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Ever had the experience of buying something, only to see it advertised at another store or online for a better price? If you made the purchase with a card that offers price protection, there is every chance you can recoup the difference in price. While cards offering price protection are not as common as they once were, there are still plenty of options available, including a few that don’t charge an annual fee.
Unfortunately, many card issuers including Barclays, Discover, Chase, and Citi have devalued or removed price protection policies over the last couple of years.
- Discover scrapped price protection benefits on all cards on October 31, 2018.
- Chase removed price protection from the majority of its Visa cards at the end of 2018, with the Sapphire Reserve Guide to Benefits stating the benefit was dropped as of August 26, 2018. There are now just a handful of United co-brand cards counting price protection as a benefit.
- Mastercard removed price protection mid-way through 2019, although some issuers still retain price protection on select cards.
- Citi culled its Price Rewind benefit on all cards from September 22, 2019.
- Barclays removed price protection on all cards on November 1, 2019.
Ancillary benefits such as price protection don't sound quite as sexy as free flights or five-star hotels, but there's every possibility you’ll receive more dollar value from card benefits than credit card rewards over the life of your card.
Provided you know what items your card covers, and you can navigate the claims process, price protection can potentially save you thousands of dollars per year.
What Is Price Protection and How Does It Work?
At its core, price protection is price matching for items you purchase using your credit card. If you find a lower advertised price for exactly the same item within the specified timeframe, the card issuer will refund the difference.
The policies are effectively the same as low-price guarantees offered by retailers, covering items purchased in the U.S. using an eligible credit card. The claim windows range from within 30 days of purchase on the low end, up to 90 days from the date of purchase at the high end. There are plenty of restrictions on what you can claim, and limitations on the dollar value and number of claims you can make each year, which we dig into in more detail below.
Credit Cards Offering Price Protection Policies
We’ve only included credit providers and specific cards that we could find written price protection policies for, either in guides to benefits or covered on the issuer’s website, and included updates when new policies are announced. If we’ve missed a card and you can provide links to a price protection policy, please get in touch via the comments so we can get it added to the list.
| Credit Provider | Cards Offering Price Protection | Max Claim Value | Claim Window | Example of Policy |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Barclays | Barclays removed price protection from all cards on November 1, 2019. | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Capital One | Capital One provides price protection on four Business cards: • Capital One Spark Cash Plus • Capital One Spark Cash Select for Excellent Credit • Capital One Spark Miles for Business • Capital One Spark Miles Select for Business | Up to $500 per item and $2,500 per year | 60 days | Capital One Business Card Benefits Guides |
| Chase | Chase now only offers price protection on four United co-brand cards: • United℠ TravelBank Card • United MileagePlus® Club Card • United Club℠ Business Card • United℠ Presidential Plus℠ Card | Up to $500 per item and $2,500 per year | 90 days | "If a MileagePlus Presidential Plus Card purchase you made in the U.S. is advertised for less in print or online within 90 days, you can be reimbursed for the difference up to $500 per item and up to $2,500 per year." |
| Citi | Citi no longer offers price protection (Price Rewind) on any credit card. | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Wells Fargo | • Wells Fargo Visa Signature® Card | Up to $250.00 per item and $1,000.00 per year | 60 days | Wells Fargo Visa Signature Price Protection |
| U.S. Bank | • U.S. Bank Cash 365™ American Express® Card | Up to $250 per item and $1,000 a year per account | 30 days | U.S. Bank Amex Price Protection |
You’ll notice some pretty big players in the credit card space are missing off this list, including Discover, American Express, Citi, and Bank of America. That's because they don’t offer price protection on any of their card products.
What Purchases Are Excluded from Price Protection?
The list of exclusions differs for each provider but is fairly consistent across different cards from the same issuer. Common exclusions include:
- Boats, cars, or any motorized vehicle (motorbike, truck, tractor, etc)
- Cell phones purchased on contract or as part of a service
- Secondhand or refurbished items
- Any item purchased to resell for profit or for commercial use
- Items purchased outside the U.S.
