Starbucks Rewards Visa Card review: Is it worth it for Starbucks loyalists?

The Starbucks® Rewards Visa® Card is no longer available. Terms apply to American Express benefits and offers. Visit americanexpress.com to learn more.

The Starbucks® Rewards Visa® Card is a cobranded credit card from Chase Bank that's designed for avid coffee drinkers of the global chain. And with the Starbucks card you can earn rewards towards free drinks, food and merchandise.

Below, Select breaks down the rewards, benefits and fees associated with the Starbucks Visa credit card to help you decide if it's right for your needs.

• Welcome bonus
• Benefits and perks
• How to earn and redeem Starbucks stars
• Rates and fees
• Card comparison
• Who the Starbucks credit card is best for
• Bottom line

The welcome bonus for the Starbucks Visa Card is a bit different than most credit cards. The Starbucks card offers 4,500 Stars after you spend $500 in the first three months of card membership. You will also receive 300 Stars the first time you use your Starbucks credit card to add money to your Starbucks account.

But what are Starbucks stars worth? Well, it varies widely depending on what you're purchasing. Several websites have analyzed the Starbucks rewards program and they estimate each star is worth anywhere between two cents and eight cents. If we conservatively estimate each star is worth four cents, that means 4,800 stars is worth $192 — which isn't a terrible return on a $500 minimum spending requirement.

However, the bonus is quite limiting as you can only use Stars at Starbucks, whereas a cash-back credit card welcome bonus can be used anywhere.

The Starbucks Visa card is light in benefits, but as a cardholder, you will have access to the following benefits:

• a coupon for a complimentary drinks are deposited in your Starbucks app once per month simply for holding the card in 2022. It's good for any handcrafted drink up to $10. You will be alerted via email when it deposits and you have 14 days to use it.
• One free drink on your birthday
• Stars you earn from credit card spend will never expire
• Purchase protection
• Trip cancellation/trip interruption protection
• Rental car insurance

These perks may be appealing to the avid Starbucks customer, but outside of the complimentary monthly drink in 2022, many of these benefits are available on other cards. And even without the Starbucks credit card, you automatically get one free drink on your birthday each year when you have the Starbucks app.

Earning Stars on your spending

When you spend on the Starbucks card, you'll earn: 

• up to 3X Stars at Starbucks stores (1X Star when you load your Starbucks card with funds, and 2X Stars when you use that Starbucks card to make purchases)

Yes, it's a bit confusing. The idea is that the cardholder will use the Starbucks credit card to load money onto their Starbucks app. This action earns 1X Star. Once the funds on the Starbucks app are used to make purchases in-store, that will earn 2X Stars.

For example, if I top up my Starbucks account with $10 using the Starbucks credit card, I'll earn 10 Stars. Once I spend the $10 at Starbucks I'll earn another 20 Stars, for a grand total of 30 Stars.

On all other non-Starbucks purchases you'll earn:

• 1 Star per $2 spent at grocery stores, on local transit and commuting, and on internet, cable and phone services.
• 1 Star per $4 spent on all other eligible purchases.

This is not straightforward and because the value of stars can vary so much, it's hard to understand how much you're getting "back" for your spend.

Redeeming Stars at Starbucks

Once you earn enough Stars to redeem for free food, drinks or merchandise, you can very quickly redeem those stars in-store.

The redemptions currently are:

• 25 Stars gets you a customization for a drink (i.e. espresso shot, dairy substitute, syrup)
• 50 Stars gets you a brewed hot coffee, bakery item or hot tea
• 150 Stars gets you a handcrafted drink, hot breakfast of parfait
• 200 Stars gets you a lunch sandwich, protein box or salad
• 400 stars gets you select in-store merchandise or at-home coffee

When you use the stars, be sure to let the barista know as you're ordering you'd like to redeem your stars.

The card has a $0 intro annual fee, then $49 after that. It has a 3% foreign transaction fee on all purchases made outside the U.S..

Late payment fees can be up to $40.

While the Starbucks Visa card is worth considering if you're an avid Starbucks visitor, is it the best card for your coffee order? Here's a comparison of the Starbucks card against two other credit cards that earn sizeable returns on dining purchases.

