The Complete Guide to Credit Card Price Protection

Price protection is a valuable yet often underutilized benefit provided by certain credit cards that can potentially save you a lot of money. If an item you purchase is later available at a lower price, this feature entitles you to be reimbursed for the difference in price. The lower price does not even need to be from the same store as your original purchase.

Similar to the travel insurance often by some premium credit cards, you do not need to do anything to activate this coverage prior to making a purchase. As long as you use one of the cards below to make a purchase, you are protected if the item declines in price during the coverage period. Coverage extends anywhere from 30–120 days after purchase, depending on your card.

While this benefit used to be widespread, particularly among premium credit cards, many banks have removed it in recent years. Luckily, there are still several cards that offer the benefit.

For example, Walmart is said to offer price adjustments within seven days of purchase. However, this policy is not clearly stated anywhere and may be subject to manager approval or the discretion of a customer service rep. On the other hand, Amazon’s price adjustment policy now clearly states that “Amazon.com doesn’t offer price matching.” This policy applies regardless of whether you request a match before or after you make a purchase. While an Amazon customer service representative may grant a one-time exception, their official policy is to not match a lower price on Amazon or any other retailer.

On the other hand, if you use a credit card with purchase protection, you could be eligible for an adjustment through your card issuer for as long as four months after purchase. That means you could potentially purchase a laptop in August and file a price protection claim if the price drops on Black Friday in November.

Requirements for coverage

The process of initiating a claim is relatively straightforward. You are usually required to submit a copy of your receipt as well as the physical or digital advertisement showing the lower price.

You must charge the item to the credit card with purchase protection to be eligible for coverage.

In most cases, the item must be new and purchased within the United States. Auction websites are excluded, meaning you cannot file a claim for an eBay purchase or request to match to a price on eBay. Additionally, price protection through credit cards is always secondary to any store policies that offer to match a lower price.

There may also be other restrictions on cards that precludes your purchase from being eligible. For example, the price protection offered through the Chase United Club card excludes:

• Jewelry
• “Fire sales”
• “Limited quantity promotions”
• Seasonal sales
• Discontinued items (including, but not limited to, holiday decorations, clothes, or costumes)

Additionally, rebates and manufacturer’s coupons do not count when determining the lower price.

How to file a price protection claim

Refer to the card issuer’s guide to benefits for full details on filing and a claim.

Consumer cards:

• Synchrony Rakuten Card (Call 1-800-553-7520 or go to this website)
• Capital One Walmart Reward Card Benefits Guide (Call1-800-622-7747)
• Capital One BuyPower Card Benefits Guide (Call1-800-622-7747)
• Capital One Saver One Cash Reward Card Benefits Guide (Call1-800-622-7747)
• Capital One Savor Rewards Benefits Guide (Call1-800-622-7747)
• Capital One Platinum Card Benefits Guide (Call1-800-622-7747)
• Chase United TravelBank Card Benefits (Call 1-888-880-5844)
• Chase United Club Card Benefits Guide (Call 1-888-880-5844)
• United MileagePlus Presidential Plus‎ Card Benefits Guide (Call 1-888-880-5844)
• U.S. Bank Cash 365 American Express Card Benefits Guide (Call 1-855-327-1424)
• Wells Fargo Visa Signature Card Benefits Guide (Call 1-800-553-7520)
• Navy Federal More Rewards American Express Credit Card Benefits Guide (Call 1-866-643-6873)

Business cards:

• United Explorer Business Card Benefits (Call 1-888-880-5844)
• United Club Business Card Benefits (Call 1-888-880-5844)
• Capital One Spark Benefits Guide (Call 1-800-397-9010)

Tools to monitor price drops

If your card offers price protection, the onus is still on you to track prices for the duration of your card’s coverage. Thankfully, several services will automatically alert you when there is a price decrease.

Honey

Honey is a browser extension most well-known for its ability to automatically apply coupons during checkout. In addition to coupons, Honey also has a tool called Droplist that provides a product’s price history and the ability to track prices. Once an item added to your Droplist declines in price, Honey will send you an email.

CamelCamelCamel

The most well-known Amazon price tracker is CamelCamelCamel. The free tool allows you to set up alerts delivered via email or Twitter for products on Amazon. Products can be added through the service’s Chrome or Firefox extension. Alternatively, you can sync your entire Amazon wish-list.

