From remodeling your home office to furnishing your startup workspace, the right furniture can make all the difference: Helping you and your staff stay focused, productive, and healthy. Or maybe instead, you’re looking to freshen up your new or newly-remodeled home decor.
Regardless of why you’re interested in buying an armchair, couch, dressers, or dining room table, the question remains: What is the best way to buy it?
Some say to never put a purchase like furniture on a credit card—you’ll end up tacking on a bunch of extra interest, paying more for the furniture than you would have paid in the first place. You may be worried about the monthly payments.
Although we agree that consumers should never put a furniture purchase—or any kind of purchase, really—on a credit card without a solid plan for paying off the balance, and paying it off quickly, buying a new armchair or sectional is a great way to earn spending bonuses and some cash back in your pocket, among many other perks and benefits. If you are paying only the minimum monthly payments required, the interest could prevent you from paying off quickly. Be sure to look at the credit care agreement terms.
That’s especially true if there’s a solid plan in place to repay the debt, and this goes for new homeowners, office managers, and small business owners alike.
Keep your cash flow liquid and finance your chairs, desk, sofas or dining room tables. In this guide to the best furniture credit cards options, we’ll show you how.
The Best Furniture Credit Card
Take a seat and stay awhile: you’re about to learn everything about financing offers and the best credit cards for updating your living room, plus some tips and pointers for purchasing something like furniture without going into too much debt. Keep reading to find out everything we liked about each one of these cards. All new accounts require credit approval.
The Best Credit Card for Buying Furniture: Chase Freedom Flex
The Best Credit Card for Buying Furniture with Cash Back: Capital One Quicksilver Cash Rewards Credit Card
The Best Credit Card for Buying Furniture for the Office: Ink Business Cash Credit Card
We’ll go into more detail about everything we liked and some things we didn’t like about each card in this list a bit later on, but first, let’s answer a few frequently asked questions from those just beginning the process of buying furniture with a credit card.
Is Financing Furniture a Bad Idea?
For now, let’s talk a bit more about whether or not it’s a good or a bad idea to finance furniture. You may be buying in-store or on an online furniture store and wondering the best furniture credit card options.
The answer to that question is yes, but also no. Yes, we understand that’s a frustrating answer, so let us explain.
Many offer introductory of 0% APR on purchases made in the first 12 months from purchase date or so, sometimes more.
Make a plan to pay off your purchase within that time period, and it’s like a no-interest loan on your new furniture! Furthermore, a relatively large purchase like a new furniture set might earn you cash back rewards with qualifying purchases that you could spend on travel, gas, and more. With these points in mind, financing furniture is a very, very good idea. Once you have paid in full, you can just enjoy the perks!
Watch out for:
- credit card agreement terms
- minimum purchase required
- flexible payment plans
Can Buying Furniture Help Your Credit?
Now, we want to take a moment to reiterate something: it’s never a good idea to make a credit card purchase without a solid plan in place to pay off your debt.
Here’s the thing, though: Buying a new armchair and paying the debt off in a timely manner can help build your credit score, and a high credit score can make a world of difference. On top of all that, the cash back reward programs available from some companies put money back in your pocket!
And again, as long as payments are made on time, any purchase made on credit gets reported to the three major credit bureaus. Positive account activity goes toward improving your credit score, while, of course, missing payments will negatively affect your score, hurting your credit.
Even if you have the cash to buy new chairs for your home, office, or business, putting the purchase on a credit card and paying it off quickly can pay dividends in the long run, when it’s time to buy a home, or any other kind of purchase for which a high credit score is required.
Is it Worth Getting Furniture Store Credit Cards?
But if you’re in the market for some new furniture, is it better to choose a credit card like the three we recommend in this article, or apply for a credit from the store, retailer, or website from which you intend to buy the furniture? What is the best furniture stores with credit cards?
If your favorite retailer offers a card, and you plan to buy more than just furniture from that retailer and you’re able to pay that debt off in a timely manner, a store-specific credit card might be worth it.
