USAA · American Express · personal · Cash back
Review the linked sources below for offer details and eligibility.
Earning
| Gas stations
5% back on your first $3,000 in gas station purchases each year (calendar year). Since the 2026 restructure gas has its own cap; military base purchases (commissaries, exchanges, shoppettes) earn a separate 5% on the first $5,000/yr, which has no taxonomy category and is recorded in notes only.
up to $3,000/year, then 1%
|
5% | 5% |
| Groceries (supermarkets)
3% back on your first $3,000 in grocery purchases each year (was 2% before the 2026 restructure).
up to $3,000/year, then 1%
|
3% | 3% |
| Everything else
1% back on all other purchases, no limit.
|
1% | 1% |
Right column: value per $ at travel valuation (1¢/pt). Dollar-for-dollar.
Credits
None.
Benefits
- No foreign transaction fees — Foreign transaction fee dropped to 0% in the 2026 restructure (was 1%).
- No annual fee
- Intro 0% APR on balance transfers — 0% intro APR on balance transfers and convenience checks through the March 2028 billing cycle for transfers posting by 2026-11-30 (CNBC Select, updated 2026-08-05); Doctor of Credit describes it as 18 months with a 3% balance transfer fee (up to $200). Regular APR 15.40%-27.40% variable.
- USAA membership required (military and family) — Must be a USAA member (current/former military, spouses, dependents) to apply.
- 5% on military base purchases (first $5,000/yr) — Military commissaries, exchanges and shoppettes earn 5% on the first $5,000 per calendar year, separate from the $3,000 gas cap. Not a taxonomy category, so it is not an earn entry.
- Rewards paid monthly — Cash back is credited monthly rather than annually (per Doctor of Credit).
Protections
| rental car | secondary |
Notes
5% gas (first $3,000/yr), 5% military base purchases (first $5,000/yr, separate cap), 3% groceries (first $3,000/yr), 1% everything else. Restructured in early 2026: gas and base spend used to share one $3,000 cap and groceries earned 2%; FTF went from 1% to 0%; rewards now paid monthly. USAA membership required. USAA's product page (https://www.usaa.com/banking/credit-cards-public/cash-back/rewards-plus/) is a JS app that could not be rendered, so fees/earn rates were confirmed against review sites only. Protections (rental car) were not confirmed this pass. Web-verified 2026-09-08 against https://www.cnbc.com/select/best-usaa-credit-cards/ (updated 2026-08-05) and https://www.doctorofcredit.com/usaa-cashback-rewards-plus-american-express-review-5-cash-back-on-gas-military-base-spend/ (updated 2026-03-27).
Verified 2026-09-08 · confidence medium · sources: 1, 2, 3, 4