If you’re a member of Sam’s Club, you might be interested in the new Sam’s Club credit cards, which comes with tiered rewards on popular everyday expenses.
The so-called “5-3-1 Credit Card Cash Back Program” offers healthy rewards value to Sam’s Savings, Sam’s Business, and Sam’s Plus members in the U.S. and Puerto Rico.
It also comes with a number of other card benefits, including no annual fee and acts as your membership card. You can also earn a $45 statement credit for a limited time.
For the record, it’s a MasterCard issued by Synchrony Bank, which may or may not replace their current Discover-branded credit card that only offers 2% cash back.
The rewards categories on the Sam’s Club MasterCard break down like this:
– 5% cash back on gas (first $6k per year)
– 3% cash back at restaurants and on travel
– 1% cash back on all other eligible purchases
As far as the cash back rewards go, you can earn 5% cash back on your first $6,000 in fuel purchases at Sam’s Club locations, Walmart fuel stations, and at any other gas stations in the U.S. or Puerto Rico during each calendar year.
This automatically makes it one of the best gas credit cards out there, but that’s just one of the many credit card benefits afforded with this card.
Note that certain warehouse clubs and supercenters aren’t eligible, but my guess is you’ll be buying gas at Sam’s Club or Walmart if you have this credit card.
With regard to the 3% cash back at restaurants, you get the bonus at restaurants worldwide, including at fast food places, “drinking places,” and with caterers. So those cocktails might actually put some money back in your pocket…
However, it excludes restaurants located at warehouse clubs other than Sam’s Club. Still, that’s a pretty stellar deal.
Other than Chase Freedom’s 5% cash back at restaurants that rotate throughout the year, I don’t know of another card that offers as much as 3% cash back at restaurants year-round.
The 3% cash back on travel is also worldwide, with the bonus applied to airlines, rental cars, hotels, rail, bus, cruise, travel agencies, and more.
The 1% cash back is for all other purchases that fall outside those bonus categories.
Aside from the limit on fuel, Sam’s Club members can only earn up to $5,000 cash back annually (and that’s across all cards for one Sam’s Club member).
Tip: To redeem your cash back, you need to request a cash back check and take it to a Sam’s Club to get the money.
What Else Does the New Sam’s Club MasterCard Offer?
- Doubles as your Sam’s Club membership card
- No annual fee
- No foreign transaction fees
- Withdraw $100 cash at Sam’s Club or Walmart registers and it’s treated as a purchase
Sam’s Club says it’s the first major retailer to roll out chip-enabled credit card technology, perhaps a dig at Target and their massive security breach.
In any case, it means you can use the credit card internationally with greater ease, and you won’t have to worry about it being compromised as easily.
They also don’t charge foreign transaction fees, making it a great credit card to use abroad, especially since cash back rewards are earned worldwide.
There is no annual fee on this credit card, though it does require a Sam’s Club membership, similar to the TrueEarnings Card from Costco.
Interestingly, you can get $100 in cash at any Sam’s Club or Walmart register per day, and while they refer to this “cash access” as a cash advance, they say it’s treated like a purchase. Does this mean it’s fee-free? That’s unclear from their T&C unfortunately. But if so it’d be another nice perk.
The card also provides extended warranty coverage along with identity theft resolution services for consumers. And extended warranty insurance along with MasterRental coverage for businesses.
And Sam’s Plus members will also be automatically enrolled to receive $10 in Cash Rewards for every $500 spent on qualifying pre-tax Sam’s Club purchases, regardless of whether you use cash or credit.
In summary, you can earn up to $500 annually through Sam’s Club Cash Rewards and another $5,000 annually when using the Sam’s Club MasterCard. Not a bad deal.
It’s unclear what credit score you need to get approved, but it’s possible fair credit is all you’ll need.
[What credit card does Sam’s Club accept?]
Pros of Sam’s Club MasterCard
- 5% cash back on gas
- 3% cash back at restaurants and on travel
- 1% cash back on all other eligible purchases
- Get rewards for purchases worldwide
- Chip and signature technology
- No annual fee
- No foreign transaction fees
Cons of Sam’s Club MasterCard
- Requires a Sam’s Club membership
- You only get 5% cash back on first $6,000 in gas purchases annually
- Maximum of $5,000 cash back can be earned annually
- Cash back checks can only be redeemed at Sam’s Club
- Small sign-up bonus