Yearly cost at three spending levels
| Monthly spend | Coinbase Card | ether.fi Cash |
|---|---|---|
| $500 | ≤ $0 Crypto rewards | ≤ +$162 Core |
| $2,000 | ≤ $0 Crypto rewards | ≤ +$648 Core |
| $5,000 | ≤ $0 Crypto rewards | ≤ +$540 Core |
Net value per year: cashback minus conversion, FX, ATM and fixed fees. US dollars, 20% foreign spending, one $200 ATM withdrawal a month. The card cost calculator runs the same comparison with your own habits.
Where the money goes at $2,000 a month
| Line | Coinbase Card Crypto rewards | ether.fi Cash Core |
|---|---|---|
| Top-up and conversion fees | $0 | Not disclosed |
| Spending fees | $0 | Not disclosed |
| Foreign exchange markup | Not disclosed | -$72 |
| ATM fees | $0 | Not disclosed |
| Annual, monthly and subscription fees | $0 | $0 |
| Cashback | Not disclosed | +$720 |
| Net per year | $0 | +$648 |
Fees
Coinbase Card charges 0% to convert or top up and Not disclosed on spending in a foreign currency. ether.fi Cash charges Not disclosed and 1.5%.
ATM withdrawals: Coinbase Card no card fee; ether.fi Cash not disclosed.
A virtual card costs an undisclosed fee with Coinbase Card and nothing with ether.fi Cash. A physical card costs an undisclosed fee and an undisclosed fee. Neither card has an annual fee on its base tier.
Cashback and rewards
Coinbase Card cashback: Variable, not published. ether.fi Cash cashback: 3% to 4%.
Coinbase Card tiers: Crypto rewards: rate not published.
ether.fi Cash tiers: Core: 3% on the first $2,000 a month; Luxe: 3% on the first $10,000 a month; Pinnacle: 3% on the first $50,000 a month; VIP: 4% on the first $50,000 a month.
Coinbase Card: Rewards are paid in a crypto you choose from a rotating list. Coinbase describes the rate as variable and shows it only in the app.
ether.fi Cash: Membership levels also add category cashback (10% to 30% on AI, streaming and food, capped monthly), travel discounts and account balance protection against smart contract exploits of $10,000 to $500,000, which is not deposit insurance.
Availability and KYC
Coinbase Card is offered in one country, including United States. Available in every US state except Hawaii.
ether.fi Cash is offered in 91 countries, including Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, France, Germany, Indonesia, Italy, Malaysia and Mexico. ether.fi lists these jurisdictions. In the US the card is available in 31 states and Washington D.C. only. Belgium and Ireland are eligible, but physical cards are not delivered there. In some countries (including Argentina, Indonesia, Mexico, Nigeria and the Philippines) the first virtual card costs $10.
Coinbase Card needs full KYC and ether.fi Cash needs full KYC.
The card finder checks both cards against your country, KYC level and must-have features.
Limits, wallets and card types
Coinbase Card does not publish fixed spending or ATM limits.
ether.fi Cash publishes ATM withdrawals of up to $5,000 a day.
Coinbase Card does not list Apple Pay or Google Pay support, and ether.fi Cash works with Apple Pay and Google Pay. Neither card issue a virtual card you can use straight away.
Custody and safety
Coinbase Card scores 75/100. Licensing: issued by a bank or e-money institution regulated in a tier-one jurisdiction. The card is issued through Pathward, N.A.. 2025-05-15: Overseas support staff bribed by criminals copied customer data for under 1% of monthly transacting users. Coinbase said no passwords, private keys or funds were exposed. The user agreement says customer digital assets are held for customers, are not property of Coinbase and are not subject to claims of Coinbase's creditors.
ether.fi Cash scores 60/100. Licensing: we could not confirm a licence for the card issuer on its own website. No incidents or enforcement actions found in the last 36 months. ether.fi describes Cash as a non-custodial account. The ATM fee on Core is not published as a fixed figure.
Full reports: Coinbase Card safety check and ether.fi Cash safety check.
About each card
Coinbase Card is a custodial Visa card from Coinbase. It tops up with USDC.
ether.fi Cash Card is a self-custody Visa card from ether.fi. It tops up with USDC and ETH.
Which card fits you
Coinbase Card fits if
- Most of your spending is in your home currency, where its lower conversion fee counts most.
- You live in United States, the only market it serves.
- You weigh licensing and fund segregation heavily, since it scores higher on our safety check.
ether.fi Cash fits if
- You want to keep crypto in your own wallet until each payment.
- You spend in foreign currencies often, since its FX markup is lower.
- You want a higher cashback ceiling (up to 4%).
Read more: Coinbase Card fees and details · ether.fi Cash fees and details