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Synchrony, though less well-known than Chase, Citi, or American Express, offers more than 100 different credit cards to consumers. These cards are often affiliated with popular brands like Amazon, eBay, and PayPal. Some of these cards provide cash-back rewards. They also offer a credit card in partnership with Cathay Pacific, an airline company. Synchrony’s store-branded credit cards are quite popular, and they are generally easier to get approved for compared to other credit cards.
However, it’s important to note that unlike Comenity Bank, another provider of store-branded credit cards, Synchrony does not have a “shopping cart trick” that allows applicants to open store cards without a hard inquiry on their credit reports. This means when you apply for a Synchrony store card, it typically results in a credit check, which may affect your credit score.
In this article, we will explore the various cards offered by Synchrony and discuss some of the best and most popular ones.
Synchrony’s Credit Cards
- American Eagle Outfitters Visa
- At Home Mastercard
- Belk Rewards Mastercard
- BP Visa
- Cathay Pacific Visa
- CheapOair
- OneTravel
- Chevron and Texaco Visa
- Lyft
- Marvel MasterCard
- Nissan Visa
- Norwegian Reward Card
- PayPal Extras MasterCard
- PayPal Cashback MasterCard
- eBay Extras MasterCard
- eBay Platinum MasterCard
- Sam’s Club Personal MasterCard
- Sam’s Club Business MasterCard
- ScoreCard Store Card (Dick’s Sporting Goods, Golf Galaxy, Field & Stream)
- Stein Mart MasterCard
- Synchrony Car Care Credit Card
- Synchrony Premier World Mastercard®
- TJX Rewards® Platinum Mastercard®
- Verizon Visa Rewards Card
List of All Synchrony STORE Cards
- ABC Warehouse
- ABT
- Amazon Store Card
- American Eagle Outfitters Store Card
- American Signature Furniture Store Card
- America’s Tire Store Card
- Ariens and Gravely Get the Gear Card
- Ashley Furniture Home Store
- At Home Store Card
- Bargain Outlet
- Belk Store Card
- Bernina
- Big Sandy Superstore
- Bjorn’s
- Blain’s Farm & Fleet
- Briggs & Stratton
- CareCredit
- Carpet One
- CarCareONE Store Card
- Pep Boys CarCareONE Card
- CheapOair
- OneTravel
- Chevron And Texaco: Techron Advantage Premium Card
- Chevron And Texaco: Techron Advantage Card
- Citgo Rewards Card
- City Furniture
- Conoco Store Card
- Discount Tire Store Card
- DX Engineering
- Electronics Express
- Ethan Allen Store Card
- Flooring America
- Freedom To Ride
- Guitar Center Store Card
- Havertys Store Card
- Hudson’s Furniture
- Husqvarna
- JCPenney
- Jewelery Exchange Store Card
- Kraft Music
- La-Z-Boy
- Lenscrafters
- Levin Furniture (company closed April 7th 2020)
- Lowe’s Store Card
- Lumber Liquidators
- Maaco
- Mavis Tire
- Mattress Firm
- McCoy’s
- Meineke
- Metro Mattress
- Midas Store Card
- Mohawk Flooring
- Morris Home Furnishings
- Musician’s Friend
- Napa EasyPay Store Card
- Nautilus
- Newegg
- P.C. Richard & Son
- Regency Furniture Showroom
- Rooms To Go
- Sam Ash
- Sam’s Club Store Card
- ScoreCard Store Card (Golf Galaxy, Dick’s Sporting Goods, Field & Stream)
- Sewing & More
- Shaw Floors
- Sheely’s Furniture
- Shop HQ
- Sleep Experts
- Sleep Number
- Sleepy’s
- Specialized
- Stein Mart
- Summit Racing Equipment Speedcard
- Sutherlands
- System Pavers
- Sweetwater
- Tire Pros
- TJX Store Card
- Westrich Furniture & Appliances
- Value City Fu
Best Synchrony Credit Cards
Synchrony provides various credit card options. However, we’ve selected the three best cards for both travel and everyday spending from their offerings.
Amazon Prime Store Card
The Amazon Prime Store Card is a credit card that gives you 5% cash-back on all your Amazon purchases. This is a great deal for people who often shop on Amazon. However, you need to have an eligible Amazon Prime membership to get this 5% cash-back benefit.
If you don’t have Amazon Prime, you can only use the Amazon.com Store Card, which doesn’t offer the 5% cash-back for Amazon purchases.
Some other credit cards, like the Chase Freedom Unlimited® Credit Card, may have Amazon as a bonus category for a limited time. But with the Amazon Prime Store Card, you get a consistent 5% cash-back on Amazon purchases throughout the year.
