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The Best Credit Cards Have Three Things in Common
The best credit cards help you tackle your goals and priorities, they meet you where you are in life and they deliver value on your top expenses.
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Kenley Young Assigning Editor | Credit cards, credit scores
Kenley Young directs daily credit cards coverage for NerdWallet. Previously, he was a homepage editor and digital content producer for Fox Sports, and before that a front page editor for Yahoo. He has decades of experience in digital and print media, including stints as a copy desk chief, a wire editor and a metro editor for the McClatchy newspaper chain.
Erin is a former writer and assigning editor on the NerdWallet Content team who now heads NerdWallet's travel business. She's a credit card and travel rewards expert at NerdWallet, based in Baltimore, Maryland. She has spent nearly two decades showing readers unique ways to maximize their investments and personal finances. Prior to joining NerdWallet, Erin worked on dozens of newsletters and magazines in the areas of investing, health, business and travel with Agora Publishing. Her love of travel led to a passion for credit card and loyalty rewards to subsidize trips, and she thrives on teaching others how to harness the power of credit card rewards. When she's not helping NerdWallet readers find the best travel value, Erin is planning her next adventure for her family of four using points and miles.
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There's no such thing as the single "best" credit card; there's only the best credit card "for you." But in terms of finding that best fit, all of the best credit cards on the market share a few common traits.
When evaluating any credit card, consider how it fits with the following:
Before you can find the best credit card for you, ask yourself what it is you'd like to accomplish with one. There are basically three main kinds — credit-building cards, interest-saving cards and rewards cards — but within those categories are various subsets.
Some possible goals include:
Getting started with credit
If you have no credit history, or very little, consider cards designed for thin credit profiles. Some options:
Whether you're seeking points or miles with a specific airline or hotel, or you want general travel rewards that can be redeemed anywhere, you have many options:
The best credit cards meet you where you (and your credit scores) are in life. If you know what your credit scores are, you'll have a great idea of the kinds of cards you can reasonably expect to qualify for. The higher your scores, the better your credit card options.
But the best credit cards for you also tend to change over the course of your life, as your needs and circumstances also change. Here are some of the best cards for specific life stages:
Students
Merely being a student isn't enough to qualify for a student credit card; you'll need to be at least 18, and even then, if you're younger than 21, you'll have to show proof of independent income to get your own credit card. If you meet those standards, check out these cards:
Maybe you've recently moved in with a significant other — or maybe you've popped the question and are planning a wedding. Here are some helpful credit card options:
These credit cards are good picks for all kinds of business owners — from those with large office spaces and multiple employees, to those who work for themselves, to those who merely have a side hustle:
Medical bills can get expensive in a hurry, and running up a balance on a credit card to pay for them isn't necessarily ideal. But emergencies happen, and some cards do have features that can be helpful when used responsibly:
Amusement can take many forms: a night out, a live concert or play, a football game and more. If you frequently paint the town red, here are some cards that can help you wield that brush:
If your idea of a fun evening is cozying up on the couch with "Stranger Things" or the latest Marvel superhero flick, then look for a card that rewards you on eligible streaming services:
These are not comprehensive lists of possible credit card goals or lifestyles or spending habits, but the best credit cards for you will offer value in those areas. You may even find they offer secondary perks and benefits that come in handy, like insurance, purchase protection, zero-liability fraud policies, budgeting tools and more.
Plus, responsible use of credit cards — meaning paying them back on time and, ideally, in full every month — will help strengthen your credit profile, which can open doors to better rates on other financial products, like mortgages and auto loans.
To compare your options, see NerdWallet's list of best credit cards.
Whether you want to pay less interest or earn more rewards, the right card's out there. Just answer a few questions and we'll narrow the search for you.
