mbna smart cash world mastercard

MBNA Smart Cash® World Mastercard®

3.1/5

Up to 5% cash back

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mbna smart cash world mastercard

MBNA Smart Cash® World Mastercard®
Review

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Card Details

Interest Rates


Purchase: 19.99%*

Cash Advance: 24.99%*

Balance Transfer: 22.99%*

* Important Notice - Effective from the first day of your statement period beginning September 2025 and reflected on your October 2025 statement, the following rates apply: Standard Annual Interest Rates of 21.99% on eligible purchases, 22.99% on balance transfers✪, and 22.99% on cash advances

Annual Fees


Main Card: $39

Additional Cards: $0

Annual Income


Personal: $50,000

Household: $80,000

Credit Score Estimate


300
Poor
560
Fair
660
Good
725
Very Good
760
Excellent

Welcome Bonus


  • Get 5% Cash Back†† on eligible gas and grocery purchases for the first 6 months (until the total gas and grocery purchases in the applicable month reaches $500)
  • This offer is not available for residents of Quebec. For residents of Quebec, please click here.

Card & Reward Type


Card Type: Credit

Reward Type: Cash Back

Loyalty Program: MBNA Rewards

Our Rating


3.1/5

Institution


MBNA

Rewards


  • Get 2% Cash Back on eligible gas and grocery purchases (until the total gas and grocery purchases in the applicable month reaches $500)
  • Get 1% Cash Back for all other eligible purchases

Insurance & Benefits


Insurance

Coverage

  • purchase protection

    Purchase Protection

    Up to 90 days
  • price protection

    Price Protection

    $500/item, $1,000/year
  • extended warranty

    Extended Warranty

    Up to a year
  • car insurance

    Car Rental Damage & Theft

    Up to 31 days
  • car accident

    Car Rental Accident

    $200,000
  • luggage insurance

    Car Rental Personal Effects

    $1,000/person, $2,000/occurence
  • heart lock

    Travel Accident

    $1,000,000

Benefits

Details

  • car rental

    Car Rental Discount

    10% off base rate of Avis Rent A Car and Budget Rent A Car in Canada and US and 5% internationally
  • gavel

    Trip and legal Assistance

    Support for emergency cash transfer, lost document and ticket replacement, lost baggage assistance, pre-trip information and legal assistance while traveling

Pros & Cons


Pros

  • 5% cash back on gas and groceries for the first 6 months: A solid introductory offer for essential spending categories.
  • Up to 2% cash back: Earn 2% on gas and grocery purchases up to $500 monthly.
  • Comprehensive insurance: Includes 8 types of insurance, including rental car and price protection.
  • Flexible reward redemption: Redeem cash back as a statement credit, deposit to a bank account, or donate to charity.

Cons

  • High income requirements: $50,000 personal or $80,000 household income needed.
  • Cap on rewards for gas and groceries: 2% cash back is limited to $500 in monthly spending for these categories.

MBNA Smart Cash® World Mastercard® Review


Looking to optimize food and fuel? The MBNA Smart Cash World Mastercard earns cardholders decent cashback on eligible gas and grocery purchases – especially in the first few months of membership.


Still, since you will be paying an annual fee, you might be expecting more value from this card overall. Unfortunately, this contender sits on the lower end of the spectrum when it comes to net annual rewards.


To uncover more about this lower-fee but lower-value gas and grocery option, and to find potentially better alternatives, keep scrolling.


How You Earn Rewards with the MBNA Smart Cash World Mastercard


With the MBNA Smart Cash World Mastercard, there are a couple of different ways to collect cashback.


Specifically, you’ll earn:


  • 2% cashback on eligible gas and grocery purchases (capped at $500 per month combined)
  • 1% cashback on all other eligible purchases

Clearly, this card was built to help everyday shoppers optimize their daily errands, from the gas pump all the way to the produce section.


Redeeming your Rewards with the MBNA Smart Cash World Mastercard


After you’ve collected at least $50 worth of cashback with your MBNA Smart Cash World Mastercard, you can decide whether you:


  • Apply the cashback as a statement credit
  • Deposit the cashback into your bank account
  • Donate the cashback to a participating charity

Most cashback cards aren’t quite as flexible when it comes to redeeming your rewards, so consider this card's redemption program a perk in and of itself.


