Say Goodbye to Your Starbucks Rewards Visa Card: Chase Announces Transition to New Cards

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Coffee lovers who hold the Starbucks® Rewards Visa® Card will have to say goodbye to their trusty card soon. Chase, the issuer of the Starbucks Rewards Visa Card, has announced that the card will be discontinued on July 20, 2023. 

Existing cardholders will have their accounts converted to either the Chase Freedom Unlimited® or the original version of the Chase Freedom®, depending on what they already have.

What Do Existing Starbucks Cardholders Need To Know?

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Existing cardholders will receive a prorated refund for their annual fee, and they can keep using their Starbucks Rewards Visa Card until they receive the new Chase Freedom® or Chase Freedom Unlimited in the mail. 

They'll also receive 400 bonus stars to their Starbucks Rewards account if they keep their Starbucks Rewards Visa Card through July 19, 2023. 

Depending on how you slice them, 400 stars can go a long way (free coffee, free food, or free merch). Plus, these stars can be used anytime for about a year after you earn them.

Why Is This Transition Great For Cardholders?

The Chase Freedom cards offer many benefits, including:

• No Annual Fee: Neither the Chase Freedom Unlimited nor the original version of the Chase Freedom charges an annual fee, giving cardholders more savings. (The Starbucks Credit Card had a $49 annual fee which was waived for the first year). 
• Cashback Rewards: The Chase Freedom Unlimited offers cashback rewards through Chase Ultimate Rewards®. This means you can still earn elevated rewards on your Starbucks purchases, but also on a wide variety of other categories too. Plus, Chase Ultimate Rewards points are worth $0.01 when redeemed for cash, which means you can use them to buy Starbucks (or anything else you want).
• Earn Rewards More Quickly: With the Starbucks Rewards Visa Card, basically every purchase you made outside of Starbucks generated subpar rewards. For example, cardholders earned 1 Star for every $2 spent on groceries, local transit and internet or phone bills, meaning you'd need to spend $300 in these categories to get a single free coffee. In contrast to this, all purchases made with the Chase Freedom Unlimited earn more than one point per dollar, so you can rack up rewards much more quickly.

The Bottom Line

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Starbucks cardholders are getting a nice boost if you ask us. Outside of sheer brand loyalty, the Starbucks card couldn’t hold a candle to the Chase Freedom lineup. Not having an annual fee and the ability to earn 1.5%  cash back on something other than coffee, the users making the transition are getting a sweet deal.