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If you’re brand loyal to Apple or Amazon, it makes sense to get a credit card that offers you the best cash back rewards for your purchases.
The Apple Credit Card has no annual fee and allows you to split the cost of your eligible Apple purchases in monthly installments with no interest.. The Amazon Prime Visa card also has no annual fee and a tiered rewards structure, and mainly relevant for those who have good credit. Let's explore them.
General Comparison
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| |
|---|---|---|
Apple Credit Card | Prime Visa | |
Annual Fee | $0 | $0 ($139 Amazon Prime subscription required) |
Rewards | 3% cash back at Apple and select Apple pay partners. 3% Daily Cash back at Ace Hardware, Duane Reade, Exxon, Mobil, Nike, Panera Bread, T-Mobile, Uber, Uber Eats, and Walgreens. 2% on other Apple pay purchases, and 1% on all other purchases | 5% at Amazon.com, Amazon Fresh , Whole Foods Market and on Chase Travel purchases, 2% cash back on gas stations, restaurants and on local transit and commuting, 1% cash back on all other purchases
|
Welcome bonus | N/A | $100 Amazon gift card upon approval
|
Foreign Transaction Fee | $0 | $0
|
Purchase APR | 15.99% – 26.99% Variable | 19.49% – 27.49% Variable |
Apply pay purchases include:
• Apple Pay purchases made directly with Apple (including Apple stores, within the App Store and for Apple services).
• Uber and Uber Eats purchases via Apple Pay.
• Walgreens and Duane Reade purchases via Apple Pay.
• In-store T-Mobile purchases via Apple Pay.
• Nike purchases via Apple Pay (in U.S. stores, on Nike.com and on Nike apps).
• Exxon and Mobil gas station purchases via Apple Pay. This includes fuel, car washes and convenience store purchases.
• Panera purchases via Apple Pay.
Simulation: Which Card Gives More Rewards?
Without a scenario comparison, it's difficult to understand the actual reward potential.
However, keep in mind that the numbers should be adjusted to your regular spending categories, which may differ – so the exact calculation is dependent on your personal habits.
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| |
|---|---|---|
Spend Per Category | Apple Credit Card | Prime Visa |
$5,000 – Apple/Amazon | $150 | $250 |
$10,000 – U.S Supermarkets | $100 | $100 |
$4,000 – Restaurants
| $40 | $80 |
$5,000 – Hotels/Airline | $50 | $50 |
$4,000 – Gas | $80 | $80 |
Estimated Annual Value | $420 | $560 |
Compare The Perks
Hilton Honors American Express
- Impressive List of Partner Merchants Offering 3% Cash Back: While this is primarily an Apple credit card, there is a list of merchants which also offer 3% cash back. This list includes Mobil, Exxon, Nike, T-Mobile, Panera, Uber Eats, Uber, Walgreens and Duane Reade.
- Interest Free Financing: When you use your Apple Card for eligible purchases, you can not only earn 3% cash back, but also enjoy interest free financing. You can split the cost of your purchase with monthly payments and no interest.
- Access to Apple Savings Account: cardholders can open an Apple savings account and direct Daily Cash to a Savings account.
- Mastercard Benefits: As a Mastercard, the Apple Credit Card also offers a number of Mastercard benefits including ID theft protection, Mastercard Priceless experiences and a 24 hour hotline.
- Virtual Card Numbers: You can enjoy a further layer of privacy when you make online purchases with virtual card numbers.
- Account Sharing: Two partners can merge their credit lines to form an Apple Family Account. Your account can have up to four participants above the age of 13.
- Titanium Construction: Your card will be made of sleek metal for a unique appearance and feel in your wallet.
- No Foreign Transaction Fees: You can use your card abroad without incurring any foreign transaction fees.
Prime Visa
- 0% APR Promo: You can choose to receive 3% cash back or 0% APR for 6 to 18 months on purchases over $50.
- No Foreign Transaction Fees: You’ll not incur any foreign transaction fees if you use your card outside the U.S.
- Lost Luggage Reimbursement: If you or one of your immediate family members have carry on or checked luggage damaged or lost by the carrier, you’ll benefit from up to $3,000 coverage per passenger.
- Baggage Delay Coverage: If your baggage is delayed by your passenger carrier for over six hours, you will get reimbursement for essential purchases up to $100 per day for three days.
- Travel Accident Insurance: If you pay for your train, bus, cruise or air transportation with your card, you will have up to $500,000 of accidental death or dismemberment insurance.