The good news is that this card doesn’t have an annual fee, so you won’t have to pay extra just to have it.
Cathay Pacific Visa
The Cathay Pacific Visa is a travel rewards credit card offered by Synchrony. It stands out for having a generous sign-up bonus, but it comes with a $95 annual fee that is not waived for the first year.
Here’s how it works:
- You earn 2X miles for every dollar spent on Cathay Pacific purchases.
- When dining in the U.S. or abroad, you earn 1.5X miles per dollar.
- For other purchases made abroad, you also earn 1.5X miles per dollar.
- On all other domestic purchases, you earn 1X mile per dollar.
Importantly, this card does not charge foreign transaction fees, making it a good choice for international travel. However, for more valuable rewards, especially when dining and traveling abroad, you may want to consider using a different card like the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card.
If you’re experienced in using travel miles and points, you can redeem Asia Miles for exciting trips with Cathay Pacific and their partner airlines.
Sam’s Club Mastercards
Synchrony provides two types of Sam’s Club Mastercards: one for personal use and another for business. These cards have a cash-back rewards program. You earn 5% cash-back on purchases at gas stations and 3% cash-back at restaurants. For all other purchases, you get 1% cash-back.
There is a limit to the 5% cash-back at gas stations, which is up to the first $6,000 you spend. Additionally, you can earn a maximum of $5,000 in cash-back in a calendar year.
Sam’s Club also offers store card versions, but these can only be used at Sam’s Club. The Mastercard versions, on the other hand, can be used at any merchant that accepts Mastercard.
Neither the personal nor business Sam’s Club Mastercards have an annual fee, but you do need a Sam’s Club membership to qualify for these cards.
Verizon Visa Rewards Card
The Verizon Visa Rewards Card is a credit card available exclusively to Verizon Wireless customers. It’s a good choice for those who use Verizon for their cell phone service. This card allows you to earn “Verizon Dollars,” which you can later use to buy Verizon products or services. Each Verizon Dollar is worth $1, and there are no limits on how much you can earn or expiration dates to worry about.
This card offers attractive cashback rates. You get 4% cash back on gas and grocery purchases, 3% cash back on dining, 2% cash back on Verizon expenses (including your phone bill), and 1% cash back on all other purchases.
Cardholders also enjoy some valuable perks. You can receive up to $100 in wireless bill credits spread over 24 consecutive months when you use this card for your monthly Verizon bills. This works out to about $4.16 in savings each month. Additionally, there’s an auto-pay discount of $5 to $10 each month, depending on your Verizon plan. This discount can add up to significant savings if you plan to stay with Verizon long-term, potentially saving you $60 to $120 per year.
In summary, the Verizon Visa Rewards Card is an excellent option for Verizon customers. It offers substantial rewards and bonus categories, all without an annual fee.
Synchrony’s most popular cards
Synchrony offers several credit cards, but we’ll focus on a few of their most commonly chosen ones in this section. These popular cards are preferred by many customers for various reasons like rewards and benefits.
American Eagle Outfitters Visa Card
The American Eagle Outfitters Visa Card is a credit card associated with American Eagle Outfitters, a retail clothing store primarily targeting college-aged young adults. They also introduced a brand called Aerie to compete with brands like Victoria’s Secret.
When you use the AEO Connected Visa Credit Card to make purchases at American Eagle or Aerie stores, you earn 15 points for every $1 spent. For all other purchases, you earn 5 points for every $1 spent.
Once a shopper accumulates 2,500 points, they receive a $10 reward coupon that can be applied toward future purchases at either American Eagle or Aerie.
Cardholders also enjoy additional benefits, such as free standard shipping, a 20% discount coupon for their birthday, a personal shopping day coupon, access to special cardholder events, and more.
Ashley Advantage Credit Card
The Ashley Advantage Credit Card, available at Ashley Furniture HomeStores, is more of a financing program than a traditional credit card. You can only use it for purchases at Ashley Furniture HomeStores, and it offers four different financing options when you sign up.
- For the 6- and 12-month financing plans, there’s no minimum purchase requirement, and you can make your purchase either online or in-store. You can also combine these plans with discount offers.
- On the other hand, the 24- and 48-month financing plans do have minimum purchase requirements. You can still make purchases online or in-store, but you can’t use discount offers with these plans.
- The 60-month financing plan is only valid for in-store purchases, and you can’t use discount offers with it.
In essence, this card allows you to finance furniture purchases over different time frames, but it’s limited to use at Ashley Furniture HomeStores, and the terms vary depending on the financing plan you choose.
Belk Store Credit Cards
Belk provides three different types of store credit cards. To move up from the basic Belk Rewards card, you need to spend a certain amount of money
- Belk Rewards Card: This card earns you 1 point for every dollar you spend at Belk. It also allows you to return items without a receipt.
