Kroger is the most widely recognized U.S. grocery chain due to its size. And if you reside in an area where Kroger is the go-to supermarket, you probably fork over a sizeable portion of your monthly income there.
If so, you may have considered applying for a Kroger credit card and pondered if it would benefit your budget. As such, this review's primary objective is to provide an answer to that very topic.
Here we'll go through the card's perks, rewards program specifics, annual cost, and any other potential dealbreakers, as well as provide some recommendations for other cards that may be able to save you even more money.
An Overview of The Kroger World Elite Mastercard Program
If you shop at Kroger stores or buy Kroger-branded items with your Kroger Rewards World Mastercard®, you'll earn points at different levels. The lack of an annual fee plus the possibility of significant gas savings at Kroger-owned gas stations in the first year more than make up for the card's somewhat arbitrary point system and earning potential.
Said this card could benefit your wallet if you frequently purchase at Kroger. However, the Kroger credit card loses some appeal if you like to shop elsewhere in addition to Kroger.
Kroger Rewards World Mastercard Welcome Offer
A 25 cents per gallon gasoline bonus is available to cardholders annually when they redeem at least 100 points at participating Kroger Family fuel facilities. The value of redeemed points drops to 5 cents per gallon after the first year.
Financial Reward
Rewards with the Kroger World Elite Credit Card are mostly redeemable for in-store purchases. Customers who are also Kroger Rewards members may earn up to 5% cash back on their investments and take advantage of savings at Kroger gasoline stations.
Earnings Methodology
Mobile wallet transactions are worth 5X points for the first $3,000. After that, they are worth 2X points at Kroger and 1X anywhere else. Customers may save 55 cents per gallon when they fill up with fuel purchased with their Kroger Plus card. Although this provides significant discounts at the pump in the first year, the incentive rate declines to just 5 cents per gallon after that.
Redemption Procedure
If you have at least 1,000 Rewards Points, Kroger will automatically mail you a reward certificate at least four times a year.
What Ways Are Reward Points Valid?
Cardholders can exchange their points for a $10 gift card at Kroger supermarkets for every 1,000 points they have. The arithmetic works out to a value of 1 cent for every 1 Kroger point. It's important to know that you can only cash in your points once you've accumulated 1,000. It's also important to understand that this card's rewards may only be redeemed for grocery store gift vouchers.
Extra Benefits for Cardholders
The Kroger Rewards World Mastercard offers competitive rates on grocery store purchases and a number of other perks that may be of interest to cardholders. You may even use it as a credit card for your next road trip because of how many of these benefits favor travelers.
Hotel Rates Guaranteed The Lowest
Savings on lodgings can be found through Mastercard's Travel & Lifestyle Service. Mastercard will reimburse the difference if you locate the same hotel accommodation at a lower cost elsewhere.
Free Transportation
Cardholders can use the complimentary travel planning assistance of the Lifestyle Manager service. You can contact them by email, phone, or real-time chat.
Money For Emergencies
If your Mastercard is lost or stolen, or you have questions, you may contact Mastercard Global Service at any time. In addition, you are solely liable for any purchases that you have approved and for which you have authorized payment. Access to Mastercard ID Theft Protection's services, including surveillance of the surface, dark, and deep webs, fraud detection, and compromised credential searches, is included.
Payouts And Costs
This Kroger credit card does not have an introductory rate for either purchases or debt transfers. Still, it has a reasonable regular rate, no overdraft fees, and no penalties for purchasing in other countries.
However, cardholders are responsible for a balance transfer fee of either $10 or 4 percent of the transferred amount, whichever is larger. There is a cash advance fee of 5%, with a $10 minimum. There's a potential $41 charge for payment delays or rejections.
Is Kroger Rewards World Mastercard Worthwhile?
We should have included the Kroger Rewards World Mastercard in our lists of the best grocery store credit cards or the best credit cards with no annual fee. The card's benefits are adequate for Kroger brand loyalists, but they can only compare to the cashback and reward credit cards that provide rewards on some grocery store shopping. This card is inferior to competitors in every category.