4 Benefits of the MBNA Smart Cash World Mastercard


What better way to determine whether or not the MBNA Smart Cash World Mastercard is the right fit than by reviewing its benefits?


Below, we’ve broken down all of the pros that come with pocketing this Mastercard.


A Commendable Cashback Welcome Bonus


The cashback rate on gas and groceries on the MBNA Smart Cash World Mastercard is already decent, but the welcome bonus can more than double this rate for the first 6 months of membership.


Just be mindful that this promotional period is still subject to the card’s standard monthly spending caps.


A Couple of Travel-Focused Perks


Whether you’re hitting the road, or you run into a few obstacles along the way, the MBNA Smart Cash World Mastercard has your back.


To complement any road trip, cardholders are granted a discount at Avis Rent A Car and Budget Rent A Car locations. 


For any tricky situation, you’ll also receive trip and legal assistance. 


This perk provides members with:


  • Support for emergency cash transfers
  • Lost document and ticket replacement
  • Lost baggage assistance
  • Pre-trip information
  • Legal assistance while travelling

Valuable Insurance Inclusions


The MBNA Smart Cash World Mastercard protects cardholders with 7 different insurance inclusions. Some of these categories are actually quite valuable, specifically its rental car insurances (car rental accident, car rental damage and theft, and car rental personal effects insurance) and rare price protection insurance – allowing you to price-match a recently purchased item if the retail price of the product is suddenly lowered.


Flexible Redemptions 


As mentioned, there are a few ways for you to flexibly redeem your cashback with the MBNA Smart Cash World Mastercard. You can choose to either redeem your cashback as a statement credit, deposit it to a bank account, or donate it to charity.


3 Downsides of the MBNA Smart Cash World Mastercard


Where there are pros, there are also cons.


Here’s where the MBNA Smart Cash World Mastercard may fall a bit short.


Higher Income Requirements


Unfortunately, the MBNA Smart Cash World Mastercard comes with some higher income requirements. Specifically, you’ll need to either have a personal annual income of $60,000 or a household annual income of $100,000.


Lacks a Competitive Cashback Program


Considering that the MBNA Smart Cash World Mastercard comes with an annual fee, cardholders generally expect to extract more annual reward value – something this card lacks in comparison to other top cashback competitors.


Monthly Cashback Caps


While it’s nice that the MBNA Smart Cash World Mastercard optimizes common spend categories like gas and groceries, it’s a little disappointing that these earn categories come with monthly spending caps.


If you happen to hit these caps every month, then, eventually, these expenses will only receive the standard base rate of cashback.


Comparison to Other Low-Fee Gas and Grocery Cashback Credit Cards


Still not convinced the MBNA Smart Cash World Mastercard is the best low-fee option for cashback on gas and groceries? Well, in that case, we’ve compared this card to its closest competitors to either confirm or deny your suspicions. 


Here’s a closer look at the comparisons we’ll be making:


MBNA Smart Cash® World Mastercard®MBNA Smart Cash Platinum Plus® Mastercard®CIBC Dividend Platinum® Visa* Card

Welcome Bonus

Up to 5% cash back††Up to 5% cash back††Up to $200

Earn Rates

  • Get 2% Cash Back on eligible gas and grocery purchases (until the total gas and grocery purchases in the applicable month reaches $500)
  • Get 1% Cash Back for all other eligible purchases
  • Get 2% Cash Back on eligible gas and grocery purchases (until the total gas and grocery purchases in the applicable month reaches $500)
  • Get 0.5% Cash Back for all other eligible purchases
  • 3% cashback on gas and groceries if they are in the first $80K transactions of the year and $20K of categorical spends
  • 2% cashback on transportation, dining and recurring bills if they are in the first $80K transactions of the year and $20K of categorical spends
  • 1% cashback on all other eligible card purchases