- Collectables, jewelry, rare, custom, or tailored items
- All fees and taxes, rebates, or incentives from the manufacturer
- Any kind of live animal
This is by no means an exhaustive list, for precise exclusions on each card you’ll need to read the credit card guide to benefits. If you’re unfamiliar with your card benefits, we’ve compiled a handy list of guides to benefits from major credit providers.
Which Card Issuer Provides the Best Policy
With Barclays' ending price protection benefits, Chase wiping the benefit from most Visa & Mastercards cards, Discover removing the benefit from its listed card benefits, and Citi cutting the Price Rewind benefit completely, the best card for Price Protection depends on your needs.
The United co-brand cards like the United MileagePlus® Club Card listed above provide both the equal-highest return and the longest reporting period. Or, you could use one of the more versatile travel cards from Capital One like the Capital One Spark Miles for Business, which earns transferable rewards and typically provides a better return on non-bonus spending. Wells Fargo and U.S. Bank also offer viable alternatives in this dwindling area of credit card purchase protection.
- Earn 50,000 bonus miles once you spend $4,500 on purchases within 3 months from account opening; worth $500 in travel if redeemed for a fixed-value, or potentially much more when transferred to airline partners
- 2 Miles per $1 on every purchase, everywhere
- Fee credit for Global Entry or TSA Pre✔® (up to $100)
- No foreign transaction fees
- $0 intro for first year; $95 after that
- 2X miles per dollar on every purchase, everywhere, no limits or category restrictions
- 5X miles on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel
How to File a Price Protection Claim
- Capital One – Call 1-800-397-9010 to request a claim form and return with the required documents to – Card Benefit Services, P.O. Box 2894, Great Falls, MT 59403
- Chase – Call the Benefits Administrator on 1-888-880-5844 within 21 days of the advertised lower price and return all required documents within 45 days
- U.S. Bank – Call 1-855-327-1424 to initiate a request for a refund
- Wells Fargo – Contact the Benefits Administrator on 1-800-553-7520 within 10 days of finding the lower advertised price
Final Thoughts
If you haven’t used the price protection policy on your credit card(s), you're potentially missing out on hundreds of dollars a year in savings. Provided the items are an exact match, and the claim meets all the issuers' criteria, the process is relatively straightforward, and you can rest easy knowing that if there is a sale on the item you’ve just purchased, you can claim back the difference.
If you’ve had experience making a price protection claim through your credit provider, we’d love to hear from you in the comments below.
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So, which companies still offer price protection? The article needs a better conclusion so the answer is clear. Thanks.
In the table inside the article, we listed the cards that still offer this perk: 4 United cards from Chase, 4 Capital One business cards, and 1 each from Wells Fargo and U.S. Bank.
As of September 2020, Chase has removed Price Protection from United branded cards. Also, very important to note all Capital One VISA cards that offer Price Protection EXCLUDE lower prices found on the internet!! Their World and World Elite Mastercards offer Price Protection directly through Mastercard (mycardbenefits.com) for $250 per item $2500 per year and do NOT exclude internet ads.
Thanks for sharing Kelly. Can you share where you learned about the Change to United cobrand price protection? We’re reaching out to Chase to clarify, but any additional info would be helpful. Great tip on the enhanced protection directly from Mastercard!
I was mailed a letter and new benefits guide effective 09/13 that shows PP removed and United Travelbank was changed to United Gateway.
Also if you see the United Travelbank page it no longer shows price protection under purchase protection https://www.chase.com/personal/credit-cards/united/travel-bank/purchase-protection
Thanks Kelly! I appreciate the followup. We’ll get our posts updated.
Which Capital One cards are Mastercards? Search online and couldn’t find an answer, thanks!
I just opened an IHG card and the revised guide to benefits notes that price protection will be eliminated in 11/17/2019 so there goes those cards.
Wells Fargo theoretically has the best remaining card for price protection assuming they are not discontinuing their benefit either. Note that you will need to be pre-approved for a 5,000 credit limit to qualify for the card that offers price protection, and they are absurdly stingy. I had no trouble qualifying immediately for 20,000 credit limit on the IHG card but for whatever reason Wells Fargo refused to give me even a 5,000 credit limit, and sent me their secondary card instead (which I promptly cancelled when I was unable to get them to issue me the Signature card).