Otherwise, if you’re interested in making a furniture purchase alone from a specific retailer, a more general-use credit card is most often a better option. Here’s why:
- Limited use. Store-specific credit cards can only be used at the store that has issued the card. If you have a favorite store from which you buy everything from clothing to groceries to furnishings, then go ahead and apply for one. If you’re only interested in making a furniture purchase, though, then it probably isn’t worth it because you won’t be able to use that card anywhere else.
- Higher interest rates with fewer rewards. It’s never a good idea to make any kind of purchase you can’t afford, letting interest accrue to only end up paying more for the bed or couch than you might have otherwise paid. To this end, furniture store credit cards typically have higher interest rates and fewer rewards, meaning there’s much less incentive to put the furniture purchase on a card rather than just paying cash. And if the card does offer a rewards program, chances are they’re only redeemable at that store alone.
- 0% interest and Lower Credit Limits. Rather than a 0% APR introductory period—perhaps the best reason to put a recliner purchase on a credit card in the first place—furniture store credit cards typically only offer deferred interest promotions with much lower credit limits than are usually offered from major companies.
Furthermore, store credit cards are relatively easy to get, and a good way for those with bad credit to start rebuilding their score. On the other hand, store credit card purchases are weighed much lower by the three major credit reporting agencies, meaning the best way to build your credit score is with a major credit card.
Many furniture stores and online retailers offer credit cards and special offers to their customers. Here are some examples of furniture stores with credit cards:
- Ashley Furniture HomeStore: Ashley Furniture HomeStore offers a credit card with special financing options and exclusive discounts for cardholders.
- Rooms To Go: Rooms To Go offers a credit card with special financing options and rewards points for purchases.
- Wayfair: Wayfair offers a credit card with special financing options and rewards points for purchases made through the Wayfair family of brands.
- La-Z-Boy: La-Z-Boy offers a credit card with special financing options and exclusive discounts for cardholders.
- American Furniture Warehouse: American Furniture Warehouse offers a credit card with special financing options and rewards points for purchases.
- Crate & Barrel: Crate & Barrel offers a credit card with special financing options, rewards points, and exclusive offers for cardholders.
- Pottery Barn Credit Card: The Pottery Barn credit card offers special financing options, rewards points, and exclusive offers for cardholders.
- IKEA Visa credit card: IKEA credit card is a co-branded credit card offered in partnership with Comenity Capital Bank. This credit card is designed to offer benefits and rewards to frequent IKEA shoppers.
It’s important to remember that each furniture store’s credit card has its own terms and conditions, including interest rates, fees, and rewards programs. Before signing up for a furniture store credit card, be sure to read the terms and conditions carefully and consider whether it’s the right choice for your financial situation.
Customers can apply for a furniture store credit card either in-store or online, and if approved, they can use the card to make purchases at the store. Depending on the card, customers may be offered different financing options such as deferred interest, where they can pay off the purchase within a certain time period without accruing interest, or low interest rates for a set amount of time.
In addition to financing options, furniture store credit cards may offer rewards on eligible purchases such as cashback, discounts, or points that can be redeemed for future purchases at the store. However, it’s important to read the terms and conditions of the card carefully to understand any fees, interest rates, or penalties that may apply.
Overall, a furniture store credit card can be a useful tool for customers who want to finance their furniture purchases or earn rewards for their spending. However, it’s important to use credit responsibly and pay off any balances in full and on time to avoid accruing interest or fees.
Now that we’re up to speed on buying furniture with a credit card, here are the three best credit cards to use when furnishing your new office, home, or apartment.
The Best Credit Card for Buying Furniture: Chase Freedom Flex
Topping our list of the best credit cards for buying furniture is Chase Freedom Flex. Leading off the list of reasons this card is a great choice for buying bed or dining room set is the 0% introductory APR for the first 15 months after opening the account. Make a plan to pay off your furniture within that time period and it’s effectively a no-interest loan on the purchase!