Insurance Included

7 types

  • purchase protection

    Purchase Protection

    Up to 90 days
  • price protection

    Price Protection

    $500/item, $1,000/year
  • extended warranty

    Extended Warranty

    Up to a year
  • car insurance

    Car Rental Damage & Theft

    Up to 31 days
  • car accident

    Car Rental Accident

    $200,000
  • luggage insurance

    Car Rental Personal Effects

    $1,000/person, $2,000/occurence
  • heart lock

    Travel Accident

    $1,000,000

7 types

  • purchase protection

    Purchase Protection

    Up to 90 days
  • extended warranty

    Extended Warranty

    Up to a year
  • car insurance

    Car Rental Damage & Theft

    Up to 31 days
  • car accident

    Car Rental Accident

    $300,000
  • luggage insurance

    Car Rental Personal Effects

    $1,000
  • heart lock

    Travel Accident

    $1,000,000
  • luggage insurance

    Car Rental Personal Effects

    $1,000/person, $2,000 occurrence

4 types

  • car insurance

    Car Rental Damage & Theft

    yes
  • heart lock

    Travel Accident

    $500,000
  • purchase protection

    Purchase Protection

    90 days
  • extended warranty

    Extended Warranty

    Up to a year

Perks

2 perks

  • car rental

    Car Rental Discount

    10% off base rate of Avis Rent A Car and Budget Rent A Car in Canada and US and 5% internationally
  • gavel

    Trip and legal Assistance

    Support for emergency cash transfer, lost document and ticket replacement, lost baggage assistance, pre-trip information and legal assistance while traveling

2 perks

  • car rental

    Car Rental Discount

    10% off base rate of Avis Rent A Car and Budget Rent A Car in Canada and US and 5% internationally
  • gavel

    Trip and legal Assistance

    Support for emergency cash transfer, lost document and ticket replacement, lost baggage assistance, pre-trip information and legal assistance while traveling

2 perks

  • gas station

    Gas Discount

    save up to 10¢/L on fuel at participating Pioneer, Fas Gas, Ultramar and Chevron gas stations
  • car rental

    Car Rental Discount

    Get up to 25% off auto rentals at participating Avis and Budget locations worldwide.

Annual Fee

$39$0$99 (First Year Waived)

Income Requirements

$50,000 personal or $80,000 householdN/A$15,000 household

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MBNA Smart Cash World Mastercard vs MBNA Smart Cash Platinum Plus Mastercard


Let’s start by comparing the MBNA Smart Cash World Mastercard to the MBNA Smart Cash Platinum Plus Mastercard.


The first major difference between the two cards is the annual fee. While the MBNA Smart Cash World Mastercard boasts an overall low annual fee, the MBNA Smart Cash Platinum Plus Mastercard takes budget-friendly one step further by having no annual fee whatsoever. 


On top of that, the MBNA Smart Cash Platinum Plus Mastercard has no annual income requirements, unlike the MBNA Smart Cash World Mastercard.


So, what about the rewards program? When it comes to the specialized earn categories, both cards have the same cashback rates and caps on gas and groceries – they even have the same welcome offer of over double the cashback in the first six months. Unfortunately, however, the MBNA Smart Cash Platinum Plus Mastercard has a lower base rate on all other purchases, which also comes into play if you hit those monthly spending caps.


As for insurance, the two Mastercards have similar coverage among shared categories. However, the MBNA Smart Cash World Mastercard includes price protection insurance – a rare and valuable inclusion.


Moving on to benefits, you can expect the same car rental discounts and trip and legal assistance on both MBNA Smart Cash Mastercards.


Overall, you’ll likely only apply for the MBNA Smart Cash Platinum Plus Mastercard over the MBNA Smart Cash World Mastercard if you don’t meet the MBNA Smart Cash World Mastercard’s higher income requirements, or you want to avoid an annual fee altogether. Otherwise, the MBNA Smart Cash World Mastercard is the better choice in terms of value.


MBNA Smart Cash World Mastercard vs CIBC Dividend Platinum Visa Card


While the CIBC Dividend Platinum Visa Card is slightly more expensive annually than the MBNA Smart Cash World Mastercard, its annual fee is conveniently waived within the first year of membership.


The CIBC Dividend Platinum Visa Card also has much lower annual income requirements than the MBNA Smart Cash World Mastercard, making it more accessible to certain applicants.


