Yearly cost at three spending levels
| Monthly spend | ether.fi Cash | Tangem Pay |
|---|---|---|
| $500 | ≤ +$162 Core | -$54 Basic (free) |
| $2,000 | ≤ +$648 Core | +$72 Basic (free) |
| $5,000 | ≤ +$540 Core | +$324 Basic (free) |
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 | ether.fi Cash Core | Tangem Pay Basic (free) |
|---|---|---|
| Top-up and conversion fees | Not disclosed | $0 |
| Spending fees | Not disclosed | $0 |
| Foreign exchange markup | -$72 | -$72 |
| ATM fees | Not disclosed | -$96 |
| Annual, monthly and subscription fees | $0 | $0 |
| Cashback | +$720 | +$240 |
| Net per year | +$648 | +$72 |
Fees
ether.fi Cash charges Not disclosed to convert or top up and 1.5% on spending in a foreign currency. Tangem Pay charges 0% and 1.5%.
ATM withdrawals: ether.fi Cash not disclosed; Tangem Pay 4%.
A virtual card costs nothing with ether.fi Cash and nothing with Tangem Pay. A physical card costs an undisclosed fee and an undisclosed fee. Neither card has an annual fee on its base tier.
Cashback and rewards
ether.fi Cash cashback: 3% to 4%. Tangem Pay cashback: 1% to 2%.
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.
Tangem Pay tiers: Basic (free): 1% on the first $10,000 a month, capped at $100 a month; Plus ($29.99 a month): 2% on the first $15,000 a month, capped at $300 a month.
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.
Tangem Pay: Paid in USDC at the end of each billing cycle. Only purchases of $30 or more earn cashback, and in-store purchases at EU and UK merchants are excluded. The Plus plan fee is waived with $4,500 of monthly spending. A $999-a-year Prestige plan with 4% cashback is listed as coming soon.
Availability and KYC
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.
Tangem Pay does not publish a country list. Tangem says the card is available in the US (not every state) and in select countries across Latin America, Asia-Pacific, the Middle East and Africa. It does not publish a country list; eligibility is checked in the app during onboarding.
ether.fi Cash needs full KYC and Tangem Pay needs full KYC.
The card finder checks both cards against your country, KYC level and must-have features.
Limits, wallets and card types
ether.fi Cash publishes ATM withdrawals of up to $5,000 a day.
Tangem Pay publishes a daily spending limit of $10,000 and ATM withdrawals of up to $750 a day.
ether.fi Cash works with Apple Pay and Google Pay, and Tangem Pay works with Apple Pay and Google Pay. Tangem Pay issues a virtual card you can use straight away.
Custody and safety
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.
Tangem Pay scores 80/100. Licensing: holds a licence or registration outside the tier-one list (Card issued by Nimbus LLC dba Third National, licensed as a Money Transmitter by the Commissioner of Financial Institutions of Puerto Rico (licence TM-0207, NMLS 2612780). Tangem's own pages name Rain, a Visa Principal Member, as the issuer; Third National's site runs on Rain's legal pages.). The card is issued through Nimbus LLC dba Third National. No incidents or enforcement actions found in the last 36 months. Tangem Pay is run by Paera LLC, not Tangem AG. The card is legally a collateralised charge card. Your USDC or USDT sits in a smart contract you control, but Paera can liquidate it if a balance goes unpaid. The terms list a late fee of up to $40 and a liquidation penalty of up to $35. They also ask for 3 business days' notice before you withdraw collateral, while the app FAQ says you can withdraw at any time. The account is tied to a single Tangem Wallet, and losing that wallet means losing access to the card balance.
Full reports: ether.fi Cash safety check and Tangem Pay safety check.
About each card
ether.fi Cash Card is a self-custody Visa card from ether.fi. It tops up with USDC and ETH.
Tangem Pay is a self-custody Visa card from Paera LLC (Tangem Pay program). It tops up with USDC and USDT.
Which card fits you
ether.fi Cash fits if
- You want a higher cashback ceiling (up to 4%).
Tangem Pay fits if
- Most of your spending is in your home currency, where its lower conversion fee counts most.
- You weigh licensing and fund segregation heavily, since it scores higher on our safety check.
Read more: ether.fi Cash fees and details · Tangem Pay fees and details