Can you get a joint Chase Freedom credit card account?

There are two ways couples can get a credit card to share. The first and most common way is for one person to be the primary cardholder and the other person to be an authorized user on the account. The authorized user gets their own card and can make purchases, but is not able to manage higher-level aspects of the account. Plus, only the primary cardholder is held liable for payments. In this case, the best credit cards for couples are no different than the … read full answerbest credit cards overall.

The second way for couples to get a credit card together is to both be co-signers on the account. This opens an account in both people’s names and gives them joint responsibility for payment and management of the account. All major credit card issuers allow authorized users, but most have eliminated the ability to co-sign for a card. WalletHub reached out to the major credit card issuers’ customer service departments to ask about their policies on authorized users.

Authorized users and co-signers by credit card issuer:

As you can see, U.S. Bank is the only major issuer currently offering the ability to co-sign for a credit card. Check out WalletHub’s U.S. Bank credit cards page to view current offers.

There aren't any secured credit cards that would allow joint applicants. The next-best option is for one person to apply for a secured card and then make the other person an authorized user on the account. For this, the top picks are Discover it Secured, Citi Secured and Capital One Secured.… read full answer

The authorized user will benefit from the same credit improving advantages if the card is used responsibly. However, it's important to know that the main cardholder is fully liable for all charges on the account – and for paying the bill on time – so add an authorized user only if that person is trustworthy.

Yes, authorized users do build credit. You can actually build a good or excellent credit score just as an authorized user on a credit card. When you become an authorized user, the account is added to your credit report, which means on-time payments by the primary cardholder will help you build good credit history. But because authorized users are not responsible for paying the bills, credit scores don’t give authorized user accounts as much weight. So you won’t build credit as fast as an authorized as you would with your own credit card account.… read full answer

Still, the fact that most credit card companies don’t have a minimum age for authorized users, means becoming one is a great way to build credit before you can get your own account. But there are a few positives and negatives you should know about before becoming an authorized user.

Here’s how authorized users build credit:

1. A friend or family member adds you to their credit card account as an authorized user.
2. The credit card account gets added to your credit reports, just like if it were your own account.
3. The issuer gives updated account information to the credit bureaus on a monthly basis.
4. Your credit standing improves if the account owner has on-time payments, low credit utilization and other signs of financial responsibility.
5. Your credit gets hurt if the account holder behaves irresponsibly.
6. You can get an account with negative information removed from your report, since you aren’t responsible for making payments.

Authorized users do build credit, but that credit can be good or bad, depending on how the primary accountholder manages balances and bill payments. So you only want to become an authorized user on an account owned by someone responsible.

But in the event that an authorized user account does end up hurting your credit, you can dispute the account to get it removed from your credit report. That’s because any mistakes made won’t be your responsibility.

Finally, you’ll build credit faster if you also have your own credit card account that you use responsibly. You can get a starter credit card once you turn 18 years old, as long as you have enough money to pay the bills.

If you have bad credit and are worried you won’t get approved, try applying for a secured credit card. Secured cards require security deposits, but they have the highest approval odds of all credit cards and accept people with bad credit.