The Capital One Walmart Rewards® Mastercard® is a popular credit card that can help frequent Walmart shoppers save a lot of money. However, there are several key mistakes that people make with the Walmart Credit Card that can end up being very costly.
Not Checking Your Credit Score Before You Apply
The Walmart Credit Card requires fair credit or better for approval. That’s within reach of the average person, but it’s still important to double check that your credit score is at least 640 before applying. Otherwise, your odds of approval will be low. You can check your credit score for free on WalletHub.
You can also check if you’re pre-qualified for the Walmart Credit Card online. If you are pre-qualified, your odds of approval are very high, but approval is never guaranteed.
Applying if You’re Not a Frequent Walmart Customer
If you don’t shop at Walmart frequently, then you will not be able to make the most of this card’s rewards and benefits. It offers the greatest amount of bonus rewards on Walmart.com purchases, followed by in-store Walmart purchases, though it does give decent rewards on restaurant and travel purchases, too.
Not Paying On Time and In Full Every Month
The Walmart Credit Card has a regular APR of 17.99% or 29.74% (Variable), so carrying a balance from billing period to billing period becomes quite expensive. Plus, the interest that you owe will essentially wipe out all the cash back that you earn from your purchases. On top of that, you may experience credit score damage if you don’t pay on time, as well as a maximum late fee of $39.
Thinking All Walmart Credit Cards Can Only be Used at Walmart
The Walmart Credit Card can be used anywhere Mastercard is accepted, which is nearly any merchant that takes credit cards. Walmart also has the Walmart® Store Card, which can only be used at Walmart, Walmart.com, and Walmart/Murphy USA gas stations.
It’s important to know that the two Walmart cards do not have separate applications. You fill out one application and are first considered for the Walmart Credit Card. If you’re deemed to be not creditworthy enough to get it, you will be considered for the store card instead.
Only Having a Walmart Credit Card
While the Walmart Credit Card is excellent for Walmart purchases, and decent for restaurant and travel purchases, it’s not so great for other purchase categories. Therefore, it’s a good idea to have another rewards credit card in your wallet. The exact type of rewards card will depend on your needs and spending habits, but you can browse the best rewards credit cards on WalletHub.