Google

Google recently introduced a new feature within its Google Shopping to track the prices of products. As of now, Google’s price checking is only available on the mobile version of their website. You also must be signed in to your Google Account to see the feature. The company says in the future, this feature will be available on desktop devices.  

Credit Cards that offer price protection

The table below includes all consumer cards issued by major banks that still offer a price protection benefit.

Personal cards that offer price protection:

Card	Coverage per tiem	Coverage per year	Days of protection	Card annual fee	Open to new applications?
Rakuten Card	$500	$2500	60	$0	Yes
Chase United TravelBank Card	$500	$2500	90	$0	Yes (but subject to 5/24)
Chase United Club Card	$500	$2500	90	$450	Yes (but subject to 5/24)
Chase United MileagePlus Presidential Plus‎ Card	$500	$2500	90	Varies	No
Wells Fargo Visa Signature card	$250	$1000	60	$0	Existing WF customers more likely to be approved
U.S. Bank Cash 365 American Express Card	$250	$1000	30	$0	Yes
HSBC Premier World Elite Mastercard	$250	$1000	120	$395	Must have HSBC Premium Checking Account
Navy Federal More Rewards American Express Credit Card	$250	$1000	30	$0	Existing Navy Federal Customers
Capital One Walmart Reward Card	$250	$1000	120	$0	Yes
Capital One BuyPower Card	$500	$2500	60	$0	Yes
Capital One Saver One Cash Reward Card	$500	$2500	60	$0	Yes
Capital One Savor Rewards from Capital One	$500	$2500	60	$0 first year / $95 after	Yes
Capital One Platinum Card	$500	$2500	60	$0	Yes
UBS Visa Infinite Card	$500	$1500	90	$450	Yes

Business cards that offer price protection:

Card	Coverage per tiem	Coverage per year	Days of protection	Annual fee	Open to new applications?
Chase United Explorer Business Card	$500	$2500	90	$95	Yes (but subject to 5/24)
Chase United Club Business Card	$500	$2500	90	$450	Yes (but subject to 5/24)
Capital One Spark Cash for Business	$500	$2500	60	$95	Yes
Capital One Spark Miles for Business	$500	$2500	60	$95	Yes
Capital One Spark Cash Select for Business	$500	$2500	60	$0	Yes
Capital One Spark Miles Select for Business	$500	$2500	60	$0	Yes

Synchrony Price Protection

Synchrony’s Rakuten credit card covers price changes within 60 days of purchase, up to $500 per item, and $2,500 per year. Given the card is already the best Membership Reward earning card out there, the price protection benefit makes this card a no-brainer to use when shopping online.

Price protection may be available through some of Rakuten’s other store-branded Visa credit cards, but it is not clear which ones currently offer the benefit.

Citi Price Protection

Citi eliminated their price protection “Citi Rewind” feature from its portfolio of cards when it ended Price Rewind in September 2019.

American Express Price Protection

Cards issued by American Express do not offer price protection. However, as noted below, the Cash 365 American Express Card issued by U.S. Bank does a watered-down version of the benefit.

Discover Price Protection

Discover discontinued its price protection benefits on Oct 31, 2018.

Barclays Price Protection

Barclays removed price protection from its suite of MasterCards, including the AAdvantage Red Aviator World Elite Mastercard, on November 1, 2019.

USAA Card Price Protection

Discontinued price protection as of August 31, 2019.

Chase Price Protection

Chase eliminated price protection from their United Explorer cards in June 2018, their Sapphire and Freedom cards in August 2018, and their IHG cards in November 2019. However, Chase continues to offer it on five of its United cards and has not announced any plans to scrap the benefit from these cards.

United Card Price Protection

All five United cards offer the same benefit terms, covering price-changes for 90 days, up to $500 per item, and $2,500 in claims per year.  

Four of the five cards are still available to new applicants, the Presidential Plus card is not. However, all four cards still available are subject to Chase’s 5/24 rule. That restriction will prevent you from being approved if you’ve opened 5 or more personal credit accounts in the past two years. The only way around this rule is if you receive a targeted “Just for You” offer that included a fixed APR.

