Apple Card Credit Card: Limited-Time $250 Welcome Offer

Apple has launched a new signup promotion: if you open the card and purchase AirPods Pro 3, you can earn up to $250 in Apple Cash. The requirements are a bit cumbersome, though: you need to make 10 purchases each month to earn $25, for up to 10 months total. The offer ends on April 30, 2027.

• Offer link

There is also the standard $75 signup bonus that has been available for a while. You only need to make one purchase within 30 days of account opening, making this the easiest option.

• Apple Card $75 application link

Apple Card Overview

Features

• A credit card designed for iPhone: You can use this card directly in Apple Pay, view transactions in real time, and even contact customer service through Messages on your iPhone.
• Easy-to-understand spending: Purchases are automatically categorized, with monthly and annual spending charts generated for you.
• Daily cash back posting: Cash back earned each day is automatically added to Apple Cash or your Apple Card balance. Transactions post quickly, and rewards also arrive very fast. The minimum cash back is $0.01; even if you earn less than $0.01, you will still receive $0.01. You can use it directly through Apple Pay, transfer it back to a checking account, or send it instantly to a debit card (for a fee).
• No extra fees and low interest: This card has no annual fee, no late payment fee, no cash advance fee, no over-limit fee, and no foreign transaction fee. It also uses relatively low interest rates, and missing one payment should not cause your APR to spike dramatically.
• New security and privacy system: Your card number is stored in the Apple Pay chip, with dynamic security codes generated automatically. Apple itself does not collect your shopping information.
• Titanium physical card: The physical card is made of titanium and has no card number, no CVV, and no expiration date printed on it. If needed, those details are generated digitally.
• Virtual card number: You can link it to other third-party payment systems such as PayPal, Google Pay, and Wechat. It can be used repeatedly over time, but if you manually renew the virtual card number, you will need to re-link it everywhere. At the moment, purchases made outside Apple and Apple-related ecosystem apps earn only 1% cash back when using the virtual card number.
• The physical card weighs about 15g, a bit heavier than a typical metal card.
• Works with shopping portals: Most shopping portals do not separately support Apple Card, though a few merchants such as Nike.com do. If you want to stack with a portal, you may need to use your virtual card number for the purchase.
• The card changes color by spending category, with seven total colors that can appear together proportionally. After you pay it off, it returns to white. We may write a separate hands-on review later; it is pretty fun to use, though the cash back is fairly average.
• Log in online directly: Previously, you could only log in through your iPhone or iPad to view transactions, make payments, and download statements. Now you can do those things online as well.
• Path to Apple Card: If you apply for Apple Card and are denied because your credit score is not high enough, you may be automatically enrolled in the Path to Apple Card program. Apple will periodically send tips to help improve your credit, and once your score improves, Apple may invite you to apply again.
• Also, according to this article, it may no longer be necessary to apply only from an Apple device in the future.

3% Cash Back Merchants

Apple Card has updated its bonus cash back categories, adding Booking.com and ChargePoint as new 3% cash back merchants. In addition, starting February 1, 2025, Panera Bread will be removed from the 3% Daily Cash category. Details are below.

• Booking.com: Use Apple Pay + Apple Card at checkout to earn 3% cash back. If you enter your Apple Card number directly, you will earn 2% cash back. You must book through this special link for the purchase to qualify.

• ChargePoint: Use its app + Apple Pay when paying to earn 3%. There is also Duane Reade, which may be especially useful for readers in New York and New Jersey; using Apple Pay with the card there also earns 3%.

• Panera Bread will be removed from the 3% Daily Cash category on February 1, 2025. However, if you still use Apple Pay, you can at least earn 2%.

• Apple Card 3% list

Card-Linked Offers

This card has also started offering some card-linked deals, though the current offers look fairly average. Hopefully more interesting ones will be added later. This batch of offers expires on July 31.

• Offer link

It is worth checking your account to see whether you received this offer. Surprisingly, Apple Card rolled out a very strong promo: if you spend enough, all purchases can earn as much as 5% cash back. The deadline is April 30, 2025. It appears to be targeted, though, so check your account to see whether you have it.

• Offer link

Details below

• 3% cash back on all purchases: spend more than $5,000 by the deadline
• 4% cash back on all purchases: spend more than $10,000 by the deadline
• 5% cash back on all purchases (on up to the first $50,000 in spend): spend more than $15,000 by the deadline

Apple Saving Account

Apple Card and Goldman Sachs have now launched the High Yield Savings feature, currently offering an APY as high as 4.15%. This account has no fees, no minimum balance requirement, and no management fees. Cash back earned on this card can be automatically deposited into the Savings account, and you can also transfer money into Savings from a bank account. Based on the rates currently available on the market, an unconditional 4.15% APY is still quite competitive. The limit appears to be $250,000, which matches the FDIC insurance limit.

