Verdict: You’ll earn rewards points for every purchase you make with the Fifth Third Gold Debit card. That’s the good news. The not-so-good news? You won’t earn quite as many points with each purchase as you would with the industry’s top rewards debit cards. Still, this is a solid card backed by a solid financial institution, and you can redeem rewards points for a wide variety of items. You can even use them to pay down other loans. Its rewards program just isn’t as generous as it could be.
Overview: The Fifth Third Gold Debit card’s rewards program is easy to understand: You won’t have to memorize which spending categories offer which level of rewards this month. But that simplicity is also one of this card’s greatest weaknesses: You’ll have to spend a lot of money to earn big rewards points, and there’s no way to increase the number of rewards points you earn with any purchase.
How This Card Works: You’ll need to open a Fifth Third Bank checking account to use your Fifth Third Gold Debit card. Every time you make a purchase with the card, the money to pay for it will be automatically deducted from your Fifth Third Bank checking account. You’ll have to make sure that your account has enough money in it before making a purchase with this card. If you don’t have enough funds, your transaction will be denied.
Shopping and Travel Benefits: You’ll earn one rewards point for every three dollars that you spend with your Gold Debit card. You can then redeem these points for a wide range of items, everything from gift cards and merchandise to deposits to your savings account. You can also use your points to pay down any other loan, such as a mortgage, that you have with Fifth Third Bank. This card also automatically doubles the warranties offered by manufacturers from which you buy electronics, home appliances and other goods.
Fees: There are no fees with this card. This includes no annual fee; it is free to hold and use this card. However, if you use your Gold Debit card to withdraw money from an ATM not operated by Fifth Third Bank, you will face ATM fees that usually range from $1 to $4.
Pros:
- Easier to use than checks, and more convenient than carrying a lot of cash.
- Earn rewards points for every $3 that you spend.
- No annual fee.
Cons:
- You’ll have to spend a lot to earn a significant number of points.
- ATM fees for ATMs not in the Fifth Third Bank network.