The United TravelBank card is Chase’s no-annual-fee United co-branded card. As the name implies, the card rewards TravelBank cash instead of miles. Its current welcome bonus offers $150 in TravelBank credit after you spend $1,000 on the card in the first 90 days. The card earns 2% United TravelBank cash on United purchases and 1.5% everywhere else. It does not provide access to expanded award availability, a free checked bag, or priority boarding like Chase’s other United cards.

All-in-all, the rewards offered by the card are quite lousy, and probably not worth signing up for. However, if you currently have a United Explorer or Club card, you can request a product change to the TravelBank card. Downgrading instead of canceling is always a good idea with Chase cards, especially those that are subject to 5/24. You can still product change back to the higher-end card at a later date.  You also have the option to lower or request to reallocate some of your credit lines to one of your other cards.

Besides the Travelbank card, the benefit is still offered on Chase’s high-end $450 annual fee United Club card, as well as the business version of that card and the United Explorer Business card (both with a $95 annual fee).

Wells Fargo Price Protection

Price protection is available on Wells Fargo’s no-annual-fee Visa Signature card.

You are required to be approved for at least a $5,000 credit line to be eligible for this particular card. Otherwise, if Wells Fargo can only offer you a lower credit limit, they may offer to approve you for another one of their cards. Unfortunately, all their other cards do not feature price protection.

Importantly, Wells Fargo provides a short window to file and complete a price protection claim. Within 10 days of finding a lower price, you need to call 1-800-553-7520 to begin the claim process. Then, within 20 days you must return all required documents.

Capital One Price Protection

Capital One provides price protection on its Spark business cards and several of its consumer MasterCard’s.  All Spark and eligible personal MasterCards cover $500 per item for 60 days and up to $2,500 in claims per year.

Capital One’s eligible personal cards include their Platinum MasterCard, the Saver One Cash and Saver Rewards cards, and the BuyPower Card (GM card).  The co-branded Walmart card is the only one of Capital One’s personal cards that advertises the benefit. However, if you refer to each MasterCard guide to benefits, you will see the other cards offer protection. These MasterCards provide coverage for 120 days but only reimburse up to $250 per item and $1,000 in total claims per year.

All Capital One personal Visa cards, including the Venture cards, do not provide price protection.

U.S. Bank Price Protection

Price protection is only offered on U.S. Bank’s Cash 365 American Express Card.

Unfortunately, it is one of the weakest price protection policies. Dubbed “Best Value Guarantee,” U.S. Bank will only reimburse you if you see a lower price advertised in print within 30 days of purchase. All other card issuers that offer purchase protection will accept online advertisements.

You are required to contact U.S. Bank to file a claim and submit all required documents within 90 days of purchase.

Best card for an extended warranty, return and purchase protection

In addition to price protection, there are several other types of insurance provided by credit cards that can be useful when making a large purchase.

• Purchase protection will reimburse you if an item is stolen or damaged within a specific period after purchase. In most cases, purchase protection is secondary to any homeowner’s or renter’s insurance.
• Return protection will reimburse you if you are unable to return an item to the original place of purchase within a specific period after purchase, usually 90 days. For example, if a store has a 30-day return policy and you want to return an item 50 days after purchase, this benefit will reimburse you. Sometimes the coverage provider will ask you to ship them the product; other times, you are allowed to keep the item but are still reimbursed.
• Extended Warranty will extend the original manufacturer’s warranty, usually by an additional 1-4 years. Total coverage is generally capped at a specific amount.

Which of the cards with price protection also have the benefits above?

Consumer cards that offer price protection, in addition, to purchase protection, return protection or an extended warranty:

