I'm a college student and most of my monthly spending (besides rent) is at Costco. I use my dad's membership so I can't get the Costco Anywhere Visa by Citi. What's the next best card?
CREDIT PROFILE
- Current credit cards: Chase Freedom Unlimited $2,500 limit, 02/2022 | Chase Amazon Prime Visa $1,500 limit, 03/2024
- FICO Score: Experian 796
- Oldest account age as primary: 3 years 3 months
- Cards approved in past 6 months: 0
- Cards approved in past 12 months: 0
- Cards approved in past 24 months: 0
- Annual income: ~$1,000 (dividends, I'm a full-time student)
CATEGORIES
- OK with category-specific cards?: Yes
- OK with rotating category cards?: Yes
- Dining: $100/month
- Groceries: $250/month at Costco, $50/month elsewhere
- Gas (Costco): $50/month
- Amazon: $50/month
- Can you pay rent by credit card?: $1,500/month, but there is a fee so I don't currently pay by card
MEMBERSHIPS & SUBSCRIPTIONS
- Current member of Amazon Prime?: Yes
- Current member of Costco?: Yes (authorized user on parent's membership — ineligible for Costco Anywhere Visa by Citi)
- Current member of Chase: Yes
PURPOSE
- Purpose: Saving money / maximizing cash back
- Cards I've been looking at: Open to suggestions
Best credit card if I can't get the Costco card?
byu/Powerful-Anteater-81 inCreditCards
Posted by Powerful-Anteater-81
4 Comments
AAA Daily Advantage should also be a decent alternative (5% groceries, 3% costco, 3% gas). It doesn’t cover dining but I see you already have a CFU.
Hi, (all of this is my own personal opinion). The main dilemma is that your income is low (which is normal for a college student) while your credit score is high. If income wasn’t a problem, I would recommend the Wells Fargo Active Cash with a 2% flat rate cashback which is equivalent to the cash back on standard Costco purchases on the Costco card (also 2%). Another card is the Apple Card (2% when using Apple Pay) which does offer a pre-qualification (so there is no harm in trying to see if you can get it).
Another option, is the Discover IT card. While it is only 1% flat rate, it does offer rotating categories, but most importantly, it does a Cashback match for the first year allowing an effective 2% cashback rate for year 1. Discover is extremely forgiving for college students and lower incomes.
With the Chase Freedom Unlimited, you do get 1.5% cashback, so staying with that card until your income improves is not a bad strategy.
Also make sure that you are including any allowances given by parents in your monthly income when apply for credit cards.
Costco only takes Visa in-store. With a $1k annual income, you’re not getting approved for a new card anyway unless you’re 21+ and legally claiming your parents’ money. Even if you snagged the Venmo Visa (3% at wholesale clubs), the math on your $300/mo Costco spend versus your current Chase Freedom Unlimited (1.5%) nets you a whopping extra $4.50 a month. Don’t burn a hard pull for half a value meal. Just use your CFU.
If you are on your dad’s membership I believe you can still apply for the card