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Sallie Mae Ignite Review

Sallie Mae Ignite

Rating: 4 Stars

Bottom Line:
Cash Back for Students

Apply Now
Card DetailsThe OfferIs it Worth It?
Pros and ConsWhy 4 Stars?Fees
Benefits

Card Details

Regular APR:14.74 – 24.74 (Variable)
Intro APR (Purchases):0% for 12 months
Intro APR (Balance transfers):None
Rewards Rate:Unimited 1% cash back on every purchase
25% bonus on cash back after making six consecutive on-time payments
Credit Needed:(670 – 850) Good/Excellent
Annual Fee:None
Card Brand:Mastercard

*See online credit card application for details on the terms and conditions.

Offer Highlights

  • Click APPLY NOW to apply online
  • The cash back credit card that helps students establish credit and earn bonus rewards for responsible financial behaviors
  • 1% Cash back: Earn on every purchase, every day, with no limit
  • 25% More cash back: Earn a 25% bonus on your cash back rewards after making six consecutive on-time payments
  • Become a Sallie Mae Ignite cardholder and you?ll have the chance to win $10,000 to help pay down your student loans. We’re choosing one winner every month for 12 months for a total giveaway of $120,000

Is Sallie Mae Ignite worth it?

Sallie Mae Ignite is a solid card for students looking to build credit. Cardholders earn 1% cash back on every purchase, every day, with no limit, and get 1.25% cash back after making six consecutive on-time payments.

It?s rare to see a giveaway as part of a credit card offer. In this case there is an opportunity to win $10,000 to help pay down your student loans. People who have Sallie Mae Accelerate or Sallie Mae Ignite are eligible and receive more entries, up to ten per day, by swiping their card.

The card offers secondary Cell Phone Protection through Mastercard, and the $600 benefit amount applies to each claim and is subject to a $50 co-pay per claim. You get up to $1000 in total benefit per year. This benefit is typically reserved for Mastercard World cards only.

The card also has no annual fee and as mentioned offers unlimited 1% cash back as a base rate, so Sallie Mae Ignite is a reasonably good offer for students. One note: if you are an international student, consider Deserve Edu Mastercard for Students, which does not require a SSN to apply.

Pros

  • 1% Cash back: Earn on every purchase, every day, with no limit
  • Build your credit
  • Monthly reporting to 3 major credit bureaus

Cons

  • 0% Intro period on purchases is only 6 months
  • 25% cash back bonus requires six consecutive on-time payments. Journey Student Credit Card from Capital One has a bonus that be achieved more quickly: you get a 25% bonus for paying on time in that month
  • Foreign transaction fee

Why 4 Stars?

Regular APR


4 Stars

Intro APR


4 Stars

Fees


4 Stars

Perks


5 Stars

Overall


4 Stars

Fees

Foreign Transaction Fee3%
Balance Transfer FeeEither $5 or 3% of the amount of each transfer, whichever is greater
Cash Advance FeeEither $10 or 5% of the amount of each cash advance, whichever is greater
Penalty APRNone

Benefits

$0 Fraud Liability
Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver
Extended Warranty Program
Lost Luggage Reimbursement
Purchase Protection
Roadside Assistance
Travel Accident Insurance
Travel Assistance
Get Started with Sallie Mae Ignite

Editorial Note: This content is not provided by the issuer. Any opinion, analyses, reviews, or recommendations expressed on this page are those of the author?s alone, and may not have been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by the issuer.

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Best Credit Cards For Good Credit, Best Sallie Mae Credit Cards, Best Student Credit Cards

Sallie Mae Evolve Review

Sallie Mae Evolve

Rating: 4 Stars

Bottom Line:
Cash Back Bonus with Sallie Mae

Apply Now
Card DetailsThe OfferIs it Worth It?
Pros and ConsWhy 4 Stars?Fees
Benefits

Card Details

Regular APR:14.74 – 24.74 (Variable)
Intro APR (Purchases):0% for 12 months
Intro APR (Balance transfers):None
Rewards Rate:1.25% cash back: earn on every purchase, every day, with no limit
Earn a 25% bonus on any cash back rewards earned from your top two purchase categories each month
Credit Needed:(670 – 850) Good/Excellent
Annual Fee:None
Card Brand:Mastercard

*See online credit card application for details on the terms and conditions.

