What is the best credit card for buying a car?

The best credit card for buying a car is the U.S. Bank Shield™ Visa® Card because it offers an introductory APR of 0% for 24 months and as much as 4% cash back on select purchases. With this card, you could finance your car purchase interest-fee if you pay off the balance within the 24-month intro period.

In addition, you can redeem your rewards for a statement credit or a deposit to your U.S. Bank savings or checking account, so you could put the money toward your vehicle purchase. Unfortunately, the U.S. Bank Shield™ Visa® Card does not offer a one-time bonus for new cardholders.

Best Credit Cards for Buying a Car

If you’re more interested in earning rewards on your car purchase than avoiding interest because you have the money to pay in full, you could use the expense to qualify for a big sign-up bonus to help defray the vehicle’s cost. For example, the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card gets you 75,000 points for spending $5,000 on purchases in the first 3 months, and those bonus points are worth $750 when redeemed for cash, gift cards, and travel.

Key Things to Remember

Before shopping around for a credit card to buy a car with, it’s important to check with your dealership to see if they will allow you to use a credit card. Most dealers prohibit this practice because of high processing fees. If you do find a dealership that will allow it, there may be limits ($5,000, for example), which would likely cover only part of the car’s price.

If you are allowed to pay for the full price of a car with plastic, you will need a credit card with a high credit limit, one that exceeds the price of the vehicle. However, these types of cards typically require excellent credit to qualify. To see where you stand, you can check your credit score and credit report for free here on WalletHub.