Costco Credit Card 2026: Is the Anywhere Visa Worth It?

Worth it for a Costco member who spends on gas and restaurants, and a weak pick for anyone else. The Costco Anywhere Visa by Citi charges no annual fee of its own, but you need a paid Costco membership in your name to get it. Executive costs $130 a year at renewal, according to Costco's own terms, checked October 10, 2026.

The card earns real money on Costco gas, other gas, restaurants and Costco purchases, then pays 1% on everything else. On a $12,000 yearly budget it earns $324, against $240 from a flat 2% card that needs no membership. The membership fee, not the card, decides whether that $84 gap is real money for you.

What the card pays, and what it costs to hold

The card is only free if you already pay for Costco. Citi's card page lists no annual fee, but Citi's FAQ says you must have a current Costco membership in your name to apply. That makes the membership the real price of entry, so every reward figure on this page has to be read against it.

Earn rates, the cap and the foreign fee come from Citi's card page, checked October 10, 2026. The promotion comes from Costco's join page, read on the same date. Promotions change, so confirm both before you apply.

The categories are the point of the card. Gas earns the most, but the two gas tiers share one $7,000 yearly cap, and every gas dollar above it drops to 1%. Restaurants and eligible travel earn 3% with no separate cap listed, which is where a dining-heavy budget earns its keep. Costco and Costco.com purchases earn 2%, the same rate a flat card pays, so warehouse shopping adds nothing beyond the flat rate. Everything else earns 1%, half the 2% a flat-rate card pays on the same purchase.

There is no foreign transaction fee, which matters on trips abroad, where a fee would otherwise apply to every charge you run through the card.

The promotion is a Digital Costco Shop Card, worth its face value in Costco purchases, not cash. It matches one year of the upgrade cost, which makes it a one-time bonus, not a reason to pick the tier.

The membership sets the real price

Executive costs $130 a year at renewal, and Costco's executive terms say the upgrade from Gold Star adds $65 a year. Gold Star therefore works out to $65 a year. Costco's wording gives the upgrade cost, not a Gold Star base price, so the Gold Star figure is our derivation. Confirm it at checkout before you count it.

Executive also carries an annual 2% reward on qualified Costco, Costco.com and Costco Travel purchases, capped at $1,250 for any 12-month period. The reward is the only Executive benefit this page prices. Against the upgrade premium, it pays for itself once qualifying purchases reach $3,250 a year. The cap is reached only at $62,500 of qualifying spending.

Executive wins only for a member whose qualifying Costco spending clears $3,250 a year. Below that line, Gold Star keeps more of your money, and the card's rewards are the same on either tier.

Where the $12,000 goes

We priced a buyer who spends $1,000 a month on the card: $350 on gas, $150 on restaurants and travel, $250 at Costco and Costco.com, and $250 on everything else. That is $12,000 a year. The card pays different rates for different gas, so we assume $1,200 of the gas is at Costco and the rest is at other stations.

The card earns $324 on that budget, and a flat 2% card earns $240, a gap of $84. Gas and restaurant spending add $114 over the flat card, and ordinary purchases take back $30, since they earn 1% instead of 2%. Costco purchases add nothing, because both cards pay 2% there.

The membership changes the answer. A member who would join Costco anyway keeps the full $84 edge. A buyer who joins only for the card pays the Gold Star fee, which trims the edge to $19. On Executive, the card nets $254 after the $130 fee, counting the 2% reward on the Costco spending in the table. That is $5 behind Gold Star at this spend, because the reward falls short of the upgrade premium.

Where the card loses

Ordinary spending is the weak spot. Each $1,000 of purchases outside gas, restaurants, travel and Costco earns $10 less than a flat 2% card would pay. A household with no gas or dining spending, $3,000 at Costco and $9,000 elsewhere, earns $150 a year on this card. A flat 2% card pays $240 on the same budget, so that buyer should not hold this card.

Gas is capped too. Above $7,000 a year of combined gas, every extra dollar earns 1%. A household putting $10,000 a year through gas stations earns its gas rates on the first $7,000 and 1% on the rest, so that last slice earns half of what a flat 2% card pays.

Interest cancels rewards quickly. A balance carried past the due date usually costs more than the card's rewards earn, so the card suits people who pay in full each month. Check the APR in Citi's cardholder agreement before you apply.

FinanceRadar data: across the 38 credit cards we verify, 19 charge no annual fee, as of September 25, 2026 (credit card statistics). This card is no-fee on paper, so its real catch is the membership you must buy first.

Who it fits, and who should skip it

A Costco member who fills up at Costco gas and eats out regularly gets the most from this card. Gas and restaurant spending run the premium rates, and Costco purchases earn the same 2% as any other card. Add Executive only if your qualifying Costco purchases pass $3,250 a year, the point where the 2% reward covers the upgrade.

Anyone outside that profile should skip it. Without a membership, the card is not available at all. Without regular gas or dining spending, the 1% rate on ordinary purchases outweighs the premium categories. Someone who would join Costco only to get this card should weigh the Gold Star fee against the edge first, since the net advantage shrinks to $19 in our scenario.

If you want rewards without a membership, a flat 2% card such as Citi Double Cash skips the fee, although half of its 2% posts only once the bill is paid, as our Citi Double Cash review explains. For category cards that need no membership, see our guide to rewards credit cards and complete credit card ranking. Our Wells Fargo Active Cash review covers the other flat-rate card buyers weigh against this one, and the Wells Fargo Active Cash listing shows its terms. Chase's online grocery rate excludes wholesale clubs, so compare the supermarket cards in our best credit cards for groceries guide before you pick a grocery card.

How we checked

This review uses Citi's terms for the Costco Anywhere Visa, Costco's executive membership terms and Costco's join page, all read on October 10, 2026. Every rate, fee and cap traces to one of those pages, except the Gold Star price, which we derived from Costco's upgrade wording. The scenario budget, the break-even points and the totals are our own arithmetic on those rates. We did not apply for the card.

This page is general information, not personalized financial advice. Rates, promotions and fees shift, so check Citi's and Costco's own pages for current terms before you apply (how FinanceRadar makes money).

FAQ

Is the Costco Anywhere Visa worth it in 2026?

Yes, for a Costco member who spends on gas and restaurants. At $12,000 a year, with $1,200 of it at Costco gas, it earns $324 against $240 from a flat 2% card. It is not worth it if most of your spending falls outside gas, dining and Costco.

Does the Costco Anywhere Visa have an annual fee?

The card itself has no annual fee, according to Citi's card page. You do pay for the membership it requires: Executive is $130 a year at renewal, and Gold Star works out to $65 a year by Costco's upgrade wording.

Do you need a Costco membership to get the Costco Anywhere Visa?

Yes. Citi's FAQ says you must have a current Costco membership in your name to apply.

Does the Costco Anywhere Visa charge foreign transaction fees?

No. Citi's card page states there is no foreign transaction fee on purchases. Check the cardholder agreement for other fees, such as cash advances.

Is Executive membership worth it for the Costco card?

Only if your qualifying Costco purchases exceed $3,250 a year. Below that, the upgrade costs more than the 2% reward it earns back.