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Using US Credit Cards At Home Depot, Costco, Walmart, etc.


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We have never used our US credit cards in MX.  

But moving into an unfurnished home, we'd like to charge some items rather than running to ATMs daily and carrying sackfuls of pesos from store to store.  

Can we use US credit cards at:

Home Depot

Costco (if yes, does it have to be the Costco issued credit card?)

Walmart

Tio Sams

Chapala area hardware/plumbing/furniture stores (the larger ones)

 

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3 minutes ago, Yo1 said:

No to Costco unless it's their CC card or AMEX.  Ask at local stores.  All else is OK.

Just like my answer above, I use my Canadian Visa card at Costco.

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You will need a Costco card to buy anything in their store - even their ready to eat hotdogs. I haven't had any problems using my AMEX and Visa cards at most other places including Walmart, but it's a good idea to let Visa and AMEX know you'll be using your cards in Mexico or it might get rejected..

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19 minutes ago, sparks said:

Your Credi Card company needs to know you want to use it in Mexico

Done...thankfully travel notifications can be done online these days.  And yes, we have Costco membership and Costco credit cards.  

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Costco here will not accept your U.S. Costco credit card.  And they charge extra for any credit card.

We don't use our Visa card here because they charge for foreign transactions.  Capital One Master Card does not.  Have used the Capital One card at Home Depot, no problem and no extra charge.

Whenever we use this card, we call first and let them know exactly where/what charges we will be making and tell them not to accept any others, to avoid card cloning theft.

Otherwise, we use cash.

 

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2 hours ago, Yo1 said:

No to Costco unless it's their CC card or AMEX.  Ask at local stores.  All else is OK.

I used my Canadian Visa 3 weeks ago at Costco to buy tires. They charged me more to use my credit card.

 

1 hour ago, sparks said:

Your Credi Card company needs to know you want to use it in Mexico

It has been several years since you had to notify Canadian Visa (RBC) about Mexico.  It tells you on their website you do not need to notify us of your travel plans.

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You can use your US credit card at all of those stores.  The thing to remember about Costco is that is you use a none Costco card in their store you pay a slightly higher price for each item.  Haven't found that to be the case when buying from their website.

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We have a Chase Visa associated with United Airlines and a Citi Mastercard associated with American airlines and neither charge foreign transaction fees.  We also have an old (circa 1980) Citi Mastercard associated with American airlines that does charge foreign fees.  

We have always flown a lot; I've noticed the newer cards associated with airlines almost always waive the foreign fees, in addition to free checked bags, early boarding, etc.  

 

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Costco, Walmart and Home Depot accept M/C, Visa and American Express.  Costco also accepts Discover as does I think it is Walmart.  Try to use cards which have no foreign transaction fee or you pay more. 

 

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Just call each and aski them to waive the foreign transaction fee for 60 to 90 days.  Tell them you are furnishing a house and want to put everything on their card.  I bet they offer to double your limit.  They can do this you just have to ask.

 

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Personally I'm very cautious about using my Canadian CC here. It can cost more if you use a CC and your card could be compromised. To keep my CC active I only use it at places that don't chare an extra fee (Sears, Liverpool, Walmart, Home Depot, etc.) Ask before you use it. I thought Walmart would be safe but in 2015 I used mine there and shortly after I was buying thousands of dollars worth of stuff in Arizona. A pain to cancel the card and get a new one and to get the charges reversed. A neighbour had the same thing happen at Walmart. I complained to the Walmart manager and he said it can't happen but it did.  

It is safer and often cheaper to use cash.

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I have a BOA debit and credit. I use my credit card a lot at Wal-Mart, Costco, Sam's club. Also the Pemex I get 3% cash back which covers my fees. When the cash back adds up to $25.00 or more I transfer to my savings where BOA pays me 10% more. So I make a little which is better than nothing.

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10 hours ago, mudgirl said:

A Mexican bank account with a debit card eliminates having to hit ATMs, carry wads of cash around, or get charged more for using a NOB credit card. Just saying.

We won't be able to open a MX bank account until our permanente is finalized and we have CFE bills in our name, etc.  We'd like to start buying things for the house ASAP.   

Are most stores using chip technology or are they still using the swipe?  

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I use CC here all the time. Just check to find out if there is a 3% foreign transaction fee. I have several that have no such charge. I have recently gotten a SAMS CLUB card and it pays cash back. The kick back is 5% on gasoline and works on charges in Mexico at Pemex which is a big help considering the cost ot gasoline here. It does not have a foreign trasnaction fee and the peso/USD exchange always beats what you get at Cambio or Bank here.

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27 minutes ago, johanson said:

It was in the US that Costco converted from American Express to a Visa Card only. Perhaps in Canada too, but not here in Mexico, if I remember right.

Yes, they did that in Canada too, too bad because i didn't really want another credit card to lug around and worry about.

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