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3. Nordstorm Card review: Your ticket to anniversary sale early access

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reviews

4.2

Rating: 4.2 out of 5.

Annual Fee: $0

This content is curated by Intuit Credit Karma’s Editorial team using data from members who were approved for this card or similar cards, or who self-matched this card or similar cards. Intuit Credit Karma receives compensation from third-party advertisers, but that doesn’t affect our editors’ opinions. Our third-party advertisers don’t review, approve or endorse this content. Information about financial products not offered on Credit Karma is collected independently. Our content is accurate to the best of our knowledge when posted.

Here’s the average credit limit of members who matched their Nordstorm Card or similar cards.

% of members by credit limit range

The average credit limit for members who have matched with this card or similar cards is $4,616, with $1,000 being the most common.

Here’s the average credit score of members who matched their Nordstorm Card or similar cards.

% of members by credit score range

The average credit score for members who have matched with this card or similar cards is 692, with 819 being the most common. Note this is just one of the deciding factors when it comes to getting approved.

Member stats

Updated daily

32.3%

Average credit utilization (or what percent of the card’s credit limit is being used) of members who matched with this card or similar cards.

50 years

Average age of members who matched this card or similar cards.

$103,232

Average annual income of members who matched this card or similar cards. Note: Income may be estimated for some members by Credit Karma and may differ from members’ actual incomes.

Pros and cons

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Early access to Nordstrom’s anniversary sale

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Immediately earn a $40 bonus rewards note when you make a purchase on the day of card approval (that day only)

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No annual fee

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Confusing application process may consider you for more than one card at the same time

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Cardmember-only benefits are limited to early sale access and in-store alterations

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Special payment options create potential for additional interest charges

5 things to consider with a Nordstrom card

If you’re a loyal Nordstrom shopper, it’s probably a no-brainer that you’ll consider applying for one of its credit cards — particularly if you want early access to its annual anniversary sale. That’s the main draw of its credit cards since other benefits are scant unless you take advantage of alterations credits.

1. Confusing application process may result in a card you don’t want

There are three Nordstrom credit card options — and the application process can be confusing.

Here are the three cards to consider.

• The Nordstrom Credit Card is a closed-loop card, meaning it can be used only at Nordstrom and affiliated stores.
• The Nordstrom Visa Platinum® or Nordstrom Visa Signature® credit cards, can be used anywhere Visa cards are accepted.

When you apply for one of the Nordstrom Visa cards, you’re considered for both, plus the Nordstrom Credit Card. Alternatively, you can choose to only apply for the Nordstrom Credit Card.

If you qualify for the retail card and either a Visa Platinum® or Visa Signature® card, you get to choose which card you want. But if you don’t qualify for one of the Visa cards, you could get the more limiting closed-loop Nordstrom Credit Card.

The Nordstrom Visa Signature® version may be the most difficult to qualify for, since it considers not only your credit profile but how frequently you buy at Nordstrom. It may not be an option if you’re not an especially committed Nordstrom shopper.

2. You’ll earn extra rewards at Nordstrom

You can get rewards from any Nordstrom credit card, but your earning power will depend on which card you have. All three cards allow you to earn …

• Three points per $1 spent in stores or online at Nordstrom, Nordstrom Rack, HauteLook and Trunk Club

If you’re approved for one of the Visa cards, you’ll also be able to earn …

• Two points per $1 on dining, entertainment and travel purchases
• One point per $1 on all other purchases

Those rewards rates are nothing to sneeze at, but they’re not as high as what you see from other store credit cards.

Plus, Nordstrom’s credit cards aren’t the only way to earn rewards. The store’s rewards program, the Nordy Club, is free to join and will let you earn one point per $1 on all purchases when you don’t use one of the store’s credit cards.

3. It takes a lot of spending to translate those points to rewards

When your Nordy Club account reaches 2,000 points, you’ll be automatically issued a $20 rewards through your account.

