Amazon Prime store card vs. Amazon Prime Visa

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Key takeaways

  • With Amazon’s Prime Day fast approaching, now is a great time to sign up for an Amazon credit card.
  • Among the options are cards that offer welcome bonuses upon approval and high ongoing rewards for everyday purchases.
  • Choosing between the Amazon Prime Store Card and the Amazon Prime Visa depends on which perks you want and whether you want to earn rewards on all your purchases or just your Amazon-related purchases.

The best credit cards for shopping on Amazon let users earn the top rewards rate on everything they buy from Amazon and its associated brands, like Whole Foods. That said, there’s more than one Amazon credit card to consider, so you’ll need to do some research before you apply. And if you’re planning to take advantage of Amazon Prime Day on July 16 – 17, you’ll want to act fast.

Synchrony Bank offers the Amazon Prime Store Card, which is limited to use within the Amazon universe. If you’re looking for a card to use for purchases with Amazon and beyond, you should consider the the Prime Visa offered by Chase (formerly known as the Amazon Prime Rewards Visa Signature Card).

Main Details

Although both the Amazon Store Card and the Amazon Prime Visa can enhance your shopping experience, it’s good to know which Amazon card is best for your financial situation and Amazon shopping habits. Essentially, your card of choice will boil down to your credit score, how often you shop on Amazon and whether you’re an Amazon Prime member. Here’s a quick guide to these two Amazon credit card options to help you choose the best one for your lifestyle.

Amazon Prime Store Card Prime Visa
Rewards rate
  • 5% back on Amazon.com purchases
  • 5% back on Amazon.com, Amazon Fresh, Whole Foods and Chase Travel purchases
  • 2% back at restaurants, gas stations and local transit and commuting (including rideshare)
  • 1% back on all other purchases
  • 10% or more back on a rotating selection of items on Amazon.
Sign-up bonus $10 Amazon gift card upon approval $200 Amazon gift card upon approval
Annual fee $0 (but requires $139 Amazon Prime membership) $0 (but requires $139 Amazon Prime membership)
Card perks
  • Access to Amazon promotional financing offers
  • Zero fraud liability
  • Auto rental collision damage waiver
  • Baggage delay insurance
  • Extended warranty protection
  • Lost luggage reimbursement
  • Roadside dispatch
  • Travel accident insurance
  • Travel and emergency assistance
  • Purchase protection
  • No foreign transaction fees

Amazon Prime Store Card vs. Prime Visa: Highlights

Synchrony and Chase offer two separate versions of Amazon Prime credit cards that differ mainly in the type of rewards they offer and where you can use the card. Chase offers the open-loop Amazon Prime Visa Card — meaning you can use it at more than just Amazon. Synchrony offers the closed-loop Amazon Prime Store Card, which means you can only use it on Amazon-related purchases. Here’s how the two cards compare to each other:

Which card earns the most?

The card that earns the most will depend heavily on how you plan to use it. Since the Amazon Prime Store Card only earns rewards on Amazon and Amazon-affiliated purchases, your spending would need to fall in those categories to earn the most. For the Amazon Prime Visa, you’ll earn points wherever you swipe, but you’ll still earn the most on Amazon-affiliated shopping.

Here’s how much you would stand to earn as a moderate Amazon shopper with well-rounded spending habits:

Spending Category Monthly Spend Amazon Prime Store Card rewards points Amazon Prime Visa rewards points
Restaurants $600 0 1,200
Gas stations $200 0 400
Amazon purchases $500 25 2,500
Whole Foods groceries $500 25 2,500
Audible subscription and books $30 1.5 150
Local transit/ rideshare $70 0 140
Misc. purchases $100 0 100
Monthly total:  $2,000 51.5 6,990
Annual total: $24,000 618 83,880
Cash redemption value:  $618 $838.80

Since the closed-loop Amazon Prime Store Card offers a redemption value of 1 point being worth $1, you might see fewer points showing in your account portal compared to the Prime Visa. However, the redemption value isn’t bad and still outweighs the cost of your annual Amazon Prime subscription — even without rewards on external categories.

The Prime Visa rewards points have a redemption value of 100 points being worth $1. So, you’ll likely see a more substantial points balance on your account, but the rewards calculation is very similar to the Amazon Store Card. Obviously, you’ll get more back from the Amazon Prime Visa since you’re able to use the card beyond your Amazon spending. In this example, that added up to an extra $220 worth of rewards points over one year.

Why should you get the Amazon Prime Store Card?

The Amazon Prime Store Card is perfect for the Amazon loyalist who already has a rewards credit card for their non-Amazon spending. It’s for those who want to earn a consistently high rate of rewards for spending they’re already doing and make excellent use of their Amazon Prime membership. Even with mild credit challenges, you may be able to qualify for this card.

