Bank of America Customized Cash Rewards for Students Credit Card Review 2023

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The Bank of America® Customized Cash Rewards Credit Card for Students offers a lucrative but uncomplicated rewards structure, a lengthy 0% introductory APR, and a welcome bonus that provides a sizable return compared to the spending requirement.

None of those features are the best of their kind, but together they serve as the foundation for a useful entry-level credit card. However, while the card is marketed to students, you may have difficulty getting approved without established credit.

Credit card rewards are often a tradeoff between simplicity and value. The most basic rewards structures provide a flat cash-back percentage on all purchases, which requires no thought or planning, but rarely maximizes your return. More complex reward structures can offer much higher returns, but only at certain times or on select purchases.

If you want a card that outperforms basic cash-back rates but is still easy to use, the Customized Cash Rewards Credit Card for Students is a reasonable compromise so long as your spending tends to align with the card's bonus categories.

The Customized Cash Rewards Credit Card for Students' long 0% introductory APR is a standout addition to a card that also offers a welcome bonus and ongoing rewards. You can get a card with a 0% APR that lasts even longer, but the rewards you'll earn from this card are worth the shorter introductory period unless you need those extra months to pay down your balance. If you don't plan to carry a balance, then the 0% APR provides little value, and you'd be better served by a card that offers more useful long-term benefits.

One unusual aspect of the Customized Cash Rewards Credit Card for Students is its relatively stringent credit requirements for approval compared to other student credit cards. You'll want a FICO score in the good to excellent range, which disqualifies students with no credit. If your credit falls short, consider other options like a secured credit card or a starter credit card that gives you a better shot at approval.

Student and no-fee credit cards don't always come with welcome bonuses or earn rewards for ongoing spending, but the Customized Cash Rewards Credit Card for Students offers both.

Welcome bonus offer

You'll earn a $200 cash rewards bonus after making $1,000 in purchases in the first 90 days from account opening. The bonus cash is on top of the cash-back rewards you earn from purchases, so you're effectively getting an extra 20% back on your first $1,000 of spending. There are more lucrative welcome bonuses to be found, but most of those come with higher spending requirements and are attached to cards with annual fees. This bonus from the Customized Cash Rewards Credit Card for Students is competitive with bonuses on other no-annual-fee cards, and has a minimum spending requirement that's realistic for student budgets.

How to earn rewards

The rewards structure on the Customized Cash Rewards Credit Card for Students is not complex, but the return varies depending on what you buy. At the top of the scale, you'll earn 3% cash back on spending in your choice of one of six categories: gas, online shopping, dining, travel, drug stores, or home improvement/furnishings.

Those categories cover a lot of ground: For example, online shopping includes both web-based and mobile app purchases from Amazon, Target, Walmart, and a variety of other retailers. Similarly, travel includes larger outlays like airfare and hotels as well as everyday expenses like parking and public transportation. You can change your selection once per calendar month, making it easier to maximize your return based on upcoming purchases.

Apart from the 3% categories, you'll earn 2% cash back at grocery stores and wholesale clubs (like Costco and Sam's Club). The 3% and 2% cash-back rewards are limited to the first $2,500 in combined purchases each quarter; you'll earn 1% on purchases beyond that amount, and on all purchases in non-bonus categories.

You can get an even better return on spending through the Bank of America Preferred Rewards program, which offers bonuses as high as 75% to cardholders who also have banking and investment accounts with Bank of America or Merrill. However, the balance requirements start at $20,000, which is too high to be useful to most students.

How to use rewards

You can redeem cash rewards easily as a check, statement credits to your card account, deposits to a linked Bank of America checking or savings account, or credits to an eligible Merrill account (including 529 college savings accounts). You'll get the same return in each case, so you don't have to worry about trying to maximize the value of your rewards.

One-time redemptions for a check or to a qualifying 529 account have a $25 minimum, as do automatic redemptions to Bank of America checking and savings accounts, and to other qualifying Merrill accounts. However, your rewards don't expire as long as your account remains open and in good standing, so you can save up until you reach the threshold with no risk of losing what you've already earned.

The Customized Cash Rewards Credit Card for Students doesn't come with luxury benefits like airline and hotel status or expedited airport security. Like most student credit cards, it doesn't offer even lower-level perks such as purchase protection. However, it does have standard credit card features like zero liability for fraudulent transactions, contactless payment capability and mobile wallet compatibility, paperless statements, FICO score updates, overdraft protection, and account alerts. Those features shouldn't influence your decision to get (or not get) the card, but they're nice to have.

The card's most noteworthy benefit is its 0% intro APR for your first 18 billing cycles for purchases, and for any balance transfers made within the first 60 days of opening your account, followed by a 16.99% - 26.99% Variable APR.

Some credit cards offer a 0% introductory APR for as long as 21 months, but the 18 months you get with the Customized Cash Rewards Credit Card for Students is above average. You can use that long introductory period to avoid interest charges on expenses like moving costs or tuition even if you don't have enough cash on hand to pay them upfront. The 0% APR may also help if you're already carrying a balance on a credit card with a high interest rate, since the money you save on interest payments can more than offset the balance transfer fee.

While a 0% APR offer enables you to borrow money at a minimal cost in the short term, it's not an excuse to spend beyond your means. Any remaining balance will start accruing interest as soon as the introductory rate expires, so aim to spend only what you'll be able to repay in the allotted time.

You won't pay an annual fee for the Customized Cash Rewards Credit Card for Students, but you may incur other fees, including foreign transaction fees for transactions made in a foreign currency — this may apply to online purchases from merchants abroad even if you're in the country when you buy. That added expense makes this card ill-suited for international travel.

