What Credit Cards Does Costco Accept?

A trip to a Costo warehouse will likely be filled with surprises, deals, and even impulse purchases. It’s a good idea to have a range of payment alternatives ready since you never know what you’ll find at Costo or how much you’ll spend. Ensure you have the Appreciate credit card before shopping if you intend to pay for your Costco items using plastic. There are alternative methods to pay online, but Costco stores only take credit cards guaranteed by Visa.

For a good reason, Costco is one of the most prominent and well-liked membership warehouse businesses. Although it is known for its food selection, it has one of the most tolerant return policies and discounts on petrol, electronics, apparel, and more. You can only use Visa-backed credit cards to make purchases at Costco.

Numerous Americans keep looking out for long queues outside Costco, planning to discover tissue and purchase food in mass as the Covid pandemic Continues. When you go to Costco, you likely hope to see “unavailable” and “restricted amount” signs.

Yet, you might be napping from an alternate issue not identified flexibly — your credit card may not be acknowledged at checkout.

Costco limits which sort of credit card you can pay to just Visa-upheld cards. Initially, Costco customers were limited to Amex-gave cards, yet that changed in 2016 when Visa became the restrictive Visa organization of Costco. It may cause issues at checkout if your favored type of installment is a charge card that turns out to be sponsored by an alternate organization.

If you want to know more about what credit cards Costco accepts, then you have come to the right place.  We have gathered all relevant information to help you understand everything you need. Below, we’ll look at what credit cards are accepted at Costco warehouses. So, what are you waiting for? Without much further ado, let us jump right in.

Which credit cards do they accept at Costco?

In-store at Costco Warehouses and Costco Gas Stations in the United States, Visa cards are accepted. Visa, Mastercard, Discover, JCB, and Diners Club cards are also accepted online at Costo.com.

Costco Warehouses take credit cards

• Every Visa Card
• Costco Worldwide Citi
• Costco Anywhere Visa Card, in addition to credit cards

Costco Warehouses also accept the following forms of payment:

• Cash
• Most debit cards with a pin
• Shop Costco Cards
• Personal Checks (Checks written by current Costco members)
• Business Checks (From now enrolled Costco)
• Cards EBT

The aforementioned approved payment methods are also accepted for mobile payments.

Costco Gas Station accepts credit cards

• All Visa Cards
• Costco Anywhere Visa® Card by Citi*

Several more payment options are also accepted in Costco Warehouses, including:

• Most debit cards with a pin
• Shop Cards

Online Credit Cards are accepted at Costco.com for Costco

• Every Visa Card
• Costco Worldwide Citi Visa Card
• Mastercard
• Discover cards
• Diners Club and JCB Cards

Most pin-operated debit cards and Costco shop Cards are also accepted on the website.

Credit cards accepted at Costco

When you shop at Costco, you can utilize the distribution center club’s co-marked card, the Costco Anywhere Visa Card by Citi, just as some other Visa sponsored by the Visa organization. Here are a few cards that can be utilized at Costco stockrooms:

• Chase Freedom Unlimited
• Chase Freedom
• Wells Fargo Cash Wise Visa card
• Chase Sapphire Preferred
• PenFed Power Cash Rewards Visa Signature Card

Costco warehouses and gas stations only accept Visa credit cards, cash, debit cards, and Costco Shop Cards (gift cards). They do not accept Mastercard, American Express, or Discover cards.

You can swipe or insert your card at checkout and use contactless payment methods, such as tap-to-go and mobile wallets (Apple Pay, Google Pay, and Samsung Pay).

Best credit cards to use at Costco

Here are some of the top credit cards effective to use at Costco

1. Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
2. Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card
3. Chase Freedom Unlimited®
4. Costco Anywhere Visa® Card by Citi

Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card

The Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card offers 2x points on all travel and dining purchases and 1x on all other purchases. With the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card’s fantastic welcome offer, you may gain $1,000 towards travel when you use Chase Ultimate Rewards to redeem your points. This credit card, which has no foreign transaction fees, is a terrific option if you like traveling and could take advantage of the extra bonuses thanks to the big bonus points on eating and travel.