- Travel and Emergency Assistance: If you’re away from home, you can use the Benefit Administrator to access travel and emergency assistance.
- Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver: If you charge the full rental cost to your car and decline the rental company collision insurance, you’ll receive theft and collision damage for most rental vehicles in the U.S and covered territories.
- Roadside Dispatch: If you experience a roadside emergency, you can call a toll free number to access assistance. This varies from a tire change or jump start to gas delivery or lockout service. Any roadside service fees will be billed to your card.
- Extended Warranty: You can enjoy an additional year on your manufacturer’s warranty for eligible products when you purchase them with your card.
- Purchase Protection: When you pay for items with your card, your purchases will be covered against theft or damage for up to 120 days. There is a cap of $500 per claim and $50,000 per account.
- Visa Signature Benefits: You can also access Visa Signature benefits which include the Luxury Hotel collection that provides access to over 900 locations around the world. You’ll receive the best rates, complimentary in room Wi-Fi and automatic room upgrades when available. There is also a 24/7 concierge service, which can help you to find tickets, make dinner reservations or even help purchasing a gift.
- Zero Fraud Liability: This policy ensures that you won’t be held responsible for any unauthorized purchases.
Compare The Drawbacks
As with all credit cards, there are both positives and negatives to these cards. It is important to be aware of the potential cons, before you make a decision about which card is best for you.
So, to help you make a smart decision, we'll highlight potential drawbacks here.
Apple Credit Card
- No Insurance Perks
Unlike the Prime Visa card, you don’t get any insurance perks with this card. So, if you’re looking for these types of benefits, this is not the right card for you.
- Low Cash Back for Outside Purchases
Although this is a specialized card for Apple, the rewards for non Apple or Apple Pay purchases are very low at just 1%.
Requires Apple Pay and Apple Hardware: It may seem obvious, but you will need to have Apple Pay and Apple Hardware to make use of this card.
Prime Visa
- You Must be an Amazon Prime Member
While this card does not charge an annual fee, you do need to be an Amazon Prime member to use this card.
This currently costs $139 per year, unless you’re a student, when it costs $69 per year. Although Amazon Prime offers other benefits, you may want to offset the cost with the card benefits.
- No Interest free financing
After the initial promo, there is no interest free financing, as you get with eligible Apple products and the Apple Credit Card.
Top Offers
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Compare Redemption Options
Here are the main things each card offers for cardholders:
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Apple Credit Card
You can access all the redemption options for the Apple Credit Card via the “Daily Cash” feature. This does require that you set up an Apple Cash account, but each day, any rewards you earn will be added to your account.
You can use the balance in your Apple Cash account at any time to make a purchase with Apple Pay, use it as statement credit towards your Apple credit card bill or transfer money via SMS to a friend or family member who also has Apple Cash.
If you prefer not to set up an Apple Cash account, your daily rewards will simply accumulate and then can be applied as statement credit towards your card balance.
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Amazon Prime Visa
You can redeem your rewards towards eligible Amazon.com purchases and there are no minimum redemption requirements.
The card is considered as one of the best Chase credit cards and you can also redeem your rewards as statement credit, gift cards or travel purchases.
How to Maximize Cards Benefits?
Like any other card, there are some things that can help you to get more rewards with the same use, here are some:
- Make Your Apple Card Your Default Payment Method: You can set your Apple card as your default payment method via the wallet settings. This will ensure that each time you use Apple Pay, you’ll use this card and earn 2% cash back.
- Move Your Subscriptions to the App Store: When you shop through the Apple App Store, you’ll earn the maximum cash back. So, instead of paying for your subscriptions such as HBO, Hulu, Showtime directly, move them to an in app purchase via the App Store.
- Use Virtual Card Numbers: If you shop online and have concerns about internet security, make use of the Virtual card numbers feature with this card. You can get a new card number at any time, you just need to tap “Request new card number” and one will be generated instantly.
- Book your travel with your card: Although this card is primarily for Amazon, it offers some excellent travel benefits if you pay for your fare with your card. This includes baggage insurance, trip delay and travel accident insurance.
- Check the Visa Signature Benefits catalog: Before you book a hotel stay or trip, check the Visa Signature Benefits catalog. You may be able to get a preferential rate on your hotel or room upgrades for free.
Customer Reviews: Which Card Wins?
Apple Credit Card
Satisfied customers report that this card is an excellent option for frequent Apple customers. There are also some great partner deals.
Negative reviews seem to relate to approval difficulty. You will need excellent credit to qualify for this card, and there are complaints from people with high credit scores that appear to struggle to get approved.
