Is the prime visa card worth it

The Amazon Prime Rewards Visa Signature credit card, with its 5% cash back on purchases at Amazon.com and Whole Foods Market, is best for people who do a lot of their shopping at those retailers.

The extra cash back on restaurant, gas station, and drugstore purchases also makes this card attractive if those account for a large part of your spending.

Amazon Prime Rewards Visa Signature Credit Card Bonus

The bonus for this card is below average, at $150. (When you’re approved, you’ll receive a $150 Amazon.com gift card, which is instantly loaded to your account.) Many other cash back cards, including those with no annual fee, offer higher cash bonuses. 

Rewards Earning Details

This card offers 5% cash back on purchases made at Amazon.com and Whole Foods Market. Additionally, you can earn 2% cash back at restaurants, gas stations, and drugstores. All other purchases receive 1% cash back. 

Rewards Redemption Details

You can redeem your rewards by using Shop with Points at Amazon.com. When choosing your payment method at checkout, you select your Amazon Prime Rewards Visa Signature credit card, and you’ll automatically see how many points you have available—and how that translates into cash. You can then choose to use all of your available rewards, or a portion of them, to pay for your purchase.

Every 100 points is worth $1 on Amazon.com, making each point worth one cent. 

It's also possible to redeem your points through Chase, for gift cards, cash back, and travel, again at a value of one cent per point.

Transferring Points

You can’t directly transfer your Amazon rewards points to airlines or other partners. However, you can use points to purchase travel through the Chase website.

How to Maximize Your Rewards

The easiest way to maximize your rewards with this card is to do as much of your spending as possible at Amazon.com and Whole Foods Market to get the 5% cash back. There are no earnings limits.

Average Case

Amazon Prime members spend, on average, $1,371 a year at Whole Foods, according to a 2017 analysis by 1010Data. Additionally, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that in 2020 the average household spent $1,568 on gas, other fuels and motor oil. It also reports that the average household spent $2,375 on food away from home. 

At these average rates, the 5% cash back on spending at Whole Foods Market would come to $68.55, and the 2% cash back from gas and dining out would add another $78.86. That’s a total of $147.41 in cash back from just those three categories.

Even after offsetting the cost of the $139 Prime membership, this average household would come out about $28.41 ahead. And that still doesn’t account for whatever purchases they make at Amazon.com. 

Aspirational Case

The more of your spending you do at Amazon.com and Whole Foods Market, the greater your cash back rewards will be. For example:

• The average household spends $4,942 a year on groceries. Shifting all of that to Whole Foods Market would mean $247.10 in cash back.
• The average household also spends $1,434 on apparel and services. Moving that spending to Amazon.com would result in as much as $71.70 in cash back.
• Finally, the average household spends $646 a year on personal care products, which, if bought entirely on Amazon.com, would bring in another $32.30 in cash back.

The 5% cash back on all of those everyday purchases combined would total $351.10. A family could also make some of their major purchases, such computers, TVs, and furniture on Amazon.com and earn 5% cash back. Those kinds of purchases could easily boost their annual spending by another $2,000, resulting in an additional $150 cash back. After accounting for the cost of a Prime membership, the household would be $332.10 ahead—and that's not including their other purchases that earned 2% or 1% rewards. 

Amazon Prime Rewards Visa Signature Credit Card's Outstanding Benefits

• Consistent 5% cash back at Amazon.com and Whole Foods Market
• Earn 10% back or more on a rotating selection of Amazon products and categories
• Extra cash back up to 25% on certain Amazon.com items through exclusive Prime cardmember offers—on top of the usual 5% back
• Ability to easily shop with your points
• Purchase protection*
• Special rates on more than 900 luxury hotels through the Visa Signature Luxury Hotel Collection

*Eligibility and Benefit level varies by Card. Terms, Conditions and Limitations Apply. Please visit americanexpress.com/benefitsguide for more details. Underwritten by AMEX Assurance Company.

Standard Benefits

• Zero fraud liability
• Auto rental collision damage waiver
• No foreign transaction fee
• Travel assistance

Cardholder Experience

Ratings on Amazon.com show this card receiving 4.3 out of 5 stars. 70% of the reviews gave it 5 stars, while 9% gave it 1 star. 

Chase, which issues the Amazon Prime Rewards Visa Signature credit card, received a score of 807 out of 1,000 in J.D. Power’s 2021 U.S. Credit Card Satisfaction Study, two points below the national issuer average of 809.

In general, this card offers a fairly standard cardholder experience. Many of its perks also come with other Visa Signature cards. The experience is likely to be best for cardholders who redeem their rewards through Amazon's Shop with Points. 

Cardholders can manage their account online through Chase and can contact Chase by calling the number on the back of their card.

Security Features

As with many other credit cards, you can expect zero fraud liability with this card and you won’t be held responsible for unauthorized purchases. If you report a lost or stolen card you can receive an emergency replacement.

Fees to Watch Out For

While there's no annual fee, the fact that you need to be a Prime member—and pay $139 per year—is something to be aware of. Of course, a Prime membership also has other benefits that may be of value to you.

This card's other fees are in line with many competing credit cards. 

Our Verdict

If you shop frequently at Amazon.com and do a fair amount of grocery shopping at Whole Foods Market, this card, with its 5% cash back and no maximums, can be a valuable addition to your wallet. Additionally, the 2% cash back on purchases at gas stations, drugstores, and restaurants also offers the potential for significant rewards. Plus, earn 10% back or more on a rotating selection of Amazon products and categories.

However, if you don't expect to do much shopping at Amazon.com or Whole Foods Market, the American Express Blue Cash Preferred card, with its 6% cash back at U.S supermarkets (up to $6,000 per year) and streaming services, 3% at U.S. gas stations and transit services, and 1% on all other purchases could be a good choice. There is a $95 annual fee, but it's still less than a Prime membership.

If you're more interested in consistent travel rewards, Capital One offers the Venture card, which provides 2X points for every dollar spent everywhere. As with the American Express Blue Cash Preferred card, there is a $95 annual fee.

In the end, the Amazon Prime Rewards Visa Signature credit card is a good choice for people who do a lot of their shopping at Amazon.com and Whole Foods Market, especially if they’re already paying for a Prime membership anyway.

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