Yearly cost at three spending levels
| Monthly spend | Plutus | ether.fi Cash |
|---|---|---|
| $500 | ≤ -$23.02 Starter (€6.99 a month) | ≤ +$180 Core |
| $2,000 | ≤ -$113.02 Starter (€6.99 a month) | ≤ +$720 Core |
| $5,000 | ≤ -$293.02 Starter (€6.99 a month) | ≤ +$720 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 | Plutus Starter (€6.99 a month) | ether.fi Cash Core |
|---|---|---|
| Top-up and conversion fees | $0 | Not disclosed |
| Spending fees | $0 | Not disclosed |
| Foreign exchange markup | -$120 | Not disclosed |
| ATM fees | Not disclosed | Not disclosed |
| Annual, monthly and subscription fees | -$95.60 | $0 |
| Cashback | +$102.58 | +$720 |
| Net per year | -$113.02 | +$720 |
Fees
Plutus charges 0% to convert or top up and 2.5% on spending in a foreign currency. ether.fi Cash charges Not disclosed and Not disclosed.
ATM withdrawals: Plutus 2.5%; ether.fi Cash not disclosed.
A virtual card costs nothing with Plutus and nothing with ether.fi Cash. A physical card costs €9.99 and an undisclosed fee. Neither card has an annual fee on its base tier.
Cashback and rewards
Plutus cashback: 3%. ether.fi Cash cashback: 3% to 4%.
Plutus tiers: Starter (€6.99 a month): 3% on the first €250 a month; Everyday (€9.99 a month): 3% on the first €500 a month; Premium (€19.99 a month): 3% on the first €1,000 a month.
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.
Plutus: Rewards are paid in PLU. Holding more PLU raises the rate from 3% up to 9% and unlocks perks. Plan prices include a promotional discount shown on Plutus's plans page; the fees shown are the same in GBP.
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
Plutus does not publish a country list. Plutus offers EUR and GBP cards and does not publish a country list on its fees page.
ether.fi Cash does not publish a country list. ether.fi does not publish a country list. In Argentina, Angola, Bangladesh, Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Indonesia, Malaysia, Mexico, Nigeria, Peru, the Philippines, South Africa and Thailand the first virtual card costs $10.
Plutus 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
Plutus publishes a daily spending limit of €500,000 and a monthly limit of €1,000,000.
ether.fi Cash publishes ATM withdrawals of up to $5,000 a day.
Plutus does not list Apple Pay or Google Pay support, and ether.fi Cash works with Apple Pay and Google Pay. Plutus issues a virtual card you can use straight away.
Custody and safety
Plutus scores 44/100. 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. Plutus refers to a banking partner for its card but does not name the issuer on its fees and plans pages.
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. Some fees, including the FX margin and the ATM fee on Core, are not published as fixed figures.
Full reports: Plutus safety check and ether.fi Cash safety check.
About each card
Plutus Card is a custodial Visa card from Plutus (Block Code Ltd, UK; Block Code LT UAB, Lithuania). It tops up with EUR and GBP and its balance is held in EUR.
ether.fi Cash Card is a self-custody Visa card from ether.fi. It tops up with USDC and ETH.
Which card fits you
Plutus fits if
- You spend in foreign currencies often, since its FX markup is lower.
- Most of your spending is in your home currency, where its lower conversion fee counts most.
ether.fi Cash fits if
- You want to keep crypto in your own wallet until each payment.
- You want a higher cashback ceiling (up to 4%).
- You weigh licensing and fund segregation heavily, since it scores higher on our safety check.
Read more: Plutus fees and details · ether.fi Cash fees and details