The Secret Credit Card for Amazon Shopping

We've scoured our best rewards credit cards to find this "secret" credit card for Amazon shoppers. Whether you are an Amazon Prime member or not, you can maximize your savings. One card offers an instant $200 Amazon gift card, and another offers a $300 welcome offer, but you'll have to wait 120 days and $2,000 to unlock that benefit.

Best credit card for Amazon shopping

For those in the know, there are some great credit card options available to squeeze the most out of your Amazon shopping.

US Bank Shopper Cash Rewards Visa (The "Secret" 6% Back Strategy)

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Your first option is the US Bank Shopper Cash Rewards® Visa Signature® card. Why is it a "secret" strategy? Most credit card reviewers don't write about this card because it's not issued by one of the major banks, but it's still a deal. The card offers 6% cash back on the first $1,500 of combined quarterly spending at two big box retailers of your choice each quarter, including Amazon. Other retailers you can choose from include Home Depot, Kohl’s, Lowe’s, Target, Walmart and others. You’ll also earn 3% back (on up to $1,500 in quarterly spending) in a category of your choice — wholesale clubs, gas and EV charging stations, and bills and utilities — and a solid 1.5% on all other spending (most credit cards only offer 1% outside of their maximum-rebate categories).

One benefit of this card is its flexibility. For Prime Day, you can choose to earn 6% cash back at Amazon but then can change retailers afterward depending on where you typically spend the most. Plus, you can earn a $300 bonus after you spend $2,000 in eligible purchases within the first 120 days of account opening. And the $95 annual fee is waived in the first year.

U.S. Bank Shopper Cash Rewards® Visa Signature® Card

<p><strong>Annual fee: $95, waived the first year. <p><strong>Sign-up bonus: $300 back if you spend $2,000 in the first 120 days. <p>This card from U.S. Bank provides an outstanding 6% cash back on the first $1,500 of combined quarterly spending at two retailers you choose. Recently, cardholders could select from 24 major stores, including Amazon.com, Apple, Home Depot, Kohl’s, Lowe’s, Target and Walmart. You also get 3% back on the first $1,500 in quarterly spending in one category you choose; the options are gas and electric-vehicle charging stations, wholesale clubs, and bills and utilities.  <p>Plus, you earn 5.5% back on prepaid travel reservations through the U.S. Bank travel portal and 1.5% on all other spending — a higher rate than the 1% that most cards offer outside their maximum-rebate categories. You can redeem cash back as a statement credit, a prepaid debit card or a deposit into a U.S. Bank account.  <p><strong>Interest rate:  Variable 19.74% to 29.74% APR for purchases and balance transfers.

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Amazon Prime Visa (The 5% Back Strategy)

Option two is, of course, the Amazon Prime Visa credit card, which just raised its instant bonus offer for new cardholders to $200. The card earns an unlimited 5% back at Amazon.com and affiliated stores. It also earns 5% back on Chase Travel purchases, 2% back at gas stations, restaurants, and on local transit and commuting, as well as 1% back on all other purchases. 

You’ll need to be a Prime member, however, to earn cash-back rewards. An Amazon Prime membership costs $14.99 per month or $139 per year. However, Amazon does offer a 30-day free trial if you’re still considering whether an Amazon Prime membership is worth it. 

You’ll also earn the card’s welcome bonus immediately, with no required spending. Upon approval of your credit card application, you’ll instantly receive a $200 Amazon Gift Card loaded into your Amazon account. The card also has no annual credit card fee (apart from the cost of an Amazon Prime membership).  

Prime Visa credit card 

<p>This card from Chase comes with a <a href="https://creditcards.chase.com/cash-back-credit-cards/amazon-prime-rewards" target="_blank">$200 instant intro bonus. As the name suggests, to open the card you’ll need an Amazon Prime subscription. An Amazon Prime membership costs <a href="https://target.georiot.com/Proxy.ashx?tsid=156577&GR_URL=https%3A%2F%2Famazon.com%2Fgp%2Fhelp%2Fcustomer%2Fdisplay.html%3FnodeId%3DG34EUPKVMYFW8N2U%26tag%3Dhawk-future-20%26ascsubtag%3Dhawk-custom-tracking-20" target="_blank">$139 per year or $14.99 per month. Besides the required Prime subscription, the card has <strong>no annual fee.  <p>The card may only be linked to one Amazon account. So, if your household has multiple Amazon accounts, be sure to keep track of which one is linked to the card, or you may forfeit the 5% back on Amazon purchases. <p>For more details, see our article on <a href="https://www.kiplinger.com/personal-finance/credit-cards/Amazon-credit-card-prime-visa">the $200 intro offer and card specs. <p><strong>APR: 20.49% to 29.24% variable for purchases.  <p>See <a href="https://sites.chase.com/services/creatives/pricingandterms.html/content/dam/pricingandterms/LGC59341.html" target="_blank">rates and fees.

Can you pay for Amazon purchases with points?

We'd recommend not using credit card points to pay directly for Amazon purchases. While it may be convenient, you'll usually end up getting a lower value than if you redeemed those points elsewhere. However, according to The Points Guy, "The exception to this rule is the Prime Visa, because you’ll get the same redemption value whether you cash the points out through Amazon or for a statement credit."

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