Best Credit Cards

The best credit card overall is the Citi® Double Cash Card – 18 month BT offer because it has a $0 annual fee, a 0% introductory APR, and an excellent rewards rate: 2% Cash Back. Citi Double Cash earns a WalletHub editor's rating of 5.0 / 5 as a result of its low costs and simple, yet generous rewards.

There are plenty of other contenders for the title of best credit card overall, however. Credit cards are not one-size-fits-all, either. Which card is best really depends on your credit standing, current debt situation and whether or not you're going to pay your monthly bills in full.

Fortunately, there are some rules of thumb you can follow to find the best overall credit card for your needs.

• The lower your credit score is, the more important it is to get a credit card with no annual fee.
• If you have existing credit card debt or are planning a big-ticket purchase that will take months to pay off, try to find a card with a 0% intro APR and no balance-transfer fee, if applicable. Avoiding annual fees is important in this situation, too.
• If you have good or excellent credit and plan to pay in full every month, your goal should be to find the best possible rewards for your spending habits.

No matter your specific situation, there are a few easy ways to find the right credit card. For starters, you can check out our editors' picks for the market's best overall credit cards right now, selected from more than 1,000 credit card offers. You can also sign up for a free WalletHub account and get a personalized recommendation based on your overall credit score. Or, you can try our free CardAdvisor tool to get anonymous recommendations based on your answers to a few simple questions.

The banks with the best credit cards are Capital One, Citibank, Bank of America and Discover. These top 10 credit card companies all have good credit card offers for people across the creditworthiness spectrum. However, most major banks offer at least one credit card that would be best for someone.

People have different opinions on the best credit card company for one reason or another. Customer service is important to some credit card users. Others are attracted to credit card companies with a particularly trustworthy reputation. But none of that matters as much as a card's terms. The bank with the best credit card for you is whichever bank gives the best combination of rewards, interest rates and fees that you can get approved for. It doesn't really matter which credit card company issues the card, so long as it serves you well.

Availability plays a big role, though. The credit card companies with the best overall credit card offers aren't always the best credit card companies for everyone. If a bank's or credit union's credit cards all require good or excellent credit for approval, for example, it probably won't seem like the best option to people with bad, limited or fair credit. Some credit card companies focus on those creditworthiness segments more than others, including a number of reputable new issuers.

All things considered, the best credit card company will depend on what you're looking for and what type of credit card you can qualify for. If your priority is a card issuer's customer service, overall reputation, or other defining qualities, check out WalletHub's latest Credit Card Customer Satisfaction Study.

There are some differences between Mastercard and Visa. But these two major card networks are pretty equal in the categories that matter most to consumers: acceptance and secondary benefits.

Both Visa and Mastercard are accepted in more than two hundred countries. And it is very rare to find a location that will accept one but not the other. Furthermore, both Visa and Mastercard administer certain benefits programs, including rental car insurance and extended warranties. But individual card issuers decide what coverage cardholders receive.

So it doesn't really matter whether you have a Visa or Mastercard in your wallet. As long as you have at least one of them and your card offers competitive terms, you'll be in good shape. If you'd like to learn more about the similarities and differences between Visa and Mastercard, including how the best credit cards on each network compare, check out WalletHub's complete Visa vs. Mastercard review.

The best time to apply for a credit card is after you've carefully considered your options and selected a card that suits your needs. In addition, you should avoid doing it right before you're going to ask for a large loan, or right after you've applied for another source of credit. That's because each of these puts a hard inquiry on your credit report, which hurts your score, especially when there are several in a short period of time. If you have bad credit, it's essential for you to have at least one account in good standing in order to rebuild. And if you have good or better credit, you have a lot of options for cards with great rewards and rates. 

Statistically, the best time of year to apply for a credit card is the second half, from July onward, but especially October through December. From 2008 through 2017, an average of 15% more new credit card accounts were issued in Q4 than Q1, according to Equifax. The busy holiday shopping season and the attractive bonus offers that credit card companies have been known to roll out around then probably have a lot to do with that. 

Those aren't the only dynamics you should be aware of if you want to boost your odds of approval, either.