When it comes to rewards, the CIBC Dividend Platinum Visa Card actually earns cardholders more cashback on gas and groceries with substantially higher annual caps rather than monthly caps. This Visa also adds more specialized earn categories like transportation, dining, and recurring bills. One thing to note, however, is that when shopping for groceries at stores like Costco or Walmart, Mastercard is actually the better option since Costco only accepts Mastercards in-store and Walmart is considered to be a department store with Visa rather than an eligible grocery store. So, if you shop frequently at Costco or Walmart for groceries, then you might want to stick to the MBNA Smart Cash World Mastercard.


The MBNA Smart Cash World Mastercard is also the smarter choice when it comes to insurance coverage, offering more valuable inclusions like car rental accident, price protection, and car rental personal effects insurance.


In terms of benefits, the CIBC Dividend Platinum Visa Card actually offers a better rental car discount at participating Avis and Budget locations and instead of trip and legal assistance, cardholders receive gas discounts at participating Pioneer, Fas Gas, Ultramar and Chevron gas stations.


So, if you want a more accessible gas and grocery credit card with more cashback potential, better rental car discounts, and added gas discounts, the CIBC Dividend Platinum Visa Card could be your top pick. On the other hand, the MBNA Smart Cash World Mastercard is cheaper annually, better for Costco and Walmart grocery shoppers, and has more exclusive and extensive insurance coverage – as long as you can meet those higher income requirements.


Comparison to a Top Cashback Contender


While it's good to compare the MBNA Smart Cash World Mastercard to its closest competitors – in this case, those with lower annual fees and similar earn categories – it's also important to compare this card to top cashback contenders, like the Neo World Elite Mastercard.


MBNA Smart Cash® World Mastercard®Neo World Elite® Mastercard®

Welcome Bonus

Up to 5% cash back††N/A

Earn Rates

  • Get 2% Cash Back on eligible gas and grocery purchases (until the total gas and grocery purchases in the applicable month reaches $500)
  • Get 1% Cash Back for all other eligible purchases
  • 5% cash back on grocery purchases up to $1,000 spending per month (6% cash back if you have $5k in a Neo everyday account, or 7% cash back with $10k in a Neo everyday account) - drops to 1% cash back after hitting spend cap
  • 4% cash back on recurring purchases up to $500 spending per month (4.5% cash back if you have $5k in a Neo everyday account, or 5% cash back with $10k in a Neo everyday account) - drops to 1% cash back after hitting spend cap
  • 3% cash back on EV charging and gas purchases up to $1,000 spending per month (3.5% cash back if you have $5k in a Neo everyday account, or 4% cash back with $10k in a Neo everyday account) - drops to 1% cash back after hitting spend cap
  • 1% cash back on all other purchases with no spending caps
  • 5% average cash back at Neo Partners

Note: our reward calculations use the base cash back rates assuming you do not hold any money in a Neo everyday account to earn the higher tier (boosted) cash back rates, otherwise the reward estimates may be higher.

Insurance Included

7 types

  • purchase protection

    Purchase Protection

    Up to 90 days
  • price protection

    Price Protection

    $500/item, $1,000/year
  • extended warranty

    Extended Warranty

    Up to a year
  • car insurance

    Car Rental Damage & Theft

    Up to 31 days
  • car accident

    Car Rental Accident

    $200,000
  • luggage insurance

    Car Rental Personal Effects

    $1,000/person, $2,000/occurence
  • heart lock

    Travel Accident

    $1,000,000

12 types

  • travel accident medical

    Emergency Out of province Medical

    Up to $1,000,000
  • cancel airplane

    Trip Cancellation

    $1,000
  • pause

    Trip Interruption

    $1,000
  • hourglass timer

    Flight Delay

    $500
  • hourglass timer

    Baggage Delay

    $1,000
  • lost baggage

    Lost or Stolen Baggage

    $1,000
  • burglar

    Hotel Burglary Insurance

    $1,000
  • car accident

    Car Rental Accident

    $100,000 for cardholder, up to $10,000 per Spouse or Dependent Child
  • car insurance

    Car Rental Damage & Theft

    Yes
  • luggage insurance

    Car Rental Personal Effects

    $1,000
  • purchase protection

    Purchase Protection

    90 days
  • extended warranty

    Extended Warranty

    1 year

Perks

2 perks

  • car rental

    Car Rental Discount

    10% off base rate of Avis Rent A Car and Budget Rent A Car in Canada and US and 5% internationally
  • gavel

