Neo Financial is one of Canada’s newest financial technology companies, launching a challenge to traditional banking as we know it.
Its flagship credit card, the Neo Credit card, offers cash back rewards on all purchases and has no monthly fees. The company also offers a guaranteed approval secured credit card.
Neo Credit Card Summary
Neo Financial Credit Card
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Cash back offer
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Annual fees
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Eligibility
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Other perks
Overall
Summary
Neo Credit is the Best Cash Back Credit Card in Canada for 2024. It offers cash back rewards on all eligible purchases, and if you want a cash back card that doesn’t charge annual fees and pays easy-to-redeem rewards, Neo Credit is an excellent choice.
This Neo Financial credit card review provides insights into its cash back rewards program, how it compares to alternative cash back cards, and how to get a $25 sign-up bonus.
- Annual fee: $0
- Cash back rewards: Average of 5%+ at thousands of partners
- Purchase APR: 19.99%-29.99%
- Cash Advance APR: 22.99%-31.99%
- Credit score requirement: Variable
- Digital wallets: Apple Pay and Google Pay
- Mobile app: Yes
Pros
- $25 welcome bonus
- no annual fees
- Pays average of 5% cash back
- Offers a prepaid rewards card
- Up to 15% cash back bonus on first-time purchases
Cons
- Insurance coverage requires a subscription
Neo Credit Card Benefits
Neo Credit offers the following benefits:
Cash Back Rewards: Cardholders earn cash back when they make purchases at multiple locations, including convenience stores, online retail stores, gas stations, restaurants, and more.
With the Neo Credit card, you earn an average of 5% unlimited cashback at 12,000+ local and national Neo partner stores. The cash back earned is redeemed automatically, and you can cash out anytime.
This card also offers access to cash back offers of up to 15% on your first-time purchases.
$25 Promotional Bonus: For a limited time, new customers who are approved for the Neo Credit card get a $25 bonus (exclusive limited-time offer).
No Annual Fee: There is no monthly or annual fee for the standard Neo Credit card. You can upgrade for a low $4.99 monthly fee for additional premium perks, including insurance benefits, credit score monitoring, etc.
Mobile App: The Neo Financial app is available on iOS and Android phones and offers access to a versatile dashboard where you can easily manage your finances.
You can pay bills, check cash back offers, use Apple and Google Pay for fast POS transactions, and easily freeze and unfreeze your card if it goes missing.
Access to Savings: Neo clients can open a savings account and earn high interest on their money.
Get the Neo Credit card ($25 bonus).
Downsides of the Neo Credit Card
Depending on the cash back offers available at any point in time, your purchase preferences, and your location, your cash back earnings may fluctuate when you pay using the card.
The interest rate on cash advances can be up to 31.99%.
How To Apply for the Neo Credit Card
To start, visit their website to complete the short application form.
The Neo Credit card is available across Canada, and you can apply if you are the age of the majority in your province and have a government-issued ID.
There are no specific credit score or income requirements to qualify, but you should be able to qualify with a ‘good’ credit score.
Is the Neo Card Safe and Legit?
Neo Financial is backed by ATB Financial, a financial institution in Alberta with assets of over $55.1 billion.
It keeps your savings at Concentra Bank, which is a member of the Canada Deposit Insurance Corporation (CDIC). CDIC membership means your deposits are eligible for deposit insurance up to $100,000.
Neo Mastercard users enjoy standard zero liability protection.
Neo Financial Overview
Neo Financial is a startup fintech founded by two co-founders of Skip The Dishes (Andrew Chau and Jeff Adamson) and Kris Read.
It offers Canadians an innovative cash back credit card (Neo Credit), a spending account (Neo Money) and a high-interest savings account.
Neo Financial has partnerships with Concentra Bank and ATB Financial. In 2022, it raised $185 million in a series C fundraising round, and the company has offices in Calgary and Winnipeg.
Neo Mastercard Alternatives (No Fee Cash Back Credit Cards)
Neo Credit’s average 5% cash-back rate is outstanding, and it ranks as the best cash-back credit card on our list of rankings for 2024. With the free plan, there are no monthly fees to worry about, and you have a long list of retailers to shop at. For purchases at non-partner stores, you earn at least 0.50% cash back up to a monthly limit.
