USAA Preferred Cash Rewards

The Preferred Cash Rewards is a straightforward no-annual-fee card from USAA that pays a flat 1.5% cash back on every purchase. New cardholders can earn a $250 bonus after spending $1,000 in the first 3 months, a low bar that makes the card worth opening on its own. No foreign transaction fee also makes it a practical choice for overseas travel or deployment. The tradeoff is that 1.5% is a modest flat rate, and there are no bonus categories to push your return higher on gas, groceries, or dining. Think of it as a simple catchall card, best paired with a category card if you want to maximize what you earn.