Some folks have that one store that just fits. Everything there is just right for you, and you'll shop there no matter what. If JCPenney is that store for you, then the JCPenney Credit Card may be worth a look. This store credit card offers JCPenney Rewards on purchases and special savings for cardmembers. But the limited use of both the card and its rewards makes it a poor option for anyone but the most dedicated JCPenney shoppers. Check out our JCPenney Credit Card review for the full scoop.
Ratings Methodology
JCPenney Credit Card
Rating image, 3.00 out of 5 stars.
3.00/5Our ratings are based on a 5 star scale.5 stars equals Best.4 stars equals Excellent.3 stars equals Good.2 stars equals Fair.1 star equals Poor.We want your money to work harder for you. Which is why our ratings are biased toward offers that deliver versatility while cutting out-of-pocket costs. = Best = Excellent = Good = Fair = Poor
Rating image, 3.00 out of 5 stars.
3.00/5Our ratings are based on a 5 star scale.5 stars equals Best.4 stars equals Excellent.3 stars equals Good.2 stars equals Fair.1 star equals Poor.We want your money to work harder for you. Which is why our ratings are biased toward offers that deliver versatility while cutting out-of-pocket costs. = Best = Excellent = Good = Fair = Poor
Credit Score:Falling within this credit range does not guarantee approval by the issuer. An application must be submitted to the issuer for a potential approval decision. There are different types of credit scores and creditors use a variety of credit scores to make lending decisions.
Recommended Credit Score required for this offer is: Fair (300-669)
Poor
Fair
Good
Excellent
300-579
580-669
670-739
740-850
Credit ScoreFalling within this credit range does not guarantee approval by the issuer. An application must be submitted to the issuer for a potential approval decision. There are different types of credit scores and creditors use a variety of credit scores to make lending decisions.
Fair (300-669)
Intro APR
Purchases: N/A
Balance Transfers: N/A
Regular APR
25.99%, variable
RewardsEarn 1 point for every $1 of qualifying purchases, up to a maximum of 2,000 points in a single purchase transaction
Up to 1x points
Annual Fee
$0
Welcome Offer
15% off coupon
A solid fit for frequent JC Penney shoppers, but the lustre wears off quickly for anyone else.
- Purchase rewards
- New cardholder discount
- Exclusive savings
- No annual fee
- Closed-loop card
- Low rewards rate
- No intro APR offers
- 15% off on select original, regular and sale-priced apparel, shoes, accessories, fine jewelry, salon products, furniture, mattresses, home, and blinds & shades
- 5% off on Electronics, Small Electrics, Modern Bride® Design Your Dream Ring, Smartwatches, and Tempur-Pedic.
- Earn 2X the rewards points with a JCPenney Credit Card - receive 1 point per dollar spent on qualifying purchases.
- Special Financing available on qualifying purchases for furniture, mattresses, fine jewelry and more.
- Exclusive offers throughout the year with 100+ special savings days where JCPenney Credit Card members save more.
Credit card comparison
We recommend comparing options to ensure the card you're selecting is the best fit for you. To make your search easier, here's a short list of standout credit cards.
