Verizon Visa Card Review: Turn Everyday Spending into Cell Savings
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4.4
Redeeming rewards for phone service or gift cards isn't flashy, and cash back isn't an option. But this card is ideal for Verizon customers looking to slash their monthly bill without much extra effort.
Pros
No annual fee
High rewards rate
Bonus categories
New cardholder bonus offer
No foreign transaction fees
Cons
No cell phone protection
Must be a member/customer
Compare to Other Cards
Annual fee$0 | Annual fee$0 |
Intro APR0% intro APR on Balance Transfers for 18 months | Intro APR0% intro APR for 15 months on purchases and balance transfers |
Recommended Credit Score |
Recommended Credit Score |
Detailed review: Verizon Visa® Card
The Verizon Visa® Card, issued by Synchrony Bank, offers close-to-jaw-dropping rewards in common spending categories for a card with a $0 annual fee. They include 4% back on gas and at grocery stores, 3% back at restaurants and 2% on Verizon purchases.
The generous rates on everyday expenses mean your rewards can add up fast. (Use our calculator below to see for yourself.) The catch? You have to be a Verizon customer.
Verizon Visa® Card: Basics
Card type: Rewards.
Annual fee: $0.
Sign-up bonus: Up to $100 in credit applied over the next 24 monthly wireless bills ($4.17 per month) when you use the card to pay your Verizon bill.
Rewards:
4% back at grocery stores.
4% back at gas stations.
3% back at restaurants, including takeout and delivery.
2% back on Verizon purchases.
1% back on all other purchases.
There's no limit to the rewards you can earn, and rewards don't expire. As long as you remain a Verizon customer and you earn or redeem rewards on the card at least once every 24 months, you can hold onto them as long as you want.
Redemption options: Purchases with the Verizon Visa® Card earn rewards called "Verizon Dollars." Each Verizon Dollar is worth $1 when applied toward:
A new phone or accessories.
Paying your monthly bill for Verizon cell phone service or Fios internet.
Travel booked through Verizon's portal.
Gift cards purchases through Verizon.
Interest rate: The ongoing APR is 18.99%-25.99% Variable APR.
Travel benefits:
Two free TravelPass days per calendar year. TravelPass lets you use your phone outside the U.S. It usually costs $5 a day in Canada and Mexico and $10 a day elsewhere.No foreign transaction fees.
Benefits and perks
Everyday spending turns into cell phone savings
The Verizon Visa® Card is effectively a store-branded Visa card: You can earn rewards anywhere that accepts Visa, but you can redeem those rewards only through Verizon (either for purchases with the carrier itself or for travel bookings or gift cards with the company's loyalty partner). That relative lack of rewards flexibility will undoubtedly turn some people off.
But there's also a key difference from typical store cards. If you have $50 in rewards piled up on a store card, you have to make another purchase at the store to redeem them. If you don't need or want anything from that particular store right now, your rewards are useless. If you have the Verizon Visa® Card, however, you're already paying for Verizon wireless service every single month, so you always have an opportunity to redeem your rewards.
Your Verizon Dollars won't automatically go towards your cell phone bill. You'll have to wait until the bill posts and manually apply the Verizon Dollars to it.
If you were to put all your purchases on the card and then apply your rewards toward your Verizon payment, you could take a decent chunk out of your monthly cell phone bill. Say your household spends $300 a month at grocery stores, $50 on gas, $100 at restaurants and $300 on other expenses that could go on a credit card, and you also use the card to pay your $110 Verizon bill. Every month, you'd earn $22.20 worth of Verizon Dollars, enough to shave more than 20% off your phone bill.
See how you'd do with your own spending:
The card qualifies for autopay discounts
Verizon customers can get a discount of up to $10 a month per account or per line (depending on their plan) if they sign up for autopay and paperless billing. Ordinarily that discount is available only for those who pay their bill from a bank account or with a debit card. Credit card payments aren't usually eligible. But if you autopay with the Verizon Visa® Card, you can get the discount on up to 12 lines, depending on plan.
Automatic account integration
You can't get the Verizon Visa® Card unless you're a Verizon wireless customer with at least one active line on your account (but no more than 12). To even apply, you have to sign in to your Verizon account online. When you're approved, the card is automatically added to your account as a payment option. That makes setting up autopay with the card easy. You're also automatically enrolled in Verizon Up, the carrier's rewards program. That's where you can see your Verizon Dollars balance.
Drawbacks and considerations
Cash back isn't an option
If you like to have the option to redeem your credit card rewards for cash, the Verizon Visa® Card probably isn't for you. Verizon has expanded its redemption options — adding travel and gift cards on top of Verizon purchases — but you can redeem your rewards only through Verizon and nowhere else. If it helps, consider that every dollar saved on your phone bill is a dollar you have available for something else. So it's kind of an indirect cash-back card.
For simple rewards you can use anywhere, consider a card like the Citi Double Cash® Card, which earns 2% cash back on every purchase (1% when you buy, and 1% when you pay it off), or the Capital One Quicksilver Cash Rewards Credit Card, which earns a flat 1.5% cash back on nearly everything and allows you to earn a substantial cash sign-up bonus.
No cell phone protection
Considering that an increasing number of credit cards are offering cell phone protection as a perk if you pay your wireless bill with the card, it's worth noting that the Verizon Visa® Card does not. This isn't exactly surprising, since offering such a perk would undercut Verizon's ability to sell add-on device insurance to customers. Still, if you were hoping your cell phone credit card would protect your cell phone: nope.
This card earns a flat 2% cash back: 1% when you buy something and another 1% when you pay it off. The straightforward structure translates into a high rewards rate on everything. Plus, cash is a reward you can use for anything, not just your phone bill.
How to decide if it's right for you
If you're a Verizon customer, the rewards on the Verizon Visa® Card are hard to beat for a credit card with a $0 annual fee.
Having a cell phone is a necessity for most people, and the Verizon Visa® Card can help Verizon customers reduce cell phone expenses with little effort. But if you want the ability to redeem rewards for cash, a straightforward cash-back credit card might be a better option. This list can help you determine what's the best credit card for your needs.