Starbucks Credit Card vs. American Express® Gold Card

The American Express® Gold Card is a metal card designed for consumers who love dining out and traveling. With the card, you earn 4X Membership Rewards® points at restaurants worldwide (on up to $50,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year) and at U.S. supermarkets (on up to $25,000 per calendar year in purchases, then 1X points for the rest of the year). Amex Rewards are best redeemed for travel with Amex's travel partners (like Delta, Marriott or Air Canada) or directly through the Amex Travel App™. Terms apply.

The card also comes with great features for 'foodies' including:

• Up to $120 per year in dining credits: Receive a $10 statement credit every month for purchases made at Grubhub (including Seamless), Buffalo Wild Wings, Five Guys, The Cheesecake Factory, and Wonder (enrollment required).
• Up to $120 per year in Uber Cash: You'll receive $10 in Uber Cash every month that you can apply toward Uber Eats orders and Uber rides. Point caps and terms apply. (An Amex Card must be selected as the payment method for your Uber or Uber Eats transaction to redeem the Amex Uber Cash benefit. The Amex Benefit may only be used in the United States).
• Up to $100 in Resy credit: You can receive up to $50 semi-annually for in-person dining at over 10,000 qualifying U.S. Resy restaurants after you pay for eligible purchases with the American Express® Gold Card (enrollment required).
• Up to $84 in Dunkin' credit: You can earn up to $7 in monthly statement credits after you pay with the American Express® Gold Card at U.S. Dunkin' locations (enrollment required).

In addition, the card comes with a sizeable welcome offer. You can earn: as high as 100,000 Membership Rewards® Points after you spend $8,000 in eligible purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership*.

However, the card has a $325 annual fee. (See rates and fees)

But if you're deciding between the Amex Gold Card and Starbucks card, it comes down to justifying the annual fee of the Gold card. If you enjoy dining out at more places than just Starbucks, spend a lot on groceries, travel a few times a year and can make use of the dining and Uber credits, the Amex Gold is likely the best choice. You'll rack up a ton of points that can be used for a variety of redemptions, like travel, cash back or gift cards. If you visit the coffee chain very often and just want to save on your Starbucks purchases, the Starbucks card may be the better match.

Starbucks Credit Card vs. Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card

The Chase Sapphire Preferred (see rates and fees) is another solid travel rewards credit card that earns Chase Ultimate Rewards® points for purchases made on the card.

To start, the card offers a solid sign-up bonus where you can earn 75,000 bonus points after you spend $5,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening.

As you spend on the card you'll earn:

• 5X points per dollar spent on travel purchased through Chase Travel℠
• 3X points per dollar spent on dining
• 3x points on online grocery purchases (excluding Walmart®, Target® and wholesale clubs)
• 3X points per dollar spent on top streaming services
• 3x points on on vacation homes
• 3x points on gas & EV charging
• 2X points per dollar spent on all other travel purchases
• 1X point per dollar spent on all other purchases

Similar to the Amex Gold Card, the rewards earned on the Sapphire Preferred are best used for travel booked through Chase's travel partners (i.e. United, Southwest, Hyatt and more) or directly through the Chase travel portal.

The Chase Sapphire Preferred has a modest $95 annual fee, making it arguably one of the best mid-tier rewards credit cards available.

When comparing the two cards, the Sapphire Preferred is clearly the leader in nearly every category. However, if saving money on travel is not a priority and you only aspire to save on coffee purchases at Starbucks, the Starbucks card may be a better card for you.

The Starbucks credit card is a good fit for someone who is a frequent Starbucks customer and is looking for immediate savings on their purchases. You'll need to be comfortable with only being able to redeem your rewards for items within the Starbucks ecosystem.

The Starbucks credit card is worth considering if you frequently visit Starbucks locations. The flexible value of the Stars you earn can help you save, sometimes even significantly, on your coffee bill.

However, because a Starbucks drink can be anywhere from $3-7, someone who is on a budget would likely be better off focusing on a traditional cash-back card.

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For rates and fees of the American Express® Gold Card, click here.

*The American Express® Gold Card Welcome Offer: To view your personalized offer, you must first submit an application. If approved, you will: (1) receive your Welcome Offer details, (2) have the option to accept the Card with that offer, (3) be required to spend $8,000 on eligible purchases within the first 6 months of Card Membership, and (4) earn Membership Rewards® points. Welcome offers vary and you may not be eligible for an offer.