YMMV.
I also love Citi price-rewind, it has very good price protection program and you get the check as quick as one week after it approved and process is online very easy! regretted that they stopped it this month on the 9/22 so Citi no longer offer price protection on any cards?? I gusseted! trying to looking for others credit cards that have price protection, and thanks for the great information here, was thinking about get the credit card with Chase that have it but saw comments with is not good customer service also long time to get approved to file claim so being concern now, What’s about Wells Fargo and US bank? Is US bank is through Amex I coukldn’t find anything on price protection when click on the link.. thanks!
Hey Emily, Chase dropped the price protection on most cards, but the IHG cards still have the benefit. The welcome offer on that card is also at an all-time high. I don’t have any personal claim experience with Wells Fargo or US Bank, but I’ve filed multiple claims (not price protection) with my Sapphire card and always found the experience to be decent.
Chase is no longer offering Price Protection on the IHG card. Please update your article.
Hey Kelly, Chase still lists price protection on their website. (here). This is in the “Purchase Protection” section.
I stand corrected, thank you!
11/10/19: If you follow that link as of today Chase no longer lists price protection as a benefit.
I wish they would make up their minds about this. Thanks for helping us catch the change on IHG, we’ve updated the post and now hopefully have the most up to date info on this. Please let me know if you find any other inaccuracies.
Have used Citi and saved hundreds if dollars, it is simple, effective, easy, and I an amazed at how they quickly identify lower prices even when I buy something on sale. The limits have never affected me. Alas, all good things must come to an end and effective Sept 2019 Citi is NO LONGER offering the program. Must have cost them too much.
Chase Credit cars sucks! Had horrible experience! They don’t protect you! Very rude customer service! Never going back, will not suggst anyone in this life
Wells Fargo Visa Signature and Barclays Uber Visa actually offer price protection now.
Thanks Garold, will get the post updated.
Found this in a Google search after wondering if any of the cards in my lineup still had price protection. Thanks for the great lists!
This is a good list.
I hope Amex can come up with a similar program, it’s customer service is best.
Great list. Have to remember these.
Citi’s Price Protection is my secret weapon for Black Friday shopping. Used to be Discover. Look for what you want in the BF Ad, buy the item a few days before it goes on sale while walking past the camping line, Price Rewind,….profit!
“Common exclusions include: […] Items purchased outside the U.S.”
Would this work if the item is purchased through Amazon USA, but from a foreign seller?
Great question — Not sure. Worth a call to your card issuer.
I’d like to get the Capital One Savor card but the annual fee seem high, hope Amex comes with a card with price protection.
Nice feature if you can get one that has it.
Probably one of the first benefits to get axed though.
This is a benefit I really like and have used often with both Citi and Discover(when it was offered). I suspect perhaps many others have as well and there are various services that automate this process and make it easier for more people to use it. I suspect it became too costly to continue. Credit card issuers love to advertise a perk to get people to sign up but hope it rarely gets used. I have gotten major discounts easily on electronics purchased around Thanksgiving/Black Friday by using this benefit. It is sad that it is slowly being reduced/eliminated
Thanks! Just got the Barclays A+ and didn’t realize this was one of the benefits.
I have yet to ever use price protection. I hope to use it in the near future though.
I usually forget about these perks; thanks for the reminders!
Great list
I wonder what percentage of card holders actually utilize this perk.
I’d be shocked if it was over 20%
This is a great list. thanks much for the info!
Boo, hiss, for Chase and Amex for not providing this coverage. They may well be missing out on some large purchases due to their not being an entrant regarding this coverage.
They had it up until this year actually.
Citi is great – even with their upcoming lower limit – since it can be used along with their extended warranty protection.
Interesting to take a look at, im not sure if my cards have this feature… I haven’t really looked into it. reading the comments it seems I might be missing out. thanks
This feature is rarely included with the overseas credit cards.
