Best Metal Credit Cards

The J.P. Morgan Reserve Credit Card and the The Ritz-Carlton Credit Card reportedly tie for the distinction of heaviest credit card, weighing in at 1 ounce each. By comparison, most other metal credit cards weigh 0.5-0.7 ounces each. Plastic credit cards weigh about 0.17 ounces, or 5 grams, generally.

Heaviest Credit Cards List:

• J.P. Morgan Reserve Credit Card – 1.0 ounce
• The Ritz-Carlton Credit Card (no longer accepting new applicants) – 1.0 ounce
• Mastercard® Gold Card – 0.78 ounces
• The Platinum Card® from American Express– 0.63 ounces
• Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card– 0.56 ounces
• U.S. Bank Altitude Reserve Visa Infinite® Card – 0.56 ounces

But it's not the size of the credit card in the fight that matters; it's the size of the fight in the credit card. In other words, instead of getting bogged down by your credit card's counter appeal, focus on earning more rewards and paying less in fees. WalletHub's free CardAdvisor tool can help you find the right card for your needs.

You can get a custom metal credit card by sending your plastic credit card to a company that will convert it to metal. Lion Credit Card, Metal-CreditCard.com, and Card Ego will “upgrade” your plastic credit card or debit card to a metal card with a custom design in a sleek metal or 24K gold finish. The types of metals that can be used for these cards include chrome, silver, stainless steel and a host of alloys. There is a one-time fee of $159 to $169 for basic custom designs such as flags and logos. If you're willing to spend up to $200 or more, you can work with one of the companies' card designers to create your own fully customized metal card.

Companies that make custom metal credit cards will also offer to transfer your card's EMV chip and magnetic stripe data. There's an additional fee, typically around $29. Each company guarantees a safe and secure process, but this is still a risky move. That's because plastic EMV cards are produced with security measures built into the plastic body that may not replicate if the chip is transferred to a metal card body. Then, there's the risk of fraudsters copying your bank information from the card's less-secure magnetic stripe. To preserve your card's security, do not send your card to these companies.

Nowadays, you don't have to visit a third-party vendor to get a metal credit card. A number of issuers now offer metal credit cards to their customers. And they're no longer limited to super-elite, invitation only brands such as the American Express Centurion card. Some of the best metal cards include Chase Sapphire Preferred and Sapphire Reserve, Capital One Venture, American Express Platinum and Wells Fargo Propel. However, you will need good to excellent credit to get them. In some cases, you'll have to pay a hefty annual fee. Amex Platinum comes with a $550 annual fee; for Sapphire Reserve, it's $550. But at the other end of the spectrum, you can get Wells Fargo Propel for a $0 annual fee.

If you're wondering if you can customize a traditional metal credit card, the answer is no. Metal cards lack the ability to replicate colors or pictures that some issuers offer with plastic cards.

The best metal credit cards with no annual fee are the Wells Fargo Propel American Express Credit Card, the Apple Credit Card, and the Amazon Credit Card for Prime members. None of these cards have annual fees, and all three are made of metal. Wells Fargo Propel and the Amazon Credit Card both have attractive initial bonuses, plus good ongoing rewards in popular spending categories. The Apple Credit Card is most useful for Apple purchases.

So, if you love the sound of a metal credit card tapping on a surface, but don't want to pay a steep annual fee for it, you might be in luck. One thing to note is that all of these no annual fee metal credit cards require at least good credit for approval. If you aren't quite at the level of good credit, consider checking your credit score and making a plan to improve your credit standing. Eventually, you may qualify for one of these no fee metal credit cards.

Metal credit cards have proven to be quite popular, so new options are regularly being introduced. You can find the latest list of metal credit cards below, based on our analysis of WalletHub's database of 1,000+ credit card offers.

2021 metal credit cards list:

Thanks to metal credit cards being seen as more elite cards, they often have high annual fees and require good-to-excellent credit.

You should not attempt to destroy metal credit cards. If you request a replacement card or decide to close your account, the credit card company will likely send you a slip in which to return your old metal card when it mails you a new one. Or, they'll just ask you to mail the old metal card to a particular address, without providing an envelope or any such supporting materials. The issuer will then dispose of the card safely.