- Spend $600 in a Calendar Year: When you spend $600 in a calendar year using the Belk Rewards card, you’ll unlock some additional benefits. These benefits include special savings offers.
- Spend $1,500 in a Calendar Year: If you spend $1,500 in a calendar year, you’ll receive even more perks. These include free shipping, the opportunity to select your own sales days quarterly, providing a 20% discount, and a 20% off coupon for your birthday.
Chevron and Texaco Visa Credit Cards
The Chevron and Texaco Visa credit cards allow you to earn fuel credits when you make purchases. Specifically, when you use these cards to buy items at Chevron and Texaco gas stations, you get 3 cents per gallon in fuel credits.
In addition to this, if you spend $300 or more at other merchants in a month using your Chevron and Texaco Visa card, you can earn 10 cents per gallon in fuel credit. If you spend even more, totaling $1,000 in purchases at other merchants during a month, you receive a larger discount of 20 cents per gallon in fuel credit.
It’s important to note that these fuel credits can only be used at Chevron and Texaco gas stations when you’re filling up your tank.
Discount Tire Store Credit Card
The Discount Tire Store Credit Card offers a special promotion with no interest charges for a certain period on your initial purchase. This no-interest period can last for 6, 9, or 12 months.
Here’s how it works:
- If your purchase is between $199 and $999.99, you can enjoy 6 months with no interest charges.
- If your purchase falls within the range of $1,000 to $1,499.99, you can get 9 months with no interest.
- For purchases of $1,500 or more, you can benefit from a full year, which is 12 months, without any interest charges.
In essence, the longer the no-interest period, the higher your initial purchase amount needs to be in order to qualify for this special financing.
Lowe’s Store Cards
Lowe’s Store Cards offer discounts and financing options. The Lowe’s Advantage Card gives you a 5% discount on all Lowe’s purchases. You can also get 6-month special financing for purchases over $299. If your project costs over $2,000, you can qualify for project financing.
Lowe’s also has 2 business credit cards through Synchrony that provide the same 5% discount.
There’s also a co-branded Lowe’s card with American Express, which offers a 5% discount at Lowe’s and can be used at other stores too.
Rooms To Go Credit Card
The Rooms To Go credit card offers a special deal: you can buy certain items without paying any interest for 60 months.
This means you can spread your payments over five years without any extra cost. However, it’s important to note that, like the Ashley Furniture HomeStore credit card, you can only use the Rooms To Go credit card for purchases made at Rooms To Go. It’s not a general credit card that you can use at other places.
TJX Rewards® Credit Card
The TJX Rewards Credit Card, also known as the T.J. Maxx credit card, is associated with the Mastercard network, making it usable at various merchants. It comes in two versions: one is a store card, which can only be used at TJX Companies’ stores, while the other is a Mastercard, allowing you to use it at other retailers as well.
Both versions of the card provide a reward of 5X points for every dollar spent at T.J. Maxx, Marshalls, HomeGoods, and Sierra Trading Post stores. The Mastercard version also offers 1X points for each dollar spent at other merchants.
As you accumulate 1,000 points, you will receive a $10 certificate that can be redeemed at any store within the TJX family, which includes T.J. Maxx, Marshalls, HomeGoods, and Sierra Trading Post.
How do I apply for a Synchrony credit card?
To apply for a Synchrony credit card online, follow these simple steps:
- Visit the Synchrony Bank website.
- Click on the “Consumers” tab at the top of the page, and then select “Credit Cards.”
- In the “Credit Card Partners” section, use the search bar to enter the name of the brand associated with the credit card you’re interested in.
- Click the “Apply For A Card” button next to the brand you’ve selected.
Additionally, you can explore all available retailers and service providers that offer Synchrony credit cards on Synchrony’s dedicated web page.
Synchrony Bank is a prominent provider of store cards in the United States, offering rewards and financing options tailored to specific brands. While applying online is the most common method, some brands may also allow in-store or phone applications.
Getting approved for a Synchrony Credit Card
To get approved for a Synchrony credit card, you should focus on maintaining a good credit score. It’s important to pay off your credit card balance in full and not carry a balance, as this will positively impact your credit score. Ideally, you should pay off your credit card statement every month.
If you can’t pay off your balance in full, make sure your balance at the time of statement closing is less than 60% of your credit limit. For instance, if your credit limit is $500, aim to have a closing balance of less than $300. The lower, the better.
It’s also essential to keep your oldest credit card account open, as the length of your credit history plays a role in your credit score.
While a credit score in the 600s doesn’t guarantee approval, some people have reported being approved for Synchrony store cards with scores in this range. However, approval depends on various factors.