Here are the best times to apply for a credit card:

• When you're ready. Don't rush into a decision. Take time to examine your options and pick a card that best suits your needs, whether that's rewards, financing, balance transfers or something else. If you sign up for a free WalletHub account you can get personalized credit card recommendations that you're likely to qualify for. 
• When there aren't recent or upcoming inquiries. Having a hard inquiry on your credit report (which happens when you apply for credit) temporarily damages your score a bit. But multiple inquiries within a few weeks or months of each other are worse than just one. So if you applied for credit recently or are about to apply for a mortgage or car loan, you may want to hold off on that credit card application.
• After pre-approval. Many credit card issuers let you check for pre-approval, allowing you to see if you're a good candidate without a hard inquiry, which could temporarily hurt your credit score. If you're pre-approved, you're not guaranteed actual approval, but your chances are high – around 90%.
• When your credit is bad. If you have bad credit, you'll need at least one credit card in good standing to start balancing things out. You should try for a secured card, which has the highest approval odds, to help rebuild. 
• When your credit is good. When you have good or excellent credit, you'll have a ton of great options with high approval odds. 
• When you don't have one. A credit card can make shopping a lot easier, and can even reward you for spending. And it's essential for improving your credit and building up a solid history so that you can make big future financial transactions, like auto loans and mortgages.
• When there's a great rewards offer. Credit cards often give big initial bonuses or 0% financing for a limited time to draw in new customers. Strategically taking advantage of such offers can get you hundreds of dollars in cash back or travel. 
• When you're making a big-ticket purchase. Applying for a 0% APR credit card before making a big purchase that will take months to pay off can be a wise move. It will enable you to avoid interest entirely if you pay in full by the time your card's regular APR takes effect. 

All in all, any time can be a good time to apply for a credit card. Just make sure to do your research and maximize your credit score beforehand. As long as you don't need the best credit possible for a major loan application soon after applying for a credit card, the temporary credit score damage that comes with it won't cost you. 

Finding the right credit card can be stressful, with so many offers to consider and so much jargon and fine print to decipher. But as long as you follow these simple pointers, you'll be fine.

1. Compare credit cards before applying. Otherwise, there's no way of telling whether you're getting the best deal. Marketing can be deceiving, after all. 
2. Make sure your credit is match. You should only consider applying for a credit card if it matches your credit standing. For example, don't apply for an excellent-credit credit card if you have fair credit. Getting turned down will only make it harder to get approved the second time around.
3. Don't apply in bulk. You should not submit more than a couple credit card applications within a short period of time, as this can lead to a roughly six-month dip in your credit score.

For more tips, check out WalletHub's guide on finding the right type of credit card for your needs. And for your convenience, here are some benchmarks to consider as you wade your way through the credit card comparison process:

Market Snapshot: 1,000+ Credit Card Offers

You can learn more about the average terms offered by credit cards in popular categories from WalletHub's latest Credit Card Landscape Report. 

“Too many” credit cards could be anywhere from 2 to 5 or more, depending on the individual. Everyone should have at least 1 credit card for credit-building purposes, even if they don't use it to make purchases. But it's hard to say exactly how many credit cards is too many because the number of cards you should have differs from person to person. It depends on how well you can manage 1 credit card, then 2, and so on.

So while 3 credit cards could be too many for one person, someone else might be able to comfortably manage 6. The average adult has 4 credit cards, according to a 2019 Experian report.

If you're not sure how many credit cards is too many for you, there are a number of factors you can think about when making your decision. In particular, consider your recent spending and payment history. If you're having trouble paying the full statement balance by the due date on each account you already have open, think twice about applying for another credit card account.

How to determine how many credit cards is too many for you:

1. Look at your credit report and score. If you have a history of financial mistakes, such as missed payments, you probably don't want to get more than one card until you prove yourself to be a responsible borrower. Besides, it may be hard to get more than one worthwhile cards with damaged credit, anyway.
2. Review your utilization and payment history. If you're maxing out all the cards you have, credit card companies probably won't want to give you more spending power. Plus, credit card debt can be very expensive, and you don't want to rack up balances that exceed what you can repay comfortably.
3. What does the credit card company think? Some issuers have unofficial rules regarding how many credit cards is too many for an applicant to have. If you have too many cards – either overall, or with that specific card issuer – they may deny your application. There are lots of rumors floating around that Chase will deny a credit card application if you have too many credit cards, for example.
4. Determine how well you're keeping track of your credit cards. Even if your credit is good and you've never forgotten to pay a bill, that doesn't mean you never will. Having too many open accounts to keep track of can lead to forgotten due dates, interest charges from simply forgetting to pay a credit card in full, and other issues. If you have trouble listing your credit cards from memory, you're likely to forget to pay one at some point.

There are benefits to having more than one credit card account. Having several credit cards can help you save money by allowing you to get the best collection of rates and rewards for your biggest transactions. For example, you could get a flat-rate cash back credit card for everyday expenses, a bonus rewards card for travel, and a balance transfer card to reduce the cost of existing debt. Having multiple cards can also help your credit score if you keep your utilization low and your payments on time.

What you should watch out for is applying for too many credit cards too quickly. It's best to not apply for more than one or two per year, as each application puts a hard inquiry on your credit report and temporarily hurts your credit score.

The more data that's at your disposal, the easier it will be to decide how many credit cards you should have. WalletHub can help with free daily credit score updates and personalized credit-improvement advice.

