Which JFR Card should you get? All 6 compared
A decision page for readers who have already settled on JFR Card and only need to pick the right card in the lineup. All 6 are compared here — 6 of them open to new applications, with annual fees of ¥1,100–¥55,000. The axis that actually decides it: how much of your shopping goes to these stores, and sale-day rules.
Issued by JFR Card Co., Ltd. · 6 cards recorded, 6 open to new applications · verified 2026-08-16
Which one to get
If you want one answer, start with the PARCO Card — ¥1,100 a year and a 0.5% published base rate. If you already know what you want the card for, take the matching row instead.
| Use case | Card | Annual fee | Fee condition | Base rate | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cheapest way in | PARCO CardGeneral | ¥1,100 | First year free · waiver available | 0.5% | — |
| Best paid card with a fee-waiver path | Daimaru Matsuzakaya CardGeneral | ¥2,200 | First year free | 0.5% | Daimaru/Matsuzakaya value |
| Best premium / travel tier | GINZA SIX Prestige CardPremium | ¥55,000 | — | — | — |
| Best specialist / co-brand | Daimaru Matsuzakaya Gold CardGold | ¥11,000 | — | 1% | — |
Each row is selected from the recorded data by rule — cheapest fee, a stated waiver, the highest published rate within a grade — not by editorial preference. Nothing here reflects how likely you are to be approved.
How to decide inside this lineup
3 rules apply to this lineup. Work down them in order — the first one usually settles it.
- This lineup has no permanently free card, so the entry tier is a recurring cost from day one. Compare its lowest-fee option against a no-fee card from another issuer before committing to the ecosystem.
- These cards do not all earn the same currency: the lineup spans QIRA Points, QIRA Points / Daimaru Matsuzakaya points and QIRA Points / PARCO points. A higher rate in a programme you cannot redeem well is worth less than a lower rate in one you can.
- This lineup has more than one grade, so an upgrade is an arithmetic question: divide the extra annual fee by the extra published rate to get the spend that repays it, then add only the benefits and milestones you expect to use.
Each rule is triggered by the recorded fees, grades, programmes and payment types rather than written per provider, so it changes when the lineup does.
Annual fees and what they really cost
No card here is free to hold on ordinary payment terms. The cheapest annual fee is ¥1,100, and you pay it whether or not you use the card.
| Card | Grade | Annual fee | Fee condition | Networks | Availability |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PARCO Card | General | ¥1,100 | First year free · waiver available | Visa | Open to new applications |
| Daimaru Matsuzakaya Card | General | ¥2,200 | First year free | Visa · Mastercard | Open to new applications |
| GINZA SIX Card | General | ¥2,200 | First year free | Visa | Open to new applications |
| Daimaru Matsuzakaya Gold Card | Gold | ¥11,000 | — | Visa · Mastercard | Open to new applications |
| Daimaru Matsuzakaya Loyal Customer Gold Card | Gold | ¥11,000 | — | Visa · Mastercard | Open to new applications |
| GINZA SIX Prestige Card | Premium | ¥55,000 | — | Visa | Open to new applications |
A waiver or a free first year still means you pay the fee until the condition is met. Family cards, ETC cards and optional programmes can carry their own charges, which are not in this column — check the issuer page. All amounts include tax.
Earning rates and what they earn into
These cards earn into 3 different programmes. Rates in different currencies are not comparable until you fix what a point is worth to you.
| Card | Base rate | Earns | Comparison-site range | Annual fee |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PARCO Card | 0.5% | QIRA Points / PARCO points | — | ¥1,100 |
| Daimaru Matsuzakaya Card | 0.5% | QIRA Points / Daimaru Matsuzakaya points | — | ¥2,200 |
| GINZA SIX Card | 0.5% | QIRA Points | — | ¥2,200 |
| Daimaru Matsuzakaya Gold Card | 1% | QIRA Points / Daimaru Matsuzakaya points | — | ¥11,000 |
| Daimaru Matsuzakaya Loyal Customer Gold Card | 1% | QIRA Points / Daimaru Matsuzakaya points | — | ¥11,000 |
| GINZA SIX Prestige Card | — | QIRA Points | — | ¥55,000 |
The base rate is the figure the issuer publishes; where none is published the cell is blank rather than estimated. The comparison-site range is calculated by Kakaku.com under its own assumptions about redemption value and bonus conditions — it is a secondary signal, not an issuer claim.
Every card compared
All 6 cards, ordered by grade and then by fee, with what each is for and what to watch on it.
| Card | Annual fee | Base rate | Best for | Main edge | Caution / status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PARCO CardGeneral | ¥1,100 | 0.5% | — | — | — |
| Daimaru Matsuzakaya CardGeneral | ¥2,200 | 0.5% | Daimaru/Matsuzakaya value | Department-store bonuses | Store-specific economics |
| GINZA SIX CardGeneral | ¥2,200 | 0.5% | — | — | — |
| Daimaru Matsuzakaya Gold CardGold | ¥11,000 | 1% | — | — | — |
| Daimaru Matsuzakaya Loyal Customer Gold CardGold | ¥11,000 | 1% | — | — | — |
| GINZA SIX Prestige CardPremium | ¥55,000 | — | — | — | — |
The last three columns are the English research record for each card. Signup campaigns are deliberately excluded — they are not standing value.