One other credit card you can consider in addition to the Neo Credit card:
Tangerine Money Back Credit Card
This card offers a 2% unlimited cash back on your purchases in up to 3 categories of spending, including gas, groceries, recurring bill payments, restaurants, transportation, and more. It also offers an introductory 10% cash back bonus worth up to $100.
For all other purchases, you earn 0.50%. Learn more in our detailed overview.
Neo has already drastically slashed cash back %, and even advertises on their own website, that the average cash back is now only 2%.
This alone makes the card a fail already, not to mention their atrocious customer service skills.
Don’t let the fact that a desperate retail outlet took them on as their new credit card partner, HBC has no others options, that’s the only reason they’re with Neo.
Perhaps these two outfits will go out of business together.
how are you suppose to apply if you dont have a phone or computer to take a picture what else can I do to apply for a creit card if you could help me that would be great
Neo Financial has a bad customer service. Contacting them via phone is not easy and even email, Neo financial is not responding to call and email. In crisis you cannot rely on them. I am consecutively calling them for 5 days and emailed them, but still no answer. Poor service
Left an email requiring customer service yesterday, no response.
I’ve been on hold 35min 44 sec.
I want to support the HBC, but their financial partnership with Neo is likely to have me cancel their MC.
I was forced to switch since Hudson’s bay discontinued their previous credit card company.
I made a purchase and returned the item. However, my account has a credit balance instead of a ZERO balance. I received a statement saying i need to pay $28. I emailed and asked for clarification and as previously reviewed by someone, 2 weeks to get a response and NOT the appropriate response either. I regret switching. I plan on cancelling this card. Customer service sucks!
I have been trying for weeks to get hold of Neo Financial via phone & sending an email which took them 4 days to reply. I tried adding them to my list of vendors on my online banking, but was told by my bank that when they reached out to Neo to add them to the list of vendors Neo declined to be added to the list. When I did get the email 4 Neo suggests to pay through Telpay. I got hold of my financial institution once again, and they reached out to Neo again they were told from Neo did not want to be payed through Telpay. So here I am wanting to pay my balance off and I get the dam run about. I am very frustrated and angry! Once I find a way to pay off this card I will be cutting it up.
I also have frustrating experience with Neo. Customer support is horrible- phone like constantly busy with a message asking to call back later! Is that how banks suppose to be?! Emails are not answered. I cannot get a refund for two months now even it’s been issued by vendor. As soon as I get Neo balance zeroed I will close that account. I do not recommend Neo banking
I got in early with the HBC replacement card and have been extremely happy with my Neo Financial FREE cash back card. Customer service was fantastic the 4 or 5 times I called them when I first signed up and then received my card. I’m sure the current situation is due to the extreme volumes created by the HBC Capital One conversion.
For all the people complaining about getting a hold of the customer support line, can you tell me which institutions you have been receiving good, timely telephone support from? Certainly not Capital One, based on my experiences. They have been brutal when I had fraudulent use of my card, had to cancel it and then receive a refund on the cancelled card. I, like thousands of others, was affected by the data breach they experienced. They also cut the rewards I was receiving fairly recently and my understanding is they are leaving / cutting back in Canada, which is why HBC switched to Neo. Unfortunately I am tied into Capital One and paying the annual fee as I have not been able use my travel points during Covid. So is Capital One the company you are comparing Neo Financial Customer Support to?
I preciously wrote my review as a review of Neo finance, they responded and tell me i should write it to Neo financial as they are two separate companies.
I received my Neo card as replacement for my Bay card in May of 2021.
I used the card for an $87 purchase at the Bay on May 22. When i get home i see a notice from Neo telling me that i owed them $222. There were charges from dash door and uber. The charges were beginning on May 21.
While my daughter in law and i were looking at these there were two charges, made 7 minutes apart still pending. As we couldn’t contact anyone the charges were accepted.
I pressed the freeze icon and froze my account.
I wrote to Neo as phone contact is often impossible.
Agent Mugenyi called to say he would refer the case to fraud section.
I sliced my card at this time.
