【Updated 2024.7】Capital One and Walmart are ending their partnership. Existing cardholders will soon be converted to the Capital One Quicksilver, which earns 1.5% cash back on all purchases. If you do not have a 2% card like the Citi Double Cash, this is still a decent card to keep.
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Overview of the Capital One Walmart Co-Branded Credit Card
Capital One Walmart Credit Card
Earn up to 5% cash back at Walmart; no annual fee!
- Welcome bonus: 5% cash back on Walmart in-store purchases for the first 12 months
- Rewards: 5% at Walmart.com, the app, and Grocery Pickup; 2% in Walmart stores and at Walmart gas stations; 2% on dining and travel; 1% on all other purchases
- Redemption: Redeem for cash back directly
- Annual fee: $0
- Apply now>>
Cons
- Not very competitive for spending outside Walmart
- No foreign transaction fee: Most cards with no foreign transaction fee come with an annual fee, so it is nice that this card has no annual fee. See also: Guide to foreign transaction fees
My Take
This card was previously issued by Synchrony Bank and only offered 3% cash back at walmart.com. Now that Capital One has taken over as the issuer, it is an improvement. Walmart.com and Walmart stores both sell a large number of third-party gift cards, including reloadable $500 Visa gift cards. One thing to keep in mind is that Walmart Pay, which is required to earn 5% cash back, links to what you buy and automatically generates an electronic receipt. In other words, Walmart knows exactly what you purchased, so if you buy gift cards, they may automatically be categorized under the 2% category instead. Of course, that is just a pessimistic guess; we would need actual testing to know for sure.
If your goal is simply to save money when shopping at Walmart, Walmart gift cards can also be a good option. They are sometimes available on gift card websites such as Raise.
Also, if you previously had the Synchrony version, it will automatically be converted to this new card. After the conversion, existing cardholders could also earn 5% cash back at Walmart through October 14, 2020 (with Walmart Pay + this credit card), which was pretty generous.
Application
- Approval difficulty: In general, you can give it a try with at least one year of credit history
- Application status: You can only check your status after receiving the application confirmation email, which will explain how to do so
- Things to note: Capital One will usually pull all three credit reports when you apply; each person can only have 2 Capital One core credit cards, excluding co-branded cards, so this card does not count toward that 2-card limit; adding an authorized user may also result in a hard pull, so do not add one unless necessary. See also: Capital One bank rules
- Things to note 2: If your application is denied, Capital One will automatically consider you for the lower-tier Walmart Rewards Card. The lower-tier version does not offer 5% or 3% cash back; it only earns 2% on dining and travel, and 1% on everything else.