MBNA Rewards Platinum Plus® Mastercard®

The MBNA Rewards Platinum Plus^® Mastercard^® is a solid no-fee card. It’s also a good downgrade candidate from MBNA’s premium cards if you wish to keep an account open with the bank, but don’t want to pay annual fees. As a Platinum Plus^® card, it also has above-average insurance for a no-fee card.

This card would be a good choice for anyone who often shops at Costco or other merchants that accept Mastercard^®. The card is strongest for anyone who redeems their rewards for travel but isn’t beholden to a single loyalty program and may not qualify for the MBNA World Elite^® Mastercard^®.

Bonuses & Fees

This card currently offers a welcome bonus for up to 10,000 MBNA Rewards points^†, structured as follows:

• 5,000 MBNA Rewards points^† upon spending $500 on the card within the first 90 days of account opening
• 5,000 MBNA Rewards points^† for enrolling in paperless statements within the first 90 days of account opening
• 4 MBNA Rewards points per dollar spent^† on restaurant, groceries, digital media, membership, and household utilities within the first 90 days of card membership

The elevated earning rate replaces the base earning rate on those categories, and is limited to $10,000 spent per category.

Quebec residents aren’t eligible for the elevated earning rates, and can instead earn up to 10,000 MBNA Rewards points by completing the following two requirements:

• 5,000 bonus MBNA Rewards points†† ($25 in cash back value) after your first eligible purchase within the first 90 days of account opening.
• 5,000 MBNA Rewards points^† for enrolling in paperless statements

The card has no annual fee for the primary cardholder and up to nine additional cardholders^†.

Earning Rewards

This card offers a tiered rewards structure:

• 2 MBNA Rewards points per dollar spent^† on restaurant, grocery, digital media, membership, and household utility purchases
• 1 MBNA Rewards point per dollar spent^† on all other purchases

The accelerated rate is limited to $10,000 in purchases per year for each merchant category^†. If you exceed that threshold, you’ll earn the base rate of 1 point per dollar spent on any further purchases. Spending during the welcome bonus period counts towards these limits.

There’s also a birthday bonus every 12 months after holding the card^†. The bonus is 10% more points, up to 10,000 extra points^†. 

Redeeming Rewards

MBNA Rewards can be redeemed through the bank’s online travel booking portal^†. You can book flights, hotels, car rentals, vacation packages, and cruises. Points can be used for bookings made through the travel portal at a rate of 100 points = $1, or 1 cent per point^†.

For other purchases, you can use your points for statement credit at a rate of 120 points = $1, or 0.83 cents per point or 1.67% return on spending^†. Even if you don’t use your rewards for their optimal travel value, this rate is still superior to similar Mastercard^® World Elite^® products from other banks.

You can also exchange your points for gift cards^†. Rates vary depending on the brand and value of the gift card, generally at least 0.87 cents per point and occasionally even exceeding the value of travel redemptions.

An interesting development is the partnership between MBNA and Alaska Airlines, through which cardholders will be able to transfer their MBNA Rewards at a 1:1 ratio to Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan^†. When this materializes, it’ll present Canadians with the only meaningful way to access Alaska miles.

MBNA Rewards never expire as long as you remain a cardholder^†.

Perks & Benefits

Cardholders can get car rental discounts at Avis and Budget: 10% in Canada or the US, and 5% internationally^†.

Insurance Coverage

As a no-fee card, this card comes with relatively basic insurance benefits, with the notable exception being mobile device insurance^†. With up to $1,000 in coverage in the event of loss, theft, or accidental damage, this is a good perk to have and use if you’re looking to buy a new device such as phone or tablet^†.

Legal Disclaimers