The benefits at first blush can be staggering. Behind closed doors, though, the Victoria’s Secret credit card falls flat.
As you can probably guess from a retailer most famous for its push-up bras, the Victoria’s Secret credit card, issued by Comenity Bank, is backed by a slew of intriguing incentives.
But in the small print, Victoria has a secret: The card’s rewards are designed to make you spend more, with little opportunity to build up savings.
Unless you’re already a brand loyalist and spend heavily each year, you’ll probably get more value from a general-purpose rewards credit card.
You might find yourself spending more than you otherwise would to get the discount being offered. And because offers are sent via email to cardholders and not advertised ahead of time, it’s unclear whether all cardholders receive the same minimum purchase requirement to redeem their benefits.
Is Anything Special About the Victoria Secret Credit Card?
Not unlike finding your perfect bra style and cup size, Victoria’s Secret has four different credit card options to fit both your style requirements and your credit.
The Victoria Credit Card is black, featuring the scripted VS logo. It’s a store-only card that can only be used on purchases at Victoria’s Secret and Pink, both in-store and online.
The Pink Credit Card is pink with the block-lettered Pink logo of Victoria’s Secret sister brand. It is a store-only card and can be used only on purchases made with the Pink and Victoria’s Secret brands, both in-store and online.
The Victoria Mastercard Credit Card is black, bears the Mastercard logo, and can be used anywhere Mastercard is accepted.
The Pink Mastercard Credit Card comes in light pink, carries the Mastercard logo, and can be used anywhere Mastercard is accepted. All four versions can be used at Victoria’s Secret and Pink stores, and all cards earn the same rewards in those stores.
The four cards are managed through a single application, where you’ll be able to choose between the black and pink design styles.
The decision as to whether you’re approved for the Mastercard versions or the store-only versions is determined by Comenity Bank, based on creditworthiness.
Benefits of the Victoria’s Secret Credit Card
The big secret to maximizing rewards with all of the store-only and Mastercard versions is understanding that not all purchases are created equal.
Casual buyers of apparel and beauty items will gain little benefit from this card’s rewards. Although if you’re purchasing many Bombshell bras, you’ll see a big increase in rewards value.
You’ll earn the same on Victoria’s Secret and Pink purchases with either card. But cardholders who spend more will get a higher tier status, which is more rewarding.
The Rewards
For comparison’s sake, the average bra on the Victoria’s Secret website is around $50. So, if you happen to be buying at least 15 bras a year, you can amass well-endowed savings. In addition, the two Mastercard versions of the card also earn:
- 4 points for each $1 spent, equal to 2% back in rewards on dining, travel, and streaming purchases.
- 2 points for each $1 spent, equal to 1% back in rewards on all other purchases outside of Pink or Victoria’s Secret.
This is the largest detraction of the Victoria’s Secret credit card: rewards are automatically issued in $10 increments for each 2,000 points earned, and once issued, those $10 rewards expire within 90 days.
Last Lines
In the fine print, though, they have a catch. Each has a minimum purchase amount to redeem the offer. They do make you have a minimum purchase of more than $25 to apply your $25 reward to your first credit card purchase, which is reasonable.
But for the rest of these discounts, Victoria’s Secret won’t tell you what that minimum is until after you already have the card.
This makes it almost impossible to build up rewards towards a big splurge. In fact, if you anticipate utilizing your rewards towards anything other than a travel-sized Pink beauty product, you’ll end up spending more than you’ll save without a doubt.
If you’d rather not worry about keeping track of limited rewards redemption periods, consider a straightforward cash-back card like the Citi Double Cash® Card. It provides unlimited 2% cash back on all purchases 1% when you buy something and 1% when you pay for it.