• News link

The path to open the account is shown below:I checked the terms, and it appears that only Apple Card cardholders and co-owners can open this Savings account; you cannot open it directly without Apple Card.

Savings accounts are provided by Goldman Sachs Bank USA, Salt Lake City Branch. Member FDIC. Savings is available to Apple Card Owners and Co-Owners, subject to eligibility requirements.

Apple Family and authorized users

Apple Family

After updating to iOS 14.6, you can add authorized users (anyone age 13 or older can be added). You can also invite someone directly into Apple Family through AirDrop. Note: to add someone as an Apple Card authorized user, that person's Apple ID must be based in the US. If the person is age 18 or older, they do not need an SSN to be added, can receive the titanium card, and can have a spending limit set.

Apple Card also introduced the Apple Family feature, which is somewhat similar to an authorized user setup. Each card can be shared with up to five users for spending and repayment, and each person can build credit history. In addition, two people can merge their Apple Card accounts, combine their credit limits, and keep the lower APR. It is a pretty interesting feature. The feature was scheduled to launch in May.

• Official announcement

co-owner feature

A co-owner is not the same as what we traditionally think of as an authorized user. Apple Card has a detailed explanation for this (), summarized below:

• You must first add the person to your own Apple Family (detailed steps). One Apple Family can have up to 6 people.
• The co-owner and the original cardholder share the card's credit limit, and they also share responsibility for paying the bill.
• The card's debt, balance, and past due information will all appear on the credit reports of all co-owners and the cardholder.
• People age 18 or older can request their own physical Apple Card; those under 18 cannot, but the effect on credit reports is the same.
• If you already have an Apple Card, you can also join as a co-owner, and the two credit limits will be combined.

Because this affects credit reports, I would not recommend adding people casually. Adding family members may still be worth considering.

Application

[Update 2021.10] In addition, Apple seems to have waived the driver's license upload requirement for some long-time Apple Pay users. YMMV. Many readers reported that they no longer needed to provide a driver's license to apply.

[Update 2020.11] According to reader rickylau77 in WeChat group 2️, applying through the web now does not require uploading ID, YMMV. After you apply, it may go into review; you can call in, and customer service will ask you three credit-history-related questions. If you pass, you can be approved. If the representative does not understand, you can HUCA (Hang Up and Call Again) and try another one.

I previously applied using an expired driver's license. I am not sure whether things are stricter now (rickylau77 tried multiple times with expired ID and was unsuccessful). If your ID is expired (or you do not have ID), consider applying through the web.

This card is now officially open to all US users! Open your Apple Wallet, tap "+", and you should immediately see Apple Card!

• Apply in the Wallet app on iOS (12.4 or above) by tapping the "+" button. Both iPhone and iPad can be used to apply. You need to upload your driver's license or state ID, and even expired documents may still work for approval. It is recommended that the billing address on the application initially match the address on your DL or other ID; after approval, you can then change it to the address where you want to receive the card.
• You do not need to use your own Apple ID to apply. You can even use your Apple ID to help your LD apply for an Apple Card.
• Apple has widely emailed users to let them know that before formally accepting the card, they can first see the credit limit and APR Apple offers, and then decide whether to proceed. If you are approved and accept the offer, there will be an HP; otherwise there will be no HP. That is a fairly user-friendly option. (Note: Apple Card has always allowed you to preview the CL before accepting; this is now just officially stated by Apple.)
  • Apply in as little as a minute and see your credit limit and interest rate offer — all without impact to your credit score. Accepting an Apple Card after your application is approved will result in a hard inquiry, which may impact your credit score.
• This card now finally reports to all three credit bureaus. Previously it only reported to TU and EX, and now it also reports to Equifax.
• Reconsideration: If your application is denied (which seems fairly uncommon), you can call Apple Card support at 877-255-5923. The representative can directly transfer you to Goldman Sachs for a reconsideration review of your application.
• Multiple Apple Cards: Currently, one Apple ID can be linked to only one Apple Card. If you want more than one, you need to use another Apple ID. As for whether it will work, please share your DP!