Procedures vary by credit card company. So you should call your card's customer service department to see how it recommends dealing with an unused metal credit card.

You definitely don't want to take a knife to a metal credit card or try to put such a card through a shredder. That's a recipe for a broken tool and perhaps a trip to the hospital. With that in mind, the bottom line is: Let credit card companies destroy metal credit cards so you don't have to.

Yes, Chase Sapphire Reserve® is a metal card. There's no plastic version, so there's no need to specifically request the card in metal when you apply. That's what you'll automatically get if you're approved for an account. While many people like the feel and aesthetic of metal cards, or see them as status symbols, those are the only benefits. Metal won't save you more money or keep your account any safer.

Plus, the Chase Sapphire Reserve® card costs $550 every year. So you really need to decide whether its terms make it worthwhile for you, metal aside. Let's go through Reserve's perks other than a cool design to help you make the right call.

Here's why to get the Chase Sapphire Reserve metal card:

• 60,000 points bonus for spending $4,000 in the first three months
• $300 annual travel credit
• 3x points on travel and dining
• 1.5 cents a point (50% extra) when you redeem through Chase's travel website.

You don't have to do anything special to get the Chase Sapphire Reserve® metal card once you're approved. But whether you should apply in the first place depends on how much you travel. It's mostly frequent flyers who will get enough value out of the Chase rewards program to make the $550 worth it. If that's the case for you, the metal card is just the icing on the cake.

You should also remember that the Reserve card is not the only metal option out there. Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card, The Platinum Card® from American Express, and Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card all come in metal.

Yes, the Amazon Prime credit card is metal, it is made of titanium.

Having said that, you shouldn't worry too much about what your credit card is made of; it's just a tool for making purchases and what matters the most is its terms.

The Amazon Prime credit card comes with a $0 annual fee. The Prime card also gives you better rewards (up to 5 points per $1 spent) and benefits than those offered by the regular Amazon.com Credit Card. However, you need to have an eligible Prime membership to get it.

Yes. Amex Gold is a metal card. The American Express Gold Card has been made of metal ever since Amex rebranded it from Premier Rewards Gold (PRG) in 2018. New Amex Gold applicants don't need to specify that they want a metal card, either – it's standard.

It's worth noting that regardless of the name “Amex Gold,” the Amex Gold card is not made of gold. But it is worth quite a bit in ongoing rewards. Cardholders get 4 points per $1 spent at restaurants (including takeout and delivery), plus 4 points per $1 on the first $25,000 spent annually at U.S. grocery stores. That's in addition to 3 points per $1 spent at airlines or on bookings through Amex Travel, and 1 point per $1 spent on everything else. There are also annual credits for dining and Uber charges, which, together, nearly pay for Amex Gold's $250 annual fee.

Capital One SavorOne is not a metal card. There are only two Capital One metal cards currently on the market, the higher-tier Savor card and the Venture Rewards cards.

Metal cards have become increasingly popular in recent years. Issuers have responded by offering more and more metal versions of its cards to go along with their standard plastic cards. Metal cards aren't quite the status symbol they once were, but they're still fairly difficult to get. To qualify for most metal cards, you'll need a minimum of good credit (score of 700+).

The best Chase metal credit card is the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card. This card is made of metal with a blue finish, weighs 13 grams, and offers 100,000 points as an initial rewards bonus. Cardholders also earn 1 - 2 points per $1 spent on purchases. At $95, the annual fee isn't too bad, either, considering all the rewards you get in return.

Chase has metal credit card offers for several types of applicants: The Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card for bonus travel rewards at a reasonable cost, the Chase Sapphire Reserve® for luxury travel perks at a high cost, and the J.P. Morgan Reserve Credit Card for Chase's high-net-worth banking clients. There are more Chase metal cards co-branded with popular hotels and airlines, too, including the IHG® Rewards Club Premier Credit Card.

Chase has more metal credit cards than any other issuer (Amex is up there too). All of Chase's metal credit card offers require at least good credit for approval, and some you need excellent credit to get.