The Costco Anywhere Visa® Card by Citi is available exclusively to Costco members. But if you carry a Costco membership, this card is a wallet staple for its increased rewards on gas, EV charging, restaurants and travel. The Costco Anywhere Visa® has no annual fee, but requires an annual Costco membership.
The card earns 4% back on eligible gas and EV charging on the first $7,000 of spending each year, plus unlimited 3% on restaurants and travel, including Costco travel. You’ll also earn 2% rewards on your other purchases from Costco and Costco.com. Notably, these rewards are in addition to the 2% rewards you can earn as a Costco executive member. Finally, the card earns 1% on all other purchases.
The Costco Anywhere Visa® Card rewards are marketed as “cash back,” but redeeming them is…quirky. You’ll receive your rewards as a Costco Cash certificate after your February statement. This certificate can be redeemed for merchandise or Cash only at a Costco location.
The Costco Anywhere Visa® Card by Citi doesn’t have too many other notable benefits, but it does offer Damage and Theft Purchase protection, which can cover your purchases if they are damaged or stolen within 120 days. The card notably no longer offers extended warranty coverage, though some items may receive an extended warranty through Costco Concierge Services.
If you are a small business owner, you can pick up the Costco Anywhere Visa® Business Credit Card by Citi, which offers the same cash back rewards.
Annual fee: $0
Requires a paid Costco membership.
This is a direct bank link. All information about the Costco Anywhere Visa® Card by Citi has been collected independently by cardsandpoints.com.
Costco Anywhere Visa® Card by Citi
The Costco Anywhere Visa Card by Citi offers no sign-up bonus.
Even though it has no sign-up bonus, this is probably a good card to get if you have a Costco membership.
More about this card
Benefit highlights:
This card has very limited benefits and no longer includes an extended warranty benefit.
Rewards:
4% on eligible gas and EV charging for the first $7,000 per year. 1% thereafter.
3% on restaurants.
3% on eligible travel.
2% on all other purchases from Costco and Costco.com.
1% on other purchases.
Rewards are earned as an annual credit card reward certificate.
Learn more:
Learn more about the card in our review of the Costco Anywhere Visa card.
Costco Anywhere Visa® Card by Citi at a glance
Here’s what you need to know about the Costco Anywhere Visa® Card by Citi.
Rewards
| + | 4% | Eligible gas and EV charging, for the first $7,000 per year, then 1% |
| 3% | Restaurants | |
| 3% | Travel | |
| 2% | All other purchases from Costco and Costco.com | |
| 1% | All other purchases |
Cash back is is issued as an annual credit card reward certificate once per year after your February billing statement closes. Certificate must be redeemed for cash or merchandise at a U.S. Costco store.
Benefits
| Consumer insurance benefits Damage and theft purchase protection | |
| Travel insurance benefits Worldwide car rental insurance Worldwide travel accident insurance |
Other important terms
| Annual fee: $0 Requires a paid Costco membership. | |
| Foreign transaction fee: 0% |
My take on the The Costco Anywhere Visa® Card by Citi
While I think that The Costco Anywhere Visa® Card by Citi makes sense to get for Costco members, it’s definitely not the best card to use at Costco. Let’s start with the good things: The card’s 4% rewards on gas and EV charging for the first $7,000 per year is market-leading. I know of no other no-annual-fee credit card that can offer you comparable rewards on gas. And the 3% rewards on restaurants and travel purchases are as good as the best no-annual-fee cards offering rewards in these categories.
But the card only offers 2% cash back rewards on purchases at Costco and Costco.com and doesn’t come with any sort of extended warranty. Other cards offer better rewards on your Costco purchases. Notably, you can get up to 4.5% toward travel when you use the U.S. Bank Altitude® Reserve Visa Infinite® Card and pay with a mobile wallet in-store.
Further, the rewards of the Costco Anywhere Visa® Card are a bit onerous to redeem. You can’t redeem them online or on your own timeframe. Instead, you get a rewards certificate after your February statement closes that you can only redeem in-person at Costco. And if you cancel your Costco membership before you receive and redeem your rewards certificate, you simply forfeit all of your rewards.
The bottom line: If you’re a Costco member, this card is probably your best choice for gas purchases, but you can probably find a better card to use at Costco.
Welcome bonus
The Costco Anywhere Visa Card by Citi offers no welcome bonus.
