The Costco Credit Card is a good option for Costco members with
excellent credit who spend a lot on gas, travel and dining, in addition to Costco purchases. The card offers bonus cash back in those spending categories, and it's easily worthwhile, thanks to a
$0 annual fee.
What I Like About the Costco Credit Card
Great rewards in popular spending categories
You will earn 5% cash back on gas from Costco and 4% back on other eligible gas and electric vehicle (EV) charging purchases, up to $7,000 spent per year across those categories (1% thereafter). You can also earn 3% cash back on
eligible travel (including Costco Travel) and dining at restaurants.
All of that is in addition to 2% cash back at Costco (including Costco.com), and that’s what you’d assume would be the star of the show. Considering the average cash back credit card offers
just 1.18% back on purchases, the Costco Anywhere Visa is a great rewards earner.
There clearly are levels to the card’s rewards prowess, however. The base rewards rate of 1% back is pedestrian, so some people reserve this card only for purchases that qualify for one of the bonus categories. You can find other cards offering a flat rewards rate of 1.5% or 2% back for all other purchases.
No annual fee or foreign transaction fee
You won’t have to pay a separate annual fee for the Costco Credit Card, on top of normal Costco membership dues. That saves you hundreds compared to some other popular credit card offers. It also means the card should be worthwhile to own as long as you avoid interest charges by paying the bill in full each month.
The lack of a foreign transaction fee gives you the freedom to bring the card when you travel abroad or simply make online purchases from foreign merchants without incurring what amount to roaming charges. In case you’re wondering, Costco has locations in many different countries, including Canada, Mexico, Japan and the UK.
High user ratings
Nearly two-thirds of the Costco Credit Card’s
1,000+ user ratings on WalletHub give the card either four or five stars. You can check out specific reviews below, but it’s good to know that most people generally have a very high opinion of the card.
Works as your Costco ID
You don’t need to carry your Costco ID card if you have the Costco Credit Card in your wallet. That’s not going to save you extra money, but it may provide convenience and save you from stress.
What I Don’t Like About the Costco Credit Card
Unappealing rewards redemption policy
Unlike most rewards credit cards, which distribute rewards as they’re earned and allow cardholders to redeem them pretty much whenever they want, the Costco Credit Card only pays out rewards once per year, each February. Not only that, but you have to redeem in-store by the end of the year, or you’ll lose the rewards.
No initial bonus
Credit cards often offer hundreds of dollars in rewards in return for opening a new account and meeting an initial spending threshold. That’s unfortunately not the case here.
Excellent credit required
You need an
excellent credit score to qualify for the Costco Anywhere Visa, and applicants with a score of
750 or higher generally have better approval odds. You can
check your credit score for free on WalletHub before applying if you don’t know where you currently stand, though approval depends on multiple factors.
High APR
The Citi Anywhere Visa does not offer much interest-rate appeal. Its regular APR is higher than the
average for a card that requires excellent credit for approval. There aren’t any low introductory rates, either. So you’d better be ready to pay your bill in full every month if you’re thinking about applying.
Just for Costco members
It might seem obvious, but it’s still worth mentioning that you must be a Costco member to get the
Costco Anywhere Visa® Card by Citi. Membership is not included, so you need to spend at least $65 per year for a Costco membership to qualify.
The good news is you won’t have to worry about paying an annual fee or a foreign fee in addition to Costco dues. Furthermore, you can use your card outside of Costco, as it will be accepted anywhere that takes
Visa.
Finally, it’s worth pointing out that you don’t need the Costco Credit Card to shop at Costco. Any
Visa card will work.
Note: This review is not provided, commissioned or endorsed by any issuer. Opinions and ratings are our own.