Prime Visa
Satisfied customers report that while this is primarily an Amazon card, there are lots of opportunities to earn good rewards with other retailers.
Negative reviews highlight that there are no real options to transfer your rewards. While there are multiple redemption options, there are limited partner options.
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Bottom Line
Amazon and Apple are massive brands in today’s marketplace and if you’re brand loyal, it stands to reason that you may want to investigate cards that reward your purchases.
Brand aside, there are some key differences between these two cards that may affect your decision about which card is best for you.
Why You Might Want the Apple Card ?
The Apple Credit Card is a great option that could be good if:
- You want free financing: This is a great feature of this card that allows you to split the cost of certain Apple purchases into monthly payments with no interest charges. So, if you want to invest in new Apple hardware, you can spread the expenses.
- You want a family card: The Apple Credit Card allows you to set up a family account so up to four family members can share the account. This even allows teens to access the card benefits.
- You have internet security concerns: The Apple Credit Card provides virtual card numbers on demand, so you can use a temporary number for your online purchases.
When You Might Want the The Amazon Card?
The Amazon Prime Visa card can be a good fit for your needs if you're looking for:
- You want travel insurance protection: Despite not being a “travel” card, the Prime Visa card offers a decent travel insurance package. This includes lost luggage reimbursement, travel accident insurance, auto rental collision damage waiver and baggage delay reimbursement.
- You want roadside benefits: The Amazon Prime Rewards card also offers roadside despatch support, so you can get help with vehicle issues including gas delivery, lockouts, flat batteries or a flat tire.
- You want the reassurance of zero fraud liability: You don’t need to worry about any unauthorized charges on your account, as this card has a zero fraud liability policy and fraud alerts you can set up in your Chase account.
Compare The Alternatives
If you're looking for a store credit card with great rewards for online shopping – there are some good alternatives you may want to consider:
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|---|---|---|---|
Costco Anywhere Visa® Card by Citi | Best Buy Visa Card | Sam's Club® Mastercard® | |
Annual Fee | $0 ($60 Costco membership fee required)
| $0
| $0 ($50/$110 for Club/Plus membership – MUST)
|
Rewards |
1-4%
4% cash back on on eligible gas and EV charging purchases for the first $7,000 per year and then 1% thereafter, 3% cash back on restaurants and most travel purchases, 2% cash back at Costco and Costco.com, 1% cash back on all other purchases
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1-5%
5% back in rewards on shopping at BestBuy, 3% back in rewards on gas purchases, 2% back in rewards on dining, takeout and grocery purchases, 1% back in rewards on everyday purchases
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1-5%
5% cash back on gas anywhere Mastercard is accepted (on the first $6,000 per year, then 1% after), 3% cash back on Sam’s Club purchases for Plus members, 3% on dining and takeout and 1% on all other purchases
|
Welcome bonus |
None
None
|
None
10% back in rewards on your first day of purchase
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None
$30 statement credit after making $30 in Sam’s Club purchases within the first 30 days
|
Foreign Transaction Fee | $0
| N/A
| N/A
|
Purchase APR | 20.49% (Variable)
| 15.99% – 31.49% variable
| 20.40% or 28.40% Variable
|
Compare Amazon Prime Visa Card
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The Amazon Prime Visa card offers high cashback for avid online shoppers. However, Costco is the winner when it comes to everyday spending.
While Target RedCard offers a less attractive cashback rewards ratio than Amazon, it still may be a better option for some. Let's compare
The BJ's One+ Mastercard wins if you focus on groceries, but Amazon's card extra shopping perks and insurance are better.
Both the Prime Visa and the Capital One Walmart card offer similar cashback rewards ratios.
Here's why Walmart is our winner: Prime Visa vs: Capital One Walmart Rewards
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Compare Apple Card
The Amex Gold Card may be more appealing if you dine out frequently and value premium travel perks than the Apple card.
The Apple Card offers competitive cashback rewards on Apple purchases and services – but if you travel frequently, the Unlimited card wins.
The Costco card stands out with substantial cashback rewards on gas, dining, and Costco shopping. In which cases the Apple card may be better?
The Apple Card offers high cashback on Apple products, while the Best Buy card wins when it comes to gas and BestBuy purchases. Let's compare.
Review Online Shopping Credit Cards
Capital One Walmart
Amazon Prime Rewards Visa Signature
U.S. Bank Cash+ Visa Signature
Wells Fargo Active Cash
Chase Freedom Flex
Target Red Card