I’ve used the citi one a few times. works fairly well but more importantly doubles the warranty.
citi’s price rewind is pretty easy to use. It is a shame that they decrease the reimbursement amount.
My bigger complaint that benefits going away is that Chase’s provider doesn’t seem to want to approve any claims – I’ve filed two this year and they dragged one out for nearly 9 months before paying while the second is 6 months in and still not approved.
I have a citi card and didn’t know I eve had this feature! Thanks for the heads up!
I have not used this feature before, and I am not even sure if any my current credit cards have it. I shall check! Thanks for the reminder!
Chase mastercards specifically IHG still offer price protection.
This is one area I haven’t put much time into studying. Thank you for giving me a taste so I may continue to learn about this perk.
Thanks for the update!
Discover is my favorite.
I get the feeling price protection credit cad benefits are gradually getting worse and worse.
Appreciate the roundup, because this is truly one item I don’t do good in taking advantage of routinely.
I use Citi Price Rewind all the time. Good to know that my Discover and Aviator cards also offer this benefit.
Discover for only 1 more day.
Discover seems to be the winner here.
Discover for only 1 more day.
I tried this with Citi and they asked for a copy of my credit card statement. Is that normal? I would expect the credit card company to have access to this information since they are the ones issuing the statement in the first place.
It is normal. Citi doesn’t actually handle the process. Same thing with Chase.
good to know…. too bad most card companies don’t make it easy to get the benefit
Has that been your experience? It has been quite easy for me.
I’m pretty upset at discover dropping this benefit in a few days, and no one else is offering a decent replacement. Need some kind of a grassroots campaign to get these benefits back
3rd party sites seem to do just as good of a job on price protection
“Discover Price Protection will be discontinued effective 10/31/18. Only items purchased prior to 10/31/18 will be eligible to be covered under these terms.” I don’t know if this applies to all kinds of Discover cards or just Discover Cashback Bonus which I have.
Great and informative article. How ever I’ve seen US based credit card providers have this benefit. Is it the same thing outside of US and specifically in Europe?
Sorry, Ali, I’m not sure what benefits credit card providers offer outside of the US.
This was hands down my favorite feature on any of my credit cards. My American Express card lost a lot of business to Citi and Discover over this, and I absolutely refused to open a new credit card that didn’t include this feature. It’s rather a shame that Discover has abandoned this feature (and really, all of its card benefits) in pursuit of stricter cyber security that is really quite unnecessary. They will no longer be my primary card when this goes into effect.
In short, I saved thousands of dollars with this benefit, which was especially handy when I purchased my first home last year. It’s incredible how things like barstools that cost $300 for a set of 2 could go down to just $50 by the clearance season. I would have been willing to pay an annual fee to keep this service, but that is not an option apparently.
If you’re looking for the easiest to use program, go with Citi. They track the prices on your behalf if you register each qualifying item and upload the receipt, all of which is done online. No one makes it easier to file and receive a claim.
No one searches on your behalf either. They are way ahead of the curve here. They also send the money to you in the form of a statement credit if you wish. It’s a shame that they lowered the maximum value on this benefit, but it’s certainly preferable to getting rid of it altogether.
My experience with Discover was good as well, though the process is a bit clunkier. You have to call them and answer a few questions. I never really understood why you can’t initiate a claim online, especially since they ask you the same questions every time, but the process overall was much smoother with them than Chase. You can upload everything digitally, and your check is usually approved quickly–about a week in my experience. Chase takes much longer. With Discover, the check takes about another 1-2 weeks to arrive, as opposed to several with Chase. It’s not as modern as Citi for sure, but I’ve never complained about getting the sale price on an item I paid more for.
So if you’re wondering how much weight to place on price protection when considering a new card, my opinion is that you should consider this feature at the top of the list. When I say I’ve saved thousands of dollars, I’m not kidding. No sign on bonus or travel perk has been as good as price protection.
Thanks for the reminder – I typically forget about these types of purchase benefits! Just did a Discover extended warranty claim only to find they discontinued their program.