How quickly you earn rewards notes will depend on how much you spend on your Nordstrom credit card. Given the rewards rates outlined above, you would have to spend nearly $667 at Nordstrom and its associated stores to earn a single $20 reward.

If you want to earn points more quickly, you can use a “double points” day to earn twice the normal rate of points. How many of those days you get depends on your level in the Nordy Club. If you make most of your Nordstrom purchases on one of those days — say the first day of the anniversary sale — you can rack up rewards more quickly.

4. Cardholder-only perks might not be worth the spend

The Nordy Club offers multiple levels of benefits based on your annual spending at Nordstrom, regardless of how much of that spending goes on your Nordstrom credit card.

There are also certain perks available only to cardholders. But those card-only benefits vary only slightly among tiers and may not be worth it for everyone.

All cardholders automatically earn Insider status, which is usually only available to Nordy Club members who spend at least $500 at Nordstrom in a year. At this level, the cardholder-only benefits are pretty nice — you get early access to Nordstrom’s popular Anniversary Sale and a $100 alteration benefit that you get in the form of rewards notes.

Influencer, the next level, kicks in when you spend $2,000 at Nordstrom over the course of a year. This level comes with some extra benefits through the Nordy Club, as well as an extra $100 added to your alterations credit.

When you look at the full breakdown of cardholder-only benefits, the relative benefits of each tier with the card look relatively light.

There are more-exclusive perks at the Nordy Club’s Icon level, but that status requires a whopping $15,000 in annual spending to qualify.

Another reason spending can matter is access to the anniversary sale. In 2020, Nordstrom started granting access to the sale based on your Nordy Club status. For instance, Nordy Club members with Influencer status got access three days earlier than members with Insider status. That can make a difference since in-demand products can sell out quickly. It’s unclear if Nordstrom will continue that practice going forward.

Moving up a tier also may pay off if you’re likely to use the additional alterations credit. But even then, the additional spending required to earn those benefits might not be worth it.

5. You could see one of a number of potentially high APRs

TD Bank, the issuer of Nordstrom’s credit cards, does not make it easy when it comes to understanding your potential APR.

If you’re approved for a Nordstrom Visa card, the APR for Nordstrom purchases will be a variable 25.90% APR.

If you’re approved, your variable APR could range from 18.90% to 25.90%. The application process means you can’t be sure which of these APRs you’ll receive.

Other things to note about the Nordstrom credit cards

• Sign-up bonus: You can earn a bonus $40 note when you make any purchase at Nordstrom, Nordstrom.com or Nordstrom Rack on the day you’re approved for your card.
• No annual fee: All available cards have no annual fee.
• Promotional financing: The card agreement lists “special payment options” that may be offered by TD Bank on occasion, but these aren’t defined specifically. These options sound similar to deferred interest offers, which usually offer a low interest rate on certain purchases over a set period of time. But with deferred interest, if you don’t pay off the full balance on those purchases by the time the promotional period ends, you could end up owing full interest accruing from the time of your purchase to date. Make sure you read the fine print of any such offers before you commit.

Who this card is good for

The Nordstrom credit card is only an ideal option for the truly Nordstrom loyal. The card’s early access to the anniversary sale can be a big perk for those who regularly shop this annual sale, and shoppers who appreciate Nordstrom’s alteration service will find meaningful value in the card-only alterations credits.

Otherwise, Nordstrom fans will probably get more value out of joining the Nordy Club for free and paying for their purchases with a more-versatile rewards credit card. For instance, using a credit card that earns 2% cash back as a member of the Nordy Club would allow you to earn a total of 3% back in rewards on your Nordstrom purchases — the same you’d get from one of the store’s credit cards.

Not sure a Nordstrom credit card is right for you? Consider these alternatives.

• Citi Double Cash® Card: Consider this card if you’re looking for a strong cash-back rate on every purchase you make.
• Petal® 1 Visa® Credit Card: This is a decent starter card with no annual fee — and the opportunity to earn cash back on some purchases.
• Discover it® Cash Back: This card is a good option for earning cash back wherever you shop.