Customer Experience Even For Non
You don’t have to actually have the card to benefit from it. If you apply, and are not approved, you may be asked to enroll in Goldman Sachs’ “Path to Apple Card” program to improve your finances. The program tracks your progress through several “customized” steps such as making on-time bill payments, reducing overall debt levels, and resolving any past due accounts. After successful completion of the plan, you will be invited to reapply for the card.
How Do You Earn Rewards With The Apple Card
When you make certain types of purchases with your Apple Card, you earn Daily Cash. These cash back rewards are applied to your account every day, and you can decide whether to use your Daily Cash to make purchases, send money to friends or family or make a one-time payment toward your Apple Card balance.
Heres how the reward structure works:
- Earn 3 percent cash back when you buy Apple products using Apple Pay.
- Earn 3 percent cash back when you make purchases with select retailers, including Duane Reade, Exxon, Mobil, Nike, T-Mobile, Uber, Uber Eats and Walgreens, using Apple Pay.
- Earn 2 percent cash back when you use Apple Pay to make purchases elsewhere.
- Earn 1 percent cash back on all other purchases.
Cardholders who apply through Jan. 31, 2021, can earn $50 bonus Daily Cash by opening an account and spending $50 or more in purchases within your first 30 days at Exxon or Mobil gas stations or convenience stores via your Apple Card in the Apple Pay app . Apple often gives new cardholders the opportunity to earn $50 bonus Daily Cash, so make sure you take advantage of it.
Nered With Goldman Sachs
Apples classic splashy marketing touts that this card is not created by a bank, but it is certainly backed by a bank.
Goldman Sachs leads the charge behind the Apple Card curtain. Apple points out that this is the first consumer credit card that Goldman Sachs has issued.
Goldman Sachs has not had a sound reputation for ethical banking methods. The bank has been in the media for two former executives getting caught up in a multibillion-dollar fraud. This could deter folks from signing up for the card.
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Is Financing Your Phone With The Apple Card Worth It
In many cases, it can be a good idea to finance your new iPhone with the Apple Card. Not only will you earn 3% cash back on your purchase, but you can also save on interest charges and pay off the phone over time.
However, while this plan is great if you are already interested in the Apple Card, there are other financing options available with similar terms. Make sure the card is right for you beyond that purchase before you sign up.
Editorial Disclaimer
The editorial content on this page is based solely on the objective assessment of our writers and is not driven by advertising dollars. It has not been provided or commissioned by the credit card issuers. However, we may receive compensation when you click on links to products from our partners.
Emily Sherman is a senior editor at CreditCards.com, focusing on product news and recommendations. She is also one of the founders of To Her Credit, a biweekly series of financial advice by women, for women. When she’s not writing about credit cards, she’s putting her own points and miles to use planning her next big vacation.
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Other Iphone Financing Options
In order to finance a purchase with an Apple Card, you must either be a current cardholder or apply for one when you go to make your purchase. For some, the idea of another credit card account might be a turn-off even if you are looking for alternative financing options to pay over time.
The Apple Card offers a good rewards rate for fans of Apple Pay and heavy Apple spenders, but it doesnt make sense for everyone. Plus, theres no guarantee youll be approved for the Apple Card. Luckily, Apple still offers several other payment plans for non-cardholders.
See related: Apple card approval odds and reasons for denial
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Are Apple Cards Capable Of Building Credit
Like any credit card, the Apple Card makes it possible to improve credit when used responsibly over an extended period of time. Some advocates argue that it’s actually easier to improve credit with Apple due to the functionality of the app, which does a better job of tracking and reporting on spending habits.
How To Maximize Your Rewards
Maximizing rewards with the Apple Card is all about strategic spending. First, you’ll want to use the card to pay for any Apple purchases you plan to make, including things like recurring subscription services. This will get you that juicy 3% Daily Cash rewards rate.
Next, you can continue earning 3% Daily Cash by using your card at that short list of partner merchants mentioned above. If you spend $20 a day on gas from Exxon Mobile or items from Walgreens, for example, that’s $219 a year you could pocket.
Using your card with Apple Pay everywhere else is the third way to maximize rewards, scoring you that cash back at the 2% rate.
What you might want to consider, however, is skipping using this card at merchants or websites that don’t accept Apple Pay. For example, if you regularly buy groceries from a gourmet grocery in your neighborhood that doesn’t take mobile payments you might be better off with a card that pays 2% or 3% back at supermarkets instead.
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How Does It Work
Apple designed their card for use with Apple pay. The Apple card works similarly to traditional cards, meaning that you can use it with other debit or credit cards in the Wallet app. You can also enjoy other benefits like setting the Apple Card as a default payment method where you can use it for online and in-store purchases.
