Best Credit Cards to Use at Amazon

If you regularly give part of your paycheck to Amazon, you can get some of that money back by paying with the right credit card. Naturally, the co-branded Amazon credit cards give shoppers the most consistently high cash-back rates on Amazon purchases. But other cards can offer more flexibility in terms of when and where you can earn cash back. With some strategizing, even infrequent Amazon shoppers can still get a high rate of 5% back on Amazon.

Here are six of the best credit cards to use at Amazon.

Annual fee: $0, but you must be an Amazon Prime member. Membership costs $139 annually but is discounted to $84 per year for eligible EBT and Medicare recipients or $69 per year for students.

Sign-up bonus: Get a $100 Amazon Gift Card instantly upon approval.

• 5% cash back on Amazon.com and Whole Foods Market.

• 2% cash back at restaurants, gas stations and drugstores.

• 1% cash back on all other purchases.

Why we like it for Amazon: If you’re an Amazon Prime member, chances are you’re placing Amazon orders at a fast clip. The Amazon Prime Rewards Visa Signature Card is the best card for the avid Amazon shopper since it gives a generous 5% cash-back rate on Amazon.com. You’ll also earn 5% back at Whole Foods, whether you shop in-store or online at wholefoodsmarket.com, plus 2% back in some other everyday spending categories like restaurants.

Annual fee: $0.

Sign-up bonus: Amazon.com gift cards are sometimes offered.

• 3% cash back on Amazon.com and Whole Foods Market.

• 2% cash back on restaurants, gas stations and drugstores.

• 1% cash back on all other purchases.

Why we like it for Amazon: While this card’s 3% cash-back rate on Amazon orders is lower than the one from the Amazon Prime Rewards Visa Signature Card, it’s still competitive compared with other cash back cards. If you don’t want to pony up for a Prime membership (you can live without same-day shipping, right?) but you’re still a regular Amazon customer, the Amazon Rewards Visa Signature Card may be the best fit.

Annual fee: $0.

Sign-up bonus: Earn a $200 Bonus after you spend $500 on purchases in your first 3 months from account opening.

• 5% cash back on up to $1,500 in combined purchases in bonus categories that change quarterly.

• 5% cash back on travel purchased through Chase.

• 3% cash back on restaurants, including takeout and eligible delivery services.

• 3% cash back on drugstore purchases.

• 1% cash back on all other purchases.

Why we like it for Amazon: The Chase Freedom Flex℠ earns 5% cash back on Amazon purchases, but there’s a catch: you’ll only earn that 5% when Amazon is a quarterly bonus category. Usually the card features Amazon as a bonus category at least once per year, but there’s no guarantee. While it won’t earn 5% at Amazon all the time, it does offer solid permanent rewards on some everyday spending like dining and drugstores. Plus, its flexibility to earn 5% cash back on more categories than just Amazon throughout the year is appealing to many shoppers.

Annual fee: $0.

Sign-up bonus: INTRO OFFER: Unlimited Cashback Match – only from Discover. Discover will automatically match all the cash back you’ve earned at the end of your first year! There’s no minimum spending or maximum rewards. You could turn $150 cash back into $300.

• 5% cash back in rotating quarterly categories on up to $1,500 each quarter (requires activation).

• 1% cash back on all other purchases.

Why we like it for Amazon: The Discover it® Cash Back offers 5% cash back when activated, up to $1,500 each quarter in spending categories that change quarterly (plus 1% cash back on all other purchases). It has featured Amazon as a bonus category consistently every year since 2015 — sometimes, it even appears twice in one year. The Discover it® Cash Back also tends to make Amazon a bonus category in the last quarter of the year, making this card a great choice if you do a lot of holiday shopping on Amazon.

Annual fee: $0.

Sign-up bonus: Earn a $200 cash rewards bonus after spending $1,000 in purchases in the first 3 months.

• Unlimited 2% cash back on any purchase.

Why we like it for Amazon: Wells Fargo Active Cash® Card is an excellent card for purchases from Amazon or anywhere else, for that matter. With no bonus categories to keep track of, earning rewards on your Amazon purchases is as easy as clicking to place your order.  Better yet, you’ll earn that same 2% on the Wells Fargo Active Cash® Card no matter where you shop throughout the year, with no cap or restrictions.

Annual fee: $0.

Sign-up bonus: $200 online cash rewards bonus after you make at least $1,000 in purchases in the first 90 days of account opening.

• 3% cash back in the category of your choice.

• Automatic 2% cash back at grocery stores and wholesale clubs (up to $2,500 in combined choice category/grocery store/wholesale club quarterly purchases).

• Unlimited 1% cash back on all other purchases.

Why we like it for Amazon: The Bank of America® Customized Cash Rewards credit card earns 3% cash back in a category of your choosing, so as long as you select “online shopping,” you’ll be rewarded for purchases on Amazon.com plus many other popular retailers such as Walmart.com and Target.com. The card caps bonus rewards after $2,500 of combined spending in the 3% and 2% categories per quarter. After you hit that limit, you’ll earn 1%.