Problems during application

[Update 2019.8] If you are sure your versions are all compatible, and logging out of and back into iCloud still does not work, you may want to try this method: a possible fix for the "can't apply / Apple Card Unavailable" issue, YMMV. This method was provided by reader alex! (Customer service was also unable to solve the problem for him; see the comments section of this post for details.) However, "Reset All Settings" (without deleting data or media) solved it for him. I also tested it myself again for everyone. If you have a similar issue and it works for you, please come back and share your DP. Steps below:

[collapse title= "     Click to view the tip, YMMV"]

• Go to General — Reset — Reset All Settings (choose Reset All Settings without deleting data or media) — confirm, enter password, confirm — wait about 10 minutes for the system to restart (see image below)

• After rebooting, Apple Wallet will return to its initial state — continue your application! (see image below)

Note: Resetting settings without deleting data or media will remove the cards in your Apple Pay, but verified Apple Cash should restore itself shortly afterward. Other cards can be added back with one tap through the "+" menu.

There are currently a few DPs showing that China-market iPhones still could not apply even after a full reset (for now these are only isolated cases, and there have also been successful applications from China-market devices). If readers suspect the issue is with a China-market device, consider signing into your own iCloud on an iPad or on someone else's US-market phone to apply. Readers with similar experiences are welcome to share detailed DPs.

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My comments and experience

ymlulu's comments:

First, from the perspective of points-and-miles / credit card enthusiasts, this card is basically pretty mediocre. In terms of its most important cash back structure, the 3% on the App Store and Apple Music can largely be replaced by discounted iTunes gift cards, which are often available on eBay at 85%-90% of face value. As for the 2% back via Apple Pay, that is weaker than US Bank Altitude's 3x on mobile payments, not to mention that Citi Double Cash already offers 2% cash back by default. The remaining 1% back on other purchases is basically standard on almost every cash back credit card. Another advertised perk is that various fees are waived, but very few people ever pay those fees anyway. Even if you accidentally late pay one day, a quick call to customer service will usually get it reversed. Another small catch is the waived cash advance fee: they never said the interest is waived. The APR on that is probably 10%+. Cash back is settled daily, but even if you spend 10,000 in a day, that is only $100 in rewards, so waiting another 10 days or half a month does not really make much difference. The spending categories and charts are also not especially useful. In short, this card is not very interesting from a rewards perspective; its only real use may be for people who want something simple and low-maintenance.

That said, from a technology perspective, this card does represent a possible direction for the future. Its seamless integration with the iPhone, along with the built-in Apple Pay functionality, makes it feel more like a virtual card, almost as if it were part of the iPhone itself. No card number, no CVV, no expiration date. It feels more like a challenge to the traditional credit card industry. In fact, compared with Alipay (Huabei) and WeChat Pay in China, this card shares some similar traits. Apple is also trying to break away from the constraints of traditional banks and carve out its own place in finance. However, mobile payments in China have ultimately still faced pressure from the state-backed banking system and policy restrictions. In the US, where policy is relatively more market-oriented, new financial products instead face constraints from far more powerful traditional banking groups. Goldman Sachs was willing to work with Apple on a new experiment, and combined with Apple's hardware ecosystem, this probably has more staying power than earlier electronic credit card products that tried to store multiple cards' information on one physical device. Apple has promised not to disclose users' shopping data, but in the age of big data, will that significantly limit this credit card's profitability?

Author KUKU's application DP:

Since many readers are very interested in this card, even though it is not especially useful, I still tested the application process and successfully got approved using a DL that had been expired for more than a year. My situation was somewhat unusual:

• Located in China; US Apple ID; region setting is China
• Apple Cash was activated directly with a US-region ID; no driver's license had been uploaded before, but the basic information was verified
• My TX Driver License had already been expired for more than a year, and after I uploaded it, the review took a long time... it first said "no," then suddenly changed to "yes" later... (trying multiple times is definitely the right move; usually if you keep pushing a bit, it may go through)
•  The entire process was done on China Mobile's 4G cellular network, and I successfully got the card!
• Additional suggestion: If you apply using an expired driver's license, it is recommended that the billing address on the application match the one on the license. After approval, you can then change it to your current address.

This card is seeing very high application volume right now, and there are also many people who want it but cannot get approved. So in the short term, it will probably be hard to see a signup bonus (Apple and Goldman Sachs, feel free to prove me wrong). My guess is that in the future they may push various cash back offers in Wallet or add more 3% merchants!

Also, each spending category on the Apple Card adds a different color. Has everyone collected all seven colors yet? (This video includes only four colors; the colors will loop on their own, and the effect looks pretty cool if you speed it up.)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SBMH9elkZRo

The seven colors correspond to the following spending categories:

Application Link

• Apple Card