Will The Apple Card Be The Best Credit Card For Apple Purchases
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Apple has a history of changing the game it could be argued that the iPhone alone changed life as we know it. But will the forthcoming Apple Card have the same large-scale impact in the world of payments and credit cards? Even if some of the features of the card, such as daily rewards and seamless app integration, eventually become credit card standards, will the Apple Card be the best card to use for actual Apple purchases?
The answer may surprise you.
While the Apple Card wont be available until summer 2019, Apple has released the earnings structure: 3% cash back on Apple purchases, 2% cash back on all purchases made via Apple Pay and 1% cash back on other physical card purchases, all with no annual fee.
Getting 3% cash back on Apple purchases may sound good, but it isnt abnormally great and certainly isnt a ground-breaking amount for a card with no annual fee.
But just like the Uber Visa is not the most rewarding card for Uber purchases, the Apple Card at 3% back isnt always going to be the best card to use for Apple purchases for a couple of reasons.
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How Much Can I Earn Using The Apple Card
Apple has not put a limit on how much you can earn through Daily Cashyet. Its possible things could change down the road, but the Daily Cash categories make it more lucrative than your standard 1% cash back cards.
The money you can earn when you use the Apple Card will depend on two things:
For comparison, lets see how much you could earn if you spend $1,000 monthly using the Apple Card. Well assume $250 of that spending will be in the 2% and 3% cash-back categories respectively.
- $500 a month x 1% x 12 months = $60
- $250 a month x 2% x 12 months = $60
- $250 a month x 3% x 12 months = $90
- Annual cash back on $12,000 annual spend = $210
If you are a premium spender and spend at least $2,000 monthly using the Apple Card, your cash-back amounts change.
- $1,000 a month x 1% x 12 months = $120
- $500 a month x 2% x 12 months = $120
- $500 a month x 3% x 12 months = $180
- Annual cash back on $24,000 annual spend = $420
In both scenarios, these cash back amounts are not to be overlooked but they dont necessarily stand out against competitor cards, like the Chase Freedom Flex card.
The Apple Card’s Fees
The Apple Card is one of the few cards on the market that has no fees whatsoever. There are no annual fees, no foreign transaction fees and no late payment fees.
That said, you can still incur interest charges if you don’t pay your bill in full every month. The current variable APR is 10.99% to 21.99% based on your creditworthiness, which is pretty similar to other cards.
Unfortunately, this card doesn’t offer any interest-free financing options, so if you use it to pay for big ticket purchases, such as a new iPhone 11, you’ll want to pay the balance in full so you don’t incur interest.
The Chase Freedom Unlimited® is a no-fee card that offers a 0% APR on new purchases and balance transfers for the first 15 months from account opening
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You Want Travel Rewards
Dreaming of a big sign-up bonus that can net you a free flight? The Apple Card doesn’t offer that. A travel rewards card can, though. The $0-annual-fee Bank of America® Travel Rewards credit card, for example, earns 1.5 points per dollar on all purchases, not to mention a plum of a sign-up bonus. If youre willing to pay the $95 annual fee, the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card earns bonus rewards in a variety of popular spending categories, including travel and dining. There’s a great sign-up bonus, too. Points are worth more when redeemed for travel through the Chase portal, and you can also transfer your points to multiple airline and hotel rewards programs.
» MORE: NerdWallet’s best travel rewards credit cards
The Apple Card One Year Later
The Apple Card launched with the iPhone user in mind rewards were geared toward Apple purchases and account management was exclusively from eligible Apple devices. But as time went on, the Apple Card adjusted its rewards program and account features. Here’s what’s changed over the past year.
Rewards
The Apple Card originally launched with 3% cash back on goods or services purchased directly from Apple , 2% cash back on Apple Pay purchases and 1% cash back on all other purchases made with the physical card.
Since launch, Apple continues to add new merchants that offer 3% cash back when you use your Apple Card via Apple Pay. New additions include: Uber, UberEats, Walgreens, Duane Reade, T-Mobile, Nike, Exxon and Mobil gas stations and Panera Bread.
Welcome bonus
At launch, and for a while after, the Apple Card didn’t have a welcome bonus offer. This was a setback of the card, especially since so many rewards cards offer bonuses. This past summer, Apple offered a limited-time welcome bonus worth $50 after spending $50 at Walgreens . While the bonus essentially paid for a $50 Walgreens purchase, it lacked the appeal of a traditional offer that lets you earn rewards for spending anywhere. There is no current bonus offer for the Apple Card.