Benefits, and what switches them on
6 of these cards have a recorded insurance, lounge, family-card or eligibility term. What decides a benefit’s value is not whether it exists but what switches it on.
| Card | Insurance | Lounge | Family / ETC | Eligibility |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PARCO Card | Shopping protection | — | Family cards free; ETC available | 18+; high-school students excluded |
| Daimaru Matsuzakaya Card | Overseas travel cover subject to use; shopping and phone protection | — | Family cards free; ETC available | 18+; high-school students excluded |
| GINZA SIX Card | Domestic travel insurance; shopping and phone protection | — | Family cards free; ETC available | 18+; high-school students excluded |
| Daimaru Matsuzakaya Gold Card | Travel and shopping protections | Airport lounges | Family cards ¥1,100 each; ETC available | 25+ with stable income |
| Daimaru Matsuzakaya Loyal Customer Gold Card | Travel and shopping protections | Airport lounges | Family cards ¥1,100 each; ETC available | 25+ with stable income |
| GINZA SIX Prestige Card | Travel insurance subject to use | Facility parking and member benefits | Family cards ¥1,100 each; ETC available | 20+ with stable income |
A blank cell means nothing was recorded, not that the benefit is absent. Travel insurance in Japan is often conditional on paying for part of the trip with the card, and lounge access usually caps visits and charges for guests — the activation rule is on the issuer page.
Upgrade maths: what a higher tier has to return
The cheapest rung here pays for itself at ¥1,760,000 of eligible spend a year. 1 of the rungs does not raise the rate at all, so that one can never be repaid by earning.
| From | Up to | Extra fee | Extra rate | Break-even spend |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PARCO Card | Daimaru Matsuzakaya Card | ¥1,100 | 0% | Rewards alone never repay it |
| Daimaru Matsuzakaya Card | Daimaru Matsuzakaya Gold Card | ¥8,800 | +0.5% | ¥1,760,000 |
- Reward-only break-even spend
incremental annual fee ÷ incremental effective reward rateThe eligible spend at which the higher tier’s extra earning covers its extra fee, and nothing more.- Upgrade net value
incremental rewards + used credits + used benefits + family-card savings − incremental annual feeCount a credit or benefit only at the value you would actually redeem, not at its advertised value.- Milestone expected value
milestone benefit value × probability you reach the threshold without changing how you spendIf reaching the threshold requires new spending, the milestone is a cost, not a benefit.
These figures use the published base rate only — no merchant multipliers, milestones, insurance, lounge access or family-card savings. Adding spending you would not otherwise do always breaks the arithmetic.
Check these on the issuer page before applying
The tables above narrow the choice; only the issuer can settle it. Check these four things on the official page before you apply.
| What to check | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Credit limit | Almost every issuer sets an individual limit after underwriting. Do not infer a usable limit from the card’s tier unless an official public range is stated. |
| Rewards limits | Check monthly and annual bonus caps, annual-spend thresholds, whether enrolment is required, and whether taxes, utilities, e-money charging, securities accumulation, fees or cash advances earn a reduced rate or nothing at all. |
| Benefit limits | Confirm what activates the insurance, who is covered, lounge visit and guest rules, reservation channels, blackout dates, and whether a benefit renews by calendar year, membership year or card anniversary. |
| Payment and overseas use | Verify the foreign transaction fee, cash-advance terms, installment and revolving settings, the accepted network, and mobile-wallet compatibility. |
Important cautions
This page is a comparison, not advice. These hold whichever card you pick.
- This is a comparison guide, not approval advice. Issuers decide eligibility and credit limits, and nothing here predicts either.
- Never increase spending to reach a points threshold or a fee waiver. Interest and unnecessary purchases overwhelm rewards quickly.
- Use a conservative point value. The same point is worth different amounts as a statement credit, as merchant spend, as miles or as a limited campaign reward.
- Invitation, campaign, insurance and lounge terms change. Re-check the official terms immediately before applying.
- If you are a foreign resident, confirm accepted identification, name and address matching, Japanese-language requirements and any bank-account condition directly with the issuer.
Common questions
Which JFR Card should I get?
For most people the starting point is the PARCO Card — ¥1,100 a year and a 0.5% published base rate. Move up to the GINZA SIX Prestige Card (¥55,000 a year and no published base rate) only when the extra fee is repaid by earning and by benefits you will genuinely use. JFR Card decides eligibility and credit limits, so check the current terms on the issuer page before you apply.
Is a paid JFR Card worth the annual fee?
On rewards alone, the ¥8,800 step from the Daimaru Matsuzakaya Card to the Daimaru Matsuzakaya Gold Card is repaid at about ¥1,760,000 of eligible spend a year, because the published rate only rises by 0.5%. Below that, the upgrade has to be justified by benefits you actually use.
Do all JFR Cards earn the same points?
No. The lineup spans QIRA Points, QIRA Points / Daimaru Matsuzakaya points and QIRA Points / PARCO points. Rates in different currencies are not directly comparable, so decide how you would redeem before you compare them.
Does JFR Card have a no-annual-fee card?
Not as recorded on 2026-08-16: none of the 6 personal cards you can choose between here is permanently free, and the cheapest is ¥1,100. If you do not want a recurring fee, compare a no-fee card from another issuer.
Sources and freshness
Everything on this page comes from the issuer’s own product and lineup pages, and from the points programme’s official pages, as checked on 2026-08-16.
- www.jfr-card.co.jp
- www.jfr-card.co.jp/dmcard
- dmdepart.jp/loyalcustomer
- www.jfr-card.co.jp/ginza6card/standard.html
- www.jfr-card.co.jp/ginza6card/prestige.html
- www.jfr-card.co.jp/parcocard
Card facts are from the research database as of 2026-08-16; the points and benefit records are from the 2026-08-17 pass. Fees, benefits, campaigns and application rules change without notice. If something here is wrong, tell us on the corrections page.