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With well over 100 credit cards on the market, it can be impossible to know a good card, even when it jumps out at you, which is where Canstar’s awards come in handy because we look at not just a card’s rates and fees, but also the features and freebies included.
However, when picking the right card for your wallet, it’s important to look beyond the perks, particularly if you’re someone who has a tendency not to pay your bill in full each month.
Canstar’s rewards credit card award winners this year were Coles, CBA and David Jones card providers (Latitude), which include the following cards:
Coles Rewards Mastercard includes a truck load – or as Coles says ‘trolley load’ – of flybuys points, insurances, plus a free Coles Plus Saver membership through to August next year, which gives you 10% off one shop a month and double your usual flybuys points when shopping at Coles (making it up to 4 flybuys points for every dollar you spend on your grocery shop until that free membership runs out).
CBA Smart Awards card gives you $80,000 rewards points in the first 4 months just for signing up, although you have to spend a certain amount. You can also get cashback shopping offers, travel insurance, and – probably best of all in my mind – your fee waived completely if you spend $2,000 or more each month.
David Jones Premiere card offers 3 points for every dollar you spend at participating supermarkets and petrol stations, 10% off select hotels, e-commerce insurance, rewards points and let’s not forget free delivery and gift wrapping at David Jones.
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| Rewards credit cards from Canstar’s 2025 award winners | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Provider | Rate | Annual fee | Key perks |
| Coles Rewards Mastercard | 20.74% | $99 |
|
| CBA Smart Awards card | 20.99% | $19 p.m. = $228 p.a. |
|
| David Jones Premiere (Latitude) card | 23.99% | $99 |
|
Source: Canstar. Notes: Based on personal credit cards offered by Canstar’s award winners for rewards cards. For more information, refer to the Canstar Credit Card Star Rating methodology.
Don’t let the bells and whistles distract you from picking the right card for you
This is critically important because while promises of free flights, lounge passes and free gift wrapping can sound like a dream come true, a credit card that doesn’t fit your finances can quickly turn into a nightmare.
Firstly, understand what you need the card for and work backwards.
- Are you a big spender who uses their card for every purchase possible? Then a rewards card could potentially set you ahead. Provided you pay your bill in full and be mindful of the annual fees.
- Are you a frequent flyer? A credit card that offers points for flights, lounge passes and insurances could work in your favour, but again, only if the annual fee is reasonable and you don’t owe a cent on it.
- Do you need a card just for emergencies? Then look down the low fee aisle. There are plenty of cards on the market that offer low or no annual fees – some even come with perks.
- And if you ever struggle to pay your card off in full, walk straight past all the bells and whistles and opt for a low rate, low fee card, ideally with a low credit limit so it can’t get you into too much trouble, or kiss goodbye to the plastic altogether and live on money you own rather than owe.
Credit cards can be choc-full of perks, but there plenty of traps as well
We’ve already talked about the potential pitfalls of high rates and high fees, but there are other traps you need to be aware of:
- Watch out for spending caps: some cards offer a cracking rate but only up to a certain amount, i.e. 2 points per dollar, up to the first $2k. Check if your typical monthly spend falls within this cap and if they don’t, understand how many points you might realistically earn in any given month (plus what they’re worth when you redeem them).
- Take notice of interest free days: you typically get between 25 and 55, but if you have money owing, they can be null and void.
- If you stockpile your points for too long: be aware that on many cards, the points never expire, but the value of the points can take a dive.
- Loving the idea of a perk, but never using it: so many people sign up to a card for free insurances, or discounts at select hotels, but never actually use them. That’s ok, but when you’re weighing up the cost of your card versus the value you get back, you can’t include things you’ve never used in this equation, just because you think ‘one day I will’.