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% Cash Back Using Apple Pay
If you already use Apple Pay all the time, or you could easily commit to it, youll love this part of the Apple Card offer. The 2% cash back that you will earn using the Apple Card through Apple Pay is nearly double the market average, and a growing number of retailers accept Apple Pay. That makes the card worth using for more than just Apple-related spending.
But if you dont plan on using Apple Pay much, that alone could tip the scales in favor of other rewards credit card offers.
This Card Is Right For You If:
The Apple Card can be a smart choice if you’re building or rebuilding your credit, because its benefits compare favorably to other credit cards for consumers with fair credit. The fact that it explains how much interest you’ll pay based on your payment amount also makes it useful if you’re new to credit cards.
Anyone who has good or excellent credit, meaning a FICO® Score of at least 670, is better off looking elsewhere.
With a credit score in that category, you can qualify for some of the best credit cards, and the Apple Card doesn’t make that list. It’s a solid card, but if you shop around, you could find plenty of cards with higher cash back rates, sign-up bonuses, and/or more valuable 0% intro APR offers.
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Apple Card Review: How A Credit Card Can Actually Be Different
I never thought I’d be sitting here writing a review of a credit card. I should have seen the writing on the wall back when Apple Pay first launched. Apple was headed for something bigger than just a peer-to-peer payment service. Here we are today, five years later, drooling over that titanium beauty we all want in our wallets as much as we want an iPhone in our pockets. With all the hype and all the marketing that comes along with Apple Card, it really still is just a credit card, after all. So what makes it so special?
Apple Card
12.99% – 23.99%
Bottom line: It’s odd reviewing a credit card, but the truth is, Apple Card really is something different.
- A credit card to match their Apple lifestyle
- Immediate ability to pay off the balance right from their iPhone
- Fast Daily Cash reward payouts
- Constant interaction with their credit card activities
- Reminder alerts to pay bills
- A deeper understanding of what paying off a balance means
Is The Apple Card Right For You
If you already use Apple Pay for the majority of your purchases, the Apple Card might be a good choice for you. If you dont use Apple Pay and dont plan on using Apple Pay in the future, the Apple Card wont be as good of a fit and you might want to consider a different cash back rewards card instead.
Ultimately, the Apple Card is best for people who are excited about using mobile wallets and who already make a lot of purchases with Apple and its selected retailers. However, since the Apple Card accepts applicants with fair credit and gives people who were initially declined the opportunity to improve their credit score and apply again, the Apple Card might also be a good option for people who want to use a credit card to help build their credit.
If you are interested in the Apple Card, apply and see what happens. If your application gets declined, you might be able to use the Path to Apple Card program to reapply successfully in the future. If your application gets accepted, remember to use Apple Pay for as many purchases as possible to maximize your Daily Cash and take advantage of everything the Apple Card has to offer.
The information about the Apple Card has been collected independently by Bankrate.com. The card details have not been reviewed or approved by the card issuer.
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What Is The Apple Card
The Apple Card was introduced in March 2019 and launched on August 20th that same year in the United States. With this new product, Apple promises that it has completely reinvented the traditional . All cardholder information is available on their Apple devices and is easy to understand. Our American neighbours can apply for approval in less than two minutes without affecting their credit rating.
Initial Application: Speedy But Disappointing
I’m sure you’ve already heard about how fast the application process is â and it is. From start to finish, including my acceptance of the offer, it took about three minutes. The actual wait time to be approved was about 30 seconds. It’s so fast that it is almost worrisome.
What I mean is, it’s much easier to apply for an Apple Card than it’s ever been for me to apply for a credit card, ever. There is no paper form to fill out and send in. No website to go to and enter all of your information. No store to visit to talk to someone in-person. You don’t even have to manually enter your basic contact details if they’re already set up in Apple Pay.
The danger is in just how easy it is. It’s like drunk dialing your ex. It sounds like a smart idea when you’re feeling good, but will you still feel that way in the morning? You don’t even have to get out of your PJs to say “hello” to a new line of credit. The access is intoxicating.
The exactly five steps it took me to apply for an Apple Card turned into a line of credit offer from Goldman Sachs in the amount of $8,500 at an annual percentage rate of 17.99% .
That sounds about right, but it’s not fantastic. Apple Card didn’t suddenly become the only credit card I’ll ever use because the APR is so dang low. It’s almost exactly the same as the APR for two other credit cards I have. It’s not high. I think it makes sense in the context of my current cash to debt ratio. I did wish, however, my APR would be closer to 12.99.
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