Review: Huntington Voice – Adamantine Finance

The Huntington Voice Mastercard is an uncommon credit card which lets people choose a category for earning 3% cash back. This can be changed each quarter, and if you don’t change the category, then it remains the same until you decide to change it. The Voice card is similar to the more popular Bank of America Customized Cash Back Rewards. It does have some key differences, which we’ll explore in this review. The versatility of choosing one’s own category can be extremely useful. Especially with almost a dozen options at hand.

FEATURES AT A GLANCE

No annual fee
No foreign transaction fees
3x points on a chosen category ($2,000 quarterly spending limit)
1x points on everything else

3% eligible categories:

Gas
Travel and Entertainment
Restaurants
Discount and Warehouse Stores
Grocery
Utilities and Office Supply Stores
Electronics, Computer, and Camera Stores
Department Apparel, and Sporting Goods
Auto Part and Service Stores
Home Improvement Stores

SIGN UP BONUS

This card doesn’t currently offer a sign-up bonus. A couple of years ago, it did ($100-150) but there isn’t any guarantee those bonuses will return. At the moment, the Voice’s only welcome bonus is 0% APR on balance transfers for 12 months (fees apply, either $10 or 3%, whichever is greater).

Huntington Bank does, however, issue sign-up bonuses for checking accounts. As of September 2021, there’s a public offer of $150 or $200 for basic checking (expires 2/7/22). Sometimes there are higher bonuses for their higher-tier Huntington 25 Checking account, up to $500. Savings and business accounts can have bonuses too.

It varies, so keep an eye out.

OTHER BENEFITS OF THE VOICE CARD

Mastercard World benefits
“Points will round up to the next dollar if the purchase is equal to an amount that ends in $0.50 or greater.“

RESTRICTIONS AND CREDIT SCORE

Recommended credit score: 670+ (one report says 640+ minimum)

You can spend a maximum of $2,000 per quarter in your chosen category to earn 3% cash back (6,000 points earned), after which you earn 1% cash back until the next quarter. An $8,000 annual limit isn’t that appealing, but the pros can potentially outweigh the cons.

Huntington Bank is based in Columbus, Ohio, and their banking services may have regional restrictions (YMMV). Recent data points say eligibility is limited to residents of Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, West Virginia. Residents of Colorado, Minnesota, South Dakota, and Wisconsin could also be eligible (Huntington Bank and TCF merged, so their footprint should be combined).

MAXIMIZING REWARDS WITH THE VOICE CARD

Points can be redeemed at $0.01 each (1 cpp). There are different ways to redeem points, but they all seem to give the same value. This card is basically a 3% cash back card. Maybe marginally more, since Huntington rounds up points to the next dollar “if the purchase is equal to an amount that ends in $0.50 or greater.“

Huntington gives bonus points if you have an account, depending on the type of account(s).

25% bonus points while your Voice card is linked to an open Huntington 25 Checking Account, Personal Management Account (PMA), or Private Client Account (PCA)
- The ‘25’ checking account has a $25 monthly fee, waived if your total relationship balance is at least $25,000
OR 5% bonus points while your Voice card is linked to an open Huntington 5 Checking Account
- The ‘5’ checking account has a $5 monthly fee, waived if your total relationship balance is at least $5,000

“Total relationship balance” includes checking, savings, certificate of deposit (CD), and individual retirement (IRA) accounts. The $5,000 balance shouldn’t be too difficult with an emergency fund and/or IRA account. A $25,000 balance is a harder sell, especially for younger people.

In addition to that, Huntington’s wording on earn-rate calculations for bonus is confusing. Voice seems to earn 3% cash back by earning 1x ‘base’ points + 2x ‘bonus’ points, and the relationship 5-25% points may apply to base points only. It’s hard to tell from their disclosures. If true, the 5% bonus gets you 3.05% cash back, and the 25% bonus gets you 3.25% cash back total. If we spend the quarterly maximum of $2,000, it’d be 2000 base pts + 4000 bonus points + 5-25% bonus on the 2k pts (100-500 points) = $61 or $65 cash back value per quarter, instead of $60.

If the relationship bonus instead applies to the full amount, then 3x points becomes 3.15% or 3.75% cash back. In that case, you’d earn $63 or $75 cash back per quarter, if maxing out the $2,000 limit. It’s a fairly negligible difference either way, compared to the non-relationship maximum of $60 in quarterly cash back.

Overall, the checking account bonus points aren’t worth considering. If you like having your money with Huntington Bank and can easily meet the requirements, it’s just a nice bonus. Not worth moving your finances around for a few extra dollars per year. Over time it could add up, it’s just not enough to move the needle for most people. It could be a waste of time to calculate.

ALTERNATIVES TO THE HUNTINGTON VOICE

The closest alternative is the Bank of America Customized Cash Back Rewards. Then, for people who like variable categories but don’t want to manually enroll, there’s the Venmo Visa or Citi Custom Cash Card.

Or, if you don’t mind losing 0.5% cash back, pick up the Alliant Cashback Visa Signature instead of dealing with categories. It earns 2.5% cash back on all purchases without category restrictions. For 2% cash back instead, see any of the best everyday cards. With a general-use 2% card, it’s easy to double your cash back compared to the Huntington Voice’s low 1x earn rate. It’s less than 3% cash back, but some people favor simplicity.

For the 10 categories earning 3x points, the Voice’s usefulness depends on what you need.

This card is useless for gas purchases, groceries, and restaurants/dining expenses. Competing credit cards offer more cash back or increased utility (via multiple earn categories). Most have unlimited cash back too, instead of quarterly limits.

Voice’s “Travel and Entertainment” category is broad enough that the card could be useful here. A separate card for travel is likely better, but it depends on your spending habits and preferences. It also depends on what counts towards Voice’s category.

For the remaining 6 categories, the Voice is one of the best credit cards for earning cash back year-round without any fees:

Discount and Warehouse Stores
Utilities and Office Supply Stores
Electronics, Computer, and Camera Stores
Department Apparel, and Sporting Goods
Auto Part and Service Stores
Home Improvement Stores

These categories are less common and few banks offer 3-5% cash back for them. The U.S. Bank Cash+ card is the closest competitor, although it has its own restrictions.

CONCLUSION

Although the Huntington Voice has limitations, its flexibility can outweigh the potential downsides. It’s one of the best credit cards in multiple categories. These are less common categories, but a lot of people will like having the 3% cash back. Few cards directly compete with the Voice.

The main issues are regional restrictions and the $2,000 quarterly spend limit. But this isn’t a problem for everyone, and the Voice is an option that’s both versatile and interesting. It can be worth considering. There’s also a business version that some people may find appealing.

We rate the Huntington Voice card 3 out of 5 stars. ⭐⭐⭐

Note: This review was last updated in February 2022. Details may have changed since then. Please do your own research where applicable, to ensure you’re getting the best deal. Or contact us directly to take advantage of our personalized consulting services!