Choice Rewards World Mastercard® review: A good low-interest rewards card
The rewards could be better, but this is a good card if you tend to carry a balance.
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Snapshot
Bottom line
The Choice Rewards World Mastercard® offers one of the lowest available APR rates and no additional fees, making it a good option for consolidating debt while paying less interest. While the rewards aren’t stellar, the card also has solid additional perks that can help you find value.
Intro offer
20,000
Rewards Rate
1 Point - 2x
Annual fee
N/A
Regular APR
13.25% - 18.00% Variable
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First Tech Federal Credit Union paid for the creation of the content on this page. However, the information is based on our unbiased opinion, and the provider did not have any input into the review.
Choice Rewards World Mastercard® overview
The Choice Rewards World Mastercard® is a no-annual-fee credit card offering 2X points in a select number of everyday categories and a modest sign-up bonus.
Like many credit union cards, it has a low APR, making it a good tool for minimizing interest charges and helping you consolidate debt. The card also doesn’t charge fees for balance transfers, cash advances or foreign transactions. However, the card’s rewards rates and welcome offer don’t measure up to the best cash back cards available. Plus, you won’t be able to apply if you aren’t a First Tech credit union member.
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Rewards
- 2X rewards points on purchases for gas, groceries and household goods
- 1X rewards points on all other purchases
Expert Appraisal: Unimpressive
See our expert analysis -
Welcome offer
- 20,000 bonus points after spending $3,000 in the first 60 days
Expert Appraisal: Unimpressive
See our expert analysis -
Rates and fees
- Regular APR: 13.25 percent to 18.00 percent (variable)
- Annual fee: $0
- Balance transfer fee: $0
- Foreign transaction fee: $0
- Cash advance fee: $0
Expert Appraisal: Exceptional
See our expert analysis -
Other cardholder perks
- Mastercard World Elite discounts and benefits
- Extra rewards with a checking or savings account
- Portland Trail Blazers discounts
Expert Appraisal: Good
See our expert analysis
Choice Rewards World Mastercard® pros and cons
Pros
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This card has a low ongoing APR, making it an ideal choice to minimize interest charges
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There are no annual, foreign transaction, cash advance, or balance transfer fees, making the card cheap to operate and own.
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The card’s flexible redemption options give you more ways to use your rewards than other cards.
Cons
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The card’s earning rates can’t match up to many other no-annual-fee cards.
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You have to be a First Tech member to open this card.
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This card doesn’t offer an intro APR on purchases or balance transfers, which hurts the card’s up-front value.
Why you might want the Choice Rewards World Mastercard®
The Choice Rewards World Mastercard is good if you need a low ongoing APR to consolidate debt or occasionally carry a balance. It also earns rewards in several bonus categories and offers various perks, including Mastercard benefits and special bonuses for cardholders who open a First Tech Rewards checking or savings account.
Rates and fees: Low ongoing APR and no extra fees
One of the biggest advantages of this card is the lack of fees and low ongoing APR. The card’s low-end APR of 13.5 percent makes it one of the best low-interest credit cards on the market, and the high-end APR of 18 percent also falls below the average credit card APR. This makes the card a great option if you need to carry a balance.
Like many of the best credit union cards, it also has no annual, cash advance, foreign transaction or balance transfer fee. The card is spectacularly generous in this regard, particularly the lack of balance transfer fee, which has become more difficult to find on credit cards.
Perks: Excellent Mastercard World Elite benefits
This card offers the standard suite of Mastercard Benefits, including MasterRental Coverage, Master Global Service™ and Mastercard ID Theft Protection™. You’ll also receive the following Mastercard World Elite perks at participating merchants:
- Doordash: Enroll for a free 3-month DashPass membership and $5 off your first two orders each month.
- ShopRunner: Enroll for free ShopRunner membership, which offers free 2-day shipping and returns to more than 100 merchants annually.
- HelloFresh: Earn 5 percent back on every HelloFresh order and an initial discount on your first few orders.
- Lyft: Earn a $5 credit for every three Lyft rides taken during a calendar month.
Cardholders can also take advantage of the following travel insurance benefits:
- Travel assistance insurance: This benefit can assist in locating certified medical providers, obtaining legal services and replacing stolen credit cards and passports.
- Trip cancellation and lost luggage insurance: You’ll be reimbursed for any charges incurred up to $1,500 if you need to cancel a trip booked using the card or if your luggage is misplaced or damaged. You can qualify for partial coverage if you didn’t pay for the trip using your First Tech card.
- Secondary car rental collision insurance: Use your card for car rentals for extra protection against collisions.
Cardholders can also access emergency cash advances, card replacement and roadside assistance.
Portland Trail Blazers fans: Discounts on tickets and merchandise
First Tech is the official credit union of the Portland Trail Blazers basketball team, offering team-related perks, like a Blazers-themed card and discounted tickets and merchandise. This is a great incentive for fans to get outsized value from this card. And while this is more of a localized benefit, this is the kind of unique local value a credit union card can provide.
Why you might want a different low-interest card
Although the Choice Rewards World Mastercard is a good low-interest card and provides solid perks, many other cards are worth considering if you want to maximize your rewards.
Rewards: Earn more with other cards
The card offers 2X points in everyday categories like gas, groceries, telecommunication services and household goods, and 1X points on all other purchases.
You’ll receive a slight boost to earnings if you open a First Tech Rewards Checking or Savings account, which will earn an additional 0.5 percent cash back (up to $15 a month) on credit card spending and a $10 monthly rebate on streaming subscriptions. While that can be helpful, you’ll still do much better elsewhere if rewards are your primary focus. If you value rewards more than a low APR, many of the best rewards credit cards will prove more valuable.