Since you’ll need to make a significant number of purchases on the card during the first few months of ownership to qualify for the bonus, you might wish to transfer all of your Costco purchases as well as other expenditures, particularly those for Lyft, travel, and dining-to your new card to accelerate the process.

Use a card with a more excellent cashback value, such as the Chase Freedom Unlimited, and then transferring the points to your Chase Sapphire Preferred Card may allow you to accrue more points. Once you’ve accumulated enough points, you may exchange them for travel or other benefits rather than cash back because your points will likely go further.

• Rewards:
  • Earn 3X points on doing certain streaming services and eligible online grocery purchases
  • 5x points on travel booked via Chase Ultimate Rewards
  • 1x points for every $1 spent on all other suitable items, including Costco purchases
  • 2x points for any other travel-related expenditures.
• Sign-up extra: After spending $4,000 on purchases during the first three months of account setup, you will receive 80,000 extra points.
• Annual Fee: $95.

Pros and Cons

This card has no annual fee. The main downside of this card is that it has a foreign transaction fee of 3%, which can add up if you plan to use the card while traveling abroad.

Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card

The Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card offers 2x miles on all purchases. After being approved for the card, the Capital One Venture X Reward Credit Card gives a sizable early spending incentive. The Capital One travel site lets you book flights, hotels, and other travel-related expenses using the miles you earn with this incentive. Or you may transfer them to more than a dozen travel companions.

It could make sense to start using your Venture X for all qualifying purchases (even at Costco) as soon as you get it to assist in meeting the requirements of the welcome incentive. With this card, there are no rotating bonus categories, so every dollar you spend on anything other than travel will earn you at least two miles.

It is one of the highest general rates available for rewards credit cards. You may always earn many prizes without worrying about any particular category. Premium travel cards only sometimes offer this same level of ease.

• Reward: Earn two points for every dollar spent daily, ten miles for booking hotels and rental vehicles via Capital One Travel, and five miles for booking flights through Capital One Travel.
• Sign-up bonus: Spend $4,000 on purchases during the first three months after account opening to earn 75,000
• Yearly cost: $395

Pros and cons

This card has no foreign transaction fees, which is a great perk if you plan to use the card while traveling abroad. The main downside of this card is that it has a higher interest rate than some other cards on the market.

Chase Freedom Unlimited® Credit Card

The Chase Freedom Unlimited® Credit Card offers 1.5% cash back on all purchases. The Chase Freedom Unlimited credit card is one of the top rewards credit cards and may help you earn up to 5% cash back if you want to maximize your cashback. An additional benefit, especially considering this card has no annual fee, is the chance to earn an extra 1.5% cash back on everything you buy (up to $20,000 spent in the first year). It is worth up to $300 cashback.

You should use this card for Costco purchases since the discounts you’ll get there will help you get the most out of your membership.

• Rewards:
  • Unlimited 5% cash back on all other purchases
  • 3% cash back at pharmacies and restaurants (including takeout and qualified delivery services)
  • 5% cash back on Chase Travel purchased through Ultimate Rewards.
• Sign-up bonus: Earn an extra 5% cash back on all purchases (up to $20,000 in the first year), suitable for up to $300 in cash back.
• Annual cost: 0

Pros and cons

This card has no foreign transaction fees, which is a great perk if you plan to use the card while traveling abroad. The main downside of this card is that it has a higher interest rate than some other cards on the market.

Costco Anywhere Visa® Card by Citi

The 3% back on restaurants, eligible travel expenditures, and 4% back on qualifying and EV charging purchases (on up to $7,000 per year, then 1% after that) offered by the Costco Anywhere Visa Card by Citi are outstanding rewards for a card without an annual fee, even though there is no sign-up bonus. Of all the cards on our list, you’ll also receive the most cashback earnings for Costco purchases. The Chase Freedom Unlimited is one of the most excellent cashback credit cards, but if you combine it with other Chase premium cards, like the Chase Sapphire Preferred, you can get a better reward card deal.

This card might be a great alternative to a Chase premium card if you don’t already have one for your Costco expenditures. Take advantage of member discounts on expensive products like furniture and appliances since you earn more rewards the more you spend with your card. To maximize the benefits, you should also make a point of getting your petrol from Costco.