You can’t use it outside of Amazon’s brands, but there’s no denying the expanse of affiliated brands that accept the Amazon Prime Store Card:

  • Amazon Go
  • Audible
  • AWS
  • Amazon Fresh
  • Whole Foods
  • Amazon.com
  • Alexa Skills
  • Amazon Pay
  • Amazon Business
  • woot.com
  • Comixology.com

If you do a significant amount of spending at any combination of these places, this card will earn you a consistent 5 percent back in rewards points — which is an outstanding rewards rate.

Additional benefits

Much like any store card, the Amazon Prime Store Card doesn’t come with a slew of extra benefits. You’ll get zero fraud liability, which is standard with all credit cards, and you’ll have access to promotional financing offers including Amazon’s Special Financing or Equal Monthly Payments.

Synchrony’s Amazon Store Card offers longer financing periods on Equal Monthly Payments purchases. With the Store Card, you can get 6, 12 or 24 months to pay off your purchase at a 0 percent APR:

  • 6 equal monthly payments on purchases of $50 to $599.99
  • 12 equal monthly payments on purchases of $600 or more
  • 24 equal monthly payments on select purchases

Note that you do have to give up the rewards you could earn on eligible purchases in order to apply these promotional financing offers.

There’s also Amazon’s Special Financing, which uses a deferred interest model and is typically available to Synchrony cardholders. Note that the 29.99 percent variable APR on Synchrony’s Amazon Prime Store Card is fairly high compared to the average credit card interest rate and could come back to haunt you if you use the Special Financing option.

Redemption options

There are three redemption options available for the closed-loop Amazon Prime Store Card’s rewards:

  • One-time statement credit
  • Automatic statement credit at the end of each billing cycle
  • On eligible Amazon.com purchases

The rewards points you redeem have a valuation of 1 point equaling $1, which makes the redemption very simple to understand.

Recommended credit score

Qualifying for the closed-loop Prime Store Card might be easier for those with credit challenges. Typically, you can qualify for Synchrony’s Amazon Store Card with a fair credit score (580 to 669).

Why should you get the Amazon Prime Visa?

The co-branded Amazon Prime Visa works well for Prime members with good credit who spend liberally at Amazon and its other brands. The best credit cards offering 5 percent rewards back are limited, so this one stands out when most of your shopping is done under the Amazon umbrella.

When you want solid rewards on the top spending categories, flexible redemptions and extensive benefits to boot, this might be the right card for you. You may also find it useful as part of a strategy to maximize your credit card rewards by pairing this card with a flat-rate rewards card for your non-category spending.

Additional benefits

There are several added benefits tucked into the Prime Visa benefits guide, which makes it even more valuable to its cardholders:

  • Travel accident insurance
  • No foreign transaction fee
  • Travel upgrades through the Luxury Hotel & Resort Collection
  • Rental car coverage
  • Lost luggage reimbursement
  • Extended warranties
  • Baggage delay insurance
  • Roadside dispatch

These benefits add an unexpected level of value to the Amazon Prime Visa that you might not find with other cards. The co-branded Amazon Prime Visa also offers a financing option with 6 or 12 months to pay off your purchase with no interest, with the following requirements:

  1. 6 equal monthly payments on purchases of $50 or more
  2. 12 equal monthly payments on purchases of $250 or more

Once again, you’ll have to forgo rewards on purchases when you apply these special financing offers.

Learn more: Read Bankrate’s complete guide to Amazon financing and payment plans.

Redemption options

There are far more redemption options under the Amazon Prime Visa, which allows you to use your rewards points however you see fit:

  • For eligible Amazon.com purchases
  • Airline tickets, car rentals, hotel accommodations, and cruises through Chase Travel
  • Account statement credits
  • Electronic deposits to your bank account
  • Gift cards
  • Purchasing eligible products or services directly through third-party merchants or service providers via Chase

Although the redemption value of your rewards points might be more difficult to understand, keep in mind that 100 points equals $1. For example, if you spend $100 on your Prime Visa at Amazon.com (which earns 5 percent back in rewards points), you would earn 500 points (which is equal to $5).

Recommended credit score

You’ll likely need at least a good credit score (670 to 739) to qualify for the co-branded Amazon Prime Visa. This means you may need to work on improving your credit score if you’re below that range and still prefer the Prime Visa’s offerings.

The bottom line

Amazon Prime Day will be here before you know it, and paying with the right credit card could help you rake in heightened rewards on your cart. Amazon Prime members with good to excellent credit should go for the co-branded Prime Visa Card to earn rewards on category spending both on and off of Amazon. Plus, the broad benefits list brings extra value making the Prime Visa worth it.

If new boxes are popping up at your front door constantly, Amazon Prime members with fair credit might consider applying for the closed-loop Prime Store Card. Although there are fewer benefits with this card, the rewards rate is still worth it and balances out the annual Prime membership fee at a relatively low threshold.

Whichever card you choose, just make sure you use it wisely. Don’t use your Amazon credit card to enable overspending, only purchase what you need and be sure to pay your balance in full each month to avoid interest charges.

*Information about the Amazon Prime Store Card has been collected independently by Bankrate. The card details have not been reviewed or approved by the issuer.

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