Max Cash Preferred (Elan)
No annual fee · 1% on everything else · 3.0% foreign transaction fee
Earn rates · how we got this
| Category | Rate | Cap |
|---|---|---|
| Category of your choice (you pick) | 5% | on the first $2,000/quarter |
| Everything else | 1% | uncapped |
Non-cash perks
- 5% on TWO chosen categories, $2,000 combined spend per quarter (we model your top one)
- Plus unlimited 2% on one chosen everyday category (gas, grocery or restaurants)
- Grocery/gas at wholesale clubs, discount stores and supercenters earn 1%
- Issued by Elan for hundreds of local banks and credit unions — your bank's branding, same card
Does the fee earn out? · how we got this
No annual fee, so every point earned is pure upside. The question is only whether its rates beat the other cards already in your wallet — which depends on your spending, not the card.
Check the current offer on the issuer's site → Where a card link will appear once available — no link on this page pays us today.
Who this card is not for
Every point below is a term the issuer prints, read off this card's own row in our database — not an opinion about the card. One thing on this card rules out a kind of spender:
- Anyone who spends abroad. Every purchase in a foreign currency carries a 3.0% foreign transaction fee. On a card earning 1.0¢ per dollar at the base rate, that fee costs more than the rewards on the same purchase.
Compared head-to-head
- Max Cash Preferred (Elan) vs Blue Cash Everyday Card from American Express — which earns more?
- Max Cash Preferred (Elan) vs Capital One Quicksilver — which earns more?
- Max Cash Preferred (Elan) vs Capital One Savor — which earns more?
- Max Cash Preferred (Elan) vs Chase Ink Business Cash — which earns more?
- Max Cash Preferred (Elan) vs Chase Freedom Flex — which earns more?
- Max Cash Preferred (Elan) vs Chase Freedom Unlimited — which earns more?
- Max Cash Preferred (Elan) vs Citi Double Cash® Card — which earns more?
- Max Cash Preferred (Elan) vs Discover it Cash Back — which earns more?
More from Elan Financial Services
Which card should this spending actually be on? The demo re-scores a year of realistic spending against every card in a wallet — free, no signup. See it on sample data →
Verified 2026-09-01 against issuer terms · sources: www.elanfinancialservices.com. Spot an error? Tell us.