The Apple Card drops from first place to third place for overall credit card customer satisfaction, according to the J.D. Power 2025 U.S. Credit Card Satisfaction Study.
The card has ranked first for the past four years. The 2025 study gave Apple Card a satisfaction score of 629 on a 1,000-point scale. This was down from 654 in 2024.
Ahead of it are Hilton Honors Express Card (641 points) and Costco Anywhere Visa by Citi.
Highlights of the report
Following are some key findings of the 2025 study:
- Satisfaction slightly rises, driven by financially healthy cardholders: Overall satisfaction among all credit card customers is 611 (on a 1,000-point scale), which is up just a single point from 2024. The nominal improvement is driven in part by a significant 9-point increase in customer satisfaction among financially healthy cardholders and a significant 4-point increase among credit card transactors carrying no revolving debt. There is a decline of a single point among financially unhealthy cardholders and those carrying revolving debt, driven by lower satisfaction with credit limit, account management and ease of balance transfers.
- Financial strain drives down card spending, spurs payment plan usage: Increased financial volatility and decreasing household incomes have contributed to a $68 year-over-year decline in average total credit card monthly spend. The average total monthly spend across all cardholders in the study is now $1,058, down from $1,126 in 2024. Use of Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) has also increased, with 20% of credit card customers using these payment plans in the past year. The percentage of cardholders who say they would consider using BNPL from another lender has also increased, to 37% from 34% in 2024.
- Higher annual fees linked to higher overall satisfaction: Overall Satisfaction is higher among cardholders with annual fee products (regardless of fee amount) than among those with no annual fee products (+3 points). Those with an annual fee of $500 or more have lower satisfaction for the reasonableness of the annual fee itself compared with cardholders paying an annual fee under $500. However, those with an annual fee of $500 or more are more satisfied with the overall card experience than their counterparts who have an annual fee under $500.
- Merchant surcharges deter card use, sap satisfaction: Overall, 65% of cardholders have been charged higher prices for goods and services for using their credit cards, while 25% of cardholders have experienced no surcharges. Customer satisfaction scores fall 39 points, on average, when cardholders encounter a surcharge. Among cardholders who have experienced a surcharge, 81% say they have used an alternate payment method at some point to avoid a surcharge.
- High hopes for AI to increase card security: Overall customer awareness of credit card issuers’ use of artificial intelligence (AI) is relatively low, but customers are still enthusiastic about its potential to improve security. Just 11% of cardholders say they completely understand how their card issuer uses AI and only 13% say their cardholder has completely communicated how they are using AI technology. One-third (33%) of cardholders perceive improved fraud prevention and data security would be the biggest benefits of AI.
The U.S. Credit Card Satisfaction Study, now in its 19th year, measures customer satisfaction with their primary credit card by examining seven factors (in alphabetical order): account management; benefits; customer service; new account; rewards earning; rewards redeeming; and terms. The 2025 study includes responses from 37,293 credit card customers and was fielded from June 2024 through June 2025.
I hope you’ll help support Apple World Today by becoming a patron. All our income is from Patreon support and sponsored posts. Patreon pricing ranges from $2 to $10 a month. Thanks in advance for your support.
