Credit Card Review: Amazon Visa

Stars: 4 out of 5

Pros: Gives you rewards for Amazon.com

Cons: Rewards can only be used there.

The Bottom Line:

Rewards for shopping

You can use at Amazon

And buy anything

Get Rewarded at the River

When I first started establishing my credit, I took any card someone would give me without an annual fee. Once I had established myself, I began searching for cards that had rewards, preferably ones I thought I would actually use. One day while surfing at Amazon.com, I saw an ad for their Visa card. I decided to give it a try, and here I am still using it several years later.

When I first got the card, it was administered by First USA, which was bought out by Chase. In most ways, it's a standard credit card. There is no annual fee. If you pay off the balance each month (you have at least a 20 day grace period), there are no interest charges. The interest rate is variable. Mine is currently 9.9%, but looking at the site the lowest they'd give for a new account right now is 14.24%. And it can get much higher then that. Since I don't carry a balance, I don't pay attention to my interest rate. If you are late with a payment, they hit you with a fee, ranging from $15 to $39. You can transfer balances or get cash advances, but both of those will add fees and interest to your account right away (depending on the term of the balance transfer.)

The reason I got this card was the rewards. And it is the reason I still use the card. For signing up, I got an immediate gift certificate for $25 to spend at Amazon. They've up that to $30 now. For every dollar you spend at Amazon, you get 3 reward points. For every dollar you spend elsewhere, you get 1 reward point. And every time you get 2,500 reward points, you get another $25 gift certificate for Amazon. With as much as browse the site, those gift certificates never last longer then a week or two.

When I first got this card, I used it for everything. While it takes a bit of money to earn a reward ($833 for all Amazon purchases, $2,500 for all non-Amazon purchases, or somewhere in between if you do both), I was able to get a reward every 9 months or so. Later, I got a card that offered me cash, so I started using that one almost exclusively. I had a bill that was automatically charged to this card, and I didn't change that. I continue to charge all my Amazon purchases on this card. The rewards have slowed, but I still seem to get one every year or so. That's pretty nice for buying stuff I was planning to buy anyway.

When you have earned a reward, you don't need to do anything. Your monthly statement shows that you've earned a reward, and about a week later you get the certificate in the mail. I've never had one take longer then that. The "certificate" is really a code that you enter during check out on your next purchase. They then deduct the $25 from the balance you owe, leaving the rest for you to pay.

Of course, the downside is that you can only use the rewards at Amazon. That's why I started using the other card since I can use cash wherever I want. Not that I ever lack for things to buy at Amazon. I'm always adding to my wish list there.

I don't remember ever having to call their Customer Service. I do use their web site, however. Going to chase.com allows you to log into your account and check on the balance, reward points, dispute charges, pay a bill using your card, pay your credit card bill, view your statement, view activity since your last statement, and the list goes on. Personally, I only use it to keep an eye on my statement. And it's very nice for that. I will sometimes check it before placing an order so I'm not hit with a surprise when the bill arrives in the mail. Additionally, if you have other Chase credit cards, you can tie them to the same log in, making it easy to track all that information in one place.

So if you are as addicted to Amazon as I am, considering getting the Amazon.com Visa. You'll be rewarded for doing what you would do anyway. And there's nothing bad about that.