Academy Sports + Outdoors Credit Card: Things To Know & Alternatives (2024)

The main draw of the Academy Sports + Outdoors Credit Card* is its savings potential. This no annual fee card grants , as well as a one-time bonus of $15 off your first purchase after spending over $15 at time of approval. In addition, cardholders can get free standard shipping for Academy.com orders of more than $15. Note, though, that Academy doesn’t ship to Alaska, Hawaii or California, and the card is not available to California residents.

The card has no additional perks, and an astronomical APR of 33.24% variable APR on purchases. So, if you’re in the market for a card, look elsewhere. The perks the Academy card offers are small potatoes compared to what other cards, even other store cards, can get you. If you want to get a credit card, do yourself a favor and get one that will work for you.

How To Apply for the Academy Sports + Outdoors Credit Card*

Applying for a credit card is a straightforward process. It can be done in-store or online in just a few minutes. When applying, be ready to provide some basic information such as:

• Your age
• Your address
• Your valid government-issued ID
• Your valid government-issued tax identification number (Social Security number or social insurance number)
• Proof of income

What To Expect When You Apply

If you aren’t instantly approved, your best move to check on the status of your application is to call Comenity Bank—the issuer of the Academy credit card. Comenity Bank’s customer service line is 855-823-1001. It is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week—this may vary on holidays.

Honestly, nobody. As mentioned above, even if you do 100% of your shopping at Academy stores, you’ll still likely net more rewards with a general cash-back card. The 5% off purchases might seem nice, but it locks you into the Academy ecosystem.

With a generalized rewards card, you can get near the same return in the form of points or cash you can spend anywhere. And all that is before even taking into account the ludicrous APR. Do yourself a favor, and apply for a different card.

If you’re set on spending a lot of money at Academy stores, you should at least get a card to maximize what you can get back. Luckily, many cards can help with this.

Citi Double Cash® Card

The Citi Double Cash® Card is a no annual fee, flat-rate 2% cash-back card, earning 2% cash back on all purchases—1% when purchases are made and another 1% when they’re paid off.

While this is less than the discount offered by the Academy card, the rewards earned with the Double Cash can be used for any number of things, which makes them inherently more valuable than a store discount. Plus, the card has an intro APR offer of 0% intro APR on balance transfers for 18 months. After that, the standard variable APR will be 19.24% - 29.24%, based on creditworthiness. An intro balance transfer fee of either $5 or 3%, whichever is greater, applies to transfers completed within the first 4 months of account opening. After that, the fee will be 5% of each transfer (minimum $5) and protections like $0 fraud liability. Overall, this is a better choice in virtually every way.

Discover it® Cash Back

The Discover it® Cash Back is another no annual fee card that earns cash back.

This card earns 5% cash back on everyday purchases at different places each quarter up to a quarterly maximum of $1,500 in spending when activated. Plus, earn unlimited 1% cash back on all other purchases – automatically. That 5% category could include sporting goods stores, making this card just as valuable as the Academy card.

The baseline earning rate of 1% is less than ideal, but unlike the Academy card, the Discover it® Cash Back offers a welcome bonus: Discover will automatically match all the cash back earned at the end of the first year as a cardmember. There's no minimum spending or maximum rewards. This allows you to double the first-year rewards you get on your Academy spending.

Capital One Bass Pro Shops® CLUB Credit Card*

If you’re dying to get a co-branded store card, consider the Capital One Bass Pro Shops® CLUB Credit Card*. This card carries a $0 annual fee, and has benefits available immediately upon approval and a points system to earn rewards in the future. It earns rewards in the form of Bass Pro Shop points, to the tune of 2% back at Bass Pro Shops, Cabela's and participating Cenex locations and 1% back on all other purchases.

This is less than the Academy card, but crucially, unlike the Academy card, the Bass Pro Shop card earns rewards outside the chain. It also offers an APR of 9.99% APR for purchases at Bass Pro Shops and Cabela's, a 20.49% - 32.24% variable APR applies on purchases and balance transfers and a separate APR of 9.99% for purchases made at the store. If you must have a store card and are more interested in outdoor clothing and gear than strictly in sporting goods, this could be a solid choice. Note that these rewards are locked into the Bass Pro Shop ecosystem, so unless you’re confident you can make use of them, you should stick to a more generalized rewards card.