Posted by: John S Kiernan

EDITOR’S RATING 5 / 5 PROS

• Up to $15 in initial bonuses
• 12% back and free shipping on bra purchases
• Up to 6% back on all non-bra purchases
• $10 birthday gift

CONS

• High regular APR

The Verdict: Just between you and me, the Victoria's Secret Credit Card is the best way to buy bras. Sure, I’m no lingerie expert, but I do know credit cards. Earning what equates to 12% cash back and paying nothing for shipping in the bra category is pretty huge.

You see, most purchases that you make with the card will earn you 1 point per $1 spent, and every 250 points is worth $10 or $15 in Victoria’s Secret credit, depending on your rewards tier. That works out to 4% and 6% back, respectively. But being a cardholder also scores you triple points on all bra purchases, boosting your earning rate to 12%. Just to put all this in perspective, the average rewards credit card gives you roughly 1% cash back.

That 4% to 12% earning power, coupled with the lack of an annual fee, is so impressive that it’s easy to overlook the modest bonuses this card provides: 50 points (worth $2) when you sign up for an online account, $15 off your next purchase and $10 each year on your birthday. You should not, however, overlook this store card’s biggest weakness: its 27.24% (V) APR. That rate is above average compared to both store credit cards and “fair credit” credit cards and should serve as a reason to always pay your bill in full.

If you think you can do that, have at least fair credit and regularly shop at Victoria’s Secret, this card is a must-have. Learn more about why that’s the case below.

The Highlights

• Up To 6% Back On Most Purchases: For the most part, you will earn 1 point for each $1 you charge to the Victoria's Secret Credit Card, with no cap on the number of points that you can earn. Every 250 points you earn is worth $10 or $15 in store credit (depending on your rewards tier), mailed to you in the form of a gift card within three to six weeks. That means every $1 you spend earns you $0.04 to $0.06 in credit, or 4% or 6% back, respectively. That is a wonderful earning rate, even for a store card.

• Extra “Padding” On Bra Buys: The ability to effectively receive 12% off all bra purchases (including clearance and discounted bras), thanks to triple points in this category, is enough to make even the most beautiful Victoria’s Secret Angel drool. Add free shipping in the contiguous 48 states for online orders that include at least one non-clearance bra to the mix, and you’ve got yourself a bra bargain bonanza.

• Nice Little Bonuses: Roughly $28 in first-year bonuses — between a 50-point online-account signup incentive, $15 discount on your next purchase and $10 birthday gift — isn’t much, but it’s better than nothing and could certainly get you a nice clearance item.

• No Annual Fee: You won’t have to feel guilty about adding the Victoria's Secret Credit Card to your wallet because it doesn’t charge an annual fee. That means this card can provide unadulterated savings if you pay your bill in full each month. For context, the average card charges $18.15, according to WalletHub’s latest Credit Card Landscape Report.

• Requires Only “Fair” Credit For Approval: You can get the Victoria's Secret Credit Card even if you’ve yet to build much of a credit history. That means it can help you look great while also getting your credit score into better shape.If you don’t know where your credit stands, you can check it for free on WalletHub. WalletHub is the first and only site to offer free credit scores and full credit reports that are updated on a daily basis.

The Lowlights

• High Regular APR: The average credit card for people with fair credit has a 22.99% regular APR. The average store credit card charges 25.76%. But the Victoria's Secret Credit Card loses out to both, sporting a 27.24% (V) regular APR. To put this in terms of dollars and cents, a $300 balance paid over the course of a year, for example, would accrue roughly $43 in interest.

• Rewards Expiration: The points that you earn will expire after one year or if you close your account or file for bankruptcy. Furthermore, Angel Rewards certificates expire after 90 days of issuance. So it’s best to get in the habit of quickly redeeming your earnings.

Other Things To Consider

• Access To Special Sales & Status: As a Victoria’s Secret cardholder, you will receive not only early access to the retailer’s legendary semi-annual sale, but also at least one day each year during which all non-bra purchases yield 3 points per $1 spent. Just keep in mind that you have to designate so-called “Triple Points” Days within three months of making a purchase.Furthermore, you will have the opportunity to reach “Angel VIP” status after accruing 500 points (i.e. spending $167 to $500) and “Angel Forever” status after earning 1,000 points (i.e. spending $333 to $1,000). Each status tier provides improved benefits, as you can see from the following table.

	Angel	Angel VIP	Angel Forever
Points Needed To Qualify	None	500 points	1,000 points
Value Of 250 Points	$10	$10	$15
Annual Birthday Gift	$10	$10	$15
Triple Points On Bra Purchases
“Triple Points” Days	1	2	3
Free Standard Shipping On Purchases Including Non-Clearance-Priced Bras
Early-Sale & Special-Event Access
Free Gifts & Additional “Triple Points” Opportunities
Occasionally Free Standard Shipping On Non-Bra Purchases
Annual “Thank You” Gift
Duration Of Status (Until Renewal Or Upgrade from “Angel”/“Angel VIP”)	1 Year	1 Year	2 Years

• Double Points When You Pay In Store: Any in-store purchase that you make the same day you pay your bill at a Victoria’s Secret location will earn double the usual rate. Payments can be made with cash, a check or a money order.Unfortunately, this benefit is limited to 1,000 points per month and cannot be combined with any other bonus offers. But it’s still better than paying by phone, for example, which yields no rewards and comes with a $9 fee.

• Can Be Used At Bath & Body Works: Although it’s a store card, the Victoria's Secret Credit Card isn’t restricted to Victoria’s Secret purchases. It can also be used at Bath & Body Works, though such purchases will not earn rewards.

• “Forgotten Card” Convenience: If you find yourself wanting to make a Victoria’s Secret purchase when you don’t have your Victoria’s Secret Card on you, don’t worry. As long as you have ID, customer service will be able to locate your account and you will be free to shop.

Compared To The Competition

To fully determine whether Victoria’s Secret is all nice or a bit naughty as well, we compared her plastic to cards offered by competing retailers as well as what we consider to be one of the best overall cash back credit cards on the market. You can check out our findings below.

	Victoria's Secret Credit Card	Macy's Store Card	Nordstrom Store Card	Amazon.com Store Card
Annual Fee	$0	$0	$0	$0
Rewards Bonus	N/A	20% discount	$40	$10 gift card
Rewards Rate	1 point / $1	0 - 5 points / $1	3 points / $1	0 - 5% Cash Back
Purchase Intro APR	Not Offered	Not Offered	Not Offered	0% for 6 - 24 months
Transfer Intro APR	Not Offered	Not Offered	Not Offered	Not Offered
Regular APR	27.24% (V)	27.49% (V)	25.15% (V)	28.24% (V)
Editors’ Rating	5.0 / 5	3.0 / 5	N/A	5.0 / 5
Details, Rates & Fees	Learn More	Learn More	Learn More	Learn More
Winners	Victoria's Secret Credit Card		Amazon.com Store Card

from Wallet HubWallet Hub


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