Pros
- No membership fees
- 0% intro APR on purchases
- 0% intro APR on balance transfers
- High rewards rate
Cons
- No initial rewards bonus
- Balance transfer fee
- High regular APR
- Foreign fee
AARP Rewards Credit Card
Transfer Fee: 5% (min $5)
- Earn 3% Cash Back on Gas and Drug Store purchases (excluding Target and Walmart); 2% Cash Back on Medical expenses; 1% Cash Back on all other purchases.
Rewards Details
- Earn 3% Cash Back on Gas and Drug Store purchases (excluding Target and Walmart); 2% Cash Back on Medical expenses; 1% Cash Back on all other purchases.
- There’s no limit to the amount of rewards you can earn. And they never expire as long as your account is open and in good standing.
- Redeem rewards for an AARP membership for yourself or as a gift. Options start at $16 in rewards.
- You can redeem rewards for cash back and more at BarclaysUS.com.
Additional Info
- 0% Introductory APR for 18 months on balance transfers made within 45 days of account opening.
- Barclays will donate $10 for every new account; and 1% of eligible purchases to AARP Foundation.
- More Details & Reviews About AARP Rewards Credit Card
Is the AARP Rewards Credit Card Worth It?
The AARP Rewards Credit Card is worth it for people with good credit or better who frequently make gas, drugstore or medical purchases. It offers 3% cash back on gas and drug store purchases, 2% on medical expenses and 1% on all other purchases, and it has a $0 annual fee.
You can temporarily avoid interest on debt transferred to this card. It has an introductory APR of 0% for 18 months on balance transfers. The regular APR is 21.99% - 29.99% (V).
Keep in mind that even though the card is associated with AARP, you don’t actually have to be an AARP member to apply for it. However, you can redeem your rewards to pay for an AARP membership for yourself or someone else, if you want.
What You Need to Do to Make the AARP Rewards Credit Card Worthwhile
To make the AARP Rewards Credit Card worthwhile, you should pay your balance in full each month by the due date. The card’s APR is expensive, at 21.99% - 29.99% (V), and you don’t want interest to take away from the value you get from rewards. The one exception to this is during the card’s introductory APR of 0% for 18 months on balance transfers, which can help you pay down existing debt interest-free.
AARP Rewards Credit Card Highlights
- Up To 3% Cash Back On Purchases: You will earn 3% cash back on purchases made at gas stations and drugstores, 2% back on medical expenses and 1% back on everything else.
- No Annual Fee: Paying an annual fee can make sense for high-spenders who can more than make up for what they pay with rewards earnings. But forgoing this burden also saves you $22.29 relative to the average credit card, according to WalletHub’s latest Credit Card Landscape Report. It may also allow you to keep your account open for longer than you would otherwise, thus saving you undue hassle and benefitting your credit score.
AARP Rewards Credit Card Lowlights
- 3% Foreign-Transaction Fee: This aspect of the offer is a major bummer for retirees who suffer from wanderlust that can’t be satisfied by domestic travel alone. If that describes you, you’ll want to leave your AARP Rewards Credit Card at home before heading abroad in order to avoid spending 3% more than necessary on every purchase that you make. A no-foreign-transaction-fee credit card, in contrast, will save you 1.56% relative to the average card, while enabling you to save up to 9% on currency conversion.
- 5% (min $5) Balance-Transfer Fee: You don’t want to transfer a balance to the AARP Rewards Card solely because of this 5% (min $5) transfer fee. People with good credit can get longer 0% terms on balance transfers for less money, and it’s as simple as that.
Other Things to Consider About the AARP Rewards Credit Card
- Redemption Variety & Restrictions: The cash that you earn with the AARP Card can be redeemed for a statement credit, a bank-account deposit, gift cards or merchandise. Redemption also requires a minimum of $16.
- Below Average Regular APR: A 21.99% (V) interest rate isn’t cheap in absolute terms, but it is below the 24.12% average for credit cards that require good credit for approval. That’s nice to know in case you ever slip up, but it’s still best to approach this card with the mindset that you will always pay your bill in full.
- Percentage Of All Purchases Donated To Charity: AARP will donate $10 for every new account to the AARP foundation, along with 1% of eligible purchases. This is no way diminishes your ability to earn rewards, so it’s nothing but a nice touch.
- 24/7 Live Customer Service: Anytime you have a question about your account, day or night, you’ll be able to speak with a real, live customer-service representative. That’s always nice to know.
AARP Rewards Credit Card vs. The Competition
Options are an important part of making your wallet happy, so we took the liberty of comparing the AARP Rewards Credit Card to other leading credit cards in terms of six fundamentally important categories. Hopefully this will clarify the best choice for your needs, whether they involve rewards or financing. You can check out the results below.
WINNER | |||
---|---|---|---|
annual fee$0 | annual fee$0 | annual fee$95 | annual fee$0 |
Purchase Intro APR0% for 18 months | Purchase Intro APRN/A | Purchase Intro APRN/A | Purchase Intro APR0% for 15 months |
transfer intro apr0% for 18 months Transfer Fee: 5% (min $5) | transfer intro apr0% for 18 months Transfer Fee: 3% intro fee ($5 min) for each transfer in first 4 months, after that 5% ($5 min) for each transfer | transfer intro aprN/A | transfer intro apr0% for 15 months Transfer Fee: Either $5 or 3% of the amount of each transfer, whichever is greater in the first 60 days (5%, min $5 after) |
Regular APR21.99% - 29.99% (V) | Regular APR19.24% - 29.24% (V) | Regular APR19.99% - 29.99% (V) | Regular APR20.49% - 29.24% (V) |
rewards rate
| rewards rate
| rewards rate
| rewards rate
|
bonus offer N/A | bonus offer Earn $200 cash back after you spend $1,500 on purchases in the first 6 months of account opening. This bonus offer will be fulfilled as 20,000 ThankYou® Points, which can be redeemed for $200 cash back. | bonus offer Enjoy a one-time bonus of 75,000 miles once you spend $4,000 on purchases within 3 months from account opening, equal to $750 in travel | bonus offer N/A |
SponsoredApply Now | SponsoredApply Now | SponsoredApply Now |
AARP Rewards Credit Card Review Methodology
This AARP Rewards Credit Card review is based on WalletHub’s proprietary 100-point credit card rating system. By using a consistent methodology to evaluate the AARP Rewards Credit Card and all other cards, WalletHub’s credit card experts make it easy for people to compare their options and find the best credit cards for their needs.
The WalletHub rating system uses 16 key metrics grouped into seven categories: Fees, Rewards, Two-year Cost, Interest Rates, Approval Requirements, Special Features, and Reviews. Each metric has a maximum number of points allocated to it, based on the metric’s importance as determined by our editors. The points are added up to create an overall rating for the AARP Rewards Credit Card out of a maximum of 100 points, which is then converted to a 5-point scale.
Ratings for each category reflect how close AARP Rewards Credit Card is to WalletHub’s definition of a 5-star credit card, which is based on market conditions and what we believe are reasonable terms. We compare AARP Rewards Credit Card to that standard to give a numerical approximation of how reasonable and competitive its terms are compared to other cards.
To learn more about how WalletHub rates credit card offers, check out our full credit card review methodology.
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