Short answer: No free card leads everywhere. On free plans and our standard traveller profile, Pelikan × ether.fi Core (Pelikan's own card) keeps the most when you spend in euros, $37.24 a month, and MEXC Card Standard leads in the UK at $33.86. Our US and UAE rankings allow paid plans; their top no-fee plans are Lava ($59.75, US) and Ethena Pay ($53.78, UAE, in beta).
This guide ranks free plans alone, after FX and other costs, for the euro area and the UK, where we ran free-only scenarios. For the US and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) it adds the standard cards.json ranking, clearly labelled.
The standard traveller spends $1,500 a month at home, takes four trips a year at $800 in local currencies and six flights at $450: about $1,992 a month. Amounts are US dollars kept per month, cash only, from the cards.json build of 25 October 2026.
How free is "free"?
A card with no plan fee can still cost money:
- FX on purchases in a currency the card does not settle free. Unless a card was measured, we use its fee or 1%, whichever is higher, plus a 0.3% network rate.
- Spending fees, such as MEXC's 1% on every purchase since 1 October 2026.
- Token costs, when a better tier needs a locked or staked token. We cost locked tokens at 15% a year.
Our ranking subtracts all three, plus any one-off card fee spread over the first year.
Which free card keeps the most where you live?
Free plans only, run for Germany (euro area) and the UK; availability differs by country. "Light" is a smaller euro-area spender: $800 a month at home, two trips at $600, two flights at $300 (about $950 a month).
| Card | Free plan | Euro area | UK | Euro area, light |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pelikan × ether.fi | Core | $37.24 (#1) | $30.65 (#2) | $25.52 (#1) |
| MEXC Card | Standard | $33.86 (#2) | $33.86 (#1) | $16.15 (#3) |
| ether.fi Cash | Core | $30.49 (#3) | $23.90 (#3) | $24.02 (#2) |
| Lava Card | Cashback | $19.92 (#4) | $19.92 (#4) | $9.50 (#4) |
| Bleap | Standard | $16.45 (#5) | not ranked | $8.20 (#5) |
| Infini | Pro | $13.94 (#6) | $13.94 (#5) | $6.65 (#7) |
| COCA Card | Starter | $10.20 (#7) | −$20.85 (#9) | $7.70 (#6) |
| Revolut | Standard | −$0.76 (#9) | −$0.76 (#7) | −$0.29 (#9) |
The euro-area run ranks 17 free plans and the UK run 15; in each, 9 keep less than zero.
The UK order differs because ether.fi-based cards settle euros and dollars at 0% FX, but not pounds. For a UK resident their FX cost rises from $4.80 to $35.85 a month, and MEXC moves to first.
In cash terms, Pelikan × ether.fi Core is ether.fi Cash Core plus an extra 3% from Pelikan on flights booked with Pelikan: that is the $6.75 gap. Book flights elsewhere and both keep $30.49 in the euro area, behind MEXC (our arithmetic). Pelikan runs Cashbackpacker; its card is ranked by the same formula as every other card.
What about the US and the UAE?
We did not run free-only scenarios here. This cards.json standard ranking allows paid plans and picks the plan that pays most for each card; a no-fee pick shows what that free plan keeps.
| # | US (13 ranked) | UAE (16 ranked) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tria Max (Metal), $250/yr: $93.60 | Tria Max (Metal), $250/yr: $60.83 |
| 2 | Lava Cashback, no fee: $59.75 | Ethena Pay Standard, no fee: $53.78 |
| 3 | ether.fi Cash Core, no fee: $54.95 | MEXC Standard, no fee: $33.86 |
| 4 | Jupiter Standard, no fee: $36.37 | ether.fi Cash Core, no fee: $23.90 |
| 5 | Infini Pro, no fee: $36.37 | Lava Cashback, no fee: $19.92 |
Lava gives US users its higher 3% rate, against 1% in the other markets here. ether.fi Cash settles dollars at 0%, so US residents pay FX only on trips. Ethena Pay is listed as beta. Pelikan × ether.fi and Revolut are not ranked in either market; MEXC is not ranked in the US.
ether.fi Cash Core is the only card in the top four in all four markets; its card page shows its rank by country.
Is a paid plan worth it?
With fees allowed, the engine picks Luxe ($199 a year) over Core only for euro spending: Pelikan × ether.fi keeps $45.78 instead of $37.24, and ether.fi Cash $39.03 instead of $30.49. That is $8.54 a month more (our arithmetic); the gap shrinks as spending falls. The UK, US and UAE rankings still pick Core. The difference: Core pays 3% on only about the first $800 a month of euro spending, but on the first $2,000 of other spending.
Tria Card is first in all four markets with fees allowed but has no free plan; its cheapest, Lite, costs $20 a year. See our full travel cashback ranking.
Which free card should you carry?
- Euros, flights booked with Pelikan: Pelikan × ether.fi Core, $37.24. It is our own card.
- Euros, flights booked elsewhere: MEXC Standard ($33.86), ahead of both ether.fi-based Core plans ($30.49).
- UK resident: MEXC Standard, but its 1% spending fee grows with spending and cashback stops at 100 USDT a month.
- US resident: Lava ($59.75) or ether.fi Cash Core ($54.95); only Tria's paid Max plan keeps more.
- UAE resident: Ethena Pay Standard if you accept a beta product; otherwise MEXC Standard.
- You want no FX: Lava, 0% FX, listed in 232 countries; outside the US it keeps $19.92.
Mind the reward currency: ether.fi-based cards pay ETHFI, a volatile token; MEXC pays USDT, Lava bitcoin. Travelling most months? See the frequent-traveller ranking.
To run your own numbers, open the calculator, check your country and set Plans to include to Free only.
FAQ
What is the best free cashback card for travel? It depends on where you live. On free plans and our standard profile, Pelikan × ether.fi Core (Pelikan's own card) keeps the most when you spend in euros ($37.24 a month) and MEXC Card Standard in the UK ($33.86), as of 25 October 2026. In the US and UAE rankings, which allow paid plans, the top no-fee plans are Lava ($59.75, US) and Ethena Pay Standard ($53.78, UAE).
Is a free travel card worse than a paid one? Not always. A paid plan wins only when its extra cashback beats the fee. At $1,992 a month, Luxe beats Core by $8.54 a month for euro spending; the UK, US and UAE rankings still pick Core.
Do free cashback cards charge foreign transaction fees? Many do. On a currency they do not settle free, the engine costs ether.fi Cash Core at about 1.8% and MEXC at 1.3% plus its 1% spending fee. Lava charges no FX.
Is Revolut's free plan good for travel cashback? Revolut Standard earns no cashback in our data. On our standard profile it keeps −$0.76 a month in the euro area and the UK, all of it FX cost, and it is not ranked in the US or the UAE.
Rankings use one formula for every card, including ours; no card can pay for a place. Cashbackpacker is run by Pelikan, which also offers the Pelikan × ether.fi card. General information, not financial advice. Crypto cards are not bank deposits; rewards, fees and availability change.
