended warranty
Travel Benefits	Airport lounge access, Boingo Wi-Fi, Mastercard Travel Rewards	None
Credit Limits	Likely has higher minimum credit limits	Lower minimum credit limits

Fees and Interest

Both cards have identical fee structures. There’s no annual fee with a 19.95% interest rate on purchases. Cash advances also have a 19.95% interest rate but have additional withdrawal fees ranging from $3.50 to $5.00. Furthermore, both cards have a 2.50% foreign exchange fee and standard miscellaneous fees for things like NSF payments, statement copies, etc. Both cards have a traditional fee structure for a card without an annual fee.

Rewards

Both cards have the same rewards program. They offer up to 2% cash back on two categories of your choosing. You can enhance the two categories up to three if the rewards cashback is deposited into a Tangerine savings account. There are ten categories: grocery, furniture, restaurants, hotel-motel, gas, recurring bill payments, drug store, home improvement, entertainment, and public transportation/parking.

Since you can only select two-three categories, the remainder of your purchases will earn 0.5% cashback. Notably, you can change the categories every 90 days, meaning you can plan to maximize rewards. Overall, the two cards provide a uniquely flexible cashback rewards experience.

Welcome Bonuses

The two cards have identical welcome bonus offers. The welcome bonus includes a temporary enhanced cashback rate and a low balance transfer fee. Both offers expire by October 31, 2023, meaning you must apply before then to receive these offers.

Initially, you can earn an extra 10% cashback on up to $1,000 in spend within your first 60 days of opening the account. This translates to an additional $100 you can earn within this timeframe. Furthermore, the bonus cashback will be credited to your account within one to two statements after 60 days. This is a minor welcome bonus program, but it’s still better than most free credit cards.

However, the welcome bonus shines with their promotional balance transfer. This lets you transfer high-interest debt from your other credit cards to a promotional six-month rate of 1.95%. This can be a lifeline to those who need to refinance to lower interest-rate debt. However, after six statements, your interest rate will adjust to the standard rate of 19.95%. Furthermore, there is a 1% balance transfer fee which is waived for Quebec residents.

Eligibility Requirements

The Tangerine World Mastercard has higher income requirements, needing a minimum personal income of $60,000 or a household income of $100,000. Alternatively, you can qualify for the World Mastercard by maintaining a minimum balance of $250,000 in a Tangerine savings or investment account. The Tangerine Money-Back Card has lower eligibility requirements, with a minimum personal income of just $12,000 needed.

Both cards require being the age of majority and being a permanent resident of Canada. Furthermore, both cards require being clear of bankruptcies for the past seven years. While no specific credit score requirements are listed, it’s assumed that the World Mastercard requires you to have a good credit score.

Insurance Coverage

The Tangerine World Mastercard provides more comprehensive insurance protection, with four types of coverage, versus two with the Money-Back card. The World Mastercard safeguards a broader range of purchases, including mobile devices and rental cars. For just regular purchase protection, the coverage is identical.

Both cards provide Purchase Assurance and Extended Warranty coverage. This protects new personal items purchased with the cards against loss, theft or damage (Purchase Assurance) and extends the manufacturer’s warranty up to one year (Extended Warranty). The coverage is subject to specific terms, conditions, exclusions and limits. Maximums apply, such as a combined lifetime limit of $60,000 for these two coverages.

The critical difference is that the Tangerine World Mastercard includes Mobile Device Insurance and Rental Car Collision/Loss Damage Insurance, whereas the Money-Back card does not. Mobile Device Insurance covers loss, theft, damage or mechanical failure of new mobile devices when purchased with the Tangerine World Mastercard, up to $1,000 per claim. Meanwhile, Rental Car Collision/Loss Damage covers damage/theft when renting a vehicle with the Tangerine World Mastercard. 

Travel Enhancements

The World Mastercard provides a variety of travel enhancements, while the money-back doesn’t. The benefits include paid airport lounge access, Boingo Wi-Fi, and Mastercard travel rewards. This section will walk you through each of the three benefits.

Most notably, the World Mastercard provides a DragonPass membership. This includes access to over 1,300 airport lounges along with dining, spa, and retail offers. However, unlike other travel credit cards, you must pay $32 USD per visit.