If you find that your credit score is still too low for a Synchrony credit card, you might consider starting with a secured credit card, which can help you build or rebuild your credit.
How can I check my Synchrony Bank credit card application status?
To check the status of your Synchrony Bank credit card application, you can call (866) 396-8254. This phone line is available 24/7, but there isn’t an automated system for checking the status. You’ll need to speak with a customer service representative. Please note that there’s currently no online method for checking your application status.
It’s a good idea to also check your email shortly after applying, as Synchrony Bank often sends application status notifications within minutes of submission.
What’s the Synchrony Bank credit card credit score requirement?
The credit score requirement for Synchrony Bank credit cards varies depending on the specific card. In general, Synchrony Bank offers credit cards for individuals with fair (640 – 699), good (700 – 749), or excellent (750 – 850) credit scores.
Where can I use my Synchrony credit card?
The usability of your Synchrony credit card depends on the specific card you have. Synchrony Bank typically issues store credit cards, which can only be used at specific retailers they are associated with. However, if your card features a Visa or Mastercard logo along with an expiration date, you can use it at most places that accept credit cards.
For instance:
- The Amazon Store Card is only usable on Amazon.com.
- The American Eagle Outfitters (AEO) Store Card is restricted to American Eagle Outfitters.
- The Lowe’s Store Card is valid at Lowe’s.
- The TJX Store Card can be used at T.J.Maxx, Marshalls, HomeGoods, and Sierra Trading Post.
- The JCPenney Credit Card is accepted at JCPenney.
- The Sam’s Club® Credit Card can be used wherever Mastercard is accepted.
Some of these cards also have a Visa or Mastercard version that is more versatile and can be used at a wider range of locations. However, they usually offer the best rewards when used for purchases at the affiliated stores.
What traditional credit cards does Synchrony Bank offer?
Synchrony Bank primarily offers store credit cards and store cards, which may have Visa or Mastercard logos.
While store credit cards are typically associated with specific retailers, those with Visa or Mastercard logos can be used at a wide range of merchants, making them similar to traditional credit cards. Examples of such cards from Synchrony Bank include the BP Credit Card and the PayPal Credit Card.
OpenSky® Secured Visa® Credit Card: Easy credit card to get with low or no credit
The OpenSky® Secured Visa® Credit Card is an accessible option for people with low or no credit history. Here are the key benefits and details:
- No Credit Check: You can apply for this card without undergoing a credit check, and you’ll receive an instant decision on your approval status.
- Credit Building Opportunity: OpenSky is a reliable choice for those seeking to improve their credit scores. Over the past 5 years, it has maintained an impressive 85% approval rate.
- Credit Limit Increase: After six months of responsible card use, you may become eligible for a credit limit increase without the need for an additional deposit.
- Potential for an Unsecured Card: In as little as six months, you could qualify for the OpenSky Gold Unsecured Card, which doesn’t require a security deposit.
- Credit Reporting: The card reports your activity to all three major credit bureaus every month, which is essential for building your credit history. This sets it apart from prepaid or debit cards, which usually don’t report to credit bureaus.
- FICO® Score Monitoring: You can easily keep track of your credit score through your OpenSky account, providing a simple way to stay informed about your credit health.
- Rapid Credit Improvement: Nearly half of OpenSky cardholders who make on-time payments experience a substantial increase in their FICO score of 30 or more points within the first 3 months.
- Refundable Deposit: Your initial deposit, which can be as low as $200, determines your credit limit with the OpenSky Visa card.
- User-Friendly Application: Applying for this card takes less than 5 minutes, and you can do it directly from your mobile device.
- Flexible Payment Due Dates: OpenSky allows you to choose a due date that suits your payment schedule, providing flexibility in managing your finances.
- Annual Fee: The card has an annual fee of $35.
In summary, the OpenSky® Secured Visa® Credit Card is an excellent choice for individuals who are looking to establish or rebuild their credit history. It doesn’t require a credit check, offers opportunities for credit limit increases and an unsecured card, and actively helps you improve your credit score by reporting to major credit bureaus.
The bottom line
Synchrony offers many credit card options, but they lack quality compared to competitors like Chase and American Express. Cards like the Amazon Store Card, Sam’s Club cards, and Cathay Pacific Visa card may be useful for some, but they aren’t as popular for a reason.
In terms of earning travel miles and points, Synchrony falls short. While the Cathay Pacific Visa card has a niche, it’s not suitable for beginners. If you’re new to credit cards, it’s better to start with earning Chase Ultimate Rewards and following our beginner’s guide to maximize your credit card applications.
For more information, you can also check our posts on the best first-time credit cards for travel rewards and cash back, as well as the best travel rewards credit cards for various traveler types.