| Offer | Our Rating | Welcome Offer | Rewards Program | APR | Learn More |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Chase Freedom Unlimited® Apply Now for Chase Freedom Unlimited® OnChase'sSecure Website. | Rating image, 5.00 out of 5 stars. 5.00/5Our ratings are based on a 5 star scale.5 stars equals Best.4 stars equals Excellent.3 stars equals Good.2 stars equals Fair.1 star equals Poor.We want your money to work harder for you. Which is why our ratings are biased toward offers that deliver versatility while cutting out-of-pocket costs. | Up to $300 cash backEarn an extra 1.5% on everything you buy (on up to $20,000 spent in the first year) — worth up to $300 cash back. That's 6.5% on travel purchased through Chase Travel, 4.5% on dining and drugstores, and 3% on all other purchases. | 1.5% - 5% cash backEnjoy 5% cash back on travel purchased through Chase Travel, our premier rewards program that lets you redeem rewards for cash back, travel, gift cards and more; 3% cash back on drugstore purchases and dining at restaurants, including takeout and eligible delivery service, and 1.5% on all other purchases | Intro:0% Intro APR on Purchases and Balance Transfers for 15 months Purchases: 0% Intro APR on Purchases, 15 months Balance Transfers: 0% Intro APR on Balance Transfers, 15 months Regular:20.49% - 29.24% Variable | Apply Now for Chase Freedom Unlimited® OnChase'sSecure Website. |
Discover it® Cash Back | Rating image, 5.00 out of 5 stars. 5.00/5Our ratings are based on a 5 star scale.5 stars equals Best.4 stars equals Excellent.3 stars equals Good.2 stars equals Fair.1 star equals Poor.We want your money to work harder for you. Which is why our ratings are biased toward offers that deliver versatility while cutting out-of-pocket costs. | Discover will match all the cash back you've earned at the end of your first year.N/A | 1% - 5% CashbackEarn 5% cash back on everyday purchases at different places you shop each quarter like grocery stores, restaurants, gas stations, and more, up to the quarterly maximum when you activate. Plus, earn unlimited 1% cash back on all other purchases—automatically. | Intro: Purchases: 0%, 15 months Balance Transfers: 0%, 15 months Regular:18.24% - 28.24% Variable APR | |
Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card | Rating image, 5.00 out of 5 stars. 5.00/5Our ratings are based on a 5 star scale.5 stars equals Best.4 stars equals Excellent.3 stars equals Good.2 stars equals Fair.1 star equals Poor.We want your money to work harder for you. Which is why our ratings are biased toward offers that deliver versatility while cutting out-of-pocket costs. | 75,000 Miles75,000 Miles once you spend $4,000 on purchases within 3 months from account opening | 2X-5X milesEarn unlimited 2X miles on every purchase, every day. Earn 5X miles on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel, where you'll get Capital One's best prices on thousands of trip options. | Intro: Purchases: N/A Balance Transfers: N/A Regular:19.99% - 29.99% (Variable) |
Full JCPenney Credit Card review
This credit card is a good fit for: Frequent JCPenney shoppers who can maximize the branded rewards.
Top perks
Store credit card perks are often limited to the brand -- and this card is no exception.
Earn JCPenney Rewards on card purchases
The main draw of the JCPenney Credit Card for most users is likely the JCPenney Rewards you can earn on card purchases. You'll earn 1 point per dollar on JCPenney purchases when you use your card, whether you shop in-store or online. That's double the rewards you could earn by being a regular JCPenney Rewards member (they earn 1 point per $2 spent).
You'll get a $10 reward certificate for every 200 points you accrue. That gives you an effective value of $0.05 per point, or 5% back on JCPenney purchases. While this is a fairly competitive rate -- 5% back is about as good as it gets for most cash back cards -- keep in mind your JCPenney Rewards can only be used on JCPenney purchases. It also can't be redeemed as a statement credit to pay for past purchases.
Another thing to note is that there is a cap on how many rewards you can earn per transaction. Specifically, you can earn a maximum of 2,000 points for any single transaction. So, if you're buying something big, such as a pricey piece of jewelry, you could hit that cap and lose out on extra rewards.
New cardholders get a 15% off coupon
Most rewards credit cards these days come with some type of sign-up bonus. For store credit cards, that bonus typically comes in the form of a one-time discount. The JCPenney Credit Card falls into that category, offering new cardholders who apply online an extra 15% off the purchases made the day you open and use your new card. You can also combine that discount with another eligible coupon for extra savings. You may find a different new cardholder offer by applying in the store.
Although 15% is a solid discount, you'll need to spend quite a bit for it to compare with other sign-up bonuses. For instance, a typical bonus on a no annual fee card is $200. You'd need to make a $1,333 purchase on your JCPenney Credit Card to get that much value from the new cardholder discount.
Cardholders can access exclusive savings days
While the rewards and new cardholder discount are easy enough to quantify, this particular JCPenney Credit Card benefit is a little more nebulous. According to JCPenney, credit cardholders have access to "150+ credit savings days" with exclusive discounts.
Those extra savings are amplified if you're a big JCPenney shopper. If you spend $500 or more in a calendar year, you'll become a JCPenney Gold member, which unlocks a special passbook of coupons. Spending $1,000 or more in a calendar year bumps you up to Platinum status. Platinum cardholders get all the perks of the lower tiers, plus bonus points days and special sales days with up to 30% off.