Next, the Boingo Wi-Fi benefit provides Mastercard cardholders unlimited access to over 1 million Boingo hotspots worldwide, including at airports, hotels, cafes and in-flight internet on select airlines. Eligible cardholders can connect up to 4 devices simultaneously and enjoy unlimited data without roaming fees. The in-flight Wi-Fi portion allows 12 free 90-minute sessions per calendar year to use on participating airlines.

Finally, Mastercard Travel Rewards provides exclusive discounts, rebates and other benefits to participating merchants. Cardholders must enroll in the program and can browse offers from brands ranging from Apple to Hertz. Tangerine will automatically credit the cashback earned from eligible purchases to your account after processing.

Miscellaneous Benefits

The two cards are issued as different Mastercard variants. The money-back is a standard Mastercard, whereas the other is a World Mastercard. While not stated, it’s assumed that Mastercard World cards have higher minimum credit limits. As a result, you will likely receive a higher credit limit with the Tangerine World Mastercard.

Finally, the Tangerine World Mastercard advertises “On-Demand and Subscription Services.” Not much information can be found about this program. It’s assumed they are referring to the Boingo Wi-Fi and Dragonpass memberships.

Key Drawbacks of the Tangerine World Vs. Money Back Mastercard

The two options provide significant benefits for free credit cards. However, when comparing credit cards, you will quickly notice they lack many features. As a result, they shouldn’t be used as primary cards for those who want to maximize credit card benefits. Additionally, most paid credit cards offer a complimentary first year as part of their welcome bonus. This allows you to experiment with enhanced features at no added risk. This section will walk you through some of the critical drawbacks of these two cards.

Foreign Exchange Fees

Both cards charge 2.50% currency conversion fees. This can add up for frequent travellers and digital nomads. Meanwhile, a handful of Canadian credit cards offer 0.00% conversion fees, such as the Scotiabank Passport Visa Infinite.

Paid Airport Lounges

The Tangerine World Mastercard provides access to over 1,300 airport lounges. However, each visit costs $32 USD and has no complimentary entry. This is significantly weaker than other cards that include complimentary lounge access. For example, the Scotiabank Passport Visa Infinite provides a whopping six annual lounge visits. Meanwhile, additional cards, such as the CIBC Aventura Visa Infinite, offer four complimentary lounge visits annually.

Only Four Types of Insurance

The Tangerine World Mastercard only provides four types of insurance (mobile device, rental car, extended warranty, and purchase protection). However, the coverage lacks credit card travel insurance that many alternatives offer. Premium credit cards generally provide far more comprehensive insurance protection, such as trip cancellation/interruption and flight delay coverage. For example, the Scotiabank Gold American Express card has nine types of insurance coverage. It includes protection ranging from travel insurance, hotel burglary, rental car, and more.

Low Point Earn Rate

Neither card can be used to redeem free flights and hotel stays. Instead, they earn up to 2% cashback on two to three categories. Those who want to maximize their rewards should consider a travel credit card. In particular, American Express cards are widely regarded to earn you the highest points valuation on your spending. In addition, American Express Member Rewards points can be transferred to various other points partners such as Aeroplan. This provides maximum redemption flexibility to take advantage of promotional offers.

Insignificant Welcome Bonus

Lastly, both cards currently provide a measly welcome bonus of up to $100. In contrast, many paid cards offer complimentary first-year and sizeable signup bonuses. These can be used to cover the cost of annual fees for the following years or to receive free flights/hotel stays.

The TD Aeroplan Visa Infinite card currently offers up to $1,600 in value during the first year. This includes up to 70,000 Aeroplan points for meeting minimum spending requirements. That is generally enough points to purchase a one-way trans-Atlantic ticket to Europe.

The Bottom Line

Overall, the Tangerine World and Money-back Mastercard are great entry-level credit cards. The World card is better because it provides more benefits for the same price. However, the Money-back is still an excellent option for those who can’t qualify. While both cards offer many benefits for free, they still pale compared to the features offered by premium credit cards. As a result, those who want to maximize the benefits of their credit card should consider a travel credit card.