    Trip and legal Assistance

    Support for emergency cash transfer, lost document and ticket replacement, lost baggage assistance, pre-trip information and legal assistance while traveling

1 perk

  • alcohol cheers

    Airport Lounge - Dragon Pass

    Pass only - pay $32 USD per visit

Annual Fee

$39$125

Income Requirements

$50,000 personal or $80,000 household$80,000 personal or $150,000 household

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MBNA Smart Cash World Mastercard vs Neo World Elite Mastercard


Let's start with the rewards programs.


Immediately, you'll see that the Neo World Elite Mastercard's reward program is clearly superior to the MBNA Smart Cash World Mastercard's reward program. In terms of shared categories, the Neo World Elite Mastercard has better initial cashback earn rates on gas and groceries, plus competitive rates on recurring purchases. The best part is that these initial rates can actually be boosted to even higher cashback potential when cardholders keep $5k - $10k in a Neo everyday savings account. Not to mention, if members happen to purchase their food and fuel (among many other expenses) at a Neo Partner retailer, they'll receive bonus cashback on top of the initial or boosted rates.


As expected, the Neo World Elite Mastercard also comes with more extensive insurance – including valuable travel protections like trip interruption and trip cancellation insurance, hotel burglary insurance, and emergency out of province medical insurance.


When it comes to benefits, the MBNA Smart Cash World Mastercard actually has more perks, but the Neo World Elite Mastercard includes an airport lounge Dragon Pass (excluding complimentary visits).


It's crucial to keep in mind, however, that the Neo World Elite Mastercard has a higher annual fee and higher annual income requirements to make up to its higher overall value.


Therefore, you'd likely select the Neo World Elite Mastercard over the MBNA Smart Cash World Mastercard if you can meet those high annual income requirements, and you don't mind spending more money annually for one of the most competitive cashback programs for multiple everyday earn categories. Alternatively, you might stick with the MBNA Smart Cash World Mastercard if you want gas and grocery cashback opportunities that are more affordable and attainable.


Final Verdict


The MBNA Smart Cash World Mastercard is a decent low-fee gas and grocery cashback credit card option – but there are some better and more diverse options out there.


When stacked up alongside it's closest competitors, we see that compared to the MBNA Smart Cash World Mastercard, the MBNA Smart Cash Platinum Plus Mastercard has no annual fee and avoids income requirements, but its overall base rate is below-average, which becomes a problem when you hit monthly spending caps on specialized categories. In addition to this, the coverage on the MBNA Smart Cash World Mastercard is better, adding rare price protection insurance. There’s also the CIBC Dividend Platinum Visa Card, which comes with better cashback rates on gas and groceries and a gas discount for lower income requirements. Still, this option is more expensive, has less coverage, and is useless to those who purchase groceries at Costco or Walmart – which are top retailers for many shoppers.


At the end of the day, if you can afford to do so, we actually recommend taking a peek at one of the top cashback credit cards in Canada – the Neo World Elite Mastercard – for the most competitive and unique cashback opportunities.


Frequently Asked Questions


So, what is the MBNA Smart Cash World Mastercard's annual fee?


As of now, the MBNA Smart Cash World Mastercard has an annual fee of $39.




‡, ††, ††††, ✪, Terms and Conditions apply.


This offer is not available for residents of Quebec. For residents of Quebec, please click here.


  • Important Notice: Effective from the first day of your statement period beginning September 2025 and reflected on your October 2025 statement

Standard Annual Interest Rates of 21.99% on eligible purchases, 22.99% on balance transfers✪, and 22.99% on cash advances


Sponsored advertising. MBNA is a division of The Toronto-Dominion Bank (TD) and TD is not responsible for the contents of this site including any editorials or reviews that may appear on this site. For complete information on this MBNA credit card, please click on the “Apply Now” button.


The Toronto-Dominion Bank is the issuer of this credit card. MBNA is a division of The Toronto-Dominion Bank. ®MBNA and other-trademarks are the property of The Toronto-Dominion Bank.

Rewards Breakdown

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