The best store credit cards to build credit with are the Amazon Store Card (5% back on Amazon.com with a Prime membership) and the Target Credit Card (5% back at Target and Target.com). Both require just fair credit (640+ credit score) for approval. And like all major store credit cards, they report to the three major credit bureaus every month. That will help you build credit history. But keep in mind that store cards can only be used at the retailer they're affiliated with.

Unfortunately, you need at least a fair credit score to be approved for most store credit cards. If you have bad or limited credit, your options are slim. In fact, the only real “store card” for limited or bad credit is the Fingerhut credit account, which you can only use at the online retailer Fingerhut. As a result, you might be better off expanding your search beyond store credit cards to include secured credit cards and general-purpose credit cards for people with limited or bad credit. Then when you reach fair credit, you can accelerate your credit building and maximize your savings with a store credit card from your favorite retailer.

Here are the best store credit cards to build credit with:

• Best bad-credit store card: Fingerhut Credit Account. No rewards. Only usable at the online retailer Fingerhut. No annual fee. Bad/limited credit accepted.
• Best for shopping online: Amazon.com Store Card. 5% back on Amazon purchases with a Prime membership. $10 Amazon gift card after approval. 0% deferred interest for 6-24 months on purchases. No annual fee. Fair credit needed.
• Best department store card: Target Credit Card. 5% off Target and Target.com purchases. Free 2-day shipping at Target.com. Extended 30-day returns. No annual fee. Fair credit needed.
• Best clothing store card: TJX Store Card. 10% off your first purchase in-store or online. 5 points per $1 at T.J. Maxx, tjmaxx.com, Marshalls, HomeGoods, Sierra Trading Post and sierratradingpost.com. No annual fee. Fair credit needed.
• Best office supply store card: Staples Credit Card. 5% back in rewards on Staples purchases. Free next-day delivery on $50+ orders. $2 in rewards for recycled ink cartridges up to 20 times per month. $20-$25 off printing and technical services each year. 0% deferred interest for 6-18 months on purchases. No annual fee. Fair credit needed.
• Best home maintenance store card: Lowe's Store Card. 5% off Lowe's purchases or 0%-7.99% deferred interest for 6-84 months. No annual fee. Fair credit needed.

Some of the best store credit cards to build credit with have “deferred interest.” Don't confuse this with a normal 0% offer, where you only owe interest on the balance remaining after your intro periods ends. With deferred interest, you must pay off your entire balance by the end of the promotional period. If you don't, you owe interest at the card's regular APR from the date of purchase instead.

It's also good to note that many stores offer co-branded credit cards. These are cards you can use everywhere, not just at the store. But they require at least good credit, so you'll have to build some credit before you can qualify.

The best everyday credit card is the Blue Cash Preferred® Card from American Express because it offers up to 6% cash back at supermarkets and 3% at gas stations and on transit. Plus, it rewards a $250 statement credit for spending $1,000 in the first 3 months. So, this card gives extremely high value in the most common everyday spending categories. And the bonus is easy to earn by charging just $11.11 per day for about 90 days. The Blue Cash Preferred® Card from American Express has a $95 annual fee.

The best credit card for everyday spending with a $0 annual fee is the PenFed Platinum Rewards Visa Signature® Card. It offers 5 points per $1 spent on gas and 3 per $1 on supermarket purchases. And for consumers who would rather have consistent rewards no matter what gets charged, one of the best everyday credit cards is the Citi® Double Cash Card. It gives 2% cash back on all purchases.

Here are the best credit cards for everyday spending:

• The Blue Cash Preferred® Card from American Express is the best everyday credit card for groceries because it offers 6% cash back on $6,000 spent per year at U.S. supermarkets, 6% cash back on select U.S. streaming subscriptions, 3% at U.S. gas stations and on transit and 1% on everything else. There's also a $250 statement credit after spending $1,000 in the first 3 months. This card has a 0% APR on purchases for 12 months. There's a $95 annual fee and good credit is required.
• The PenFed Platinum Rewards Visa Signature® Card is the best everyday credit card for gas because it offers 5 points per $1 spent on gas, 3 at supermarkets and 1 on everything else. It gives a $100 statement credit for spending $1,500 in the first 90 days. It also has a 0% APR on balance transfers for 12 months (3% transfer fee). The card charges a $0 annual fee and excellent credit is required.
• The Citi® Double Cash Card is the best everyday credit card for cash back because it offers 2% cash back on all purchases: 1% at the point of sale and 1% when the balance gets paid off. It has a 0% APR for 18 months on balance transfers (3% (min $5) fee). There's a $0 annual fee and excellent credit is required.
• The Costco Anywhere Visa® Card by Citi is the best everyday credit card for Costco members because it offers 4% cash back on the first $7,000 spent per year on gas, 3% on restaurant and travel purchases, 2% at Costco and Costco.com and 1% everywhere else. There's a $0 annual fee, but cardholders must have a Costco membership. Excellent credit is required.
• The Capital One SavorOne Cash Rewards Credit Card is the best everyday credit card for dining because it offers 3% cash back on dining and entertainment, 2% on groceries and 1% on all other purchases. There's a $200 bonus for spending $200 in the first $200. This card has a 0% APR on purchases for 15 months. There's a $0 annual fee and good credit is required.

