Cashback Credit Card Calculator
Work out what a cashback credit card is really worth after the annual fee — and see exactly why it only pays off if you clear the balance in full every month.
Not financial advice. This is a simplified illustration, not financial advice. Real cards have their own terms, exclusions and tiered rates, and cashback offers change frequently — always check the provider's current terms before applying. Cashback cards only make sense if you repay your balance in full every month.
Enter your card details
Add your annual spend and cashback rates to see what the card is really worth, year by year.
How cashback credit cards really work
Most UK cashback cards use a two-tier structure: a generous introductory rate that's capped at a fixed amount, then a much lower ongoing rate for the rest of the year and beyond. This calculator splits your spend the same way — enough of it earns the intro rate to reach the cap, and the rest earns the ongoing rate — then compares the result, after any annual fee, against a simple flat-rate, no-fee benchmark card. The single biggest catch with any cashback card: cashback is calculated on your spending, but if you don't clear the statement in full, interest is calculated on your outstanding balance — and typical UK purchase APRs run at 20-30%, dramatically higher than any cashback rate on offer. A single missed payment can undo months, sometimes a whole year, of rewards.