Agent Oluwafni called and told me he was freezing the account.
As each notification thereafter appeared i sent the reply to Neo stating i had not attempted a purchase, i added that the card was to remain frozen.
This agent then began telling me that i was using the physical card to attempt these transactions.
He added that the food deliveries were made from my ipad and delivered to my home.
He then told me i was attempting to take the money from an ATM machine. When i mentioned the amounts were not multiples of 20’s he replied that i did it.
I have witnesses who were with me while the last two food orders were pending, nothing was ordered not delivered to me at any time.
My last call with this agent was to tell me that another transaction went through. I said card was frozen, he said i reactivated it.
Since he froze the account i could see …card is temporarily frozen if i pressed my neo app, still showing this after the supposed reactivation.
I wrote to neo complaints and got a note from Mr.James Nauss (June 6) that someone would call me the next day. No one called .
I called the phone line and spoke to Justin in Alberta for about 30 mins. He also stated that his colleagues Helena or Mark would call me, again no contact.
Since I stated to agent Oluwafni that I had difficulty understanding him due to his heavy accent and my hearing deficit he said someone else would call me. No one did.
I am getting no support from Neo, only reminder to pay my bill. I had told all human agents that i would pay the bill i owed but not the fraudulent charges.
I have notified the Bay.
What is Neo doing? No support for me, and a bully of an agent. Stay far from Neo.
UPDATE
Approx 1700 hrs.
I received a call from Adam at Neo and went through the episode again, Within one hour he sent me a message saying that they have decided it was “ friendly fraud” and therefore i am liable.
Please think twice before using this credit card.
In my case, my wallet was stolen, and some purchases were made with the NeoFinacial card. They do not reverse the fraudulent charges, because the card was used with the PIN apparently (no way I could verify); according to them, if the fraudsters had the PIN, I must have given it to them, so I actually authorized the transactions.
With this broad interpretation of liability, they will never reverse fraudulent charges.
The agents were rude, too.
Neo financial has zero customer service, please do not get this credit card. If you lose the card, these guys will never receive phone. When I applied it was told to me that I will get $25 reward, but I did not get it. I have applied but will never use them. Hard to contact in phone and no response in email.
May I know the Address where I can pay my bills. I need to send a check to pay my bill for Hudson Bay thank you
@Luzviminda: Here’s what I found on the Hudson’s Bay site regarding paying your credit card bills:
“Hudson’s Bay will no longer accept in-store payments for the Hudson’s Bay credit card or Hudson’s Bay Mastercard issued by Capital One as of May 3. You can pay your remaining balance through your financial institution under the payee names of Hudson’s Bay Mastercard or Hudson’s Bay Credit Card (for PLCC). Please contact your financial institution for more information or assistance.”
If you want to pay your Neo Financial Card bill, add Neo Financial as a “payee” on your existing financial institution’s app or website.
Like virtually everyone else here, I can attest to the brutal customer service. I applied for a Hudson Bay Neo Mastercard, but was issued a regular card. No problem right? Mistakes happen. So I called and Neo reissued a new card. But then I find out they canceled my existing card without notice, and it will take 20 days for my new card to arrive. After a number of emails – telephone support is a sham for this company, you will not get through – they offer to express post it to me within 3 days…for $29! After more calls and emails they waive the fee. However, the card does not come on the promised day, and they have no way of tracking it. I asked if they used used express post and was told they did. Just got my new card and it was sent via regular mail. So basically the customer service people lie to their customers. Nice. And what credit card company takes up to 20 days to get you a replacement card?! If it wasn’t for the HB points I’d cut it up. After reading about these other problems, I still might. Apparently this is run by the same people who founded Skip the Dishes…honestly everyone, skip Neo and go with a real credit card company.
Neo was started by the people behind Skip the Dishes – so it’s no surprise that they market themselves as “supporting local”, but in fact are taking a cut from small local businesses on transactions that likely would have happened with or without Neo/Skip. The cashback offers you get from Neo come directly out of the small businesses’ pocket every month, and can add up fast. The idea is that Neo is bringing in new customers, but their merchant dashboard is vague enough that you can’t actually find much data on who is coming in, and whether they were really new customers or not. If you take out a regular credit card from a regular bank, (depending on the card) you get points on all of your transactions, and it’s the bank paying for those rewards and cashback – NOT the small business. Neo got loads of funding because they figured out a way to attract millennials with a cute app and easy rewards, but with a model where they aren’t the ones paying for the rewards – the small businesses are. Genius.