If you're looking for a credit card with “Everyday” in its name, the best is the Blue Cash Everyday® Card from American Express because of its high cash back rate on groceries and gas, $100 initial bonus and 0% intro APR on purchases for 15 months. There are a few other great options, too.

2021's best “Everyday” credit cards are:

Blue Cash Everyday® Card from American Express – 3% back at supermarkets and 2% on gas

The Amex EveryDay® Credit Card from American Express – 2 points per $1 at supermarkets

Amex EveryDay® Preferred Credit Card – 3 points per $1 at supermarkets and 2 on gas

Citizens Bank Everyday Points® Business Mastercard® – 2 points per $1 on all purchases

There are lots of different types of everyday credit cards. You just need to find one with rewards that suit your everyday spending habits and a credit score requirement you can meet.

The best luxury credit card is Chase Sapphire Reserve® because it has an initial bonus worth up to $750 in travel, gives a $300 annual travel credit, and provides a complimentary airport lounge membership. But luxury comes at a cost, and Chase Sapphire Reserve charges a $550 annual fee. 

The most popular luxury card on the market is The Platinum Card® from American Express. It offers free membership to 7 major airport lounge networks, a $200 annual airline fee credit, and a $100 annual statement credit for Saks Fifth Avenue purchases. Plus, there's a 75,000 points initial bonus for spending $5,000 in the first 6 months and 5 points per $1 spent on flights and hotels. The annual fee is $550.

But the most famous of all luxury cards is the Centurion® Card from American Express. Also known as the “Black Card,” it's invite only, so not just anyone can apply. Not a ton is known about it other than that. Fortunately, there are plenty of other luxury credit cards to consider, too.

Best luxury credit cards:

1. Centurion® Card from American Express (“Black Card”)
2. Chase Sapphire Reserve®
3. The Platinum Card® from American Express
4. U.S. Bank Altitude Reserve Visa Infinite® Card
5. Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card
6. J.P. Morgan Reserve Credit Card

When you're comparing luxury credit cards, the devil is in the details. There are plenty of cards with luxury prices but pedestrian perks. So, you need to make sure the rewards and benefits that you get far outweigh the cost.

People who want to get a luxury credit card without shelling out a lot of money should consider the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card card. It offers top-notch travel rewards and only costs $95 per year. 

The best double points credit card has got to be Chase Sapphire Preferred, which offers double points on all travel and dining purchases. Quite a few cards allow you to earn 2 points per $1 spent on some or all purchases, but Preferred has the extra benefit of its points being worth 25% more when redeemed for travel. So you get the equivalent of 1.25% cash back on Sapphire Preferred's double-points purchases when you redeem for travel. And the card's massive 60,000-point initial bonus is worth up to $750.

There are plenty of other interesting double points credit cards, though. Amex Everyday and Capital One Venture are two notable options. And you shouldn't rule out Citi Double Cash or Capital One Venture's double miles, either.

HERE ARE THE BEST DOUBLE POINTS CREDIT CARDS:

• Chase Sapphire Preferred: Double points on travel and dining. You also get 1 point per $1 spent on everything else. Points are worth 1.25 cents each when used for travel. 60,000 point initial bonus when you spend $4,000 in the first 3 months. Multiple types of travel insurance included. $95 annual fee. Good credit required.
• Amex Everyday: Double points on $6,000 spent at U.S. supermarkets each year. You also get 1 per $1 on everything else, plus 20% more points when you use your card 20 times in a billing cycle. 10,000 point bonus for spending $1,000 in the first 3 months. Points worth 1 cent each toward travel. No annual fee. Good credit required.
• Capital One Venture: Double miles on all purchases. 60,000 miles for spending $3,000 in the first 3 months. Miles worth 1 cent each toward travel. $95 annual fee. Good credit required.
• Citi Double Cash: Double cash back on all purchases. You get 1% cash back when you buy something and 1% when you pay it off. 18-month 0% balance transfer offer. No annual fee. Excellent credit required.

Double points credit cards can give you an excellent return on your spending. And believe it or not, some cards, like Chase Sapphire Reserve, even offer 3 or more points per $1 spent on certain purchases. But the better a card's rewards are, the more demanding its approval requirements will usually be.