Gap is one of the major retail clothing stores in the United States. It’s also affiliated with other major stores like Banana Republic, Athleta, Piperlime, and Old Navy.
To reward frequent customers and savvy shoppers, the company offers a Visa card that they can use to accumulate points and get discounts while they shop. If you’ve ever shopped at Gap or its sister stores, you probably have already been offered to apply for one at the cash register with the perk of getting a 20% discount on the current purchase you’re about to make.
In the event that you resisted that temptation of getting that initial discount, read on to better understand the pros and cons the Gap Visa credit card has to offer and whether you should sign up for one or not.
Pros of the Gap Visa Card
Reward Point System
Just as many retail credit cards, the Gap Visa card gives you rewards for reaching certain amounts of points. Gap stores gives you 5 points for every dollar that you spend and 1 point per dollar purchase at non-affiliated stores. Related stores you can use the Gap Visa card and earn the same points at are: Athleta, Old Navy, Banana Republic, and Piperlime. Gap also offers opportunities to earn bonus points for making simple changes to your account like signing up for e-mail updates or switching to paperless statements.
Automatic Account Upgrade
Once you earn $800 in purchases within a calendar year, your card will be updated to Silver status. The Silver status allows you free shipping on all Gap online purchases, triple point offers, a 15% off discount once a year, free basic clothing alterations, and a toll-free priority line if you need immediate account assistance.
No Annual Fee
Many retail credit cards will have variable annual fees that can become costly. The Gap Visa credit card does not charge any annual fees to help customers put their money towards what they really want.
Cons of the Gap Visa Card
Reward Points Expire
If you don’t earn 1,000 within 24 months, the points you have will automatically expire after that time frame. This puts you to either spend more money at Gap and its affiliate stores to get that $10 reward or stop trying to reach that goal.
Reward Restrictions
Even though you can use the Gap Visa card anywhere the card is accepted for purchases, the rewards you can get can only be redeemed at Gap or its sister stores. The rewards are also limited to no more than one redemption per transaction. Meaning if you have several of those $10 rewards, you’ll end up having to separate your transactions to save money and be able to use them.
High Annual Percentage Rate (APR)
You may be building up credit and getting those reward points, but the Gap Visa credit card poses a problem with its high 23.99% APR. Avoiding that APR would mean having to pay the full balance on the card every time and that could be troublesome if you’ve racked up a high bill on it.
Maintaining Silver Status
According to Gap’s Visa credit card agreement, you have to spend $800 every calendar year at Gap or its affiliated stores. If you don’t Gap automatically regulates your card back to a standard status.
If you’re someone who frequently shops at Gap stores and can afford to pay off a full balance every time, then getting the Gap Visa credit card can become rewarding with the perks it offers. For someone who only wants the initial 20% discount for signing up for the card it may be better to wait for sale to save money and avoid the high APR in the long run.
