The FutureCard is a rewards debit card that offers members as much as 6% cash back on their "green" purchases to encourage consumers to save money while reducing their carbon footprint.
What is the FutureCard Visa?
The FutureCard Visa is a no-interest and no-fee debit card that prioritizes sustainable purchasing by rewarding qualifying consumers who use their cards to spend money with green companies and services.
Like other Visa cards, the FutureCard Visa works anywhere major credit and debit cards are accepted, and it earns you cash back with every purchase.
FutureCard is not a credit card, however, and it does not impact your credit score. FutureCards are linked to your existing bank account and work like your regular debit card for purchases.
Currently, there are no physical FutureCards available, so the card must be linked to your digital wallet. As part of FutureCards' sustainability commitment, physical cards will be optional if they become available.
How does the FutureCard Visa work?
According to the Future website, members earn 1% cash back on all purchases and 6% on purchases from the company's official FuturePartners, including Just Salad, For Days, and more.
These FuturePartners — which FutureCard calls "game-changers in simplifying climate-smart living" — offer "even more savings" for cardholders to decarbonize their lives more efficiently.
Cardholders also get 5% cash back on more than 50,000 FutureGreen businesses, including public transportation options, like trains, buses, and subways, as well as secondhand clothing purchases, plant-based foods, EV charging, and bike shop purchases and repairs.
The FutureCard is designed to be accessible to everyone, regardless of their credit score or income, and it does not require a credit check.
FutureCard also works in sync with FutureScore, which helps consumers understand their contribution to climate change. FutureScore offers the most accurate carbon footprint information available based on purchases, and it highlights personalized choices for a more climate-smart lifestyle.
Why use the FutureCard?
Future aims to "democratize climate-smart living" by rewarding responsible shopping habits. The Visa partnership is aimed at supporting consumers' efforts to make sustainable behavior changes. Visa has also increased its sustainability commitments in recent years.
According to Future, an estimated 66% of carbon pollution is linked to purchasing decisions about things like how we live, eat, and move, which was the motivation behind the card.
Future's website says it only accepts a product or service with "significantly lower carbon emissions than the most common alternative" to its FutureGreen brands list.
Future CEO and co-founder Jean-Louis Warnholz said in a press release in 2021 that the company was humbled after hearing from a number of families and individuals across the nation interested in the card, "who are making choices that are smart for the planet and smart for their wallet."
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