Although this card has its strengths for Walmart customers, it has several drawbacks that make it a poor choice for everyday cardholders who want a simple, hassle-free cash back card.
Welcome offer: Requires heavy spending to remain competitive
You can earn 5 percent cash back on purchases in Walmart stores for the first 12 months when using your card with Walmart Pay, which is only 3 percent more than your card’s ongoing rate for the same purchases. And if you shop online at Walmart.com, this welcome offer is nearly valueless since it matches your ongoing cash back rate for online purchases on the retailer’s website.
Standard welcome offers on comparable cash back cards hover around $200 in value and require you to spend anywhere from $500 to $3,000 to earn. The Walmart Rewards Mastercard has a welcome offer that doesn’t place a ceiling on your cash bonus and doesn’t have a spending requirement to earn it. You can spend as little or as much as you please in stores to earn 5 percent back, but you’ll need to spend heavily to match the $200 value of competing offers.
To make this offer competitive, you’ll need to spend $6,700 or more in-store at Walmart. At this spending amount, you’ll get $335 of cash back, earned at a rate of 5 percent. Without the extra 3 percent the welcome offer, provides, you’d only earn about $134 for spending the same amount at a cash back rate of 2 percent for in-store Walmart purchases.
No intro APR: Interest can accrue early on
Many of the best cash back cards come with introductory APR offers for either balance transfers or new purchases. Several of these cards have offers for both, letting cardholders curb interest until the offer term ends. The Walmart Rewards Mastercard doesn’t have any intro APR offer, meaning your balance will accrue interest at the card’s regular APR if you carry a balance.
Lacking an intro APR isn’t necessarily a glaring drawback on most cash back cards, but it’s a larger drawback on this card because of how cardholders might take advantage of its welcome offer. You can maximize this card’s rewards potential with its boosted cash back welcome offer for the first year by earning an additional 3 percent on in-store purchases for a total of 5 percent back. It would be much easier to squeeze value out of that welcome offer if you had an intro APR to help you keep your balance low, especially if you plan on racking up large charges to make the most of your in-store cash back rate for the first year.
Perks: Limited perks compared to similar cards
The Walmart Rewards Mastercard doesn’t have any rewarding perks or benefits. Several issuers like American Express, Citi and Chase include solid perks on their rewards cards, such as statement credits and travel protections. Cards from these issuers have various cash back and rewards rates, and may not be great options for Walmart purchases, but different perks will appeal to different cardholders.
Of course, if you’re a Walmart regular, the Walmart Mastercard can be a great choice. However, if you don’t shop at Walmart, you should look at other cards because they may have perks that appeal to your spending habits.