Yep, that’s rough having the benefit pulled and not knowing. We’ve put together a list of the top cards providing extended warranty here – https://awardwallet.com/blog/best-credit-cards-extended-warranty-coverage/
Thanks for the info. Another good reason to hang onto my chase sapphire reserve card.
Thanks! Bookmarking this!
A great benefit if one can make use of it & hopefully there are folks who do.
Honestly, I just never even think of checking prices and/or have the time.
I keep forgetting about this! Thank you for the reminder! At this time of the year it’s really important when prices can change quite a bit.
I’m definitely going to have to look at this! Doesn’t look like it has to be in your home state, right? I could buy it anywhere where it states?
I guess we should all really read all the benefits we get with our cards. I have several that participate.
Correct; no state limits.
This is definitely a useful benefit.
I didn’t even know this was a perk.
I used my Sapphire reserve for the price protection about 6 months ago. It took a little a few phone calls and a few months to receive my check as my status was stuck in review for awhile. It was finally pushed along and I received my $500!!!! Such an incredible benefit that lowered the price of my tv by 20%!!!
Excellent! Thanks for sharing.
Great list and very informative!
I love my chase sapphire reserve! If only it didn’t come with just a hefty annual fee!
Citi has been fantastic with this
I’ve done a Citi Price Rewind just one time and it got me $50 back. It was an easy process but of course it takes a few weeks for that money to actually come back to you. I’ve only had the service monitor my large purchases because it seems too time consuming to enter every small item I purchase. In the end, it doesn’t seem worth the time it takes for low-dollar items but it is definitely worth it if you can get a bit of cash back on a large purchase.
Good to know although I’ve never used this.
I really wish AMEX would offer this service. I have yet to use the benefit on my other cards but its good to know that it’s a possibility.
Have never used this benefit and quite honestly, I don’t remember to think about it. However, thanks to this great information and the details on how to do so, I plan to keep an eye out to apply it for larger purchases I make. No sense leaving money on the table.
Wow, I definitely wasn’t aware of what this was! I assume this applies to plane tickets as well, yes? That might be a really good option for that then.
where is amex??
They don’t offer this benefit; we mentioned that in the article.
Are the terms mentioned in this American Express page out of date and not apply any more?
https://www.americanexpress.com/us/credit-cards/features-benefits/policies/purchase-protection-terms.html
What you have linked to is PURCHASE protection, not PRICE protection.
Awesome list, thanks for the summary!
Based on everyone’s experience, which one is the easiest claim to file? Citi price rewind seems the most hassle-free.
eclaimsline for Chase has been great since it’s all been online. However, I heard they’re changing their poicies that require requests to be made in writing… did I misread that?
Definitely not!
Thanks for this list. It’s something I’ll have to keep in mind when considering new cards.
I use Earny to automate the price protection claim process. They take a 25% cut of the savings, but that’s a fair price for set-it-and-forget-it convenience that just drops found money into your account. https://earny.app.link
Jay, we don’t do referral links here in comments but appreciate the suggestion!
Price rewind has been very very good to me this year.
I used this for some recent appliance purchases. Got local service and delivery, used an out-of-town provider for price match in Citicard. Very easy. Just have to be careful about model numbers because the big box stores are often given unique model numbers to thwart price comparisons.
Great writeup!
Thanks for the tip. I did not know about this. Another post worthy of bookmarking.
I have had good luck with Citibank price rewind
This is not a benefit that I monitor but it probably should be. Thank you for reminding me. I will say that my one interaction with Chase and their eclaimsline was quite poor. The hassle was worth it to have several thousand dollars refunded for a cruise, I’m not sure it would be worth the hassle for a small purchase refund.
Based on my experience, regarding price protection, it has always been a piece of cake. However much effort you put in through your trip protection was likely much more significant than what I’ve done with price protection. Regardless, glad to hear it worked out for you in the end, and that you had the protection.
Great tips guys ?
Thank you. While Citibank had been promoting it as a benefit, I didn’t realize that other issuers also offered this benefit. I guess I’ll have to decide whether to use the card with the best rebate upfront, or one that adds this option, just in case, when making larger purchases.
Helpful roundup of a great feature of these cards. Thanks!