• Rewards:
  • The Costco Anywhere Visa® Card by Citi offers 4% cash back on gas
  • 3% on restaurants and travel
  • 2% on Costco
  • 1% on all other purchases.
• Sign-up Bonus: None
• Annual Fee: With your paid Costco membership, there is no yearly fee.

Pros and cons

This card has no foreign transaction fees, which is a great perk if you plan to use the card while traveling abroad. The main downside of this card is that it can only be used at Costco and online at Costco.com.

Can you use a Visa or Mastercard at Costco?

You need to be brilliant to realize which credit cards Costco acknowledges because it just doesn’t accept everyone: most prominent Costco, the most significant individual stockroom club in the nation, has a special exclusive arrangement with Visa, the most extensive credit network on the planet. For a long time, Costco stores just acknowledged American Express cards. In any case, in 2016, the distribution center chain changed to Visa.

Costco went into an arrangement with Citi for it to be the backer of Costco’s charge card.

Moreover, since Costco Anywhere Visa Card by Citi is a card, Costco needs to acknowledge all cards now. By changing its sole credit supplier from American Express to Visa, Costco extended its potential customer network by millions. While American Express had 23.3 million credit accounts in the U.S. in 2016, Visa had 276 million. That implies that, at any rate, 250 million additional Americans can utilize their charge cards at Costco.

It additionally made shopping more adaptable for current Costco individuals. Rather than being secured using an American Express card, individuals could now exploit the assortment of Visa cards accessible in the commercial center.

Does Costco accept Mastercards?

No, Costco does not accept MasterCard. Starting in 2020, Visa is the main charge card that Costco acknowledges. If you don’t have a Visa, you can pay with money, checks, charge cards/ATM, Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT), or Costco Cash Cards.

Costco’s change to Visa amazed many since the retailer could only acknowledge American Express cards. Beforehand, the stockroom club had accepted just Discover cards, which have a more modest part base than AmEx. The Costco-American Express arrangement became a colossal aid to the two organizations. Costco developed into one of the world’s leading three retailers, driving billions of dollars in deal volume to American Express. At that point, Costco proceeded to a considerably more extensive credit network in Visa.

Does Costco accept Discover?

Since Costco has an agreement with Visa, customers can’t utilize Visas sponsored by the other three principal organizations, American Express, Mastercard, or Discover, at Costco distribution centers. Be that as it may, you’re ready to pay with Mastercard and Discover cards for buys made at Costco.com and the Costco application. Here are a few cards that can be utilized on the web or through the Costco application:

• Discover it Cash Back
• Capital One Savor Cash Rewards Credit Card
• Citi Double Cash Card
• Citi Rewards Card
• Discover it Chrome

Why does Costco not accept Mastercard?

Since they have an elite arrangement with CitiBank to give Costco Visa cards at an extremely low expense, they need to acknowledge all Visa cards because it is VISA. Each time a client makes a buy with a Mastercard, the trader pays a level of absolute charge to the card guarantor. The oware card backers (generally banks) bring in cash.

Costco had a selective relationship with American Express for a very long time. An organization that was commonly helpful to the two organizations. When the arrangement was up for reestablishment in 2016, the two organizations couldn’t concur on the new terms. One out of ten American Express clients held a Costco Amex card. Citi won the offer and, in June 2016, finished the Amex/Costco organization.

Costco acknowledges check cards as they are avoided from the understanding. Dissimilar to the Amex understanding, which was among Costco and Amex, the Citi bargain incorporates Costco, Citi, and Visa. All have a personal stake in the arrangement. Amex is the card guarantor, the bank, and the proprietor of the Amex brand. The Visa Corporation claims the Visa brand. It isn’t to their most significant advantage to permit a vendor to acknowledge a card from a sole backer.

What are Costco’s Visa card terms?