Card	Purchase Protection	Return Protection	Extended Warranty	Annual fee
Synchrony Rakuten Card	Yes, 90 days, $1,000 per claim, $50,000 per account	Yes, 90 days, $250 per item, $1,000 per year	Yes, extends warranties of 3 years or less, by one year	$0
Chase United TravelBank Card	Yes, 120 days, $500, per claim, $50,000 per account	No	No	$0
Chase United Club Card	Yes, 120 days, $10,000 per claim, $50,000 per year	Yes, 90 days, $500 per item, $1,000 per year	Yes, extends warranties of 3 years or less, by one year	$450
Chase United MileagePlus Presidential Plus‎ Card	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Varies
Wells Fargo Visa Signature card	Yes, 90 days, $500 per item, $50,00 per account	No	Yes, extends warranties of 3 years or less, by one year	$0
U.S. Bank Cash 365 American Express Card	Yes - terms unknown	Yes, 30 days, $300 per item, $1,00 per year	Doubles warranty of 1 year or less	$0
HSBC Premier World Elite Mastercard	Yes, 90 days, $1,000 per item, $25,000 per year	Yes, 60 days, $250 per item, $1,000 per year	Doubles warranty of 2 years or less	$395
Navy Federal More Rewards American Express Credit Card	Yes, 90 days, $1,000 per item, $50,000 per year	Yes, 90 days, $300 per item, $1,000 per annually	Doubles warranty of 1 year or less	$0
Capital One Walmart Reward Card	No	No	Doubles warranty of 2 years or less	$0
Capital One BuyPower Card	No	No	Doubles warranty of 2 years or less	$0
Capital One Saver One Cash Reward Card	No	No	Doubles warranty of 2 years or less	$0
Capital One Savor Rewards from Capital One	No	No	Doubles warranty of 2 years or less	$0 first year / $95 after
Capital One Platinum Card	No	No	Doubles warranty of 2 years or less	$0

Business cards that offer price protection, in addition, to purchase protection, return protection or an extended warranty:

Card	Purchase Protection	Return Protection	Extended Warranty	Annual fee
Chase United Explorer Business Card	Yes, 120 days, $10,000 per claim, $50,000 per account	Yes, 90 days, $500 per item, $1,000 per year	Yes, extends warranty of 3 years or less for 1 year	$95
Chase United Club Business Card	Yes, 120 days, $10,000 per claim, $50,000 per account	Yes, 90 days, $500 per item, $1,000 per year	Yes, extends warranty of 3 years or less for 1 year	$450
Capital One Spark Cash for Business	Yes, 90 days, $10,000 per claim, $50,000 per year	No	Yes, extends warranty of 3 years or less for 1 year	$95
Capital One Spark Miles for Business	Yes, 90 days, $10,000 per claim, $50,000 per year	No	Yes, extends warranty of 3 years or less for 1 year	$95
Capital One Spark Cash Select for Business	Yes, 90 days, $10,000 per claim, $50,000 per year	No	Yes, extends warranty of 3 years or less for 1 year	$0
Capital One Spark Miles Select for Business	Yes, 90 days, $10,000 per claim, $50,000 per year	No	Yes, extends warranty of 3 years or less for 1 year	$0

The Chase personal and business United Club Cards, as well as the United Explorer Business card, provide the best all-around coverage in all three categories. All those cards include purchase protection for 120 days following purchase, return protection for 90 days, and extend a manufacturer’s warranty of three years or less by an additional year. Furthermore, none of the other cards with price protection offer four-months of purchase protection.

Among the no-annual-fee cards, Synchrony’s Rakuten card is easily the best choice. The Rakuten card offers purchase protection for 90 days up to $1,000 per claim, return protection for 90 days up to $250 per claim, and an additional year of warranty coverage.

Other tools to get a price adjustment

Paribus is a service that scans your email for shopping receipts and automatically monitors for price decreases. If it finds one, it notifies you and provides you with the information necessary to file a claim. In some cases, Paribus will reach out to the merchant to submit a price adjustment claim on your behalf or to request coupons be applied retroactively. Currently, the service works with 25 retailers, including Amazon, Target, and Walmart.

In addition to price drops, the service also monitors your orders for late deliveries and reminders about product return windows.

Paribus was acquired by Capital One in 2016 but remains open to anyone regardless of card membership.

Bottom Line

Price protection is a beneficial feature that can potentially save you hundreds of dollars. In recent years, the number of services and apps that will monitor price changes for you has increased. Unfortunately, at the same time, the number of credit cards offering price protection has drastically decreased.

Thankfully, there are still several cards with some form of price protection, several of which have no annual fee.

The five Chase United cards listed above provide the best price-protection coverage, with $500 per item coverage for 90 days, up to $2,500 per year. While the HSBC Premier and Capital One Walmart cards provide 120 days of coverage, they come with lower claim limits of $250 per item and $1,000 in total claims per year.

With that said, the no-fee Rakuten card issued by Synchrony may be your best choice. Although the card only comes with 60 days of price protection, it also offers purchase protection, return protection, and an extended warranty benefit. With a minimum of 4% cashback or four points per dollar on all purchases made with the card through the Rakuten portal, it is easily the best Membership Rewards earning card currently available.