Beyond that, there are fees for other types of transactions, including:

Customized Cash Rewards for Students vs Other Bank of America Student Credit Cards

Bank of America® Customized Cash Rewards Credit Card for Students

Bank of America® Travel Rewards Credit Card for Students

Bank of America® Unlimited Cash Rewards Credit Card for Students

Annual fee

$0

$0

$0

Rewards rate

3% cash back* in one category you choose each calendar month***

2% cash back at grocery stores and wholesale clubs*

1% cash back on all other purchases

1.5x points on all purchases

1.5% cash back on all purchases

Welcome bonus offer

$200 cash rewards bonus after making $1,000 in purchases in the first 90 days from account opening

25,000 online bonus points after spending $1,000 in purchases in the first 90 days from account opening (redeemed as a $250 statement credit toward travel and dining purchases)

$200 cash rewards bonus after making $1,000 in purchases in the first 90 days from account opening

Card benefits

0% intro APR for your first 18 billing cycles for purchases, and for any balance transfers made within the first 60 days of opening your account (then a 16.99% - 26.99% Variable APR)

Free FICO score

0% intro APR for your first 18 billing cycles for purchases, and for any balance transfers made within the first 60 days of opening your account (then a 17.99% - 27.99% Variable APR)

No foreign transaction fees

Free FICO score

0% intro APR for your first 18 billing cycles for purchases, and for any balance transfers made within the first 60 days of opening your account (then a 16.99% - 26.99% Variable APR)

Free FICO score

*On the Customized Cash Rewards Credit Card for Students, earn 3% and 2% cash back on up to the first $2,500 spent in these categories combined each quarter, then 1% cash back

***Eligible Customized Cash Rewards Credit Card for Students 3% categories are gas, online shopping, dining, travel, drug stores, or home improvement/furnishings

Customized Cash Rewards for Students vs Student Credit Cards From Other Banks

Bank of America® Customized Cash Rewards Credit Card for Students

Capital One SavorOne Student Cash Rewards Credit Card

Discover it® Student Cash Back

Annual fee

$0

$0

$0

Rewards rate

3% cash back* in one category you choose each calendar month***

2% cash back at grocery stores and wholesale clubs*

1% cash back on all other purchases

10% cash back on purchases made through Uber & Uber Eats, plus complimentary Uber One membership statement credits through November 14, 2024

8% cash back on Capital One Entertainment purchases

5% cash back on hotels and car rentals booked through Capital One Travel

3% cash back on dining

3% cash back on entertainment

3% cash back on popular streaming services

3% cash back at grocery stores (excluding Walmart and Target)

1% cash back on all other purchases

5% cash back in categories that rotate each quarter on up to $1,500 in combined spending when you activate (then 1%) (from April 1 to June 30, 2023, you can earn 5% cash back at Restaurants and Wholesale Clubs on up to $1,500 in purchases after enrollment, then 1%)

1% cash back on all other eligible purchases

Welcome bonus offer

$200 cash rewards bonus after making $1,000 in purchases in the first 90 days from account opening

$50 cash bonus once you spend $100 on purchases within 3 months of account opening

None, but Discover will match all the cash back you earned after the first 12 months

Card benefits

0% intro APR for your first 18 billing cycles for purchases, and for any balance transfers made within the first 60 days of opening your account (then a 16.99% - 26.99% Variable APR)

Free FICO score

Price protection***

Extended warranty***

Car rental coverage***

Roadside dispatch***

Travel accident insurance***

Complimentary concierge services

Free credit monitoring with CreditWise from Capital One

Complimentary Uber One membership, through November 14, 2024**

No foreign transaction fees

0% intro APR for six months on purchases (then a 17.99% - 26.99% Variable APR)

Free FICO score

No late payment fee on your first late payment

No foreign transaction fees

Review

Capital One SavorOne Cash Rewards Student Credit Card Review

Discover It Student Cash Back Card Review

*On the Customized Cash Rewards Credit Card for Students, earn 3% and 2% cash back on up to the first $2,500 spent in these categories combined each quarter, then 1% cash back

***Eligible Customized Cash Rewards Credit Card for Students 3% categories are gas, online shopping, dining, travel, drug stores, or home improvement/furnishings

To be approved for the Bank of America® Customized Cash Rewards Credit Card for Students, we recommend at least a good credit score. That means a FICO score of at least 670.

To get the Bank of America® Customized Cash Rewards Credit Card for Students, you must be at least 18 years old.

The Bank of America® Customized Cash Rewards Credit Card for Students is worth it if your spending habits match the card's bonus categories. As long as you're OK with a no-frills card, it's a solid choice for earning cash back on spending, as long as you can meet the credit requirement for approval.

We compared the Bank of America® Customized Cash Rewards Credit Card for Students to similar student and 0% APR credit cards from Bank of America and other card issuers, and evaluated several factors, including:

You can read more about how we rate credit cards at Insider for a closer look at our methodology.

Editorial Note: Any opinions, analyses, reviews or recommendations expressed in this article are those of the author's alone, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any card issuer. Read our editorial standards.

Please note: While the offers mentioned above are accurate at the time of publication, they're subject to change at any time and may have changed, or may no longer be available.

**Enrollment required.

For rates and fees of Discover it® Student Cash Back, please click here.

***Terms, conditions, and exclusions apply. Refer to your Guide to Benefits for more details. Travel Accident Insurance is not guaranteed, it depends on the level of benefits you get at application.

For Capital One products listed on this page, some of the above benefits are provided by Visa® or Mastercard® and may vary by product. See the respective Guide to Benefits for details, as terms and exclusions apply