Nordstrom Credit Card Review

Nordstrom Credit Card Review Summary

A Nordstrom credit card is a good choice for people with fair credit or better who regularly make purchases from Nordstrom, Nordstrom Rack and HauteLook. Nordstrom credit cards have $0 annual fees, so they’re easily worthwhile, and they give up to 3 points per $1 spent. Every 2,000 points you earn are worth a $20 gift certificate.

Like most major retailers, Nordstrom offers two credit cards: one that can only be used to make purchases from the Nordstrom family of retailers and another that works pretty much anywhere credit is accepted. However, you cannot simply choose the version you want and apply for it directly. All applicants are first considered for the more restrictive version, the Nordstrom Store Credit Card, while well-qualified applicants who frequently make Nordstrom purchases may receive the Nordstrom Visa Credit Card.

But it shouldn’t really matter which version you get. I recommend applying only if you like Nordstrom and are comfortable carrying more than one credit card (since neither is likely to be your everyday spending vehicle).

Nordstrom Credit Card Review Highlights

$40 Initial Bonus

Shopping at Nordstrom the day you are approved for an account will automatically earn you a $40 gift certificate, sent to you in the mail. And who doesn’t want to get paid $40 for a purchase that would probably be made anyway? I know I wouldn’t balk at the opportunity if I frequented Nordstrom, and I have family members who certainly made use of the bonus on their Nordstrom credit cards.

Up to 3 Points Per $1 Spent at Nordstrom

When using a Nordstrom credit card, cardholders will earn 2 points for every $1 spent. Upon spending $5000 or more in a year to attain Ambassador or Icon status, cardholders will earn 3 points per $1 spent at Nordstrom, Nordstrom Rack, Nordstrom.com, NordstromRack.com, and HauteLook, as well as purchases made from Nordstrom catalogs. Each time you accrue 2,000 points (i.e., every $667 you spend), you will automatically receive a $20 gift certificate in the mail. The certificates expire after one year.

That amounts to a 3% discount on Nordstrom purchases can add up to a lot of savings for frequent shoppers. But I think the expiration date on the rewards certificates really underscores the importance of only getting a Nordstrom card if you truly do buy things from the Nordstrom family of stores on a regular basis.

Early Access to Sales & Other Perks

As a cardholder, you will be able to take advantage of the great deals offered during Nordstrom’s annual anniversary sale before the general public. That’s great news for any Nordstrom-loving deal hunter who would rather not fight over on-sale items.

You will also be assigned to a particular rewards “level,” depending on how much you spend at Nordstrom each year. For your convenience, I’ve laid out the thresholds and corresponding perks for each level below.

No Annual Fee

Most retailer-affiliated credit cards do not charge an annual fee, which means this particular perk isn’t unique. But the absence of such a charge is clearly preferable to the presence of one. This makes it easier to justify having a credit card that you don’t use every day and enables cost-effective credit building.

For context, the average annual fee among credit card offers currently on the market is $21.65.

Nordstrom Credit Card Review Lowlights

No 0% Intro Financing For New Purchases

Neither Nordstrom credit card will help you save money on big-ticket purchases that you cannot pay for in full within a single billing period. One of the main reasons for that is the lack of a 0% introductory rate for new purchases. Any balance that you carry from month to month will instead accrue interest at the card’s regular rate.

I definitely recommend paying your bill in full each month if you get a Nordstrom card. Nordstrom purchases shouldn’t require leveraging debt, and interest charges would offset your savings from rewards.

High Regular APR

Depending on your overall creditworthiness, you could be assigned an APR of 23.9% - 30.9% (V) with the Nordstrom Visa card or a 30.90% (V) APR with the store card. In any case, carrying a balance from month to month is not a good idea.

Other Things To Consider About The Nordstrom Credit Card

Assorted Visa Cardholder Benefits

If you get approved for the Nordstrom Credit Card, you can enjoy benefits such as a 24/7 concierge and access to the Visa Signature Luxury Hotel Collection. I suggest taking the time to read through the card’s guide to benefits so you can be sure to take advantage of all the perks available to you.

Balance Transfers Not Allowed

Like many other store-affiliated credit cards, neither Nordstrom card allows users to transfer existing balances from other plastic. As a result, they won’t help you reduce the cost of amounts already owed. I recommend checking out WalletHub’s picks for the best balance transfer credit cards if that’s your goal.

Nordstrom Credit Card vs. The Competition

Nordstrom Credit Card Review Methodology

This Nordstrom Credit Card review is based on WalletHub’s proprietary 100-point credit card rating system. By using a consistent methodology to evaluate the Nordstrom Credit Card and all other cards, WalletHub’s credit card experts make it easy for people to compare their options and find the best credit cards for their needs.

The WalletHub rating system uses 16 key metrics grouped into seven categories: Fees, Rewards, Two-year Cost, Interest Rates, Approval Requirements, Special Features, and Reviews. Each metric has a maximum number of points allocated to it, based on the metric’s importance as determined by our editors. The points are added up to create an overall rating for the Nordstrom Credit Card out of a maximum of 100 points, which is then converted to a 5-point scale.

Ratings for each category reflect how close Nordstrom Credit Card is to WalletHub’s definition of a 5-star credit card, which is based on market conditions and what we believe are reasonable terms. We compare Nordstrom Credit Card to that standard to give a numerical approximation of how reasonable and competitive its terms are compared to other cards.

To learn more about how WalletHub rates credit card offers, check out our full credit card review methodology.