Costo's history traces back to 1983 when the first Costco warehouse opened in Seattle. In 1993, Costco merged with the original warehouse retailer, Price Club, to form PriceCostco, later rebranded as Costco Wholesale Corporation. Costco's over 740 warehouse clubs can be found in more than 10 countries around the world, with over 500 locations in the US alone.
Over the years, Costco has been known to sign exclusive deals with particular credit card companies, and currently only accepts credit cards operated on the Visa credit card network in its stores. Of course, this begs the question, of all the Visa cards you could use for your Costco purchases, is the Costco Anywhere Visa® Card by Citi the best option for your Costco purchases?
Costco Card Overall Rating: 3.2/5.0
The biggest impediment for the Costco Anywhere Visa® Card is that it requires a Costco membership to apply — and to keep. So, while the card has no annual fee itself, you'll need to pay for an annual membership, which runs around $60 a year. Worse, if you cancel your Costco membership at any time, you'll automatically lose your credit card rewards.
On the plus side, those rewards are somewhat competitive compared to other Visa card options, with gas, dining, and travel bonus categories on top of the Costco bonus rewards. That being said, the rewards you earn are only redeemable for cash or merchandise at US Costco stores, which can limit their value.
Costco Credit Card
- APR: 20.49% as of Sep 2023
- Annual Fee: $0
- Rewards: Earn 2% cash back on Costco purchases
To start, the Costco Anywhere Visa® Card only earns 2% cash back on Costco and Costco.com purchases (excluding gas), which is fairly low for a branded store card. At the same time, given that only Visa cards are eligible to make Costco purchases, few alternatives will provide a better rate of return on Costco purchases, though some will offer the same 2% cash back without the rewards redemption limitations.
Outside of Costco, the Costco Anywhere Visa® Card is actually one of the better options for year-round gas rewards, offering 4% cash back on gas purchases, but there are several limitations of which to be aware. First, you'll only earn bonus rewards on up to $7,000 in gas purchases each year. And forget earning rewards on gas purchases made at warehouse stores other than Costco.
For restaurant and travel purchases, the Costco Anywhere Visa® Card's 3% cash back is moderately competitive, but definitely not the best on the block, especially considering any rewards you earn can only be used for Costco purchases.
Approval Requirements & Application
Applying for a Costco Anywhere Visa® Card is fairly easy, provided you're already a Costco member. You can simply head to your local Costco store or apply online through the link below. If you're not already a member, you'll need to join before you are eligible to apply for the Costco Anywhere Visa® Card.
Better Cards to Use at Costco
While it's fair to say there aren't that many better cards for rewards on Costco purchases than the Costco Anywhere Visa® Card — that says more about Costco's limitations than it does the rewards you earn with the store's branded credit card.
The 2% back on Costco purchases is actually low for a store card, and those rewards can only be used for more Costco purchases, which limits their usefulness. Several non-branded open-loop rewards credit cards can not only give you the same 2% rewards on Costco purchases, but they'll give you those rewards on all purchases. And almost any intro-APR credit card on the market will offer a better interest rate than the Costco Anywhere Visa® Card.
Cash Back
The world of cash back credit cards is loaded with great options for cash back rewards for just about any kind of purchase, with unlimited and bonus category structures to suit nearly all spending styles. Even better, they'll be rewards you can redeem for savings on any type of card purchase.
- $200 online cash rewards bonus after you make at least $1,000 in purchases in the first 90 days of account opening.
- Earn 3% cash back in the category of your choice - now with expanded categories, automatic 2% at grocery stores and wholesale clubs (up to $2,500 in combined choice category/grocery store/wholesale club quarterly purchases) and unlimited 1% on all other purchases.
- Newly expanded categories based on Bank of America customer feedback! 3% cash back on Gas (to now include Electric Vehicle Charging (EVC) Stations) and Online Shopping (to now include Cable, Streaming, Internet and Phone Services).
- If you're a Preferred Rewards member, you can earn 25%-75% more cash back on every purchase. That means you could earn 3.75%-5.25% cash back on purchases in your choice category.
- No annual fee and no expiration on rewards.
- 0% Introductory APR for 15 billing cycles for purchases, and for any balance transfers made in the first 60 days. After the intro APR offer ends, 18.24% - 28.24% Variable APR will apply. A 3% fee applies to all balance transfers.
- Contactless Cards - The security of a chip card, with the convenience of a tap.
- This online only offer may not be available if you leave this page or if you visit a Bank of America financial center. You can take advantage of this offer when you apply now.
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Intro (Purchases)
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Intro (Transfers)
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Regular APR
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Annual Fee
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Credit Needed
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|---|---|---|---|---|
0% Intro APR for 15 billing cycles for purchases
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0% Intro APR for 15 billing cycles for any balance transfers made in the first 60 days
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18.24% - 28.24% Variable APR on purchases and balance transfers
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$0
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Excellent/Good
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Additional Disclosure: Bank of America is a CardRates advertiser.
0% APR
Even though the APR charged by the Costco Anywhere Visa® Card isn't as high as other store cards, it isn't particularly low for a credit card in general. And with so many great 0% intro-APR offers on the market, paying interest at any rate is a cost that can be avoided.
- Start off strong with 0% Intro APR for 18 months from account opening on purchases and balance transfers. A variable APR of 20.49% - 29.24% on balance transfers and purchases after the introductory period ends.