Welcome offer: High spending for not much in return
This card comes with a 20,000-point welcome bonus after you spend $3,000 in the first 60 days from account opening. This is worth $200, giving Choice Rewards points a value of roughly 1 cent per point.
The sign-up bonus is less valuable than many other rewards cards, which typically provide similar bonus value with smaller spending. For example, the Wells Fargo Active Cash® Card has the same bonus but only requires $500 of spending in the first three months of account opening. That bonus only requires you to spend over $167 over three months. The First Tech Choice Rewards card needs $1,500 in two months, which can prove difficult if you don’t normally spend that much in a month or have any large purchases planned.
Membership: First Tech credit union members only
You must be a First Tech Credit Union member to apply for this card. To qualify for membership, you must meet one of the following criteria:
- Work for First Tech partner companies, including Amazon, Microsoft, Intel and others
- Have a family or household member who is already a member
- Work for the State of Oregon
- Live or work in Lane County, Oregon
- Belong to the Financial Fitness Association or the Computer History Museum
If you don’t meet the criteria, the easiest option may be to join the Computer History Museum or the Financial Fitness Association. From there, you can schedule a virtual or in-person appointment to finalize your application.
How the Choice Rewards World Mastercard® compares to other low-interest cards
Other rewards cards can’t match this card’s low interest rate or lack of fees, but many offer more competitive rewards rates for most categories and come with better sign-up bonuses or 0 percent intro APR periods. Here’s a look at some alternatives.
Choice Rewards World Mastercard®
Annual fee
Intro offer
20,000 bonus points when you spend at least $3,000 in the first 60 days
Rewards rate
2x rewards points on everyday purchases, including gas, groceries, household goods, and more. Earn one reward point on all other purchases.
Recommended Credit Score
A FICO score/credit score is used to represent the creditworthiness of a person and may be one indicator to the credit type you are eligible for. However, credit score alone does not guarantee or imply approval for any financial product.
Annual fee
Intro offer
Earn a $200 cash rewards bonus after spending $500 in purchases in the first 3 months
Rewards rate
Earn unlimited 2% cash rewards on purchases.
Recommended Credit Score
A FICO score/credit score is used to represent the creditworthiness of a person and may be one indicator to the credit type you are eligible for. However, credit score alone does not guarantee or imply approval for any financial product.
Annual fee
Intro offer
Earn $200 in cash back after you spend $1500 on purchases in the first 6 months of account opening. This bonus offer will be fulfilled as 20,000 ThankYou® Points, which can be redeemed for $200 cash back.
Rewards rate
Earn 5% cash back on purchases in your top eligible spend category each billing cycle, up to the first $500 spent, 1% cash back thereafter. Special Travel Offer: Earn an additional 4% cash back on hotels, car rentals, and attractions booked on Citi Travel℠ portal through 6/30/2026. Earn unlimited 1% cash back on all other purchases.
Recommended Credit Score
A FICO score/credit score is used to represent the creditworthiness of a person and may be one indicator to the credit type you are eligible for. However, credit score alone does not guarantee or imply approval for any financial product.
Who is the Choice Rewards World Mastercard® right for?
While this card isn’t available for everyone, it can be a helpful tool to manage debt while earning rewards. You might give the card a look if you fall into one of the following categories.
Bankrate’s Take — Is the Choice Rewards World Mastercard® worth it?
The Choice Rewards World Mastercard’s is a solid and low-cost rewards card thanks to it’s low APR and lack of additional fees, and is a good card to look into if you need to consolidate and manage debt at a lower interest rate. The rewards program isn’t the most competitive, but it does come with an array of useful everyday categories like gas, groceries, and household goods. But if you pay your balance in full and don’t need a low-interest credit card, better options are available.
How we rated this card
Our proprietary card rating system takes into account a mix of factors when scoring balance transfer and low-interest cards, including each card’s introductory APR, intro APR period length, ongoing APR, balance transfer fee, perks and more.
While balance transfer and low-interest cards share a similar ratings rubric, we weigh features differently based on how a card is categorized. We categorize cards that carry an especially long intro APR offer on balance transfers as dedicated balance transfer cards, while cards that offer an especially low ongoing APR are considered general low-interest cards.
Based on its features, we assigned this card a primary category of low interest and tailored our ratings accordingly.
We analyzed over 100 of the most popular balance transfer and low-interest cards and scored each based on how its key features stacked up against those of other cards in its category.
Here’s a breakdown of what gave this card its score:
Frequently asked questions
What cardholders think
Choice Rewards World Mastercard®
In May 2024, Bankrate collaborated with third-party SliceMR to survey 6160 cardholders nationwide. Bankrate and Slice MR collected, averaged and presented website analytics and cardholder responses to six questions on a 5-point scale. Responses are based on individual cardholder’s product details, and therefore cannot be verified for accuracy. Users received an incentive for their feedback. User ratings are unedited and have not been reviewed or approved by credit card issuers, nor do these ratings reflect Bankrate’s own reviews of these cards.
Community Reviews
* See the online application for details about terms and conditions for these offers. Every reasonable effort has been made to maintain accurate information. However all credit card information is presented without warranty. After you click on the offer you desire you will be directed to the credit card issuer's web site where you can review the terms and conditions for your selected offer.
Editorial Disclosure: Opinions expressed here are the author's alone, and have not been reviewed or approved by any advertiser. The information, including card rates and fees, is accurate as of the publish date. All products or services are presented without warranty. Check the bank’s website for the most current information.