No annual card fee
One really nice perk to the JCPenney Credit Card is that there's no annual card fee. This means no extra fee just to keep your card account open. Having no annual fee is a must-have perk for a store credit card, since most of us don't shop even our favorite stores every week. With no annual fee, you can keep your JCPenney Credit Card active and ready for holiday shopping or spring fashion without having to worry about paying for a card you're not using the rest of the year.
Special financing on select purchases
JCPenney Credit Card users will sometimes have access to special financing offers on certain large purchases. For example, you could get 0% interest for 18 months on qualifying furniture or mattress purchases.
This particular perk of the JCPenney Credit Card is kind of a double-edged sword. That's because it uses deferred interest. Basically, you'll pay 0% interest if -- and only if -- you repay your total purchase amount in the set period of time. If you have any balance remaining after the promotional period ends, you'll owe interest on the entire balance.
So, let's say you get the 18-month deal for a $500 mattress. If you pay off the full $500 balance before the 18 months are up, you're good to go with no interest fees. If, however, you come up short -- even by so much as a few bucks -- you'll be charged interest on the full $500 balance.
What could be improved
The downsides to this card could be deal breakers for some folks.
Closed-loop card only usable on JCPenney purchases
Arguably the biggest drawback to the JCPenney Credit Card is that it's a closed-loop card. This means it can't be used to make purchases anywhere except JCPenney stores or the JCPenney website. Being restricted to JCPenney purchases really limits how useful this card is for anyone other than diehard JCPenney fans.
Oh, and those restrictions apply to the rewards you earn with your JCPenney Credit Card, too. Any JCPenney Rewards and certificates can only be used on more JCPenney purchases.
High interest rate with no intro 0% APR deal
A common perk among regular credit cards that the JCPenney Credit Card lacks is an intro 0% APR deal on new purchases. These 0% APR offers typically give new cardholders 12 months or more of 0% interest on all new card purchases.
While the JCPenney Credit Card does offer its special financing on select purchases, that financing has a lot of fine print. First, it's only available on certain purchases. And second, it uses deferred interest, which can mean you wind up being stuck with interest fees if you don't pay off the full balance in time.
Adding insult to injury, the JCPenney Credit Card has a very high regular APR compared to other credit cards we've reviewed. This makes it extremely expensive to carry a balance on your JCPenney Credit Card for even a few months, let alone any longer than that.
Suggested credit score
As a store card, the JCPenney Credit Card is relatively easy to get. It's recommended to have at least fair credit when you apply for a JCPenney Credit Card, though good credit would give you a better chance of approval. This makes it possible to use the JCPenney Credit Card to build credit while also earning rewards on your JCPenney purchases. Be sure to make your payments on time every month and avoid maxing out your card for the best credit score results.
The JCPenney Credit Card is right for you if:
Frequent JCPenney shoppers who are looking for a dedicated way to save on their purchases may get a lot of value from the JCPenney Credit Card. However, if you're an equal-opportunity department-store shopper, or just a casual JCPenney customer, this card may not be worth the hard credit pull. In either case, you can likely find a regular credit card that better suits your spending habits.
Our credit card methodology
At The Motley Fool Ascent, we rate credit cards on a five-star scale (1 = poor, 5 = best). Our rating criteria includes rewards rates, welcome bonuses, fees, and perks like travel credits and 0% intro APR offers to evaluate our ratings.
We combine these factors with an evaluation of brand reputation and customer satisfaction to ensure you're getting the best card recommendations. Learn more about how The Ascent rates credit cards.
Our Credit Cards Expert
By:Brittney Myers
Writer
Brittney started her writing career in the world of science, putting her physics degree to good use. Her journey into finance started with building her personal credit, but soon grew into a borderline obsession with credit cards and travel rewards. For the last 7 years, she has enjoyed the ability to share her expertise with readers, as well as the opportunity to interview companies and individuals making an impact on our financial lives. She wholly believe most problems can be solved with the right research -- and a good spreadsheet -- and she specializes in translating complex financial topics into actionable advice to help educate and empower readers.
