MBNA True Line® Mastercard®
Review

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  Car Rental Discount

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

The MBNA True Line Mastercard is truly a top-pick for a low-interest credit card.

Sure, with this card, you won’t receive any rewards or coverage, but that’s the compromise you make for substantial savings on interest rates, designed to reduce your monthly payments.

For more information on why this low-interest contender should be on your budget-conscious radar, keep reading.

How You Earn Rewards with the MBNA True Line Mastercard

As we briefly mentioned in the intro, the MBNA True Line Mastercard doesn’t have a rewards program. Instead, the card boasts impressive low-interest rates – something we’ll get into in the next section.

4 Benefits of the MBNA True Line Mastercard

There are plenty of perks tacked on to an MBNA True Line Mastercard membership, let’s take a look at those now:

No Annual Fee

Nothing truly says budget-friendly like no annual fee. Pair that with some savings on interest rates, and you’ve got one of the best credit cards if you’re trying not to break the bank.

Low-Interest Balance Transfer Promotional Period

Perhaps the biggest stand-out feature of the MBNA True Line Mastercard is its promotional period. With this offer, you’ll receive 0% interest for the first year of membership on balance transfers completed within the first few months (specifically 90 days) of account opening. 

Still, keep in mind that this welcome bonus is accompanied by a 3% transfer fee.

Low Purchase Interest Rates

Beyond the promotional period, cardholders can expect all-time low interest rates on purchases – perfect for those planning to put some balance on their MBNA True Line Mastercard.

Car Rental Discounts

Despite having no rewards program or insurance coverage, the MBNA True Line Mastercard includes one benefit that road trippers might enjoy.

With this card, take 10% off the base rate of Avis Rent A Car and Budget Rent A Car rentals. These discounts tend to be higher at locations in Canada and the U.S., but lower discount rates are also available through international dealers.

2 Downsides to the MBNA True Line Mastercard

When it comes to credit card reviews, we tell the truth, and truthfully, the MBNA True Line Mastercard has some downsides.

No Rewards or Coverage

It should come as no surprise that one of this card’s biggest downfalls is the fact that it has no rewards program or insurance coverage – but that’s kind of to be expected with most low-interest credit cards.

Still, there are some contenders that successfully blend low interest, a rewards program, benefits, and insurance coverage. You’ll see what we mean in the comparison section.

Higher Interest Rates Outside of the Promotional Period

After the promotional period, apart from the interest rates on purchases, rates on balance transfers and cash advances are still decently high compared to other low-interest options, technically making the MBNA True Line Mastercard less well-rounded as a low-interest contender.

Comparison to Two Other Top Low-Interest Credit Cards

Now that we’ve identified both the MBNA True Line Mastercard’s strong points and shortcomings, it’s time to compare it to other top low-interest credit cards on the Canadian market.

This way, you can see where the MBNA True Line Mastercard continues to prevail and where another option might be better suited to your spending habits.

Here’s a quick overview of the comparisons we’ll be making:

MBNA True Line Mastercard vs Scotiabank Value Visa Card

Voted the best overall low-interest credit card by FinlyWealth, it’s no wonder that we’re going to start with the Scotiabank Value Visa Card.

Unlike the MBNA True Line Mastercard, this Visa card comes with a small annual fee. Luckily though, the annual fee is completely waived in the first year of membership.

Moving on to welcome bonuses, while both cards provide promotional offers on balance transfers, the MBNA True Line Mastercard has the better bonus since it supplies cardholders with 0% interest in the first year, whereas the Scotiabank Value Visa Card offers a 0.99% balance transfer rate for the first 9 months of membership instead.

Overall though, the Scotiabank Value Visa Card has lower interest rates on both cash advances and balance transfers outside of the promotional period. However, the MBNA True Line Mastercard still has the best low-interest rate on purchases.

Like the MBNA True Line Mastercard, the Scotiabank Value Visa Card has no rewards program or included coverage. That said, you can opt into balance protection insurance through either a Basic or Comprehensive protection plan.

The two low-interest contenders offer car rental discounts at Avis Rent A Car and Budget Rent A Car locations, except the discount rates are actually higher with the Scotiabank Value Visa.

Ultimately, if you’re looking for better overall low-interest rates on cash advances and balance transfers, plus the opportunity to opt into balance protection insurance, the Scotiabank Value Visa Card might be better suited to you. On the other hand, if you’re more concerned about the interest rates on your purchases and you want a better balance transfer welcome bonus if you want to pay of your balance faster, all for no annual fee, stick to the MBNA True Line Mastercard.

MBNA True Line Mastercard vs Scotiabank Platinum American Express Card

So far, we’ve covered a low-interest Mastercard and a low-interest Visa Card, now it’s time to throw a low-interest American Express credit card into the mix – just to cover all of our bases!

The Scotiabank American Express Card is a bit more exclusive than our previous two low-interest competitors. This card comes with a substantial annual fee and some low income requirements, but there’s a reason for this. 

For starters, this contender has the lowest interest rates on purchases, cash advances, and balance transfers at all times – even without having an interest-specific welcome bonus.

Secondly, unlike the MBNA True Line Mastercard (or the Scotiabank Value Visa Card for that matter), the Scotiabank American Express Card actually has a rewards program, earning cardholders a flat rate of Scene+ points on all eligible purchases, plus some bonus points per dollar spent on hotel bookings, car rentals, and arrangements made through Scene+ Travel, powered by Expedia.

If that wasn’t enough, the Scotiabank Platinum American Express Card also has a whopping 13 insurance categories, with valuable travel inclusions like trip interruption and trip cancellation insurance, hotel burglary insurance, and emergency medical coverages.

On top of this, you can expect plenty of premium perks, like no foreign transactions fees (which allows cardholders to avoid the 2.5% fee on international transactions), a Hertz #1 Club Gold Member status lift, and most importantly, tons of complimentary airport lounge access through Priority Pass and Plaza Premium lounges.

Clearly, you’d only apply for the Scotiabank Platinum American Express Card over the MBNA True Line Mastercard if you’re a high spending frequent luxury traveller that’s still looking to save on interest rates. Otherwise, the MBNA True Line Mastercard is much more affordable, accessible, and straight to the point.

Final Verdict

If you’re in search of the best no-fee low-interest credit card, your journey just might end here.

The MBNA True Line Mastercard has nearly everything a budget-conscious cardholder could ask for – including an impressive balance transfer welcome bonus and all-time low interest rates on purchases. They’ve even thrown in some car rental discounts as an added benefit, perhaps to make up for its lack of a rewards program and insurance coverage.

Of course, if you’re looking for better interest rates on cash advances and balance transfers outside of a promotional period, you might want to spend a little more on cards like the Scotiabank Value Visa. Or, if you want the lowest interest rates possible across all interest categories, plus tons of premium benefits, coverage, and a rewards program – consider splurging for the Scotiabank Platinum American Express Card instead.