M1 Finance Launches Rewards Credit Card – Up To 10% Cash Back

M1 Finance launched the “Owners Rewards” credit card that they teased a while back. If you have stock ownership in one of the featured companies, you can earn up to 10% cash back on purchases.

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So far, M1 Finance has been a modern broker with a sleek mobile app that allows you to invest, borrow at a low rate, and earn interest on savings with their checking account product. I wrote a comprehensive review of the platform here. They’ve recently expanded their financial suite to include early direct deposit and, as users expected, a credit card. This fits with M1’s mission of providing an all-in-one financial toolset to improve your financial well-being. The new credit card product is called the Owners Rewards Credit Card.

Basically, if you have any ownership in the stocks of the companies featured, you can earn up to 10% cash back from purchases. The cash back range is between 1.5% and 10%, and varies by company.

Here’s a quote from M1 themselves:

The Owner’s Rewards Card by M1 is the first ever credit card where M1 Plus clients can earn up to 10% cash back when they shop at select companies whose stock they own. Some of the best-known companies in the world are eligible, including Amazon, Netflix, Starbucks, Spotify, Nike, Target, AMC, Tesla, Delta, and DoorDash. Additionally, card holders receive 1.5% cash back on all other purchases.

M1 Finance

Here’s the new video:

To be clear, I don’t suggest stock picking, and I don’t pick stocks myself. As an ardent index investor, this credit card initially didn’t really appeal to me. However, if the cash back on one of these brands is indeed worth it (i.e. you buy from them often), you only need to invest $1 in that company to get that cash back ability. So you could create a sub-pie of stock picks to get that ownership, set it at 1% of the portfolio, and go wild, probably resulting in fractional shares for all the stocks inside it, depending on the total account value. Moreover, the sheer number of companies available is high enough to where you’d be pretty well diversified holding all of them.

For example, let’s say the total value of my taxable brokerage account is $1,000. I can create a sub-pie and set it at a 1% allocation. So that pie gets $10 allocated to it. If there are 10 stock picks inside it, that $10 gets spread across those 10 stocks with $1 going to each one. Probably not a bad idea. If it’s a company or companies that I purchase from often or in sizable transactions, the cash back may outweigh any potential losses from holding the individual stock.

On the other end of the spectrum, if the account value is $1,000,000, you’d have $10,000 total going to those picks for $1,000 each. At that point, unless you have high conviction in those picks, it may not be worth it just to get some cash back on them. Again, it will come down to how much one is spending with these brands. There are some pretty good cash back deals for some of them.

There are three tiers of cash back. The lists below are subject to change. Here are the 10% cash back companies at the time of writing:

Here are the 5% cash back companies:

Here are the 2.5% cash back companies:

Some of these are automatic subscriptions that you can start getting cash back on, such as AT&T, Verizon, HBO, Netflix, etc.

Others may be where you eat or shop for groceries regularly, such as KFC, Costco, Walmart, Whole Foods, etc.

Others may be for occasional entertainment, shopping, or travel, such as AMC, Southwest, jetBlue, Starbucks, Wayfair, Zappos, etc.

I could see myself getting a lot of use out of some of these.

Aside from all that, 1.5% cash back on all other purchases may be good too if that beats your current cards, but remember you’d need M1 Plus ($125/year) to avoid the $95 annual card fee. M1 Plus is an annual subscription that renews at $125.00 per year.

Your cash back can be withdrawn for you to spend as cash or it can simply be reinvested in your portfolio in your taxable brokerage account automatically to continue growing your wealth. This is one of the few unique credit cards I’ve seen that allows you to invest cash back directly in the stock market, sort of growing your portfolio invisibly behind the scenes. This one conveniently and seamlessly integrates with your other M1 accounts all under one roof.

M1 has indicated they’ll be adding brands to the lists above. Here’s that list.

Here’s a pie for M1 for all those stocks.

The card itself is a sleek metal card. You can also use tap-to-pay, Apple Pay, and Google Pay for a contactless shopping experience.

There’s no need to worry about security. You can manage and freeze your card easily straight from your M1 account. Plus, with Visa Signature® benefits you get access to things like Visa® Zero Liability, lost/stolen card reporting, Visa Signature Luxury Hotel Collection, Visa Signature Concierge, and more.

M1 is also currently running a sweepstakes selecting random transactions to reimburse for credit card users, meaning your next $500 grocery bill could be paid for. This promotion expires December 31, 2021.

The Owner’s Rewards Credit Card by M1 is Powered by Deserve and issued by Celtic Bank, a Utah-Chartered Industrial Bank, Member FDIC. Review card disclosures for more details. 1.5% – 10% credit card cash back rewards earned on eligible purchases subject to a maximum of $200 cash back per calendar month.

Must own securities in a qualified M1 investment account as explained in M1’s Owner’s Rewards Terms & Conditions to be eligible for 2.5%, 5%, & 10% categories. Trust and custodial accounts are not eligible investment accounts. The terms and companies listed are subject to change. Securities shown should not be considered trade recommendations. You should assess your own investment risks prior to purchasing any securities shown. 

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Disclaimer:  While I love diving into investing-related data and playing around with backtests, I am in no way a certified expert. I have no formal financial education. I am not a financial advisor, portfolio manager, or accountant. This is not financial advice, investing advice, or tax advice. The information on this website is for informational and recreational purposes only. Investment products discussed (ETFs, mutual funds, etc.) are for illustrative purposes only. It is not a recommendation to buy, sell, or otherwise transact in any of the products mentioned. Do your own due diligence. Past performance does not guarantee future returns. Read my lengthier disclaimer here.