- Lower your interest rate by 2% each year. Automatically be considered for an APR reduction when you pay on time, and spend at least $1000 on your card by your next account anniversary.
- Raise your credit limit. Get an automatic, one-time review for a higher credit limit when you pay on time, and spend $500 in your first six months.
- All for no annual fee - You won't have to pay an annual fee for all the great features that come with your Slate Edge℠ card
- Keep tabs on your credit health - Chase Credit Journey helps you monitor your credit with free access to your latest score, real-time alerts, and more
- Member FDIC
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Intro (Purchases)
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Intro (Transfers)
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Regular APR
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Annual Fee
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Credit Needed
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|---|---|---|---|---|
0% Intro APR on Purchases 18 months
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0% Intro APR on Balance Transfers 18 months
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20.49% - 29.24% Variable
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$0
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Good/Excellent
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Travel Rewards
If you've ever daydreamed of your next vacation while putting away your latest purchase of bulk-bought supplies, then you should consider using a good travel rewards credit card the next time you stalk the Costco shelves. That's because your big-box buys could be earning you points or miles toward free flights and hotel stays, getting you that much closer to your dream vacation.
- UNLIMITED BONUS: Only Discover gives you an unlimited match of all the Miles you’ve earned at the end of your first year. For example, if you earn 35,000 Miles, you get 70,000 Miles. There’s no signing up, no minimum spending or maximum rewards. Just a Miles-for-Miles match.
- Automatically earn unlimited 1.5x Miles on every dollar of every purchase - with no annual fee.
- Redeem Miles to pay any part of your monthly bill, including your minimum payment.
- Turn Miles into cash in any amount, any time. Or redeem as a statement credit for travel purchases like airfare, hotels, rideshares, gas stations, restaurants and more with no blackout dates. However you redeem, Miles keep the same value. And Miles never expire.
- 0% intro APR for 15 months on purchases. Then 17.24% - 28.24% Standard Variable Purchase APR will apply.
- Discover could help you reduce exposure of your personal information online by helping you remove it from select people-search sites that could sell your data. It’s free, activate with the mobile app.
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Intro (Purchases)
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Intro (Transfers)
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Regular APR
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Annual Fee
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Credit Needed
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|---|---|---|---|---|
0% Intro APR for 15 months
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0% Intro APR for 15 months
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17.24% - 28.24% Variable APR
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$0
|
Excellent/Good
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Unlike most wholesale or warehouse clubs, Costco has strict limitations on the types of credit cards they'll accept. This narrows the playing field quite a bit, leaving the Costco Anywhere Visa® Card in a good position near the front of the pack. But other card options are still out there to earn more flexible rewards on your Costco purchases or avoid interest fees on those bulk-buys.
What Others Say About the Costco Credit Card
For many reviewers, the customer service for the Costco Anywhere Visa® seems to leave a lot to be desired. Others report being unhappy about the limitations to the card's rewards, particularly that you need to remain a Costco member to redeem your earned rewards.
This was the first credit card I applied for, received a $5,000 credit limit too, which was a surprise to me. I like the card, standard rewards system of various percentages, gas, restaurants, Costco, and other purchases from 4% to 1%. The cashback is sent as a certificate yearly that can only be redeemed at Costco, the only real drawback of the card. But if you do a lot of shopping at Costco, the cashback reward can be beneficial. May even pay for the membership fee, which is now at $120/year for the executive, but any level of membership can get you this card. So there is a fee technically, your membership to Costco is the fee to apply for the card, but I am not sure if you keep the card if you cancel that membership. If you end up cancelling there are no rewards available since they are only redeemable at Costco. — CreditKarma.com
”
TERRIBLE SERVICE. I used the card to charge a computer. When the computer was ready to ship, Apple put through the charge. Citi turned down the charge, because they said it was too large and they considered me a "new customer." This is in spite of an excellent credit rating, a large line of credit and several charges that were also large although not as large. I also had the Costco card since the time it was introduced with AMEX. When I called, I was told that they would remove the large charge block for 3 days. When I asked what the amount is, so I could call in the future, I was told it was a secret. Nowhere, when they were advertising the card, did they mention that they would turn down "large charges." Perhaps they are trying to avoid the 2 year extension of the warranty. — WalletHub.com
”
So if you're already a Costco member and you don't mind having multiple credit cards, obtaining this card to use primarily at the warehouse is a smart idea. As an added bonus, the Costco Citi credit card can also serve as your membership card, meaning you won't have to carry an extra card. The Costco Citi credit card certainly isn't perfect, but it's a card that'll work well for the right person. — CreditDonkey.com
”Is the Costco Card Right for You?
If you're already a loyal Costco member — and plan to stay one for the foreseeable future — then the Costco Anywhere Visa® Card can be a good choice for Costco purchases, as well as gas and/or dining if you don't already have a higher-value card for those purchases (and you don't buy your gas at another big-box retailer).
For those who don't shop at Costco enough to make the limited rewards worthwhile, just about any other unlimited 2% cash back card will give the same return on Costco purchases, and the rewards will be more flexible. Plus, you won't have to worry about losing your rewards if you decide you'd rather shop at BJ's, instead.
(The content on this page is accurate as of the posting date; however, some of the offers mentioned may have expired.)
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