[2025.4 Update] The changes to this card are now officially in effect! Besides needing to open a saving account, to get the maximum 4% cash back you also need to have $100,000 deposited in checking. The requirements are still pretty steep. Let’s break down how to think about this card after the redesign.
US Bank’s Checking $450 bonus is pretty good, so it’s nice to open one while the sign-up bonus is still attractive.
Here are the specific changes:
- Each billing cycle, the first $10,000 in spending can earn extra cash-back rewards (the first 2% can be earned, while the remaining 0.5%-2% is capped at $10,000)
- The 2.5% cash-back tier now requires $10,000 in deposits (it used to be $5,000)
- Additional cash back will exclude Educational/school, gift cards, insurance, taxes, business-to-business transactions, and 3rd party Bilt payments. (In other words, these kinds of larger purchases will be excluded, and MS may also be excluded.)
- Only checking deposits count toward the asset calculation; other investment accounts and saving do not count (this is a killer! checking earns almost no interest, so it’s basically just sitting there)
- Users who applied before April 14 will keep all the original benefits and requirements (not sure how long that will last)
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US Bank Smartly Credit Card Introduction
A powerhouse card!
- Welcome bonus: N/A
- Rewards: 2% cash back on all purchases (up to 4% with qualifying deposits)
- Redemption: Redeem directly for cash back
- Annual fee: $0
- Apply now>>
Benefits Analysis
The biggest feature of this card is that if you hold US Bank saving and checking accounts, you can get up to an extra 2% cash-back boost. The boost is based on the average monthly deposits in your US Bank Checking account (or safe debit account; after looking at it, this account is just a stripped-down version, and it doesn’t even have a sign-up bonus, so I don’t recommend using it). If you have enough money, you can reach the 2% boost, which means 4% cash back on all spending. It really could be the best card for a one-card setup!
- $10,000-$49,999: extra 0.5% cash back, for a total of 2.5% cash back. (The old card started at $5,000)
- $50,000-$99,999: extra 1% cash back, for a total of 3% cash back.
- $100,000 and above: extra 2% cash back, for a total of 4% cash back.
One important thing to note is that additional cash back will exclude Educational/school, gift cards, insurance, taxes, business-to-business transactions, and 3rd party Bilt payments. (In other words, these kinds of large purchases will be excluded, and MS may also be excluded.)
Since the money can only sit in checking, and checking interest is extremely low—almost nonexistent—this card is much less compelling now that savings rates are generally around 3%. Here’s a quick summary of when it makes sense:
- If your card spending is very high—over $150,000 a year—you can keep $100,000 in checking and earn the card rewards. If it’s below that, it’s better to keep the money in saving and earn interest.
- If you happen to open a US Bank checking account for the sign-up bonus, and your card spending is above $60,000, then keeping $10,000 in checking to get the lowest 2.5% cash-back tier can still be a little better than Double Cash.
- In other cases, just keep enjoying the original 2% cash back.
That said, this card is still useful for product conversions. If you have other US Bank cards you don’t use, you can call in and convert them to this one. At minimum you get 2% cash back, so if you don’t have another 2% cash-back card, you can use it for everyday spending.
Asset Allocation (for Existing Users Only)
[Note] If you applied before April 14, 2025, your old card still keeps the original features (checking, saving, and invest all count). So the old allocation strategies below are still valid. If you applied after that, then only checking counts.
Because you need a relatively large deposit to get the full 4% cash back, here are a few allocation options. Eligible accounts are below:
- US Bank Checking account: There is now a $400 sign-up bonus. I recommend opening one while you’re at it; the bonus alone is worth about as much as the interest on $100,000 for a year. If you plan to use this checking account as your main one, you can keep some money in it and pair it with Saving, which is pretty good.
- [Required] US Bank Saving: This Saving account is required for the card, and it earns a 3.5% APY. If you don’t want to overcomplicate things, it’s fine to keep most of the $100,000 here (you can also just keep $25 in it to satisfy the requirement and put the rest in investments). Also, this Saving account originally has a $5 monthly fee, but it can be waived if you have a Checking account or the US Bank Smartly Card.
- Brokerage Account: If you’re not satisfied with the 3.5% APY and like trading stocks or other financial products, you can park the money in their Brokerage Account. It comes with 100 free trades per year (this requires checking support, so it’s worth opening one; trades after that cost $4.95 each). If you want lower risk, buy some Treasury-related products; that should work out a bit better than pure Saving interest. Note that the investment account has a $50 annual fee, but if the assets in the investment account are above $100,000, that fee can be waived (some online sources say the combined balance across multiple accounts needs to be above $250,000, but in practice a single investment account above $100,000 is enough). Since you need to keep $100,000 there at all times and future trades cost money, this account is not ideal as your main brokerage account; it’s better for long-term, low-risk holdings. You can also transfer assets into this investment account directly, and customer service will help you do it online.
In summary, there are several ways to get 4% cash back (none of them require extra fees):
US Bank
- Saving is required. If you don’t want the hassle, just open a Saving account and keep $100,000 in it.
- If you want simplicity and don’t want to deal with investing, go with Checking + Saving, and make the total balance $100,000. Then you don’t need to worry about it anymore. Having a checking account is handy if you need to use money from saving, transfer it out to pay bills, or write checks.
- If you want to invest for the long term, choose Brokerage Account + Saving + Checking (to get the 100 free trades), and try to keep a little more than $100,000 so you don’t fall below $100,000 after any losses.
Of course, if you don’t plan to put in that much money, reaching the $50,000 tier for 3% cash back already beats most credit cards on the market. If not, even the $5,000 tier for 2.5% cash back on all purchases is currently the high-cash-back card with the lowest threshold.
Note
Some users of this card have received warning notices from US Bank telling them not to put business spending on this card. It’s clear that US Bank does not like its personal card’s 4% being abused. After all, with card processing fees, US Bank only earns about 1%–2%, so the more you spend, the more the bank loses. Keep in mind that if the bank thinks your spending behavior does not comply with its terms, it may close your card or even blacklist you and put you in a do-not-approve bucket! For personal spending, that’s usually less of an issue because the amounts aren’t that large, and there are always some people who carry balances and pay fees. But business spending can be huge, and if the business is run well, those balances may get paid in full, which means the bank takes a real loss. Card terms usually state that purchases must be for personal or household use, not business use. US Bank also hints that if the card is used for business purposes, consumer protections under federal and state law may not apply, which could result in your card being closed or even your being locked out from applying for US Bank cards for a period of time. So if you plan to use it for business, it’s best not to make it too obvious, or to start with small amounts and gradually increase them while mixing in some personal spending.
How to Apply
- US Bank application status check link. Or call: 800-947-1444
- When you apply, US Bank may check the two smaller credit bureaus SageStream & ARS credit reports, so you may consider freezing them before applying
- You can only earn the welcome bonus on the same US Bank credit card once
- You can call the reconsideration line (800-947-1444) to speed up the credit card approval process or to have a denied application reviewed again.
- US Bank is relatively sensitive to HPs and new accounts. Having a US Bank Checking account can help with getting approved for a credit card
- More about applying for US Bank credit cards
