The best credit cards for shopping at Costco in 2026

Costco shoppers are dedicated to the wholesale club's generous bulk discounts, free samples and that $4.99 rotisserie chicken. But you need the right card to shop there: Since 2016, Visa has been the chain's exclusive credit card network.

You can use a Mastercard or American Express on the Costco website or app, but in the stores and gas stations, you'd better have a Visa-backed card. Fortunately, there are a number of options, including Costco's own Anywhere Visa by Citi.

Here are CNBC Select's picks for the best credit cards for shopping at Costco.

Who's this for? The Wells Fargo Active Cash® Card is a solid cash-back card that earns 2% cash rewards on all eligible purchases, plus a $200 cash rewards welcome bonus after spending $500 in the first three months of account opening.

There's no annual fee and the card comes with a valuable intro APR offer on purchases and qualifying balance transfers. It's a great feature if you make large Costco runs, giving you an extended period to pay it off without interest.

The Active Cash Card also includes up to $600 in cell phone protection (subject to a $25 deductible) if your phone is stolen or damaged.

Who's this for? Perhaps the most obvious choice is the Costco Anywhere Visa® Card by Citi. There is no annual fee and the Costco membership requirement shouldn't be an issue. Cardholders earn 5% cash back rewards on gas at Costco and earn 4% cash back on other eligible gas and EV charging purchases for the first $7,000 combined spend per year (then 1% after); 3% cash back on restaurants and eligible travel purchases and eligible travel, including Costco Travel; 2% cash back on all eligible purchases from Costco and Costco.com; and 1% cash back on all other purchases.

• Read more: 5 key things to know about the Costco Anywhere Visa Card

One quirk about this card: You earn an annual reward certificate that is redeemable only at Costco. You can redeem it in several ways, including with purchases at Costco, on a Costco Shop Card (for purchases at Costco.com) or for cash (at Costco's discretion). Learn more about how to redeem Costco credit card rewards.

Other perks of the Costco Anywhere Visa include emergency roadside assistance, travel insurance and no foreign transaction fees.

Who's this for? The Chase Freedom Unlimited® has no annual fee and a simple cash-back program. Cardholders can take advantage of a generous welcome bonus: Earn a $200 Bonus after you spend $500 on purchases in your first 3 months from account opening. Enjoy 5% cash back on travel purchased through Chase Travel, 3% cash back on drugstore purchases and dining at restaurants, including takeout and eligible delivery service, and unlimited 1.5% cash back on all other purchases. It's a simple way to earn cash back if you don't want to deal with rotating bonus categories or activations.

Who's this for? The Chase Sapphire Preferred is one of the best travel credit cards available and pairs well with the other two Chase credit cards mentioned earlier. Chase Sapphire Preferred cardholders earn 5x on travel purchased through Chase Travel℠, 3x on dining, select streaming services and online groceries, 2x on all other travel purchases, and 1x on all other purchases.

This card is notable for the strong redemption rate when you redeem points for travel via Chase Travel℠. Earn 75,000 bonus points after you spend $5,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening.

Beyond rewards, cardholders can benefit from helpful travel perks, such as a $50 Annual Chase Travel Hotel Credit, no foreign transaction fees, trip cancellation/interruption insurance, auto rental collision damage waiver, travel and emergency assistance services, baggage delay insurance and trip delay reimbursement.

Who's this for? The PenFed Power Cash Rewards Visa Signature® Card can earn you 2% cash back on every purchase if you're a PenFed Honors Advantage member. Otherwise, you earn 1.5% cash back on all purchases.

Anyone can join PenFed Credit Union by opening a savings account with a $5 deposit. To become an Honors Advantage member, however, you must be in an active military service status, a member of the Reserves or National Guard, an honorably discharged U.S. military veteran or retired from such service; be the primary owner on both the credit card and checking accounts of any existing open PenFed product (excluding PenCheck Limited accounts); or open a new Access America checking account (which requires a daily balance or monthly direct deposit of $500 or more to waive the $10 monthly service fee).

Ask yourself these questions to help you choose a card that best suits your needs.

• What's my credit score? Knowing your score is critical to gauging which cards you have a chance of qualifying for. There are numerous ways to get your credit score for free, including from other card issuers and banks.
  
• Why do I want this credit card? Only open a card if there's a real need. If you shop at Costco but don't have a Visa-backed card, that's a good reason to apply.
  
• Is it worth the annual fee? Before you apply for a credit card with an annual fee, do the math to see if the benefits outweigh the charge.
  
• How will I use the card? You want a Visa card for Costco, but what other purchases do you expect to charge on it? If you want it for everyday use, consider a flat-rate cash-back card, like the Chase Freedom Unlimited®. But if you plan to travel outside the U.S., check out credit cards with no foreign transaction fees, like the Chase Sapphire Preferred®.

Credit cards provide numerous perks beyond the ability to delay payment. You can earn bonus rewards in select categories, benefit from annual statement credits or receive a 0% intro APR period.

If you plan on traveling abroad, cards like the Costco Anywhere Visa® Card, PenFed Power Cash Rewards Visa Signature® Card and Chase Sapphire Preferred® are the best options since they have no foreign transaction fees.

Be sure to review all of a card's benefits so you can take full advantage.

At CNBC Select, our mission is to provide our readers with high-quality service journalism and comprehensive consumer advice to help them make informed financial decisions. Every credit card review is based on rigorous reporting by our team of expert writers and editors with extensive knowledge of credit card products. While CNBC Select earns a commission from affiliate partners on many offers and links, we create all our content without input from our commercial team or any outside third parties, and we pride ourselves on our journalistic standards and ethics. See our methodology for more information on how we choose the best credit cards for Costco.

To determine which cards offer the best value for Costco shoppers, CNBC Select analyzed 234 of the most popular credit cards available in the U.S. We compared each card on a range of features, including rewards, welcome bonus, introductory and standard APR, balance transfer fee and foreign transaction fees, as well as factors such as required credit and customer reviews when available. We also considered additional perks, the application process and how easy it is for the consumer to redeem points.

We also estimated how much the average consumer would save over the course of a year, two years and five years, assuming they would attempt to maximize their rewards potential by earning all welcome bonuses offered and using the card for all applicable purchases. All rewards total estimations are net the annual fee. Our final picks are weighted heavily toward the highest five-year returns, since it's generally wise to hold onto a credit card for years. This method also avoids giving an unfair advantage to cards with large welcome bonuses.

Select teamed up with location intelligence firm Esri. The company's data development team provided the most up-to-date and comprehensive consumer spending data based on the 2019 Consumer Expenditure Surveys from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. You can read more about their methodology here.

Esri's data team created a sample annual budget of approximately $22,126 in retail spending. The budget includes six main categories: groceries ($5,174), gas ($2,218), dining out ($3,675), travel ($2,244), utilities ($4,862) and general purchases ($3,953). General purchases include items such as housekeeping supplies, clothing, personal care products, prescription drugs and vitamins, and other vehicle expenses.

Select used this budget to estimate how much the average consumer would save over the course of a year, two years and five years, assuming they would attempt to maximize their rewards potential by earning all welcome bonuses offered and using the card for all applicable purchases. All rewards total estimations are net the annual fee.

The value of a point or mile varies by card and is based on how you redeem it. When we calculated the estimated returns, we assumed that cardholders redeem points/miles at a typical maximum value of 1 cent per point or mile. (Extreme optimizers might be able to achieve more value.)