And what kind of loan also offers a promo of a $200 bonus on the first $500 spent in the first three months after opening the account, and an additional 5% on $1,500 in combined purchases each quarter? That’s exactly what is available from the Case Freedom Flex, with new 5% categories added each quarter, often including department stores or other retailers that may sell furniture. That’s hard to beat.
All specific cash back rewards available from the Chase Freedom Flex include 5% back on travel expenses, 3% on dining, and 1% on all other purchases. There’s also no annual fee with the Chase Freedom Flex, and there’s no minimum to redeem any of the great cash back rewards offered by the card. These points never expire as long as the account is open, so no rush to redeem them.
Following that introductory period, the APR goes to a variable 14.99 to 23.74%, and you do need good to excellent credit to qualify for the card, but otherwise, the kind of flexibility really helps the Chase Freedom Flex live up to its name, contributing to the card being without a doubt the overall best credit for buying furniture available.
The Best Credit Card for Buying Furniture with Cash Back: Capital One Quicksilver Cash Rewards Credit Card
Upping the cash rewards game, however, is the Capital One Quicksilver Cash Rewards Credit Card. Like the Cash Freedom Flex, the Quicksilver card offers a $200 bonus on the first $500 spent in the first three months.
Setting the Quicksilver apart in terms of cash back rewards, though, is the additional 1.5% earned on all purchases, every day, no rotating categories or sign-ups required. And conveniently, these rewards never expire, and there’s no limit to how much you can earn.
Following the introductory period, users of the card continue to enjoy 0% APR on purchases for 15 months. That’s More than enough time to finance your furniture purchase with what amounts to a no-interest loan, and continue to earn 1.5% on all purchases after that.
Following that introductory period, though, the variable APR does increase to between 15.49% and 25.49%, which is a bit more than the Chase Freedom Flex, making it important to get that debt paid off in a timely manner and manage your spending.
There are no foreign transaction fees or annual fees to worry about, but like most cards, good to excellent is credit is needed to be eligible for the card. When viewed in total, though, there’s no better card than the Capital One Quicksilver, especially for those interested in maximizing cash back rewards on a furniture purchase, particularly within the introductory period, and with few limitations on how to redeem those rewards.
The Best Credit Card for Buying Furniture for the Office: Ink Business Cash Credit Card
If you’re buying furniture for your home office or for your business of any sort, consider the Ink Business Cash Credit Card. With Ink Business, you earn $750 on the first $7.5K spent in the first three months on the card, perfect for outfitting an entire office. And following that, consumers continue to earn 1.5% on every business purchase, which can be redeemed through the Chase Ultimate Rewards program in gift cards, travel, and, of course, cold hard cash.
Other benefits of the Ink Business Cash Credit Card include 5% cash back on the first $25K spent on the following expenses, common for many small business owners:
- Office Supplies
- Internet
- Cable and phone services
There’s also an additional 2% cash back on the first $25K on combined spending on the following purchases, each account anniversary year:
- Restaurants
- Gas Stations
And if all that weren’t enough, business owners and their employers using the card earn 1% cash back on all other purchases.
Because business owners have enough to worry about, fraud protection is also strong with the Ink Business cards: All transactions are monitored in real-time, with business owners free from any liability on fraudulent activity. Good to excellent credit is required to qualify.
Otherwise, there’s no annual fee with the Ink Business card, helping the bottom line of any small business, and after the introductory period the APR is a variable 13.24% to 19.24%, setting the card apart from other cards in our ranking. For these reasons and a whole lot more, the card offers big savings for small business owners for whom every penny counts.
Still have some questions about the best credit cards for buying furniture? We’ll conclude with a few frequently asked questions from those who’ve recently opened a new credit card account.
How Many Credit Cards Should I Have?
Perhaps you already have a credit card or two and you’re just shopping around for a card that might offer better deals on purchases like furniture. It’s natural to be concerned about how many credit cards are too many, or how applying for too many might affect your credit. Both good questions!