Offer Highlights

  • Click APPLY NOW to apply online
  • The credit card that automatically gives you extra cash back on your top spending categories each month
  • 1.25% cash back: earn on every purchase, every day, with no limit
  • 25% More cash back. Earn a 25% bonus on any cash back rewards earned from your top two purchase categories each month
  • Instant rewards. Unlock additional rewards with responsible financial behavior
  • Become a Sallie Mae Accelerate cardholder and you?ll have the chance to win $10,000 to help pay down your student loans. We?re choosing one winner every month for 12 months?for a total giveaway of $120,000
  • $0 annual fee
  • 0% Introductory APR for purchases for 12 months

Is Sallie Mae Evolve worth it?

Sallie Mae Evolve is a solid card for people who want unlimited flat-rate cash back on all purchases. There is a 25% bonus on any cash back rewards earned from your top two purchase categories each month, providing a cash back rate of 1.56%. Categories are determined by Merchant Classification Codes, MCC, and the benefit is for the for the top two MCCs.

Utilities, rent, a mortgage, or an auto loan, are big monthly costs, but if they charge fees on credit card transactions, which they typically do, it’s not recommended to regularly pay them with a credit card unless you are trying to increase your spend to meet the spending threshold for a valuable sign up bonus, for a new card you are going to add to your wallet.

As an example of the value of Sallie Mae Evolve?s 25% bonus, in other words the 1.56% cash back bonus rate, let’s say the categories where you spent the most were gas, $150/month, and groceries, $400/month, and you spent the same amount each month for two years. Over the course of two years you would have earned 1.56% x 24 months x $550 = $205.92, over $200 from gas and grocery purchases. That?s solid.

However, even better would be if you had a cash back card that gets 2% cash back across all purchases, which the Citi Double Cash gets, because you would have earned: 2% x 24 months x $550 = $264, an extra $58 and change by having the higher rewards rate Citi Double Cash. And that?s only looking at gas and grocery purchases.

Let?s say you spent $550 in other categories, not counting gas and groceries, each month, after 2 years you would earn 1.25% x 6 months x $550 = $165 from the rest of your spending. Thats $165 + $205.92 = $370.92 cash back from using Sallie Mae Evolve for two years.

The difference from getting high flat-rate cash back is clear: If you used Citi Double Cash for those two years with it’s unlimited 2% flat-rate cash back on your $550 + $550 = $1100 monthly spend, you would get 2% x 24 months x $1100 = $528 in cash back. That’s $528 – $370.92 = $157 more in your pocket for just swiping a better card.

Sallie Mae Evolve might be a good card for people who have solid but not the highest credit, or for people who have a Sallie Mae account, but everyone else will get better rewards elsewhere.

Pros

  • 1.25% cash back: earn on every purchase, every day, with no limit
  • Earn a 25% bonus on any cash back rewards earned from your top two purchase categories each month
  • 0% Introductory APR for purchases for 12 months

Cons

  • Not the highest cash back rate
  • foreign transaction fee

Why 4 Stars?

Regular APR


4 Stars

Intro APR


4 Stars

Fees


4 Stars

Perks


5 Stars

Overall


4 Stars

Fees

Foreign Transaction Fee3%
Balance Transfer FeeEither $5 or 3% of the amount of each transfer, whichever is greater
Cash Advance FeeEither $10 or 5% of the amount of each cash advance, whichever is greater
Penalty APRNone

Benefits

$0 Fraud Liability
Cell Phone Protection
Get Started with Sallie Mae Evolve

Editorial Note: This content is not provided by the issuer. Any opinion, analyses, reviews, or recommendations expressed on this page are those of the author?s alone, and may not have been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by the issuer.

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The fastest way to pay off credit card debt is by transferring a balance to a 0% APR credit card. These are the best balance transfer cards on the market.