Costco Anywhere Visa® Card rewards
The Costco Anywhere Visa by Citi awards 1% cash back point per dollar spent on general purchases. The card offers increased rewards for gas and EV charging, restaurants and travel, plus 2% cash back for Costco purchases. Here are the details:
| + | 4% | Eligible gas and EV charging, for the first $7,000 per year, then 1% |
| 3% | Restaurants | |
| 3% | Travel | |
| 2% | All other purchases from Costco and Costco.com | |
| 1% | All other purchases |
Cash back is is issued as an annual credit card reward certificate once per year after your February billing statement closes. Certificate must be redeemed for cash or merchandise at a U.S. Costco store.
Redeeming Costco Anywhere Visa® Card rewards
Unlike many other cash back rewards cards, the rewards you earn on your Costco credit card come in the form of a credit card reward certificate. Rewards are earned during the calendar year (January-December) and you receive accumulated rewards once your February statement closes. Your credit card reward certificate must be redeemed in a single transaction at a Costco warehouse as a merchandise credit or cash back.
How to apply:
Annual fee: $0
Requires a paid Costco membership.
This is a direct bank link. All information about the Costco Anywhere Visa® Card by Citi has been collected independently by cardsandpoints.com.
Costco Anywhere Visa® Card by Citi
The Costco Anywhere Visa Card by Citi offers no sign-up bonus.
Even though it has no sign-up bonus, this is probably a good card to get if you have a Costco membership.
More about this card
Benefit highlights:
This card has very limited benefits and no longer includes an extended warranty benefit.
Rewards:
4% on eligible gas and EV charging for the first $7,000 per year. 1% thereafter.
3% on restaurants.
3% on eligible travel.
2% on all other purchases from Costco and Costco.com.
1% on other purchases.
Rewards are earned as an annual credit card reward certificate.
Learn more:
Learn more about the card in our review of the Costco Anywhere Visa card.
A few notes on applying for Citi credit cards
- Citi has limits on the number of applications you can submit. You can only apply for one personal card every eight days and no more than two cards every rolling 65 days. Business cards are subject to the same eight-day limitation, but you can apply for no more than one business card every 95 days.
- You can get a new customer welcome bonus on Citi cards multiple times, but Citi has rules on how often you can earn a welcome bonus.
- ThankYou Point welcome offers are typically not available if you’ve received a new account bonus on the same card in the past 48 months.
- Welcome bonuses on AAdvantage cards are only available if you have not received a welcome bonus for the same card within the past 48 months.
- There is no limit to the number of Citi cards you can hold.
- You can check your application status on the Citi website or by calling 1-866-606-2787.
Benefits of the Costco Anywhere Visa® Card
Here is a summary of the benefits offered with the Costco Anywhere Visa® Card.
Travel insurance benefits
Cards targeted toward travelers often offer travel insurance benefits that can protect you when you are traveling away from home. Terms and restrictions apply to all benefits.
Worldwide car rental insurance – Worldwide car rental insurance protects you against damage or theft to your rental vehicle. For coverage to apply, you need to reserve and pay for your vehicle using your card and decline your car rental company’s collision damage waiver. The coverage provided by the Costco Visa is secondary to your personal auto insurance within the United States. This means that you will be required to make a claim against your personal auto insurance before this policy will pay. Outside the United States, the benefit is primary insurance. Additional terms apply. See your card’s guide to benefits for details.
Travel accident insurance – Travel accident insurance typically covers you for things like accidental death or dismemberment when you are traveling. Policy terms vary, so see your card’s guide to benefits for details.
Consumer insurance benefits
Many cards offers consumer insurance benefits that can protect the things you buy. Terms and restrictions apply to all benefits.
Damage and theft protection – Damage and theft protection protects the things you buy with your card from damage or theft for a certain amount of time after you buy them. The protection on the Costco Anywhere Visa® Card provides protection on many items for 120 days from the date of purchase, up to $1,000 per claim and $50,000 per year.
Frequently asked questions
Is the Costco credit card worth it?
For most Costco members, it’s worth getting the Costco credit card. The card has no annual fee and offers some of the best rewards on gas available. But the card isn’t the best card to use at Costco. The card offers no extended warranty benefits and other cards can earn you up to 4.5% back toward travel in-store.
What are the disadvantages of the Costco Visa?
The Costco Visa doesn’t include any sort of extended warranty benefit, meaning you won’t get an extra year of warranty protection on the things you buy with the card. The card also offers only 2% rewards at Costco and for Costco.com purchases. Other cards offer better rewards for Costco purchases.
Is the Costco card an Amex?
In the United States, the Costco credit card is a Visa card issued by Citibank. Costco ended its partnership with American Express in 2016.
Does the Costco card offer a free Costco membership?
No. You cannot get a free Costco membership by holding the Costco Visa card. You must have a paid Costco membership to get the Costco Visa.