Costco Anywhere Visa Card by Citi is accessible for no yearly charge to Costco individuals and offers preferable awards over its American Express archetype. Its extra focuses incorporate 4% back on up to $7,000 yearly (and 1% from that point) in qualified gas buys, 3% back at cafés, 2% back at Costco, and 1% back on everything else. It likewise has the advantage of being a Visa card, which is acknowledged by many vendors worldwide than American Express. Prize focuses are just redeemable at Costco discount stores and on Costco.com.

In any case, you don’t have to have the store’s Visa card to profit from the store’s change to Visa. Many Visa guarantors offer extra rewards classifications for outlet centers, which means you can make additional money back or reward focuses by utilizing your Visa card at Costco – simply check your card’s prize classifications. Indeed, even without extra tips at stockroom clubs, individuals spend over $100 per stumble by and large, and those energies can add incredible rewards on any prizes charge card.

Does Using a Visa at Costco Help You Save Money?

At Costco, Visa is the exclusive payment network for credit card transactions. Payment networks like Visa process transactions by sending purchase details to the bank that issued your card, such as Citi or Chase. The bank then approves or denies the transaction based on your available credit, and Visa relays the approval to Costco.

Retailers pay a fee to use these networks, typically 2%-3% per transaction. However, Costco has negotiated a lower rate of less than 0.5% per transaction with Visa. This significantly reduces their costs, which allows them to maintain lower prices. Unlike other retailers who pass on these fees to customers by raising prices, Costco can avoid this. Their narrow profit margins are preserved, and savings are passed on to you through lower product prices.

In essence, by partnering with Visa, Costco keeps credit card fees low, benefiting both the company and its members with lower overall prices.

Alternative ways to pay at Costco

In addition to debit and credit cards, Costco also accepts cash, checks, and EBT (Electronic Benefits Transfer) cards as forms of payment. If you pay with cash, you must have the exact amount, as the store does not give some money back. Checks are only accepted at select locations, so it is best to call ahead before attempting to pay with an appraisal. EBT cards can be used to purchase food and other items but cannot be used to get cashback.

What debit cards are accepted at Costco?

Visa, Mastercard, and Discover are all accepted at Costco. American Express is also accepted, but only at select locations. You can use your debit card to make purchases both in-store and online. You must enter your 16-digit card number and 3-digit security code when using your card online. Costco also offers the option to use your debit card as a membership card, which gives you access to exclusive deals and services.

Does Costco accept the Apple Card?

Yes, Costco accepts the Apple Card as a form of payment. You can use your Apple Card to make purchases both in-store and online.

Can I use Samsung Pay at Costco?

Yes, you can use Samsung Pay to make purchases at Costco. To use Samsung Pay, add your card to the Samsung Pay app and then hold your phone to the contactless reader at the register. You will also need to enter your 4-digit PIN code.

What credit cards does Costco accept online?

Visa, Mastercard, and Discover are all accepted at Costco. American Express is also accepted, but only at select locations. You can use your credit card to make purchases both in-store and online. You must enter your 16-digit card number and 3-digit security code when using your card online.

FAQs

What types of debit cards does Costco accept?

As long as you know your personal identification number (PIN), you shouldn’t have any trouble using your card, as Costco says it accepts most PIN-based debit cards. Ensure your debit card bears the Visa logo before using it as a credit at a store. If it does, you will be able to do so.

Do they take Apple Cards at Costco?

Apple Cards, which operate on the MasterCards network, are not recognized in Costco locations. However, you may add your Apple Card Pay account and use it to pay for your Costco purchases.

At Costco, is Samsung Pay accepted?

Costco, you may use Samsung Pay in addition to Apple Pay and Google Pay.

What forms of credit may I use to shop at Costco online?

You will have additional payment alternatives when buying with Costco online instead of in-store. Most PIN-based debit or ATM cards, Costco Shop cards, all Visa Cards, MasterCard, Discover Cards, and Visa Checkout are all accepted on the Costco website.

Is accepting credit cards at Costco?

Yes, Visa credit cards are accepted in Costco warehouses and petrol stations. American Express, Discover, and Mastercard are not accepted.

Conclusion

If you’re thinking about joining Costco to cut your grocery expenses or you’re already a member and want to pay with a credit card, you’ll need a Visa. Costco no longer accepts American Express. You can also pay using cash, checks, or debit cards.