The
Guitar Center Credit Card is a good credit card to consider if you shop at Guitar Center on a regular basis and your credit score is
640 or higher. If you’re creditworthy enough to qualify, this card can save you money at Guitar Center, thanks to its
$0 annual fee and good rewards.
5 Key Things to Know About the Guitar Center Credit Card
5% back on all purchases.
The
Guitar Center Credit Card is what’s known as a store credit card, meaning you can only use it to make in-store and online Guitar Center purchases. But it’s definitely worthwhile for such spending, as each $1 charged to the card yields 5 rewards points, and every 1,000 points you rack up can be redeemed for $10 in store credit.
In other words, you’ll get $10 in store credit for every $200 spent with the Guitar Center Card, or 5% “cash” back. And 5% back is what the
best store credit cards are offering right now.
Rewards certificates expire.
Each month, you will receive a $10 rewards certificate for every $200 in purchases made that billing period. You’ll have to use those certificates fairly quickly, though, as they expire after 90 days. This is just another reason why you have to be a Guitar Center regular to truly benefit from the Guitar Center Credit Card.
Pass if you can’t pay in full.
The Guitar Center Credit Card is not the answer for financing. For starters, it’s a bad choice for paying off big-ticket purchases over time because its offer of 0% interest for
6 - 48 months, depending on what you buy and how much it costs, is ruined by a dangerous feature called
deferred interest.
This feature allows interest to retroactively apply to your entire original purchase amount – like the 0% rate was never there – if you have an unpaid balance of even $1 when the card’s regular rate takes effect. And that regular rate is above the average APR for store credit cards:
33.09%.
Alternatively, you could get a payment plan for 48 months on select purchases. This offer doesn’t come with deferred interest, but there is a 2% fee. With that in mind, anyone who can’t pay their bill in full every month is better off with a
general-purpose 0% credit card than the Guitar Center Gear Card.
For fair credit and up.
The Guitar Gear Credit Card, like most store credit cards, requires at least fair credit for approval. So make sure to
check your credit score for free on WalletHub before submitting an application. Based on our research, a credit score of
640 or higher should give you good approval odds.
Note: This review is not provided, commissioned or endorsed by any issuer. Opinions and ratings are our own.
