AARP Credit Card from Chase Reviews - What Is It?

DO NOT USE AARP Credit Card from Chase!!! You Must Read This Review!
Fully Researched: Price, User Feedback and More!

The AARP Card from Chase is a new rewards credit card that claims to offer industry-leading rewards on definite types of net purchases. It is strange but you can seldom see this card among the best-in-class cards available today. What is good about this credit card is that anyone can apply for it, with no need to be a member of the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP). The company behind this card advises to view it as a cash rewards card, not an AARP card. It is not so popular though, just like the company behind it. If you are searching for a brand credit card, you should look elsewhere. This review has been created to help you make a wise decision whether this card will be a good addition to your financial life of not. We will take a look at the perks it provides, short- and long-term benefits, as well as possible drawbacks it may have. However, you will need to master the ability to make this credit card work for you well. In this review, you will find details on the rates and fees linked to this card. At the end of this review, you will find an easy-to-read section on its advantages and disadvantages, as well as find a recommendation.

Customer Reviews - Does AARP Credit Card from Chase Really Work?

Before we take a look at the customer reviews about their experience of using the AARP Credit Card from Chase let us take a look at its short-term benefits described on the official website. First of all, it offers $200 in cash rewards if you spend $500 within the first three months of owning the card. It should be noted that the deadline starts the day you are approved, not the day you get the card. We found out that you will get 20,000 points if you manage to hit the spending limit. You can convert these points to cash that can be used as a statement credit. You can also transfer the points to a savings or checking account held by a financial institution in the USA. There are some other ways of using your points, but we will discuss those a little bit later. The next short-term perk of this card is 0% interest on balance transfers for twelve months, which means that you will not have to pay any interest even if you don't pay your balance transfers off in full right away. But you will be charged interest on any balances after twelve months.

What long-term benefits does the AARP Credit Card from Chase promise to provide? This credit card has two cash bonuses: 3% cash back on gas and restaurants. It means that for every dollar you spend at a gas station or a restaurant, Chase will give you three points. One point is one cent, so, whenever you spend a dollar on a bonus category, you will earn $0.03. Thus, you will get $1 back for every $33 spent on restaurant or gas. According to the data provided by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the average American family spends $3,000 eating out and about $2,000 on gas per year. $5,000 will give you an opportunity to get 15,000 points ($150 in cash-back rewards). So, the 3% rewards rate on gas and restaurants is pretty nice considering the fact that you can get $150 just by using your credit card. But you will need to use it all year round regularly. Unfortunately, Chase doesn't control business codes associated with the rewards with the AARP Credit Card from Chase, so there is high risk that some restaurant or gas purchases may not provide you with rewards. This can be very disappointing. According to the Chase's fine print, the following businesses don't get the 3% gas and restaurant rewards: boat marinas, truck stops; oil and propane distributors; some merchants selling food in hotels, stadiums, and casinos; as well as home heating companies.

After reading the AARP credit card rewards program, we realized that one can use rewards points for a number of other things, such as gift cards, AARP memberships, travel and merchandise bought through the AARP site and AARP's Rewards for Good shopping portal. As many cardholders report, prices on merchandise are much higher than those you can find on BestBuy.com, Amazon, and other popular stores. We called the Rewards for Good program and were informed that only four categories of purchases allow you to use as many points as you wish in order to pay for your purchases: local offers, auction, sweepstakes, and the Daily Deal. However, many people don't see any advantage to buying things on their website. BestBuy and Amazon are so much better for shopping. It is necessary to mention that every time you buy anything with your AARP credit card at a restaurant, Chase will donate $0.10 to the Drive to End Hunger via the AARP Foundation. It is high time to take a look at what real cardholders think about using this card.

"AARP CreditCard from Chase is not a good deal. Even though it is EMV chip equipped, there is 3% foreign transaction fee. I have contacted their customer service several times and I am not satisfied with my experience. US-based telephone representatives are available during definite day hours only. That's inconvenient in some situations."

"When I was to apply for the AARP credit card from Chase I learnt that it requires applicants to have good credit. I could not be approved. But the official website claims that anyone can get the card. That's a lie! Why are you lying to your potential clients? Shame on you!"

"I had to way for two weeks before I was approved for the AARP Credit Card from Chase. I did not even hope to receive a response at that moment, to tell you the truth, and almost forgot about my application. Not I regret getting this card. Returned and late payments come with high fees of up to $35. Cash advances and balance transfers also come with fees. The customer service leaves much to be desired."

My Final Summary

The AARP Credit Card from Chase has a number of disadvantages. The biggest drawback is that its low-end APR is rather high and that clients with good to excellent credit scores could get a better interest rate than others. Another significant drawback is that for getting this card AARP membership is required. This card has a balance transfer fee, so you will need to pay 3% of the amount that has been transferred or $5, no matter which amount of money has been transferred. There is no annual fee, which is an advantage. This credit card allows you to earn 3% cash back at gas stations and restaurants and 1% cash back on other purchases. Spending $500 within the first three months of getting the card from Chase account will allow you to earn $200 cash back. If you are looking for a card with a big sign-up bonus and high rewards, this card is definitely not for you. But if you spend a lot of money on gas and restaurants, you may find this card useful. Summing everything up, the AARP credit card from Chase cannot be recommended.

AARP Credit Card from Chase Pricing and Rates

Your AARP credit card has the following interest rates and fees. Balance Transfer APR is 0% for twelve months, afterwards it is 17.24-23.99%. Purchase APR is 17.24-23.99%. Foreign transaction fee is 3%. There is no annual fee. Late/returned payment is up to $35. One big drawback we noticed wth this card is that the low-end APR is 1.25% higher than most other Chase credit cards. For instance, the Chase Freedom Unlimited has a low-end APR of 15.99%. If you have any questions, you can contact Chase customer support service by calling at 1-800-432-3117, connect on Twitter (@ChaseSupport) or send an email from your account.