TDLR: If you don’t like using Skip the Dishes/Door Dash/Uber Eats because they take a cut from small local restaurants, then don’t use Neo – they are doing the same thing with cash rewards.
Neo Financial is all about money and does not care about any customer. Being a former Bay Cardholder I forgot to update the new card and my first full payment went to the old Bay card and did not realize it until Neo Financial contacted me. I immediately make another payment and the first payment is still under processing as I write this review. Neo financial now charged me an interest of $6.73 I called to have this interest reversed since it was a mistake of not changing the old Bay card. I requested to speak to a supervisor and the customer agent said the supervisor is not around and would give me a call. I waited and no call. I called back 4 days later the second agent said since I made payment to another institution the interest cannot be reversed I asked to speak to the supervisor again the agent refused then I request my card be cancelled that’s when he agreed to bring the supervisor. I asked the agent to cancel the card because I will not deal with any company that does not value its customers. I am afraid The Bay has made a mistake in choosing a company like Neo financial who is all about money. Customer relations goes a long way.
Honestly never had a problem with this credit card. Lots of angry folks on here with some bad experiences. I have not had to call customer service because everything just works.
I’m pretty sure the fees come from the normal standard processing fee of all credit card transactions. The little guy local business sees no difference.
The NeoFinancial card replaced the HB card I had automatically. I thought it would work the same way.
No. The points system is different, and after 3 month the cashback is non-existent. The Bay used to give discounts for HB card users, this is gone.
They will never reverse unauthorized charges. Their philosophy is that the cardholder is responsible to keep the card and the PIN safe; in case of fraud, they will hold you liable.
I recently had my wallet stolen, some fraudulent transaction on credit cards; NeoFinacial was the only ”bank” that did not reverse the charges.
My advice: stay away. there is no reason to use NeoFinacial card, your bank’s card is much safer and more reliable.
I agreed with your comments of the NEO card, that is not recommended which they take away the discount for HB card users, and the late interest charge is not included in the policies for one-time waiver, as I experienced at other credit card companies service had easily and friendly be waived.
I am thinking to close Neo account because they lie about credit limit increase have been 6 month nothing yet!
Stay away NEO Financial card, NOT recommended. Poor service.
I have never had a credit card company asking me for my SIN # and a copy of my driver’s licence. I will be cancelling my card. Who in their right mind would gladly pass on this private information?
@Jeanette: If the credit card company is unable to pull your credit file, they may request your SIN and other ID info required to do so.
I could not be more disappointed with this credit card company. Firstly on the app they tell me I will receive my physical card by Nov 3/21, it is now Dec 4/21 and no physical card. Secondly, nothing but a ‘we received your email’ response to three attempts to email support. Thirdly, I have waited over an hour on hold several times to discuss and I have not spoken to a live person yet. I have frozen my card on my app and have emailed them to ask them to call me to cancel my card. Still waiting.
Can I use my tap option before activating my new card?
I have never ever had a problem emailing or calling this company. No problems paying my card through online banking. Only thing that’s annoying is they call me inccenstally if my payment is ever overdue but that’s my own bad. Customer Service has always been friendly and helpful and I’m pretty satisfied with the card
I’m just here to read the reviews on this credit card before I apply for it. WOW lots of bad reviews.
@Erica: Many of the complaints about this card occurred when it first launched and the company was going through the “newbie” phase. I think some of the concerns/issues have already been addressed.
I applied for Neo Hudson’s Bay Mastercard in the store 2 days ago and found out today my credit score went down 30 points after they checked my credit.
Why? It never happened to me before! Does credit bureau has a problem with Neo?
@Alice: It is normal for you to see a slight drop in your credit score after applying for a new credit card. This is because there is a hard pull on your credit. You should recover the points after some time. See more info below:
https://www.savvynewcanadians.com/hard-vs-soft-credit-check-canada/