Here’s what you need to know:
Having multiple cards can, in fact, help your credit score. The credit utilization ratio, or CUR, factors heavily into anyone’s credit rating. The number takes into account how much credit is available to a consumer versus how much debt that consumer is carrying. The more credit cards you have, the more credit is available, and the better that debt is managed, the better your credit score will be.
But here’s the thing, over half of your credit score is your payment history, meaning paying on time is much more important than your CUR. In other words, having a bunch of credit available, but not being able to make your payments on time won’t help your credit score at all.
It’s neither a good thing nor a bad thing to have a number of credit cards, or to have just one. Playing your cards right, so to speak, and having a large amount of credit available to you, while also carefully managing your debt and making on-time payments, can improve your credit score in terms of the credit utilization ratio, or CUR.
Run up debt that you can’t pay back on a number of credit cards, however, and your credit score will languish, whether that debt is spread across multiple credit cards, or just a single one.
What Should I Know About Credit Cards?
Equal monthly payments refer to a regular payment schedule where the amount paid each month remains the same throughout the duration of the payment period. This type of payment is commonly used for loans or other financial products that require repayment over time.
When you make equal monthly payments, a portion of each payment goes towards paying down the principal (the amount you originally borrowed) and another portion goes towards paying the interest (the cost of borrowing the money).
Required minimum monthly payments refer to the minimum amount of money that a borrower is required to pay towards their outstanding debt balance each month, as stipulated by the lender or credit issuer.
If possible, it is generally advisable to pay more than the minimum monthly payment to reduce the balance owed more quickly and save on interest charges. It is also important to remember that missing or being late on minimum payments can negatively impact your credit score and incur additional fees and penalties.
Fixed monthly payments refer to a set amount of money that is paid on a regular basis over a fixed period of time, such as monthly, to repay a debt or loan. These payments are predetermined and remain the same throughout the entire repayment period, regardless of any changes in interest rates or other factors.
A credit bureau score is a numerical score that is based on a person’s credit report and is used to assess their creditworthiness. This score is commonly known as a credit score and is used by lenders, such as banks and credit card issuers, to determine whether to approve an application for credit, and at what interest rate.
It is important to regularly review your credit report and credit bureau score to ensure that the information is accurate and to identify any potential issues that may be affecting your creditworthiness.
A minimum interest charge is the minimum amount of interest that a borrower must pay on their credit account, regardless of the balance on the account. This charge is typically imposed by credit card issuers and other lenders.
The purpose of promotional financing is to incentivize borrowers to take out credit and to encourage spending, as the low or zero interest rate can make it easier to afford large purchases.
Best Credit Cards for Buying Furniture
Among the many purchases that can be made with credit, many experts say furniture should never be one of them. Why, after all, would you buy furniture on a credit card and, after all the interest is accrued, end up paying more for the furniture than you would have if you just paid cash? This is solid advice: Never buy anything on credit that you can’t afford or pay off quickly and without accruing interest.
From cash back rewards to 0% introductory APR, though, we’re here to say a furniture purchase on a credit card can be a good idea. It’s like a no-interest loan with the potential for a pretty significant amount of cash back in your pocket, whether that furniture is for your home, your office, or your home office.
To take advantage of these benefits, we recommend the following three credit cards for buying furniture:
The Best Credit Card for Buying Furniture: Chase Freedom Flex
The Best Credit Card for Buying Furniture with Cash Back: Capital One Quicksilver Cash Rewards Credit Card
The Best Credit Card for Buying Furniture for the Office: Ink Business Cash Credit Card
Offering the best combination of low introductory APR and cash back rewards, these credit cards prove that a carefully planned furniture purchase on a credit card can be a good idea, paying dividends on travel, gas, and other personal and business expenses, amounting to what’s in effect a no-interest loan on the purchase.
All credit credit card purchases should be carefully planned for, whether that’s a purchase for the home or for a business. Once carefully budgeted for, though, it can be beneficial to buy furniture with a credit card.
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