If your house is full of Hemneses, Billys and Skulsfjords; you're extremely handy putting furniture with an Allen wrench; or you have a soft spot for Swedish meatballs, IKEA's new rewards Visa card might be for you.
The new Visa rewards card issued by Comenity Capital Bank launched on May 15 as a way to help the home furnishings giant offer a payment option to its customers that also rewarded their loyalty.
"At IKEA, we are passionate about helping our customers enjoy a better everyday life and are always looking for new ways to meet their needs," said Jacqueline DeChamps, chief operating officer at IKEA U.S., in a statement. "We spent almost two years creating the new IKEA Visa Credit Card to ensure the program would support our mission by investing our profits back into value for the customer. This program is designed to reach as many of our customers as possible with the spending power to make this their credit card for everyday purchases."
The card offers a 5-3-1 tiered reward system. Cardholders earn five percent rewards on IKEA purchases, Traemand kitchen installations and TaskRabbit At Home Assembly services, which, if you're not handy with an Allen wrench or deciphering pictogram assembly instructions, can save you hours of hassle and headaches. Dining, grocery and utility purchases net cardholders three percent back, and all other purchases get one percent.
Once a cardholder racks up $15 in rewards, they'll receive an IKEA Reward Certificate on their billing statement that's valid for use within 45 days. Cardholders can earn unlimited amounts of rewards on their card.
New cardholders also receive extra bonuses including $25 your first IKEA purchase on the day you apply for and receive your card--which, if you're already shopping in-store, you would apply for the card there, get instant approval, use it to pay for your purchase, and then this bonus would apply.
Other limited time introductory offers include free standard shipping and delivery on in-store IKEA purchases made with the card through the end of August. Availability of this offer does depend on whether delivery is available to your home.
New cardholders can also get a bonus $25 IKEA reward certificate for spending $500 in qualifying purchases at other retailers--so not IKEA, Traemand or TaskRabbit--within the first 90 days of having an open account.
The card comes with no annual fee and other benefits like emergency card replacement and cash disbursement, zero liability and car rental protection. Cardholders who aren't already in IKEA's IKEA Family loyalty program will also be enrolled there to receive exclusive product discounts, special offers and loads of inspiration.
At 21.99 percent, the card's APR is on the higher end of the spectrum. Balance transfers and cash advances are charged a higher 23.99 percent rate. Balance transfers, cash advances and convenience checks also each incur fees of $10 or five percent of the amount of the transfer.
The IKEA Visa card complements IKEA's Projekt card, which the store launched this past February. This card is a store credit card for shoppers who have bigger design or remodeling projects and will be spending at least $5,000 on a single shopping trip.
The Projekt Card gives cardholders the opportunity to spread that project cost over 60 equal monthly payments for a lower 4.99 percent APR. If you don't pay off the balance within that five-year period, the APR will jump to 21.99 percent. This card also has no annual fee.
If you have a Projekt Card, you can also carry the new rewards credit card in your wallet. This gives you two ways to use credit at IKEA that will help you save money and reward your loyalty--and maybe even help you buy those Raggistar storage baskets you've had your eye on.