Costco Visa vs. Sam’s Club Mastercard: How They Differ

Both feature competitive rewards and potentially frustrating downsides. The best option for you depends on where you shop and, possibly, your membership plan.
Melissa Lambarena
By Melissa Lambarena 
Updated
Edited by Kenley Young
Comparing Rewards: Costco vs. Sam's Club credit cards

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If you're fortunate enough to live in an area that offers choices when it comes to wholesale-club shopping, you may have considered applying for one of the following:

Both offer rewards that on certain levels can compete with some of the best cash-back credit cards on the market, especially when it comes to gas and dining — but both cards also have their drawbacks. For one thing, while neither product carries an annual fee, you'll have to be a wholesale club member to qualify for either one, and there is a yearly membership fee for that.

That fee can be worth it, though, depending on your spending habits. Let's take a look at the cards side by side.

How the cards compare
Citibank Costco-Anywhere Visa Card Credit Card
Costco Anywhere Visa® Card by Citi
Apply now

on Citibank's application

Rates & Fees
Synchrony Bank Sams Club Mastercard Credit Card
Sam's Club® Mastercard®
Annual fee

$0, but you'll need a Costco membership, which does have a yearly fee.

$0, but you'll need a Sam's Club membership, which does have a yearly fee.

Membership plan costs
  • Gold Star membership: $60 annually.

  • Gold Star Executive membership: $120 annually.

  • Club membership: $50 annually.

  • Plus membership: $110 annually.

Sign-up bonus

None.

Club members: Get a $30 statement credit when you open a new account and use it to make $30 in Sam’s Club purchases within 30 days. (Offer may vary for Plus members.)

Rewards on warehouse club purchases
  • Gold Star membership: 2% back at Costco and Costco.com.

  • Gold Star Executive membership: Up to 4% back on eligible Costco purchases (2% back with the card, plus 2% back from the membership tier). The 2% from the membership tier is capped at $1,000 in rewards annually.

  • Club membership: 1% back at Sam's Club and samsclub.com.

  • Plus membership: Up to 5% back on eligible purchases (3% back with the card, plus 2% back from the membership tier). The 2% back from the membership tier is capped at $500 in rewards annually.

Rewards on gas/EV charging

4% cash back on gas and EV charging purchases (both at Costco and other eligible gas stations) on up to $7,000 in spending a year, then 1% back.

5% cash back at EV charging stations and eligible gas stations worldwide (including stations at Sam’s Club), on up to $6,000 spent per year, then 1%.

Rewards on dining

3% back.

3% back.

Rewards on travel

3% back.

1% (as of January 2021, Sam's Club no longer offers elevated rewards on travel).

Rewards on all other spending

1% back.

1% back.

Redemptions

Receive a certificate for the previous year's reward in February, redeemable for cash or merchandise.

Rewards are redeemable for cash, a statement credit toward your balance or merchandise at Sam's Club (in store or online).

Spending limits

No caps on most rewards earned. Gas rewards are an exception at $7,000 in spending per year.

Rewards overall are capped at $5,000 per year.

Still not sure?

Strengths of the Costco Anywhere Visa® Card by Citi

Citibank Costco-Anywhere Visa Card Credit Card
NerdWallet rating 

Rewards are straightforward and uncomplicated

While both cards put a cap on gas rewards, the Costco Anywhere Visa® Card by Citi has far fewer of those kinds of rules and limits to keep track of:

1. Annual rewards are unlimited

The Costco card imposes no limit on the total amount of rewards you can earn in a year. But for the Sam's Club® Mastercard®, it's $5,000.

2. Store rewards are decent for all members and easy to understand

The Costco card earns a flat 2% at Costco and Costco.com — not outstanding for a store card, but not terrible. And if you're an "Executive" member, you can double that rate to 4%.

With the Sam's Club® Mastercard®, you could earn as much as 5% back on Sam's Club shopping, which is excellent — or as little as 1% back, which is quite poor. And within that rewards range, there are all kinds of rules to keep in mind, especially for higher-tier "Plus" members:

  • The card's 3% rate applies to eligible in-store and online Sam's purchases, but the additional 2% back via your membership is for in-store shopping only.

  • The 3% back from the card is unlimited (up to the annual $5,000 rewards cap), but the 2% back from your membership tier is subject to a separate cap of $500 in rewards a year.

  • The 2% back from your membership tier is also subject to a $2,000 overall "maximum balance" at any given time — meaning that once you hit that threshold, you stop accruing cash back until you "reduce" that balance by redeeming rewards.

3. Travel is a bonus category

With the Costco Anywhere Visa® Card by Citi, you can earn 3% cash back on your next vacation. You can also combine that rate with value on Costco vacation packages.

The Sam's Club® Mastercard® eliminated travel as a bonus category in January 2021. You'll earn only a 1% base rate on travel purchases now.

🤓Nerdy Tip

Reward rates aside, both cards travel well. Neither charges a foreign transaction fee, and both run on payment networks that are widely accepted all over the globe (Visa for the Costco card, Mastercard for the Sam's Club card).

Strengths of the Sam's Club® Mastercard®

Synchrony Bank Sams Club Mastercard Credit Card
NerdWallet rating 

1. Potentially superior rewards for some members

For Sam's Club members at the Plus level, the Sam's Club® Mastercard® is probably an unbeatable deal. At that tier, the card earns up to 5% back on eligible Sam's Club shopping — a stellar rate and in line with what some of the best store cards on the market offer.

With the Costco Anywhere Visa® Card by Citi, the normal rate on Costco shopping is just 2% back, and at best 4% back.

It's also worth noting that, as of June 2022, the Sam's Club® Mastercard® was offering a sign-up bonus, while the Costco card was not.

2. Higher rewards on gas and EV charging purchases

The Sam's Club® Mastercard® out-earns the Costco card on gas and EV purchases.

Yes, the Costco card gives you a higher potential rewards cap in that category. But in reality, unless you're a long-haul trucker or business owner with a fleet of vehicles, you're unlikely to come anywhere close to either card's cap. The average U.S. household spends roughly $2,000 per year on gas.

So if, like most, the cap is irrelevant for you, then the card with the higher rate can be more valuable. And that's the Sam's Club card.

3. Less costly membership options, potentially less stringent credit requirements

You can join Sam's Club for $50 and still enjoy good benefits with the Sam's Club® Mastercard®, including its excellent rewards on gas and EV charging.

To join Costco and take advantage of what its co-branded credit card offers, you'll owe a minimum of $60. And its higher-tier membership level is also more expensive than the premium Sam's Club counterpart. And while you'll need excellent credit (FICO scores of at least 720) to qualify for the Costco Anywhere Visa® Card by Citi, you may be able to qualify for the Sam's Club® Mastercard® with only good credit (FICO scores of at least 690).

Find the right credit card for you.

Whether you want to pay less interest or earn more rewards, the right card's out there. Just answer a few questions and we'll narrow the search for you.

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