Best Credit Cards For Cell Phone Insurance, Best Credit Cards For Good Credit, Best Sallie Mae Credit Cards, Other

Sallie Mae Accelerate Review

Sallie Mae Accelerate

Rating: 4 Stars

Bottom Line:
Pay Off Student Loan Bonus with Sallie Mae

Apply Now
Card DetailsThe OfferIs it Worth It?
Pros and ConsWhy 4 Stars?Fees
Benefits

Card Details

Regular APR:14.74 – 24.74 (Variable)
Intro APR (Purchases):0% for 12 months
Intro APR (Balance transfers):None
Rewards Rate:1.25% cash back on every purchase, every day, with no limit
Earn a 25% bonus on any cash back rewards used to pay down your student loans
Credit Needed:(670 – 850) Good/Excellent
Annual Fee:None
Card Brand:Mastercard

*See online credit card application for details on the terms and conditions.

Offer Highlights

  • Click APPLY NOW to apply online
  • The only cash back credit card that gives you a bonus when you use your rewards to pay down a student loan
  • 1.25% cash back: earn on every purchase, every day, with no limit
  • 25% More cash back. Earn a 25% bonus on any cash back rewards used to pay down your student loans.
  • Instant rewards. Unlock additional rewards with responsible financial behavior
  • Become a Sallie Mae Accelerate cardholder and you?ll have the chance to win $10,000 to help pay down your student loans. We?re choosing one winner every month for 12 months?for a total giveaway of $120,000
  • $0 annual fee
  • 0% Introductory APR for purchases for 12 months

Is Sallie Mae Accelerate worth it?

Sallie Mae Accelerate is a solid card for people paying down student loans. The card offers 1.25% unlimited cash back on all purchases and that rewards rate goes up to 1.56% cash back when you use Sallie Mae Accelerate to pay off your student loans.

It?s rare to see a giveaway as part of a credit card offer. In this case there is an opportunity to win $10,000 to help pay down your student loans. People who have Sallie Mae Accelerate or Sallie Mae Ignite are eligible and receive more entries, up to ten per day, by swiping their card.

The card offers secondary Cell Phone Protection through Mastercard, and the $600 benefit amount applies to each claim and is subject to a $50 co-pay per claim. You get up to $1000 in total benefit per year. This benefit is typically reserved for Mastercard World cards only.

The card also has no annual fee and as mentioned offers unlimited 1.25% cash back as a base rate, so it?s not a bad card. Other cards like Citi Double Cash offer 1% cash back on all purchases and an additional 1% cash back for making on-time payments, bringing total cash back to 2%, but if you?ve been denied for other cards, it?s in no way definite but you might have an easier time getting approved for Sallie Mae Accelerate, because it?s designed for people with student loans, so it may forgive some credit blemishes or a missed payment.

Pros

  • 1.25% cash back: earn on every purchase, every day, with no limit
  • Earn a 25% bonus on any cash back rewards used to pay down your student loans
  • No annual fee
  • 0% Introductory APR for purchases for 12 months

Cons

  • Foreign transaction fee

Why 4 Stars?

Regular APR


4 Stars

Intro APR


4 Stars

Fees


4 Stars

Perks


5 Stars

Overall


4 Stars

Fees

Foreign Transaction Fee3%
Balance Transfer FeeEither $5 or 3% of the amount of each transfer, whichever is greater
Cash Advance FeeEither $10 or 5% of the amount of each cash advance, whichever is greater
Penalty APRNone

Benefits

$0 Fraud Liability
Cell Phone Protection
Get Started with Sallie Mae Accelerate

Editorial Note: This content is not provided by the issuer. Any opinion, analyses, reviews, or recommendations expressed on this page are those of the author?s alone, and may not have been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by the issuer.

Credit Cards Research:

Best Credit Cards for 2021
These are the best credit cards for 2021.

Best Credit Cards for Excellent Credit
If you have excellent credit, check out these cards. These are the best cards for excellent credit with travel rewards and cash bonuses.

Best Credit Cards to Pay off Debt
The fastest way to pay off credit card debt is by transferring a balance to a 0% APR credit card. These are the best balance transfer cards on the market.

Best Cash Back Credit Cards, Best Credit Cards For Cell Phone Insurance, Best Credit Cards For Good Credit, Best Sallie Mae Credit Cards

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