Effective April 1, 2016, Costco will no longer accept Amex cards and will start accepting Citibank Visa. Visa would replace American Express as the credit card network for Costco in the U.S. and Puerto Rico on the same date. More than likely, you will be able to switch your current Amex Costco card to another Amex card with more details coming soon. There are rumors with a coming of a new Citi Costco co-branded Visa credit card. It doesn’t matter because you can pay with any Visa card at Costco. For those living in Canada, Costco has recently switched from AMEX to MasterCard and Capital One.
Costco News Highlights:
- Starting 4/1/2016, Costco will no longer accept AMEX cards
- Costco is forming a partnership with Visa and Citi in the U.S and Puerto Rico stores.
- Since Citi bought out existing co-brand portfolio from American Express, current Amex Costco cardholders most likely to be converted to Citi.
I believe this is good news for members of Costco due to the fact that many people carry a Visa card in their wallets. Unlike Amex cards, most Visa cards have no annual fee. This would be extremely convenient of having a Visa credit card for Costco members.
Today I went to Costco to see if my new Citi card worked. I spent $90 in the warehouse and $25 for gas. Now I trying to connect this card with my bank account to straighten everything out.
They are going to maintain the 4%. Here are some more benefits
https://www.citi.com/credit-cards/creditcards/citi.action?ID=citi-costco-credit-card-conversion
So, until 4/1/2016, probably the best card to use at Costco is the Fidelity AmEx for 2%. (I never understood why people were so hot on their TrueEarnings Card from Costco and American Express which only earned 1% at Costco.)
Starting April 1st of 2016, some of the best Visa cards to use at Costco will be:
1. BankAmericard Travel Rewards Visa which can earn 2.625% toward travel if you qualify for Bank of America’s Preferred Rewards Platinum Honors status. (Or 2.25% with Platinum status or 1.875% with Gold status or 1.5% with no Preferred Rewards status.)
2. Capital One Venture Visa which earns 2% toward travel.
3. U.S. Bank FlexPerks Travel Rewards Visa Signature card which earns about 1.66% toward travel on spending at Costco and about 3.32% on cell phone as well as either gas, grocery stores, or airfare, whichever you spend the most on each month.
4. Capital One Quicksilver Visa which earns 1.5% cash back on all spending including Costco.
I have the TrueEarnings® Business Card from Costco and American Express. It gives 4% back on gas purchases, including at Costco gas stations. If this becomes a Citi Visa card, they better maintain the 4% cash back on gas, including at Costco gas stations, or there will be hell to pay. When I shop inside Costco, I use my Fidelity® Investment Rewards® American Express® Card to get 2% back on everything. I will need to figure out what Visa card will give me the best cash back at Costco. I hope to achieve 2%. Right now, AFAIK, the closest thing is the Citi® Double Cash Card that gives about 1.99% back. But is that a Visa?